Tip of the Week

Tip for: 03.24.08

Using Discard Mode Effectively

Summary:  Perhaps one of the least-understood, but most helpful features of Alexandria is Discard Mode.  There are numerous reasons for discarding items  — out-dated, damaged, worn out (those "loved to death" items), objectionable materials, never used, etc.  Making your Discard Note reasons more explicit than "Weeded" provides you with valuable information to use later on.  For instance, it is easier to identify the items that you want to replace, and also show the number of items that were out-dated and need to be replaced with more current materials, and the areas of the collection from which those items were weeded. 

To discard items for a specific reason:

Type DM and press <enter>.

Select Other from the drop-down menu, then enter the reason (e.g. out-dated, loved to death, oops (for objectionable materials), no use, etc.)

Click on OK.

Scan the barcodes of the items being discarded for the reason entered.

When finished, type a period (.) and press <enter>.

If you have additional items to discard for another reason, repeat the process.

Run the Special Items List report found in Circulation Reports using the Format of Discarded Items and set the Select By criteria to Discarded Note and enter the desired reason that you used when discarding the items to generate a report listing the items discarded for that particular reason.