This page outlines how to assess use of physical materials like books, headphones, and print maps. This use data is stored in Alma. In Alma, physical use is represented by the LOANS subject area. The Loans (In House + Not In House) field is used to capture checkouts (Not In House) and in-library use (In-House).
Please note the following as you investigate physical item usage:
- Physical item usage prior to the Alma/Primo migration in 2021 is inconsistent due to undated records. With this in mind, use data from beginning in 2021 are the most reliable.
- If you suspect that an item has been used but there is no use data, visit the item's title record in Alma and check the use data at the bottom. In many cases, there will be undated use data that will not surface in the object. In the example below, you'll notice that the number of uses in the record does not match the number of uses from the object. This is because use prior to 2022 do not have associated dates.
Record View
Object View
To assess physical item use, visit the Physical Usage object in Alma Analytics. This object allows you to find physical item usage by Title, LC Classification Code, Loan Year, Location Name, Subjects (LC), and resource type. This includes books, maps, technology, and other types. Access the object by clicking the link below:
https://tulane.alma.exlibrisgroup.com/ng/hashed/B3E6716BB3B96E212F095B0481A99FB9A3066DB7
If you have trouble accessing the object, feel free to reach out to the Resource & Data Analyst.
The results page will include the following elements --
A table of data with bibliographic information about resources
A graph of loans by LC Classification
A graph of loans by year
