Meeting Summary
August 9, 2001
Previous minutes available at: tscomm.htm
- Plug Ins for Web Sites (Davis)
- Subfunds (Tull)
- Older TS memos needing review (Diedrichs)
- Future meetings and minute taking
Collection managers are identifying web sites to be set up in OSCAR that require plug-ins just to view them; since we don't have the plug-ins on our PCs in SER, we cannot readily process the request. The most common plug-in requested is Shockwave.
We can catalog them and note that a special plug-in is required for access. This would provide the information needed by patrons who may very well have the plug-in installed at their own workstation. But it also might frustrate patrons at library machines.
Recommendation: Based on Tschera's experience with accessing and cataloging web sites via CORC, we recommend to TSC that we continue to catalog web sites regardless of the plug-ins needed, as long as we in SER can access them well enough to process. SER will include a note stating which plug-in or software version is required per the web site. IT would like to know what plug-ins SER is seeing are needed so they can plan to add them to new public builds so SER will alert Sally Rogers and Gary Cox to these needs.
This recommendation was approved by the committee. Trisha Davis will send an announcement to the liball list.
Lori Schleeter had asked me about the use of subfunds in OSCAR. We don't currently use them but it looks like it is a system-wide option that can be easily turned on if we desire to use them. It would affect all accounting units. If you look at the INNOPAC Users Manual record 44,060 and 41,167 it describes their use. The primary implication is for an additional set of lines which print at the end of each FUND ACTIVITY REPORT using subfunds. It works by making use of the ORD TYPE field but if you have more than 7 ORD TYPEs defined, it will report all the additional subfunds with subfund one. We have 13 ORD TYPEs currently. Expenditures get logged to appropriate subfunds as invoices are posted. There is a note in the manual that says it is possible to use data elements other than ORD TYPE for subfunds.
Decision: Law will coordinate with the TSAA Dept. about a time to experiment with turning the option on and printing fund activity reports. Assuming that the only implication is for the additional printing noted above, the feature will be left on.
In addition, Tina Schneider will work with Marsha Hamilton for an overview of statistical packages in Felix which may also provide the needed information.
The committee looked at a sample list of documentation on the Cataloging Dept web site as well as the notebook of paper TS memos that Carol has.
Decision: Carol will work with TSAA to review the documentation and send out the documents on a one to one basis for review by the committee. The first level review would include a decision and vote such as: put up on web as is; needs review/revisions; discard. From that basic review, we can begin a more systematic review. Other suggestions were to establish a top level documentation page on the technical services web site rather than having everything spread among the various departmental web pages. (It has since been noted that most Technical Services documentation is available on the documentation menu accessed from the TS home page: documen2.htm)
The regular meeting date of the committee has been rescheduled to the 4th Thurs. of every other month (Feb., April, June, Aug., Oct., Dec.) From 9:30-11:00. Carol will send out a revised schedule with dates and room number.
The committee also agreed to begin rotating responsibility for minute taking among the members in alphabetical order. Future minutes will be brief and focused on action items and decisions. The minutes taker will send a draft set of minutes to Carol Diedrichs for review and posting on the web.
