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SpringyNews - Stay Agile With Flexible Technology

June 2019

Recent Updates

Working diligently to make sure you have solutions that you love that include the features that you need is always a central priority here at Springshare. We are thrilled to know that this Updates page is a true reader favorite. People are genuinely excited to learn what our team has just coded up and what's on the horizon. If you've interacted with our team, you know how important flexibility is to us. Instead of just saying No, when asked if we have a feature -- we say, tell me more about how you'd use that...


News on the LibApps, LibGuides, and LibAuth front.

All 3 of these got some tech love in this release that we're happy to share with you. 

LibGuides: 

  • Cross-Region Guide Copying - Did you hear about a guide in Canada that you’d like to copy into your system, but you live in Australia? No problem! We’re super excited to announce the ability to copy a guide into your system, regardless of what region you’re in. In LibGuides, go to Content > Create Guide, and search by keyword or URL. The results you see there are now pulled from servers in all regions: Canada, US, Australia, and Europe. We’re a global, guide-copying community again! 
  • In Progress Note - We are also working on globalizing the LibGuides Community site [library and guide searches] and are aiming to have that out to you this summer. This release is only about the actual process of copying guides from any region using the Create Guide screen within your own system.
  • Accessibility - We restructured tab names so that they do not use obsolete navigation conventions.
  • Auto No Share - When you set a site-wide IP or LibAuth restriction, your site is automatically set to NO SHARE, meaning no one can copy your guides, and your content does not show in the LibGuides Community site.
  • My Guides Stats - The Statistics > Guides > ALL MY GUIDES filter now (correctly) shows just that: stats for all guides you created!

LibAuth:

  • Saving - We fixed an issue where configurations weren’t saved properly if you entered a bad metadata URL.
  • Smart Check - We implemented a check for the CQ field for SIP2 connections, because the connection will fail if this field is not turned on in the ILS.

LibApps:

  • No Delays - We fixed an internal setting that affected prompt processing of newly-requested Let’s Encrypt certificates.

To see all the new features and fixes, make sure to read the blog post that covers this release.

Set a date...to learn about all of the new LibCal features!

This recent update brought LibCal so many excellent new features that you'll want to take some time to get to know them. You'll find a list of the upcoming training sessions and tidbits in our recent updates blog post. Discover enhancements to ways to view the calendar, search events on the public page, find Equipment Booking news, support for discount codes, and Auth news.

Highlights:

  • Equipment Booking for Events - How great would it be to be able to book required equipment like a microphone, projector and screen during event creation? Well, now you can! When you create the event, there will be a drop down to book equipment, too! 
  • Discount Code Support: The new billing component has become even more flexible with the ability to create, manage, apply and track discount codes for events, equipment, and space bookings! Go to Admin > Billing > Coupons/Discount.
  • OAuth2 Integration: Now you can enjoy OAuth2 authentication to sync Appointments and Space bookings with your Exchange/Outlook.
  • Confirmed Bookings Calendar. You spoke and we listened! Now, without further ado -- on the admin side of LibCal, you can officially run a calendar view of ALL confirmed space bookings for a category and/or location. Cool, right? There's more. You can filter the calendar by spaces within the category/location selected and choose to display it in the Agenda, Day, Week, or Month format. Plus, you can hover over a booking to get more info about it and any associated event! Check it out -- Spaces > Confirmed Bookings. 

 

LibCal has always been a powerful tool that solves so many real-life problems in your library. It's so versatile, with Calendars, Appointments, Hours and Space/Equipment Booking tackled in one tool. Now with the most recent update, there are big, new features and important enhancements to make it even more useful, day after day.

  • Public Page Event Search - better quality search results and navigation within the search process.
  • Improved Equipment Fines Logic - Enjoy more oversight. Now you can specify a figure that is a threshold. The system will now tally late return fine amounts so that patrons are automatically banned when the total fine amount is equal or greater than your specified amount.

To see more LibCal features and fixes, visit this blog post.

Go on...chat away!

The LibChat component inside the LibAnswers Platform is one of the most popular. This release has great new features and fixes for LibChat. 

