The Use of Standards in the Application of the AMC Format

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.