Online Selection & Acquisitions - Overview

Online Selection & Acquisitions (OSA) is a secure, web-browser based tool, used to manage the entire acquisition process from selection to receiving.  Users can build and maintain your selection lists; transmit electronic orders, receive electronic acknowledgements and invoices, manage funds and orders from a single application.

Librarians have access to multiple material vendors' databases that can be searched independently or simultaneously.  Items listed on the search result can be added to a specified list, or to multiple lists.  Original entry records can be created and added to a selection list.  Users have access to only the funds and vendors for which they have permissions.  Users can pre-configure, and pre-apply, Distribution Profiles to your Selection Lists.  These profiles are used to distribute the units of a selected order between various libraries and locations of your library.

OSA provides the ability to customize the creation, review, approval, and ordering process for selection lists.  When configuring user permissions, the OSA Administrator is charged with establishing a hierarchical structure for review and approval of items under consideration.  Depending upon your institution's needs, this can be a multi-level, or a single-level structure.  These levels are assigned when establishing the user configurations.

The options available to each user will vary according to the logon permissions granted by the Administrator, when the user account is initially set up.  Buttons and lists related to specific functional permissions will not be displayed, if you have not been granted that permission.

Note: Any and all permissions can be granted, to any user, by the administrator.  Permissions should be assigned based upon the role of the user in the library.

Examples of some Roles and their permission:

Collection Development Librarian

• maintain their own lists, and share their lists with other users

• edit any public list, or be limited to editing lists in their own branch

• choose vendors for any branch, or be limited to choosing vendors for their own branch

• submit lists for review for any branch, or be limited to submitting lists for review for their own branch

• view any public list, or be limited to viewing lists for their own branch

• approve lists in review for any branch

• view order acknowledgements

Acquisitions Librarian

• maintain vendors

• transmit orders to vendors

• view funds

• via order acknowledgements

System Administrator

• manage Fund, Users and Vendors

• manage FTP Redirect process

• manage/configure interface with financial system

Receiver

• receive material

• process returns

OSA Help Desk

The OSA Help Desk option provides access to detailed instructions on how to configure and use Online Selections and Acquisitions in your library.  

Integration of OSA and Library•Solution

Integration of OSA and Library•Solution allows your Acquisitions process to mesh seamlessly with your cataloging database.  Integrated institutions have options available that are not available to NON-Integrated institutions.  When a library has integrated OSA with Library•Solution additional options will be displayed.  Keep in mind that before some of these additional options display, a related permission must be assigned to the logged in user.

Integration Differences

Integrated libraries will see the following options that are not available to NON-integrated libraries.

• Administration Menu - The MARC Download Preferences section will be labeled Integration / MARC Preferences, and will include the following additional options:

• • PAC Synchronization Defaults

  • View PAC Synchronization Log

  • View Queued Holds

  • View Holds Log

• Library Management - This dialog will include options to Synchronize With Local System and Schedule Automatic Synchronization.

• Options for Checked Items / List Management Options - These drop-down lists will include options to Display in PAC and to Place Holds.

• Item Details display - When the Item Details display is open the following additional fields will display a:

• • Display in PAC drop-down including an Allow Holds (if applicable) check box.  

  • Local Holdings section displaying the total Holds, Owned Copies, Lost / Missing.

  • Circulation Statistics section.  If Local Holdings exist, a Circulation Statistics section will display the number of Total Circulations and Circulations This Period for the title.

• Label View / MARC View - Above the Add to list drop-down, a Local Holdings section including the total Holds, Owned Copies, and Lost / Missing.  If Local Holdings exist, a Circulation Statistics section will also be displayed showing the number of Circulations and Circulations This Period for the title.

• Search Results - Each item on the search results list will include a Local Holdings section including the total Holds, Owned Copies, and Lost / Missing.  If Local Holdings exist, a Circulation Statistics section will also be displayed showing the number of Circulations and Circulations This Period for the title.