Minutes of June 10, 2004 meeting

Present:

C. Sterback, A.Peteet, J.Teichmann, B.Lipinski, R.Smith, N.Mukherjee, D.Voorhees, A.Martinez, M.Tokar, J.Gardner; and K.Anderson, D.Grauer, Y.Ishii, and M.Harris (via telecom)

1) Goals Review. Review of 2003/04 goals and discussion of 4-5 key goals for 2004/05

2003/04 Goals:

• Remove long overdue books from the system and implement Sirsi s new lost book and billing functions available in U2003. [In process]
• Expand the Audio Reserve pilot project; review media circulation policies. [Not Done]
• Offer patrons Knight Express and/or credit card payment options. [KE at Alex DONE, credit card Not Done]
• Implement web document delivery for RDS articles. [DONE]
• Train additional access services staff to run basic Reports. [DONE]
• Automate patron PIN requests. [Not Done]
• Revise patron loader: new expiration date, withdrawn and alumni statuses. [DONE]
• Test and implement system upgrades and new releases (Unicorn, Ariel, URSA, etc.). [DONE]
• Introduce ILL Manager s patron web interface for interlibrary loans. [DONE]

Misc. 2003/04 accomplishments: use of new AAL software, courtesy notices to community & VALE borrowers, selectors missing book reports, batch removal of missing items.

2004/05 Goals:

• Beta test Workflows 2004.
• Review reserve services and possible electronic copy only policy.
• Obtain an electronic file of graduates and use it to identify diploma holds.
• Implement new borrower authentication and registration procedures under an updated (pending) RUL-UMDNJ libraries agreement.
• Remove long overdue books from the system; implement lost book, billing, and claims returns functions.
• Offer patrons credit card payment option.
• Automate patron PIN requests.

2) U2003.1: Release notes, testing assignments, implementation schedule

Due to a short summer testing period, available staff were asked to volunteer and the following assignments were made. Relevant release notes, testing checklists, test system logins, users, and overrides were distributed or will be emailed. We have until June 30th to test. Email Chris and Judy any problems you identify. The systems will be upgraded over the July 4th weekend.

User Maintenance: Michele
Charge and Discharge: Katie
Renew: Maggie
Create and Delete Brief Records: Roger (reserves), Michele (circ), Brian (ill)
Check Item Status, Manage Transit, Display Items: Andy
Holds and Recalls: Andy
Requests: Nita
Billing: Barry
User Functions: Judy
Reserves: Roger

3) Workflows 2004: Beta testing

A beta testing team will be formed and two coordinators appointed. A couple of staff volunteered to work with Workflows 2004 at a circulation desk in their libraries. Testing will begin in July after 2003.1 is implemented.

4) Access Services-Systems Calendar for 2004-05, draft

A draft 2004-05 Access Services-Systems calendar was distributed with key circulation dates and activities noted, based on the academic calendar. Please review it and send corrections and additions to Judy.

5) Other items and information sharing

RDS Web Article Delivery.

• A new RDS Keyboard Express Replies file will be created and posted to library t drives next week.
• Question about 30+ page articles and potential file size problems; the viewing tip successfully addresses 99% of file size problems reported by patrons.
• The RU-A-PAID daily report is not working quite right. It would be helpful for statistical purposes to have user status print on Requests. Chris will investigate.
• Article titles are not coming consistently with articles scanned and transmitted to a posting station. This causes the email message to go out to users with a generic, meaningless title. Please be sure that user name and title information is copied and pasted correctly before you transmit articles to a posting station.

• Reminder that some VALE libraries including Rutgers will begin extending on-site guest borrowing privileges to each other s graduate students July 1, 2004.
• This month we will begin to email courtesy notices to withdrawn students with checkouts. Beginning in September we will send courtesy notices to new alumni, with and without checkouts, on a monthly basis. We stopped changing alumni statuses in the patron load during the summer in order to maintain the student status of PhD students who received their masters degrees in the spring.
• Please be sure to fill out Addresses 1 and 2 completely (each field!) when creating user records locally. Incomplete information in address 2 caused a significant number of summer courtesy notices to print rather than email.
• LSM is half way to a weeding goal of 35,000 items. SpCol/UA selectors will review LSM lists. LSM experience a major flood on the first floor but the collections were not affected.
• New furniture has been installed in the instructional alcove and reference folios shifted into a new atlas case at Kilmer.
• Robeson will start staffing their new circulation desk next week, staff areas are a little behind schedule. To see pictures of the renovation, before & after, click on the yellow construction helmet on Robeson's home page: http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu/rul/libs/robeson_lib/index.html Robeson had a minor flood when the AC closet flooded into technical services.
• Carolyn F. is expected back Mon., Newark s staff recognition day was yesterday.
• Systems new UPS has been successfully installed in the machine room. A 2nd air conditioner will be installed this summer but no down time is anticipated. Chris is working on FY rollover, scripts to batch withdrawals for database management and LSM weeding, planning for system upgrade July 4th, and configuring the system for the new book approval vendor (Yankee).
• Alex staff are working on summer projects, collection management, pulling spring reserves.
• Douglass has new art displays, was open for reunion weekend, signing up grad study carrels and group study rooms. Annex is using the available space database; Art has new reference shelving; Chemistry is withdrawing materials.
• Reserve removal is moving forward, 6600 control records and 6400 brief records for spring 04 were removed. An access database helps tracking reserve purchases (bibliographic and course info) in NB/P. Alex is running the still checked out at closing reserve report, all others canceled for the summer. Five open lines in NBL access services will be filled.