QuestionPoint: 24/7 reference services

Release Notes for September 29, 2013 Install

1       Improvement and Fixes

1.1            Referring page URL restored in Qwidget and email

A bug which prohibited the display and reporting of the referrer page from which patrons sought to use the V.4 Qwidget and/or QuestionPoint email form has now been repaired.  Chatting librarians and users of the Ask module will be able to see the referring URL as part of the patron information,  and reports generated from Review Transcripts will now correctly report the referring URL of the page from which the service was accessed.

1.2            Name and email fields corrected in “Patron Practice Chat form”

A bug in the Practice Chat form which failed to display the chat patron name and email as part of patron information for Practice sessions has been repaired.  Now when librarians are practicing chat, they will see the proper patron information in the fields, so as to emulate the live chat experience,  as well as permit the practice workflow all the way through to the Ask module.

1.3            Policy Page linking/unlinking to Worldcat registry restored

A bug which in some cases would not allow an editor to unlink a particular Policy Page field from a previously linked Worldcat registry entry has been repaired.    Unlinking and text data entry has been restored, so as to allow an editor to change information in the fields.   A similar inability to update information in the “Policy Page Email Contact field” has also been repaired.  Editors can now change or update the email addresses in the Contact field.

1.4            XML FTP data encapsulation bug repaired

Those clients who participate in our XML transcript FTP service will no longer miss receiving transcripts containing   “illegal” characters.  Those characters have now been encapsulated so as to prevent rejection.

2       Cobrowse retirement

As a result of the previously announced decision to retire the cobrowse feature in the Chat module,   the cobrowse button has been removed from the interface.  The librarian can still use the “Preview” button in the URL tab of the chat interface to open a separate window and preview any URLS that they wish to send to the patron.

Libraries may still offer the “Chat with Viewport” form to users.  The viewport allows the patron to see web pages from URLS sent by the librarian in the chat monitor. 

This change will allow those librarians who were still using Java 6 version 7 to upgrade their version of Java to whatever version their Systems Administrators recommend.   There will no longer be specific isolated QuestionPoint requirements regarding Java for chatting librarians.

 

Quality Tip: Secure Your Qwidget with HTTPS

You may want to embed your Qwidget in library catalogs, databases and anywhere your users are likely to require help.  But, many of these sites use protocols like SSL to ensure secure transmission of data.  The standard Qwidget code uses HTTP.  If you embed the standard HTTP Qwidget in sites based on HTTPS (such as some search pages in some catalogs or databases) then problems will ensue!

Fortunately, QuestionPoint has already implemented the ability to connect librarians and patrons to the service using the HTTPS protocol and SSL encryption, and some of you are using this method for chat and email forms.  Communicating in this way ensures all messages to/from QuestionPoint sent over the HTTPS protocol are encrypted before transmission and decrypted upon arrival.

For the new Qwidget (released on August 25), we will implement this capability in our next install, scheduled for this Sunday, September 29.  Therefore, if you would like to enable secure transmissions via your Qwidget, just follow the steps noted in the QP wiki: Creating Secure Patron Forms

These instructions cover the three main types of QP patron forms:  chat, email and Qwidget.  Please wait until September 29 (or later) to make the HTTPS change to your Qwidget code.

If you have questions about the Qwidget or secure patron forms, please email [email protected]

Quality Tip: Qwidgets and Email addresses

It’s fairly clear when patrons submit an email address via the traditional chat form:  the patron is presented with a chat form, which may or may not require an email address, and may (or may not) allow an anonymous option.  Any information provided by the patron in the chat form…

will appear in the preview window (the green box) while patron is waiting, then  -- once you are in session -- it appears in the patron “Info” tab (lower left corner) in the chat monitor:

However, with Qwidget sessions the patron has the opportunity to enter an email at any time.  All the patron has to do is click on the small envelope icon, where there is a choice:  (1) enter an email address or (2) enter an email to get a transcript but remain anonymous.  If patron chooses to enter an email address (option 1), the librarian sees the notification: "Patron has added an email address”  in the chat conversation area of the monitor.  This alerts the chatting librarian that follow-up is possible:

 

In the example above, the Info tab (lower left) still indicates that patron did not provide an email, because the Info tab is pulling data from the initial patron form.  When the patron enters an email address at any time after submitting the question, then the email address is not part of the form information.  The chatting librarian will not be able to see the actual email address.  However, the complete email address will appear in the Ask module once the session has ended, in the usual place:

 

If the patron decided to enter an email address in order to get a transcript but wants to remain anonymous, then the notification will state: “Patron has chosen to remain anonymous (no email address available for follow-up)”.  During the course of the session, the chatting librarian may suggest follow up, but will need to be sure the patron does enter an email address, either directly into the chat, as part of the conversation, or with the envelope icon. 

