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pergamonmu:quickstart:settings

Configuring Pergamon Settings

The following operations are required to configure some of the basic settings with Pergamon which are required to have smooth operating library environment, with the correct library branding and circulations options in place. These instructions are not exhaustive and you may choose to modify more or less.

  1. Start Pergamon and login as a manager using the 'SmithW' user (or whatever you chose to create).

  2. Navigate to the [Manager] > [Tools] > [Lookup Manager] menu item to start the Lookup Manager.

    Lookup Manager Menu

  3. Open the [Client Information] group in the left hand list and select [Client Name]. If the details in [Value 1] do not reflect your school (this should have been set when installing), change it now and click [Update] to save the change.

    Client Name

Reader and Item Barcode Formats

The Reader and Item barcode formats are used in auto-generation of barcodes when using the Reader Manager and Item Manager, and in auto-expansion of barcodes in the Circulations dialogs.

  1. Scroll down to [Reader HID Formats] (this may be listed as 'Agent HID Formats' if your database is using the general phrases settings), expand it, and select the [Standard] format.

  2. If this item is not listed in the left-hand list in bold, click the [Default] toolbar menu item to ensure that it is this HID format that is used by default for new readers. Select the [Standard] entry again to ensure that we are still editing this item's details.

    HID Format

  3. Click [Advanced Edit] in order to edit the special settings only associated with HID Formats.

    Advanced Settings

  4. Ensure that the [Prefix], [Body] and [Suffix] fields contain the format associated with your reader barcodes. In most cases, prefix and suffix values are only used in special environments. The body value however, is 'padding' based - ensure that a single '0' exists for each digit in the length of your standard reader barcode. If you have a five-digit reader barcode for example, enter '00000' in the body field.

  5. Click [Update] to write all changes into the database.

  6. Scroll down to the [Item HID Formats] group and expand it. Select the [Standard] format and repeat the process for your item barcode (Accession number) format. Make special note of your body length - this is often slightly longer than the body length used of readers.

Reader Groups

Reader Groups (variously addressed as Tutor Groups, Classes etc.) are ways in which you can identify sub-sets of your readers. They can be used in displaying groups for editing, and for running reports.

  1. Scroll to [Reader Groups] (possibly labeled 'Agent Groups' on your installation) and expand it to display the Groups already in place.

  2. Click [Create] in the [Items] toolbar menu group to create a new entry in the group on the left-hand side of the dialog. Select it to display its details.

  3. We have decided that our tutor groups are named after birds, so we will change the text to 'Chaffinch'. You may change the tutor group to reflect a group which you are using on your local installation.

    Tutor Groups

  4. Click [Advanced Edit] in order to edit settings associated with tutor groups.

  5. The [Advanced Editor] setting is rarely used for individual reader and can be ignored. You may add a note or description regarding the Reader Group in the field provided.

    Tutor Groups

  6. Click the [Update] button to save the changes into the database.

Circulations Configuration

In order to perform a correct circulation, several settings need to be in place in a reader and item record. These records use lookup-values selected from drop-down menus, but these options need to be configured for your installation at least once. You may wish to also create additional options at a future time to reflect special reader / item combinations.

Circulations Profile

  1. Scroll to the [Reader Circulations Profile] group (this may be listed as 'Agent Circulations Profile') and expand it. Select the [Default Profile] option.

  2. There is nothing to change in the basic settings, so simply click the [Advanced Edit] button to change the circulations settings.

    Circulations Profile

  3. Change the [Default loan days] value to reflect the number of working days for which you normally issue an item from your library (the standard, or most common value).

  4. Change the [Item Limit] value to reflect the maximum number of items that any reader is permitted to borrow at any one time (the standard, or most common value).

  5. If you wish Pergamon to account for days when the library is closed (e.g. weekends), ensure that the [Add closure days] value is set. This will ensure that any due date falling on a day when the library is closed will be increased to the next open day.

