Student Regional Indexing Manual, Library Staff Manuals, Boreham Library, UA Fort Smith

Professional Catalogers Disclaimer: the practices herein are designed for this situation and the conditions under which the Regional Index must operate in order to exist. In other words, many "proper" practices are deliberately bypassed in order to get the work done with the minimum of training which time permits with a rapid turnover of student workers who must learn and do this for only a few hours per week. These practices are not intended as an example for anyone else and should not be compared to normal library standards and methods.

Executive Summary

The University of Arkansas - Fort Smith's library is currently indexing archival newspaper articles from the Southwest Times Record as well as several other local magazines. This project will provide easily accessible resources for the university students and for the general public who wish to research archival materials.

Students and librarians who are new to the system require a training period in order to index properly. Currently, they are learning as they work. This slows down the project and consistency is lost. There is a need for a training manual to assist in the project. The manual will encourage consistency and accuracy.

The training manual will teach student workers how to research the articles from the microfilm and microfiche, how to ascertain which news pieces are appropriate, and how to accurately enter this data into the computer database using the Library of Congress subject headings and other pertinent information.

List of Publications Indexed by the Library

Arkansas Etc.	May/June, 1992-Nov? Dec, 1992	complete indexing)
Entertainment Fort Smith	August, 2000-current	(complete indexing)
Fort Smith Etc.	May/June, 1991-March/April, 1992	(complete indexing)
The Journal. Fort Smith Historical Society	September, 1997-current	(major stories)
Southwest Times Record Newspaper	1998-1991 in progress 1992-July 1998 to be added August 1998-current indexed by the Fort Smith Public Library	(See SWTR criteria)

List of Articles Indexed

Articles relevant to the following will be indexed:

University of Arkansas and all former names
Local news stories
Pictures with captions if long-term interest
Awards (annual local area)
Industry and company information
Buildings (new and historical)
Editorials (very selective)
LeFlore and Sequoyah Counties (Okla.) (major stories only)

List of Articles Not Indexed

National news covered by online services and databases
Letters to the editor
Business announcements (staff changes, promotional releases)
Births and Deaths (Unless popular businessman, etc)
(see Fort Smith Public Library Genealogy web pages)
Weddings and engagements
Sports scores other than Westark, UA Fort Smith
National columns (advice, political, health, etc.)
Social events
Community announcements

Getting Started

Keystrokes:

ctrl/I	insert field
ctrl/d	delete field

Go to the microform cabinet and choose the proper month to index.

Attach microform to microfilm reader or printer.

Have paper and pencil available.

Scan each page of the newspaper, looking for appropriate articles.

Note each date, headline, author (if applicable), page and column numbers, and subject.

Once a month has been completed, enter the information into the MilCat database.

Enter date in 3 places (Cat Date, 092, 260)
Enter author if applicable (100)
Enter article title (245)

Note: the 245 field is followed by two indicator digits.
The first indicator is 1 if an author is present, 0 if not.

The second indicator is 0 for no leading article, 2 if the title begins with the article A, 3 if the article An, and 4 if the article The.
This will allow the title to alphabetize correctly.

Enter pages |bphoto (300)
Enter note if applicable (500)
Enter indexer's initials (541)
Enter personal name if applicable (600)
Enter subject (650)
Save record

Entering Information

Logon to MilCat Database:

click on Start
click on Programs
Select Cataloging and Scanning
click to load Keyboard Express
click on MilJava

Regional

Keyboard Express

When activated, Keyboard Express appears automatically in the right hand corner of the screen. The program allows you to save repetitive words and phrases as a key combination such as "alt+f" to pop in "|zFort Smith (Ark.)" This saves a lot of typing for geographical headings.

When adding a key macro, use combinations beginning with the ALT key. CTRL key combinations are often already in use by other applications.

To add a new key combination to Keyboard Express:

Right click the icon once to open the program
Click on Add Hot Key to create a new key
At the Select Hot Key window, highlight the keys to be used
Click on Enter Keystrokes
Enter the nickname exactly to match the keystrokes so the main window displays exact information.
Copy and paste the nickname into the Enter Keystrokes window
Highlight Nickname and press ctrl/c
Click into Enter Keystrokes window and press ctrl/v
Save using diskette icon
Change back to HotKey Explorer

To modify a key combination in Keyboard Express:

Highlight the key combination to change
Make changes to the Nickname and in the Enter Keystrokes window.
click on Update
save using diskette icon
Change back to Hotkey Explorer

Indexing a story

When indexing a story, there are a few simple guidelines useful in deciding which headline needs to be included.