Features:

  • Launch Button To Love - We got your feedback. It was hard to get super excited about starting a screensharing session when you had to spend a bit of time finding the launch link. Squint no more! We've created a very prominent launch button that just begs to be clicked! 
  • SMS / Twitter / Facebook Alerts in Chat -  These used to show up in the tickets tab. However, as you pointed out, they are similar to chat in their urgency and pace and will therefore now be displayed in the Chats tab so you can streamline your workflow and get 'em answered!
  • Sending Chat Messages - You remember how it went. You started a message to a patron but suddenly they disconnect from the chat (by accident or temporarily) and that was it. Now, you can still send your message and it will appear if/when the patron reappears in the chat!

Fixes:

  • FAQ Media Preview - Going forward, when you add embedded media to an FAQ, you will be able to see a preview of it. Yay!
  • Ticket Reply Drafts - It's important to know when something is a draft! The word is back in the reply header so everyone knows that the reply is a draft and hasn't been sent yet. 
  • New Chat Dashboard - From now on, chats that are transferred to a specific person in a department will be claimable only by that person.
  • Ticket Email Notification - If an internal note is sent to a user in the Address Book list and they reply via email, an email notification is properly sent to the ticket owner. 
  • To see ALL the features and fixes for LibAnswers from the most recent code release, see this blog post.

So many cool things for our bright shiny LibCRM!

LibCRM got some some really impressive new features that we can't wait to share with you. 

  • Notifications - Admins and Regular users can receive Email Notification each time they are assigned new Profiles, Tasks, or Projects. You can easily enable or disable the notifications from your dashboard.
  • Dashboard - The LibCRM dashboard looks a little different as it was enhanced with an at-a-glance view that displays the total number of People, Organnizations, Interactions, Projects, and Tasks you have in your LibCRM system. You'll also find the Springshare News & Announcement Boxes to keep you connected to all things Springy and LibCRM related.
  • Reports - LibCRM reports are a high priority here. In this release, report output was improved by showing all custom fields in the Display and XL export. Also, when filtering by Profile Type, you can now choose what kind of search you want done: match any or match all selected profile types.
  • Interactions - Now you can associate Interactions with Tasks, using the “Interaction for > Select Tasks” option at the bottom of the page. 
  • Accessibility - We continually review the system for Accessibility and make changes where needed. This release includes accessibility updates for several pages.
  • To see all the new LibCRM features and fixes, visit the release blog post.

LibInsight is getting better by the day with ambitious improvements.

Your big data solution has big news in this recent update.

E-Resources (COUNTER 5) dataset:

  • SUSHI Report Fetching - If a vendor queues a report when you request one (instead of running it on demand), we’ll fetch the report 30 minutes. We also resolved a couple of other issues related to fetching SUSHI reports.
  • More Granular - Want to view your most-frequently-used resources by variable (investigations, requests, searches)? Now you can, by doing an Analysis, then going to Journals, Databases, or Books > Top Use.
  • Focused Charts - Charts are meant to be easily ingestible. We split the main Usage Chart into multiple graphs to make them easier to read. Instead of seeing all variables on a single chart, you’ll see one chart each for Investigations, Requests, Searches, and Access Denied.
  • Good Copying - Don't leave info behind. When you copy an invoice, any title and cost details added to the invoice will also be copied. This means that you can create one invoice and copy it from year to year, making adjustments as you go.
  • The Right Stuff - We’ve added code to normalize text pasted into the SUSHI Server URL field. Providers often give you a long and complicated URL as the server address, but all LibInsight needs is the server address. You paste, we'll figure it out for you.

Custom dataset improvements:

  • Privacy - You now have the option to NOT record the submitter’s IP address when a record is added to a dataset.
  • Optional Tracking - A new system field lets you track and view the method of submission: widget, record data screen, API, file upload. 
  • To see all the features and fixes included in this recent release, check out the blog post.

If you haven't moved to LibWizard v2 yet, we've conjured up so many new features that it'll be a no-brainer!

Have a look at some of the magical reasons you should go ahead and make that move to LibWizard v2.

