Importing materials in the staff client

Evergreen exists to connect users to the materials represented by bibliographic records, call numbers, and copies -- so getting these materials into your Evergreen system is vital to a successful system. There are two primary means of getting materials into Evergreen:

• The Evergreen staff client offers the MARC Batch Importer, which is a flexible interface primarily used for small batches of records;
• Alternately, import scripts can load data directly into the database, which is a highly flexible but much more complex method of loading materials suitable for large batches of records such as the initial migration from your legacy library system.

Staff client batch record imports

The staff client has a utility for importing batches of bibliographic and copy records available through Cataloging > MARC Batch Import/Export. In addition to importing new records, this interface can be used to match incoming records to existing records in the database, add or overlay MARC fields in the existing record, and add copies to those records.

When to use the MARC Batch Importer

• When importing in batches of up to 500 to 1,000 records. 
• When you need the system to match those incoming records to existing records and overlay or add fields to the existing record.
• When you need to add copies to existing records in the system.

Record Match Sets

Click the Record Match Sets button to identify how Evergreen should match incoming records to existing records in the system.

Common match points used when creating a match set include:

• MARC tag 020a (ISBN)
• MARC tag 022a (ISSN)
• MARC tag 024a (UPC)
• MARC tag 028a (Publisher number)

1. On the Record Match Sets screen, click New Match Set to create a set of record match points. Give the set a Name. Assign the Owning Library from the dropdown list. The Match Set Type should remain as biblio. Click Save.
2. If you don't see your new set in the list, in the upper left corner of the staff client window, click the Reload button.
3. If you had to reload, click the Record Match Sets button to get back to that screen. Find your new set in the list and click its name. (The name will appear to be a hyperlink.) This will bring you to the Vandelay Match Set Editor.
4. Create an expression that will define the match points for the incoming record. You can choose from two areas to create a match: Record Attribute (MARC fixed fields) or MARC Tag and Subfield. You can use the Boolean operators AND and OR to combine these elements to create a match set.
5. When adding a Record Attribute or MARC tag/subfield, you also can enter a Match Score. The Match Score indicates the relative importance of that match point as Evergreen evaluates an incoming record against an existing record. You can enter any integer into this field. The number that you enter is only important as it relates to other match points. 
   
   
   Recommended practice is that you create a match score of one (1) for the least important match point and assign increasing match points to the power of 2 to working points in increasing importance.
6. After creating a match point, drag the completed match point under the folder with the appropriately-named Boolean folder under the Expression tree.
   
   
   
   
7. Click Save Changes to Expression.

Quality Metrics

• Quality metrics provide a mechanism for Evergreen to measure the quality of records and to make importing decisions based on quality.  
• Metrics are configured in the match set editor.
• Quality metrics are not required when creating a match set. 
• You can use a value in a record attribute (MARC fixed fields) or a MARC tag as your quality metric.
• The encoding level record attribute can be one indicator of record quality.
  
  
  

Import Item Attributes

If you are importing copies with your records, you will need to map the data in your holdings tag to fields in the copy record. Click the Import Item Attributes button to map this information.

1. Click the New Definition button to create a new mapping for the holdings tag. 
2. Use the Tag field to identify the MARC tag that contains your holdings information.
3. Add the subfields that contain specific copy information to the appropriate copy field.
4. Select the Keep box if Evergreen should keep this holdings tag in the record after it is imported. Otherwise, Evergreen will remove this holdings tag.
5. At a minimum, you should add a name for the definition, identify the MARC holdings tag, and add the subfields that identify the circulating library, the owning library, the call number and the barcode.
   

If Evergreen finds a match for an incoming record in the database, you need to identify which fields should be replaced, which should be preserved, and which should be added to the record. Click the Merge/Overlay Profiles button to create a profile that contains this information.

Evergreen comes pre-installed with two default profiles:

• Default merge - No fields from incoming record are added to match. This profile is useful for item loads or for order record uploads.
• Default overlay - Incoming record will replace existing record.