VDX Implementation Newsletter

Number 1, June 7, 2002

This is the first in a series of little newsletters designed to provide timely information about VDX implementation status as well as to address questions and concerns. You are encouraged to submit questions for inclusion in the questions and answers list that will be attached to each newsletter. We are now much closer to a go-live day for UCLA and UCSD, but we still don't know exactly when this will be. There have been a few unexpected difficulties that have caused further delays, but we believe that the end is in sight! Current installation and testing status is:

• One of the two machines has been very unstable, and the Data Center is still working with Sun to stabilize it - every part in the machine was replaced, and, as of Tuesday this week, they think that they have it working properly, but we need to let it run for a while to be certain.
• All of the VDX application, including patch 2.2.7, has been installed.
• We are completing the scripts that will allow the Veritas Clustering System to move VDX to the second machine in the event of hardware failure. A Veritas consultant is scheduled to complete this installation the week of June 17th.
• We are in the process of completing the OCLC tests.

Hopefully, you are all able to spend a little time with the test system to become familiar with editing records, with using filters, and to explore how requests are routed. We will run the test system for a while longer to provide us with a place where we can test configuration changes and train new people. Unfortunately, the test system does not have the VDX web server client installed, though that will be available on the production system. If anyone of you would like assistance in getting some test requests sent to your VDX location so that you can practice, please contact Ellen England or Mary Heath.

In the next newsletter we hope to announce the availability of a listserve specifically for UC users of the VDX system. In the meantime, there is also a national VDX listserve which was announced previously.

If you need instructions to subscribe to that list, contact Claire Bellanti. And, as always, you should feel free to forward questions to PIROPS-L.

The Request Project Team

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Questions Regarding the Consortial Borrowing System

1. Will the CBS/VDX system assign call numbers and circulation status with each incoming Lending request?

All requests from other UC's will be searched on MELVYL before being sent to the lending unit. Call numbers will be found in that search. For those campuses with circulation status available, the status will be used to establish the lender string (or "rota" in VDX parlance); currently, locations in which the item in unavailable are not included in the lender string. In line with the principle of not changing the basic Request server processing until we are all using VDX comfortably, this practice will continue initially, but will be re-evaluated.

Once we move onto managing lending with VDX, requests coming from outside of UC (through OCLC or Docline, for example), will be searched in the local catalog by Docfind-Responder when that software arrives in version 2.3 (due Fall, 2002). Until that release is installed, those requests will need to be searched manually. We may decide to wait to turn on lending on OCLC until the new version is here to give staff an opportunity to really learn the system.

2. Will VDX check local OPACs to determine ownership before requests are initiated by the system?

This will require the Docfind-Responder service due in the Fall, 2002.

3. Will a web form be prompted if a patron request cannot be located in one of the searchable databases? How will the patron-initiated web function work? Will it accept incomplete citations and abbreviations? Will the web form be on the CDL server? How will it indicate home campus and how will patrons be authenticated?

At this time, there is no way to automatically prompt a web request input form. The best we can do is have a link to the web input form from places where patrons might want to use it (for the remote A&I databases, UCeLinks can provide this for us). We may design the web form to accept however much information we wish. The web form will be on the CDL server, but each campus can choose to provide local branding for the page if it wishes.

4. When requesting on a blank web form, how will the required fields such as patron barcodes be verified by the system?

Patrons will be authenticated through the MELVYL Request Server authentication process. To be authenticated, they will have to select their home campus and input their library barcode number and, for some campuses, their PIN.

5. Will VDX recognize short-term patrons such as Visiting Scholars?

Since the MELVYL authentication server queries each local patron database in real time, whether short-term patrons are recognized is dependent on each campus local policy. If the patron is in your local database and marked as valid and not expired, they will be authenticated. There is a "Visiting Scholar" patron category set up in the VDX system.

6. As enhancements and developments are evolving with VDX, how will UC ILL staff be made aware of these changes? Will updates be distributed regularly? Will this be on PIROPS or will there be a separate listserv?

There are two kinds of updates you should be hearing about. If you haven't already done so you may wish to subscribe to the official VDX listserve. Instructions have been sent out several times. There you will find questions and answers and announcements from other libraries and VDX staff about how things work within the system. Also you will see official explanations of functionality and planned enhancements from VDX staff.

For UC, there are two listserves - PIROPS-L is the listserve for issues relating to Request in general, and UCVDX-L (to be announced soon) will be the listserve for issues and announcements relating to the VDX system running at CDL. Consultation on policies and configuration has been carried on with RSC and RSC-IAG, and we will continue to use those official mechanisms for this type of activity where decisions are required.

7. Will the staff client be given to everyone including higher-level student assistants?

The choice of distributing the windows client is left up to each ILL unit. We would recommend installing the windows client on any workstation used by ILL staff or students. There is a category for student workers in the configuration that can limit student functions but allow them to use the windows client. If you choose to allow students to use only the web client, you may do that as well.

8. How will CDL factor load leveling when we have separate ILL units? Will load leveling continue to happen at the campus level or go down to the individual ILL units?

The MELVL Request Server accomplishes the load leveling function., so load leveling will continue as it now does, at the campus level. (Load leveling is a SOPAG policy decision.)

9. Can different user (patron) groups have different privileges?

The only privileges that are currently set in VDX for patron groups is what can be viewed and edited. In this respect, all patron groups have the same privileges, which is view only their own record and create new requests. Once we have NCIP in our local as well as the VDX systems (in about a 18 months), then circulation privileges will be set by your local circulation system.

10. Can expiration dates in local patron records be passed into VDX to insure that request expiration dates to not go beyond the expiration of the patron's privileges?

This has not been done, but we will investigate a way to do it.