Penn State University Libraries - Conferences

There are three categories of conference entries: named conferences, conferences entered under a corporate body, and unnamed conferences.

Named Conference (X11)

1. A named conference will nearly always have topical words within its name that give an idea of the subject of the meeting. For example: Data Communications Symposium
2. Initialisms or proper names will often be a part of the conference name. For example: FAO Hybrid Maize Conference
3. Keywords in the conference name are nearly always capitalized (except in languages that do not capitalize corporate names).
4. The conference name is often stylized.
5. A named conference will usually contain a definite article (the) rather than an indefinite article (a, an). For example: Proceedings of the 2nd Soviet-Italian Symposium on Weak Superconductivity
6. The conference name nearly always contains a meeting keyword.
7. The name should be able to be read as a phrase. For example: First World Energy Conference

Conference Entered Under a Corporate Body (X10)

1. Is a regular meeting of the corporate body
2. Contains business of the corporate body or its proceedings, collected papers, etc.
3. Contains a generic meeting keyword and the conference name is not distinctive on its own. For example: ALA Winter Meeting vs. Symposium on Amino Acids
4. Lacks a specific topic. Note that the title of the item will probably be distinctive but the conference name will be generic (e.g. meeting). For example:

110 2   American Society of Mechanical Engineers.|bWinter Meeting|d(2006 :|cChicago, Ill.)
245 10 New directions in the nondestructive evaluation of advanced materials :|bpresented at the Winter Annual Meeting of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Chicago, Ill.

Unnamed Conference (no entry)

1. Does not meet the criteria for a named conference or for a conference entered under a corporate body.
2. Conference “name” consists of a meeting keyword only.
3. Title proper of the item often gives no indication that it relates to a conference. Example t.p.:

Meiotic Inhibition
Molecular Control of Meiosis
Proceedings of a symposium held at the National Institutes of Health
Bethesda, Maryland, January 2006

Conference publications pose a dilemma to the cataloger. Cataloging all issues as a serial saves time; however, information specific to each conference must be omitted. Cataloging each issue as a monograph is more time consuming; however, the number, date, and place of the conference, sponsors, "distinctive" or theme titles, and subject headings specific to the theme of the conference may be provided.

Refer the following for serial decisions (note: each of these situations suggests the conference has an ongoing nature):

1. Conferences with a stated frequency of occurrence. For example:
   Proceedings / IEEE Annual Conference on Micro Electro Mechanical Systems
   Proceedings of the biennial conference / Institute for Briquetting and Agglomeration
2. Numbered conferences. For example:
   First International Conference on Environmental Remediation
3. Multiple successive issues (either items themselves or monographic copy records) that show the conference is ongoing

LC/PCC policy is outlined by LCRI 1.0. It limits serial treatment to ongoing conference publications that do not have unique titles and/or are not part of a numbered monographic series. CONSER policy varies slightly, inclining toward serial treatment of all ongoing conferences with stable names and titles even if they also have distinctive (additional) “theme” titles. This difference should help you to understand why copy can vary so widely. In cases of doubt, it is better to refer than not.

Always start in the Cat, continue your search in OCLC if necessary. Two types of searches you want to be sure to try are:

Statements of frequency (such as Annual) are omitted from conference entries, so don’t include such words in your searches. Also omit conference numbering from your search terms. For example, search: 5th Biennial Conference on Human Language Technology Research, as: Conference on Human Language Technology Research.

Browsing by author rather than title can be a more effective means of collating copy. Transcription of title information may vary among cataloging institutions. For example, the following t.p.

ACM SIGGRAPH Symposium on Computer Animation
Proceedings of the 12th Symposium
Memphis, Tennessee
March 11-13, 1998

Might be found cataloged in any or all of the following ways:

111 2   ACM SIGGRAPH Symposium on Computer Animation|n(12th :|d1998 :|cMemphis,Tenn.)
245 10 ACM SIGGRAPH Symposium on Computer Animation :|bproceedings of the 12th symposium : Memphis, Tennessee, March 11-13, 1998.

