What does "Invalid MARC21 Character" error mean in cataloging client?

Question

What does the "Invalid MARC21 Character" errror mean in the cataloging client?

Answer

MARC21 character set validation is controlled by a setting in the cataloging client's Options > Preferences > Validation tab's "Bypass MARC21 Character Set Validation" setting.  If that checkbox is unchecked, MARC21 character set validation is performed based on the MARC21 Repertoire.cfg file distributed with Voyager clients.

This error occurs when the "Bypass MARC21 Character Set Validation" setting is unchecked and the system encounters invalid MARC21 characters in the record when it is saved.

To avoid this error, catalogers may check the "Bypass MARC21 Character Set Validation" checkbox, or catalogers can add invalid characters¹ to the Repertoire.cfg file locally to support validation in the Cataloging client.

Additional Information

Voyager supports Unicode fonts and will store Unicode characters in the database; however, the character needs to be part of the MARC21 Character Set. If in your Options > Preferences in Cataloging you have NOT checked Bypass MARC21 Character Set Validation, then Voyager will validate the characters in the record against what is in the locally stored MARC21 Repertoire.cfg file. If the characters are not in the Repertoire.cfg file (in other words, not part of the MARC21 Character Set), they are returned as invalid characters.

Thus, only characters that map from MARC-8 to Unicode (and back) are included in the default ("out of the box") MARC21 Repertoire.cfg file that is distributed with Voyager clients.

¹As an example of a modification, you could add U+2019 to the Repertoire.cfg file to accommodate a right single quotation mark code (instead of a regular apostrophe) in the record.

• Article last edited: 21-Apr-2021