Full Guide to Koha
Comprehensive Guide to the Koha System
Stirling MILL — Staff Guide
This is the full comprehensive guide to the Koha system.
This guide will start with signing in and accessing the system, then you will learn how to navigate the system, and perform various tasks.
Contents
1. Sign-in and access
2. Navigating Koha
3. Loan Check Outs
4. Loan Check Ins
5. Renewals
6. Holds
7. Transfers
8. Overdues
9. Patrons
10. Search
11. Lists
12. Authorities
13. Cataloging
14. Tools
1. Sign-in and access
To begin, visit staff.stirlingmill.ca.
When you visit the website, you will be prompted with this log-in screen.
Click on the “Stirling MILL Staff Login” button.
You should now be prompted to sign in with Google.
Click on your “@stirlingmill.ca” e-mail.
Upon clicking on your e-mail, you should now be signed in and ready to use the Koha System!
What you can do depends on your group
Your access comes from the MILL Google Group you are in:
- general@stirlingmill.ca (every MILL member): sign in, search, and view records, copies and patrons. You can’t edit anything or check items out.
- staff@stirlingmill.ca: day-to-day library work, including check-outs, check-ins, renewals, holds, overdues, patrons and cataloging.
- tech@stirlingmill.ca: full administration.
For day-to-day library work, ask to be added to staff@stirlingmill.ca. A group change takes effect within about 15 minutes. When you first join staff@, the Label creator, Patron lists, batch item modification, inventory and cover image upload appear from your second sign-in.
The username and password form under the login button is only for the system administrator account.
2. Navigating Koha
Circulation
First, we will focus on the Circulation section.
Click on the “Circulation” button on the Koha website.
In the Circulation section, you can check-out, check-in, and renew instruments, create holds and requests, manage transfers of instruments, as well as manage overdues and fines.
Patrons
Next, we will move on to the Patrons section.
To return to the main page, click on the house icon at the top left of your screen.
Upon returning to the main page, click on the “Patrons” button on the Koha website.
In the Patrons section, you can search for a patron, and view their patron profile.
On their patron profile, you can view their checkouts, holds, and bookings.
You can also edit and view their information, or add a new patron.
Advanced Search
Return to the main page, and click on the “Advanced search” button.
In the advanced search section, you can search for various items.
Item Search
Return to the main page, and click on the “Item search” button.
In the item search section, you can search for instruments/books.
Lists
Return to the main page, and click on the “Lists” button.
In the lists section, you can view, add, delete, or edit lists.
Authorities
Return to the main page, and click on the “Authorities” button.
The MILL doesn’t use Authorities at the moment, so you can skip this section.
Cataloging
Return to the main page, and click on the “Cataloging” button.
In the cataloging section, you can add new items to the catalogue, as well as create labels, and barcode images.
Tools
Return to the main page, and click on the “Tools” button.
In the tools section, you can access lists of patrons, and the patron card creator.
3. Loan Check Outs
To begin, go to the circulation section, and click the “Check out” button.
From there, you will be prompted with a search box.
To loan an instrument to a patron, begin by entering their partial name or card number. You can then select from the list of patrons with that information.
Upon selecting a patron, you will be prompted with another search box.
Type in the item barcode of the item that you are going to check out.
You should then see something like this message:
4. Loan Check Ins
To begin, go to the circulation section on the Koha website.
From there, click the “Check in” button.
You will then be prompted with a search bar.
Enter the item barcode of the item that you are going to check in.
Once you’ve entered the item barcode, your instrument will be checked in.
5. Renewals
To begin, go to the circulation section on the Koha website.
From there, click the “Renew” button.
You will then be prompted with a search bar.
Enter the item barcode of the item that you are going to renew.
You should then see this message:
6. Holds
Patrons can place holds on the Stirling MILL website, or in the patron catalogue at patron.stirlingmill.ca.
To see a patron’s current holds, follow these steps:
- Go to their patron profile (Patrons → Search for Patron → Click on Patron’s Name)
- Scroll to the bottom of the page, and click on the “Holds” button.
There, you can see the patron’s current holds.
7. Transfers
Sending Transfers
- To begin, go to the circulation section on the Koha website.
- From there, click on the “Transfer” button.
- Enter the item barcode you want to transfer, and its intended destination.
Viewing Incoming Transfers
To receive a transfer, you first have to set your library to the destination of the transfer.
To do this, do the following:
- Click the “Circulation” button on the main page.
- Click on the “Set library” button.
- Set your current library to the destination of the transfer you want to receive.
From there, you can now receive transfers for that library.
To view incoming transfers, do the following:
- Go to the circulation section on the Koha website.
