Page Comparison

Handouts, resources and display documents for the class

Handout – Items and Holdings Handout - 1 pager.docx (word doc)

Display – Items Holdings practice exercises_version 2.docx – or –  Items Holdings practice exercises.docx

Links to any pre-reading and reference documents

• Items - Material types for reference
• Item Policies for reference
• Moving Holdings and Items for reference
  

Outline for the class and links to related documentation

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Introduction

Welcome to the Items & Holdings class. In this class, we will look at items and holdings for physical materials across functional areas (acquisition, cataloging, circulation). This class will include time for hands-on practice.

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• We are all learning and working on Alma together.
• This is a complex process, and many things won’t be perfect on Day 1.
• Switching systems like this can be a challenging process, but the end results will be good and worth the effort.
• No one expects you to be an expert in Alma right away.
• Starting today, please use the LTS Alma Support form to ask questions and report issues with Alma data, workflows, or roles & permissions. Asking these questions, and working groups providing answers, is an important part of everyone learning more about Alma. You can find the link on the home page in Alma, in the Notifications widget; if you need to add the notifications widget, go to the Introduction to Alma wiki page link on your handout from that class.
• We will all have the time we need to learn Alma – before and after go live – and the support you need to do your work.

• I want to share some logistics information: 
  
  • The nearest bathrooms are...
  • The nearest water fountain/supply is...
  • Please log in to your computers using the following username and password: (Whatever it is for those computers - if possible, put it into a Word document and project it on the screen)

...

• We will show some options of what you could try during this time. They are not required and there will be no test!
• If you want to do something else, go for it!
• Trainers and faciliators will circulate to assist and answer questions at this time.

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Items

Let's begin our work by looking at items. In this section, we will review general information about items, try the on the fly "add physical item" process, review editing items, and look at deleting (which Alma calls withdrawing) items.

General Background

Items records cross over into most functional areas – from ordering, to cataloging, to inventory maintenance, to de-acessioning.  For that reason, they are part of this class for staff across functional areas.

In Alma, holdings and items together are called "inventory". In Alma, anything with a holding is referred to as a Physical Title, or Physical Inventory.  Most holdings and items represent physical pieces in our collection. Some holdings may represent online resources; these are usually for locally digitized items.  A key difference from Aleph is that most electronic resources will not be represented by holdings, instead they will be represented by Alma portfolios (covered in more detail in the E-Resources class). 

In Alma, all items are attached to holdings. This is a core difference from Aleph. A holding may or may not have an item.  

Understanding how Alma Inventory is structured

Ex Libris has created diagrams that show how data in Alma is structured. You may remember seeing this structure of Alma inventory in your Intro or Search & Sets class.

Show images on this page: Items & Holdings

How items function in Alma

• A bib may have a holding without items.
  
  • Examples are an analyzed monographic series, a multipart work, or an older serial:
    
    • First, let's look at a monographic series: Conduct an "All Titles" search for MMS ID 990091802930203941 (Archaeological studies Leiden University) - If not already expanded, click "Expand > All"  This record has only Holdings (no Items). 
    • Now, let's look at a mulipart work: Conduct an "All Titles" search for MMS ID 990074312040203941 (Oxford history of art) - If not already expanded, click "Expand > All"  This record also only has Holdings (no Items)
    • Some of our older serial tiles do not have items : Conduct an "All Titles" search for MMS ID 990051690120203941 (Quarterly digest of statistics (Accra, Ghana : 1959) - If not already expanded, click "Expand > All" This record also only has Holdings (no Items)
      

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• On this date an automated job will warn staff to return these items to their regular location.

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Handouts, resources and display documents for the class

Handout – Items and Holdings Handout - 1 pager.docx (word doc)

Display – Items Holdings practice exercises_version 2.docx 

Links to any pre-reading and reference documents

• Items - Material types for reference
• Item Policies for reference
  

Outline for the class and links to related documentation

Script for the class

Introduction

Welcome to the Items & Holdings class. In this class, we will look at items and holdings for physical materials across functional areas (acquisition, cataloging, circulation). This class will include time for hands-on practice.

