Library Notices by E-mail

Did you know that you can switch to email notification for reserves and items overdue? In our first year of offering email notification, more than 41,500 patrons have requested this cost-effective, environmentally-friendly, and time-saving service. We have sent more than 175,500 email notices and have saved the Hawaii State Public Library System nearly $51,000 in postage, printing and post card costs.

If you choose the notification by e-mail option, any library notice that is currently sent by postcard will be replaced with an e-mail message. These include overdue notices and hold notifications.

You will continue to receive billing notices in the regular mail.  These include damage bills and pre-collection bills.

Please note that non-receipt of notices, paper or e-mail, does not waive your library account obligations.

Privacy and E-mail Notification

Library records are considered private and confidential. E-mail messages will contain your name and item titles. HSPLS will not sell, lease, or otherwise distribute or disclose your e-mail address for non-library purposes to outside parties unless required by law. However, if you choose to utilize the e-mail notification service, we cannot guarantee that information in an e-mail message is secure once it leaves our servers.

How do I sign up for this service?

1. From the HSPLS Homepage: www.librarieshawaii.org, click on My Account on the sidebar menu.
2. Enter your library card barcode and PIN number to Login.
3. Select and click on Profile from the menu.
4. Scroll down to E-mail information. Enter the e-mail address where you want to receive your library notices. If you already have an e-mail address entered, double check to make sure that is the e-mail address where you want your library notices sent. Enter any corrections or changes, if necessary.
5. Click on Update.
6. Logout.
7. Go to the Circulation Desk of any HSPLS Library and ask them to activate e-mail notices for your account. You will be asked to show your library card to the staff and provide your PIN for verification purposes.

VERY IMPORTANT! – You will not receive notices by e-mail until you complete step 7 to activate the e-mail notification option on your account. Activation of your account must be done in person, at any HSPLS Library.

Frequently asked questions

1. Is e-mail notification right for me?
2. Is e-mail notification safe?
3. What are the benefits of e-mail notifications?
4. What if my e-mail address changes?
5. How do I cancel this service?
6. What do I do if I don’t receive my e-mail notices?
7. Can I receive notices by e-mail and in the form of postcards via the U.S. Postal Service?
8. Will I receive any paper notices?
9. What information will be contained in the e-mail notice?
10. Why does the format of my message appear broken?
11. Can all members of my family receive their notices at the same e-mail address?

1. Is e-mail notification right for me?

E-mail notification is a great way to receive quick alerts about your library card account. It is right for you if you check your e-mail account often and you are comfortable with the security issues involved. If you choose to utilize the e-mail notification service, we cannot guarantee that the information in an e-mail message is secure once it leaves our servers.

2. Is e-mail notification safe?

E-mail notification is just as safe as printed notification. Information contained within our e-mail servers is secure. Once the notices leave our servers however, we have no control over their security. Just as with printed notices, once the notices are out of our possession, we no longer have control over them and cannot guarantee their confidentiality. It is for this reason that a minimal amount of information is contained on each notice.

3. What are the benefits of e-mail notifications?

The Library is always looking for ways to trim costs and provide better service to our patrons. The e-mail notification program will significantly reduce paper and postage expenses. E-mail notices are environmentally-friendly; they eliminate the use of paper which results in less waste in our landfills, and e-mail notices are beneficial to you. By switching to e-mail notification, you will receive your notices sooner than if they were sent in the mail.

4. What if my e-mail address changes?

You have three options:
o You can visit any HSPLS Library to change an e-mail address at the Circulation Desk; you must have your library card for verification purposes.
o You may change or update your e-mail address in PAC. You must have your library card barcode and PIN to do so.
o You may change or update your e-mail address from home by visiting the HSPLS website and going to My Account.

Keep your e-mail and mailing addresses up-to-date. E-mail or printed notices returned to the Library for any reason may result in a message block being placed on your account, which would prevent further notices from being sent.

5. How do I cancel this service?

Go to the Circulation Desk of any HSPLS library. You will need to show your library card and provide your PIN for verification purposes.

6. What should I do if I don’t receive my e-mail notices?

The message may be getting blocked as “spam” or “junk mail” by your e-mail program. If this happens, you can do the following:

Add the e-mail address email-notification@librarieshawaii.org to your address book
-OR-
Change your spam filter setting to allow e-mail messages from that address.

For patrons using Hawaii Roadrunner e-mail addresses (i.e. xxxxxx.hawaii.rr.com), please click here for additional instructions.

Contact esss@librarieshawaii.org if you continue to have problems receiving e-mail notifications.

7. Can I receive notices by e-mail and in the form of postcards via the U.S. Postal Service?

No. Once you choose to receive e-mail notices, you will no longer receive postcard notices. You may return to receiving notices by postcard by notifying the Circulation Desk at your library.

8. If I opt for the e-mail notification service, will I still receive any paper notices from the Library in the mail?

You will still receive two types of library billing notices via regular mail:
damage bills and pre-collection bills.

9. What information will be contained in the e-mail notices?

Each e-mail notice will contain the same information that is listed on the postcard notices that patrons currently receive. You will find the following information in each message:

a. Library contact information.
b. The date the notice was sent.
c. A sentence or paragraph identifying the notice type.
d. Titles of items on hold or overdue.
e. Due dates or hold pick up dates.
f. Your name and mailing address.
g. A paragraph regarding our policy on delinquent accounts.

10. What if the format of my message appears broken?

The appearance of your notice will vary depending on the application that is being used to view your e-mail. Words may appear broken or their formatting may appear odd. Because of the variety of e-mail viewing applications on the market, we cannot guarantee the e-mail message will be formatted correctly for your viewing.

Generally, the Library contact information will be listed at the top with the date the notice was sent, followed by a sentence or paragraph identifying the notice type. The body of the e-mail message contains item titles and their pick-up dates or due dates. Your name and mailing address will be listed to the right of the body. The bottom of every e-mail message contains a closing paragraph containing a reminder of our current policy on delinquent accounts.

11. Can all members of my family receive their notices at the same e-mail address?

Just as with printed notices, all family members can use the same address. With e-mail notices, you also have the option of having each household member receive their mail at a different e-mail address. Discuss the options with your family members before determining which is best for your family.