- From there, click on the “Transfers to receive” button.
- Here, you can see the transfers on their way to your library.
Receiving Transfers
To receive a transfer, simply check in the instrument that is currently in transfer, with your library set as the intended destination. (see 4. Loan Check Ins)
8. Overdues
To see what’s overdue, go to Circulation and click “Overdues”. You need to be in staff@stirlingmill.ca to see this page.
Loan rules
- Instrument loans last 6 weeks. Kits last 12 weeks.
- A loan can be renewed up to 3 times, each time for the same length again.
- A patron can have up to 5 items out and up to 3 holds at once.
- Overdue items are charged $1 a day, up to $60 per item.
- A patron who owes more than $1 can’t borrow until they’ve paid.
Emails Koha sends patrons
Koha emails patrons automatically, from “Stirling MILL Staff” <staff@stirlingmill.ca>:
- when they check an item out
- 2 days before the due date, and on the due date
- 1 day and 14 days after the due date, if the item is still out
- when a hold is ready to pick up, and when a loan is renewed automatically
9. Patrons
This chapter will cover the process of searching for patrons, adding patrons, and editing patron information.
Searching for Patrons
- To begin, click on the “Patrons” button on the main page.
- Fill in the fields on the left side of your screen with your desired search results (If you’d like to search for all patrons, leave it blank.)
- Click on your desired patron’s name to open their patron profile.
Adding Patrons
- To begin, click on the “Patrons” button on the main page.
- Then, click the “New patron” drop down menu on the patrons page.
- Select which patron type you would like to add.
- Fill out all the required information per the patron’s registration form.
- Click the save button in the top left corner of your screen to add a new patron.
Editing Patron Information
- To begin, click on the “Patrons” button on the main page.
- Search for your desired patron.
- Click on your desired patron’s name to open their patron profile.
- Click on the “Edit” button above the patron’s name.
- Edit any patron information you’d like, and then hit the save button.
10. Search
When searching, you are given two options: advanced search, and item search.
Item Search
- On the main page of the website, click on the “Item Search” button.
- Enter in the filters you want for your search (i.e. Item Barcode, Call Number, etc.)
- Click the search button on the top left of your screen.
- Click on the item to select it.
Advanced Search
- On the main page of the website, click on the “Advanced Search” button.
- Enter in the filters you want for your search (i.e. Item Barcode, Call Number, etc.)
- Click the search button on the top left of your screen.
- Click on the item to select it.
11. Lists
A list can be an item list, or a patron list. Both with their own uses. They will both be covered in this chapter.
Item Lists
Item lists are collections of items. These can be useful for productivity, putting similar instruments in a single list. (i.e. Putting all guitars in one list, for easier access.)
An item list can be a private list, that only staff members can access, or a public list, that anyone can access.
You can also set an item list to only allow changes from yourself, a selected staff member, any staff member, or anyone at all!
To create an item list, do the following:
- Go to the main page, and click the “Lists” button.
- Click the “+ New list” button in the top left.
- Enter in your desired information for the item list.
- Click the “Save” button to save it.
Patron Lists
To add a new patron list, you must be on the Tools tab. Return to the main page, and then click the “Tools” button.
- Click on the “Patron lists” text.
- Click the “+ New patron list” button in the upper left.
- From there, enter the name of the patron list, the owner, and whether or not it’s shared.
12. Authorities
The MILL doesn’t use Authorities at the moment, so there’s nothing to cover here.
13. Cataloging
The Cataloging section is where you create new records, and instruments. You can also create labels, barcode images, and quick spine labels.
Adding New Records & Instruments
If you’d like to know more about how to add new records and instruments, check the “Adding and Editing Instruments” guide on the Stirling MILL Docs website. (https://docs.stirlingmill.ca/using-koha/adding-and-editing-instruments.html)
Creating Labels
To create a label, click the “Cataloging” button on the main page.
- Click on the “Label creator” button.
- From there, you can create a label using label batches, layouts, or templates. You can also print barcodes.
Creating Barcode Images
To create a barcode image, click the “Cataloging” button on the main page.
- Click on the “Barcode image generator” button.
- From there, select your desired barcode number, as well as your barcode type.
- The MILL hasn’t chosen a standard barcode type yet. Item barcodes are the 14-digit numbers starting 32837000.
14. Tools
The Tools tab lets you manage and create patron lists, and generate patron cards.
Generating Patron Cards
To generate a patron card, click the “Tools” button on the main page.
- Click on the “Patron card creator” text on the tools page.
- Patron card layouts haven’t been set up yet, so this part of the guide will be finished once they are.