  • Conditional Email Notification -  No sleight of hand - the most-requested feature ever is here! Choose to send an email notification to different addresses based on a user answer to a dropdown, radio button, or checkbox question. Go to Form/Survey/Quiz/Tutorial Options > Submission Behavior > Advanced Email Settings > Conditional To and select Dynamic To Based on User Input. Select the field you want to use and who to email for each answer choice. 
  • Pre-Populate Form Fields - Now you can create a custom URL to pre-populate fields with default answers. Plus, you now have the ability to map fields to Open URL parameters! You can create a URL to use in your library catalog, which fills in the item’s title, author, ISBN/ISSN, etc., field(s) in your form...POOF -- automatically!
  • Submission Review Page - Seeing is believing. Opt to show users' responses to them, before they click Submit. This is especially helpful for long or complex forms & surveys! Head to Options > Submission Behavior and check “Display a Review Page” to enable this option.
  • Rating Field Gets Stars and Sliders - The quickest way to get feedback! The Rating field has gotten fancier! In addition to the usual radio buttons, you can now choose to display stars or sliders.

        

  • Set a Domain Restriction on the Email Field - We've added a Domain Restrictions field. Now, if you want to require patrons to use their university / institution's email address, just list the domain(s) you want to allow.
  • Awesome Preview - We’ve given Previews an upgrade! No more filling out required fields with dummy text just because you need to see the 2nd page of the survey! Now you can choose to ignore required fields, show hidden fields, or jump directly to any page. Plus, a submission from the preview is recorded in its own area separate from ‘live’ submissions, so you don’t even have to delete your test submissions. Super exciting.
  • To see all the spectacular new features in LibWizard v2, please visit the blog post to get the full picture of what awaits you!

You'll be delighted by the fun new features in LibStaffer.

LibStaffer continues to grow into a super tool here at Springshare as we add to its functionality. Check out some highlights.

  • Message Wall -  You'll discover the Dashboard/Home page now has a Message Wall – a convenient way for Admins to post important messages and announcements! Head to Admin > System Settings > Message Wall Settings to enable this must-use new feature.
  • Color Code Accounts - You can now associate a color with each LibStaffer account. Once set, the selected color displays before the staff member's name on the Schedule view. Head to Admin > Accounts > edit account > Manage Account screen to get colorful!
  • Swaps & Given Up Summary Report - This exciting new report summarizes by account how many shifts have been given up and swapped over the time range selected. It also provides critical information on how long before a shift was set to start that it was given up / swapped, and categorizes total given up / swapped shifts by time of day. Head to Reports to check out the new Swaps & Given Up Summary Report. Please note that this report is not retroactive, but is available to you starting this month. 
  • Available Hours - Improve back-end efficiency. This report gives you a quick display of Available Hours associated with each account. No more having to go to individual accounts! Click Reports and run the new Available Hours report today.
  • Schedule Notes - Have an important announcement for a specific date? Add a Schedule note! Apply it to one, multiple, or all schedules. You’ll find this feature under Admin > Notes.
  • Admin Alert When Staff Cancels Time Off - Need to know. Admins can get optional notifications when staff members cancel approved time off. Head to Admin > Accounts > Edit Account > Email & SMS Alerts to enable this notification.
  • There are so many more amazing LibStaffer features that have been added in this update. Make sure to check them out by reading the blog.

Upcoming Updates

LibWizard v2 is looking forward to tracking tutorial completion!

The trajectory that LibWizard v2 is on just goes up up up. You can keep an eye out for these new features.

  • New Ranking Field Type - You can for instance ask someone to "Place the following call numbers in the correct order."

We also added a few new features that will be out in the coming weeks:

  • Required Login - In order to access forms, surveys, quizzes & tutorials.
  • Auto Populate -  Submitter information can be automatically filled in to save time.
  • One Shot - Prevent the re-taking loop. Set it up so that a quiz or test can only be taken once.
  • Tracking - Do you have a tutorial that is mandatory? For instance, one you have created that people must take before using the maker space. Soon, you'll be able to keep track of who completed the tutorial.

 

LibCal is a solution that always shoots for the stars. 

In an effort to always rise to the top, the LibCal crew is always on the lookout for ways to make the library run smoother on the front and back end.

