September 3, 2014

Meeting was held at Pittsfield Public Library, Bangor Public Library, Lewiston Public Library and York Public Library via Tandberg.

Meeting Recording

Meeting Overview

A. Reports

Maine InfoNet / Technical — Lynn Uhlman

• Sierra Install
  • Dropbox no webstart install has proven most successful.
  • Mac issues are slowly being worked out. Some libraries who have Macs have not had issues, but there are a few who continue to have trouble.
  • Each individual computer is setup differently and that has complicated the Sierra install for some reason.
• Sierra Functions
  • Functionality is mostly the same as Millennium, it just comes in a prettier package. There are a few bells and whistles, but overall it works the same.
• Sierra Preview
  • Current permissions and abilities are limited in Sierra

Minerva Circ. Standards Chair — James Rathbun

• Minerva ILL Policy
  • Several libraries have changed their loan rules to match the ILL rule.
  • The only person who doesn’t like it is the last person on the list.
  • Some libraries aren’t purchasing materials that their patrons have requests on, which makes the wait longer.

B. Standards, Procedures and Announcements

• Sierra Overview
  • The change in workflow will be different, however, a few weeks post migration we should be able to get together to discuss best practices.
  • Went over Browse Queries and Search Range as new or more visible tools in Sierra.
  • More options when searching fields in Create Lists or Browse Queries. The field parameter now enables you to search holds and fine fields, as well as, the standard data fields.
  • Will be able to access more of the data from the back end, which will hopefully make pulling certain information from the system much easier.
  • Issues of locked records should not occur in the new system. Rather than locking the entire record the system grabs certain information, so that a staff member should be able to check out items to a patron whose items are being checked in.
  • INN-Reach hold issues should not occur as often, where the holds lock up.

• MLA Conference — Exploring Sierra’s Hidden Gem
  • Conference will be held November 16th and 17th.
  • Lynn will be presenting tips and tricks to use within Sierra:
    • Join a gathering of your peers to discuss the precious tidbits of information that can make working with Sierra flow more smoothly. Discuss the benefits of using Macros, Browse Queries vs. Create Lists, Search Range Feature, High-Demand Holds and so much more.  Be sure to bring your personal tips and tricks to share! Go to the conference page here.
• Offline Circ
  • Continue to do it like you have in the past, but you will need to submit your circ.dat files to the ticket site. Reminder to make sure terminal numbers are listed in Offline Circ under Edit>Preferences.

C. Reminders

Sierra Migration is September 8th, please expect a full day of down time and plan accordingly.

D. Questions

• Will paging slips print the same? Paging slip print settings should remain the same. INN-Reach will work the same, except for a little setting in “Visiting Patrons”. The search boxes are backwards.
• Training – No official training, since there aren’t any true differences in functionality. However, a manual is in the process and should be out shortly.

E. Next Meeting

Wednesday, December 3rd 10a-12:30p at the Maine State Library. Circulation Standards Committee meeting to follow directly after the round table discussion. Remote sites will be: Bangor Public Library, Lewiston Public Library, and York Public Library (to be confirmed).