Place Single or Consecutive Hold Requests

After you have saved a hold request, you can place another request for the same patron or title using much of the information from the saved request. For information on messages that may appear, see Hold Request Messages and Blocks.

To place a single hold request or multiple hold requests consecutively:

Tip:
Click  to display the Hold Request workform. This button appears on any workform where you can also select Tools > Place Hold. On the Check Out, Check In, and Patron Status workforms, you can press CTRL+H.

1. Open the Hold Request workform from one of the following locations:
   • Bibliographic record - Select Tools > Place Hold from the menu bar.
   • Check In workform - Select Tools > Place Hold from the menu bar.
   • Check Out workform - Select Tools > Place Hold from the menu bar.
   • Find Tool Results list (patron, bibliographic or item records) - Right-click a record, and select Place Hold from the context menu.
   • Holds Queue - Click . For information about working with the Holds Queue, see Managing the Holds Queue.
   • Item Record - Select Tools > Place Hold from the menu bar.
   • Patron Registration workform - Select Tools > Place Hold from the menu bar.
   • Patron Status workform - Select Tools > Place Hold from the menu bar.
   • Polaris Shortcut Bar - Select File > New from the Shortcut Bar. Then select Hold Request from the New dialog box, and click OK.
   • Request Manager (Hold Requests view) - Click . For information about working with the Request Manager, see Daily Request Processing.
   • Purchase Order workform, Line Items view - Right-click a line item and select Place Hold from the context menu.
   • Purchase Order Line Item workform - Select Tools > Place Hold from the menu bar.

The Hold Request workform appears.

2. In the Pickup box, select the branch where the patron wants to pick up the item.

Note:
The Borrow by mail and Tracking number fields are used by libraries that check out and send requested materials to patrons. See Borrow By Mail Circulation.

3. In the Activation box, select the date when the hold request should be activated.

The activation date determines when items can trap to fill the request.

4. In the Expiration box, select the date after which the requested item is not needed.
5. To input or change the requesting patron, use one of the following methods:
   • Scan or type the patron’s barcode in the Barcode box.
   • Click Patron Find to do a patron record search, right-click the record in the Results list, and choose Select from the context menu.

The Name, Barcode, Code, and Registered at boxes are filled in.

Tip:
To preview a bibliographic record and the items linked to it before you select it for the hold request, right-click the record in the Find Tool results list, and select Preview from the context menu.

6. To select a title for the hold request, click Title Find to do a bibliographic or item record search, right-click the record in the results list, and choose Select from the context menu.

Note:
If you select a bibliographic-level serial title or a title with multiple parts and your library allows first available copy requests Hold requests for specific issues of a serial title (such as the May 2015 issue of Horticulture Magazine ) or specific parts of a multi-part title (such as the first season of a television series on DVD)., a message appears. If the bibliographic record includes issue designations, you can select a specific issue. If there are no issue designations, you can select a specific item. If the bibliographic record is not a serial, but it has volume data, you can select a specific volume.

The applicable boxes in the Details frame are filled in.

Note:
You can also specify the title by typing its information. However, you must unlock the hold request. This is risky, since the request may not be filled if the information does not match the database. Also, you cannot lock a request after unlocking it. To use this method, select Tools, Unlock Request. A message indicates that the request may not be filled. Click Yes to continue. All the boxes in the Details frame, except Item barcode, are available for editing. Type the title’s information in the appropriate boxes.

For serial issues with linked item records, you can make item-level requests as you would for a monographic item. Use the Unlock Request function for serial issues without linked item records, you can select Tools, Unlock Request to make the Copy and Issue fields available for data entry. Data in the Copy and Issue fields is informational only and is not used to match an item to the hold request. However, if you convert the hold request to an ILL request, information in these fields is placed in the appropriate fields of the ILL request. See Creating Interlibrary Loan Requests.

7. If you want to enter notes for the hold request, select View, Notes or click to display the Notes view, and type the note as follows:

   • If you want a note to appear on the hold slip, type the information in the Staff Display box. This note is also displayed in a message to staff when an item is trapped An item is said to be trapped for a hold when an item that fills a request is scanned at circulation and the system links the item to a specific request, either automatically or by displaying a message that prompts you for a decision. for a hold at circulation.

Note:
The library may set default text for this note for Borrow by Mail Requests. See Placing Borrow by Mail Requests.

• If you want a note to be viewed online by staff only, but not appear on the hold slip, type the information in the Non-public box.
• If you have the Circulation permission Modify PAC display note: Allow, you can add or modify the PAC display note on the Hold Request workform - Notes view. This note is available to patrons in the PAC patron account - Requests page.

Note:
The library may set default text for this note for Borrow by Mail Requests. See Placing Borrow by Mail Requests.

8. Select File > Save to save the request.

The Status (Active) and Request date boxes are filled in. For item requests, the This item only checkbox is selected.

If the hold request includes a note, the Notes view icon is yellow .

On the Notes view, the Request Satisfied By list displays the items that can fill the hold request.

Important:
If you are placing more requests for the same patron or title, do not close the workform. Go to step 9.

9. If you want to place another request, choose one of the following options:
   • Same title, different patron - Select File > New > Patron, or press CTRL+G. A new Hold Request workform appears with the same information in the Details frame boxes. The Patron frame boxes are blank.
   • Different title, same patron - Select File > New > Title, or press CTRL+H. The saved request closes. A new Hold Request workform appears with the same information in the Patron frame boxes. The Details frame boxes are blank.
   • Different title, different patron - Select File > New > Blank, or press CTRL+N.

A new blank Hold Request workform appears.

Related Information

• Item holdability - Holdability is an item’s eligibility to be trapped for a hold request. A specific item may be holdable without restrictions, with specified restrictions, or not holdable under any conditions. The Item Record workform - Circulation view indicates an item’s holdability status. In addition, your library may prevent items with selected circulation statuses from being held.
• Items relinked to a new bibliographic record - If an item is linked to a different bibliographic record after an item-level hold request is placed, the hold request is updated with the new bibliographic information.
• Request history - You can see the request’s status as it passes from branch to branch in the request-to-fill (RTF Requests-To-Fill or RTF processing sends hold requests to designated libraries in a specified order. A library chooses to fill or deny the request. The request is routed until it is filled, it expires, or every library denies it.) cycle. Each time the request passes to a different branch, the status is displayed as Pending. On the Hold Request workform, select View, Notes. Request history information is located at the bottom of the Notes view. For Pending requests, the Branch column lists the current branch in the RTF cycle that has an item eligible to fill the request. For example, if the status is Pending and Library A is the listed branch, the request appears on Library A’s requests-to-fill report. For more information about RTF processing, see Daily Request Processing.
• Multiple hold requests - You can request one title for multiple patrons, or multiple titles for one patron, at the same time. See Place hold requests - multiple patrons, one title and Place hold requests - multiple titles, one patron.
• Grouping holds - You can group a patron’s related holds so that when one request is filled, the others in the group are cancelled. See Group a patron’s hold requests.
• Patron-initiated hold requests - Your library may allow patrons to place hold requests from the PAC. See PAC online Help.
• Borrow By Mail - On the Hold Request workform, the Borrow by mail and Tracking number fields are used by libraries that check out and send requested materials to patrons. See Borrow By Mail Circulation.