Alexandria proudly integrates with OverDrive, the worldwide leader and digital distributor of eBooks, audiobooks, music, and video. With OverDrive services for Alexandria, you gain a powerful and continually expanding set of features that allows you to consolidate your physical and digital collections. Our integration with OverDrive makes it easy for patrons to locate and access digital items in your collection; it also simplifies librarian management duties by automatically adding acquired OverDrive items to your Alexandria catalog.

OverDrive Service Enhancements

• Title information and cover art is automatically added to Alexandria, allowing patrons to instantly locate OverDrive resources from Alexandria's Researcher using web browsers such as Safari, Chrome, Firefox, or Internet Explorer. Searches can also be performed from mobile devices, laptops, and tablets such as Apple's iPad, Google's Chromebook, and others.

• Patrons can quickly view OverDrive title availability from Alexandria's Researcher.

• Using a simplified subset of SIP2, Alexandria will authenticate and authorize patrons attempting to borrow OverDrive resources.

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Preferences and Tools tab

Once registered, OverDrive preferences become available in the Extras section of your Management preferences; these site-based preferences are used to facilitate communications between Alexandria and OverDrive. The following preferences are available:

• Enable OverDrive Features. When enabled, Alexandria and OverDrive are allowed to communicate with each other.

• Account ID. This is your OverDrive Account ID (provided by OverDrive) that allows Alexandria to automatically retrieve title information, cover art, item availability, and other information directly from OverDrive. This is typically a four- to six-digit numeric ID. Please contact OverDrive at (216)-573-6886 if you don't know your Account ID.
  
  
• Advantage Account Name. Those with an OverDrive Advantage account can purchase additional copies of popular titles or unique titles that your union does not own. If you have an OverDrive Advantage account (obtained from OverDrive), provide your account name here. Please contact OverDrive at (216)-573-6886 if you don't know your Advantage Account Name.

• OverDrive Code. OverDrive refers to this as an ILS Vendor Authentication or Terminal Password. You are responsible for creating this code; it should contain no less than seven alphanumerics (“A-Z”, “0-9”), without spaces, punctuation, or special characters (e.g., COMP246 or 7103582). Be sure to provide this code to OverDrive when they ask for your ILS Vendor Authentication Password. This code is essentially a password which you set that allows OverDrive to communicate with Alexandria in order to authenticate Alexandria patrons who want access to OverDrive materials.

• OverDrive URL. This field is used mainly for reference; although, it can be updated if OverDrive ever changes their web addresses. Default is http://overdrive.com.

• Enable Checksum Error Handling. The SIP2 protocol allows extra error detection to be enabled, over and above any error detection provided by the communication medium's protocol. When error detection is enabled, a checksum field is appended to every OverDrive message. This setting is not required, but highly recommended; this should only be disabled under the direction of COMPanion's Customer Support Department.
• Default OverDrive Policy on Import. Select the default policy to use when importing OverDrive records into your system.

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Contact tab

• Under the Contact tab, you may fill out contact information for your OverDrive representative.

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Configuring OverDrive for Alexandria

When enabled and properly configured, Alexandria provides the “patron authentication” and “verification” services for OverDrive. In other words, before allowing patrons to access and borrow OverDrive resources, patron status and credentials are validated with Alexandria. If your patron is authorized and in good standing, they will be permitted to use OverDrive resources; if not, access will be denied until the issue is resolved with a librarian. Additionally, this service provides automatic retrieval of title information and associated cover art; OverDrive titles and their availability will be available to your patrons in Alexandria Researcher interfaces without the need of a manual import or required maintenance of MARC records.

Enable OverDrive for Alexandria

For Alexandria and OverDrive to communicate, the following key information must be provided and/or submitted to OverDrive:

1. Provide your Alexandria Data Station server IP Address (or domain name), SIP2 Port ID, and Serial Number to OverDrive so they may associate it with your account. Your Data Station must be publicly accessible outside of your site or district firewall.
2. Create an OverDrive Code[3] and enter it into the OverDrive Code field of Alexandria's OverDrive preferences. Afterward, provide this code to your OverDrive account representative; OverDrive must assign this code to your account in order to communicate with Alexandria.
3. In order to automatically obtain title information, cover art, and availability, Alexandria must know your OverDrive Account ID and, if applicable, your Advantage Account Name. After obtaining these from your OverDrive account representative, enter them into the Account ID and/or Advantage Account Name fields of Alexandria’s OverDrive preferences. Please contact OverDrive at (216)-573-6886 if you don't know your Account ID and/or Advantage Account Name.
4. When filling out the ILS Vendor form for OverDrive, you’ll need to know a few key points:
   
   1. ILS Vendor Protocol. The protocol is SIP2 and select sockets.
   2. ILS Vendor Server. This is the IP address of your Data Station and it must be a static, public IP address. The SIP2 Port ID is usually 6001, but you can double-check by going to your Web settings.
   3. ILS Vendor Authentication. This is the OverDrive Code you created and furnished in your OverDrive preferences.

Once OverDrive has adjusted your account settings and your Alexandria OverDrive preferences have been properly configured, you are ready to start using this feature.

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Technically speaking...

Although it's not necessary for all to understand, the following sections are for those who want to better understand how OverDrive integrates with Alexandria.

OverDrive in Alexandria Records

• Once Alexandria has added your eBooks, they are searchable from the Search and Scout interface, just like other resources. OverDrive title records do not require copies and COMPanion disallows any being added during import to help minimize potential database inaccuracies.
• OverDrive eBooks are identifiable by a specific identifier embedded in the 856 tag includes the OVERDRIVE.COM URL, Alexandria recognizes it is an OverDrive eBook and not any other resource.

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