Remember, before coding a question for Follow up, make sure the patron has provided an email address!

Notes d’installation: 25 août 2013

Notes d’installation: 25 août 2013

1       Nouvelles fonctionnalités et améliorations

1.1            Nouveau Qwidget

Le Qwidget existant a été complètement redessiné et la version 4 du Qwidget de QuestionPoint est maintenant disponible. 

Les modifications apportées au Qwidget se répercutent sur son apparence et son fonctionnement. 

    1.1.1       Apparence

                Bien que nous ayons conservé la palette de sept couleurs, le Qwidget est plus coloré, les boutons plus éclatants et la nouvelle taille des caractères plus facile à lire. Le bouton Aide est disponible dans tous les écrans du Qwidget, et un bouton permet d’ouvrir l’aide dans une fenêtre séparée avant le début d’une session.

Vous pouvez toujours créer des Qwidgets personnalisés aux couleurs de votre bibliothèque. Des instructions sur la création de Qwidgets sont disponibles dans l’aide en ligne du module Administration de QuestionPoint et sur le site Web de QuestionPoint au : http://www.oclc.org/support/services/questionpoint/documentation/Custom-Qwidget-Instructions.en.html

Des informations pour intégrer le Qwidget dans diverses applications sont également disponibles dans l’aide en ligne du module Administration.

1.1.2     Fonctionnement

    1.1.2.1                Appareils mobiles

En ce qui concerne le fonctionnement du Qwidget, l’un de nos plus gros défis est sa compatibilité avec la panoplie de téléphones intelligents et de tablettes actuellement disponibles à travers le monde.

Après consultation auprès des utilisateurs, nous avons conclu que les combinaisons de systèmes d’exploitation et d’appareils suivantes sont les plus utilisées parmi nos utilisateurs. Nous avons donc conçu le nouveau Qwidget afin qu’il soit compatible avec les combinaisons ci-dessous :

Entreprise	Navigateur	Système d’exploitation	Appareils	Compatibilité
Apple	Safari	iOS 6.X	iPhone (toutes les générations) iPod Touch (toutes les générations) iPad (toutes les générations)	Compatibilité complète
		iOS 5.X
		iOS 4.2.1
Google	Android ou Chrome (les navigateurs de tierces parties n’ont pas été testés)	Android 4.1.X, 4.2.X, 4.3.X   (Jelly Bean)	Variés	Compatibilité complète
		Android 4.0  (Ice Cream Sandwich)		Compatibilité complète
		Android 3.X (Honeycomb)		Compatibilité limitée
		Android 2.3.X (Gingerbread)		Compatibilité complète
		Android 2 (Froyo)		Compatibilité limitée
Research in Motion (RIM)	Blackberry	Blackberry 7.0	Variés	Compatibilité limitée
Microsoft	Internet Explorer pour Windows Phone	Windows Phone 8	Variés	Compatibilité limitée
		Windows Phone 7.5		Non compatible

Compatibilité complète – Le Qwidget fonctionne comme prévu.
Compatibilité limitée – On a remarqué des problèmes mineurs d’affichage du Qwidget avec les appareils utilisant ce système d’exploitation.

Non compatible – On a rencontré des problèmes majeurs avec le Qwidget lorsqu’il est installé sur les appareils utilisant ce système d’exploitation.

