What you have told us
Here you can search through numerous patron comments and the corresponding AADL replies. Search by the type of comment, in general by what the comment is regarding, or by a particular issue.
We care about what you have to say, and do our best to address each and every concern.
Please let us know how we're doing by submitting a comment or suggestion.
Filter Patron Comments
Type: compliment
Regarding: customer service
Patron Comment: You have exceptional staff members!
AADL Reply: This comment was submitted anonymously.
Date Received: 2007-05-15
Type: other
Regarding: inquiry from other institution
Patron Comment: Hello! I'm a teen librarian in NJ. I think the Poketo-style wallet program at Mallets Creek sounds fantastic, and I'd love to recreate it myself for my teens. However, I can't find anywhere to get the wallets themselves. Where'd you purchase them from? Thanks! Joshua J. Carlson Teen Librarian East Brunswick Public Library jcarlson@ebpl.org
AADL Reply: Thanks for contacting us! We have not actually purchased wallets for this program. Our staff have created samples and will lead participants through the process of creating a Poketo-style wallets. Staff have created wallet-sized templates that the program participants will customize, using magazine images, photos and other images. Then the wallet pieces will be laminated and cut out, then sewn together to make a very simple, billfold-style wallet. Thank you for contacting us. I hope that you find this information helpful.
Date Received: 2007-05-15
Type: web site feedback
Regarding: inquiry from other institution
Patron Comment: I work in a small public library (www.orangebeachlibrary.org) in south Alabama and we are currently switching from a web site to Joomla! content management system. We really like your site and would like to know more about your design philosophy and who does your site. Any information would be helpful and we thank you for your time. Sincerely, Angela Orange Beach Public Library
AADL Reply: Hello, Angela, thanks for your interest! We're very glad you like our site! It is powered by Drupal, which is a CMS similar to Joomla. Our graphic design was done by Skidmore Studio in Royal Oak, Michigan, who gave us the CSS stylesheets and initial graphical assets, but we do all the software development, content, and expansion in-house. Blog posts are contributed by any member of the staff with their manager's permission, and bloggers get about 30 minutes of training to know all there is to know about posting to the site, including how to easily link into the catalog using filter tags we set up (such as [a:grisham, john|John Grisham] produces a link to the results to an author search on grisham, john). Posts are not moderated by default, but bloggers can choose to ahve their posts moderated/proofread if they wish. Comments from the public are also not moderated, but we reserve the right to edit posts if they are inapporopriate or off-topic, which we have done exactly once after over 10,000 public comments. Do you have any other specific questions I could respond to to better meet your needs? Thanks again for your interest, and good luck with your project! Eli Neiburger AADL Tech Manager
Date Received: 2007-05-15
Type: Picture Ann Arbor Feedback
Regarding: other
Patron Comment: I had a problem accessing some of my pictureAnnArbor photos. For instance, the only way I could connect with a picture of mine of Bob Hope was through a special search. Granted, I knew it was there somewhere. But how would a casual visitor to the site observe the picture? Thank you.
AADL Reply: Thank you for your comments. You are right that there is no good way for folks to browse through the collection unless one goes through the individual albums or search with specific subjects/keywords in mind. There are many gems in the collections, to be sure. We have assigned pictureAnn Arbor "celebrity" status by calling it our 'Featured Services" for the past two years, and by placing it on the front page of the website. We have also put links from the "Services" page as one of the "Products" on a list. Rest assured that we will continue to look for new ways to help make these digital images more accessible. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and for your support of the project by making valuable submissions.
Date Received: 2007-05-14
Type: login problem
Regarding: login/password
Patron Comment: I can log into the AADL site, but if when I attempt to access any of genealogy sources, it takes me to another login and then my username & password do not work. How can I access these sources?
AADL Reply: Thanks for contacting us. In order to use our subscription databases, you account must be connected to a valid Ann Arbor District Library card account. If you live in the district, a card is available for free at any AADL location. If you do not live in the district, you can purchase a card for $37.50 for three months or $150 a year. You can find out more here: http://www.aadl.org/aboutus/policies/circulation . Thank you for your interest, and please let me know if you have any other questions or trouble. Eli Neiburger AADL Tech Manager
Date Received: 2007-05-14
Type: web site feedback
Regarding: website
Patron Comment: Thank you for offering the RSS feed on account items checked out! It's amazing how much easier and more streamlined things are now for me - thank you, thank you! If I may request an addition, it would be great to have each item preceded by the due date. Thanks again -great work!
AADL Reply: Thanks for contacting us, and we're very glad that our account RSS feeds make things easier for you! Your suggestion to have items preceded by their due date is a good one, and we will keep it in mind for future enhancements. Thanks again for your feedback, and thanks for using the library! Eli Neiburger AADL Tech Manager
Date Received: 2007-05-14
Type: programs and events
Regarding: - NONE SELECTED -
Patron Comment: Hello! I'm a librarian at the Olympia Timberland Library in Olympia, WA and I'm very interested in your upcoming "make a custom wallet" program. I was wondering what supplies you'll be using for this program and if you're doing it yourselves or if you'll be having an artist from the community coming in to do it? If you have any sort of written documentation on the instructions and materials and all that I would really love it if you wouldn't mind sharing. I get updates on your blog regularly through my bloglines account just to see all the great programming you're doing there in Ann Arbor and I'm consistently impressed! Thanks!
