Holds

See Grand Rapids Public Library Training Documents for a list of all Evergreen training topics.

Holds Topics Covered in other EGwiki Articles

• Placing Holds in the Public Catalog
• Placing Holds in the Staff Client
• Holds at Checkout
• Holds at Checkin
• Viewing Holds on an Item
• Viewing Holds for a Patron

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Holdable Settings

Some items are holdable, and others are not. There are four ways in which an item can be unholdable. If any of these apply to an item, you will not be able to place a hold unless you have override authority.

• Every item in the system has a Copy Status including Available, Checked Out, Damaged, Reshelving, and so on. System administrators define each status and can set each one as Holdable or Unholdable.
• Each item also has a Copy Location, such as New, Express, Stacks, Storage, and so on. System administrators also set each location as Holdable or Unholdable.
• Individual items can also be Holdable or Unholdable. Staff can set this during cataloging or through changing the Copy Editor Holdable setting from Yes to No.
• Items can also have Item Hold Age Protection - in particular staff can limit holds and circulation of new items to their owning branch or library system. Age Protection is not the same as Express, and Express items will be handled differently.

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Holds Priority and Targeting

Holds are not necessarily filled on a first come, first served basis. Rather, they are filled through a process designed to maximize the speed and efficiency of filling holds by first targeting local resources before looking to other branches and library systems for materials.

When the hold is placed, the nearest available copy (in terms of the organizational hierarchy, not the physical location) becomes the target library for that hold. The item will appear on that branch’s pull list to be sent to the pickup library. If that copy cannot be found, a staff person may indicate this in the staff client and a new target copy and location will be identified, and the item will appear on that library’s pull list. Or if the target library does not act on the hold within 24 open hours, the hold will automatically retarget.

When an item on the pull list is found, the hold is captured and the item is sent to the pickup library. If the target library or libraries do not capture the hold within 24 open hours, then the hold goes to Opportunistic Holds Capture - that is, if a copy is checked in at any branch, that copy will be captured to fill the hold and the item sent to the pickup library.

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Holds Pull Lists

After logging in to the staff client, click Circulation >Pull List for Hold Requests

• The Holds Pull List displays the on-shelf items at your branch that have been targeted to fill holds and need to be pulled from the shelf.
• Evergreen links the Holds Pull List to your workstation's registration - you will see items to pull only for the branch for which your workstation is registered.
• The Evergreen holds system is dynamic; Evergreen is constantly looking for material to fill holds as quickly as possible. While we'll be delaying Opportunistic Holds for 24 hours, once that delay is past, it is possible that by the time you go to the stacks, pull an item, come back to your workstation, and scan the barcode, the hold may have already been filled by another library that just checked in an eligible item.

• You can sort your Holds Pull List by any column, including Call Number.
• Print Page prints your Holds Pull List.

Evergreen offers two other ways to retrieve your Holds Pull List, both through Admin (-) >Local System Administration. Not all staff will have access to these.

Pull List for Hold Requests offers many more actions for these holds.

• Click Pull List for Hold Requests.
• Sort columns by clicking on each column heading.
• Add or delete columns through the column manager on the right.
• Drag columns by their column heading into the order which works best for you.
• Click Print to print this holds pull list, but beware that Evergreen only prints the title and no other details of these items.

Evergreen allows you to perform many actions on holds through this holds list.

• Select one or more holds and click Actions for Selected Holds
• You can see the item in the catalog, look at item details, edit pickup location, and much more.
• Use Retrieve Patron if you need to enter the record for the patron placing the hold.
• Use Mark Item Damaged and Mark Item Missing when appropriate. Evergreen will retarget the hold after a set time period.
• Use Find Another Target only after marking an item damaged or missing. Evergreen will immediately retarget the hold to another item.

Pull List for Hold Requests (Classic) is a static list automatically sorted by call number.

• Click Pull List for Hold Requests (Classic).
• Print Page prints your Classic Holds Pull List.

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Capturing Holds

After logging in to the staff client, press Shift+F2 or click Circulation >Capture Holds

• Retrieve the items listed on your Holds Pull List and check them in.

• Evergreen works most efficiently if you retrieve the barcoded item listed on your Holds Pull List.
• Evergreen will also accept another barcode if that item barcode is attached to the same bibliographic record as the first.

• Evergreen captures your hold at checkin and changes the status, either to reflect that it is on your branch's hold self or in transit to the pickup library.

• Evergreen automatically prints a transit or holds slip. If you wish to control printing, use F2 or click Circulation >Check In Items and uncheck Auto-Print for Hold/Transit Slips. Evergreen will offer you the choice to print or not with each checkin.
• Place the item on the holds shelf at your branch, or route the item to it's pickup location. Staff at the pickup location will check the item in and capture it. Evergreen will notify the patron according to the patron's preferred notification method.
• When you can't find an item on your Holds Pull List, after a set time period Evergreen automatically retargets the hold by identifying another copy and placing that copy on the owning library’s Holds Pull List. You can manually retarget a hold immediately.

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Patron Hold Notification

• If email notification is enabled, Evergreen automatically emails the patron 2 hours after the requested item is captured (checked in) at the pickup library.
• If phone notification is enabled, Evergreen automatically telephones the patron 2 hours after the requested item is captured (checked in) at the pickup library, between the hours of 10am and 6pm.
• If both email and phone notification are enabled, Evergreen first emails the patron 2 hours after the requested item is captured (checked in) at the pickup library. If the email bounces, Evergreen automatically telephones the patron between the hours of 10am and 6pm.
• Patrons can set their default method of notification in their Account Preferences in My Account.
• Patrons can also change their method of notification for each individual hold when Placing a Hold through the Create/Edit a Hold page.
• You can create a new record of notification through Holds Shelf Maintenance.

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Holds Shelf Maintenance

The Holds Shelf List provides an interactive virtual view of a library’s holds shelf, allowing you to browse the items that should be on your holds shelf. Click Circulation >Browse Holds Shelf.

• Evergreen defaults to display the holds shelf in the branch where your workstation is registered, but you can look at another location's holds shelf through the drop-down menu on the left.

• Sort columns by clicking on each column heading.
• Add or delete columns through the column manager on the right.
• Drag columns by their column heading into the order which works best for you.
• Click Print to print your holds shelf list, but beware that Evergreen only prints the title and no other details of these items.
• Click Actions for Selected Holds to view the item in the catalog or the item's details, edit the hold, view and update patron notification information, cancel holds, mark an item missing, and more.

• Evergreen sets a hold's Expire Time for 7 days after the first holds notice has been sent.
• Click Cancel Holds if a patron requests the hold canceled before the hold expires. Cancel Hold cancels the holds and releases the item to fill other holds or to be returned to the shelf. Checkin the item and route it appropriately, either for transit or shelving.
• Click Show Notices to view when the patron was notified. You can create a new record of notification by clicking Add Record of Notification.

• No note will appear on a patron record when you cancel a hold.
• Evergreen places a note on the patron record when the hold expires, allowing you to view both the expire date and time and the notices Evergreen sent the patron.

To clear your holds shelf of items patrons haven't picked up on time

• Sort your holds shelf by the Expire Time date.
• Pull the items that have been on the holds shelf past the Expire Time.
• Press F2 or click Circulation >Check In Items and check in the holds you've pulled.

• Evergreen will either capture the items for a new hold or indicate the items need to be reshelved.

• Despite the Expire Time, Evergreen does not cancel a hold that has sat too long on the holds shelf. Holds will remain active and on the holds shelf until staff remove them and check them in.

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