These guidelines are based upon the OCLC guidelines, "When to Input a New Record". SWAN guidelines supersede these, but if a situation is not addressed in this document, please refer to the OCLC document for guidance.
When considering whether an item should be attached to a new or existing SWAN record, please use the following guidelines.
Combining versions
SWAN combines similar versions of materials into single records, but they must be close in physical description and content to be eligible.
One of the more common cases of combining publications under one bibliographic record is when publishers release durable, hardback versions of children's materials. Follettbound, Paw Prints, and Penworthy ISBNs are combined into one record.
These materials are almost always combined with the paperback editions they duplicate. Sometimes they will appear to have major differences in producer or publisher, but they can be identified by looking for ISBN information on the title page verso. This will often show that the library bound edition reproduces a paperback version, and often the ISBN's of both will appear within the item.
Note: Mass paperback items are not combined with other versions.
Differences that always justify a new record
- Changes to edition statements (except reprints and binding) for all formats
- Explicit vs. Clean
- Director's cut
- Console (video games)
- Differences in language
- Differences in contributor (translators, illustrators, narrators, etc.)
- Differences in format (books, audiobooks, large print, board books, oversized books, and braille versions should never be combined)
- Variations in content (illustrated ed., introductory content, etc.)
Differences alone that do not justify a new record
- Differences in edition relating only to binding (Paperback ed.)
- Reprint editions by the same publisher
- Absence or presence of book club discussion questions or excerpts of upcoming releases
- Minor variations in pagination (5% or below)
- Minor variations in size
- Variations in publisher imprint
- Absence or presence of supplemental physical material in library copy (e.g. A book is published with an accompanying CD that has been lost from your local copy). In these cases, we recommend adding a note to the Extended information field of the item.