FAQs: Using the MARC Magician EZ Transfer In Utility Wizard

The following questions and answers provide information on the types of files used by the MARC Magician EZ Transfer In Utility wizard, and give instructions for using the options in the Main window.

Marc Magician Data

Bibliographic Data Option

Bibliographic Data Backup Option

Bibliographic Load Error Option

How is Marc Magician Data Shared with the K-12 System?

The Marc Magician and K-12 system data is managed in a directory shared between the systems. When your Marc Magician is installed, a Data directory is created. You are guided through a setup process in which you select the library system software that you will be using.

You select the K-12 Library System. This creates a folder called ACCMMSHARED in your Marc Magician installation directory. As you create data using the Extract Keys for Marc Export (Eztransfer) report or the Marc Magician EZ Transfer Out Utility wizard, you add data to the ACC2MM folder in the that directory. Once you have edited data in the Marc Magician, and exported it, you create records in the MM2ACC folder in that directory, which can be imported and loaded using the Marc Magician EZ Transfer In Utility wizard.

How do I import and load Marc Magician records?

Bibliographic records from MARC Magician may be imported to the K-12 system. These bibliographic records can only be imported using the Bibliographic Data option in the MARC Magician EZ Transfer In Utility wizard. The wizard creates a file for bibliographic records in the /Unicorn/Marcimport directory and writes any bibliographic records to it, and proceeds to load the records. If the file is empty, the wizard removes it as part of the import process.

The wizard indicates that the records have been loaded into the catalog according to the specified rules. The records may be searched in the catalog after they have been loaded.

Backup and error files are created on the server after the records are loaded.

Records are loaded according to the rules of the Load ACCENT MARC w/999s report.

How do I control how catalog records are updated and loaded?

On the MARC Magician EZ Transfer In Utility Wizard properties, you have the option to select one of two title control matching rules.

Rule 1: Create Only

Only new records will be created. Records with title control numbers matching existing records will not load. Error records will be printed in the report log with the header “flex already exists.”

Rule 2: Create and Update if NEVER Cataloged

New records will be created.
Records with title control numbers matching existing records will only load for records that do not have a date cataloged, such as records loaded for acquisitions.
Records matched that have a date cataloged specified will not load.
Error records that match existing records will be printed in the report log with the header “Flex already exists” and the corresponding date that is in the date cataloged field.
Records that you import and load using the MARC Magician EZ Transfer In Utility Wizard must meet the requirements of one of these two title control matching rules which you must select during the properties phase of the wizard.
The records you load must also conform to the default selections of the Load ACCENT MARC w/999s Report.
If either of these criteria are too restrictive, you can import the file from the MM2ACC folder using the standard MARC Import Utility Wizard and the Load Other MARC Types Report instead of using the more streamlined MARC Magician EZ Transfer In Utility Wizard.

How do I select and view bibliographic data?

To view bibliographic data files

The MarcImport Utility wizard output displays the MARC record data numerically.

The header for each record includes the size=, last=, and #tags=, which all contain byte counts used to make sure the record data is accurate.

The label ”num=” is equivalent to the MARC tag number. The indicators in the data are not separated, and immediately precede the text in the data fields. Everything else is a count of data and the position of that data in the MARC record.

An ASCII file will display in a format identical to the one used for displaying authority records.

How do I remove obsolete bibliographic data files?

To conserve disk space, bibliographic data files should be removed periodically.

To remove a bibliographic data file

How are bibliographic data backups created?

When records are loaded, a backup copy of the records is written in the /Unicorn/Marcimport directory on the system server. This backup copy of records is called the “bibliographic data backup.”

Although the original imported file is no longer available after records have been loaded, the MARC records are stored in one of two directories on the server. Records that were successfully loaded into the catalog or successfully loaded for review are stored in the /Unicorn/Marcimport/Bibbackup directory. Records that failed to load are stored in the /Unicorn/Marcimport/Biberror directory.

The records that were successfully loaded into the catalog or successfully loaded for review can be copied back into the /Unicorn/Marcimport directory to be available for loading again.