Pour des informations complètes sur les systèmes d’exploitation, les navigateurs et les appareils mobiles compatibles avec QuestionPoint, voir :

http://www.oclc.org/support/services/questionpoint/documentation/Requirements/Requirements-fr.en.html

    1.1.2.2         Accessibilité

Nous avons considérablement amélioré le Qwidget afin qu’il soit plus largement accessible aux utilisateurs ayant un handicap visuel. Ces améliorations ne seront pas apparentes pour les personnes voyantes, mais elles faciliteront grandement l’accessibilité pour les personnes utilisant un lecteur d’écran NVDA ou JAWS.  Tous les boutons et les zones du Qwidget ont des identifiants audibles : l’utilisateur peut donc savoir en tout temps où se trouve le curseur. Des signaux sonores ont également été ajoutés pour tous les messages provenant des  bibliothécaires afin d’indiquer à l’utilisateur qu’il doit cliquer dans la boîte de transcription de Chat pour écouter les messages et URL envoyés par le bibliothécaire.

    1.1.2.3         Mises au point

Le rafraîchissement du Qwidget était inconsistant dans les versions antérieures dues aux diverses mises à jour des navigateurs Firefox et Chrome et de la sortie d’Internet Explorer 10.  Ces inconsistances ont été résolues et tous les navigateurs d’ordinateurs et d’appareils mobiles sont maintenant rafraîchis de la même façon et ont le même délai d’inactivité.

Si l’affichage du Qwidget de votre navigateur ou de votre appareil mobile n’est pas rafraîchi manuellement ou que la page n’est pas fermée après la session, une nouvelle fenêtre du Qwidget sera ouverte après 2 minutes d’inactivité dans l’écran de « session terminée ».

Si le Qwidget est ouvert dans une fenêtre séparée, la version intégrée apparaîtra en gris (inactive) durant 3 minutes. Après ce délai, même si le Qwidget dans la fenêtre séparée est toujours actif, la version intégrée originale sera rafraîchie et ouverte.  Le Qwidget dans la fenêtre séparée restera ouvert aussi longtemps que la session sera en cours. Lorsque la session sera interrompue par l’utilisateur ou le bibliothécaire, le Qwidget ne sera pas rouvert dans une fenêtre séparée; il sera simplement fermé.

Afin de maximiser les circonstances où l’utilisateur reçoit un courriel de la transaction par Qwidget lorsqu’une adresse courriel est disponible, un courriel est envoyé à l’utilisateur lorsque le bibliothécaire met fin à la session. Ainsi, l’utilisateur ne recevra pas uniquement la transcription de sa session s’il a correctement fermé sa session en utilisant le lien Fermer session du Qwidget. Il recevra aussi sa transaction s’il a été déconnecté, s’il a fermé la session avec le bouton X de son navigateur plutôt qu’en utilisant le lien Fermer session du Qwidget ou s’il a abandonné la session.

1.1.3                   Comment obtenir le Qwidget version 4

Pour que vos utilisateurs puissent profiter des ces améliorations, vous devez remplacer le code HTML du Qwidget sur vos sites Web. Si vous ne modifiez pas le code, vos Qwidgets existants continueront de fonctionner. Toutefois, nous vous recommandons de remplacer le code sur tous vos sites dès que possible afin d’augmenter l’accessibilité et les fonctionnalités pour vos utilisateurs.

Pour obtenir le nouveau code, dans le module Administration de QuestionPoint, allez à Établissement > Formulaires > Gestionnaire de formulaires > Créer un Qwidget. Sélectionnez la langue du Qwidget puis personnalisez votre Qwidget en utilisant les options disponibles (couleur, taille, texte, etc.). Si vous désirez conserver les mêmes paramètres que ceux de votre Qwidget actuel, il n’est pas nécessaire de modifier ou d’enregistrer les paramètres : copiez simplement le nouveau code. Pour ce faire, avec le bouton droit de votre souris, cliquez dans la boîte de texte contenant le code qui se trouve sous l’aperçu de votre Qwidget et copiez le texte. Vous pouvez ensuite le coller dans une page HTML ou dans un courriel.

Si vous comptez intégrer le Qwidget dans une application, suivez les instructions fournies sur la page « Créer un Qwidget.  »

Si vous voulez utiliser un agencement de couleurs pour votre Qwidget différent de ceux disponibles, téléchargez ces instructions et transmettez-les à votre webmestre avec le code HTML. 

