Increase the Max Item Categories in the Patron Block Table
Increase the Patron Block Table to allow more than 4 block categories for groups of items by item type/location.
We would like to see Innovative add at least 6 additional categories, bringing the total categories up to 10.
Idea Value
Libraries are lending an increasing array of non-traditional materials. More categories in the patron block table are necessary to facilitate limited lending on these materials.
This would allow libraries to limit lending more granularly. For example, allowing a set number of items in each of the following categories:
Books -100
CDs - 25
DVDs - 5
Videogames - 1
Games/Puzzles - 1
Kits - 1
Artwork - 2
Equipment - 1
The current setup leads to either overly limited or confusing options for staff and patrons:
Either:
Videogames, Games/Puzzles, Kits/Electronic Equipment - 1 (This is overly limiting as the library would actually allow one of each type at the same time.)
OR
Videogames, Games/Puzzles, Kits/Electronic Equipment - 4 (This is confusing, as patrons expect that they can check out 4 of each, for a total of 16 items.)
Currently libraries have been attempting to enforce the desired lending policies manually, with limited success. Adding a new category is the only way to allow self-checkout of these items while still enforcing libraries' desired blocks.
This idea was previously submitted by Ben Shirley on 10/24/2018.
Katie Zimmermann
shared this idea
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Melissa Landis
commented
We would love to see this expanded as well. As libraries add materials in new formats, such as stem kits, library of things, hotspots, videogames, etc., we've already used the first 3 max item categories for certain formats, which leaves us only max item d for everything else. This means a library that wants to limit to 1 hotspot and 1 stem kit has to choose which one can be automatically limited and which one has to be manually policed at the circ desk. Repurposing our existing categories isn't an option.
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Lisa Bondy
commented
Allowing these types of limits would enable us to align Sierra restrictions with our library's policies on maximum number of checkouts per category of item. Currently some of our "limits" are staff controlled which can be confusing and time-consuming. This would make it more efficient because Sierra would impose the limit once the max number of items is reached.
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MEEP candidate July 2024
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Phil Shirley
commented
We have needed more than four categories for years. We have a lot of items that we say we limit that Sierra can't enforce because we have only four categories.
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Alison Pruntel
commented
With the current limits (4 categories!), and the large variety of items we have that we want to include limits on (adult card or limit to only 1), we are running into issues where patrons want to check out 2 types of item, each with a "1 only" limit.