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Book & Author Page Issues > Newbie question about ISBNs and book rescue

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message 1: by [deleted user] (new)

I have this book on my rescue list:

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16...

I can find it at my local library, and The Library of Congress, but with a different ISBN: 0071464948

How do I rescue this book? Do I create a new book record? merge? delete?

I want to make sure I follow the proper procedure, and I couldn't find this in the Librarian's Manual. Thanks!


message 2: by rivka, Former Moderator (new)

rivka | 45177 comments Mod
We have that edition already, and you cannot use one edition to rescue a different one. They were not combined, but they are now. (The good thing about that is it puts that edition at risk of merging only.)


message 3: by Paula (new)

Paula (paulaan) | 7014 comments It exists in world cat with the ISBN's for that edition. You can use that

http://www.worldcat.org/title/love-in...


message 4: by [deleted user] (new)

I only found the one edition, the one that did not match my ISBN. Were there other editions and I didn't see them? In my rescue list it said it would be deleted, rather than merged.


message 5: by [deleted user] (new)

It was there this time I looked, and I switched to the correct edition.

Thanks -- I hope to get the hang of this soon.


message 6: by rivka, Former Moderator (new)

rivka | 45177 comments Mod
Jeannette wrote: "I only found the one edition, the one that did not match my ISBN."

Because they were not combined. I combined them when I realized there were uncombined editions of the same book.


message 7: by Betsy (new)

Betsy | 605 comments Similar question: I rescued Dark Whispers. I have a copy in hand, which contains a 10-digit ISBN ending in 6. The WorldCat record has the 13-digit ISBN which tracks the one in the book except for the last digit which is 5.

Another case I came across in rescuing was similar (can't remember offhand what it was): the hard copy had an ISBN ending in X, but the rescue record had an identical ISBN except for the last digit which was a number.

I don't know very much about ISBNs, but I understand that the last digit is supposed to be some kind of check digit. Can that change?


message 8: by rivka, Former Moderator (new)

rivka | 45177 comments Mod
Use this to convert ISBN10s to ISBN13s and v.v.: http://pcn.loc.gov/isbncnvt.html


message 9: by Anki (new)

Anki (shadrachanki) | 7 comments Betsy wrote: "I don't know very much about ISBNs, but I understand that the last digit is supposed to be some kind of check digit. Can that change?"

The check digit can and does change between ISBN-10 and ISBN-13 versions. My understanding is that they use slightly different formulae to determine the numbers, which in turn determines the final check digit, and those formulae don't always track perfectly to one another.


message 10: by Betsy (new)

Betsy | 605 comments Thank you; that helps.


❂ Murder by Death  (murderbydeath) rivka wrote: "Use this to convert ISBN10s to ISBN13s and v.v.: http://pcn.loc.gov/isbncnvt.html"

Rivka - that's a great link. Can we add that to the Amazon FAQ? :)


message 12: by rivka, Former Moderator (new)

rivka | 45177 comments Mod
Sure.


message 13: by [deleted user] (new)

My at-risk edition

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58...

is an earlier edition of this

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/48...

My edition (the one I own) has the same ISBN as the later edition. In the GR database, a different ISBN is listed under my edition. I'm not sure what I need to do.


message 14: by rivka, Former Moderator (new)

rivka | 45177 comments Mod
If you're not going by ISBN, what are you going by? Cover image?


message 15: by Terri (new)

Terri | 39 comments While not a newbie...I am apparently an idiot because I don't know where everyone is finding the rescue books list for their bookshelves.

When I click on the rescue book links that I am finding in numerous threads in here and Feedback..and groups.. I get this Goodreads message bubble at the top of my screen;
You do not have permissions for this operation.


message 16: by rivka, Former Moderator (new)

rivka | 45177 comments Mod
Terri, that's because right now only librarians can see the rescue list.


message 17: by [deleted user] (last edited Jan 24, 2012 04:17PM) (new)

rivka wrote: "If you're not going by ISBN, what are you going by? Cover image?"

I have the book, published in 1975, with the sunflower. It has the same ISBN as the book published in 1983 (with the movie cover). The one with my cover image (on GR) has a different ISBN, but it has the 1975 publish date.

Is there anyway to get my book from 1975 to display, or do I just switch to the 1983 version, which carries the same ISBN? It'a a technicality, but I have the 1975 version, with the 1983 ISBN in it.


message 18: by Terri (new)

Terri | 39 comments rivka wrote: "Terri, that's because right now only librarians can see the rescue list."

All these years on GR and I have only just discovered that I have to apply to become a librarian.
I am pretty slow. lol


message 19: by rivka, Former Moderator (last edited Jan 24, 2012 04:28PM) (new)

rivka | 45177 comments Mod
Jeannette, sounds like an alternate cover issue, I think.


message 20: by [deleted user] (new)

Thanks, rivka.


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