What Librarians are Saying About MARC Magician on LM Net

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“I, too, use MARC Magician for original cataloging for our district of 57 schools and love it. In fact, I've been using [it] all morning and have used the product for more than ten years...The templates and examples make creating original records quite easy once the preferences have been set. I think any librarian would find it useful... Moreover, I have always found the tech support folks to be very knowledgeable and helpful. Oh, ... [wish] that all software could do such a good job and be so easy to use.”

"As central cataloger for a district with 17 schools, I use MARC Magician with Marc Access daily for both original cataloging and for manipulation of downloaded records. I pass all MARC records that I receive from other vendors through MARC Magician before I load them into Accent. MARC Magician automatically corrects errors in vendor records and allows me to " tweak" them to my specifications. Original cataloging is facilitated with a variety of templates for different materials and a step-by-step guided approach through the fields and sub-fields. I LOVE this product and recommend it highly for cataloging... I do use the "global editing" feature of MARC Magician regularly and it is a true time-saver!!"

"I've used this product for over 5 years and would not run a library without it, even if I had to pay for it myself. It is the BEST cataloging tool in existence. I used the DOS version for years until the Windows version was released this year. Have trained at least 20 librarian friends to use it and they all love it."

"It complements Follett's cataloging program as well as any other MARC based program to help create original MARC records and highlight errors in existing records. It is especially helpful if you belong to the Texas Library Connection because it can help you spot records that would fail TLC's filter. If you do any original cataloging or if you have older records that need attention, it is well worth the price."

"Excellent product, good tutorials, easy to use."

"Mitinet MARC was great; MARC Magician is just as great so far."

"If this is the MARC Magician from Madison, WI, MITINET, Inc., it is a great tool. The technical support people are extremely helpful and patient. We use it to fix our catalogs for use with the Texas Library Connection."

"I'm biased, 'coz I do training (and other assorted things) for them, but I used the DOS version (MITINET/marc) extensively for years before becoming a trainer. MARC Magician is the Windows version of that product. Here's a reply I sent to someone else who inquired about the product: "The Windows version, MARC Magician , does all that the DOS version did plus much, MUCH more! As for database cleanup, it has a feature called Active Error Checking. This allows you to indicate a basic set of 'errors' that you'll be alerted to (such as 'No 260$b (publisher)' or 'Title in all caps'), or to customize the errors to be warned about. Since you're in Texas, there's a special designation for the Texas Library Connection failed-filter errors. There's an almost limitless ability for global editing: grouping records with a common problem together & making the necessary corrections as a group instead of one-by-one. For instance, if your videos were originally cataloged using the book template, they'd have incorrect control field coding (the 007, 008) and would lack the GMD. You could group these together & change them to the correct video template all at once. You'd still need to check the control fields for details, but the correct GMD would be added (245$h) and the appropriate control fields would be there for you to check. Another example: if you have records (or even portions of records) that were done in all caps, there's a global Fix Capitalization feature that'll correct this - with over 80% accuracy! You can change a field from one tag to another (say, your AR note wasn't in 526 - fix it globally!). I could go on and on, but you get the idea! Original cataloging is improved by allowing you to begin with an appropriate template for the medium, and customize those templates further if desired. Also, it will soon have a seamless integration with Follett, which will simplify getting records back and forth between the 2 systems even easier."

*"I used this in my last two schools, and it was THE first purchase I made when I started at the last one, which also needed a lot of Db cleanup. That was for the DOS version, and the Windows one is SO MUCH MORE!!! If you have any specific questions (will it do such-and-such), I'll be glad to try to answer them. Good luck with your database cleanup! I promise you that MARC Magician can make it much less painful!"

"Anyway, we love using it. It's a wonderful place to put downloaded MARC records 'till we can edit them properly before putting them on our OPAC. It's also great (user friendly) to have students help us to type in from scratch and I can check and edit it before the public gets to see it."

"Absolutely buy, buy, buy MARC Magician . It is not put out by Follett, but by a company in Madison, WI. They are terrific, I have used their DOS version for several years, and upgraded to the Windows as did many schools in our district. I can't say enough about their tech support, and ease of use. If you have anything that needs cleaning up, go for it! Creating records is a breeze, and you can even download stuff from the LOC into a template you have created to match your library system. You won't be sorry, I use it nearly every week. A number of us in Milwaukee, WI (Milwaukee Public Schools) have been trained by their support folks, and it is indeed a wondrous system! And I'm not just saying this because it's local, only 90 miles away. It really is a great product!"