Si vous n’avez pas révisé les options disponibles ou les messages d’attente (paramètres qui ont été ajoutés au Qwidget au fil du temps), nous vous suggérons fortement de profiter de l’occasion pour réviser ces options. Si des modifications sont nécessaires, vous devez soumettre les modifications puis copiez le code après l’enregistrement des modifications. Pour voir votre Qwidget tel qu’il apparaîtra aux utilisateurs, cliquez sur le bouton « Test » après avoir soumis les modifications. Si un bibliothécaire surveille votre file d’attente, vous pourrez tester le Qwidget. Si personne ne surveille votre file d’attente, le Qwidget indiquera que le service n’est pas disponible. Pour tester le Qwidget, ouvrez le monteur de Chat. Mise en garde : si vous ouvrez le moniteur de Chat, les Qwidgets existants sur votre site Web seront également disponibles. Vous voudrez peut-être demander à un autre bibliothécaire de répondre aux nouvelles demandes de Chat pendant que vous modifiez les configurations de votre Qwidget.

2       Corrections

2.1            Rapports hors ligne de groupe sur les codes descriptifs

Les codes descriptifs personnalisés n’étaient pas affichés lorsque l’option « tous les établissements » était sélectionnée lors d’une demande de rapport de données hors ligne dans l’écran Révision des transactions. Ce problème a été résolu. Tous les codes descriptifs personnalisés ajoutés aux sessions par les divers établissements du groupe sont maintenant affichés correctement dans le rapport hors ligne.

---

Pour plus d'informations, consultez http://www.oclc.org/support/services/questionpoint/documentation/documentation-fr.en.html

Release Notes for August 25, 2013 install

August 25, 2013 Release Notes

1       New Features/Improvements

1.1            New Qwidget

We are pleased to announce a complete overall of the existing Qwidget and the introduction of Version 4 of the QuestionPoint Qwidget. 

The changes to the Qwidget affect both its appearance and its functionality.  . 

1.1.1       Appearance

                While we have preserved the existing standard 7 color palette options, the Qwidget now has a fresher, more graphic appearance with larger more readable font sizes, and clearer buttons and graphics. The Help button is available on every screen of the Qwidget, whether open or closed, and if open, the Pop-out button is available before starting the session.

 
                                                            

You can still build custom color Qwidgets using your own library’s custom colors. Detailed instructions for how to do so are available from within the Administration module Qwidget builder interface, and in the QuestionPoint Support site at: http://www.oclc.org/support/services/questionpoint/documentation/Custom-Qwidget-Instructions.en.html

Additional documentation on embedding the Qwidget in different CMS types is also available from the Admin Qwidget creation page.

1.1.2     Functionality

    1.1.2.1                Mobile Devices

From a functional standpoint, one of our biggest challenges is the sheer breadth of Smartphone and tablets available in the current domestic and international marketplace.

After due diligence and client polling, we determined that the following OS/device combinations are the most popular among our users, and so built the new Qwidget to be compatible with all of the combinations listed below:

Company	Browser Name	OS Name	Devices	Support
Apple	Safari	iOS 6.X	iPhone (all generations) iPod Touch (all generations) iPad (all generations)	Full Support
		iOS 5.X
		iOS 4.2.1
Google	Android Default or Chrome (third party browsers have not been tested)	Android 4.1.X, 4.2.X, 4.3.X   (Jelly Bean)	Various	Full Support
		Android 4.0  (Ice Cream Sandwich)		Full Support
		Android 3.X (Honeycomb)		Limited Support
		Android 2.3.X (Gingerbread)		Full Support
		Android 2 (Froyo)		Limited Support
Research in Motion (RIM)	Blackberry	Blackberry 7.0	Various	Limited Support
Microsoft	Internet Explorer for Windows Phone	Windows Phone 8	Various	Limited Support
		Windows Phone 7.5		Not Supported

Full Support - The Qwidget works as expected
Limited Support - There are minor display issues with the Qwidget on devices running this OS.
Not Supported - There are major issues with the Qwidget on devices running this OS.

