|
|
Because the University is aiming to re-use material as much as possible and because we there are many items that are used by more than one module, Planet has tackled the problem of storing information about multiple use by the creation of the item edition use record.
What is an item edition use record?
Maintain item edition use (CS087)
Multi-update tool: item edition use data (CS089)
Item editions used by a module (CS076)
When you save an item record, you create an item edition record, an impression record (used for reprints) and a module item edition use record. The Use record acts as a link between the item edition record (which represents the ‘thing’ – book, CD, DVD or online item) and the module or unit. So the automatically-created first item edition use record is for the owning module.
Further item edition use records can be created by other modules. There is no special permission within the system for creating Use records to link an item edition to your module. This depends on good practice and procedures being followed. However, for every link that is made, Planet puts an entry on the item and item edition record field Modules using this item (or item edition). So it is evident to everyone which modules are using the item.
Where a text item has multiple use as a print item to go into a physical mailing and as an electronic document to go on a website, Planet creates two Use records for that item to allow both versions to be put into mailings. The print item goes into the inventory for a physical mailing sent from the warehouse; the e-text version goes into a virtual inventory used by LTS to determine what goes onto a module website.
Some items will not be owned by modules. This category includes generic or admin items, like TMA forms, which are the responsibility of Exams and Assessment. Some minor items are the responsibility of the warehouses: change of address forms and fault cards, for example. These items will be created in Planet by the ‘owners’ and linked to modules, most likely by PP Admin staff.
When unit-owned items are created, no Use record is created for them because such items are not used by units in the way Planet defines use: use on Planet means use by students on modules. (Planet does not support central administrative mailings.) There are also items owned by CAUs. These may include faculty newsletters and similar material. Here again Use records have to be created in order to link them to modules.
Planet cannot at present link items to programmes. Only modules or units can own items.
The Use record holds information about presentations for which the item is to be used, its academic approval status and the number of copies per student and tutor required for mailings. All of these are related to how the item (it could be any item type) is used and not to the specific nature of the item itself.
Use records are at the edition level. So each edition of an item has a separate Use record (which is created automatically when you create the new edition record). This makes sense, as different editions of items have different use dates and each edition requires separate academic approval. CS087 is the screen used to update these item edition use records during the life of the edition, which is why its title is ‘maintain item edition use. You cannot create or delete Use records using CS087.
user (in header) |
The module code of the code using this particular item edition. It may be the module that created the item (see Owner, below) but it may also be a module that has had permission from the owning module to re-use the item. |
item id (in header) |
Planet’s unique identifier for an item. It is not the public code (e.g. supp or ISBN) and is not printed anywhere on the item. But it is the number in Planet that identifies this record. |
edition (in header) |
The number of the edition for which this record has been created. When the item record is saved, a use record for the first edition is created automatically. Further use records are created using CS076 to additional item editions to the inventory of module materials. |
type |
The item type that was chosen when the item record was created. |
owner |
The module or unit that has update permission for the item. Usually this is the module or unit that produced the item but it may also be the module or unit that has taken over responsibility for maintaining and updating the item. |
public code |
The code - ISBN, supp code, CD ROM code etc. printed on each edition of the item. |
function |
For the using module: is the use here different in any ways from its use on the owning module? This is an optional field. |
e-text |
This term, in brackets, only appears on Use records for virtual versions of print items. Having an e-text Use record for a print item allows the item to be added to virtual mailings without the need to create separate online items. |
status |
The status of an item edition in terms of module materials approval. Options are proposed or approved unless the Module materials approval required marker on the Item screen (CS067) is set to N. In this case the status is not applicable and can only be changed if the marker is changed. |
status date |
The date on which the status was changed. This date changes automatically when the status is altered. |
presentation specific |
A marker indicating whether this item can be used for more than one presentation. It can be changed by the owner of the item on CS067, the item record. If presentation-specific is Y, the first and last use dates must show the same presentation. |
first use by module/last use by module |
These are the dates of the first and last presentation for which this item will be used. The drop down list is drawn from the dates supplied on PL019. |
number required per student/per tutor |
The quantity of each item that is to be sent to each student and/or tutor. Normally this will be one so the default has been set to one. This field is the source of the quantities found on the mailing records. |
how supplied to students |
A text field for use if there is something unusual about the way this item is to be supplied. If it is to be mailed in the usual way, no information needs to be put there. |
As well as navigating from the Main Menu and via Go to, all the Item edition screen button bars contain a button that will take you to this screen, as does the Item screen and the New edition screen. In addition you can reach it by using Search (CS071). You can also go to it via the eye on CS076.
You do not create or delete use records using this screen. That is why the screen is called Maintain item edition use records. You create Use records when you create an item or new edition or when you link an item edition to a module.
