ALCTS Standards

Art & Architecture Thesaurus (AAT)​

Version/ID Code (if any): continuously updated

Governing Standards Agency: Getty Research Institute/de facto

The AAT is one of a suite of controlled vocabularies maintained by the Vocabulary Program at the Getty Research Institute in Los Angeles. It focuses on generic terms for the description of works of art, architecture, and material culture. The AAT is organized hierarchically within seven facets: associated concepts, physical properties, styles and periods, agents, activities, materials, and objects. The vocabulary may be searched one term at a time freely on the web, and is available for license in bulk. Available at:

http://www.getty.edu/research/tools/vocabularies/aat/index.html (search)

 

Audit and Certification of Trustworthy Digital Repositories

Version/ID Code (if any): Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems 652.0-M-1, ISO 16363:2012

Governing Standards Agency: Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems/ISO/de jure

Defines a recommended practice for assessing the trustworthiness of digital repositories. It is applicable to the entire range of digital repositories and can be used as a basis for audit and certification. Available at:

http://public.ccsds.org/publications/archive/652x0m1.pdf

 

Authoring and Interchange Framework for Adaptive XML Publishing Specifications

Version/ID Code (if any): ANSI/NISO Z39.98-2012

Governing Standards Agency: ANSI/NISO/de jure

Defines a framework in which to develop XML markup languages to represent different kinds of information resources (books, periodicals, etc.), with the intent of producing documents suitable for transformation into different universally accessible formats. It uses a modular, extensible architecture to permit the creation of any number of document models, each custom-tailored for a particular kind of information resource. Available at:

http://www.daisy.org/z3998/2012/z3998-2012.html

 

Book Industry Standards and Communications (BISAC)​

Version/ID Code (if any): 2011 edition

Governing Standards Agency: BISG’s Subject Codes Committee/de facto

BISAC is a subject vocabulary for books created by the publishing industry, specifically the Book Industry Study Group (BISG). It is arranged hierarchically and includes codes as well as textual labels for entries. BISAC is commonly used in bookstores and has been seen in action in Google Book Search. Available at:

https://bisg.org/page/BISACSubjectCodes (purchase)

 

Children’s Subject Headings (CSH)​

Version/ID Code (if any): continuously updated, print cumulation issued annually

Governing Standards Agency: LC Children’s and Young Adult’s Cataloging Program (CYAC)/ de facto

Children’s subject heading cataloging (formerly called the Annotated Card Program, or AC Program) provides data tailored to the needs of children and young adults who use school and public libraries. The headings used represent three categories: standard LCSH, modified LCSH, and headings established for exclusive use in children’s subject heading cataloging.  The list of headings (CSH) and guidelines for application are included as a separate section in the print edition of LCSH. Available at:

http://www.loc.gov/cds/products/product.php?productID=209 (purchase), http://authorities.loc.gov (search)

 

Cost of Resource Exchange Protocol (CORE) 

Version/ID Code (if any): NISO RP-10-2010

Governing Standards Agency: NISO/recommended practice

The purpose of this specification is to facilitate the transfer the exchange of cost and related financial information between systems. For example, these may be two systems within the same organization, such as an Integrated Library System (ILS) Acquisitions module and an Electronic Resource Management System (ERMS). Available at:

http://www.niso.org/workrooms/core

See also: Business Data Interchange

 

COUNTER Code of Practice for e-Resources

Version/ID Code (if any): Release 4 (published April 2012; implementation deadline: Dec. 31, 2013)

Governing Standards Agency: Project COUNTER/de facto

COUNTER provides an international, extendible Code of Practice for e-Resources that allows the usage of online information products and services to be measured in a credible, consistent and compatible way using vendor generated data. Replacing Release 3 for Journals and Databases and Release 1 for Books and Reference Works, Release 4 is an integrated Code of Practice that covers journals, databases, books, reference works, and multimedia content. After Dec. 31, 2013 only those vendors compliant with Release 4 will be considered to be COUNTER compliant. Available at:

https://www.projectcounter.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/APPH.pdf​

 

Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC)​

Version/ID Code (if any): 23^rd edition

Governing Standards Agency: OCLC/Dewey Editorial Policy Committee (EPC)/de facto

The Dewey Decimal Classification is primarily used in public libraries and is currently in its 23rd edition. Dewey divides knowledge into 10 primary classes, with further subdivisions possible in multiples of 10. A process of “number building” is used to read the Dewey schedules and construct a potentially long number combining different intellectual aspects of a resource. Available at:

http://www.oclc.org/dewey/

 

Demand-Driven Acquisitions of Monographs (DDA) ​

Version/ID Code (if any): NISO RP-20-2014

Governing Standards Agency: NISO/recommended practice          

Demand-Driven Acquisition (DDA) has become a common component of academic library collection development strategies, and is poised to expand to other types of libraries. There are a wide variety of ways in which DDA can be accomplished; this document provides an overview of those options and concludes with specific recommendations. Available at:

http://www.niso.org/workrooms/dda

See also: Collections

 

Digital Object Identifier System

Version/ID Code (if any): ISO 26324:2012

Governing Standards Agency:  ISO/de jure

A DOI name is an identifier of an entity—physical, digital or abstract—on digital networks. It provides information about that object, including where the object, or information about it, can be found on the Internet. The standard gives the syntax, description and resolution functional components of the Digital Object Identifier System. It also gives the general principles for the creation, registration, and administration of DOI names. Available at:

http://www.iso.org/iso/home/store/catalogue_tc/catalogue_detail.htm?csnumber=43506 (purchase)