111 2   ACM SIGGRAPH Symposium on Computer Animation|n(12th :|d1998 :|cMemphis,Tenn.)
245 10 Proceedings of the 12th symposium :|bMemphis, Tennessee, March 11-13, 1998 /|cACM SIGGRAPH Symposium on Computer Animation.

111 2   ACM SIGGRAPH Symposium on Computer Animation.
245 10 Proceedings of the ... symposium /|cACM SIGGRAPH Symposium on Computer Animation.

A browse title search would not retrieve all of these records, but browse author would.

When browsing by author, keep in mind that entry under corporate body often inverts the form of the conference name. For example:

International Conference of the Utopian Studies Society
would be entered as: 110 2   Utopian Studies Society.|bInternational Conference 

Sometimes a conference changes its name over time. For example:

Power Modulator Conference becomes:
International Power Modulator Conference

In such cases, keyword searching could help collate records. Limiting the keyword search to author (in Workflows) or corp/conf name or phrase (in OCLC) will refine the results. If you have a numbered conference (say 9th) and you are not finding records for earlier proceedings, it is likely that the conference name changed.

Search results:

X—Workflows Exact Match

• Serial record: Refer to special collections serial cataloger.
• Mono record: Add location.

0—Workflows Exact match / X—Workflows Earlier or Later Conference(s)

• If a pattern of publication emerges requiring a serial decision, refer.
• If not, check for class together call number, make note and continue search in OCLC.
• If there is no exact match in OCLC, use as near copy.

X—OCLC Exact Match

• Serial record (or both serial and mono records): Refer to special collections serial cataloger.
• Mono record: Smartport into Workflows, overlaying order record if present.

0—OCLC Exact Match / X—OCLC Earlier or Later Conference(s)

• If a pattern of publication emerges requiring a serial decision, refer.
• If not, treat as near copy.

Possible Earlier or Later Conference(s) / Name variation

• In Connexion, choose: Authorities, Browse, LC Names and Subjects.
• Type the conference name from your piece in the “Browse for” box and select “Corporate/Conference Names” from the drop-down menu.
• If an authority record exists, you can use it to determine whether your conference entry is an earlier or later form of the entry found on copy (111/511 relationship) or a cross-reference to the entry you found on copy (your entry is in a 411).
• If no authority record exists, you won’t be able to make any determination at this time.
  
  

In general, accept copy as found, making the following adjustments as necessary.

• If a call number pattern emerges for a conference in workflows for any University Park library (i.e. the conference appears to be classed together), try to keep using the same call number even when it varies from the 050/090 in copy.

• If the conference name is the main entry, use the date from the conference entry (111 or 110) as the date in the call number, rather than the date in the 260 $c. If the 050/090 in copy has the date of the 260 $c, change it, too.
• If the subject headings (600, 610, 611, 630, 650, 651) lack the form subdivision $vCongresses, consider adding it based on the following guidelines from the Subject Cataloging Manual H1460:

1. –Congresses as a form subdivision. Use –Congresses as a form subdivision under subjects of all types to represent either: (1) the collected papers delivered at, or published on the occasion of, one or several congresses, symposia, conferences, meetings, etc.; (2) condensations or abstracts of such papers; (3) reports of the proceedings or discussions, preprints, program statements, lists of delegates, etc., of such congresses; or (4) combinations of these types of materials.
2. Meetings of a society or institution. For the proceedings of a meeting or meetings of a society or institution on a specific subject, use the subdivision –Congresses under the subject. For the annual meeting of a corporate body or other proceedings dealing with the internal affairs of a society or institution, use the subdivision –Congresses under the name of the corporate body, society, etc.
3. Lectures published separately. Use –Congresses for collections of two or more lectures or papers, or of contributions, essays, etc., that are based on papers, originally presented at a conference or meeting and identified with that meeting. Omit the subdivision –Congresses when one or several lectures, originally delivered on the occasion of an individual meeting, are later published under separate cover, and no longer identified with the original meeting.
4. Legislative hearings. Do not use the subdivision –Congresses for the hearings of legislative bodies.
5. Use of form subdivisions after –Congresses. Further subdivide –Congresses by the form subdivisions –Calendars, –Directories, or –Juvenile literature, if appropriate. Do not use the form subdivisions –Abstracts or –Periodicals after the subdivision –Congresses.