Government Document Processing

There are a number of steps to withdrawing documents from the collection. Keep in mind that all documents have to be offered to other government document libraries for at least 30 days before we can discard them. 

TIP: If you can't see an image, right click and open it in a new tab.

Initial Review

1. You will be given a cart of documents to evaluate. 
   1. If the Item is barcoded: Log into Alma. Do a search for Physical Items and you can search the barcode by keyword. You'll need to open the tab for "Other Details" to see usage. 
      1. If it has been checked out-  On a sticky note record the number of times it has been checked out and the last date (year only) it went out. Attach the sticky note to the document.
      2. No check outs- you don't have to do anything

1. If the item is not barcoded: Great. You don't have to worry about checking this item in Alma
2. Check the items with OhioLINK libraries. You will see how many copies of an item are in the state. Go to OneSearch and do a title search under the OhioLINK Search Scope. Note there may be multiple records.
3. The book cart you are working from should have 3 shelves. You will divide the items as follows:
   1. Top Shelf: Put any documents that have 1 or no copies in OhioLINK. (Any items that you are unable to find put in a separate pile on the top shelf with a sticky note on top.)
   2. Middle Shelf: Items that are held by 2-3 libraries
   3. Bottom Shelf: Items held by 3+ libraries

1. Once you have done these steps, please be sure to enter the gov docs into the FLDP Spreadsheet. The Government Document Librarian can remove any records in the FLDP Excel Spreadsheet that they may want to keep.

Discarding Items

Once the Gov. Docs librarian looks over the cart, they will decide if they want to keep any of the documents. If they do, they may ask you to reshelve those items. Most everything not kept will need to go on a discard list. Make sure all reshelved documents are placed in order by their SuDoc ID.

1. Add to Statistics. You'll need to do a count of the documents being discarded. Go to:Research Graduate Assistant> Documents > FDLP > PhysicalDocStatistics. You'll record the number of documents discarded and the date you discard. Note you'll need to scroll over to get to the discard column.
2. FDLP Exchange template - (see additional instructions on the box to your right) You'll find this template in the same folder as the physical docs. Open the template and immediately "Save As" and replace the word template with today's date.
   1. If the item has no barcode- great. This is easy. Add it to the template list. Any column in bold is a required field. See the box on this libguide to the right on how to fill out the exchange template.
   2. If the item has a barcode. We have to remove the record from 2 places (OCLC and Alma). Your best approach is to have both OCLC WorldShare and Alma open at the same time. See the box below this one for procedures on deleting records that are cataloged.
   3. Once the template is complete, save it and email it to the Government Document Librarian. They will upload it to FDLP Exchange.

Note: exception - if you see an item that is superceded or badly damaged, then we don't need to offer this on FDLP exchange. 

As mentioned above, you will want to have both OCLC Worldshare and Alma open as you work on deleting records.

1. Search in Alma by the barcode. Serial Checkin. Once the record comes up you will want to click on the title to get to the MARC record to view the OCLC number.

NOTE: The OCLC number is a little hard to spot!  You will look for field 035, but there can be multiple 035s! You'll want the one (OCoLC). If you are uncertain, please ask.

1. Go to OCLC WorldShare.  see instructions on the left of this guide. Our library is OTC. You'll search by the OCLC number.
   1. No holdings in OTC? Great. You don't have to do anything else and just delete the Alma record
   2. Holdings in OTC - You'll see a checkmark with "Held by my Library." Click on the Edit button to the right of the book title. From there, choose the Record drop down, and choose Delete Worldcat Holdings. You're done.

1. Go back into Alma. Your next step is to delete the record.
   1. Search for the Physical Item by the barcode
   2. Click on Withdraw.

1. The next screen is a confirmation message. "Are you sure you want to perform this action?" - Click confirm.
2. Final Screen is Last Item message. You'll want the last option, Delete Bibliographic record

And you are done!

How to fill in the FDLP eXchange File

You'll find the file template in SharePoint> Research Graduate Assistant> Documents> FDLP

Note: although it looks like an Excel file, it will need to be saved as a .csv file

To save as a .csv file, you'll need to open the document in the desktop version of Excel.

The required fields for this document to upload correctly are shown in bold.

• Title: 
• Classification Type: almost always you will enter SuDoc for this field. Please ask if it doesn't have a SuDoc number. For periodicals, it might be coded as other.
• Document Number: list the classification number found on the document
• Multiple Pieces: no
•  Publication Start: You only need the year. If you can't find a year, enter none
• Shipping Date: Year only. This will be the depository stamp on the front or inside cover.
• Format: It will almost always be paper. Other formats could be: CD‐Rom, Microfiche, DVD, Floppy Disk, VHS Tape, Braille, Map, Poster, Other
• Condition: Fine, Good, Fair, Poor. Fine will be "as new". Most should be good or fair.

As of June 2023 from FDLP site:

Fine
The publication looks new. The binding is tight without any sign of wear. The pages show no sign of tears, dirt, mold or marking of any kind. All maps and foldouts are present without any tears. Supplementary material is present, without any sign of wear and housed in the original pockets or enclosures.

Good
The publication shows signs of use. The binding may show signs of wear to coverboards, hinges, and spine, but all pages are tightly bound. Binding boards and pages may show signs of having been bumped and bent at the edges (dog eared), but no other damage is present. Maps and foldouts may show wear at the folds, but all information is clearly legible. All supplementary material is present, but has clearly been used and may have been misfolded when returned to the pockets or enclosures.

Fair
The publication shows signs of heavy use. Cover boards and spine may be loose, but are still attached. End pages may be loose or missing. The binding boards and mages may be scuffed or show signs of dirt, foxing, or other markings. The spine may be pulled away from the text block at the top. Pages, maps and foldouts may be torn, but all information is still present.

Poor
The binding shows signs of severe weard, such as loose or missing cover boards or missing spine piece. End papers may be loose or missing. The text block is loose within the cover boards. The binding has failed resulting in loose or missing pages. Pages are torn. Pages are brittle and cannot maintain an attachment within the binding. Maps, foldouts, and supplementary material may be torn or missing.