 

E-Book Special Interest Group               

Version/ID Code (if any): N/A

Governing Standards Agency:  NISO Special Interest Group/special interest group

The SIG is comprised of dozens of participants from all parts of the NISO community: librarians, publishers, services for publishers, and software vendors. It is exploring a range of industry best practices and standards related to the creation, distribution, discovery, delivery and preservation of digital book content. The E-Book SIG is envisioned as being responsible for continuously monitoring and reviewing the state of the industry for e-books and suggesting areas for new initiatives within NISO or areas where NISO can engage with other communities on e-book work underway outside of NISO. The group will host thought leader meetings and commission relevant research to advance the state of the industry. Since membership will remain open, anyone may participate in the SIG via the Core group or the Observer/Monitor Group. Available at:

https://www.niso.org/standards-committees/e-book-special-interest-group​

 

Electronic data interchange for administration, commerce and transport (EDIFACT) -- Application level syntax rules

Version/ID Code (if any): ISO 9735:1988

Governing Standards Agency: ISO/de jure

EDIFACT is used to transfer electronic documents or business data from one computer system to another computer system, i.e. from one trading partner to another trading partner without human intervention. For example, invoicing information can be transferred from providers to library systems. Available at:

http://www.iso.org/iso/home/store/catalogue_tc/catalogue_detail.htm?csnumber=17592 (purchase)

 

Electronic Resources Management Initiative (ERMI)

Version/ID Code (if any): 2004

Governing Standards Agency: Digital Library Federation (DLF)/de facto

DLF ERMI provides common specifications for the management of license agreements, related administrative information, and the internal processes associated with licensed electronic resources. Available at:    

http://old.diglib.org/pubs/dlf102/

See also: Licensing

 

Environmental Conditions for Exhibiting Library and Archival Materials

Version/ID Code (if any): ANSI/NISO Z39.79-2001

Governing Standards Agency:  ANSI/NISO/de jure

This standard establishes criteria to minimize the effect of environmental factors on deterioration of library and archival materials on exhibit. Specific parameters are recommended for exposure to light, relative humidity, temperature, gaseous, and particulate contaminants, display techniques, and case and support material components. The standard is intended as a guide for librarians, archivists, exhibition designers, and others involved in preparing library and archival materials for exhibition. Available at:

https://groups.niso.org/apps/group_public/document.php?document_id=6480

 

Environmental Guidelines for the Storage of Paper Records

Version/ID Code (if any): NISO TR01-1995

Governing Standards Agency: NISO/technical report

This technical report suggests environmental parameters that influence the preservation and paper-based records in libraries and archives. Storage parameters addressed include temperature, relative humidity, exposure to light, gaseous contaminates, and particulates. Values and procedures for the various parameters are recommended. Available at:

https://www.niso.org/publications/niso-tr01-1995-environmental-guidelines-storage-paper-records

 

Establishing Suggested Practices Regarding Single Sign-On (ESPRESSO)​

Version/ID Code (if any): NISO RP-11-2011

Governing Standards Agency: NISO/recommended practice

ESPRESSO seeks to address the question of "perfecting single-sign-on (SSO) authentication to achieve seamless item-level linking through SSO technologies in a networked information environment." It recommends practical solutions and a path forward for improving the success of SSO authentication technologies for providing a seamless experience for the user and further aims to promote the adoption by campuses and service providers of a family of solutions to make the access improvements a reality. Available at:

https://www.niso.org/publications/niso-rp-11-2011-espresso-establishing-suggested-practices-regarding-single-sign​

See also: Electronic Resource Management, Identification

 

Faceted Application of Subject Terminology (FAST)​

Version/ID Code (if any): continuously updated

Governing Standards Agency: OCLC/de facto

FAST adapts LCSH vocabulary with a simplified syntax, to retain the rich vocabulary while making the schema easier to understand, control, apply, and use.  Individual terms in the FAST vocabulary are divided into eight distinct categories: personal names, corporate names, geographic names, events, titles, time periods, topics, and form/genre. Available at:

http://www.oclc.org/research/activities/fast.html

 

Format for information exchange

Version/ID Code (if any): ISO 2709.2008

Governing Standards Agency: ISO/de jure

Specifies the requirements for a generalized exchange format which will hold records describing all forms of material capable of bibliographic description as well as other types of records. It does not define the length or the content of individual records and does not assign any meaning to tags, indicators or identifiers, these specifications being the functions of an implementation format. The standard describes a generalized structure, a framework designed especially for communications between data processing systems and not for use as a processing format within systems. Available at:

 http://www.iso.org/iso/iso_catalogue/catalogue_tc/catalogue_detail.htm?csnumber=41319 (purchase)

 

Framework of Guidance for Building Good Digital Collections

Version/ID code: 3rd edition, 2007

Governing standards agency/standards type: NISO/recommended practice

Provides an overview of some of the major components and activities involved in the creation of good digital collections and provides a framework for identifying, organizing, and applying existing knowledge and resources to support the development of sound local practices for creating and managing good digital collections. It is intended for two audiences: cultural heritage organizations planning projects to create digital collections and funding organizations that want to encourage the development of good digital collections. Available at:

https://www.niso.org/sites/default/files/2017-08/framework3.pdf​

 

