Alma
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114 results found
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Completed Requests - Searchable Fields
I would like to search Completed Requests by Partner Code and External Identifier. Currently, this is only possible via Analytics which has a one-day delay.
29 votes -
Enable Advanced search for borrowing and lending requests
Currently Advanced search is not available for Borrowing and Lending requests. The current Alma persistent search box does not provide Resource sharing staff with sufficient access to perform multi level queries.
Direct searching in Alma via Advanced Search would allow staff retrieve specific data such as:
- requests submitted by a specific person and supplied by a specific partner
- requests submitted for Leganto course lists supplied by a specific partner.
- a list of all borrowing requests supplied to a user for copyright compliance reasonsThis functionality would be very useful and time efficient.
28 votes -
RS Borrowing Requests - search by 'Old value' 'External ID'
'External ID' identifying reference numbers, are not fixed in Alma Resource Sharing. They can be overwritten by third parties, e.g. The British Library, RapidILL, and once overwritten, the previous External ID cannot be used to search for the request. However, the former identifier still appears in the 'History' tab of the request under 'Old value', so they are still somehow attached to the record. It would be great, then, if Ex Libris could enable search by 'History' or 'Old Value', so that if the number has been changed by a third party, we can still easily locate it with the previous reference number.
'External ID' identifying reference numbers, are not fixed in Alma Resource Sharing. They can be overwritten by third parties, e.g. The British Library, RapidILL, and once overwritten, the previous External ID cannot be used to search for the request. However, the former identifier still appears in the 'History' tab of the request under 'Old value', so they are still somehow attached to the record. It would be great, then, if Ex Libris could enable search by 'History' or 'Old Value', so that if the number has been changed by a third party, we can still easily locate it with the…
28 votes -
'Undo Last Action' option for Resource Sharing requests
Many times, our library staff accidentally choose an unintended Resource Sharing status or scan the wrong barcode when shipping material. They either realize the error too late, or they instantly regret the results of the status change.
Currently, there is no good way to undo this type of unintended error for both partners. Manually changing the status only changes it on your end, not the partner's end, which throws off the entire workflow. This usually forces the partners to create brand new requests in order to finish circulating the material. This is more work for everyone involved and throws off stats.
We would love an 'Undo Last Action' option in the More Actions menu. This would allow for easier and faster workflow correction of Resource Sharing requests for both partners.
Many times, our library staff accidentally choose an unintended Resource Sharing status or scan the wrong barcode when shipping material. They either realize the error too late, or they instantly regret the results of the status change.
Currently, there is no good way to undo this type of unintended error for both partners. Manually changing the status only changes it on your end, not the partner's end, which throws off the entire workflow. This usually forces the partners to create brand new requests in order to finish circulating the material. This is more work for everyone involved and throws off…
28 votes -
Resource Sharing Partner: Contact Information and Parameters tab (multiple e-mail addresses)
In the Alma documentation it is noted that the Contact tab of a Resource Sharing Partner is currently not functional:
https://knowledge.exlibrisgroup.com/Alma/Product_Documentation/010Alma_Online_Help_(English)/030Fulfillment/050Resource_Sharing/005Managing_Resource_Sharing_Partners/010Resource_Sharing_Partners
"In the Contact Information tab, add address, phone number, and email information for the resource sharing partner (for informational purposes only; information for sending the resource sharing request is entered in the Parameters tab – see the following step). For instructions, see Adding User Contact Information."The options (Email types) on the tab correspond to those of an Acquisition supplier (on the Vendor level and the Account level), but have not yet been implemented functional for Resource Sharing Partners. However, there is a great need for it.
We have several Partners with different e-mail addresses for e.g. ordering and claiming or sending queries.
So we would be glad, to have the full functionality for all Email types (Order, Claim, Payment, Queries, Returns) on the Contact tab as it is already the fact for Vendors (Acquistion).Currently for all ILL letters Alma used the e-mail address from the Parameters tab only.
An also on this tab an enhancement is needed. It would be fine if you could define two e-mail addresses:
- one for Lending Requests
- and the other for Borrowing Requests
because some Partners use diffent e-mail addresses for Lending and Borrowing requests and this enhancement would prevent unnecessary e-mail forwarding to the Partner libraries.Thank you in advance!
In the Alma documentation it is noted that the Contact tab of a Resource Sharing Partner is currently not functional:
https://knowledge.exlibrisgroup.com/Alma/Product_Documentation/010Alma_Online_Help_(English)/030Fulfillment/050Resource_Sharing/005Managing_Resource_Sharing_Partners/010Resource_Sharing_Partners
"In the Contact Information tab, add address, phone number, and email information for the resource sharing partner (for informational purposes only; information for sending the resource sharing request is entered in the Parameters tab – see the following step). For instructions, see Adding User Contact Information."The options (Email types) on the tab correspond to those of an Acquisition supplier (on the Vendor level and the Account level), but have not yet been implemented functional for Resource Sharing Partners.…
28 votes -
British Library Billing Account codes visible in Lending Resource Sharing
Display partner Billing Account codes in Lending side for UK Alma Institutions. This is vital information for reimbursements within the UK and reduces the need for paperwork. British Library Billing Accounting is the UK standard workflow, with a view to being ISO compliant.
