An ongoing project that I have to work on as a GA is update and maintain the library's Cutter file. What's a Cutter file, you ask? Well, in its original form, it was a card catalog. Yes, a bonafide wooden cabinet with :gasp: catalog cards in it! On each card is the name of a composer, editor, or compiler that we may (or may not) have in the catalog. It is my job to look for the person's name in the catalog and check to see if we have an authority record for it (basically, what the person prefers to be called in the catalog as prescribed by the Library of Congress). If we don't have the record, I search WorldCat for it and export it into the catalog. If we do have the record, I insert the name and Cutter number for each person into a Word table and then pull the card out of the drawer. Let me tell you, pulling that card is the most cathartic thing because, while card catalogs still have their place in the world, it represents a move forward into the future of librarianship. I know that to most of you this seems like a boring thing to do, but I don't do it all the time, so have no fear!
And now for some news items:
NY Times - Levi Stubbs, Four Tops lead singer, dies
NY Times - Tin Pan Alley? Apparently not so awesome...
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