The USMARC Archival and Manuscripts Control (AMC) form at is a standard format for the administrative and descriptive control of archives and manuscript materials, primarily in automated systems. This article describes the history of the AMC format's development, as well as the characteristics of its various parts. Information on AMC format implementation and use is provided, covering such topics as functional requirements analysis, information gathering, and system selection/design. The article concludes with recommendations for future action related to the format's ongoing development and use.

The USMARC Archival and Manuscripts Control (AMC) format provides archivists with the means to communicate and exchange information about holdings in machine-readable form. This article gives a brief history of the USMARC formats developed by the Library of Congress for bibliographic data and authority records and outlines the basic structure of a MARC record. It explains the role USMARC formats have played in the creation of national and international standards for the exchange of bibliographic information and in the growth of bibliographic utilities. The review process for proposed changes to the formats is described.

As archivists begin to use the new MARC Archival and Manuscripts Control (AMC) format, they will find themselves confronting many unfamiliar questions, not the least of which relate to the use of traditional library-based standards controlling the form and content of certain information elements. This article explores the ramifications for archivists using standards relating to cataloging codes, name authorities, and subject headings. In addition to explaining the importance of these standards as they relate to both the demands of the format as well as traditional archival principles, some suggestions are made to help ease the archivists into this "brave new world" of automation-induced library-archives coexistence.

Recent archival literature decrying the worsening condition of local government records offers little practical advice for the alleviation of the problem, which remains a fundamental responsibility of local governments themselves. State archival agencies, however, can and should develop programs in partnership with the counties and municipalities. North Carolina's local records program, which observed its silver anniversary in 1984, remains unique in the country. While it is not reviewed here as a model for emulation, this program does suggest that a state-financed local records program both feasibly and effectively conquers the paper mountains that have accumulated over the centuries.

American Friends Service Committee et al. v. William H. Webster, et al., commonly known to archivists as the FBI files case, illustrates appraisal challenges that should concern all archivists. The author relates the history of the case and reviews archival appraisal literature. In particular, she explains how the case illustrates a need to reevaluate appraisal philosophy that considers the evidential needs of government before the informational needs of the general public.