Setting Up an Item
Choose Add item , give it a name, then say what you will do with it: sell or give it away, lend it out, or both. If you lend it, you also say whether each one needs tracking separately. That last choice is fixed once the
Adding an Item
On the Equipment page, choose Add item. Fill in:
- Name. For example "Clarinet reeds", "AMEB handbooks" or "Cello (full size)". Names must be different from each other among your active items.
- Category. Instrument, Accessory, Book, Consumable (reeds, strings, etc.) or Other. This is used for filtering, and it decides the words Octavia uses for the things inside it (see below).
- Department (optional). For example Strings or Woodwind. It groups and filters the list. Start typing and Octavia suggests departments you have already used.
- Description (optional).
What Will You Do With This Item?
Tick one or both:
- Sell or give away. You record how many you have and what you charge. If it comes in versions, such as a size, a strength or a title, you can add each one later (see Items, versions and stock counts).
- Lend out and get back. A student takes one and brings it back.
If you tick Lend out and get back, a second question appears: Do you need to track each one separately?
- Yes, each one separately. For instruments. Each gets its own page with photos and condition, who has it and when it is due back, and you can charge a hire fee. Something tracked this way can only be lent, not sold.
- No, just count them. You record how many you have and who has one, without saying which. Lending is free. You can also sell them.
Examples
| What you have | Sell or give | Lend | Track separately |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reeds or strings | Yes | No | (not asked) |
| AMEB handbooks you lend and sometimes sell | Yes | Yes | No |
| A class set of ukuleles lent to individual students | No | Yes | No |
| A cello with its own serial number | No | Yes | Yes |
| A book you want a condition photo of, one copy of each title | No | Yes | Yes |
Prices and Fees
- Usual price appears when the item is sold. It is filled in each time you sell one, and you can change it for a sale. Each version of an item can have its own price.
- Default hire fee and Default hire period (Term, Half year, Year or Custom) appear only for instruments you track separately. They are suggestions that fill in the Lend dialog, not charges. See Lending and returning an instrument.
- Xero category (optional). Admins can choose a category if your school has Xero category mappings set up. It is used when the charges are exported. See Xero exports.
What the Category Changes
The things inside an item are called:
- Instruments when the category is Instrument
- Titles when the category is Book
- Items for everything else
You see these words on the tab, on the Add button and in the dialogs, so a book you track one by one reads "Add title" rather than "Add instrument".
All Teachers Can Hand This Out
Switch this on to let every teacher in your studio see the item and hand it out. They cannot edit it. You can also choose individual teachers afterwards. See Who can use an item.
Editing and Retiring
Open an item and choose Edit to change its name, prices, department and so on. Tick Retire this item to stop it being handed out. Its history stays, and you can bring it back later.
Next: Who can use an item · Related: Equipment overview