You may or may not want to say something about the function of the item, but you must make sure that the first and last use of the item edition are correct. These dates feed into the mailing inventories and determine when an edition will be mailed. If the presentations are incorrect, the information about the item will not appear on the mailing screen.
The status of an item is related to its use on a module. In order for an item to be used as part of the module materials, whether for the owning module or another user, it must first have been approved by the relevant CAU who will take into account issues of academic suitability and resource for each edition to be used. Since it is possible for one edition to be acceptable while another is not, this approval has to be for each edition separately.
When an item record is created the Use record will have a status of proposed unless the Module materials approval required field on the Item screen is set at N. In that case the status will be not applicable. But most items of module material will have a status of proposed until they receive CAU approval. Procedures for gaining approval vary across CAUs. Some have formal approval processes and some do not.
When approval has been given, status can be changed by going into CS087 and clicking on the status drop down list to change from proposed to approved. If you have a number of item editions to change status for (after an materials inventory has been approved, for example) you can update them all by using CS089 the Item edition use multi-update tool. The date on which you update the status will be changed automatically in the space below the status drop down list.
If the Module materials approval required marker on the Item screen has been set to N, the drop down list on this screen will have disappeared and only the words not applicable will appear next to Status. Normally, it will only be items that are not module material as such, but generic or administrative additions to the mailing, contents checklists, various warehouse cards, errata sheets, TMA forms and so on. There are also non-academic leaflets and information: diploma forms from Student Services, faculty newsletters, stop presses. These do not need a place on the materials inventory but they do need to be mailed. Use status refers to academic and resource approval status not to whether something can be mailed.
If you believe something requires approval and it has been set as not requiring it on the Item screen, you can change the Module materials approval required marker on CS067, if you have update permission, and the proposed/approved drop down will return. If you do not have permission, you should contact the item owner to make the change for you.
This refers to the number to go into mailings. For the most part, this will be one per student and one per tutor and this is the default. However, if more than one of each item is required, the total number needed should be entered in the field. If several copies of the item are to go into one mailing and several more into another mailing, this will be taken care of at the mailing level by the user allocating items to the different mailings.
CS115, the mailing copy tool, uses the number per student and tutor to determine whether an item should go into a mailing when it copies from an existing mailing to create a new one. So items with number per tutor as 1 and number per student as 0 will not be put into a student mailing no matter which mailing is being used as the source. If you are accustomed to leaving the default number per tutor and student and only amending the quantities on CS111, you may get errors in your copied mailings because the system will not be able to avoid putting tutor only items in student mailings and vice versa.
If you set both number per tutor and number per student to 0, the item edition will disappear from the mailing contents screens.
Because the changes you are making will have an effect on when the selected item edition is used and., thus, affect mailings, Planet will make some checks before it saves your new data.
Should you have only a single use record to update, use CS087. But if you have a number of use records that are to be updated use CS089. This screen allows you to choose all the item editions that require updating on a single module and amend them all at once. You will find this particularly useful if you have to add first and last use for both print and e-text versions of items.
If you come to this screen via the Main Menu or Go to, you can retrieve the module code you want in the usual way. Retrieve will not only fill the header, but give you a list of item editions being used by the module which you can see by clicking on the Select item editions tab.
The screen has two tabs. The first, Enter data, is a list of the fields that you can change. They are described above under CS087 (Maintain item use data). It is possible to change all fields found on CS087 using this screen except function. The second tab, Select item editions, allows you to choose from the item editions you want to change. This list includes all item editions used by the module, whether they are owned by the module or not.
You can either tick the boxes of the item editions you want to update or, if you prefer, you can enter the changes you want to make in the Enter data tab first. It is up to you.
On the Enter data screen, indicate the changes you want to make by choosing from the drop down list or entering text or numbers as required. You will find the same drop down lists for first and last use and status that are available on CS087 and the same input boxes.
Note also that when you enter some data, the tick box to the left of the field is automatically ticked. As with CS070 (Multi-update for item edition) if you tick a box and leave it blank, Planet overwrites all the selected use records with blank. This may be what you want, but you could also be losing information you did not intent to change.
Click on the Select item editions tab to see a list of item editions used by your module. Choose the items from the list by ticking the box on the left against each item edition record you want to update. Notice that the list gives you all the editions for which there are use records for the module in the header. So you have to be careful that you are updating the correct edition.
The eye icon will take you to CS087 (Maintain item edition use) for the item whose item id, edition and title are to the right of it. Note that there is a separate entry for print (blank) and e-text use records for any given print item.
The Select Item edition screen has a Select all button which will tick all the boxes on your list automatically if you choose to click on it. This will be useful if all or most of the items need updating. You can untick those boxes that don’t require changing. But once you have ‘selected all’ you cannot ‘unselect all’ without re-retrieving and losing whatever you have already entered. There is no Clear button.
When you have completed both screens, click on Save to save your changes.
