The MARC Formats Interest Group (LITA/ALCTS) met Saturday, January 11, 2011.
Topic: Will RDA Mean the Death of MARC?
The end of the MARC formats has been predicted for years, but no serious alternative format has risen up to challenge MARC. Will the introduction of the new RDA code precipitate the demise of MARC? Will RDA require the description of content and functionality that cannot be accommodated by the MARC formats, or that can be more easily accommodated by alternative content formats? If so, what format(s) will replace MARC? And if MARC does continue to thrive, how will it have to change to accommodate the new content descriptions in RDA?
Christopher Cronin of the University of Chicago, Jacquie Samples of Duke University, and Kelley McGrath of the University of Oregon spoke on this topic.