One Book, Two Authors, and a CD-ROM
A CBSE school library in Nagpur uses AACR2R and a local database with fixed fields: author, title, publisher, year, pages. A retired teacher donates a third revised edition of a physics textbook. The title page reads: 'Concepts of Physics, 3rd rev. ed., R. Mehta and S. Kulkarni; edited by A. Deshpande.' The book has 512 pages, 24 cm, and a CD-ROM titled 'Student Resource Disk' in a pocket. The library has no MARC cataloguer and no separate media collection. Students search only by title. The librarian must decide main entry, added entries, physical description, and whether to catalogue the CD separately or as accompanying material. The accession register has one column for 'number of pieces'. The school auditor wants every item accounted for.
1. Prepare the main entry and added entries under AACR2R, and explain each choice.
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Under AACR2R, the main entry is chosen by responsibility, not by title-page prominence alone.
- Main entry: Mehta, R. (first author named). The rule for two authors is to enter under the first named, with the second in the statement of responsibility. Therefore the heading is Mehta, R.
- Title and statement of responsibility: Concepts of physics / R. Mehta and S. Kulkarni ; edited by A. Deshpande. - 3rd rev. ed.
- Added entries: Kulkarni, S. (second author); Deshpande, A. (editor, because the edited revision is a significant responsibility); and a title added entry for Concepts of physics.
- Edition: record '3rd rev. ed.' in the edition area. It matters because the library may already hold an earlier edition; without it, the catalogue creates a false duplicate.
- Why not main entry under editor? The editor is not the primary author of the intellectual content. The editor gets an added entry, not the main heading.
If the library's local database cannot show added entries, create duplicate author cards or a title index. A title-only OPAC would still find the book through the title added entry, but subject access would remain weak.
2. Give the physical description and recommend how to handle the CD-ROM so the auditor can account for it.
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Use a single record with an accompanying-material note, because the CD is pocketed with the book and is not a separate lending unit.
- Physical description: 512 p. : ill. ; 24 cm + 1 CD-ROM (4 3/4 in.)
- Note: 'Accompanying CD-ROM titled: Student resource disk.' Add a system requirement note if the disk states one, for example 'System requirements: Windows; PDF reader'.
- Accessioning: give the book the main accession number, say 4521, and the CD a sub-number, 4521-A. Enter '2 pieces' in the pieces column. This satisfies the auditor without creating a phantom second title.
- Processing: put a security strip on the CD case, not on the disk surface; keep the disk in the pocket; mark the pocket 'CD issued with book only'.
- When to catalogue separately: only if the CD has a distinct title and is issued separately, or if the library lends media separately. Here it is an integral accompaniment, so one bibliographic record is correct.
If the library later separates media, create an analytical record with a note 'Issued with: Concepts of physics' and link the two records. Do not silently discard the CD because the library has no media collection; that would break both accounting and user access.
3. The OPAC searches only by title. What practical cataloguing changes would you make so students can find this item by author and subject?
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The limitation is in the local database, not in AACR2R. The librarian should make the record richer within available fields and then lobby for a subject field.
- Author field: enter Mehta, R. as the main author and Kulkarni, S. as a co-author; if only one author field exists, put 'Mehta, R.; Kulkarni, S.' in a consistent order. Do not use 'et al.' for two authors.
- Title field: include the subtitle and edition statement if the field length allows, so a search for '3rd rev. ed.' or 'physics' retrieves the record.
- Subject field: add 'Physics - Textbooks' and 'Physics - Problems, exercises, etc.' if the disk contains exercises. If no subject field exists, create a printed subject index or a pathfinder for the physics shelf.
- Contents note: list the CD title in a note field; this is the only place students will see that the book has a disk.
- Authority control: use the same form of author name on all records, for example Mehta, R., not R. Mehta in one record and Mehta, R. in another. Consistency is more important than perfect MARC in a small library.
The test is whether a student who remembers 'Kulkarni' or wants 'physics textbooks' can retrieve the item. If the system cannot do that, the catalogue is a finding list of titles, not a catalogue.