Grove announces several new features coming to Aspen with the 24.10 release, including Cost Savings for Patrons, automated holds for Materials Requests, and updates to allow administrators to manage any combination of library locations.

The County of San Luis Obispo Public Libraries (SLO) uses Aspen extensively to fulfill patron purchase requests, and they wanted a less labor-intensive way to place holds for patrons once their requests had been purchased. Grove worked with the SLO librarians to develop an automated way for Aspen to monitor when the purchased titles had been added to the catalog so librarians could place those holds and notify patrons that the library now owned them with one click.

The Colorado Library Consortium (CLiC) worked with Grove on a feature that allows libraries to display to patrons how much they've saved using the library, both with what a patron currently has checked out and over time. This kind of feature has been popular as a calculator on library websites and checkout receipts for a few years, but the Aspen iteration extends the functionality by allowing libraries to set a default cost per material type (for use when records do not include a replacement cost) and by providing visuals within the patron account that show savings over time based on a patron's borrowing history. The Cost Savings for Patrons feature includes econtent in addition to physical materials checked out from the library.

Grove also developed a new permissions model for consortia based on feedback from multiple Aspen libraries. Previously, library administrators had permission to manage either only their home library or all libraries. Now, library administrators can be given permissions to manage multiple libraries without needing permissions for all libraries.

These updates are in addition to dozens of other updates in Aspen 24.10. Thank you to our sponsoring libraries as well as the other libraries and organizations that contributed to the success of this release.

About Grove

Grove for Libraries offers custom development for Aspen Discovery, Aspen LiDA, and other projects related to Aspen. Grove employees also contribute time and expertise to all Aspen Community meetings as well as dedicated Office Hours to help grow and support all libraries and organizations using Aspen. Learn more at https://www.groveforlibraries.com/

About Aspen

Aspen is a suite of library software that started with the flagship Discovery and now includes additional modules such as the LiDA mobile app and Web Builder. Aspen is in use by more than 1,600 libraries worldwide and is supported by a community of hundreds of librarians. Learn more at https://community.aspendiscovery.org/