Functional Requirements for Authority Data (FRAD)

Version/ID Code (if any): 2009

Governing Standards Agency: IFLA/recommended practice

FRAD is a companion document to the earlier FRBR conceptual model developed by IFLA. FRAD expands on FRBR by adding additional attributes to each of the Group 1, 2, and 3 entities; a new Group 2 entity (Family); and new entities intended to support the authority control process (Name, Identifier, Controlled Access Point, Rules, and Agency). Perhaps the strongest promise of the FRAD model is support for multi-lingual catalogs that can display different forms of names for various entities depending on a user’s location or language preferences. In addition to expanded entities and attributes, FRAD defines a different set of user tasks for authority data than FRBR did for bibliographic data; here, the user tasks are: Find, Identify, Contextualize, and Justify. Available at:

http://www.ifla.org/publications/ifla-series-on-bibliographic-control-34

 

Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR)​

Version/ID Code (if any): 1998

Governing Standards Agency: IFLA/recommended practice

A conceptual model of the bibliographic universe, FRBR was created to better understand the user tasks catalogs can and should support, and to suggest how bibliographic data might be viewed in support of these tasks. The most commonly known features of the FRBR report are its four user tasks (Find, Identify, Select, and Obtain) and the Group 1 Entities which categorize the products of intellectual and artistic endeavors (Work, Expression, Manifestation, and Item). The FRBR report has other features as well, including Group 2 Entities representing the creators of Group 1 Entities (Person and Corporate Body), Group 3 Entities which are the subjects of Works (Group 1 Entities, Group 2 Entities, plus Concept, Object, Event, and Place), and minimal standards for national bibliographic records. Available at:

http://www.ifla.org/publications/functional-requirements-for-bibliographic-records

 

Functional Requirements for Subject Authority Data (FRSAD)​
Version/ID Code (if any): 2010

Governing Standards Agency: IFLA/recommended practice

The FRSAD initiative is intended to provide a more complete conceptual model for FRBR Group 3 entities in their role serving as the subjects of FRBR Works. The 2010 report abandoned the FRBR Group 3 entity structure (Concept, Object, Event, Place) in favor of conceptual entities (Thema) that are known by name tokens (Nomen). Available at:

http://www.ifla.org/node/1297

 

Guidelines for Alphabetical Arrangement of Letters & Sorting of Numerals & Other Symbols

Version/ID Code (if any): NISO TR03-1999

Governing Standards Agency: NISO/technical report

This technical report provides rules for the alphabetical arrangement of headings in list of all kinds, such as bibliographies, indexes, dictionaries, directories, inventories, etc. It also covers the sorting of Arabic or Roman numbers, and other symbols. It consists of seven rules that cover problems which may arise in alphanumeric arrangements of headings. The technical report is based on the traditional orders of letters in the English alphabet and that of the numerals is ascending arithmetical order. It does not address issues concerning meaning or type of headings. The rules can generally be applied by human begins as well as by computers. Each rule is followed by illustrative examples. Available at:

https://www.niso.org/publications/niso-tr03-1999-guidelines-alphabetical-arrangement-letters-sorting-numerals-other​

 

Guidelines for Information about Preservation Products

Version/ID Code (if any): ANSI/NISO Z39.77-2001

Governing Standards Agency: ANSI/NISO/de jure

Specifies the information that should be included in advertisements, catalogs, and promotional materials describing products used for the storage, binding, or repair of library materials, including books, pamphlets, sound recordings, videotapes, films, CDs, manuscripts, maps, and photographs. Available at:

https://groups.niso.org/apps/group_public/document.php?document_id=6510

 

Guidelines for Liaison Work in Managing Collections and Services

Version/ID code: March 2010

Governing standards agency/standards type: RUSA/recommended practice

Intended to help librarians identify library user groups in various types of libraries and to suggest ways these groups can be involved in collection services and issues. May also be used to identify objectives and continuing education opportunities for liaisons based on the mission statement and priorities of their institution. Available at:

http://www.ala.org/rusa/sites/ala.org.rusa/files/content/resources/guidelines/liaison-guidelines-3.pdf

 

Guidelines for Preservation Photocopying of Replacement Pages

Version/ID Code (if any): 1990

Governing Standards Agency: ALCTS/PARS/de facto           

Photocopied replacement pages are required when parts of original texts have been removed or lost. Photocopying also becomes necessary when an embrittled item can no longer be used without risking damage, and a paper copy replacement (rather than film) is desired and is not available from a commercial publisher. In each case, it is essential that photocopies be of the highest quality. This document provides necessary guidelines. Available at:

http://www.ala.org/alcts/resources/preserv/presvphotocop

 

Guidelines on Subject Access to Individual Works of Fiction, Drama, Etc. (GSAFD)​

Version/ID Code (if any): 2nd edition

Governing Standards Agency: American Library Association Subject Analysis Committee/de facto

The Guidelines constitute a recommendation for national standard practice in the provision of genre and subject access to individual works of fiction, drama, poetry, humor, and folklore in all formats. ALA Editions published the 2nd edition in 2000. It is out of print, but authority records for GSAFD terms can be downloaded from the GSAFD site at Northwestern University. Available at:

http://experimental.worldcat.org/gsafd/​

 

Guidelines on the Selection and Transfer of Materials from General Collections to Special Collections

