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Job or tool for extraction of related bibliographic records

We would like the ability to get a hold of or extract the related bibliographic records in bulk based on a set of (other) bib-records.

Alma already now automatically displays related records in "other details". We understand that the links are built based on bibliographic data in the MARC linking fields: 773, 774, 777, 786, 800, 810, 811, and 830 (subfield w,x,z).

An example of a related record is a title within a monographic series. In this case, the bib record for the single monograph has a 830 $w with the MMS-ID/system number of the superordinate bib record.

We would like exactly this function but not only for one title but for a set of bib records.

Use cases are:

  • Moving a part of our library to a different location or even library. We make the selection for the move based on items with a certain call number or location, but have trouble getting a hold of holdings which might belong to related bib-records but don’t have a permanent call number or a specific location.

  • When migrating from Aleph to Alma, a lot of sub- and superordinate bib records were not anchored in our Institution Zone, because they didn’t have inventory. However, they’re related to bib-records on superordinate (series) or subordinate (journal articles) level, which do have inventory. Now we need to find those related records in order to anchor them into our IZ.

We imagine, the easiest way would be to create a job, which exports all related bib-records based on a set of bib-records. Also an analytics-column, which displays all related MMS-IDs would work. The export should include the type of link (MARC field 773, 800, etc.) and all the other subfields of those MARC fields, so that we can sort the export list accordingly.

Since cataloguing hierarchical bib records is widely practiced all over the world and especially so in the German speaking regions, and since they’re part of the RDA cataloguing regulations, we are convinced, that this could be useful for many libraries.

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J. Collins (UBE, SLSP) shared this idea  ·   ·  Admin →
Planned  ·  AdminErez Shabo (Product Manager, Ex Libris) responded  · 

I would like to share an update on how this request is addressed using the recently introduced Alma custom bibliographic search indexes. This new infrastructure enables bulk identification and management of related bibliographic records by combining custom local search indexes with existing set based workflows.

Institutions can configure custom search indexes based on MARC linking fields, including 773 and 774. These indexes support subfield delimiters, allowing precise searching for identifiers stored in $w or $x, such as MMS IDs, system numbers, or other control numbers used to express relationships between records.

Using these custom indexes, staff can search across the bibliographic repository to identify related records and build logical sets based on the retrieved results. For example, identifiers from an initial set can be searched directly in the 773 or 774 custom indexes to retrieve bibliographic records that represent Part Of or Contains relationships.

The resulting records can then be saved as a logical set of related bibliographic records, supporting downstream Alma workflows such as export, review, anchoring into the Institution Zone, and collection management processes. The same approach can be extended by adding additional linking fields, such as 800, 810, 811, or 830, allowing institutions to expand the supported relationship types according to their specific cataloging and operational needs.

For more information on the Alma custom search indexes please refer to the Custom Bibliographic Search Indexes page.

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  • Petra Gratzl commented  · 

    @Erez Shabo: I'm not sure, if my last comment was noticed. Is there already a way to retrieve the IDs from a set and use them in a search within a custom index, e.g. 773? Or is this feature still being worked on?

  • Petra Gratzl commented  · 

    @Erez Shabo: Thank you for the update. Like many others, I imagine, we are eagerly waiting for this idea to be implemented. However, I’m not entirely sure how the "bulk" part of the idea is supposed to be implemented using custom indexes (which are indeed very useful!!) Of course, I can search for individual IDs using the custom indexes. But the answer doesn’t make it clear to me how, starting from, say, a set of records that I’ve created based on a library’s holdings, I’m supposed to get to the corresponding set of related records (linked via 773 08, 830,773 18). Or have I misunderstood the comment, and is Ex Libris still working on the bulk function?

  • Amanda Nagyl commented  · 

    Looking forward to this implementation! Hoping that values in MARC fields 76X-78X will also be reflected in Analytics.

  • Katie Dunn commented  · 

    We're also interested in this - commenting to follow.

  • Johanna Looft commented  · 

    Dear Mr. Shabo,

    these are great news! A very friendly colleague brought this to my attention.

    One further question: Will these new options also allow us to search specifically for data records without links? From time to time, we need to look for superordinate data records that no longer have any dependent records (and no items linked to them).

    Thanks a lot in advance.

    Yours sincerely
    J. Looft (UBK)

  • Ute Ristau commented  · 

    That's a great idea. When would the new index be available?

  • Barbora Drobíková commented  · 

    We need this functionality too and not only for the above-listed fields but for all linking fields 76X-78X.

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