Mail Items Wizard

The Mail Items wizard is used to charge an item to be mailed to a user via Books by Mail.

To charge items to be mailed to a user

In the Special Circulation Functions group, click the Mail Items wizard.

In the Item ID box, scan the item ID, or click the Item Search helper to look up an item ID.

To accept the most recently viewed or modified item, click Current.

When the item ID is entered, the Get Item Information button is activated, and is the default action when you press Enter. When you click Get Item Information, the user for whom the hold is being held displays.

Note: If there are no holds placed on the item selected, the following system message appears.

No holds on this item.

If you need to replace a missing, damaged, or temporary barcode, click the Change Item ID helper on the Mail Items window.

Do one of the following.

•

If the user already has an existing package scheduled for mailing, the Shipping Package Already Exists dialog box displays the user ID, user first name (or preferred name), middle name, last name, suffix, tracking number of existing package, the date and time the original package was created, and the mail service to be used. The current item can be added to an existing shipping record by clicking Yes, or you can create a new shipping record for the item by clicking No. If Yes, the existing Tracking Number displays.

•

If there is no existing package, type a new Tracking Number. The maximum length for this field is 80 characters. If Auto Generate Tracking Numbers is selected in behavior properties, the term “AUTO” will appear in this field. The auto-assigned tracking number will display after the system has determined a new package is being added.

When the tracking number is entered, the Confirm Shipment button is activated and is the default action when you press Enter.

Type a comment in the Comment field, if desired. The maximum length for this field is 255 characters.

Click Check Out Item to User.

Note: If the user has any blocks or alerts, the alert messages display. Enter an override code, or click OK to continue.

If you are ready to ship the package, click Confirm Shipment.

The Confirm Shipment dialog displays.

Do one of the following.

•

Click Yes to confirm the shipment. The shipped date is updated in the associated shipping record. If enabled in the wizard properties, the Print Packing List helper displays.

The item’s current location is updated to reflect that it has been checked out and mailed to a user.

•

Click No to return to the Mail Item window without confirming the shipment.

If required, click the Print Packing List helper to print out a packing list and mailing label for the tracking number’s shipment.

Note: The Print Packing List helper must be enabled in the Mail Items wizard properties for it to display.

Once the shipment has been confirmed, the user information and Tracking Number fields are cleared, and a new item can be chosen for mailing.

If you select an item or group of items in the checkouts list and right-click, a circulation menu opens. From this menu, you can perform a variety of circulation tasks. See Right-click Menus.

After you have checked out the item for mailing, select one of the following options:

•

Clear Renew List to clear the renew list.

•

Close to exit the wizard.

Important Considerations When Using this Wizard

•

You can choose to create a notice once the item has been checked out for mailing.

•

A mailing label may be printed on the fly, or the label may be sent to a file for batch printing at a later time.

•

After an item has been checked out for mailing, the insertion point automatically returns to the Item ID field so you can check out another item for mailing.

•

When an item ID is scanned and the item has not been trapped to fill a hold for the mailing, the following message displays.

•

This item has no available holds that are configured for mailing.

•

If the shipping package has not yet been confirmed, you can search by tracking number in the Mail Items wizard by entering the tracking number in the Tracking Number field and pressing Enter. If the shipping package has been confirmed, use the Shipping Package Search helper to search by tracking number.

•

The shipping fee is charged when the Confirm Shipment button is clicked and the package is shipped.