Version/ID code: 3rd ed., 2008

Governing standards agency/standards type: ACRL/recommended practice

Notes on relevance: Materials located in a library's general collections may gain, over time, special cultural, historical, or monetary value. Librarians have a responsibility to identify and transfer these materials to a special collections unit to ensure that they remain accessible and that they receive an appropriate level of preservation and security. These guidelines provide an overview of the considerations regarding selection criteria and recommend procedures for an effective transfer policy. Available at:

 http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/selctransfer

 

Holdings Statements for Bibliographic Items

Version/ID Code (if any): ANSI/NISO Z39.71-2006 (Rev 2011)

Governing Standards Agency: NISO/de jure

The standard specifies display requirements for holdings statements for bibliographic items. This promotes consistency in the communication and exchange of holdings information for items in any physical or electronic medium. Available at:

https://groups.niso.org/apps/group_public/download.php/18121/Z39.71-2006_%28R2011%29.pdf​

 

Improving OpenURLs Through Analytics (IOTA)​

Version/ID Code (if any): N/A

Governing Standards Agency: NISO/project

Description: The OpenURL Quality Metrics Working Group -- otherwise known as IOTA -- builds on the work already underway to investigate the feasibility of creating industry-wide, transparent, and scalable metrics for evaluating and comparing the quality of OpenURL implementations across content providers.

Available at: http://www.openurlquality.org/

 

Institutional Identifiers (I2) Institutional Identification: Identifying Organizations in the Information Supply Chain​

Version/ID Code (if any): NISO RP-17-2013 

Governing Standards Agency: NISO/recommended practice

Description: The recommended practice defines the requirements for a standard identifier for institutional identification in the supply chain. It provides background on the collaboration agreement between the NISO I² Working Group and the International Standard Name Identifier (ISNI) International Agency to use the ISNI standard (ISO 27729) and the ISNI-IA's infrastructure for institutional identification, rather than publish a separate standard for institutions.

Available at: http://www.niso.org/workrooms/i2

 

Information Services and Use: Metrics & Statistics for Libraries and Information Providers Data Dictionary

Version/ID Code (if any): ANSI/NISO Z39.7-2004

Governing Standards Agency: ANSI/NISO/de jure

Description: Identifies categories for basic library statistical data reported at the national level and provides associated definitions of terms. Deals with the following areas: reporting unit and target population, human resources, collection resources, infrastructure, finances, and services. In addition, it identifies new measures associated with networked services, databases, and performance. Not intended to be comprehensive in scope, it presents a framework for comparable library data by describing common elements pertaining to libraries of various types in the US. It does not address detailed statistics for specific areas where it seems more appropriate for experts in those areas to make recommendations (e.g., music, government documents, maps).

Available at: https://groups.niso.org/apps/group_public/project/details.php?project_id=7​

 

Information Technology--automatic identification and data capture techniques--Code 39 bar code symbology specification

Version/ID Code (if any): ISO/IEC 16388: 2007

Governing Standards Agency: ISO/International Electrotechnical Commission/de jure

Description:  The technology of bar coding is based on the recognition of patterns encoded in bars and spaces of defined dimensions. There are numerous methods of encoding information in bar code form, known as symbologies. Code 39 is one such symbology. The rules defining the translation of characters into bar and space patterns and other essential features are known as the symbology specification.

Available at:  http://www.iso.org/iso/catalogue_detail.htm?csnumber=43897 (purchase)

See also: Identification

 

International Standard Book Number (ISBN)​

Version/ID Code (if any): ISO 2108:2005

Governing Standards Agency: ISO/de jure

Description: The International Standard Book Number (ISBN) is a unique international identifier for monographic publications. Published as an international standard and in wide use since the 1970s, it has been adopted in over 160 countries. Assigning an ISBN not only enables each publication to be uniquely identified but also enables rich product metadata to be associated with a particular publication record as well as the accumulation of sales data by specific title, edition, and format. ISBNs can be readily displayed as machine readable bar codes.

Available at: http://www.iso.org/iso/catalogue_detail?csnumber=36563 (purchase)

 

International Standard Music Number (ISMN)​

Version/ID Code (if any): ISO 10957.1993

Governing Standards Agency: ISO/de jure

Description: The International Standard Music Number identifies publications consisting of musical notation, whether for sale, hire, or gratis.

Available at: http://www.iso.org/iso/iso_catalogue/catalogue_tc/catalogue_detail.htm?csnumber=18931 (purchase)

 

International Standard Name Identifier (ISNI)​

Version/ID Code (if any): ISO 27729:2012

Governing Standards Agency: ISO/de jure

Description: The International Standard Name Identifier will enable the public identities of parties involved in media content industries to be uniquely identified so that they can be clearly disambiguated where otherwise there might be doubt. The parties to be identified may be involved in any stage of activity from creation to production, management, and content distribution chains and can be a natural or legal person, fictional character, or groups of such parties.

Available at: http://www.iso.org/iso/catalogue_detail?csnumber=44292 (purchase)

 

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

Version/ID Code (if any): ISO 3297:2007

Governing Standards Agency: ISO/de jure

Description: The International Standard Serial Number (ISO 3297) identifies serial publications and other continuing resources, whether available in print or digital formats.

