MnLINK VDX Blog

Remember that when you want to cancel a request you will first need to open up the request with Local Change Request Details. Then you select the Rota tab, highlight everything in the Preliminary Rota box, and then click on Delete Selection. When you are finished, click on Submit. Then you can cancel the request. If you just select Cancel without removing the rota first, the request will just move on to the next lender in the rota.

There is an upgrade with the new version of the system that will take care of all of these steps for you. This new feature is called Terminate Request. Cancel will still exist as an option. If all goes as planned you will all get a chance to use this feature in the live system within 2 weeks.

Posted by Nick at 3:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Have you ever asked, “How do I force a request to a location or in other words add a location to the rota?” The important thing to remember about the MnLINK Gateway is that there are 2 main Interloan Status types for libraries, Responder and Requester & Not an ILL Participant. The Responder and Requester Interloan Status are designated for the location that handles the ILL processing. The Not an ILL Participant Interloan Status is designated for locations that are searchable but if a request is sent there, there is no one to respond. The Not an ILL Participant would be the branches of the library system hub.

How do you find the correct code for adding to the Rota? Select the Location option in the left hand column. You have a few different search options in the drop-down box. If you have the name I suggest you choose the Long Description, enter a key term in the “for” box, change the “Match” radio button to Any part, then click Submit. Let’s say you want to search for Hamline. You will return a list of matches, with the library codes in bold type on the left side of the list. You will see that there are 2 Responder and Requester locations and 1 Not an ILL participant. If you want to add Bush Library to the rota, the correct code to add is MHA01. The other locations with no Status are legitimate codes, but used for system administration only. All of the Responder and Requester Status locations have the format ***01, EXCEPT MINITEX, University of Minnesota which is MIIUM. There is also the MINITEX as lender of last resort location which is MII01. Just because a location has a code ending with “01” doesn’t mean that they are a lender. If you use the wrong code the request will be sent to a location that can not respond and sit for 5 days until it expires.

You can add locations to the rota at 2 different times, while the request is in the New file or while the request is in the Pending file. If the request is in the New file you use the Action of Request. Now that the record is open for editing you select the Rota tab. In the Add to rota box you add your location. Then select the +Add button to move the location to the Preliminary rota box. You can add multiple locations one at a time or several at once. To add more than one location at one time, separate the locations with a comma. Click Submit when you are finished adding locations.

If you want to add locations while the request is in the Pending file you want to choose Local Change Request Details.

Posted by Nick at 11:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It is very important to keep the requests moving through your Lender In Process file. You may need to check the file on a regular basis to make sure that requests don’t end up sitting there. Set a timeframe that is reasonable for your location and if your institution hasn’t filled the request, just mark it Not Supplied and give someone else a chance. You can easily sort the requests to present the oldest requests first.

First choose the Requests option to bring up the Advanced Search screen. Scroll down in the Status box and choose In Process. The Status box is directly below the Reset Form button at the top of the screen. Then at the bottom of the screen in the Sort by options select the radio button for ascending. Then select Submit. This will bring up the oldest Lending In Process request first.

If you have any comments, questions or ideas that I should write about please let me know.

Posted by Nick at 9:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Every library has been given a Barcode and Password to Login to VDX. A few locations have personalized their profile by adding a new Barcode designation or changed the Password. Some have created profiles for the different people in the department.

Once you Login to a profile, you can make changes by selecting the User option. The User Details will appear with an Edit button at the bottom. The Edit button allows you to change many of the profile details, but you can’t change the Barcode. At the top of the screen is the option to Create a profile. If you Create a profile, just remember that the password is case sensitive. You will also want to change the Category from Unidentified user to Staff User, otherwise your privileges will be limited.

As a general rule it is good idea for security reasons to change your passwords occasionally. Individualized barcodes can also assist in tracking of certain functions. Remember that if you do choose to edit your default profile, you need to let Michael Berkowski, Joyce Hommel or me know. We need to have access to your VDX account if there are any problems that need exploring. If someone leaves your library and you believe they had a personalized profile, let me know. I can delete the profile.

Posted by Nick at 9:26 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)