QuestionPoint: 24/7 reference services

Quality Tip: Jumping into Sessions and L2L chat

QuestionPoint allows librarians with Administrator or Ask Administrator privileges to monitor any live sessions with their patrons by selecting the “All” tab in the chat monitor then clicking on any session in progress.   This is a nice training tool for admins to assist and mentor librarians new to chat; it provides a safety net (like training wheels) to the new librarian, since the monitoring Admin can send chat messages and web pages directly to the patron in exactly the same way as the chatting librarian.  This is useful in case the new chatting librarian is uncertain of what to do in a live session. 

However, this capability should be used cautiously when the chatting librarian is a non-local librarian and is unaware that you’ve joined their live session with your patron.  Although you may be tempted to jump into a session with one of your patrons, especially if you have local information not available to the chatting librarian, be aware that it is highly disconcerting to the chatting librarian, who is not expecting another librarian to suddenly appear in the session. 

Instead of sending information directly to the patron, communicate privately with the chatting librarian.  See Section 5.4 of the 24/7 Reference Policies for more information: http://wiki.questionpoint.org/w/page/13839422/247-Policies#54nbspJumpingintoSessions.

Librarian to Librarian (L2L) chat between 2 librarians in the same session can be easily done using either the IM tab or Librarian Notes, as follows:

1.  IM: 

The IM tab allows you to send chat messages to any librarian monitoring the same chat queues as you are, including the chatting librarian in the session you’ve just entered.  To send an IM message, click on the IM tab in your chat monitor:

 

Alternative:  From the Librarians list (from the Patron Chat tab), right click on the name of librarian you want to send an IM message to:

Once you right click on a name,  click “Start IM Session”:

This opens the IM tab, where you can select a librarian then send the message.  For assistance using the IM feature, please see our training tutorial:

http://www.oclc.org/support/training/portfolios/discovery/questionpoint/tutorials/using-im-and-xfr.en.html 

2.  Librarian Notes

The Notes tab is in the lower left of the chat monitor and is primarily for the chatting librarian to make notes during a session that will appear to the librarian (in the chat monitor and in the librarian’s view of the transcript) but will not appear to the patron, either during the session or in the patron’s transcript.  The chatting librarian can use the Notes feature to alert the reviewing librarian of anything that occurs during the session which may not be obvious from the transcript (such as Note:  I tried to search course reserves but the link was not working, or Note: I helped this same person 5 minutes ago in another session).

However, Notes can also be used for 2 librarians in the same session to communicate with each other, as this example illustrates:

1.  Chatting librarian Ms Map picks up patron, Ricky:

2.  Admin for Ricky’s library sees the session in the All tab.  When the Admin clicks on the session, Admin will get this warning and must click OK in order to enter the session.  The chatting librarian does not get any notice when the Admin decides to join.

3.  Now the Admin will see all messages between the chatting librarian and the patron.  Note the Admin’s chat monitor indicates “In Conference Mode”.  The Admin may leave the session at any time by clicking “Leave Session”.  This does not disconnect the patron and the chatting librarian.

4.  The Admin may send a note to the chatting librarian using the Notes tab.

The Admin’s note appears to the chatting librarian in the messages area (the same place where patron messages appear).  The note identifies the name of the sender (the Admin), the text is in a different color from the patron messages, and the work “Note” appears before the Admin’s message:

 

This is the first indication the chatting librarian has that a 2nd librarian has entered the session.  The patron does not see this note.  The Admin can use this opportunity to ask for a transfer, or to provide information to the chatting librarian to pass along to the patron.

5.  Both the chatting librarian and the Admin (the jumper) can send messages back and forth using the message box in the Notes tab. 

Warning: The chatting librarian should be careful to respond to notes in the Notes tab, since any messages sent through the usual chat box will also be seen by the patron.

In this example, the chatting librarian sees the note from the Admin librarian (Admin suggests a source for librarian to try), but the chatting librarian replies in the chat box (not via the Notes tab) …

 

Which will potentially confuse Ricky the patron:

Whether you use the IM tab or the Notes feature, L2L chat is a good way for librarians to work collaboratively to provide the best service for all our patrons.

Questions or comments? Please post to this blog or send me an email, [email protected]

Quality Tip: Properly ending chat sessions

Now that we’re in the busy October season, I’ve noted a rising incidence of chats that are not properly closed.  These chats show up in the Review Transcripts area with a session length of zero.  Chatting librarians, please be sure to follow this procedure with every chat session:

- At the conclusion of a chat session, click the “End Session” button

- Then assign a resolution code

These steps should be followed even if the patron ends the session first.