Available at: http://www.iso.org/iso/catalogue_detail?csnumber=39601 (purchase)

 

International Standard Serial Numbering (ISSN) (Inactive)

Version/ID Code (if any): ANSI/NISO Z39.9-1992 (R2001)

Governing Standards Agency: American National Standards Institute/National Information Standards Organization/de jure (inactive)

Description: This standard defined the structure and presentation of a code to uniformly identify serial publications in print and nonprint formats. This standard set forth the format and characteristics of the ISSN and designated a central authority for code administration.

Available at: https://groups.niso.org/apps/group_public/project/details.php?project_id=35​

 

Journal Article Tag Suite (JATS)​

Version/ID Code (if any): NISO Z39.96-2012

Governing Standards Agency: NISO/de jure

Description: The Journal Article Tag Suite provides a common XML format in which publishers and archives can exchange journal content. The JATS provides a set of XML elements and attributes for describing the textual and graphical content of journal articles as well as some non-article material such as letters, editorials, and book and product reviews.

Available at: http://www.niso.org/apps/group_public/project/details.php?project_id=93

See also: E-Journals

 

Journal Article Versions (JAV) Recommendations of the NISO/ALPSP JAV Technical Working Group                      

Version/ID Code (if any): NISO RP-8-2008

Governing Standards Agency:  NISO/recommended practice

Description: The recommendations provide a simple and practical way of describing the versions of scholarly journal articles that typically appear online before, during, and after formal journal publication. Seven stages of article version are defined: Author's Original (AO), Submitted Manuscript under Review (SMUR), Accepted Manuscript (AM), Proof (P), Version of Record (VoR), Corrected Version of Record (CVoR), and Enhanced Version of Record (EVoR). The appendices include a set of use cases showing application of the recommended terms and a graphical representation of journal article versions and relationships with formal and gray literature. The publication is the result of a partnership between NISO and the Association of Learned and Professional Society Publishers (ALPSP).

Available at: http://www.niso.org/publications/rp/RP-8-2008.pdf

 

Knowledge Bases And Related Tools (KBART)​

Version/ID Code (if any): NISO RP-9-2010

Governing Standards Agency: NISO and UKSG/recommended practice

Description: A link resolver is a tool that helps library users connect to their institutions’ electronic resources. The data that drives links is stored in a knowledge base, the quality of which relies heavily on data that content providers (publishers, aggregators, etc.) send to the knowledge base developer. Errors in the data often propagate to the knowledge base. Because there is no standard format for the data, knowledge base developers expend considerable effort converting title lists from different providers to a single format, sometimes introducing additional errors or making error-checking difficult. The NISO/UKSG KBART recommended practice recommends best practices for formatting and distributing title lists which will greatly increase the accessibility of the products.

Available at: http://www.uksg.org/kbart

 

Library of Congress Classification (LCC)​

Version/ID Code (if any): continuously updated

Governing Standards Agency: Library of Congress/de facto

Description: The Library of Congress Classification is used primarily in academic libraries. It is divided into 21 basic classes, each of which starts with one or more uppercase letters. Full class numbers use a mixture of letters and numbers, with subtopics offset by a period. Libraries typically append Cutter numbers at the end of LC class numbers to create a full call number for physical shelving of materials. Classification Web is a web-based subscription service that provides full-text display of all LCC schedules as well as LC subject and name headings.

Available at: http://www.loc.gov/catdir/cpso/lcc.html and http://www.loc.gov/cds/classweb/ (both purchase)

 

Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH)​

Version/ID Code (if any): continuously updated, print cumulation issued annually

Governing Standards Agency: Library of Congress/de facto

Description: LCSH is a long-standing controlled vocabulary maintained by the Library of Congress, covering topical subjects, genres, and geographic places among other related areas of study. It is a pre-coordinated vocabulary, built upon the principle of literary warrant. Libraries can contribute new terms for consideration via the SACO initiative. Despite its function as a controlled vocabulary, LCSH is not a fully enumerated list, allowing the presence of “standard subdivisions” on explicitly authorized terms according to human-readable rules. With the development of a new service, http://id.loc.gov, that makes Library of Congress-hosted vocabularies available to machine applications, LCSH and other vocabularies are now more readily available to applications outside the library community and especially outside the cultural heritage community.

Available at: http://www.loc.gov/cds/products/product.php?productID=209 (purchase), http://authorities.loc.gov (search)

 

Making Good on the Promise of ERM: A Standards and Best Practices Discussion Paper            

Version/ID Code (if any): 2012

Governing Standards Agency: NISO/discussion paper

Description: “Making Good on the Promise of ERM” is the report of the ERM Data Standards and Best Practices Review Working Group.  The analysis began with a review of the ERMI data dictionary as it presently exists and a mapping of ERMI data elements to those within relevant standards-related projects (e.g., CORE, SUSHI, ONIX-PL, etc.). Vendors, libraries using ERM systems, and other identified stakeholders were consulted via surveys and/or more in-depth interviews to solicit additional feedback concerning data requirements and ERM system implementation and management issues. Following the analysis, the working group developed recommendations regarding the future of the ERMI data dictionary within that broader context, described typical challenges libraries face in using currently available ERM systems and services, and identified gaps in interoperability and best practices.

