Papyrus Cloud – Quick Start Guide

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Understanding the Main Screen

After logging in, the Papyrus Cloud main screen is displayed. The Menu Bar at the top provides access to all major functions of the system. Below the menu, a summary panel shows live counts of members, books, stock items, and items currently on issue — a useful at-a-glance view of your library's activity.

Main screen — summary panel and menu bar

The menu bar items used in this guide are described below. The remaining menu items are covered in the full reference documentation.

1

Adding a New Library Member

Library members are the people who borrow books and other materials. Every member is uniquely identified by a Member Number. This number is used throughout the system to look up, issue to, and report on a member's activity.

To open the Members screen, click Members in the menu bar, or open it directly in a new tab.

Step 1 – Open the new member form

The Members screen opens with a prompt to enter or search for a member number. Since we are creating a new member, click the New button. A popup form will appear.

Members screen — search/entry prompt

Step 2 – Assign a member number

The new member form opens. Click the Next Member button to automatically generate the next available member number based on the sequence configured in Global Parameters. You may use this number or type in a different one if your library uses a specific numbering scheme.

New member form — assigning a member number

Enter the member's Surname and First Names, then select the appropriate Member Type from the drop-down list. Click Add to create the record and proceed to the full details screen.

New member — number generated, name and type entered

Step 3 – Complete the member's details

The full member record is divided into two areas. The Basic Details panel on the left contains the most commonly used fields. A set of tabs on the right provides access to additional information such as contact details, custom fields, and borrowing history.

Member details screen — basic details and tabs

At a minimum, complete the following fields:

Field	Notes
Surname	Required. Used for searching and reports.
First Names	Required. Enter all given names.
Member Type	Required. Controls borrowing rules and loan periods. Defaults to the type set in Global Parameters.
Email Address	Recommended. Used for overdue notices and other automated communications.

Click Update to save your changes.

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The default member type shown in the drop-down is controlled by the Default Member Type setting in Global Parameters. If your library has multiple member categories (e.g. Student, Staff, External), make sure the correct type is selected before saving — it affects the loan period and borrowing limits that apply to that member.

2

Cataloguing a New Book

Papyrus stores publication details as Bibliographic Records. Each record describes a title — a book, AV material, website, poster, or other type of media — and is uniquely identified by a BRN (Bibliographic Reference Number). The BRN is an internal identifier used by Papyrus and is separate from the physical accession number or barcode of a copy.

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A single bibliographic record can have multiple associated stock items — one for each physical copy held by the library. The catalogue step creates the title record; the stock step (covered next) adds the copies.

Choosing a cataloguing method

Papyrus provides four cataloguing methods. All four produce compatible records and can be used interchangeably.

Recommended

EasyCAT

The most flexible and widely used method. Suitable for all cataloguing tasks.

QuickCAT

Ideal for first-time users. Title, Author and Subject only.

FastCAT

More fields than QuickCAT, including Publisher, Series, Shelf and Price.

AdvanceCAT

Full SA-MARC/US-MARC cataloguing with all 175 available fields.

This guide uses EasyCAT. To open it, click Cataloguing then EasyCAT in the menu, or open EasyCAT directly in a new tab.

EasyCAT — ready to search or create a new record

Step 1 – Create a new bibliographic record

Click the Add button. A dialog will appear asking for the title or ISBN of the book you are cataloguing.

EasyCAT — entering an ISBN or title for a new record

You have two options at this point:

A

Use the ISBN — Type or scan the book's ISBN number into the ISBN field, then click Search. If the publisher has registered the title in the Papyrus database, the title and other bibliographic details will be retrieved automatically. This is the quickest approach for recently published titles.

B

Enter the title manually — If the ISBN is not found, or the book has no ISBN, type the title directly into the Title field and proceed. You will complete the remaining details on the cataloguing screen.

EasyCAT — new record dialog with publication type and barcode

Select the publication type (for example, Fiction or Non-Fiction). If you wish to assign your own barcode at this point, enter it in the barcode field — it must be unique across the entire system. Then click Add.

Step 2 – Complete the cataloguing fields

The EasyCAT cataloguing screen is created with the new BRN assigned and the title pre-filled. The screen is divided into two collapsible sections: the Bibliographic Record at the top, and Stock Details below it.

EasyCAT — cataloguing screen with bibliographic fields

If the ISBN was used to find the book, the fields will have been partially populated. Review and complete any remaining fields as needed. The only field that is strictly required is Title. All other fields are optional but improve searchability and reporting.

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Entering authors. Papyrus uses an authority file to maintain consistent author names across records. Enter the author's surname first, followed by a comma, then the first name or initials — for example: Smith, J.K. If the book has a second author, use the second author field. For three or more additional authors, enter them all in the All other Authors field, separated by semicolons.