Why end the session if the patron is already gone?  QuestionPoint retains the chat session until the librarian ends the chat, or for 4 hours, whichever comes first.  When the patron ends the chat but the librarian does not, this causes the chat session to linger on the QP chat tables until it times out. These lingering chat sessions may clog up the chat tables, which can cause issues.  For example, when the chatting librarian doesn’t properly end the session, there is no session length time recorded, which distorts statistics on average session length.

If you experience a browser crash or other technical issue which prevents you from clicking the End Session button, then reload the chat monitor (you may need to log into QP again) as soon as possible and re- launch chat.  Any patron chats that hadn’t been closed at the time of your browser crash should still be present in your chat monitor.  If the patron is still there and responds to your messages, you can continue the session.  If the patron is not responding or you see either (i) the “patron has ended” or (ii) “patron has disconnected” message , then click End Session, assign a resolution code and, if it is the end of your shift, log out of chat.  If the chat is no longer present in your monitor, there is nothing more for you to do.  The chat transcript will be available in the patron library’s Ask module.

It is also important to properly log out of the chat monitor once your shift has ended.  To properly log out of chat, click the  Logout button at the top right of the librarian chat monitor.  Simply closing the browser will not log you out. If you have a technical problem which prevents you from properly logging out, and/or  if your browser crashes for any reason while you are still logged in, you should properly log back in as soon as possible, select your queues, then log out by clicking the Logout button.  If the Logout button is not clicked, then the system will retain your autho and you will still appear to be logged in.   This means your chat forms and Qwidget will show the service as open, even if you have left hours ago.   If you or your librarians have neglected to log out at the end of a shift, be sure and check the Review Transcripts area for abandoned sessions (patrons who were not picked up).  These are identified as wait time =0 and session time =0.

It’s important to follow these rules for ending a chat session and logging out of chat at the end of your shift.  If you have questions, email OCLC Support (or ask your QP administrator).

Free QuestionPoint training at OCLC training portal

We are pleased to announce that free QuestionPoint classes are available online, as part of OCLC's new training program. These classes will be conducted by OCLC trainers and various training partners (Amigos, WiLS, Minitex, MLNC, MCLS, OHIONET and LYRASIS, as appropriate) and are designed to help members refresh or maintain skills, ensure effective use of OCLC subscription services, and learn new applications to help members leverage their investments in the cooperative.

The QuestionPoint classes do not take the place of the original hands-on guidance that new QuestionPoint subscribers receive as part of Implementation, but instead are targeted toward exposing QuestionPoint users to new and/or unfamiliar facets of the program.

The QuestionPoint classes are available on a quarterly basis and will be conducted in English. To see the list of classes and scheduled dates, go to http://training.oclc.org/. Choose "Training Courses" then "QuestionPoint". You will need to register at the training portal in order to attend any of the classes, but registration and the courses themselves are free.

For your convenience, this quarter's schedule is copied below:

QuestionPoint Administration 1 - Starting Your QuestionPoint Service

• Wed 9/21/2011: 9/21/2011 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM EDT
• Thu 12/08/2011: 12/08/2011 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM EST

QuestionPoint Administration 2 - Generating and Interpreting Reports

• Wed 9/21/2011: 9/21/2011 from 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM EDT
• Thu 12/08/2011: 12/08/2011 from 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM EST

QuestionPoint Librarian 1 - QuestionPoint Overview and E-mail Reference

• Mon 9/19/2011: 9/19/2011 from 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM EDT
• Tue 12/06/2011: 12/06/2011 from 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM EST

QuestionPoint Librarian 2 - Using Flash Chat

• Mon 9/19/2011: 9/19/2011 from 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM EDT
• Tue 12/06/2011: 12/06/2011 from 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM EST

QuestionPoint Librarian 3 - Chat Follow-up, Referrals, and Managing Questions

• Tue 9/20/2011: 9/20/2011 from :00 PM - 2:00 PM EDT
• Wed 12/07/2011: from 12/07/2011 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM EST

QuestionPoint Librarian 4 - Personal Scripts, Co-browse, IM and Transfer

• Tue 9/20/2011: 9/20/2011 from 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM EDT
• Wed 12/07/2011: 12/07/2011 from 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM EST

We hope that this new OCLC benefit will assist our current QuestionPoint subscribers!

