New HPL Website

Friday October 24, 2014, HPL unveiled a new website. The address remains the same, but some bookmarks and other links may not work. Please take some time to take a look as some of the features have changed.

Tim S.

Door Count October 2014

From Monday October 20 through Saturday October 26 will be this seasons Door Count. During this time we'll be recording the P Count on an hourly basis and also the number of items used in-house (items picked up by staff throughout the library building that were not checked out). These numbers will be recorded on a table located on a tab labeled "Door Count October 2014" on the Daily Stats spreadsheet. 

To help ensure that we get accurate numbers, please view the P Count from the 3M Security Gate on your way out for your scheduled desk time. On the middle panel towards the bottom of the right side is a small window which will flash three sets of numbers(I=P: 0000, O=P: 0000, and _=P: 0000). The _=P: 215120 is the number that needs to be recorded. While doing pickup please keep a running number of items that you pickup to record in the Door Count table. 

If you have any questions, please let me know. Thank you for assistance.

Tim S.

TexShare Cards

TexShare Cards allows an HPL patron to apply for a library card at various locations throughout the State of Texas. For example, a patron wants to borrow books from the University of Houston library, but they are not a student. A TexShare Card allows them to open an account at this college to checkout items. HPL vouches for this patron and will ultimately be responsible for any fees if the patron does not settle them.

HPL does not require a TexShare Card for non-residents of the City of Houston. We offer a library card to all residents of the State of Texas with appropriate ID and address verification.

Please note the following restrictions for TexShare Card applicants:

• Must be a resident of the City of Houston
• Have a current HPL Library Card that is at least 6 months old
• Does not owe any fees or fines to the Library

If a patron desires to apply for a TexShare Card and submits an application, it must be placed in an envelope and then the Central bin immediately. It should never be mixed with the regular Library Card applications.

Tim S.

Library Card Accounts

There's been some recurring issues with Library Card accounts that I want to go over. The past month has been extremely busy with the new cards and the amnesty program. The number of applications received has doubled.

Replacing a Card-

When a patron is replacing an outdated/lost card, always use the Lost Card wizard under the Special wizard group. Please do not erase the previous number in Modify User. Doing so will not deactivate the previous card. After scanning the new card in the Lost Card wizard and returning to the account to make modifications, scan the new card in the Display or Modify wizard. Clicking on the grey box with the previous user name will redisplay the account declared as lost. This account will then be inadvertently be reactivated.


Entering/Updating Information of an account-

Basic Info: Uncheck the "Allow Routing" Box next the Alt ID field. Ensure the proper Library is selected. Ask the patron what library they will normally use. The library choice will select that library as a default when placing holds.

Privilege: The expiration date on most cards should be 3 years from the date of application. If a patron is over 18 years of age and they complete an application form to receive a new card and all fees are paid, please select "Extend User's Library Privilege" box to give the appropriate length of time. If a patron is under 18 years of age, but turn 18 in under 3 years, then the date should be set for their 18th birthday. Allow the patron to set a new PIN.

Demographics: UserCat 1 is for residency for all patrons. RES is for all City of Houston residents, NR-Waiver is for all Texas residents that live outside of Houston. NONRES is only for patrons that do not have a Texas address and pay the non-resident fees. UserCat 2 is used to select the Laptop Permission for juveniles. This is especially important on old accounts that have this as a note. Always select Yes or No as necessary for juveniles in this field. Birth Date is required for all juvenile patrons, but is not required for adults. Normally, most adult patrons will write it in, but if they do not want to provide this information then this fine (please add this request as note: 10/9/14; STE/TS; Adult patron declined to provide birthdate on current application.) Please do not edit any other field in the tab.

Addresses:

• Care/Of: Smith John (Reverse the order of the parent's name for a juvenile account; a comma here is not necessary; leave blank for adults)
• Parent_ID: T123456 (use the same prefixes as normal for the Parents Identification; leave blank for adults)
• Street: 7405 Stella Link Rd (when abbreviations are used a period is not necessary)
• Apt_Unit: APT 123 (always use the APT abbreviation for structures with multiple units; delete the abbreviation for a house)
• City/State: Houston TX (use appropriate postal coded abbreviation for the state; a comma is not necessary)
• Zip: 77025
• Phone Number: 832-393-2630 (always enter phone numbers in this format and change it when necessary for older accounts; Add a new field for a second phone number or enter it in the Address 2 fields)
• Emails: smithj@yippee.com,jsmith@grackle.com (When entering more than one email, they should only be separated by a comma and no spaces)
• Enter the second parent name or second address in the Address 2 fields. The second phone number may be listed here as well.

Extended Info: For all other information that does not have a predesignated entry point in the account, this is the place for it.

• Out-of-State IDs or alternate address verification need to be explained here. (ID: New Mexico Driver's License. Address Verification: Light Bill)
• Parent Birthdays: P1 01/01/1950; P2 02/02/1955 
• Anything else: If you have any concerns about the account please leave a note such as Name was previously listed as Smith-Jones. 
• Date and Initials: When adding notes, please your initials (STE/TS) and date. 
• Older Accounts: Information on these accounts was defaulted as notes when the system changed from MilCirc to WorkFlows. Please move any information in the notes to the correct location (such as laptop permission or parent name)

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

Thank you for your unending dedicated hardwork.

Tim S.

Wellness Connection

Hello All,

The COH Wellness Program for 2014 -15; It PAYS to IMPROVE  has made several recent transitions this benefit year. HPL CIGNA Subscribers are encouraged to review all of the program update emails that are periodically sent to all City of Houston Employees from the COH Wellness Team. Listed below are the current updates.

1.    New! Health Assessment Due Date, November 14, 2014. The deadline date for Health Assessment Completions has been extended from October 31, 2014 to November 14, 2014.  

a.    To take your Health Assessment log on to MyCigna.com. If you have trouble resetting your user password through the online tool, please call 1-800-284-8346. For registration validation concerns please call CIGNA Customer Service at 1-800-853-2713.

2.    HPL Flu Shot Clinic - October 16, 2014 form 12 noon until 2:00 p.m, Jesse Jones Bldg., Concourse Level Meeting Room. HPL will host a Flu Shot Clinic at the Jesse Jones Building in the Concourse Level Meeting Room. Flu shots will be available for COH Employees who are medical benefits plan members on Open Access, CDHP, KelseyCare and Mayor. Walk-ins are welcomed on a first come, first serve basis. Please bring your Cigna ID card. Click this link to see the schedule of additional locations of Flu Shot Clinics being offered by the COH Wellness Team. http://www.cohemployeenews.com/events?view=events

3.    New! Online Wellness Points Tracking Portal. The new online tracking portal will begin November 1, 2014. Stay tuned in for upcoming details. There are no reporting forms for the 2014 – 2015 Improve Program Cycle.

4.    New! Improve Program Point Values Visit this link to review the 2014-2015 Improve Program  point values listing and how to report your activities for points. http://www.cohemployeenews.com/improve/wellness-incentive-points

Last Day to Register to Vote in Next Month's Election

Today, October 6, 2014, is the last day for citizens to register to vote in next month's election. The mail was picked up at 12:50 PM today. If a patron wants to register to vote for the next election, please advise them that it must be postmarked by today and needs to be delivered to the Post Office. Thanks, Tim.