[Koha] Item types : formats, collections or what?

[Joann Ransom]

oops - sorry my example was too sketchy and I missed some out: F = 
Fiction, N =  Nonfiction (if you hadn't guessed that much) - condensing 
down an A4 into a paragraph a wee bit tricky .. :)

Joann Ransom wrote:
> Hi there,
>
> I wondered if anyone would like to share their take on item types in 
> Koha 3.0. I'm trying to get a handle on how we could better group our 
> collection in preparation for a conversion to Koha 3.0.
>
> Currently we have a system which determines the first character in terms 
> of format: ie D = DVD, V = Video, B = Book, P = Periodical
> The second character is about which age group the item belongs to: J = 
> junior ( childrens), Y = Young Adult, blank = adult (default position)
> Then the third character is whether its a rental item or not: P = Pay, 
> blank = free (default position)
>
> Item types are then built from these building blocks eg:
> BN = Nonficiton book in the adult library
> PP = Rental periodical in adult library
> DJ = Free DVD in Junior library
>
> How do other libraries handle item types?
>
>     * Are they based on format or media : DVD, Book, Magazine, File
>       packet etc as our currently are.
>     * Or are they based on collection?
>     * Is it best to settle on a few Item types and then use other koha
>       fields to indicate collections?
>     * How do you reflect genre? ie Free adult fiction - romance, free
>       adult fiction - western etc.
>     * I think rental items need to have distinct item types within each
>       format, so 2 for adult fiction : 1 free and 1 rental to make sure
>       the lending and charging rules work.
>     * How do you indicate where an item is shelved in terms of being
>       part of a collection, or sub collection, for example a free junior
>       fiction book, from the Easy Readers subcollection?
>     * Thinking about marc now (and I am a complete MARC virgin) what
>       fields do people use to indicate these collections, format,
>       subcollections and genre details.
>     * Do we use home branch to indicate which library collection it
>       belongs to?
>
>
> Would really appreciate finding out how other libraries use Item Types.
>
> Kind regards,
>
>
> Joann Ransom.
> Horowhenua Lirbrary Trust.
>
>
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