QuestionPoint Qwidget Now Available for Mounting on WorldCat Local

We are pleased to announce that subscribers to Full WorldCat Local can now implement the QuestionPoint Qwidget to provide their users the opportunity to chat directly with a librarian from within WorldCat Local.  This feature has been designed to work with any chat client.  Below are instructions for configuring WCL for the QuestionPoint Qwidget.

How to Configure WorldCat Local for the Qwidget

The steps below document the configuration process from within an institution’s WorldCat Service Configuration account and depict how the chat client will work in the WorldCat Local user interface. Note: The QuestionPoint library must have already configured the Qwidget within the QuestionPoint Administration module. See: http://www.questionpoint.org/crs/html/help/en/admin/ad_forms_qwidget_setup.html

1) Settings are in the User Interface Module of Service Configuration.

2) Chat widget configurations are only available in the Custom Links section on Custom Link 1. When the user selects a link type of Library Contact Info, the Display Chat Widget question displays.

3) After selecting Yes for Display Chat Widget, the user can indicate if they have a QuestionPoint account.

4) If the user has a Questionpoint account, they can insert the institution ID. Upon saving their settings, the ID will be validated and the Qwidget will be automatically placed within their WorldCat Local.

5) If the user wishes the Qwidget to always display to their patrons they can select the ‘Always display chat window’ box.

6) If the user does not select the ‘Always display chat window’ box, the Qwidget will be launched when the user selects the text link you’ve indicated in the Display Text box.

How the Qwidget displays in WorldCat Local

1) If chat is not configured to always display, the Qwidget will be launched when the user clicks on the link in either the toolbar or in the Library Links dropdown.

2)

2) The Qwidget then launches in a separate window so persists as the user navigates throughout the site.

3) If the Qwidget is configured to always display to the user, the chat box will show below the search box and toolbar.

4) When the user clicks in the Chat box, the Qwidget is launched in a separate window so it persists while the user navigates throughout the site.

Negative Wait Time Bug Found and Fixed

A glitch was reported to us in late November, when the library noticed some negative wait times for their chat sessions.  A few others then reported the same problem.

We're happy to report that our QuestionPoint developers found and fixed the problem as soon as they were aware of it. The fix is not retroactive, however, so the negative times you see will remain.  The problem resulted because two of the four servers to which we direct all chat requests and librarian logins for load balancing purposes were set by a different time standard than the other two.  The time difference undoubtedly also caused some wait times to have been logged as slightly longer than they actually were.

We are aware of the wait time discrepancy having begun on November 7 and occurring with greater frequency toward the end of the month.  This is explainable, as we were moving, in phases, to these new servers, one at a time, over a period of 3 or 4 weeks.  Because of the phased move, the various possible scenarios, and the relatively low number of negative times (1800 across the entire system, out of a total 60,664 sessions accepted), we have noted little, if any, affect on averages and trends. Correct times can always be calculated, of course, by looking at the full transcript and noting the timestamps that are displayed.

We are grateful for your reports and regret the inconvenience caused by the bug.

Internet Explorer 8, Java and QuestionPoint

As many of you are aware, Microsoft has released Internet Explorer 8 (IE 8)to the public.

During our tests with IE 8 and QuestionPoint, we found that the combination of Internet Explorer 8 and the Microsoft Virtual Machine (MSVM) is not compatible with our cobrowse functionality. If you use chat and want to use cobrowsing in any transactions, and your Virtual Machine is set to use MSVM (as opposed to Sun Java) please do not upgrade to IE 8.

The following combinations of Internet Explorer and Java engine have been successfully tested with our cobrowse functionality.

Browser	Java version
Internet Explorer 6	Microsoft Java Virtual Machine
Internet Explorer 6	Sun Java Version 6 Update 7
Internet Explorer 7	Microsoft Java Virtual Machine
Internet Explorer 7	Sun Java Version 6 Update 7
Internet Explorer 8	Sun Java Version 6 Update 7

Note Sun Java Version 6 is supported up to Update 7.

If you have any questions about setting up Java with IE, please see the QuestionPoint Guide to IE browser setup at http://questionpoint.org/support/documentation/gettingstarted/chatsetup.pdf.

Note that the setting for IE 7 and IE 8 are the same.

