Polaris & Holds “Demystified”
1. Position in the Queue
The order of requests is determined by the original date the request was entered. Be aware that a patron can enter a request today but choose not to "activate"until a future date.
2a. "Suspending" Requests
Patrons have the option of suspending "active" requests at any given time. A suspended request will disappear from the holds list as well. The patron can select a new activation date & the request will magically reappearon the list on the new date, but Polaris willstill factor in the original request date whenadjustingthe queue, putting the patron in chronological order by the original request date.
Both active and inactive requests count toward a patron’s 15-request limit.
2b. Staff has these abilities as well. You'll notice when entering a request, the activation date appears in the upper right. It defaults to today's date but can be changed. Any "active" request can be opened & the activation date adjusted. In general, staff should only make adjustments by patron request. There is no way to “back-date” to boost a request higher on the list; you can only delay a request.
Why Patrons Drop Down in Order (#1)
This partially explains why some patrons feel their position in the list inexplicably drops--"I was #10 but now I'm #15!" Patrons who delayed activation or suspended/reactivated their requests end up ahead of later requests. Their requests just suddenly appear on the list as if “out of the blue”, effectively increasing the number of requests and bumping down the later-dated requests at the same time.
4. The Interpretation of "Reactivate"
Polaris uses the term "reactivate" a lot butits meaning varies.Only "inactive" requests will have their order preservedif reactivated.
"Held", “pending”, "shipped" "unclaimed" or "cancelled" requests do not get any special treatment when reactivated--they are treated like new requests & go to the bottom of the list, even though Polaris will remember & display the original request date.
We consider it fair that“unclaimed”and "cancelled" holds go back to the bottom of the list. Some patrons may argue that they didn’t receive notification; you can hear them out on a case-by-case basis to decide if there really was a problem.
“Held”, “pending”, and “shipped” requests may require further staff intervention if reactivated. Read on.
5. Staff Actions Resulting in Missed Holds
Once a request reaches “pending”, "held" or "shipped" status, any event thatinterferes with patron's receipt of the item effectively requires a new request to get the item back again—as just mentioned in point #4 above, reactivating the request is the same as creating a new request in this circumstance. Polarisplaces theserequests at the bottom of the list. If library error was involved, we need to intervene to boost the patron back to the top of the list.
- The hold didn't make it to the reserve shelves--got shelved in the stacks--another patron finds it & wants to check it out.
- If an item has damage or is missing a part, and you elect not to send it out to fill a hold, this is another circumstance that requires intervention.
- If staff renews an item that has an outstanding request, you get the same situation.
Why Patrons Drop Down in Order (#2)
This also explains why patrons protest, “I was at the top of the list, but now there are 10 people ahead of me!”
It’s easy to slip up & accidentally bump a patron to the bottom. Please remember to go into the holds list & raise the request.
Advanced Example:
Look at me, #169, on this request list. You’ll notice that date of my request shows as 7/9 but I’m right in the middle of requests dated 7/15 and 7/16. How can this be?
If you open my request (double-click on my name right there in the list),
then click on the blue note pad, you can see the details of my request.