Cataloguing Service

The Libraries Australia Cataloguing service offers a range of options for searching, cataloguing and downloading of bibliographic records.

Contributing records to the ANBD

Cataloguing workflows

Subject Heading Proposal Form

National Bibliographic Database Survey

Contributing records to the ANBD

There are a number of ways in which bibliographic records and holdings can be contributed to the ANBD.

The method chosen may depend on a number of factors, including local system requirements and individual library policies, which are discussed in more detail in the Libraries Australia Cataloguing Workflows document.

The options fall into three categories:


Records and holdings created online are added to the ANBD in real time, and are immediately available for downloading to a local system, or to be viewed by other users. It is possible to add full MARC records, or partial records which can later be upgraded by another cataloguer. Holding statements can be added to new or existing records, and changed or deleted at any time.


The Web Cataloguing form is accessed through Libraries Australia Search, and can be used for adding minimal level MARC records and holdings. As the name suggests, the user fills in a form and no knowledge of MARC is required. A minimum level entry must include title (including the filing indicator), publication date, country of publication, bibliographic level and type of material. Libraries Australia Web Cataloguing can be used to create new records, and add, edit and delete library holdings.


You can add, delete or amend holdings on an existing bibliographic record in the Libraries Australia Search interface. Those libraries with a Libraries Australia Cataloguing Client can also add, delete and amend holdings.

Frequently asked questions about adding holdings

In Libraries Australia Search if you cannot find a record on the ANBD, you can import a record from a remote database to the ANBD and add your holdings.
Detailed instructions on how to import records can be found in the Web Cataloguing chapter of the Libraries Australia Search manual.
General guidelines on importing records are also available under the Libraries Australia Search manual section on the website.


The Libraries Australia Cataloguing Client allows the input of Bibliographic and Authority records directly to the ANBD. The Cataloguing Client can also be used to amend and delete records which are already on the database and to add, edit or delete holdings.

Catalogue records and holdings can be added, updated and deleted offline in batch files. See batch uploading services for more details.


Bibliographic and holdings records may be contributed by a third party such as a library supplier or vendor. A list of suppliers and vendors who contribute data to Libraries Australia on behalf of their customers is maintained on this web site. Suppliers and vendors can either catalogue online in real time or provide batch files of records to Libraries Australia.


Cataloguing Workflows

Libraries Australia Cataloguing Workflows - This paper outlines methods of working in the Libraries Australia environment that deliver effective and efficient cataloguing and prompt and timely delivery of information to the Australian National Bibliographic Database (ANBD), both essential elements in any best practice approach to cataloguing for Australian libraries.

Libraries Australia has conducted a number of workshops to discuss cataloguing workflows, papers from which are available below:

Subject Heading Proposal Form

The online Subject Heading Proposal Form is available for Libraries Australia cataloguers wishing to have a new subject heading established on the ANBD and forwarded to the Library of Congress for approval.

National Bibliographic Database Survey

The Libraries Australia Advisory Committee recommended that Libraries Australia undertake a survey of Australian libraries’ holdings on the ANBD to get a better indication of the currency and coverage of the ANBD and to discover important gaps in coverage. The last ANBD Coverage survey was conducted in 1999-2000 by the Australian Library Collections Task Force (ALCTF).

The survey aimed to identify:

The results of the survey will be used by Libraries Australia to develop strategies to improve the overall coverage of the ANBD and in particular to contact libraries with important formed or special material collections to facilitate addition of records for these collections to the ANBD.

The survey closed 10 October 2008.

The survey results are available at: http://www.nla.gov.au/librariesaustralia/documents/LAAC_Papers-October_2008.pdf