Available at: https://groups.niso.org/apps/group_public/document.php?document_id=7946​

 

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)​

Version/ID Code (if any): revised annually

Governing Standards Agency: National Library of Medicine/de facto

Description: MeSH is produced by the US National Library of Medicine for the description of biomedical journal literature, books, and other formats collected by the Library. It is also used for subject indexing in the PubMED database. The MeSH vocabulary contains a full syndetic structure of broader, narrower, and “use for” terms. The full vocabulary is available online for individual searches and downloads in XML and ASCII formats.

Available at: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/

 

Metadata Authority Description Schema (MADS)​

Version/ID Code (if any): 2.0

Governing Standards Agency: Library of Congress Network Development & MARC Standards Office/de facto

Description: MADS is a companion to MODS, intended to encode authority data that is referenced by MODS bibliographic records. The structure and design of MADS are heavily influenced by the MARC Authority format. As such, it provides for the encoding of headings and cross references traditionally established by the library community, including personal names, corporate names, name/title entries, title entries, subject, genres, and geographic places. While MADS allows for more of a complete description of an entity than MARC Authority does, it still retains a focus on documenting and justifying choice of headings. MADS elements use the same name as MODS elements whenever feasible. MADS is maintained by the Library of Congress, and its content is managed by the MODS/MADS Editorial Committee.

Available at: http://www.loc.gov/standards/mads/

 

NISO SUSHI Protocol: COUNTER-SUSHI Implementation Profile

Version/ID Code (if any): NISO RP-14-2012

Governing Standards Agency: NISO/recommended practice

Description: The recommended practice defines a practical implementation structure to be used in the creation of reports and services related to harvesting COUNTER reports using the NISO SUSHI (Standardized Usage Statistics Harvesting Initiative) Protocol.

Available at: https://groups.niso.org/apps/group_public/document.php?document_id=9495

 

ONIX for Books Product Information Message​

Version/ID Code (if any): Release 3.0 is current

Governing Standards Agency:  EDItEUR/trade

Description: The international standard for representing and communicating book industry product information in electronic form.

Available at: http://www.editeur.org/83/Overview/

 

ONIX for Licensing Terms (OLT)​

Version/ID Code (if any): N/A

Governing Standards Agency: EDItEUR/trade

Description: The generic name for parts of the ONIX family dealing with licensing terms and rights information. Includes: ONIX-PL (ONIX for Publications Licenses), ONIX-RS (ONIX for Rights Information Services), and ONIX for RROs (Reproduction Rights Organizations), and Royalty Reporting. Built on a consistent underlying model of rights and usages, OLT formats are specialized to the needs of different user groups and applications.

Available at: http://www.editeur.org/85/Overview/

See also: Licensing

 

ONIX for Preservation Holdings (ONIX-PH)​

Version/ID Code (if any): Version 0.21 Draft

Governing Standards Agency: EDItEUR/trade

Description: The ONIX for Preservation Holdings format is designed for structured, machine-to-machine communications about online resources that have been preserved or committed for preservation. Although initially formulated with online journals in mind, the format can also accommodate information about other kinds of resource, such as e-books, e-book collections, or online databases, as these gain importance in the library supply chain.

Available at: http://www.editeur.org/127/ONIX-PH/

See also: Holdings, Preservation Metadata

 

ONIX for Price Catalog (ONIX-PC)​

Version/ID Code (if any): Version 1.1.1

Governing Standards Agency: EDItEUR/trade

Description: An XML message structure for communicating product catalog and pricing information about subscription products. ONIX-PC may be used between publishers, subscription agents, other intermediaries, and library or consortium customers in the library supply chain. The message provides comprehensive facilities to convey simple and complex pricing models, including tiered pricing arrangements that are based upon some measures of the size of the purchasing customer. All types of products available on subscription are supported, from the more traditional print and online journals, through multi-component packaged products to e-book collections and database products.

Available at: http://www.editeur.org/126/ONIX-PC/

See also: Collections

 

ONIX-PL/ONIX for Publications Licenses​

Version/ID Code (if any): v1.0

Governing Standards Agency: EDItEUR/NISO/trade

Description: ONIX for Publications Licenses (ONIX-PL) is part of a family of XML formats for the communication of licensing terms under the generic name ONIX for Licensing Terms. ONIX-PL is specialized to handle the licenses under which libraries and other institutions use digital resources, particularly but by no means exclusively electronic journals.

Available at: http://www.editeur.org/21/ONIX-PL

See also: Licensing

 

ONIX for Serials (family of formats)

Version/ID Code (if any): N/A

Governing Standards Agency: EDItEUR/trade

Description: ONIX for Serials is a family of XML formats for communicating information about serial products and subscription information, using the design principles and many of the elements defined in ONIX for Books. The specific standards include: SPS (Serials Products and Subscriptions), SOH (Serials Online Holdings), SRN (Serials Release Notification), Serials Coverage Statement, and Structured Name and Address Model.

Available at: http://www.editeur.org/17/ONIX-for-Serials/

 

Permanence of Paper for Publications and Documents in Libraries and Archives​

Version/ID Code (if any): ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 (R2009)

Governing Standards Agency: ANSI/NISO/de jure

Description: This standard establishes criteria for coated and uncoated paper that will last several hundred years without significant deterioration under normal use and storage conditions in libraries and archives. This standard identifies the specific properties of such paper and specifies the tests required to demonstrate these properties.