If you have any questions about IE 8, you can learn more at http://www.microsoft.com/ie

Reports of problems while closing a chat session

We have had a few reports of chat freezing up after the Resolution Code has been assigned and the session closed. An infrequent lagtime sometimes allows the transcript to display in the monitor for several seconds after the Close button is clicked. In fact the software is most likely not frozen--you can continue monitoring chat and picking up new sessions even when the old transcript has not yet disappeared. The transcript of any new session you pick up will replace the old transcript.

Our developers are working to fix the lagtime problem, but until that can be implemented, users, especially those with slower connections, are encouraged to carry on despite the vestiges of the previous session.  Please do not try to end the previous session a second time, as this will create an error condition.

Brief install tonight

Dear QuestionPoint subscribers:

We wanted you to know that tonight we will be implementing a change to the way a new patron arrives in the chat interface.  In the new version installed last Sunday, every time a new patron arrived and was acknowledged, the New tab became active again.  This will no longer happen: whatever tab is active for you at the time you click OK will still be your active tab.

We expect no downtime with this change tonight.

A couple of other points to make:

1.  If you mouse over the clock, you will see the date and time.  So now you have access to both time elapsed since you logged on (or refreshed your monitor) and the date/time of day of the QuestionPoint server.

2.  A new option installed on Sunday enables you to obtain more information to help you and us troubleshoot any problems you encounter.  With your cursor on the monitor, right click and look, especially, at the "About" option.  This shows information about your system that is helpful in pinning down certain problems.  A Copy to Clipboard button makes it easy to copy all the contents so you can paste them into an email or document.  Please report this information, if you can, when reporting problems to our support folks.

3.  Viewlets on the chat interface have been updated!  To review, offline, how to use the chat interface, go to the training page at http://questionpoint.org/education/index.html.and look at the tutorials.

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Paula Rumbaugh and the QP Team

Tip for finding out your Flash Player Version

To find out which version of the Flash Player is installed on your computer, open the web browser you use for QuestionPoint and visit the following page:

http://www.adobe.com/products/flash/about/

There you will see a box titled “Version Information” that will note the installed version number.

Release Notes for November 23, 2008

Dear QuestionPoint Users:

The attached describes new features, changes, and fixes we will install on Sunday, 23 November 2008.  Note especially the new look and feel for the Flash-based chat interface.

We do not yet have details on the downtime required for the install, but will post that as soon as we have it.  Typically, downtime begins at 2:00 a.m. Eastern Time (0700 GMT) and lasts for only 15 minutes.

Watch for updates on this list!

Paula Rumbaugh and the QuestionPoint Team

1. New Features

1.1 New Look and Feel for Chat Monitor

Although the workflow has not changed, you will note a difference in the look and feel of the interface and overall responsiveness of the service. NOTE: You must have Flash Player version 9.0.124.0 or better installed in your browser. A different Flash Player install program must be run for IE and Firefox. To check your current version today, right click on your chat monitor and select the Flash Player option from the drop-down menu. If you do not have version 9.0.124.0 or later, you will receive an error message and a link to the download site when you attempt to bring up your chat monitor following the November 23 QuestionPoint install.

1.1.1 Initializing. You will notice the new look immediately on bringing up the monitor, as QuestionPoint initializes and loads the queues available to you. The QuestionPoint logo will briefly appear, then change into an out-of-focus background.

1.1.2 Queue selection. After initialization, the queue selection box automatically appears. You must select queues before you can do anything else. Queue selection follows the same process as before; however, a Select All link expedites the process for librarians monitoring several queues at the same time. Once you select your queue(s), you must click the Save button to continue.

1.1.3 New clock. After queue selection is completed, the monitor screen comes into focus. Note the new clock beside the Queues link telling you how long you have been logged into chat.

1.1.4 Mouse over Queues link. Mouse over the Queues link to see the queues you’ve selected.

1.1.5 New tabs. A new set of tabs, one for Patron Chat and one for IM (see illustration above), facilitate control by more clearly distinguishing chats with your patrons from IM chats with other online librarians.

1.1.6 Slider for font size. A new slider feature in the Settings function allows you to adjust font size (try it out!).

1.1.7 New alerts. To help reduce confusion between the current two options of “Flash based popup alert” and “Browser based alerts (popup and system sound),” the settings options have changed as follows:

If you choose “Flash based popup alert” you will see a new look to the pop-up window.

If you choose “Browser based alerts (popup and system sound),” your alert type will depend upon the Browser you use. IE users will see ***New patron** appear in the task bar at the bottom of your machine monitor and in the IE title bar at the top. If you use “tabbed” browsing in your IE window, it will also flash in the tab.

