Skip to Main Content

Alma Resource Management Guide

This guide explains all aspects of the cataloging process, including loading, editing, and deleting bibliographic records, holdings records, and item records in Alma.

Missing Item Records

Missing Item Records

Items are considered missing when they cannot be located in the library collection by staff or end users. It is important to change an item's process status to missing when they cannot be located in the library collection so that users are aware that a resource is unavailable.

  • When the item's process type is changed to "Missing" the item's status will change from "Item in Place" to "Item Not in Place"

Items can be marked with a process type of missing:

  1. Manually
  2. Using the "Change physical items" job on a set of physical item records

NOTE: A physical titles search must be used to change an item's process type to "Missing." A Physical items search does not provide the "Toggle Missing Status" from the item's ellipses.

 

Lost vs. Missing Processing Types

"Lost" items are defined as items that have been loaned to a patron have been declared lost by the patron or the item is acutely overdue and presumed lost as a result. 

  • Items should only be marked as "Lost" when they are on loan and are considered lost based on the above parameters
    • Items cannot be change to a process type of "Lost" from the item record
    • The Item's process type should be changed to "Lost" in Fulfillment from the patron record
  • Items should be marked "Missing" if they are not found in the library collection and they are not on loan

 

Repository Search for Missing Items in Alma

Missing items can be found by performing an advanced repository search in the Institution Zone (IZ) for Physical Titles or Physical Items: Physical Item:Process Type: Equals: Missing

Manually Marking an Item as Missing

To mark an Item missing manually:

  1. Perform a Physical Titles repository search in the Institution Zone
  2. Click Items from the the ellipses
  3. Click Toggle Missing Status from the ellipses of the item that needs to be marked as missing
  4. The item's process type will be "Missing" and the item's status is now changed from "Item in Place" to "Item Not In Place"

To change an missing Item back to Available manually:

  1.  Perform a Physical Titles repository search in the Institution Zone
  2. Click Items from the the ellipses
  3. Click Toggle Missing Status from the ellipses of the item that is no longer missing
  4. The item process type will be empty and the item's status will be change from "Item Not In Place" to "Item in Place"

Marking Multiple Item Records Missing

To mark many item records as Missing, use the Change Physical Items job.

Create an itemized set of physical items:

  1. Scan the barcodes in Excel and save the set as an Excel file or .csv. Make sure the Header for the barcode column is Barcode
  2. Go to Admin>Manage Jobs and Sets>Manage Sets
  3. Click Add Set
  4. Select Itemized
  5. The Set Details screen opens
    1. Name: [mandatory]
    2. Description: [optional]
    3. Set Content Type: Physical Items
    4. Private: [Defaults to Yes, can change it to Nof if others need access to the set]
    5. Active: Yes
  6. Add Contents from file to set: From file
  7. Upload the file by clicking on the file icon
  8. Click Save

Now, Run a Job on the set:

  1. Go to Admin>Manage Jobs and Sets>Run a Job
  2. Select the Change physical items job
  3. Click Next 
  4. Click on the radio button next to the itemized set created in step 1
  5. Click Next
  6. Under Change other fields: 
    • Click on the check box next to missing
    • From the Missing drop-down select Missing
    • Condition: [keep unconditional]
  7. Click Next
  8. Review the job parameters
  9. Click Submit
  10. Click Confirm when the pop-up confirmation message appears