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The Cataloguing Advanced, Subjects and Notes, Attachments, Circulation, and Information tabs at the top of the screen provide access to additional cataloguing fields. These are not needed for basic cataloguing but can be explored once you are comfortable with EasyCAT.

When you have completed the bibliographic fields, click Save. This saves the record and generates the ISBD (International Standard Bibliographic Description) display string.

3

Adding Stock (Physical Copies)

A bibliographic record describes a title. Stock items represent the individual physical copies held by your library. If you have three copies of the same book, you will create three stock items under a single bibliographic record — saving you from duplicating the cataloguing work.

Each stock item is uniquely identified by two numbers:

Number	Description
Accession Number	A unique identifier assigned to each physical copy. Cannot be changed once set, as it forms part of the audit trail.
Barcode Number	The scannable number on the book's barcode label. Defaults to the accession number but can be changed if required.

The stock entry area is located at the bottom of the EasyCAT screen in the Stock Collection section.

EasyCAT — stock collection fields at the bottom of the screen

Step 1 – Assign an accession number

Either type your own accession number into the field, or click Generate to have Papyrus automatically assign the next sequential number. After generating, the cursor moves to the Barcode Number field, which is pre-filled with the same value. The barcode field will be highlighted and ready for keyboard input or barcode scanner entry.

EasyCAT — accession number generated, barcode and shelf ready to fill

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If your books have pre-printed barcode labels with unique numbers, scan the barcode in place of — or in addition to — the accession number. The scanner should be configured to append a carriage return after each scan so the system automatically advances to the next field.

Step 2 – Enter shelf and collection details

Enter the Shelf location of the copy. This tells staff and members where to find the item in the library. Common formats include:

First three letters of the author's surname — e.g. SMI, MAR, BRO
Dewey Decimal Classification code — e.g. 640.73, 3297.092 SHE
Section prefix — e.g. REF 330.942 CON

The optional Collection and Location fields can be used to group items further:

Field	Description
Collection	Groups items that belong together, e.g. REF (Reference), SERIALS, NF (Non-Fiction), SENIOR.
Location	The highest-level physical grouping, for use in multi-site libraries. Leave blank if your library has a single building. Requires a multi-site licence.

Step 3 – Save the stock item

Click Add. The copy will appear in the Current Stock table below the form.

EasyCAT — stock item added and listed in the current stock table

To add further copies of the same title, repeat steps 1 to 3 for each additional copy. Each will receive its own accession number and barcode.

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Accession numbers are permanent. Once assigned, an accession number cannot be changed — it forms part of the audit trail for that copy. Barcodes, shelf, collection, and location can be edited at any time using the Edit option in the Current Stock table. You can also record the price of the copy there.

4

Issuing and Returning a Book

The Front Desk screen is where all day-to-day circulation takes place — issuing books to members, processing returns, and calculating overdue fines. Both issuing and returning are handled from the same screen.

To open the Front Desk, click Front Desk then Circulation Screen in the menu, or open the circulation screen directly in a new tab.

Front Desk — circulation screen ready for member selection

Step 1 – Select the member

The cursor is positioned in the Member Number field. There are three ways to select a member:

A

Type the member number and press Tab or Enter. The member's details will be displayed if the number is valid.

B

Scan the member's library card using a barcode scanner. The scanner will read the member number and automatically advance the cursor.

C

Click the Find button to search for a member by name or other details.

Front Desk — member search by name

Once the correct member is selected, their name, member type, and any current loans are displayed on screen.

Front Desk — member details loaded, ready for book selection

Step 2 – Select the stock item

The cursor moves to the AccNo or Barcode field. Enter the accession number or barcode of the book, then press Tab or Enter, or scan the book's barcode. The bibliographic details of the item will be displayed for confirmation.

Front Desk — book details displayed after entering the accession number or barcode

Step 3 – Issue the book

The Issue button becomes active and is highlighted in green. The Return Date is calculated automatically based on the loan period configured for the member's type in system Parameters.

Press Tab or Enter, or click the Issue button. The book is issued and the transaction is added to the list of items currently on loan to that member.

Front Desk — book issued, shown in the member's current loans list

Returning the book

Returns are processed on the same Front Desk screen. Enter or scan the accession number or barcode of the book being returned, then press Tab or Enter.

The Return button becomes active and is highlighted in blue. If the book is overdue, a Fine amount is calculated and displayed automatically based on the fine schedule in Parameters.

Press Tab or Enter, or click the Return button. The loan is closed and the item is removed from the member's current loans list.

Front Desk — return in progress with fine calculated

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You do not need to select a member before processing a return. Simply enter or scan the item's accession number or barcode and the system will identify the loan and display the member's details automatically.