OCLC WorldCat as a Cooperative Catalog

Traditionally, “cooperative cataloging” has emphasized the importance of very high standards, with the goal of cataloging “once and for all,” and the creation of records that can be used without alteration. By this definition, only a small percentage of the records ever created are cooperative. By another definition, the Online Computer Library Center’s (OCLC’s) WorldCat is the largest cooperative catalog ever, allowing ongoing editing of records created by tens of thousands of libraries. This article challenges catalogers to rethink practices in terms of a world catalog. Standards need to be more flexible, to encompass records from many sources. Catalog maintenance should become more cooperative and make better use of automation.