• Prior to taking this class, we hope you were able to attend some of these classes:
  • Intro to Alma
  • Search & Sets
  • Resource Management – Intro to Metadata Editor video
    
    
• I want to provide a few notes about the training process:
  
  • We are all learning and working on Alma together.
  • This is a complex process, and many things won’t be perfect on Day 1.
  • Switching systems like this can be a challenging process, but the end results will be good and worth the effort.
  • No one expects you to be an expert in Alma right away.
  • Starting today, please use the LTS Alma Support form to ask questions and report issues with Alma data, workflows, or roles & permissions. Asking these questions, and working groups providing answers, is an important part of everyone learning more about Alma. You can find the link on the home page in Alma, in the Notifications widget; if you need to add the notifications widget, go to the Introduction to Alma wiki page link on your handout from that class.
  • We will all have the time we need to learn Alma – before and after go live – and the support you need to do your work.

• I want to share some logistics information: 
  
  • The nearest bathrooms are...
  • The nearest water fountain/supply is...
  • Please log in to your computers using the following username and password: (Whatever it is for those computers - if possible, put it into a Word document and project it on the screen)

• Quick recap of essential training elements:
  • This is Phase 1 of Training. We are trying to make sure people are prepared to do 80% of their job on day 1
  • We are training on the tool of Alma, not on specific workflows or local procedures
  • We will show you one verified way to do tasks – there are almost certainly several other ways to do the same thing, and possibly better ways – you can go back, practice and find out.
  • Please use fidgets – they can be helpful for focusing, relaxing, staying awake...and if you are feeling tired at any point, feel free to stand up in your area, stand along the wall, etc.
    
    
• Please ask questions when they come up; I will also pause between sections for questions and to make sure things are clear
  
  
• Let's start by introducing ourselves.

• Now let's review the handouts together.   
  • The one page handout has important links at the top, some important concepts to remember, and space for notes.
  • There is also a one-page handout that lists the outline of topics for today, and the list of Items/Holdings related documentation on the LTS wiki.
  • The script I am using is also available on the LTS wiki.
    
    
• I'd like to confirm - Can everyone see my screen?

• We have provided computers for the practice time we will take.
  • It is not necessary to follow along on your machine as I demonstrate, but you are welcome to if it helps you.
  • We will outline the basic steps.  You will repeat what I'm showing you when practice time comes up.
    
    
• During practice time:
  • We will show some options of what you could try during this time. They are not required and there will be no test!
  • If you want to do something else, go for it!
  • Trainers and faciliators will circulate to assist and answer questions at this time.

• Please log into your computer and navigate and login to Alma at this time.
  
  

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Items

Let's begin our work by looking at items.  Items records cross over into most functional areas – from ordering, to cataloging, to inventory maintenance, to de-acessioning.  For that reason, they are part of this class for staff across functional areas.

In this section, we will review general information about items, and try the on the fly "add physical item" process.  Then we will take a break so you can practice the Add Physical Item process.

General Background

Here is some basic information about Items in Alma, which in some cases may be different from Aleph.

• Holdings and items together are called "inventory" in Alma. 

  • To help understand how Alma Inventory is structured, Ex Libris has created these diagrams – you may remember seeing this structure of Alma inventory in your Intro or Search & Sets class.  

    • Trainer can show images on this page / draw something similar on the board, as needed: Items & Holdings

• In Alma, anything with a holding is referred to as a Physical Title or Physical Inventory.  
  • Most holdings and items represent physical pieces in our collection. 
  • A difference from Aleph is that most electronic resources will not be represented by holdings, instead they will be represented by Electronic collection and portfolio information. 
• In Alma, all items are attached to holdings. This is a core difference from Aleph, where creating a holdings was not required. 
  • Alma will not allow you to create an item without a holding. 
  • When creating an item, Alma will also create a holding if one does not already exist for that library/location.
  • You may be wondering – what about the things in Aleph that didn't have holdings?
    • Aleph items that were not attached to holdings were attached to holdings in Alma during data migration.
      • During migration, Alma either attached the item to an existing holding (when the library/location were the same) or, if they were not, Alma created a new holding.
• In Alma, a holding may or may not have an item.  