26 votes -
DIfferent cancellation letters for ILL requests and hold requests
We want to be able to notify users when cancelling an ILL request but, at the moment, as the cancellation letter is shared by Circulation and Resource Sharing and the majority of cancellations are for holds, the letter is sent from the Circulation email address and has a Customer Services signature.
This means that we can not notify a patron directly when we cancel an ILL request as they might want to reply and the email would go to the wrong department.
This means we have to follow a two-step process where we send a query to the patron informing him of the cancellation and then cancel the ILL request, unticking the Notify user box.
If we could have a separate resource sharing cancellation letter, we could just click on Cancel, type a note explaining the reasons for the cancellation and tick the Notify user box.
We want to be able to notify users when cancelling an ILL request but, at the moment, as the cancellation letter is shared by Circulation and Resource Sharing and the majority of cancellations are for holds, the letter is sent from the Circulation email address and has a Customer Services signature.
This means that we can not notify a patron directly when we cancel an ILL request as they might want to reply and the email would go to the wrong department.
This means we have to follow a two-step process where we send a query to the patron informing…
25 votes -
Alma RS - Lending - Ship item digitally - email address to be viewable & editable
When Lending requests are shipped via ‘Ship item digitally’ staff cannot see the Borrowing library’s email address.
Below is a specific case with a VDX borrowing library. However the case can be applied to other scenarioes such as when a borrowing library asks to have the request shipped to a different email address.
Case:
When a VDX Borrowing library has the VDX proprietary DocStore enabled and sends a Lending request to an Alma library, the DocStore email address is output in the email request field in Alma RS (docdellibrariesaustralia@vdxhost.com).• Non VDX libraries cannot send digital content to this email address.
• The display of the DocStore address in the Alma email address field and the VDX inability to receive content from non VDX libraries is a VDX shortcoming.
If Lending staff have not seen and replaced the DocStore email address in the request’s General Information tab and use ‘Ship item digitally’ they are unaware that they are shipping to an invalid email address.
Lending staff are only alerted to the error when the Borrowing library responds that the digital content has not been received.
Please can the ‘Ship item digitally’ form be enhanced to include the Lending Library’s email address and the ability for the Borrowing library to update the email address on the ‘Ship item digitally’ form?
Please see the attached document for screen shot information.
When Lending requests are shipped via ‘Ship item digitally’ staff cannot see the Borrowing library’s email address.
Below is a specific case with a VDX borrowing library. However the case can be applied to other scenarioes such as when a borrowing library asks to have the request shipped to a different email address.
Case:
When a VDX Borrowing library has the VDX proprietary DocStore enabled and sends a Lending request to an Alma library, the DocStore email address is output in the email request field in Alma RS (docdellibrariesaustralia@vdxhost.com).• Non VDX libraries cannot send digital content to…
24 votes -
Add more options for ILL integration
Adding ILLiad integration to Alma was welcome but also brings more issues into the system. For example - patrons are shown in their account via Primo that ILL loaned items are not renewable. They are but not via Alma. A customizable message for the Resources sharing library that would display in "My Account" saying "Renewable via ILLiad" would be welcome. We have configured ILLiad to send courtesy notices. Now that we have integrated with Alma patrons get two courtesy and "due today" letters because Alma cannot turn off letters for specific locations. The ability to turn off those two letter for specific locations would be welcome.
Adding ILLiad integration to Alma was welcome but also brings more issues into the system. For example - patrons are shown in their account via Primo that ILL loaned items are not renewable. They are but not via Alma. A customizable message for the Resources sharing library that would display in "My Account" saying "Renewable via ILLiad" would be welcome. We have configured ILLiad to send courtesy notices. Now that we have integrated with Alma patrons get two courtesy and "due today" letters because Alma cannot turn off letters for specific locations. The ability to turn off those two letter…
24 votes -
Adding a Parameter to Partner Record
We would like to add the parameter Library Type to the Partners e.g. CL=College Library, UL=University Library, HL=Hospital Library etc..
24 votes -
Borrowing Renewal Workflow (non-ISO): Letter to patron in case of a not accepted Renewal Request
If a Renew Request was accepted, a letter (Ful Borrowing Info letter) is sent to the patron.
