Creating a New Record on the DCS

This article will cover the following:

• When should I create a new record in the DCS?
• How do I create a new record in the DCS?

What you see on the DCS will look slightly different depending on whether you are creating a brand new request or processing a request that has been submitted via a Reading List Management System or the Academic Request Form. 

When should I create a new record? 
The records we have on the DCS are created from a variety of different sources.  You should find that most of the time the record you are looking for is already available on the DCS.  For further information on how records on the DCS are created see here: How are Records Created on the DCS. 

However, you may sometimes find that the record you are looking for is not on the DCS.  In these cases, you should go ahead and use the ‘Add New Record’ functionality. 

Check that the record does not exist
Before you create a new record, first you should ensure that the record does not already exist on the DCS. The easiest and simplest way to do this is to search using the ISBN or ISSN:  
 
 
 

If the metadata for the record isn’t what you require, first make sure that the ISN is correct.  If so, it might be that the record we have on the DCS is incorrect. 

In cases like these, go ahead and select the record with the correct ISN even if the other information is incorrect.  Once your request is generated, use the ‘Amend Metadata’ button to let CLA know of the change you need to make.  We can then go ahead and update the record: Amend Metadata 
 
If you don’t have the ISN available or if the item pre-dates ISNs you can search using other information, such as Title, Author or Publisher. If your search returns lots of results, you can narrow down your results using a few filter function options.  
 
1) The ‘Select content’ dropdown on the right-hand side of the Search function, which lists the ability to search ‘All records,’ ‘Has content in DCS’ and ‘Is Born Digital.’  
 

 
 

2) The three dots next to ‘Publisher’ also allows you to sort the publisher by ascending or descending order, alphabetically. 

 

 

3) Selecting the three dots and selecting ‘Filter’ next to ‘Title’ and ‘Publisher’ allows you to do a few things; you will see three fields popup: columns, operator, value, and the following operators and values will apply to the specific columns. 

 
 
 
 

Note: It is not possible to amend the ISN of a record, so please ensure that you are selecting the right record to link to your request.  If a request is linked to a record with the incorrect ISN, the only way to correct this is to create a completely new request. 

If, after completing these steps, you cannot find the record on the DCS then you should go ahead and create a new record. 

Creating a New Record 
Select the ‘Add New Record’ button  which appears at the top of the Search and Discover page to add a new record to the DCS. 

 
Once you select Add New Record you will see a form allowing you to create a new record.  This form will differ depending on what kind of record you are creating, an article or a book. 

Creating a New Book Record 

The following fields are mandatory when creating a new record for a book:  
 
ISBN:  If the book does not have an ISBN, select the No ISBN box. You will then be able to create a record without an ISBN. 

Total Page Count 

Title 

Author/s - please note that you will need to press “Enter” on your keyboard after entering the author’s name to successfully populate the field. This makes it easier to separate a list of names if there are multiple authors

Publisher 

Page Range 

Total Page Count

Type: This will be either scanning or digital. If you are creating a record using a print book, select Scanning.  If you are creating a record using an eBook select Digital.

If you try to create a record without adding any information in these fields you will see an error message:  

The more information you add to the record the easier it is for us to distribute funds to rightsholders, so please enter as much information about the record as possible. 

Once you enter in the ISBN the DCS will check existing records to make sure that there isn’t a record with the same ISBN already on the DCS.  If a record can be found with the same ISBN a message will appear indicating that the record already exists. You will have the option to use this record if the metadata matches what you are looking for. If it is not what you are looking for, press ‘Cancel’, and continue to create a new record.

It is not possible to create two records on the DCS with the same ISBN. 

If a record does not already exist within the DCS, all you need to do is enter all the necessary information and select Create. Once you have done this, the record will be added at the same time as your request is created. This record is now in the DCS and will be available for other HEIs to select in the future.

If the record you created has an ISBN, the DCS will look up the permissions of the title against Check Permissions, which will then be displayed under Licence Compliance Verification on the Active Request page. 
 

Creating a New Article Record 

The following fields are mandatory when creating a new record for an article: 

ISSN: If the article does not have an ISSN, select the ‘NO ISSN’ box.  You will then be able to create a record without an ISSN.  

Journal Title

Publisher

Article Title 

Author/s

Page range 

Type: scanning or digital

If you try to create a record without adding any information in these fields you will see an error message: 

The more information you add to the record the easier it is for us to distribute funds to rightsholders, so please enter as much information about the record as possible. 

Please note: the Scanning/Digital option next to the page range refers to the original source format.  If you are creating a record from a print journal, select Scanning.  If you are creating a record using an electronic journal, select Digital.

Note: Unlike with book records, it is possible for multiple records to exist on the DCS with the same ISSN.  This is because the ISSN is linked to whole journals rather than to individual books.