Questions get into our system in three ways:

Patrons send e-mail to ask@oregonlibraries.net

www.oregonlibraries.net checks for new mail every 5 minutes. New messages are treated as new questions and are given an open tag, with a few exceptions:

Messages containing hyperlinks are considered spam and are marked unpublished. Administrators (Emily and Caleb) review spam throughout the day, publish any real questions and delete the rest.

If the message's subject header identifies it as a reply to one we sent to them, the message is added to the question transcript.

Patrons fill out our form at www.oregonlibraries.net/ask

All questions sent through our form are given an open tag. Spam may become a problem, in which case we'll start by moderating anything with a hyperlink in it.

Chat sessions set with the resolution code "Followup"

All chat sessions are tagged with their resolution codes, but if a question is marked 'Followup' and has a valid e-mail address, it is also given an open tag.

Patrons waiting for their chat click 'leave a message'

Patrons using live chat are told how long they have to wait and are given the option to leave a message. We are working on improving the form, but for now, it sends e-mail to ask@oregonlibraries.net. You can identify these because they begin with the phrase 'E-mail address:'.