However, if a Renew Request was not accepted, no letter is sent to the patron.That's what we found in the documentation:
https://knowledge.exlibrisgroup.com/Alma/Product_Documentation/010Alma_Online_Help_(English)/030Fulfillment/050Resource_Sharing/Borrowing_Requests_(New_Layout)/Managing_Borrowing_Renewals_(New_Layout)
"5. If the request is renewed, a message is sent to the patron and a renewal fee may be charged. The letter is the Ful Borrowing Info letter. To configure the letter, see Configuring Alma Letters. A resource sharing renew fee is set as part of a fulfillment policy; see Adding Fulfillment Policies. If the request is rejected by the lender manually through an email, the operator sets the request status to Renew Request Not Accepted. If the renewal or rejection is automatic, all statuses are changed as the system receives the response from the lender. If the lender approved the renewal request but the renewal failed on the borrower side, an active note and a history message (visible in the Audit tab) are added to the request."
https://knowledge.exlibrisgroup.com/Alma/Product_Documentation/010Alma_Online_Help_(English)/030Fulfillment/050Resource_Sharing/Borrowing_Requests_(New_Layout)/030Managing_Resource_Sharing_Borrowing_Requests
"Request Renew: [...] If the request is renewed, a message is sent to the patron and a renewal fee may be charged. The letter is Ful Borrowing Info Letter."We checked the "Ful Borrowing Info Letter" and there are two labels:
- failure-reason
- success-reasonSo the letter should work for both: accepted and not accepted Renew Requests. But in case of a not accepted Renew Request the letter is sent only if the ILL Partner is an ISO partner. The workflow does not work for non-ISO partners.
Workflow for non-ISO partners:
(1) Renewal accepted --> "..." menu > "Renew" --> Alma sends FulBorrowingInfoLetter to the user
(2) Renewal accepted --> "Actions" menu > "Change Status" > "Renewed by partner" --> NO letter is sent to user
(3) Renewal NOT accepted --> "Actions" menu > "Change Status" > "Renew request not accepted" --> NO letter is sent to userNeeded improvement: The "Change Status" option in the "Actions" menu should also trigger a letter to the patron.
Thank you in advance!If a Renew Request was accepted, a letter (Ful Borrowing Info letter) is sent to the patron.
However, if a Renew Request was not accepted, no letter is sent to the patron.That's what we found in the documentation:
https://knowledge.exlibrisgroup.com/Alma/Product_Documentation/010Alma_Online_Help_(English)/030Fulfillment/050Resource_Sharing/Borrowing_Requests_(New_Layout)/Managing_Borrowing_Renewals_(New_Layout)
"5. If the request is renewed, a message is sent to the patron and a renewal fee may be charged. The letter is the Ful Borrowing Info letter. To configure the letter, see Configuring Alma Letters. A resource sharing renew fee is set as part of a fulfillment policy; see Adding Fulfillment Policies. If the request is rejected by the…24 votes -
Lending Ship item physically check item barcode matches title
When staff use "Ship Item Physically" from an individual request, there is no check that the item barcode entered into the Ship form matches the item barcode for the title. Staff can accidentally scan a barcode for a different request.
Because the item barcode is already in use, the other request can't be Shipped.
Adding a General setting to check that the item barcode matches the located title would help prevent workflow errors.
24 votes -
Having the notes field displayed on the front screen so we dont have to go into each request to see if any notes
If we add any notes it would be helpful to see that there is a note in the request on the first creation screen so that other people can see it straight away without having to look at each one individually
23 votes -
Recent Searches & Customization of Searchable Fields
I would like to customize the fields displayed and their order when searching Borrowing and Lending requests. In addition, I would like Recent Searches to be displayed first. Currently, there are many fields that we do not use and we need to scroll down.
22 votes -
Resource Sharing Claims - Sending Additional Claims and Sending Claim Letter Manually
It should be possible to configure the automatic Claims job to send additional Claims every X number of days, until the status of the request is updated to Received.
In the meantime, it should be possible to send additional Claim letters manually (and not as a General Message).
21 votes -
Claiming Resource Sharing Borrowing Requests by Format Type
The new Automatic Claim feature does not differentiate between Format Types when adding "Time to Claim (days)" in the Partner record. For example, it should be possible to write 2 days for Digital requests and 5 days for Physical requests.
21 votes -
Add preferred address to Resource Sharing Shipping Slip Letter
I suggest that preferred shipping information be added to notificationdata/partnershippinginfolist/partnershippinginfo in the xml of this letter. Currently all registered partner addresses are added to the XML with no indication of which is the preferred address.
As a result the true shipping address cannot be deduced from the XML, which leads to a manual address lookup before shipping.
21 votes -
Move the Level of service facet to the top of the facet list
Currently the Level of Service facet is at the base of the facet list, almost always hidden by the facets above it. I would like to see it moved to the top of the list as the timely processing of material for Rush or Express requests depends on being able to find those requests and action them quickly. As it is currently unless you specifically scroll down the list, you don't even know those requests have come in.
20 votes -
ISO partner approves renewal request, renewal is blocked, status changes to “Renewed by partner” but due date does not change,no information
If an ISO partner approves a renewal request but the renewal is blocked due to blocks on our user, the status changes to “Renewed by partner” but the due date does not change and we also do not receive information about the approved new due date via Alma.
Especially the information about the approved new due date would be important.
Can ExL offer a solution here?20 votes -
Physically Received by Library
It should be possible to change the status of a Borrowing Request to Digitally Received by Library from Physically Received by Library or vice-versa, if the wrong Format was received. Currently, it is impossible to create a barcode if the item was Digitally Received.
19 votes
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