Introduction to the Cataloging Lab

Welcome to the Cataloging Lab! This is a place for anyone who cares about library cataloging to experiment with making our controlled vocabularies and classification better.

The Cataloging Lab was started to be a collaborative place to draft proposals for additions or revisions to LCSH. Learn more about the origin and impetus of the site in this Library Journal article. Over the years, it’s grown to host a number of crowdsourced lists as well. Some of the most popular lists are the list of statements on bias in library and archives description and the list of problem LCSH.

If you’d like to contribute to the Cataloging Lab, you are welcome to! To register for a new account, login, or reset your password, use the registration  link.

Your ideas for other ways the Cataloging Lab could be a resource for the library metadata community are welcome! For questions or comments about the Cataloging Lab, please use this contact form.

#critcat at #ALAmw19

Are you interested in discussing the ethical aspects of library classification and subject headings? If you’re attending ALA Midwinter in Seattle, you’re in luck, ’cause it’s a hot topic! Here are a few events I’d like to highlight at #ALAmw19:

This is not an official event, but Whitney Buccicone and I are hosting an LCSH Hack-a-Thon on Friday January 25th from 4-6 pm. It’ll be at the Seattle Public Library in the Wright-Keatcham Meeting Room (Level 4, Room 2).  We’ll be working to propose changes to Subject Headings during the event; it’s also a chance for face-to-face scheming, networking, and talking shop with other catalogers or cataloging enthusiasts! (FB event)

At the ALCTS Creative Ideas in Technical Services Interest Group, I’ll be co-leading a roundtable discussion on “Critical cataloging and faculty engagement” along with Mira Greene. Please join in the conversation Saturday January 26 from 4:30-5:30 pm! (Scheduler event)

During SAC II (that is, the second meeting of the Subject Analysis Committee), Richard Sapon-White will be presenting on “Improving Subject Access to Resources on Oregon Indian Tribes.” That session will be Monday January 28 beginning at 1 pm. (Scheduler event)

What other critical cataloging events will be happening at ALA Midwinter? Please let me know!