Stay tuned for these exciting new additions:

  • Integration of the Hours module to Calendars/Events - This integration will allow a library to restrict events to occurring within opening hours only.  This will also prevent accidentally scheduling recurring events on holidays. There will likely be an override option to allow for exceptions and set-up time that might lie outside regular library hours. 
  • Conditional Booking Form Logic for Spaces We have had a lot of requests for this!  Say a library has different options available based on what type of event a space is being used for. With Conditional Booking Form Logic, the patron could specify their "event type" and then be asked to answer additional questions or be presented with additional text based on this choice. 

LibGuides is all about connecting you to your patrons and your patrons to information. 

You've been waiting for it. The globalization of the LibGuides Community is forthcoming!

  • Globalization of the LibGuides Community: You will soon be able search the Community site and find results from all over the world, not just the United States. You'll see search results for guides, institutions, and librarians from everywhere.
  • Paginating Blog Pages: Currently, all posts load on any given blog page, whether it's the system blog or a blog page inside a guide. We know in the future, as blogs become super active, this could be a challenge. To avoid slow-loading pages and excessive server load, ten posts will show at a time, for any blog page. 

The future features of LibStaffer.

It's always fun to look ahead. Here's a peek at what's to come in LibStaffer.

  • Integration of LibStaffer with LibCal Hours - Soon, you'll have the ability to associate LibCal hours with a schedule in LibStaffer.  If that work is being done in the LibCal hours module, let's share that out to LibStaffer!
  • Role/Skill/Position-Based Assignments - This has been a request that's been on the books for a bit. We're excited to bring you the ability to define position requirements for shifts. For instance, if the Morning Front Desk Schedule shift requires two positions, a Front Desk Clerk and a Front Desk Supervisor, LibStaffer shift admins would be able to set these position requirements on the shift itself. Whether you use manual assignment or the auto-scheduler, the system will look at each account position and fill the shift based on their position and availability. 

Mass email = mass excitement for LibCRM!

LibCRM is getting some some really impressive new features that we can't wait to share with you. 

  • Mass Email - This is a BIG one! Are you ready for Email Campaign Management in LibCRM? Get excited -- because it's coming early this summer! With this new development, you can create an email for multiple recipients right from within your LibCRM system. Once you create it, you simply add recipients from People or Organization profiles. You can save it as a draft...or send it right away. Plus, an Email Interaction gets automatically recorded in each of those recipient's profiles, ensuring you keep track of your engagement efforts. 

On the LibAnswers Platform To-Do List...Backup Staffing Help!

We have hinted at this in a previous SpringyNews edition. Soon, you will have options for Backup Staffing via the LibAnswers Platform.

  • Backup Staffing Help: Options are headed your way. You will be able to decide your own coverage levels consider the hours for which you'd need coverage and at what level. You can choose to participate in the co-op or simply opt for backup coverage instead. There will be more details to come. We just want to keep this swirling in your head as you imagine how you might use it to help alleviate some of the super busy times at your library. 

Springy WHO: Laura

Our latest SpringyNews addition is a snapshot aimed at sharing a bit about the folks who are responsible for designing the doodads and the thingamajigs, elucidating the whathaveyous and the furthermores -- and everything in between. This feature will always be a little different, because we sure as heck are. 

I'm the Springy who:

  • Fuels my afternoon support shifts with dark chocolate and green tea. 

  • Checks out cookbooks from the library... and always returns them late.

  • Likes to call people out during training sessions so they ask questions. ;)

  • Works from home because I would rather buy outdoor gear rather than for-office attire.

  • When I say, "I listened to that podcast," I really mean, "I fell asleep halfway through that podcast."

Before Springshare...

I was a technical services librarian answering reference questions, juggling volunteers, and teaching tech classes at a small, rural public library. Then I swapped hunting for library materials for tracking down mystery HTML/CSS. :)

2018 Flashback Sequence

  • Started working at Springshare!

  • Competed in a 24-hour climbing competition.

  • Adopted a dog and quickly became obsessed.

  • Rode mountain bike trails in seven U.S. states.

My 2019 To-Do list:

  • Bake my own bread.

  • Finally grow a backyard garden without abandoning it mid-summer.

  • Camp more. My garden is doomed.