A CD-ROM member of the RSA contributes their holding information to the RSA database using the Library Corporation's Intelligent Catalog and the RSA's Conversion software.  

How do the CD-ROM members get their holdings onto the RSA database?

Using the Intelligent Catalog, they search the CD-ROMs for bibliographic records that the RSA already have in the database. Once the library finds the desired bibliographic record, they 'print' the record to a red diskette (we chose red so that we can properly process the CD-ROM members' records).  

The RSA Conversion software, a Terminate-and-Stay-Resident (TSR) program called RConvTSR, then takes over and translates the 'printed' information into USMARC format, and displays the RSA holding conversion screen. The library enters their holding information (OCR/Bar code, item price, call number, etc.), and saves the information back to the diskette.  

The red diskettes are then sent to the RSA for loading into the online database. Once per month, the RSA offloads the entire RSA online database to magnetic tape, and send it to the Library Corporation. The Library Corporation then 'massages' the data and masters the information onto CD-ROMs (currently 3 CD-ROMs hold the RSA database), which then get shipped to each of the CD-ROM members on a monthly basis.  

There is about a two month turnaround period between the time when the CD-ROM member sends their diskettes to the RSA, and their holdings showing up on the monthly CD-ROM update.  

Current RSA CD-ROM Members

(94 as of June 2005)

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