To recreate: 1 - Find a record with an author linked to an authority 2 - Get that authority number 3 - Browse to tools->batch record deletion 4 - Select authorities and enter that authority id 5 - Delete the authority 6 - View the record, the 100 field has been cleared
(In reply to Nick Clemens from comment #0) > To recreate: > 1 - Find a record with an author linked to an authority > 2 - Get that authority number > 3 - Browse to tools->batch record deletion > 4 - Select authorities and enter that authority id > 5 - Delete the authority > 6 - View the record, the 100 field has been cleared Is that really a bug or actually what you should expect?
(In reply to Marcel de Rooy from comment #1) > Is that really a bug or actually what you should expect? I think it either should remove only the $9 or prevent deletion if record is linked
We are restricting the deletion on the detail of the authority record, so it would make sense to not allow the deletion using the batch tools.
It can be a useful feature for things like subjects etc. you no longer want to use. I remember using it to clean out migration errors. Maybe we could solve this with an option/checkbox on the form? If there are linked records - Delete only the linking field ($9, UNIMARC?) - Delete the whole entry
Hm, radio button? If there are linked bibliographic records - Delete only the linking field ($9, UNIMARC?) - Delete the whole entry - Don't delete authority record
Adjusted the title in accordance with comments 3 to 5.
Probably just need two choices for the radio button, unlink and delete, since we already have the don't delete option as a "Clear used authorities" link. FWIW, I use this feature precisely for what it currently does, delete an unwanted authority record and delete the bib fields using it, all the time. Having it removed rather than just put behind a radio button choice, so that I would have to decide each time between manually editing a bunch of bib records, or writing a targetted MARC modification template to delete any 100/600/700/800 or 110/610/710/810, etc., with a particular authid, would be a frustrating step backward.
I like having an option to unlink versus delete. Does the unlink here retain the authority record in the system? If so, won't the authority in the bibliographic record eventually relink if AutoLinkBiblios, CatalogModuleRelink, and LinkerRelink are enabled? If I wanted to batch delete authorities that are in use, the system should unlink and then delete, while retaining the authority in the bibliographic record. That retention step is perhaps the part that should be optional. I can see cases where the authority in the bibliographic record is retained and cases where it is not.