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Any time something is not in place the "availability" status will be "unavailable." (Appropriate request links will still be present in the public catalog).

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• • Items are marked with a process type of Tech Services Work Order when an item is in any stage of the Technical Services workflow.

  • Items are marked with a process type of Technical - Migration when the item was at certain Aleph IPS value and has not yet been updated by LTS via batch job, or manually updated by staff. 

  • There are a number of circ-related process types defined by Alma:

    • Claimed Returned

    • Hold Shelf

    • Loan

    • Lost

    • Missing

    • Resource Sharing Request

    • Transit

  • In some cases the process type reflects an item in a Work Order (e.g. technical service processing), and in other cases process type reflects a circulation-related status (e.g. missing).

    • Work order process types show up as options in the item record process type drop down list. The item process type in the header can list work order types, or circ-related types.

    • Ex.: Conduct an "All Titles" search for MMS ID 990087654890203941 (Theodore Rex) and click on Items
      

Creating Items

Item creation occurs at various times based on workflow and type of material.

• You may
  • Examples of a bib that has a holding without items: are an analyzed monographic series, a multipart work, or an older serial.  (Trainer, 3 examples below if you want to show one, two or all)
    
    • • a monographic series: Conduct an "All Titles" search for MMS ID 
    990001385590203941 (Journal of academic librarianship) - If not already expanded, click "Expand > All" 

This title only shows a summary of item availability for the Widener Library copy with the call number of BP 178.8 based on the first and last item record.

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Item in place (item is not checked out, in transit, or in process)

• • • • 990091802930203941 (Archaeological studies Leiden University) 
      • a mulipart work: Conduct an "All Titles" search for MMS ID 990074312040203941 (Oxford history of art) 
      • older serial tiles do not have items : Conduct an "All Titles" search for MMS ID 990051690120203941 (Quarterly digest of statistics (Accra, Ghana : 1959) 

• Alma allows setting of Temporary locations values, which can be helpful for some materials, such as Reserves and Serials.
  • When temporarily moving items from one location to another, staff have the option of inputting an end date for the temporary location in Alma. 
    • On this date an automated job will warn staff to return these items to their regular location.

• Like Aleph, Alma will not allow you to enter a barcode already used by another item.

• There are some unique displays in Alma related to holdings and item information.  When viewing search results in Alma, there is a summary line of holdings/items. 
  
  • The system lists the first and last item held so this is not a summary, just an "at a glance" status. 
    • The summary in the Alma search results does not show holdings summary statements. 
    • I'll use the All Titles search to show an example.  (Isabel/Lars – different example here?)
      Conduct an "All Titles" search for MMS ID 990001385590203941 (Journal of academic librarianship) - If not already expanded, click "Expand > All" 

This title only shows a summary of item availability for the Widener Library copy with the call number of BP 178.8 based on the first and last item record.

• • • • Please note that because not all physical items held have item records, these summary statements may not reflect actual holdings. 
        • If you are interested in an example: Ghana living standards survey (MMS ID 990027316770203941). We also hold v. 1-4, but they do not have item records.)
          
          
          

• I want to highlight 2 changes in vocabulary in Alma related to Items.
  

  • In Aleph, the field called "Item Status" was used to define terms of use, or loan policy, for an item.  
    • (This data migrated to a field called "Item Policy" in Alma, which is used along with Location to determine terms of use for an item.)  