All bibliographic data backup files are saved as part of the daily backup. In the event of a system failure, all of the report-loaded records will be present on the daily bibliographic data backup. The records may easily be reloaded when the system is operational.

Bibliographic data backup files use the following naming convention.

[date][library number][session number][n|r|e]

The first eight digits represent the date of the record load, in YYYYMMDD format. The next four digits represent the library number from the policies. The last one or two digits represent the session number from the given date. The final alphabetic character indicates the file type. The file type may be one of the following.

An n indicates new records that were loaded into the catalog.
An r indicates review records that were loaded into the review file.
An e indicates error files that were not loaded. See FAQs: Working with Bibliographic Data Files in the MARC Import Utility Wizard for more information.

For example, the following backup file name illustrates the naming convention.

2005011800306n

The above example implies the following.

The date is January 18, 2005.
The library number from the policies is 0030.
The session number shows that this file was the sixth file loaded on that date.
The n file extension indicates that new records were loaded into the catalog.

How do I select and view bibliographic data backups?

To select and view bibliographic data backups

Bibliographic data backup files are in MARC format, and are stored in the /Unicorn/Marcimport/Bibbackup directory.

The MARC Magician EZ Transfer in Utility wizard output displays the MARC record data numerically. The header for each record includes the size=, last=, and #tags=, which all contain byte counts used to make sure the record data is accurate.

The label ”num=” is equivalent to the MARC tag number.

The indicators in the data are not separated, and immediately precede the text in the data fields. Everything else is a count of data and the position of that data in the MARC record.

Use the Filter helper to simplify the selection of files.

How do I copy bibliographic data backups to the /Unicorn/Marcimport directory?

You can copy a bibliographic data backup file from the /Unicorn/Marcimport/Bibbackup directory to the /Unicorn/Marcimport directory so the bibliographic records can be loaded into the catalog.

To copy a bibliographic data backup file

How do I remove obsolete bibliographic data backups?

To conserve disk space, all bibliographic data backup files should be removed after a full system backup is performed.

To remove a bibliographic data backup file

In the File List window, a list of backup files for MARC records that were successfully loaded either directly into the catalog or for review displays.

How can I identify files that were not successfully imported?

The Bibliographic Load Error option provides a way to identify files that were not successfully imported. Bibliographic load error files are automatically created when a record loading report, such as the Load Other MARC Types report, is used. The original imported file is no longer available after it has been loaded, but the MARC records that produced errors in the log of the report are saved in the /Unicorn/Marcimport/Biberror directory and can be copied back into the /Marcimport directory to be available for loading again.

All bibliographic load error files use the following naming convention.

[date][library number][session number]e

The first eight digits represent the date of the record load, in YYYYMMDD format. The next four digits represent the library number from the policies. The last one or two digits represent the session number from the given date. The e final alphabetic character indicates error files that were not loaded.

For example, the following error file name illustrates the naming convention.

2005011800306e

In the above example, the date is January 18, 2005. The library number from the policies is 0030. The session number shows that this file was the sixth file loaded on that date.

The e file extension indicates that records were not loaded successfully into the catalog because of errors.

How do I select and view bibliographic load error files?

To select and view bibliographic record files that were not successfully imported

The MarcImport Utility wizard output displays the MARC record data numerically. The header for each record includes the size=, last=, and #tags= which all contain byte counts used to make sure the record data is accurate.

The label ”num=” is equivalent to the MARC tag number. The indicators in the data are not separated, and immediately precede the text in the data fields.

Everything else is a count of data and the position of that data in the MARC record.

Use the Filter helper to simplify the selection of files. You can only filter files by library and date. The list cannot be filtered by file type since all bibliographic load error files have the same file name extension (e).

How do I copy bibliographic load error files to the /Unicorn/Marcimport directory?

You can copy a bibliographic load error file from the /Unicorn/Marcimport/Biberror directory to the /Unicorn/Marcimport directory so the bibliographic records can be loaded into the catalog.

To copy a bibliographic load error file

How do I remove obsolete bibliographic load error files?

To conserve disk space, bibliographic load error files should be removed periodically.

To remove a bibliographic load error file

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