Working With Scripts in QuestionPoint

How to set up a script in QuestionPoint

  1. Log into QuestionPoint
  2. Click on the NEW questions list. (This is important; the other Settings link on your Home page won’t work for this.)
  3. On the gray bar above the question list, look for and click on the SETTINGS tab.
  4. In the blue bar above the question list, click on MY SCRIPTS.
  5. Give the script a name (this is what will be displayed in your list of scripts when you go to chat or answer email, so make it short but descriptive.)
  6. Write the text of the script in the box. When you insert a script in an email or chat, you will be able to edit it before sending, so you leave spaces for patron names or library details.
    • You can also write your script in MS Word and cut-and-paste the text into the box. Note that QuestionPoint will not support formatting such as underlining, italics, etc.
    • Be sure to correct format urls: open carrot, space, http:// url, space, closed carrot. An example: < http://www.google.com >.

Example Script: Genealogy (by Betsy Harper Garlish)

Dear [Patron Name],

Ask a Montana Librarian is staffed by librarians all around the state of Montana. We can only refer you to genealogy resources, and cannot conduct genealogical research on your behalf, or supply copies. But we can point you towards some of our Montana genealogy resources.

Below is a list of state- and county-level resources. Note that this list is for general resources only, but many of the resources will lead you to specific towns or other areas. This list is not intended as an endorsement of these resources or the individuals involved in them, nor is any recommendation or rating implied.

  • Montana State Genealogical Society
    < http://www.rootsweb.com/%7Emtmsgs/msgs_qry.htm >
    Not always updated. But note the Montana Queries & Research Contacts page, which lists many different resources for finding Montana information.
  • List of Local MT Genealogical Societies
    < http://www.rootsweb.com/~mtmsgs/msgs_soc.htm >
  • Montana Obituary Lookup Volunteers
    < http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~obitl/volmt.html >
    There are volunteers in some MT counties who will do obit lookups (see if there is an obit, and if there is one, copy it.) This website includes instructions for making a lookup request and the email contact the volunteer. It's not clear how current this is, but it might be worth a try.
  • Montana GenWeb County Contact List
    < http://www.rootsweb.com/~mtgenweb/countytbl.html >
    When you know what county to look in, you can contact specific people in many Montana counties to help you further your research.
  • Montana GenWeb Project
    < http://www.rootsweb.com/~mtgenweb/ >
    More links to Montana-related materials and contacts. Not well updated, but does have good sources and starting points.
  • Montana Message Board on Genealogy.com
    < http://genforum.genealogy.com/mt/ >
    Fairly active forum for posting queries to researchers and other amateur genealogists. Accepts questions from all parts of Montana.
  • Montana Message Boards at RootsWeb.com
    < http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec?htx=board&r=rw&p=localities.northam.us a.states >
    Click on Montana. For individual Montana counties' message boards, click on Counties. This board is hosted by Ancestry.com's free sister site, RootsWeb.com. This board is an ideal place to post queries where the ancestor's county or other location in Montana is unknown or vague.

To find the public library in your area of interest, go to < http://montanalibraries.org/Directory/Browse/mldBlibrarysearch.asp > and select your county or city and, in the Library Type, select "Public".

Thanks for using Ask a Montana Librarian!

Sincerely,
[Librarian Name]
Ask a Montana Librarian