Available at: https://www.niso.org/publications/z3948-1992-r2009-permanence-paper

 

Physical Delivery of Library Resources​

Version/ID Code (if any): NISO RP-12-2012

Governing Standards Agency: NISO/recommended practice

Description: The purpose of this document is to recommend practices about the physical movement of items during the delivery of the items to the requesting library and their return to the lending library. The recommendations in this document focus on the movement of the physical items (e.g., books and audiovisual materials) between libraries and between library and patron. This Recommended Practice focuses on three key areas: the physical move, automation, and the management of physical delivery.

Available at: https://www.niso.org/publications/niso-rp-12-2012-physical-delivery-library-resources

 

Presentation & Identification of E-Journals (PIE-J)​

Version/ID Code (if any): NISO RP-16-2013 

Governing Standards Agency:  NISO/recommended practice

Description: PIE-J offers guidance to e-journal publishers and providers that will help ensure that e-journal content can be reliably discovered, cited, and accessed by users over time. These recommended practices have a deliberately narrow focus on e-journals, whether born digital or retroactively digitized and focus on only those elements of an e journal that relate to the presentation of title information and supporting metadata, plus practices related to title identification and content access over time.       

Available at: https://www.niso.org/publications/rp-16-2013-pie-j

 

PIRUS Code of Practice

Version/ID Code (if any): Release 1, November 2012 (draft for public consultation, available for comment until 30 April 2013)

Governing Standards Agency:  COUNTER/standard in development

Description: A COUNTER standard for the recording, reporting, and consolidation of usage statistics at the individual article level.

Available at: http://beta.projectcounter.org/documents/Pirus_cop_OCT2013.pdf​

 

PIRUS2

Version/ID Code (if any): October 2011

Governing Standards Agency: UK Joint Information Systems Committee/de jure

Description: The objective of PIRUS2 was to specify standards, protocols, an infrastructure and an economic model for the recording, reporting and consolidation of online usage of individual articles hosted by repositories, publishers, and other entities.

Available at: http://www.cranfieldlibrary.cranfield.ac.uk/pirus2/tiki-index.php

 

Resource Description and Access (RDA)​

Version/ID Code (if any): 2010 with updates

Governing Standards Agency: Joint Steering Committee for Development of RDA/ad hoc-de facto

Description: RDA is intended to replace AACR2 as the predominant content standard in the library community. It is intended to be useful beyond the library community as well. While primarily focused on descriptive metadata, some instructions cover technical, rights, and structural metadata. RDA pushes the boundaries of a content standard, referring to sets of rules as “elements” which makes it closer to a structure standard than AACR2. Different communities will likely find either RDA’s rules aspect or its data element aspect more interesting than the other. RDA element sets and value vocabularies have been registered in the Open Metadata Registry (http://rdvocab.info/). The initial version of RDA was released in the summer of 2010 and included placeholders for several planned chapters.

Available at: http://rdatoolkit.org/ (purchase) https://www.loc.gov/aba/ (free)

A new beta toolkit was released in 2018: https://www.rdatoolkit.org/3Rproject/

Recommended Practices for Online Supplemental Journal Article Materials

Version/ID code: NISO RP-15-2013

Governing standards agency/standards type: NISO/NFAIS/recommended practice

Notes on relevance: This joint project from NISO and NFAIS (the National Federation of Advanced Information Services) offers recommended practices intended to help the scholarly publishing community develop a more standardized approach to publishing what has become known as Supplemental Materials for Journal Articles in a rapidly changing technology environment. The intent is to lessen the burden on all of the parties engaged in the publishing process, to ensure that Supplemental Materials delivered in connection with journal articles add substance to scholarship, to make Supplemental Materials more discoverable, and to aid in preserving them. Two working groups developed Parts A and B of the recommended practice. Part A deals with business policies and practices, while Part B involves technical considerations and implementation recommendations.

Available at: https://groups.niso.org/apps/group_public/download.php/10055/RP-15-2013_Supplemental_Materials.pdf​

 

ResourceSync

Version/ID Code (if any): Working Group in progress (Beta draft, Feb. 2013)

Governing Standards Agency:  NISO and Open Archives Initiative (OAI)/initiative

Description: ResourceSync will research, develop, prototype, test, and deploy mechanisms for the large-scale synchronization of web resources.  Building on the OAI-PMH strategies for synchronizing metadata, this project will enhance that specification using modern web technologies but will allow for the synchronization of the objects themselves, not just their metadata.

Available at: http://www.openarchives.org/rs/0.5/resourcesync

 

RFID in Libraries - Part 1, Data elements and guidelines for implementation

Version/ID Code (if any): ISO 28560-1:2011

Governing Standards Agency:  ISO/de jure

Description: Specifies a model for the use of radio frequency identification (RFID) tags for items appropriate for the needs of all types of libraries, including academic, public, corporate, special and school. It provides the framework to ensure interoperability between libraries in exchange of library items with RFID tags, the freedom of the library to acquire or renew equipment or library items from different vendors and interoperability of a single RFID application from the vendor’s perspective.

Available at: http://www.iso.org/iso/home/store/catalogue_tc/catalogue_detail.htm?csnumber=50996 (purchase)

 

RFID in US Libraries

Version/ID Code (if any): NISO RP-6-2012

Governing Standards Agency:  NISO/ recommended practice

Description: Provides recommendations for implementing RFID in US libraries in a manner that will promote interoperability. It includes a recommended data model and discussions of security, tag migration, the book supply chain, privacy, and vandalism. It serves as a US profile to the three-part international standard ISO 28560, RFID in Libraries. All sections of the original 2008 document have been reviewed and updated to reflect changes in practices for protection of personal privacy, support advanced functionality, facilitate security, protect against vandalism, and allow the RFID tag to be used in the entire lifecycle of the book and other library materials.

