Goodreads Librarians Group discussion
Questions
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There's definitely a bug with merging author profiles
date
newest »

Search, and see all 8. And when I clicked on the author, all 8 again.
I'm guessing this is a caching issue. One way I have found to force a reset is to combine editions. Especially since there actually was one that needed combining.
And now there are 7. :)
I'm guessing this is a caching issue. One way I have found to force a reset is to combine editions. Especially since there actually was one that needed combining.
And now there are 7. :)
A recent question pointed out to me that people have different ideas about the spelling of authors who publish with two (or three) initials, rather than using a first or middle name.
I was taught that there are no spaces in U.S.A. -- or in J.R.R. Tolkien or J.K. Rowling. Well, there's one to separate the initials from the last name. But none between the various initials.
Opinions? Can we come to a consensus, at least until such time as the much-awaited AKA function renders it moot?
I was taught that there are no spaces in U.S.A. -- or in J.R.R. Tolkien or J.K. Rowling. Well, there's one to separate the initials from the last name. But none between the various initials.
Opinions? Can we come to a consensus, at least until such time as the much-awaited AKA function renders it moot?

I was seeing all 8 when I searched, but if I clicked on the author name of any of the books that were previously associated with the 151983 profile, nothing would load. The page would keep trying to load, and I'd get nothing. The mouseover of the link would tell me it was going to load the 431801 profile, but I'd get nothing.
Oh well, as long as it works now. Would there happen to be a publicly viewable list of open bugs? I've seen some minor things, but I don't want to bother submitting them if they're already known.

It was a caching issue, but now that you've pointed it out we've identified the fix :) Should be out in the next release!

I did however, just check Amazon, and my local library's website, and both of those use the "no space, just periods" method. Seems weird to me, but based on that, I'd conclude that "no spaces" is the correct method. I guess someone with an MLA manual could tell us for sure.
Whichever is more correct is fine by me. It also seems that when things like this are decided, maybe the "librarian manual" should be updated to include this info, so people who join say, 5 months from now will also be aware of the standards being used.

As an initial-tagged author, my publisher designed the book cover as being "no spaces, no periods." It's kind of e.e. cummings, but with punctuation rather than capitalization. A valiant attempt at coolness.
However, all the online retailers and even the brick & mortars' computers use "no spaces, with periods."
Library card catalogs tend to be the same as bookstores.
It seems to me that "no spaces, with periods" is the most commonly used structure.
TK Kenyon
www.tkkenyon.com
http://www.tkkenyon.com/

Well, it sounds as though Rivka is correct. Now, I need to try to go back and undo my mistakes. Suspect I'll find them over time. So, maybe we can update the GR Librarians Manual to reflect this for others, like me, who are ignorant of the proper format?
Not to further complicate things, but it was pointed out to me that the LOC includes spaces. >_<
I think we could really use that MLA guide right about now . . .
I think we could really use that MLA guide right about now . . .
Hi there, I thought I'd weigh in on this one. I checked with one of the copy editors at the Los Angeles Times and she says that when you create an author's name you should eliminate spaces and use periods, i.e. J.R.R. Tolkien or J.K. Rowling. Not that the newspaper way is absolute, but it seems like a good standard that has worked well. Why don't stick with Rivka's suggestion? Best EK
A voice from on high! ;) Works for me. :)
I agree with the suggestion to add this to the librarian manual, please.
I agree with the suggestion to add this to the librarian manual, please.

1. If you look up a title, such as "One Man's Meat" by E.B. White, you'll find him listed however the cataloger thought he appeared on the title page: "One man's meat / E.B. White." for the 1983 Harper Colophon edition, but "One man's meat / E. B. White." for some other editions. BUT
2.The author entry for the book should always be uniform, and libraries in the English-speaking world have decided on this: "White, E. B. (Elwyn Brooks), 1899-1985." (I'm not suggesting that Goodread use the full name and dates!)
So libraries really do use the space after the periods. But for most online catalogs, the reader finds what he's looking for in any event, because the catalogs generally disregard marks of punctuation when doing searches, so that E.B. White and E. B. White will file in the same place. (Thanks to the fact that double spaces also count as only one in the search -- too much chance for problems caused by input error otherwise.)
I'm a newcomer here and happy to adjust my practice to whatever is decided, but following the library rule and using the spaces would provide consistency in line with some major institutions.


Amazon is only consistent in its inconsistency. Given how many Amazon-sourced books need correction for other reasons, this is the least of it.

Not sure how to handle this, but the same librarian who recently added this space back in has been adding spaces between 2 initial authors for a whole group of authors.
So, my question is one of tact and etiquette, do I send him a note, or can I impose on one the moderators to send a gently worded note? Just seems like we are back to duplicate editing at cross purposes.
Your call.
Alternatively - did I miss a style change?
Thanks.


Forgot about that, but thanks, I went there and got the appropriate section. I did drop him a note.
I saw that there were two entries for D. E. Athkins, each with about 4 books in the profile. One was number 431801 and contained entries for "Sister Dearest," "Mirror, Mirror," "The Bride," and "The Ripper."
The other profile was number 151983, and was spelled "D.E. Athkins" (no space between the D and E). That profile had entries for "The Cemetery," "Swans in the Mist," "Secret Santa," and another entry for "The Bride."
I changed the spelling of the 151983 profile to include a space between the D and the E, and that made something weird happen. There is now only one profile for D. E. Athkins, but it only has the 4 books from the original 431801 profile. If you search for "Athkins," you see all the books from both profiles, and it says they're all attached to the 431801 profile, but looking at the profile does not show them...so I guess they're in some sort of limbo?
Sorry if my posts are a little long, I spent 6 years as a software tester, so I try to include as much info as possible.