Catalog Item Instructions | Quick / Fast Catalog

Occasionally, a patron will come to the circulation desk with an item that is missing a barcode, or one with a barcode that Aleph does not recognize (an "Unable to find item." message will be generated). If a patron is waiting to check out an item and you are certain that the item (a) belongs to UMBC, and (b) is a circulating item, then you add a brief catalog entry for the item so that it can be loaned to the patron.

1. If the item already has a barcode on it, attempt to scan the barcode again.  Make sure you are scanning it into the Item box, not the patron box.  Also make sure you have input the entire 14-digit barcode.  If it still does not recognize the number, proceed with the directions below.

2. If you cannot locate a barcode on the item, get a 314290… barcode from the roll under the printer desk, and put it on the top, front, left corner of the item (the same placement is used for barcodes on government documents).

3. From the Items menu, select Catalog Item and Create Record.

4. Select the “MAI01 - USMAI BIB” Library and click OK.

5. Fill out the Document Information tab (first tab). The following fields are mandatory:

   1. Title: main title from title page. No subtitle, no initial articles (a, the, etc). Capitalize first word and all proper names.

   2. Pub Date: year of publication only. Enter 19xx if the date is unknown.

   3. If possible, also complete the Author field (Last Name, First Name).

6. Fill out the Item Information tab (second tab). The following fields are mandatory:

   1. Item Barcode - Do this last! Scan the barcode.

   2. Sublibrary - choose "BC-BC"

   3. Item Status - choose "01 General Collection"

   4. Material Type - choose "BOOK"

   5. Call Number - enter the call number exactly as it appears on the book, with spaces and the year.

   6. Circulation Note - enter "Send to Cataloging", so that the book will be routed to them when returned.

7. Once both tabs are filled out, click OK. (If a mandatory field does not have a value, the system displays a red error message at bottom of the form and places the cursor in the field needing a value.)

8. A confirmation window called Barcode and Record Number will display.

9. Double-check title, call number, publication date, and barcode information. If something is incorrect, click Cancel.  Return to the form and fix it.

10. If correct, click OK.  The newly cataloged item will appear in the Item tab.

Now you can loan the item to the patron.