FAQs: Understanding Multilibrary Acquisitions

Acquisitions for multiple libraries sharing the same SirsiDynix Symphony system can be as open or as restrictive in terms of access and control of acquisitions information as you want it to be. SirsiDynix uses the acquisitions display and maintenance definitions in the Library policy to determine which libraries’ users may look at or modify the library’s acquisitions information.

Based on this policy, library staff in a central library can order, receive, and pay for all of the materials, or each individual library’s staff can be in charge of its own acquisitions. For variation, all or some libraries could share order, receipt, and payment responsibility for your library’s materials, and all or some libraries could have display access only to your library’s acquisitions.

What is the difference between a Maintenance Library and a Display Library?

In shared acquisitions, each library may share access to maintain information with some neighboring libraries, but not necessarily all libraries. You may allow some libraries to display acquisition information without maintaining it. Display and Maintenance libraries are used to manage these permissions.

When you are using acquisitions and you are prompted for a Maintenance Library (or any time that you are maintaining records), the selections that display in the are all of the libraries in your system whose acquisition information that you have permission to modify in any way.

When you are using acquisitions and you are prompted for a Display Library (or any time that you are displaying records), the selections that display are all of the libraries in your system whose acquisition information that you have permission to display in any way.

Additional display and maintenance permissions may be controlled using User Access controls for each user profile in your library. For instance, you may permit a user access in another library to create an order, but not permit that user access receive or pay for the order.

What Maintenance and Display libraries are set up for my library?

Your system administrator may determine how the maintenance and display libraries are set up for each library in the General Configuration for Library. If the maintenance and display libraries are blank, it implies that all libraries in the system are able to perform the function on your records. If only some of the libraries in your system are permitted to modify or display your acquisitions, the policies list only the libraries that you have granted permission to modify the acquisitions information in your library.

Why are the Maintenance and Display Libraries s in acquisitions different from my library’s policies?

Remember that the Maintenance and Display libraries in your Library policy reflect the libraries that have access to acquisitions information in your library. When you are using your own Acquisitions module, the s that display for selection when you are maintaining or displaying libraries are all of the libraries whose acquisitions information you have access to. Each of the libraries in your are libraries which contain your library name in their Acquisition Maintenance and Display Libraries policies.

How do I set up shared maintenance among libraries?

You would set up the following library policies. MAIN library is set up to be able to maintain and display all libraries’ acquisitions. BRANCH1 and BRANCH2 library users modify only their own acquisitions, though they can display acquisitions information system wide. In the following policy example, no display libraries have been defined because ALL is the implied default, and all users are permitted to display acquisitions information system wide.

Library Policy	Maintenance Libraries	Display Libraries
MAIN	MAIN
BRANCH1	MAIN, BRANCH1
BRANCH2	MAIN, BRANCH2

With policies defined in this way, when a MAIN library user logs in, both his display and maintenance library s will display MAIN, BRANCH1, and BRANCH2. A BRANCH1 user will display only BRANCH1 when maintaining records, and MAIN, BRANCH1, and BRANCH2 when displaying records. BRANCH2 similarly sees only his own library’s acquisition data when maintaining, and all libraries’ data when displaying.

How do I centrally maintain materials for all libraries, allowing each library to display only its own orders?

You would set up the following library policies. MAIN maintains and displays all libraries. BRANCH1 and BRANCH2 are permitted to display only their own acquisitions.

Library Policy	Maintenance Libraries	Display Libraries
MAIN	MAIN	MAIN
BRANCH1	MAIN	BRANCH1, MAIN
BRANCH2	MAIN	BRANCH2, MAIN

Why should I set default session values for Maintenance and Display libraries?

You would select a maintenance and display library defaults other than your own if you were explicitly maintaining or displaying another library’s acquisitions. When you set your maintenance and display libraries to a value other than your own, your workstation provides defaults and filters requests as if you were a user in the library you selected. Only libraries that are valid maintenance and display libraries for your user library may be selected from a to set a default for the acquisitions session. Only information maintained and displayed using acquisitions wizards are designed to use the default library selected.

How do Maintenance and Display libraries affect acquisitions records searches?

Acquisitions Maintenance and Display libraries affect searches in various ways.

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Maintenance and Display libraries affect searches for selection lists, funds, vendors, orders and invoices using the IDs and names specified in those records. They do no limit the item search in acquisitions wizards. They also do not directly impact the display orders associated with an item.

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The Search Library Preference on the Behavior tab in Acquisitions Session Settings wizard can be used to limit item search options. But, these properties do not set a default. Item search can be for all libraries, library groups, or can be limited to the libraries in the Acquisitions Display Libraries list.

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Individual selection list, order, and invoice wizards that use the item search have properties for the item search default. The drop-down lists for Item Library can be limited by the Session Setting behavior property, Search Library Preference. Default properties for the individual wizards can be used to set a different default for the item search.

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When an item is retrieved, by default, the associated orders owned by all acquisitions libraries display. The default wizard property, Orders for Library, can be used to limit that list by default.

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There is one “library” that is not controlled with any property setting, and that is on the Order tab in the view pane. The view pane will always display all open orders for all libraries.

Is there an easy way to tell the difference between orders from each library?

Each library may customize some key fields that use AUTO number generation. The patterns that may be configured for the Acquisitions module are for AUTO order IDs and AUTO packing list numbers. The custom patterns are established in the /Unicorn/Autoids directory.

To set a specific auto-generated AUTO number pattern, a file is created for each library that needs a specific pattern. Each file is named for the AUTO generation function and the number of the library in policies. Each file contains a single line for the pattern. The first character in the file is a delimiter, such as #. Then the prefix is specified, then another delimiter, then the number to be incremented, then another delimiter, then a suffix.

AUTO Order IDs

Order ID pattern files are named po<n>, where <n> is the number of the library in policies. For example, an AUTO order ID pattern might be: #PO-#5000#. This would be in a file named po1 if this pattern is for Library 1 in policies. When AUTO is selected when an order ID is created at Library 1, the order IDs generated are PO-5001, PO-5002, PO-5003, and so on. If there is no /Autoids/po file for a library, AUTO generation cannot be used when creating or duplicating an order.

AUTO Packing List Numbers

Packing list number pattern files are named packing<n>, where <n> is the number of the library in policies. In a multilibrary system, each library must have a different alphabetic prefix defined in the pattern file.

For example, the file named packing1 might contain the pattern +PACKMAI#+0+. This would be in a file named packing1 if this pattern is for Library 1 in policies. When auto is selected in the Packing field, the packing list numbers generated are PACKMAI#1, PACKMAI#2, PACKMAI#3, and so on.

A file named packing2 might contain the pattern +PACKWIL#+ 500+ to define the AUTO packing list pattern for Library 2 in policies. When AUTO is selected in the Packing field at Library 2, the packing list numbers generated are PACKWIL#501, PACKWIL#502, PACKWIL#503, and so on.

If there is no /Autoids/packing file for a library, AUTO generation cannot be used when receiving an order.

Does the Fund Library Authorization policy have anything to do with Maintenance and Display libraries?

No. The Fund Library Authorization policy in Acquisition Configuration defines the libraries for which a fund cycle can be used to order materials based on whether the fund cycle is authorized for the holding code library. Go to FAQs: Understanding Fund Library Authorization for more information.