Scheduled Upgrade
During the overnight hours of Saturday, July 25, the Polaris database will be upgraded to version 8.1.
During the upgrade window, patrons will continue to have access to your library’s Aspen catalog; however, functionality may be limited. While users should still be able to browse and view items, they may not be able to place holds, renew materials, or complete other account-related transactions until the upgrade is complete. During the upgrade process, Aspen is transitioned to Off-Line mode. Once the upgrade is complete, this will be removed.
We are excited to introduce several enhancements included in Polaris 8.1. Please note that these new features are available only in Polaris Leap, as Polaris Original is no longer under active development.
New Features in Polaris 8.1
Dated Patron Notes
New Dated Notes view for patron records. Here the staff members can enter timestamped non-blocking notes through the Patron workform.
Staff will be able to add or delete dated patron notes in bulk. Staff will also be able to search for dated patron notes in the Find tool.
- Enhanced Find Tool user experience in Leap, transitioning from a dialog-based to a workflow-based interface. This allows users to move between searches, results, and records without losing context, improving workflow continuity and comparison capabilities.
What Stays the Same
- Search Options
All existing search options remain unchanged.
- Search Scope
The Find Tool continues to support searching across the same record types.
- Adding Results to Record Sets
- Users can continue to add search results to record sets.
What's New
- Updated Leap Navigation and Find Tool Workform User Interface
- The FIND option in the Leap header now opens the new workform-based Find Tool.
- The Find Tool workform includes Find Tool title and a CLOSE button in the workform header. Users can switch between the Find Tool and other open workforms without losing search parameters or results.
Opening Results in New Browser Tabs
- Users can open one or more search results in new browser tabs to compare multiple bibliographic records. This can be done through a new "New Tab" column that can be added to the Find Tool display.
Returning to Search Results
- The RESULTS button in Leap now returns users to the Find Tool workform they originated from, without re-executing the search (to retain any user changes).
- If the Find Tool was closed, it can be reopened with the previously executed search.
Remote Search Results Multi-Column Sorting
- Remote bibliographic and authority search results support multi-column sorting. For example, if a user clicks on Publication Date, the results are sorted by date. If the user then clicks on Format, the results are sorted by Format, then Date.
- Polaris Leap now supports bulk updates for hold requests, allowing staff to apply changes to multiple items at once. You can update the Held Till (Unclaimed) date, Expiration Date, Need By Date, and Pickup Branch (including Pickup Areas, where available).
- Staff can now specify a reason when canceling a hold. This reason will be included in the patron’s Cancellation notice, so they are informed why the request was canceled.
- Polaris Leap now keeps your place in a record set when you open a record and return to the list.
Your scroll position is preserved when opening item, bibliographic, or patron records and when navigating between records using the workform tracker. This applies while the record set remains open; closing and reopening the record set resets the view.
- The upgrade to version 8.1 introduces the option to sort tables in workforms by multiple columns at once. This enhancement provides greater control over how workforms are organized, without needing to export data or re-run searches.
With stacked sorting, you select columns using Shift+click or Shift+Space in order to create a hierarchical sort. Each additional column sorts records within the groups created by the preceding columns.
Example: In a Bibliographic Record Set workform, you can sort first by Author, then by Title, and then by Publication Date, organizing titles within each author and date grouping.
- Polaris Leap now supports patron alerts that display automatically when staff open a patron record, helping ensure that important notes and special considerations are not missed.
When a patron record with an alert note is opened for the first time, Leap displays an unavoidable alert dialog showing the alert text. The alert must be acknowledged before continuing.
- Customized message text for check-out and fine receipts option. Previously, customized message text had to be configured in Polaris Original.