Is the story local?
What is it about?
Who is it about?
Why is it important?
When did it happen?
Where did it happen?
How did it happen?

Indexing must provide enough information about the story for someone to find the article years later.

Examples of early citation without sufficient information:

February 2, 1988
Waiting begins for local man.
Southwest Times Record
A10: 4
Killian, James

(This story is incomplete because someone can only find it if they know the name of the person. This man had a heart transplant, so there should be a subject heading added for Heart Transplantation 1988.)

February 2, 1988
Council hires firm.
Southwest Times Record
A10: 4
City Council-Greenwood (Ark.)

(The name of the firm and what it was hired to do would make this entry more complete.)

Subject Headings

Here is an example of improper subject headings:

April 23, 1990
Juvenile officer says Satanism real in FS.
Southwest Times Record
A3: 4
Hicks, Robert
Police Dept-Satanism.

(Note: Fort Smith has a problem with Satanism; the Police Dept. does not.)

Correct indexing should be as follows:

April 23, 1990
Juvenile officer says Satanism real in FS.
Southwest Times Record
A3: 4
Hicks, Robert
Police Dept.-Fort Smith (Ark.)-1990
Satanism-Fort Smith (Ark.)-1990

To ensure accuracy in indexing, refer to the Library of Congress Subject Headings.
To create a proper subject heading:

Subject (1st position)	Subheading (2nd position)…can have more than one.	Geographic (3rd position)	Year (4th position)
Westark College	Academics Grading and marking (Students)	Fort Smith (Ark.)	1990

Example: Westark Community College|xAcademics|xGrading and marking|zFort Smith (Ark.)|y1990.

What does the article deal with? This is the subject of the article and should be the main, or first, position.

Subheadings

Subheadings are very important in breaking down subjects with many entries. For example, having 72 articles with the subject Lee Creek Project is confusing. Each article needs a more informative breakdown. Examples:

Lee Creek Project - Actions and defenses - 1989.
Lee Creek Project - Dams - 1989.
Lee Creek Project - Environmental Impact - 1990.
Lee Creek Project - Funding - 1989.
Lee Creek Project - Law and legislation - 1990.
Lee Creek Project - Letting of contracts-1989.
Lee Creek Project - Permits - 1989.

Punctuation is very important in headings and sub-headings.
Here are a few rules when indexing an article:

No period after parenthesis (Ark.)
Period after date is okay. |y1989.
Capitalization in subject headings:
- Proper names - Capitalize the first letter of each word.
  Air National Guard
  United Way
  Huckabee, Mike
- Library of Congress subject headings and subheadings: Capitalize only the first letter of the first word
  Refuse and refuse disposal
  Drug abuse|xPrevention
  Cherokee Indians|xRites and ceremonies
  Public schools|zFort Smith (Ark.)

Geographic Headings

Use the Keyboard Express to pop in the repetitive headings. The Fort Smith Regional Index covers many localities. To be sure of the city, county, or region in which a story takes place, use "|z" followed by geographic designation.

Alt+A	\|zArkansas
Alt+B	Alma (Ark.)
Alt+C	Crawford County (Ark.)
Alt+F	Fort Smith (Ark.)
Alt+G	Greenwood (Ark.)
Alt+L	LeFlore County (Okla.)
Alt+S	Sebastian County (Okla.)
Alt+V	\|zVan Buren (Ark.)
Alt+W	Westark Community College

Dates

Is there a date of importance to the Subject? As the database grows,it becomes more important to break up often- occurring subjects into manageable groups. Date grouping is one method. Try to end most subject entries with a date.

Christmas celebrations|y1988.
July 4th celebrations|y1989.
Westark Community College|xBasketball|y1990.

Book and movie reviews, compact discs, etc.