As with CS087, you are changing data that could have effects on other users and on mailings, so the system checks the changes and will alert you of any, possibly unforeseen, effects of these changes.
In most cases, Planet will give you the item id of the first item that fails any of these checks. If there are a number of problems with what you have chosen, you may have to repeat the error correction and attempts at saving several times before everything is correct.
CS076 is the screen that lets you link items editions owned by others to your module. Obviously, there are procedures to be followed before making use of other modules’ or units’ material.
Not only items editions reused from other modules have to be linked in this way, but also ‘admin’ items must be linked to each module. These latter are items that are owned by administrative units. The item and item edition records are created and maintained by the owning unit and each module using the item must create a Use record for it. This category of item includes such things as:
For these items, the linking will normally be done by Production and Presentation Administrators.
When you link an item edition to a module using CS076, you are creating a Use record for that item’s use on the module. You will have to go to CS087 (Maintain item edition use) and complete the information required, particularly if the item is meant to be mailed. Remember that some characteristics of the item, like whether it needs module materials approval and whether it is appropriate for mailings, are controlled by what the owner has put into the relevant fields on the item record. If the current markers are not suitable (e.g., if this is a summer school item on one module and marked as not appropriate for mailings, but you want to mail it to your students), contact the item owner to agree any changes to the item level information.
Remember, too, that when an item edition is linked to a module, its module code, approval status and first and last use are added to the list of Modules using this item and Modules using this item edition on the item and item edition records.
This is another screen with two tabs. The first tab contains information about the module to which you are moving the item; the second is a list of items belonging to the module from which you are taking the item.
If you are not coming from another screen and you enter this one from the Main Menu or Go to, you will see a blank screen like the one above. Enter the module code in the header or select a unit from the drop down list. You can also choose whether you want to see all the items used by the module in the header or only selected item types. If you choose to limit the item types you see, you will see corresponding item types only in the Add item editions tab as well.
When you have clicked Retrieve, you will see a list of items used by the module in the header. Alternatively, if you have come from another screen, you will find that Planet has automatically brought forward the module code in the header.
The list shows all the items editions used by the module and also the owner of each item. To the left of the item id is an eye icon that will take you directly to the Item edition use screen (CS087) for the item edition next to it. On the far left is a check box. You need do nothing with this for the moment. Click on the Add item editions tab.
When you first see this screen it has no items listed and carries the message: ‘no item editions found’. To retrieve the list of item editions belonging to the module from which you want to borrow, fill in the module code or choose the unit whose items you want to see. Click on the button Show items on the right hand side of the button bar.
You will see a list of the items owned by the module or unit you have asked for. On the left hand side, next to each item id, is a check box. Use this to tick the item edition you want to link to your module.
Notice that all editions are listed so you have to be careful to choose the correct one.
When you have ticked the appropriate box, click on the button labeled Add. This will add the item edition(s) you have selected to the item editions used by the module in the header. When you return to the Item editions used tab you will be able to see the item edition you have just added because the check box next to it will be ticked.
If you have changed the appropriate for e-text use marker on CS067 from N to Y, the additional Use record is not created automatically. You will need to use CS076 to link the e-text record to your module. When you go into the Add item editions tab and enter your module and click on Show items, the e-text Use record will be visible. It has to be linked to the module in the normal way and its first and last use fields completed so that it can appear as available for use in a virtual mailing.
Since what you have just done is to create an item edition use record for the selected item(s), you can go directly to the Item edition use screen CS087, by clicking on the eye icon, to complete the information about this item. You will want to add first and last use dates for the new item edition. As this use record has been created for your module, the options in the first and last use drop down boxes will reflect the presentations you listed on PL019 for this module.
The approval status will default to proposed and you can change this once academic approval for use of this item has been secured. Number per tutor and number per student will default to 1.
If you have added more than one item edition, you can save time by clicking on the Multi update tool on the button bar. Not only will this take you to the Use multi update screen, but you will be able to carry forward the list of items that have been ticked. Since most of the additional details are likely to be the same for the whole group of item edition use records created together, this could save you considerable time.
You can use CS076 to delete use records for item editions that are no longer part of your module. This does not, however, include earlier editions whose first and last use has passed. These will remain on the list of item editions owned or used by the module, but they will not appear as candidates for mailings as their use dates have passed.
Deletion via this screen is for items that are current but that are no longer to be used on your module. If the item is owned by another module, you simply break the link by deleting the use record. However, as with other deletions, the system will check to see whether the deletion will have an effect on other records. In particular, Planet will check to see whether there are any mailing entries associated with this item. If there are, you will be asked to confirm that you wish to delete the Use records as this will also delete the mailing records.
There are only a limited number of fields on the item and Item edition screens that are required before the record can be saved. Most can be amended later on if you need to change them. In only a few cases is this not true.
