Unique identifiers for serials

TLDR: Two large and evolving systems of concise, unambiguous identifiers for serials, the CODEN and the ISSN, are discussed from the user's viewpoint.

Abstract: Two large and evolving systems of concise, unambiguous identifiers for serials, the CODEN and the ISSN, are discussed from the user's viewpoint. CODEN, obtainable from the International CODEN Service at Chemical Abstracts Service, are six-character (letters, or letters and numbers) identifiers which may be used as part of brief citations, are displayed on journal covers in a bibliographic strip, and are well-suited to on-line information retrieval and serials control. ISSN, issued by each country's ISDS center or the International Center in Paris, consist of eight-digit numbers, displayed as two groups of four digits, separated by a space or hyphen, and are always preceded by the letters ISSN. The ISSN are used in all aspects of serials control.