  • The Item status that displays in Alma  is determined automatically by the system and is one of two values (Trainer: do an All Titles search for Theodore Rex, click on the Items hyperlink, to show on the screen during this explanation):

    • Item in place (item is not checked out, in transit, or in process)

    • Item not in place (item is in process, transit, or checked out)

      • Any time something is not in place the "availability" status will be "unavailable." (Appropriate request links will still be present in the public catalog).

        
        

  • Item Process type is also different than Aleph Item Processing Status.  
    • In Alma, Item Process type is used when an item is undergoing some kind of library processing or circulation activity. 
      • It will be one of two kinds of statuses:  a Work Order status (which is what is replacing pseudopatrons; something like Tech Services Shelf Prep, or Preservation Review); or a Circ-related status (like On Loan, Missing, On Hold, Lost, etc).
    • Process types are defined centrally for Harvard. 
      • In many cases, Aleph IPS migrated to Alma Item Internal Notes. If you have question about migrated data points for items, please refer to the item data mapping guide.

Creating Items Using "Add Physical Item"

Item creation occurs at various times based on workflow and type of material.  

I am going to show you a method for quickly adding an item to the system, using the Resources > Create Inventory > Add Physical Item function.  

• Items may be created during the process of placing an order, or when cataloging.  The steps for those workflows are covered in the Ordering and Cataloging classes.
• You may also create an item when you are doing "quick cataloging" or "on the fly" item creation, such as when an item is found in the stacks but it doesn't appear to exist in the catalog. 
  • A holding will be automatically created based on the item values selected.

• Items may also be created during the process of placing an order, or when cataloging.

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• Alma will ask if you want to attach the item to an existing holding, or create a new holding
• If you select "existing" it will ask you to choose the existing holdings
• If you select "new", you need to enter the required fields (marked with red asterisk).  In this example, I'm selecting "new",
• Select book or article
• Enter a title
it doesn't appear to exist in the catalog. 
• A holding is automatically created based on the item values selected.
• I am going to show you this method, using the Resources > Create Inventory > Add Physical Item function.  
  
  
• Alma will ask if you want to attach the item to an existing holding, or create a new holding.
  • If you select "existing" it will ask you to choose the existing holdings
  • If you select "new", you need to enter the required fields (marked with red asterisk).  
    • In this example, I'm selecting "new", because we want to create a new bib, holdings and item right now.
  • Select book or article
  • Enter a title.
    • We are going to use this title again later in class, to view and edit the holdings and item.  So please pick or make up a very unique title so it will be easy for you to find.
      • Something like "Isabel is learning Alma"  or "Lars loves baseball" would work well.
  • Start typing a location.  Alma will search the location list based on what you enter. Select your location.
  • Click outside the location box to have Alma capture that info.
  • At that point, the barcode box will no longer be grayed out, and you can enter a barcode. can enter a barcode (or you can let Alma create a system supplied one, which will be Alma####, like Alma4066).
  • Click save.
• This will create a very brief bib, a holdings with the location you selected, and an item with a barcode. 
  

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• .

Practice time (show instructions on screen): Please  We are now going to try this Quick Cataloging Add Physical Item process. 

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Editing items

Now we will cover updating existing items.

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• If you are already in the Metadata Editor looking at a Bib record, you can click on the View Inventory icon, or type CTRL + (letter i)
  • here you will see the list of holdings, and you can either view or edit
  • Alma will keep also keep track of holdings that you are working on. These will display on the left hand pane. You can click on any holdings in your left pane to display and edit that holdings.
    • When you open things to edit (bibs or holdings) they become locked to you.  Make sure to release them when you are done.  Otherwise they are locked for editing (view-only) for 7 days after your last edit. More information about using the MD Editor can be found in the MD Editor Overview documentation.
• You can add or delete fields using the Edit menu. 
• Use the Save icon when your edits are done, and then release the record using the File menu. 

Adding a new holdings

When you place an order for a physical item, Alma will automatically create a holdings and item for you.  There may be some workflows where you need to create a holding record manually, perhaps when processing a gift book.

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