AADL Reply: Hello, Thanks for your interest in the Poketo wallet program--it was a lot of fun! The idea came from an issue of ReadyMade magazine (November 2006) featuring easy to make gifts for the holidays, including an adapted Poketo (www.poketo.com) wallet. You can access the article by clicking here: http://www.poketo.com/shop/press, scrolling past a ton of white space (!) to the second group of images, and clicking on the ReadyMade cover. This should bring up the instructions for the wallet. We modified it slightly--instead of self adhesive laminating paper, we used our table-top laminator. We cut out pieces of cardstock to sizes similar to those mentioned in the project, covered them with fun images, and laminated them in document size laminating pouches. This worked well, though the laminated pieces of paper didn't bend well--so we cut the pieces in half and laminated them with a little space between them to create a "spine" for the wallet. We then cut out the laminated rectangles, leaving a little border of laminated plastic around each one (failure to do this caused peeling, we discovered). Following the book-style modification theme, we also sewed the wallets together by hand, using book binding techniques, rather than using a sewing machine. We used awls, donated for the program by Hollander's, a local book arts and paper supply store, and punched holes along the pieces where we wanted to sew (it worked best to sew through all of the layers, rather than just the laminated plastic). We then sewed them together with nice, big needles and strong thread. We discovered that it's important to attach the small inside pockets to the interior of the wallet first, before sewing the rest of the wallet together. If you can get your hands on a sewing machine, the project will go much faster! The wallets we made measured 4 x 8 1/4 when open with a long interior pocket that measured 3 1/4 x 8 1/4, and two smaller pockets, one 2 x 3 3/4 to hold a library card, and another square pocket, 2 1/2 x 2 1/2, to hold a card vertically. Good luck! Please let me know if you have any questions, or if I can help in any way! Jamie Lausch Ann Arbor District Library
Date Received: 2007-05-13
Type: suggest a title
Regarding: - NONE SELECTED -
Patron Comment: Please note when going to the catalog and seeing how many requests there are for Jane Eyre: it says 21 copies are available.....there are only 18 copies. Two have been WITHDRAWN, whatever that means; 1 HAS BEEN BILLED. Will additional copies of this constantly popular book be ordered? PATRON RESPONSE TO AADL REPLY: Thanks for your reply! I meant Pride and Prejudice!!!
AADL Reply: Thank you for contacting us about our copies of "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Bronte. The library owns 26 print copies of "Jane Eyre" in the English language: Twenty-three copies of the regular hardcover/paperback editions; one youth-level illustrated adaptation; and two large print copies. I am not sure why you were unable to find available editions during your visit the day before yesterday; currently, there are no outstanding requests on this title and five copies are available in the system. While two of the 23 copies of the hardcover/paperback are long overdue and we have billed those patrons for the replacement cost to purchase new copies, four copies show available on the shelves in locations throughout our system, plus an available large print copy. Our librarians work diligently to ensure that we have adequate stock of in-demand titles, particularly perennial classics and books typically assigned in school. I am sorry to hear that they have disappointed you this time. If you remain interested in checking out a copy of "Jane Eyre," please call us at 327-4200 and we will send an available copy to the pickup location of your choice. You may also request a copy via our catalog at http://www.aadl.org/catalog and click on the "Request This Title" link. Thank you for taking the time to contact us with your concerns. LIBRARY REPLY TO PATRON RESPONSE: Thank you for clarifying that your request is actually for "Pride and Prejudice." The two copies marked "withdrawn" in the system were removed from our collections because they were falling apart and need to be replaced. The "billed" status means that the patron who checked that item out has not returned it for at least six months, and so we have billed him/her for the replacement cost of the item. The librarians who maintain our fiction collections systemwide do monitor the ratio of the number of copies we own as compared to the number of holds on a book, for a ratio of 1:4, or one copy for every four holds. "Pride and Prejudice" currently has a holds ratio of 18:1, with the first copy due back today and several more copies due back next week. I assure you that our librarians will continue to monitor holds on all of our materials and order additional copies as demand dictates. I looked into the holds for "Pride and Prejudice," and do not see you listed as having a hold. I placed a hold on "Pride and Prejudice" for you, and you should expect to receive a notice that the book is ready for pickup by the end of next week. Thank you for contacting me with the correct information so that I could answer your question. Please let me know if you have further questions or concerns.
Date Received: 2007-05-11
Type: general suggestion
Regarding: computer classes
Patron Comment: may I suggest a session of instruction in RESEARCH, the wonderful , complex tab we have .
AADL Reply: Thank you for your suggestion of offering a class on how to navigate the "Research" section of aadl.org. We are currently looking into our computer course offerings for the next session of classes and will take your suggestion into consideration. In the meantime, any of our desk staff would be happy to assist you in finding the information you're looking for. Thank you for using the AADL! We appreciate you letting us know how we may better serve you. Sincerely, Terry Soave Outreach & Neighborhood Services
Date Received: 2007-05-11
Type: login problem
Regarding: - NONE SELECTED -
Patron Comment: Hi, I changed my username today on the AADL website, and I now get an error message when I try to log in. "Fatal error: Call to undefined method DB_Error::getone() in /usr/local/php/libphp-aadl/pathistlib.php on line 71" Thanks for any help with this. -Matt
AADL Reply: Thanks for contacting us. This was a systemwide problem that was quickly identified and fixed. Your account should be working properly. Thanks for your patience, and please let us know if you have any further questions or trouble. Eli Neiburger AADL Tech Manager