The Application/MARC Content-type
MIME type registration for library catalog records in machine-readable format
Guenther, R., "The Application/MARC Content-type", RFC 2220, DOI 10.17487/RFC2220, October 1997, <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc2220>.
@misc{rfc2220,
series = {Request for Comments},
number = 2220,
howpublished = {RFC 2220},
publisher = {RFC Editor},
doi = {10.17487/RFC2220},
url = {https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc2220},
author = {R. Guenther},
title = {{The Application/MARC Content-type}},
pagetotal = 4,
year = 1997,
month = oct,
} RFC text
Contents
Network Working Group R. Guenther
Request for Comments: 2220 Library of Congress
Category: Informational Network Devt. & MARC Standards Office
October 1997
The Application/MARC Content-type
Status of this Memo
This memo provides information for the Internet community. It does
not specify an Internet standard of any kind. Distribution of this
memo is unlimited.
Copyright Notice
Copyright (C) The Internet Society (1997). All Rights Reserved.
Abstract
This memorandum provides a mechanism for representing objects which
are files of Machine-Readable Cataloging records (MARC). The MARC
formats are standards for the representation and communication of
bibliographic and related information. A MARC record contains
metadata for an information resource following MARC format
specifications.
1. Introduction
The MARC formats are sets of codes and content designators defined
for encoding metadata for five types of data: bibliographic,
holdings, authority, classification, and community information. The
structure of MARC records is an implementation of national and
international standards, ANSI Z39.2 (Information Interchange Format)
and ISO 2709 (Format for Information Interchange). Codes and
conventions in the formats identify and characterize data elements
within a record and support the manipulation of those data.
MARC formats are communication formats, primarily designed to provide
specification for the exchange of bibliographic and related
information between systems. They are widely used in a variety of
exchange and processing environments. They do not mandate internal
storage or display formats to be used by different systems.
2. Definition
Since there are different flavors of MARC which would be processed by
different applications, this content-type/subtype refers to the
harmonized USMARC/CANMARC specification. Additional content-
types/subtypes may be defined in the future (e.g.
application/unimarc).
MARC records involve three elements: the record structure, content
designation, and data content. Only those records that contain all
three elements according to the standard would use this content-
type/subtype, i.e. content extracted from the structure would not.
Since MARC does not mandate an internal storage format, parameters
have not been assigned to specific implementations (e.g. OCLC-MARC,
LC-MARC, etc.). In addition, parameters have not been defined for
the specific type of MARC format (e.g. bibliographic, authority,
holdings), since the information is contained in the Leader portion
of the record.
3. Registration Information
To: ietf-types@iana.org
Media type name: application
Media subtype name: marc
Required parameters: None
Optional parameters: None
Encoding considerations: MARC records may contain long lines and/or
arbitrary octet values. The base64 content-transfer-encoding is
recommended for transmission of MARC over electronic mail.
4. Security Considerations
There are no known security risks associated with the use or viewing
of MARC data. A MARC record may have security classification
associated with the document it describes or metadata in that record.
Although this does not present any security risk to the user of MARC
data, it may provide an opportunity for a security breach for the
source of classified MARC data.
5. Interoperability Considerations
MARC is a communication format and is designed for interoperability
between different systems that may store data in local formats
internally.
6. Published Specification
"USMARC Format for Bibliographic Data"; "USMARC Format for Authority
Data"; "USMARC Format for Holdings Data"; "USMARC Format for
Classification Data"; "USMARC Format for Community Information".
Additional information:
File extension: .mrc
OID: 1.2.840.10003.5.10
Person & email address to contact for further information:
Network Development & MARC Standards Office <ndmso@loc.gov>
101 Independence Ave. SE
Library of Congress
Washington, DC 20540-4102 U.S.A.
7. References
Library of Congress, Network Development and MARC Standards
Office, "USMARC Format for Bibliographic Data", 1994- .
"USMARC Format for Authority Data", 1993- .
"USMARC Format for Holdings Data", 1989- .
"USMARC Format for Classification Data", 1991- .
"USMARC Format for Community Information", 1993- .
8. Author's Address
Rebecca Guenther
Network Development & MARC Standards Office
Library of Congress
101 Independence Ave. SE
Washington, DC 20540-4102 U.S.A.
Phone: +1 (202) 707-5092
FAX: +1 (202) 707-0115
EMail: rgue@loc.gov
9. Full Copyright Statement
Copyright (C) The Internet Society (1997). All Rights Reserved.
This document and translations of it may be copied and furnished to
others, and derivative works that comment on or otherwise explain it
or assist in its implmentation may be prepared, copied, published
andand distributed, in whole or in part, without restriction of any
kind, provided that the above copyright notice and this paragraph are
included on all such copies and derivative works. However, this
document itself may not be modified in any way, such as by removing
the copyright notice or references to the Internet Society or other
Internet organizations, except as needed for the purpose of
developing Internet standards in which case the procedures for
copyrights defined in the Internet Standards process must be
followed, or as required to translate it into languages other than
English.
The limited permissions granted above are perpetual and will not be
revoked by the Internet Society or its successors or assigns.
This document and the information contained herein is provided on an
"AS IS" basis and THE INTERNET SOCIETY AND THE INTERNET ENGINEERING
TASK FORCE DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING
BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTY THAT THE USE OF THE INFORMATION
HEREIN WILL NOT INFRINGE ANY RIGHTS OR ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF
MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE."
AI ELI5
On this page
§1Introduction to MARC
MARC stands for Machine-Readable Cataloging. MARC formats are sets of codes and content designators for encoding metadata for five types of library data: bibliographic (books and other resources), holdings (what a library owns), authority (names and subjects), classification (organization systems), and community information. The structure of MARC records implements national and international standards: ANSI Z39.2 (Information Interchange Format) and ISO 2709 (Format for Information Interchange). MARC is a communication format designed for the exchange of bibliographic information between different systems, though each system may store data in its own internal format.
MARC is a way to write information about books and library stuff on a computer. Libraries share this information with each other using MARC records.
§2The MARC Content Type
This memo registers the MIME type application/marc for files containing MARC records in the harmonized USMARC and CANMARC specification. (The acronym USMARC stands for US MARC.) A complete MARC record must contain all three elements: the record structure, content designation, and data content according to the standard. No parameters are assigned to specific implementations or to particular types of MARC format, since the type is indicated in the Leader (a special field within each record). MARC records may contain long lines and arbitrary octet values, so base64 content-transfer-encoding is recommended for transmission over email.
The media type is called application/marc. Files with this type hold complete library records. When sending them by email, the file should be encoded in a special way so it does not get corrupted.
§3Security and Interoperability
MARC data itself poses no known security risks to users. However, a MARC record may include or describe information marked with a security classification. This creates no risk to the reader of the MARC data, but it may present a security concern if classified information leaks from its source. MARC is designed as a communication format to enable interoperability between different systems that may use different internal storage formats. Each system remains free to store and display data locally as it prefers, while using MARC for exchange.
MARC data is safe to read. But if someone sends secret information in a MARC record and the record leaks, the person who sent it could have a problem.