Matching library holdings against GPO tapes: Issues, concerns, and solutions

Abstract

The availability of machine-readable cataloging records for U.S. documents in the form of GPO tapes presents libraries with an economically attractive and feasible means of providing full-bibliographic access to U.S. documents collections in their rapidly developing online public access catalogs. For selective depository libraries that do not receive all documents cataloged by GPO, however, a method for matching library holdings against GPO tape records remains a major concern. This study examines two methods currently in use (matching by item numbers and by SuDoc class numbers), comparing their accuracy and viability to an alternative method developed by the author, which utilizes specific Superintendent of Documents Classification (SuDoc) numbers assigned to individual titles as the matching element. The study also offers an innovative solution derived from the findings to effectively tag library holdings onto GPO tapes without labor-intensive manual verification of all titles matched.