Tag Archives: ILL

Changes in The CAT record display to encourage users to request ILL when a book is unavailable

By Barbara Coopey

In keeping with our user-centered focus, Access Services Council in collaboration with the Circ Reserves Expert team, has been examining service alternatives to the recall process. This past year, several changes have been implemented in The CAT records to alert users when an item is unavailable. They are instead guided to use Interlibrary Loan services. There is a web page on the Access Services Intranet explaining the rationale and progress of the changes. https://www.libraries.psu.edu/psul/access/intranet/catchanges12.html

For certain conditions such as checked out to another library, material at the bindery or being repaired, the due date displayed under Location in The CAT record has been replaced with the text This copy unavailable, submit request via Interlibrary Loan. This text is a “hot” link to Interlibrary Loan services for the user to place a request. In addition, items with these conditions are non-holdable. This means the “I Want It” will not display unless there is an available copy to satisfy a hold.

However, if an item is checked out to a local user, the due date is replaced with Checked out. Items checked out to local users are holdable, meaning the “I Want It” will display. The web page has images of CAT records with the various conditions. It also shows how these conditions are displayed in E-ZBorrow and Uborrow.

Why did my book requested on ILLiad arrive from an E-ZBorrow Library?

By Barbara Coopey assistant head of Access Services

Since July 2013 Interlibrary Loan staff have been placing books requested via ILLiad on E-ZBorrow. If ILL Staff find that a book request submitted on ILLiad is available at an E-ZBorrow library, they will request it via E-ZBorrow.
There are several advantages for users:

  • E-ZBorrow books arrive faster
  • E-ZBorrow books have a 12-week loan period (weeks longer than the standard ILL loan period)
  • Books are checked out on the user’s CAT Library Account

If the book cannot be supplied from an E-ZBorrow library (this does not happen often) the user will receive an email from the E-ZBorrow system stating, “UNFILLED REQUEST: If you still want this book, please forward this email to ul-ILLiad-support@lists.psu.edu so staff can assist you with this unfilled request.” The email has the book information attached so ILL staff can easily request the book elsewhere. Users can find the original ILLiad request under View – History of Requests, then by selecting the transaction number. Under “Tracking” there will be a status of “Requested via Palci E-ZBorrow.” ILL staff placed over 500 book requests on E-ZBorrow since July 1. ILLiad and E-ZBorrow are located on the Interlibrary Loan website.

ILLiad moving to OCLC hosted server

By Barbara Coopey

On January 9, 2013 Penn State ILLiad will migrate to a hosted server located at OCLC.  ILLiad will be down at noon on January 8, 2013 to halt transaction activity in order to back up the database in preparation for the migration. To reduce the size of the database for the migration, 689,415 ILLiad transactions from 2002 through 2007 were purged in December 2012.

Moving to a hosted server means that ILLiad will no longer be housed and supported locally in the Libraries. DLT has housed and maintained ILLiad since 2002. With the transition to an OCLC ILLiad server hosting service, all aspects of ILLiad will be moved from DLT to OCLC.

OCLC offers a restricted access and secure facility with 24-hour monitoring of the ILLiad system. OCLC will be maintaining the necessary hardware and software components, back-ups, and system and software upgrades for the Penn State ILLiad. This frees DLT and I-Tech staff from being responsible for supporting ILLiad hardware and software components and upgrades.

Penn State users should not notice any changes with the migration of services to OCLC. A new Penn State ILLiad was built on an OCLC server that will house all of our ILLiad web pages and files and the transaction database. The Penn State “thumbprint” authentication will continue to be used with the new hosted service. ILLiad was developed by Atlas Systems and is distributed through OCLC. More information (http://www.oclc.org/illiad/hosted/default.htm) about ILLiad hosted service at OCLC.