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Tidy up before the move

Fix the small things in your Lend Engine data now, so your catalogue and member list are clean on day one in Gizzago.

Who can do this: anyone who looks after your Lend Engine catalogue or members, usually coordinators and catalogue volunteers. Member details need someone allowed to see them.

Nothing here is required. Everything on this list can also be fixed in Gizzago after the move, and most of it will appear on the Lend Engine review list. But a few hours now saves a lot of clicking later. We send you your own version of this list, with counts, after the first practice run.

Steps​

Toys​

  1. Names with a number marker, such as "Duplo *5", "Play tunnel (2)" or "Bean bags - 3 Sets". Decide what each number means: five identical things under one label, one set lent together, or five toys that should each have a label. See Work through the Lend Engine review list for the three answers.
  2. Records with the same name. Decide whether they are copies of the same toy or different toys. If different, give each a clearer name ("Wooden train set (large)").
  3. Notes in names, such as "(Temp Photo)", "Needs New Photo", "(Confirm Number Available)" or "(Copy)". Do the job the note asks for (take the photo, count the stock), then take the note out of the name.
  4. Toys in no category. Give each one a category.
  5. Toys with no photo, or an out-of-date one.
  6. Categories with only one or two toys. Consider merging them into a bigger one.
  7. Missing ages and play types. These drive the age filter on your public catalogue, so toys without them are harder for families to find.
  8. Typos and clutter in names, such as brand names in brackets. The brand has its own field in Gizzago.
  9. Things set up as items that are not toys, such as a venue for a Stay and Play session. In Gizzago, venues become sites and sessions.

Members​

  1. Members with no email address, or sharing one. Gizzago invites members by email, so these people cannot be invited until they have their own address.
  2. Email addresses that look mistyped, such as "gmial.com".
  3. Membership dates. Check start and end dates are filled in and right.
  4. Children's birth dates. Gizzago keeps a child's birth month and year only. Half-filled dates come across as "age unknown".
  5. Who is a current member? If you have an older list somewhere else, decide with us which one is the truth.
  6. Payments taken outside Lend Engine. If members pay by a separate subscription (for example through PayPal), decide who will cancel it or tell members before Gizzago starts taking renewals, so nobody pays twice.
What you'll see

After the next practice run, the items you fixed no longer appear on the review list, and your catalogue in Gizzago shows the cleaner names and categories.

Before the practice runs​

  • Ask an admin to create an API key in Lend Engine (Settings > API Tokens) for the Gizzago team.
  • If your Lend Engine plan offers it, take a full backup and keep it somewhere safe. It is your insurance copy.