  6. As this is the standard circulations profile, ensure that the [Restrict] setting is *OFF*.

  7. If you wish specific override load durations for certain types of media type, click the number of the required entry in the list at the bottom of this section and enter a new number of days that affects only that media type and press [Return] to record the change in the list.

  8. Once your have made any changes required for you installation, click [Update] to save the changes into the database.

Audience

The Reader and Item audience configuration is the most commonly missed section for configuring the circulations system. It can be compared to the Certification Ratings issued by the BBFC for film releases and age groups. While restrictions of this nature may not be used at your school, it is important that Pergamon knows this by at least setting up a default configuration.

  1. Scroll to the [Item Audience] group and expand it. Here you will see the various audiences that can be assigned to your items. They are simply labels, and have no additional configuration associated with them. While in the Quickstart Guide we will only really be using the 'Suitable for All' audience setting, over time you can create others which are appropriate for your installation by selecting this [Item Audience] group then clicking [Create] in the [Item] toolbar group.

    Item Audience

  2. Scroll to the [Reader Audience] group (this may be called 'Agent Audience') and expand it. As standard, Pergamon is installed with only two lookup-items in this section: 'No Restrictions' and 'Restrict All'.

  3. Select the [No Restrictions] entry to display it's details. If the entry is not displayed in bold, we need to make it the default for your installation. Click the [Default] toolbar menu item - if successful, the entry in the left-hand list will turn bold. Select the [No Restrictions] entry again to ensure that any more changes we make are to this lookup item.

  4. There is nothing more to edit on the basic page, so click [Advanced Edit] to change settings specifically associated with Reader Audiences.

    Reader Audience

  5. The list displayed contains all of the Item Audiences that we saw earlier. Check all Item Audiences to ON that are suitable for issue to this Reader Audience. As we are editing the [No Restrictions] lookup item, it is probably appropriate to check every line to ON.

  6. If you make any changes, save them by clicking the [Update] button.

  7. Logically, the [Restrict All] lookup item will have all Item Audiences unchecked (OFF). This is a lookup item which might be assigned to a reader to temporarily prevent that reader from browsing any items from the library.

  8. Over time, you will probably wish to create additional Reader Audience lookup items to reflect different groups in your school, each with different borrowing permissions, often based upon age.

Closure Days

  1. Scroll to the [Closure Days] group and expand it. Select the only standard entry, named [Weekend Closures]. There is nothing to change on the standard page, so click the [Advanced Edit] button to view the specific values for Closure Days.

    Closure Days

  2. These details are a description for how Pergamon should calculate days upon which the library is closed. This default is a description of weekend closure days. If your installation license is associated with a Workstation limit, you are able to select individual Workstations from the list, but most commonly you will leave [All Workstations] selected.
  3. The [Start Date] value is the first day closed in the closure days sequence that you are describing. For a weekend closure therefore, the date in this case will be the Saturday.
  4. The [Duration] value is the total number of days in this closure sequence. For a weekend closure therefore, the duration is always going to be 2.
  5. The [Repeat] value describes how, if any, this definition repeats itself. By selecting [Weekly], we are able to create a definition for all weekend closure, ad infinitum, beginning on the [Start Date] used.
  6. For practice, we will create a non-repeating Bank Holiday from 2017.
  7. Select the [Closure Days] group, the click [Create] in the [Item] toolbar icon group. A new lookup item should display in the Closure Days group in the left hand list. Select it to display the details.

  8. Edit the [Text] field to read 'August 2017 Bank Holiday', then click [Advanced Edit].

    August Bank Holiday

  9. Leave [Workstation] as 'All', then enter the standard data as 28th August, 2017. The easiest way to do this is to click the [?] button after the field to display the Calendar. Enter 1 as the [Duration], and as this is a single one-off holiday definition, leave the [Repeat] value as 'No Repetition'.

    August Bank Holiday

  10. Click [Update] to save the Closure Day definition into the database.


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pergamonmu/quickstart/settings.txt · Last modified: 2017/08/10 11:20 by admin