Weekly Update – December 7, 2011
Downloading the 2.1 Staff Client
In advance of the Evergreen 2.1 upgrade, which will begin Friday, December 9th, 2011 at 8 AM, we’ve made available Evergreen Staff Client installers for various operating systems. Please choose the link below that applies to your operating system. [Links removed 6/2015]
The new staff client can be installed alongside the current 2.0.4 client. Downloading the 2.1 staff client will create a new directory (Evergreen Staff Client 2.1) and a new icon with the “Evergreen Staff Client 2.1” label. Please continue to use Evergreen 2.0.4 offline through close of business Sunday, or until after the upgrade is finished.
FYI, until the Evergreen 2.1 upgrade has been completed on Monday, December 12th, 2011, opening the Staff Client 2.1 will result in a message that says “This server does not support your version of the staff client…”. Go ahead and click “Cancel” and then exit Evergreen 2.1 and run your current version.
As a refresher, we’ve provided documentation on installing the staff client.
Additionally, you are welcome to contact the helpdesk with any questions regarding the staff client installation.
Windows XP/Vista/7
Macintosh (unsupported)
Linux Source Code (unsupported)
Food for Fines
Several libraries have contacted me with questions regarding their local Food for Fines holiday program. As such, I have consulted with the Indiana State Library Legal Consultant and the State Board of Accounts to find out their requirements if a library should choose to engage in such as program locally. Because there is no prohibition of the practice of waiving fines in the State Library Code, the decision on whether or not to implement a Food for Fines program comes down to a legal question that needs to be addressed locally by the library board and the city/town attorney.
NOTE: If libraries will be engaging in a Food for Fines program, they must have a written local policy adopted by the Library Board along with a written opinion from the city/town attorney. Both of these documents are required by SBoA to implement Food for Fines program without receiving an audit exception.
You may use either the Forgive or Goods Billing option to forgive fines and fees in a patron’s account.
Remember, you may only forgive those fines and fees to which your library is owed. Overdue fines are owed to the circulating library. Lost and damaged fines are owed to the owning library.
Tips for Using Offline Mode
We have recommend that libraries only check-out during offline mode and do not check-in, register patrons, or check-out holds to patrons. Staff members shouldn’t check-in items using offline mode or check-out holds to patrons because it is best when using offline mode to only check-out items with a status of “Available.” Because transits won’t be checked in from December 9-11, those items will still have a status of “In-transit” and checking items out with a status of “In-transit” causes issues when uploading the offline transactions. If the transaction can’t be uploaded, staff need to go in and manually re-create the transaction so you will want to avoid needing to do that since it is difficult to track down and manually re-create a transaction for an item that may be circulating outside the library.
If you receive transits on Thursday and are able to check them in before going onto offline mode on Friday, you may check those items out to patrons. However, if you have transits that you aren’t able to check-in before going to offline mode, staff members shouldn’t check those items out to a patron.
Ballot to change by-laws
Ballots to change the by-laws were sent to all Evergreen Indiana libraries. Just a reminder that you must turn them in by the next Executive Committee meeting on December 13, 2011. If you have misplaced the original and need another copy, the Ballot to Change the By-Laws is available here. Please fill it out and return it to the Evergreen Indiana Coordinator at the Indiana State Library.