Firefox users will also see the QP icons flash in address bar and tabbed view.

1.1.8 IM tab. IM is now placed under a tab (beside the new Patron Chat tab) rather than behind a link at the top of the monitor. The pop-up IM alert has been changed enough that it cannot be confused with a new-patron alert.  Another improvement is the inability, now, to accidentally IM yourself!

1.1.9 Transfer IM message retention. Instant Messages between librarians engaged in transferring sessions will be posted in the chat history visible to the librarians as a Librarian Note. The transcripts visible in the QuestionPoint Ask module will also contain these IM chats as Notes.

The “Notes” will NOT be visible to patrons in their chat history or in emailed versions of the transcript.

1.1.10 Librarians tab. You can sort the list of librarians and this sorted list will be persistent until resorted; it will not change when the screen refreshes. Also be aware that you can no longer begin an IM session with this tab open: IM sessions can only be initiated from the IM tab (see 1.1.8) or at the start of a transfer.

1.1.11 Drawers instead of tabs. The patron information area is organized now into “drawers” (see illustration below). Info, Scripts, URLs, and Notes no longer appear as tabs; this maximizes screen real estate and improves usability.

1.1.12 Drawers instead of boxes! Resolution Codes, Description Codes, Send Librarian Note, and Send Patron Note are all also organized as drawers. And, since assigning a resolution code is of paramount importance for cooperative groups, we have made it hard to miss!

1.1.13 Error notifications. You may notice new error messages under certain, infrequent circumstances:

· Chat monitor loading errors: if the chat monitor load sequence fails, you will receive an alert. Follow the “Reload Chat Monitor” instructions in the window, and the sequence will begin again. This guards against incomplete monitor loads in which only a portion of the screen loaded and then perhaps froze.

· Connection losses: should you lose your connection to the chat server for some reason, you will receive an immediate and unmistakable pop-up box informing you of the dropped connection. The window will appear until the connection reestablishes automatically; you don’t need to close out or refresh, and when you are reconnected you can retrieve your existing patrons.

· Dublicate logins: in the case of an accidental duplicate login, the instruction dialog box will outline the steps to follow. You will need to close the chat window, exit QuestionPoint, and relog in. You will be unable to launch a new chat monitor without first exiting QP.

1.1.14 We believe you will experience noticeably improved response time with this interface, including the immediate echo of your messages to patrons in the transcript area.

1.1.15 The new interface enables you to resize the frames of the monitor for your convenience. In the illustration below, the “handles” for resizing are circled in red. The second illustration shows the transcript window greatly enlarged, so the librarian doesn’t need to do so much scrolling during a long session.

1.1.16 Finally, the scroll bar remains “parked” if you need to change tabs or open another drawer. In the old version, you often needed to rescroll to the part of the page you were reading if you clicked on another tab. The monitor now holds your selected position for you.

1.2 Send Message to Librarian

When a question or chat session transcript has been referred to more than one library, it is not always easy to discern who the message will go to if you click on the Send Message to Librarian link. This is especially true in situations where one library picked up a chat session for another, then referred it to a Shared Follow-up folder, from which a third library claims it and forwards on to yet another library! If the last librarian needs clarification, to whom will the message go?

No more guessing. The TO: line of the e-mail is now displayed, complete with address. When you click on Send Message to Librarian, you’ll see who the message will go to.

1.3 Forms Manager Enhanced and Now Available for Chat

Administrators: The third phase of the QuestionPoint Forms Manager is now available: Chat web forms. QuestionPoint can now host all patron intake forms for your library’s QuestionPoint service, chat as well as e-mail.

1.3.1 New chat form manager

Chat forms for every queue in the group can be individually configured by the BME administrator. The BME admin picks the default languages, colors, information fields, and “chat closed” messaging and links. Thereafter, if desired, institution administrators in the group can further individualize colors, branding, and the message users see when the chat service is not available for their institution. Thus the forms can have the local look and feel, matching different website presences, while collecting all the information needed at the group administration level.

Note: 24/7 Coop members can only create chat forms for their Queues in English, due to the nature of the cooperative chat service. Those whose libraries also participate in the Spanish language chat cooperative, will not build chat forms for that particular service, as the “Spanish Queue” is managed by OCLC directly.

1.3.2 Modifications and corrections to phase 2, email form manager:

Several modifications were made to the institution level email web form manager.