Available at: https://www.niso.org/publications/niso-rp-6-2012-rfid-us-libraries

 

Search and Retrieval Citation Level Data Elements

Version/ID Code (if any): NISO RP-2005-03 (Version 1)

Governing Standards Agency: NISO/recommended practice

Description: The documents offer a minimum set of required citation level data elements that have been identified to overcome the lack of standardization in the way a citation is formatted in a record returned by a metasearch engine. Use of these data elements will allow citation information to be parsed for re-use in applications such as OpenURL linking and metadata formats such as Dublin Core.

Available at: https://www.niso.org/sites/default/files/2017-08/RP-2005-03.pdf​

 

Sears List of Subject Headings

Version/ID Code (if any): 20^th edition

Governing Standards Agency: H. W. Wilson/de facto

Description: The Sears List of Subject Headings is a general-use controlled vocabulary for describing library collections, geared towards smaller public and school libraries. It includes topical, form, and geographic headings as well as proper names. Like LCSH, the Sears List uses a pre-coordinated structure, but its terminology is intentionally more generic and less specialized.

Available at: http://www.hwwilsoninprint.com/sears.php (purchase)

 

Shared Electronic Resource Understanding (SERU)

Version/ID Code (if any): NISO RP-7-2012

Governing Standards Agency: NISO/recommended practice

Description: A mechanism that can be used as an alternative to a license agreement. SERU expresses commonly shared understandings of the content provider, the subscribing institution, and authorized users; the nature of the content; use of materials and inappropriate uses; privacy and confidentiality; online performance and service provision; and archiving and perpetual access.

Available at: http://www.niso.org/publications/rp/RP-7-2012_SERU.pdf

 

Simple Knowledge Organization System (SKOS)​

Version/ID Code (if any): N/A

Governing Standards Agency: W3C Recommendation 18 August 2009/recommended practice

Description: SKOS is a Semantic Web-driven method of encoding structured vocabularies in RDF. The RDF SKOS vocabulary focuses on describing concepts, which are represented by terms, and documenting relationships between concepts. SKOS-encoded data is a key building block in the Semantic Web’s Linked Data movement. While SKOS can be used for encoding thesauri like those commonly used in the cultural heritage community, it fits less well for other types of controlled vocabularies common in this community, such as name authorities. A high-profile use of SKOS in the cultural heritage community is the LC Linked Data Service Authorities and Vocabularies service: http://id.loc.gov.

Available at: http://www.w3.org/2004/02/skos/

 

Specifications for the Digital Talking Book

Version/ID Code (if any): ANSI/NISO Z39.86-2005 (Rev. 2012)

Governing Standards Agency: NISO/de jure

Description: The standard defines the format and content of the electronic file set that comprises a digital talking book (DTB) and establishes a limited set of requirements for DTB playback devices.

Available at: https://www.niso.org/publications/ansiniso-z3986-2005-r2012-specifications-digital-talking-book

 

Standardized Usage Statistics Harvesting Initiative Protocol (SUSHI) ​

Version/ID Code (if any): ANSI/NISO Z39.93-2014/de jure

Governing Standards Agency: American National Standards Institute/National Information Standards Organization/de jure

Description: This standard defines an automated request and response model for the harvesting of electronic resource usage data utilizing a Web services framework that can replace the user-mediated collection of usage data reports.

Available at: https://www.niso.org/standards-committees/sushi​

 

Thesaurus of Geographic Names (TGN)​

Version/ID Code (if any): continuously updated

Governing Standards Agency: Getty Research Institute/de facto

Description: TGN is a structured vocabulary for place names and associated information about places. Places in TGN include administrative political entities (e.g., cities, nations) and physical features (e.g., mountains, rivers). Current and historical places are included.

Available at: http://www.getty.edu/vow/TGNSearchPage.jsp (search)

 

Transfer Code of Practice

Version/ID Code (if any): Version 2.0

Governing Standards Agency:  NISO

Description: Transfer outlines a set of guidelines for the transfer of ownership of a journal from one publisher to another.  It is meant to provide for a smooth transition and to offer some protection of the rights of the subscriber to the paid for content.

Available at: http://www.uksg.org/Transfer/Code

 

Uniform Symbology Specification-Codabar

Version/ID Code (if any): ANSI/AIM BC3-1995

Governing Standards Agency: ANSI/AIM/de jure

Description: Codabar is a library-specific barcode that utilizes a 14 character numeric label.

Available at:  https://aimglobal.site-ym.com/store/ViewProduct.aspx?id=1586895  (purchase)

 

Universal Machine Readable Cataloging (UNIMARC)​

Version/ID Code (if any): 1977 with revisions by format through 2005

Governing Standards Agency: IFLA/de jure

Description: UNIMARC was developed to facilitate the international exchange of bibliographic data in machine-readable form. It is an international MARC format which accommodates various national MARC records, acting as a sort of “backbone format.” It is actually comprised of a family of formats: Bibliographic, authorities, classification and holdings.

Available at: https://archive.ifla.org/ubcim/p1996-1/unimarc.htm​