Serial Settings

With the transition to local MoC duplication, there are a few settings you probably want to check on: Max Issues Allowed, default Serial Prefix, and Last Serve Date.

Quick note before we get started: the Control Files are powerful! Please only change them as directed, and if you are the designated KLAS Administrator or decision-maker for your library. Contact Customer Support for assistance if needed! 

Max Issues Allowed:

• KLAS Desktop - View menu - Administration - Control Files - Module k7-SC - Sort Seq 008 Max Number of Issues Allowed

For physical issues, many libraries had a low Max Issues Allowed setting--but since multiple issues can fit on one cartridge, and the total number of cartridges is easily controlled per patron using the NSCutoff for the Digital Serials medium, we now recommend setting this nice and high to prevent your serials circulation from being held back unnecessarily. If you set this to 99, that doesn't tell KLAS to send them 99 issues, it just means they won't get cut off when they hit the limit, allowing the Serials Retention, Max Titles per Cartridge, and NS Cutoff to all function as expected.

Default Serial Prefix:

• Control Files - Module k7-CT - Sort Seq 006 Serials Prefix

When adding a new patron Subscription, the prefix automatically fills in to the KLAS ID field. The prefix can be changed, but since the majority of your subscriptions will likely now be for MoCs, you will likely want to change this to your MoC prefix (SDS- or MOC-) once you've made the transition. 

Last Serve Date:

• Control Files - Module k7-CC - Sort Seq 079 RecTypes to Update Pat Medium Stats
• Control Files - Module k7-CC - Sort Seq 080 RecTypes to Update Pat Medium Last Serve
• Control Files - Module k7-CC - Sort Seq 081 Pat Media EDoc Circs Should Update

Since you are doing all the work to send out the MoCs, shouldn't you count that as serving the patron? If you want Serials duplication to update the patron's Last Served date, make sure that Control Files k7-CC 79 and 80 (RecTypes to Update...) are both set to MONO,Ser and 81 (PatMedia EDoc Circs) includes your Serials medium, along with any other media you want to "count" duplications for towards the patrons' last served date (for ex: DB,DS,B).
Relatedly: want to evaluate whether or not to count Consumable serials? While the MoC duplicated serials are not treated as consumable, Sort Seq 94-96 controls this for consumables, analogous to 79 and 80 above for tracked.

 

Hello, Maureen! I wouldn't change the serial prefix ahead of time. If you set your prefix to MOC- before I create your MOC- serials and a RA goes to subscribe someone, they'll wonder why the Find screen is coming up blank. They can always manually change it back to SER-, but I'd wait until you actually have the records to change the default prefix.

For the Last Served Date, it's really just a matter of thinking through what you do and don't want to update the patron's dates. For Serials, it was more of an open question when they shared the DB medium with books--but now that each has their own Medium, with it's own Last Served Date, it just makes sense to count the Serials, too.

For consumables, think about what your library sends. If you don't send any consumables, it doesn't matter. If you send a consumable print or braille newsletter--maybe you don't want to count that, since it's just the newsletter, or maybe you do, because you did send something. If you send any consumable Serials besides a newsletter, and you are now counting the other serials towards the Last Served, it would simplify things to count your consumable Serials as well, rather than having to remember "these ones update the counter, but these ones don't."