How to Use BOOKTALK Profile

We’ve added a new user profile to the list of profiles available. This profile is, BOOKTALK and is intended to be used to manage collections of books for various book discussion groups that use your library. The profile has some features that set it apart from the other profiles, and they are:

• Items can be checked out to a BOOKTALK user and then checked out to patrons without first discharging or checking them in.
• Items checked out to a BOOKTALK user have no set due date.
• Items checked out to a BOOKTALK user do not accrue fines.
• Items checked out to a BOOKTALK user do not count for circulation statistics.
• Items checked out to a BOOKTALK user will appear in i-Bistro/Link as, “Reserved for Book Discussion Group.”

Users created with the profile BOOKTALK are not intended to be patrons but to function as a library use and are treated as such so that the items can be reserved for members of the book discussion group. To use the profile, follow these steps.

1) Create a new user representing the discussion group. Make sure to use the BOOKTALK profile.

2) For the name use your library and the group’s name. Ex. Selbyville Patterson Fans.

3) Make the Group ID the first 4 letters of your library and “booktalk.” Ex. SELBOOKTALK (This will help you pull up a complete list of all your book talk groups in the system.)

4) If you want to allow members of the group to place holds for the group then give them the PIN number listed or to not allow the placing of holds do not give out the PIN.

5) Fill in all the demographics information with “Unknown.”

6) Make sure there is no date entered in the Date of Birth field.

7) Place the head of the group’s contact information in Address1. You can add their name by adding a line to Address1 and selecting “Care of” from the drop down list.

8) Put any extra information about the group, number of members, meeting days etc in the comments section of Extended Information.

You can now support your local book discussion groups. Just check out the items you’re reserving for them and set them aside. When members come in, check out the items to the patrons on their library cards. When a patron returns the item check it in and it will go back to the original checkout to the BOOKTALK user and show that location in the OPAC. The only tricky part is while the item is checked out to the patron holds will be able to be placed on that item because its current location is CHECKEDOUT. I have to do some more tests to see how the system will handle this. When the group tells you that they no longer need the items check them all in from the BOOKTALK user.