[Imc] equipment
Paul Kotheimer
herringb at prairienet.org
Thu Jun 28 08:49:44 UTC 2001
hi all
a few developments i have to report, of which y'all might want to know:
Jay Morris and i worked together to list all the potentially loanable
items in the production room cabinet. jay e-mailed that list to Maiko,
who said she would be willing to turn the list into a production equipment
reservation and check-out database.
nobody has been using the current SERGEI-based equipment check-out system
which i designed to serve as an interim system until Maiko has a chance to
work her magic in computer-land.
what we could use is a simple paper-based system (a quarter-sheet sized
pad of equipment check-out sheets for example) for check out, coupled with
a routine whereby staffers regularly enter info from equipment check-out
sheets into Maiko's database.
this design would account for the fact that many people won't have time to
power up a computer just to do an equipment check-out, and would still
allow organizers and producers to ask a computer a question like (for
example) "where is minidisc recorder #2?" and get lucy's contact info as
part of the answer, along with the estimated return date, and other
reservations on the item. aside from the data-entry time delay--which has
been proven inevitable by the real-world field-tested absolute-zero use of
the current paperless system--the computer would (in theory) answer
correctly.
what needs to be done for this system to be complete?
1. design and duplicate the "quarter-sheet" equip check out form.
2. train borrowers to use it ALWAYS
3. complete and implement Maiko's database design
4. train staff to enter data from quarter-sheets to database
5. co-ordinate in-advance, from-anywhere online equipment
reservation with on-site-only, paper-based, spur-of-the-moment checkout.
this could be a nightmare, but what the heck? it can't be too much worse
than what we have now.
that's my status report. i'll check in with Jay and Maiko as soon as i
can about progressing toward a finished system.
P.S. what working group does this fall under? i see it as somewhere in
between news, tech, and space.
solidarity,
paulko:)theimer
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