How can we automatically notify people when a new resource is added?
Answer
Alma allows us to designate interested users in a PO line. These users can be added during manual PO line creation or afterward.
The user must have an account in Alma, so any Los Rios student or employee should be ok.
In the PO line editor, click the Interested users tab and add one or more users. Be sure to check the box reading "Notify user upon receiving/activating."
When are the users notified?
Note that while you might expect that the user should be notified when the item is marked received or activated, this is not always the case.
For physical items such as books, the user is notified when the item is received. However, if "Keep in department" is checked in the Receiving workbench, then the notification is not sent until staff selects Done.
For electronic items such as ebooks or streaming videos, the user is notified when staff selects Done for the item in the Electronic Activation Task List.
When viewing the Receiving or Activation task lists, a checkmark will display for items with interested users (unless it has been hidden). This would allow you to prioritize these items if desired.
Letter
The email sent is the Interested In Letter. Note that the "from" line of this letter will be the email address set for the circulation desk of the library that created the PO line, not the address designated in the "From" label in the letter. This may lead to irregularities in the appearance of the letter; we may want to think about the function of the email address set for the circulation desk, or pursue an enhancement request.