For full details on desktop support and unsupported mobile browser/ OS combos, please consult:

http://www.oclc.org/support/services/questionpoint/documentation/Requirements.en.html

 

    1.1.2.2         Accessibility

In order to make the Qwidget more widely accessible to users with vision impairment, we have added a significant amount of additional coding which, while not apparent to sighted users, will make the interface easier to understand by those using NVDA or JAWS screen readers.  All buttons and fields within the Qwidget are tagged with audible identifiers, so that the user knows where in the interface cursor is at any given moment.  Audible chimes have been added to all librarian messages, to spur the user to switch focus between the chat frame and the chat history frame to hear the librarian sent messages and URLS.

    1.1.2.3         Tweaks

In previous versions of the Qwidget there were some inconsistencies in behavior of the Qwidget refresh after a completed session, due to various browser updates in Firefox and Chrome and the introduction of IE 10.  These inconsistencies have been resolved, and now all desktop and mobile browsers have the same refresh and timeout clock.

If the desktop or mobile Qwidget is not manually refreshed or the page closed after a completed session, the Qwidget will refresh to a new open Qwidget after 2 minutes of inactivity on the “end session” screen.

If the Qwidget is popped out, the embedded version will gray out for three minutes. After that, even if the popped out version is still in progress, the original embedded version will refresh into a new open Qwidget. The popped out version will stay open and functional as long as the session is active.  When ended by either the patron or the librarian, it will not refresh into an open new popped out version.  It will simply close.

In order to maximize the circumstances under which a patron receives an email of the Qwidget transaction when email has been committed, we trigger the sending of the email to the patron when the librarian ends the session. This way, whether the patron gets disconnected, ends the session with the Browser X instead of the End Session X from within the Qwidget, or abandons the session, the transcript will get sent when the librarian ends the session, if it has not already been sent by the patron having correctly ended with the End Session X.

1.1.3                   How to get the V4Qwidget!

To allow your users to benefit from these changes, you must replace the Qwidget html code on your websites.   Not changing the code will not affect the existing Qwidgets that you may have, however we strongly recommend that you replace the code as soon as possible in all sites, so that you can increase your patrons’ usability of features offered on your websites.

The new code is available by using the QuestionPoint Administrator login, navigating to the Institution Administration module, then choosing “Forms”> “Forms Manager”> and finally choosing “Create Qwidget” .  Choose the language that you wish to configure and then proceed to select the options for color, size, email, etc.  If you want to keep the exact same configuration that you have now, you do not need to resave, or change anything.  Simply right click in the code sample box in the lower right hand side below the Qwidget sample display, and choose to copy the code block.  You can then paste it into an html page, or into an email to send to your IT dept. 

 If you plan on embedding the Qwidget into a supported CMS interface, follow the instructions in the link provided on the Admin page.  

If you would prefer to use a custom color skin, rather than any of the default option colors, download those instructions and forward them to your webmaster along with the code snippet. 

If you have not reviewed the available options or wait messages for Qwidget, features which have been added over time, we strongly suggest that you take this opportunity to review your current selections to see if they need updating. If so, make whatever changes desired (you can see the live preview on the page as you change colors or requirements, etc.), submit the changes, and then copy the code block after having saved the changes.  If you would like to see how the saved changes will look in a live environment, click the “test” button after saving. This will open a page with a new live Qwidget on it. If no one is monitoring your Qwidget chat queue, it will be closed, but you can monitor chat if you want to see it open while you examine the changes made.  (Caution: Monitoring chat will open any live existing Qwidgets already on your website, so you may want to have another librarian monitor chat while you focus on your configuration changes.  The other librarian can accept any incoming chats!)

2       Fixes

2.1            Offline group reports for Descriptive Codes

 A bug which failed to display Custom Descriptive Codes when the “all institutions” option was selected when requesting an Offline Report of data in “Review Transcript” has been repaired.  All custom Descriptive Codes appended to sessions from each institution will now properly report by column in the offline report.

---

For more information about QuestionPoint features and instructions, please visit www.questionpoint.org

QuestionPoint email service delays - condition resolved

Tuesday's email delay has been resolved. All email is now processing in a timely manner.

QuestionPoint email responses and transcript transmission delays

We have just been advised by OCLC support staff that one of OCLC’s email mechanisms had a problem this morning July 23. Various email services at OCLC are experiencing delays. Unfortunately our QP email services are affected by this issue. We understand that while the underlying problem has already been corrected, it may take several hours for all queue’d up mail to get processed. We apologize for this delay!

