Managing Auto Notices
If your library has configured circulation notices to use the Auto Notices setting, the system automatically prepares and sends notices in the morning of the days the auto notices job(s) are scheduled. The system sends only the notices that you have set up to send as auto notices.
For more information on working with auto notices, see the following:
- Setting Up Auto Notices
- Modifying the Minimum Charge for Notices to Print
- Manually Preparing Auto Notices
- Managing Unsent Auto Notices
- Auto Notices Features
For more information on how the system determines the delivery method for each auto notice, see Modifying Notice Delivery Preferences.
Setting Up Auto Notices
When you set up auto notices, consider the following:
- Sending auto notices to an email or file save printer
- Running auto notices multiple times per day
- Auto notices features
Sending Auto Notices to an Email or File Save Printer
When you select a printer for auto notices, you must choose either an email printer or a file save printer. Auto notices cannot be printed to a physical printer.
Running Auto Notices Multiple Times per Day
Auto notices can be run as many times per day as desired. In addition, auto notices can be set to run at different times on different days. For example, if you would like auto notices to be prepared and sent by the time the library opens, you can vary the auto notices schedule to coincide with variations in your library's hours.
Keep in mind that if you ask Innovative to schedule multiple generation of auto notices in one day and/or vary the start time for auto notices jobs, all auto notices run at all these times. The system is not able to generate one type of auto notices job (e.g., hold pickup notices) on a different schedule from all the other auto notices jobs.
However, the system does generate certain notice types only once per day (during the nightly process), and therefore can only send these notice types once per day, regardless of the number of times auto notices is scheduled to run. When the system runs an auto notices job the first time in a day, it generates and sends all relevant notices as configured. Notices generated during the nightly process are then automatically cleared from the queue. When the system runs the same auto notices job a second time in the same day, it does not find these cleared notices and so does not re-generate them.
Notices that are generated only once per day, regardless of how many times auto notices is scheduled to run, are:
- Replacement bills (but not replacement bills for items reported lost)
- Courtesy notices
- Overdue notices (but not hourly overdue notices)
All other notices are generated each time auto notices runs.
Modifying the Minimum Charge for Notices to Print
If you modify the Fines/Bills: Minimum charge for fines notice to print circulation option, you must open the Saved Notices table and manually re-save all auto notices jobs that use the Bills less than <amount> will not be sent notices parameter option.
If you do not manually view and save each saved auto notices job using this notices parameter, the system is unable to apply this circulation option change to your library's auto notices jobs.
Manually Preparing Auto Notices
You can use the Saved Notices table to manually prepare and send auto notices; for example, if your system is temporarily unable to prepare and send auto notices as part of the nightly process or if you want to run an auto notices job twice in one day.
When you manually prepare an auto notices job, the system ignores all of the settings in the Auto Notices Settings pane:
- Even if the Move all Notices to Print option is enabled for the auto notices job, the system assigns manually prepared auto notices to the email and telephone notification delivery methods (as appropriate), just as it does for all manually prepared notices jobs.
- Even if the Don't Run on Days Closed option is enabled, you can still manually prepare auto notices on a day your library is closed.
- You can send manually prepared auto notices to patrons using any printer available to your login.
Managing Unsent Auto Notices
The system is not always able to send all auto notices configured to be delivered by email or telephone notification. For more information, see the following:
The system displays information on unsent auto notices in the auto notices log.
Unsent Email Notices
The system might not be able to send auto notices configured to be delivered by email for the following reasons:
- The notice cannot be sent. [For example, the patron record does not contain an email address, or the email address is invalid (e.g., does not contain an '@' sign).]
- The notice is undeliverable. (For example, the email bounces because the email account no longer exists.)
System functionality depends on the reason the system is unable to send an auto notice, as follows:
Notice Cannot Be Sent
When auto notices configured to be delivered by email are unable to be sent to patrons, the system sends the unsent email notices in a batch process to the printer with which you saved the auto notices job (either an email or file save printer).
The system does not enable unsent email auto notices to be sent to another type of printer.
Notice Is Undeliverable
When auto notices configured to be delivered by email are undeliverable, the notices bounce back to your library's e-mail FROM address, configured using the Notices: E-mail notice information circulation option for the default address and the Branch Addresses table for optional alternative addresses.
For more information, see Sending Circulation Notices via Email.
Unsent Telephone Notification Notices
Unsuccessful telephone notification overdue notices and unsuccessful telephone notification pickup notices must be printed. You can create an auto notices job that prints either or both types of unsuccessful telephone notification notices.
Auto Notices Features
Assigning a Default Language to Auto Notices
By default, the system generates auto notices in English. Auto notices do not use the language assigned to your login.
If the Preferred Patron Language feature is enabled at your library, the system generates auto notices in the preferred language of the patron for whom the notice is generated. However, if the patron record does not contain a preferred language, the system generates the notice in the default auto notices language.
To use a default language other than English for your auto notices jobs, contact Innovative.
Separating Patron Notices for Auto Notices
The system can be configured to include a special character at the top of each auto notices page that is printed for a different patron. This special character displays only on auto notices sent to a printer, not auto notices sent via email or telephone notification.
To enable the auto notice patron separator, contact Innovative.
Adding Options for Sending Auto Notices via FTP
By default, if you choose to send auto notices via FTP, the system sends auto notices in binary mode and does not use any special commands to FTP the files.
The Save Job dialog box, displayed when you save auto notices that are to be sent via FTP, can be configured to display a Custom Command text box and/or an ASCII check box.
If you want to use special FTP commands when sending auto notices and/or you want to FTP auto notices in ascii mode, contact Innovative to enable one or both of these options.