Add the following when appropriate:

|xBook reviews after the author's 600 10field
and |xBook reviews after the book's title in the 650 field

Kelley, Doug|xBook reviews
Captain's Wife|xBook reviews

Follow the same format for other types of reviews.
For title enhancements, add explanations in parentheses.
- Arkansas Razorbacks (Football team)
- Biloxi Blues (Motion Picture)
  Note: The story is about the filming of the movie, not a review.
- Curtain Up (Touring company)

Recurring Subjects

The majority of the stories appearing in the Southwest Times Record deal with a few recurring subjects. Rather than use strict Library of Congress subjects, we will index at the most local heading. Military units will not begin United States.|b or Arkansas.|b They will reflect the city.

City administration

Board of Directors|zFort Smith (Ark.)
Chamber of Commerce|zVan Buren (Ark.)
City Council|zGreenwood (Ark.)

City departments (notice that "Dept." is an abbreviation so always has a period):

Fire Dept.|zFort Smith (Ark.)
Personnel Dept.|zFort Smith (Ark.)
Police Dept.|zFort Smith (Ark.)
Street Dept.|zFort Smith (Ark.)
Water and Sewer Dept.|zFort Smith (Ark.)
Fort Smith National Cemetery|zFort Smith (Ark.)
Fort Smith National Historic Site|zFort Smith (Ark.)
Historic buildings|xBluebird School|zFort Smith (Ark.)
Historic buidings|xChester House|zFort Smith (Ark.)
Planning Commission|zFort Smith (Ark.)
Public Schools|zBarling (Ark.)
Public Schools|zSpiro (Okla.)
Sheriff|zSebastian County (Ark.)

Companies

Always spell out Company and Corporation but abbreviate Inc.

Baldor Electric Company
Rheem Air Conditioning Division
Rheem Manufacturing Company
Wal-Mart (Firm)
Whirlpool Corporation

example: Companies|xWhirlpool|zFort Smith (Ark.)|y1990.

Courts

Federal: District Court (Arkansas: Western District)

State: (only if some local aspect)
- Arkansas Supreme Court
- Court of Appeals|zArkansas
County:
Note: Sebastian County has 2 districts of chancery and circuit courts, Fort Smith and Greenwood.
- Circuit Courts|zFort Smith (Ark.)
- Chancery Courts|zGreenwood (Ark.)
- Justices of the Peace
- Juvenile Court
- Quorum Court
City: Municipal Courts

Military

F-16 Fighting Falcons.
(Associated with Air National Guard, but can be main heading.)
Air National Guard
Based at Municipal Airport. Not affiliated with Fort Chaffee.
Possible subheadings:

pre-1996 |x188th Tactical Fighter Wing

1996-current |x188th Fighter Wing

Source: Captain Fondren 573-5221; Karen Fletcher-Historian; Army National Guard
Coast Guard
Dept. of the Army|x101st Airborne Division
Dept. of the Army|xCorps of Engineers
Dept. of the Army|xJoint Readiness Training Center|zFort Smith (Ark.)
United States|bNational Guard

Only index under this heading if the story deals with troops coming from other locales, for example, troops training at Fort Chaffee.

Regional Index Fields

Field	Contains
092	January 1, 2002
100	Author Smith, John W.
222	Publication Name
245	Headline/ Title 04 The_ 03 An_ 02 A_
260	date of article \|cyyyymmdd
300	Pages\|bPhoto D7 A1:1 \|bPhoto
362	volume and issue Vol. (No.) 16(8)
440	Series
500	Note
541	Indexer initials
600	Personal name of subject (indicator 1, 0) Smith, Ralph E.
650	Subject (indicator blank, 0) \|xSubheading \|yYear \|zGeographic
700	Added entry (indicator 1, 0) \|ePhotographer \|eJoint Author \|eEditor

Templates

Templates make record creation easier. This allows the fields that will be the same for all records (such as all records for a given periodical on a given date done by the same indexer) to be automatically copied into each new record as it is created.

From the File option in MilCat, select Templates, and then Edit Templates.

enter the date of the article into Cat Date

enter the 092 field as month day, year

enter the 260 field subfield c year as |cYYYY

enter the 541 field with the Indexer initials.

Save the template. Now every time the New Record page icon is clicked, this information will pop in.

Note: New indexers often will create records in the template, and each time a story is added, the previous information is deleted. Be sure indexers understand Templates versus New Record creation.

pre-1996	\|x188th Tactical Fighter Wing
1996-current	\|x188th Fighter Wing