Institution administrators can create a basic email web form with Name, email and Question, in as little as three steps if desired. For those needing greater customization, instructions are now clearer, and more tailored to each type of configurable field. Drop down menu fields now can be configured with as many as 30 values, and the values of all types of dropdown fields can be “ordered” however desired.

Language options for Chat forms have been separated out from those on the email web form, allowing institutions to offer email forms in whatever languages they wish to support, regardless of any language restrictions in their live chat service.

Border images, banner colors and additional links can also be different for email forms than they are for chat forms.

The advantages in having QuestionPoint host forms that you can manage yourself are:

· The Forms Manager is easy to use; using it reduces the need for IT staff involvement in your forms.

· Your institution or group can customize your forms.

· Your form can be provided in multiple languages (Exception: 24/7 Coop members can create only English-language chat forms.)

· The option supports improved access to data about reference transactions.

· The option provides improved protection against spam.

Complete instructions for forms set-up will be available in Administration module Help, as well as at http://questionpoint.org/support/documentation/gettingstarted/index.html . A walk-through tutorial is also available at this site.

For group administrators, forms management is accessible at Administration >> Subscription Group >> Chat Forms Manager. For institution administrators, management of both e-mail and chat forms is available at Administration >> Institution >> Forms >> Forms Manager.

Once you build new forms using the forms manager, decide when the best time to deploy them will be, depending upon whether you use information from Form Field Reviews (Ask >> Transcript Reviews >> Form Fields). The new forms will no doubt use different field ID labels, (This is unavoidable due to its automated nature. We cannot tell what field IDs your current forms may be using, because there are too many variations on the currently used forms out there!) If you switch to a new form in mid month, or quarter, it will be harder to get consistent data from the downloaded Form Field Reports, so we recommend building the form at your leisure, and then picking a date certain for switching the links on your website.

Although having QuestionPoint staff manage your chat forms for you remains an option at this time, administrators are encouraged to experiment with building their own forms.

2. Changes

2.1 Reports: Response Time, Session Length

Within the Chat section of activity reports (My QuestionPoint/Reports/Institution or Group), line items for Avg. Response Time, Greatest Response Time, and Avg. Session Length are being discontinued. These values, originally developed for one-on-one chat services, are calculated in a way that is not really applicable in the cooperative setting. Since both session length and response time are values that can be reviewed, reported on, and averaged through the Ask/Review Transcripts feature (both online and offline), they are no longer necessary for activity reporting.

2.2 Qwidget Chat-Not-Available Message Discontinued

Libraries are increasingly mounting the QuestionPoint widget (the Qwidget) on their websites on multiple pages. However, since Qwidget requests are routed only to the local level (i.e., an institution’s primary queue), they are rarely picked up around the clock. Heretofore, when the software detected a Qwidget request but no one was monitoring the primary queue, the message “Chat Not Available” automatically appeared as pictured below.

But libraries often want to direct their patrons to their chat form, which may well be monitored 24/7, so they can add instructions in the Qwidget message area to that effect. Libraries have reported that when patrons see “Chat Not Available,” they either read no further or are confused by conflicting instructions telling them to go to the chat form.

The automatic “Chat Not Available” message is therefore discontinued. If you have not done so already, QuestionPoint administrators offering the Qwidget will need to ensure they provide their own “closed” message at Administration/Institution/Forms Manager/Qwidget (Preview) Configuration, in the “Offline Message” box type the message you want to appear to your patrons when no one is monitoring the Qwidget. To see examples of closed messages, please visit our Qwidget tips page at http://wiki.questionpoint.org/Qwidget+Tips.

2.3 Virtual Groups Automatic Submittal to GKB Discontinued

Institutions from disparate BMEs (groups) can form their own groups for the purposes of referring questions to one another and to cover for one another during closed. Some early QuestionPoint subscribers can even form their own chat coverage groups. While these options are still available, the automatic submittal of Closed transactions that were routed via this mechanism to the Global Knowledge Base is discontinued with this install.

Automatic submittal of Closed transactions routed through the Global Reference Network does continue.

2.4 Additional Descriptive Codes

Two new descriptive codes have been added to the drop-down menu available in the chat monitor, upon closing sessions, and from the Ask/Full Question/Question Descriptive Codes page. They are Citation and No email. As always, these codes can be used in whatever manner is consistent with local practice. 24/7 Cooperative members are cautioned to not assign descriptive codes to sessions they have handled for other libraries.

3. Fixes

3.1 Qwidget Report Label

Reports on Qwidget activity are now correctly labeled Requested.