QuestionPoint's live chat service remains unaffected by this email delay.  We will post when we confirm that this delay has been fully corrected.

Quality Tip: Choosing librarians for chat: Use the Practice queue!

If you are in a position to choose which staff will work best on your chat service,  there is a good way to assess the candidate’s aptitude for virtual reference.  All QuestionPoint libraries have access to a practice queue, and you can use this to assess the skills of a potential  chatting librarian.  Here’s how Sandra Clark at the University of the West of England conducted such an assessment:

We ended up doing a chat on the practice queue with an experienced chat librarian posing as a customer.  One of the test assessors sat with the candidates and the other with the ‘patron’  We used a common question (journals) with a bit of a twist as there was no e-copy for the year the patron wanted and the paper copy was in our store.  We also had possible patron responses mapped out so we would respond to each candidate in a similar way. 

To be as fair as possible, the assessors were looking for an aptitude for communicating effectively with customers through evidence of a good reference interview, showing a rapport with the patron and trying to teach rather than tell – we didn’t worry too much about the niceties of chat like using holding messages or a ‘has this completely answered your question?’ statement to conclude the chat as we can train these skills.  Also having a staff member with the candidate meant we could start them off on the chat so that the test wasn’t about using the interface. 

It worked quite well – I think we’ll use the format again.

How to use Practice Chat:

You can monitor the practice queue of your Subscription Group (BME) to practice your skills or try a new feature without accidentally accepting a real session.  Those acting as Librarians in practice sessions should check the Monitor Practice Queue Only box below the queues list in the chat monitor and click Save.  Practice Patrons should use the Chat Patron Practice Form, located on the My QuestionPoint page, left-hand side under “Quick Links”.  Once you access the Chat Patron Practice Form, leave the Practice box (on the form) checked, then complete and submit the form.  If you or someone else is monitoring your group's practice queue, your session begins. If no one is monitoring it, a message indicates that no one is available to chat.  Transcripts for practice sessions are labelled "[Practice]" in the chat monitor and in QuestionPoint question lists. Practice sessions are not counted in QuestionPoint statistics.

Webinar: Real Transcripts/Real Analysis

Join us for a free webinar on August 14 at noon ET (UTC-4) for a timely discussion on transcript assessment, presented by Cynthia Johnson and Caitlin Plovnik (both of UC Irvine).

In this webinar, Cynthia and Caitlin will use actual chat transcripts (anonymized) to demonstrate "good" and "great" examples of how librarians ask open ended questions and engage with their online patrons to provide the best possible service and answers in the virtual reference environment. This session will be interactive with polls and time to discuss what makes certain reference interactions go from "good" to "great."

Title: Real Transcripts/Real Analysis: building blocks for online reference assessment and improvement

Date: Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Time: Noon ET (UTC-4)

Presenters: Cynthia Johnson and Caitlin Plovnik, UC Irvine

This webinar is another in our series "Best Practices in Virtual Reference".

To register: go to this link and click the REGISTER button:

Webinar registration page

Quality Tip: Summer Reading Programs? Check the Policy Page

Summer’s here and it’s time for summer reading programs at the library!  Public librarians please note:  we have a field in the policy pages just for this purpose; the field name is: Summer Reading programs/lists.  Use this field to link to your library’s summer reading program or, if there is no dedicated site, provide information on dates, program information, etc.  If your library has a summer reading program, then fill out this field.

For example, Harris County public library in Texas has a lively summer reading program with excellent information in their policy page.  Take a look at the HCPL policy page:  there is a link to their summer reading site followed by a brief description of the programs available for a summer of reading at Harris County.  HCPL’s list approach within the policy page field presents a lot of information clearly: you can see at a glance that there are actually 4 programs at HCPL this summer, categorized by age (babies, kids, teens and adults).  The brief description in the policy page tells us the kids program is for children aged 18 months to 12 years, and there’s a link to that specific program.  This really helps the chatting librarian focus the reference conversation in order to send information on the specific appropriate program. 

Thanks Harris County, and to all of you who’ve made it easier to handle questions about your summer reading program!