Receive questions in standard chat
Your library can place a QuestionPoint standard chat form on its web site to let patrons chat with a librarian when they visit the site. Patrons use the form to request a chat session with a librarian.
To receive questions during standard chat sessions, you:
- Log on to the Chat Window in QuestionPoint.
- Monitor and accept chat requests.
- Chat with patrons to:
- Answer questions, or
- Clarify questions so you can send more complete answers later.
When a chat session ends, QuestionPoint creates a Full Question record for the session. The Full Question contains the session transcript.
Status, Question lists, Assignment
For information about status, question lists, and assignment of chat transcripts, see "Status of chat transcript."
Notification
When your library receives a chat request, librarians who are monitoring chat see the request. QuestionPoint does not send an e-mail notice to the library.
Acknowledgement
QuestionPoint acknowledges each chat request and chat session in the Patron Chat Window.
After each chat session, QuestionPoint sends a chat-transcript message to the patron's e-mail address if the patron supplies an address when requesting the session or when prompted for it at the end of the session.
Also, QuestionPoint sends a new-account-from-chat message if the patron did not have a patron account and supplied his or her e-mail address when requesting the session.
Your institution administrator can customize the chat-transcript message and the new-account-from-chat message (Administration > Institution > Settings > Custom Messages).
Patron account
QuestionPoint creates an account in the Patron Interface for the patron if there was no account for the e-mail address submitted with the chat request.
QuestionPoint places the chat transcript in one of the patron account's questions lists based on the status that you set for the transcript when the session ends.
| If you choose this status: | QuestionPoint places it in this question list in the patron account: |
|---|---|
| Follow Up | Unanswered |
| Pending | Unanswered |
| Answered (default) | Answered |
| Closed | Closed |
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