p_file_20: patron barcodes leading zero

• Article Type: General
• Product: Aleph
• Product Version: 19.01

Description:
When we had Aleph v16 installed in 2005, I vaguely recall something about a setting that would allow patron barcodes to be entered in Circulation with a leading zero, and they would then work. At the time it wasn't needed, so it wasn't set.

Now, I want to look into it and cannot find it.

Our university wants to use 6-digit id numbers , and they want to send them in the patron plif file. In our Aleph v20 TEST installation that contains data and patrons migrated from our v16 setup, patron plif doesn't find a match since our patrons are only 5-digits in Aleph and the ones coming in the plif file are 6-digit (leading zero).

Is there a way to handle this, or do I have to insert a leading zero in front of all patron barcodes in any Aleph Oracle tables that contain them?

Resolution:
p_file_20 loads the patron IDs as you send them; it does not add or remove leading zeros.

If the IDs you loaded in v16 were 5 digits and you now have 6-digit IDs (with the leading zero), you will need to add the zero to the IDs with SQL-- be sure to do "commit". {Note: If the ID is the z308 type 01 (barcode), after updating the z308 with SQL you will need to run p_cir_25 to regenerate the z353 (which contains the barcode). z308 types 02-up do not require this.}

The util g/2 counters have an option to include/suppress leading zeros. The last-bor-id-1 counter is used to assign a barcode to a new patron when the record (whether added online or via the PLIF) lacks one. It has no effect on new patron records which *do* have a barcode -- and it has no effect on existing patron records.

• Article last edited: 10/8/2013