Branch Managers Meeting

Branch Managers’ Meeting February 1, 2007

Information Technology Updates Susan Staples brought a couple items to the branch managers. Quarter 1 purchases can be found in the IT Budget on the Manager’s Share drive, Finance 2007Budget, New computers and other technology tab. The items in yellow are the ones that are planned to be purchased in the first quarter. If you have any urgent needs, please email Susan. IT is waiting on replacement purchases for a decision about Thin Client. New machines for the District were limited to one laptop and one desktop District-wide. $15,000 has been set aside for new technologies testing.

All computers will be migrated from N2H2 to blackspider within the next week. IT will be contacting each location about the migration. Staff computers will need to be filtered as well.

Patron-Initiated Holds Pick-up Dan Alcazar created a mock slip of what the print-out will look like, once the proper software is purchased and installed. The slip will print the 1st 4 letters of the patron’s last name, the 1st 3 letters of the first name, and a partial barcode number. Alpha G charges $1750 for the module we need for the slips to print properly. Once the software is installed, Centennial Park is ready to start allowing patrons to pick up their own holds. Their holds pick-up area will be adjacent to the Check Out Desk.

Cell Phone Policy We decided to remove the signage for the Cell Phone Zones and use the Patron Rights and Responsibilities section of our policy manual to guide staff in handling issues regarding cell phone usage. If cell phone rings or conversations are disruptive to patrons around them, staff will talk to them about their behavior.

Children’s Videos Luba briefly introduced a proposal to shelve all Children’s videos, including PG and unrated films as well as G in the Children’s Department. The reasoning behind this is that our current browsing collection is diluted. Collection Development proposes putting movies targeted for children in their area, where the intended audience will find them. Branch managers are to consider this proposal and bring their thoughts to the Feb. 15 meeting.

Next meeting: Feb. 8, 2007, 1-3:00 p.m. at Farr. Submitted by Kari Baumann