New Online Borrower Registration Process
We have been working with a company for the last few months to have them develop a new Online Borrower Registration (OBR) process that can validate the identity of the person registering for a library card.
Our current online borrower form does the following:
- Validates the address is a valid address
- Validates that the address is in the service area based on zip code
- Puts a note in the member’s record if a duplicate is detected based on name/birthdate
In addition to doing the above validation, including detecting duplicates, the new process will do the following:
- Verifies the person’s ID
- Validates if the address entered is their most current address
- Provides more precise service area matching as it can also validate addresses that are in Oklahoma City but not Oklahoma County
Once this new process is in place, the member can continue using the number assigned as their card number without needing to visit a library or, if they want a physical card, they can request it and staff can issue the card without seeing ID as their ID has already been validated. The card numbers assigned with the new online process will start with the word “ECARD” followed by 7 digits. The member can obtain a barcode of their number on their mobile device by logging in to the mobile catalog at http://catalog.metrolibrary.org and choosing “Library Card” from the menu.
Our plans are to also use this in the library. Our goal is to get some experience with potential members from home but if you want to use it in your library, it will be able to be used from any catalog computer once it goes live. (The current OBR form is what is linked to on the catalog computers now.)
The new form is ready to go but we would like to give you the opportunity to play with it, report any problems you see, and provide feedback on the process. We plan to make it live on March 7th. Please do not use it right now for any actual cards as we will delete all “test” cards on March 6th and make it “live” on March 7th.
Here is the link to the new form: http://www.metrolibrary.org/library-cards/apply
Thanks for your input and we look forward to receiving your feedback! You can e-mail me at [email protected] with any feedback or questions on the new form.
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Comments
Are there any plans to update the new self-checkout machines to allow for letters and numbers to be entered for the card number? With this new process if a member has one of the new Online Registration card numbers they will not be able to use our self-checkouts since they can not enter in the ECARD portion of the number.
Yes, we will be able to update the self-check to allow the new card format.
It was really easy to fill out, and I had the confirmation email with the number almost immediately. I love it!
I tested it out with a household member of mine who doesn't (ahem) have a current account....I used our old address, and it caught it. Will be interesting to see how well it does with some of our more mobile applicants...
I tried it and loved it! So easy to fill out and immediately received card #. Wonderful :)
This is awesome! My only quibble would be the "Uncheck this box if your mailing address is different from your home address" checkbox. Not a huge deal, but most forms say "check this box if..." I think it would read a little clearer that way, but again it's not a huge deal.
Otherwise, I love this and love that issuing a card is going to be so much easier for staff and patrons!
When I tried the form out, it didn't recognize my current address. It said "It appears you have a more current address. Please use your current address or contact the library for further assistance." Has this happened to anyone else?
Hi Joseph,
Yes, we've had a couple of people have this. I don't want you to post it on here, but can you e-mail me your info and also give me the following information: how long have you been at your current address, and do you use a PO Box at all or receive mail at an alternate location? We're trying to work with the vendor that provides the verification piece to figure out these issues so getting staff to try it is a good test.
Thanks,
Anne
I got an error message related to my last name, Rodriguez-Atkins. When I clicked the little red question mark, it said "Enter last name, letters and hyphens only". Which is what I had entered, but the form wouldn't accept it.
Same.
Can you try again? He just sent me an e-mail one minute ago that this has been resolved?
Anne
I just attempted again with same result.
".....if they want a physical card, they can request it and staff can issue the card without seeing ID as their ID has already been validated....."
I understand that we won't need them to verify their residence again but they should still have to prove that they are whom they say they are, right?
send it by mail to them at the validated address?
At this point, I don't know of plans to start mailing cards to members... If they have the ECARD number, it's valid and they can use it online and in the library.
This probably is still a good idea. You just don't have to be as detailed about matching up all of the information.
I'm impressed by how fast and easy this is!
OOOH And it noted that my account was a potential duplicate. cool.
This is wonderful! I am especially excited about the added ability to sign up children online. However, I noticed when I made a test ecard for my son that the boxes for text notifications were not checked in CarlX, even though I chose texting as my notification preference.
Hi Janeal,
We've changed the form on that as we aren't able to set the notifications through the API at this time. It currently only allows setting of email notices so the form now says Email Yes or No with radio buttons. Hopefully that can be updated in the future. Thanks for pointing it out before we give this to the public and cause confusion for them.
Worked like a charm! Are we going to move toward using this in place of the more "traditional" method of issuing library cards in house? Or will we continue both methods side by side--for example, would access staff ask members if they would prefer an eCard or a physical card?
We probably will do both. I see this still being used more by remote users who just want to use eMedia and/or database services but it can be used in the library too. If a member doesn't want a physical card, they can just keep their eCard number.
For many of our customers, their phone is what they use as their computer. Will they be able to apply for the card from their mobile phone?
Yes, I tried the link on my phone and it works just fine on my phone. It would be great for staff to see how the form looks on their phones too.
"The card numbers assigned with the new online process will start with the word “ECARD” followed by 7 digits. The member can obtain a barcode of their number on their mobile device by logging in to the mobile catalog at http://catalog.metrolibrary.org and choosing “Library Card” from the menu."
Am I right in understanding that the member can put a barcode on their phone and use it as regular library card? Would we be able to scan the cards with our current scanners? I know that we currently have members that have added their cards to their "Wallet" app and we are not able to scan those.
Thank you!
I'm assuming that the current L.S.2P.A.C. barcode is what is mentioned. catalog.metrolibrary.org/responsive#librarycard That link only works on mobile browsing when logged into your account, but should redirect you on mobile after allowing you to log into your account. From my experience the scan guns don't read these codes.
Hi Sarah,
I do think the scanners at circulation still will have problems scanning at the circulation desk. However, we expect that most of these users will be people that want to use the library remotely and not have to come in. Also, the scanners at the new self-checks should scan from their mobile devices without a problem.
I was wondering how it "Verifies the person’s ID and or Validates if the address entered is their most current address"? What if a person lives in an Apartment, duplex, or a sub-let?
Thank you,
Jessica M
Hi Jessica,
The software sends the information through a company that is in the business of verifying IDs. If the person is in a sub-let situation, there is potential that it couldn't associate them with the address and they would be denied. In that case, they would still need to come to the library to obtain a card. The goal is to make it easier to obtain a card but no system is going to be perfect. This should just make it easier.