Authorities
- Minjie Chen
- Cathy Weng
- Mark Zelesky
Alma authority control
Alma runs authority jobs automatically every day to authorize the bibliographic records in the catalog. The jobs check headings in bibliographic records against the authority files in the Alma Community Zone. If an exact match is found, the headings are linked to the corresponding authority records. The Preferred term correction Job enables the system to replace non-preferred terms (i.e., 4XX fields) with the preferred terms (i.e., 1XX fields).
The Alma Authority Control Task List provides more details regarding authority record updates and the authority control process that are relevant to the institution's bibliographic record headings. Specifically, the list highlights authority headings updates that require manual intervention.
The Metadata Integrity Group oversees the management of the authority control tasks and best practices. The group also conducts tests of existing and new authority features and makes decisions on Alma authority rules.
Princeton Alma authority rules and configuration
The following authority rules have been activated at Princeton.
Rule Type | Rule details | Princeton’s Action | Configuration |
Bib heading linking – undifferentiated personal names | This parameter is to not link undifferentiated personal names in bib records to authority records. | Enabled 2/21/25 | Config > Resources > General > Authority Control Rules > Link BIB Headings Rule added. 
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Bib heading linking – subfield codes | When this rule is set, Alma compares both the content and the subfields used for matching. For instance, the bibliographic heading ‘700 $$a Shakespeare, William, $$d 1564-1616 $$t Tragedies’ will be considered as "Subfield codes = not identical" when matched against authority record with ‘100 $$a Shakespeare, William, $$d 1564-1616 $$x Tragedies’. | Enabled 2/21/25 (when subfield codes are not identical à do not link) | Config > Resources > General > Authority Control Rules > Link BIB Headings Rule added. 
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Preferred term correction | This rule enables Alma to correct bibliographic headings based on authority cross-references, updating them to the preferred term and changing the field tag in the bibliographic record accordingly (such as, from 610 to 630). This behavior, once turned on, will appear in the Authority Control Task List under a new report type, “Preferred Term Correction - Bib Heading updated and tag modified,” enabling catalogers to review and make further updates as necessary (such as, adjusting indicators). | Enabled as of 11/13/24 for LCNAMES,LCSH (input the vocabulary codes in upper case, separated by commas) | Config > Resources > General > Other Settings (Parameter Key: authority_ptc_ignore_suffix Parameter value: LCNAMES,LCSH) |