Alma January 2026 Release Notes

Related Records from Recommendation Summaries

January 2026Resource ManagementURM-316541

Rialto now displays a Related Records link in the Summary section when viewing a retention or deselection recommendation that has associated bibliographic records. The link indicates the number of related records in parentheses.

Selecting Related Records opens a sliding panel with a list of all bibliographic records associated with the recommendation's MMS ID.

This enhancement makes it easy to find connected records when examining recommendations and helps users understand the broader bibliographic landscape of a title.

Expanded Details in Item-Level Compare To Sections

January 2026Resource ManagementURM-253024

Item-level Compare To sections for both retention and deselection recommendations now include detailed data for other institutions' resources. Users can view this data by selecting the View full list and additional information link in the Compare To sections.

Selecting View full list and additional information opens a detailed sliding panel that displays various data related to all matching holdings in comparison institutions, such as:

• MMS IDs
• Titles
• Authors
• Publication date
• Publisher name
• ISBNs
• Other system numbers

The panel presents one row per matching MMS ID per institution. For example, if a single institution holds two matching MMS IDs, the panel lists two rows—one for each match. Additionally, if multiple identifiers exist, the sliding panel displays all of them in the same field.

Some data points are hidden by default; use the panel's configuration button to add additional columns to the sliding panel.

This update increases transparency across comparison institutions and supports more confident decision-making when assessing items for retention and deselection.

Create Collection Development Projects from a File

January 2026Resource ManagementURM-314774

Rialto now enables users to create retention and deselection projects by uploading a file that contains a predefined list of items. Users can upload a tab-delimited text file or an Excel file with item IDs to serve as the project's data source from which Rialto can generate recommendations. The uploaded file must be smaller than 10 MB and include a column named Item ID in the header row.

This capability is ideal for libraries that manage curated title lists outside of Rialto—for example, lists exported from previous projects, inventory analyses, or collaborative collection studies.

When creating a new project, a new Upload Project From File option is available on the Add New Project window (Collection Development > Workflows > Retention or Deselection). When selected, the window updates to include a field for uploading a file.

This enhancement gives libraries greater flexibility when creating collection development projects. Direct file uploads also reduce manual setup time and improve accuracy when analyzing preselected title lists. For more information, see Creating a Deselection Project from a File and Creating a Retention Project from a File.

Create Collection Development Projects from an Alma Set

January 2026Resource ManagementURM-306178

In addition to creating a project from a file, users can now also create new projects directly from existing Alma physical item sets. This enhancement applies to both retention and deselection projects.

When creating a new project, a Create Project from Set option is now available on the Add New Project window (Collection Development > Workflows > Deselection or Retention). Once selected, users can choose any Alma set containing physical items from the Select Physical Items Set dropdown. When generating recommendations for a project created this way, Rialto evaluates only the items included in the selected Alma set.

This enhancement streamlines project setup and strengthens the connection between Alma's inventory management and Rialto's collection development workflows. For more information, see Creating a Deselection Project from a Set and Creating a Retention Project from a Set.

Define Usage Scope in Retention Projects

January 2026Resource ManagementURM-254904

Rialto now enables users to include usage criteria when defining the scope of retention projects. Previously, usage filters were available only for deselection projects.

A new Suggest when total usage per title is more than field has been added to the Scope section of the retention Criteria form. This field includes two dropdowns:

• A usage count dropdown (1 –10) that specifies the minimum number of uses per title.
• A timeframe dropdown (1 –10 years) that defines the period during which usage is calculated.

The field is optional and is blank by default.

This enhancement helps libraries preserve high-value materials by basing retention decisions on measurable usage patterns.

Include Digitization Requests in Usage Calculations

January 2026Resource ManagementURM-306180

Rialto now enables institutions to account for digitization requests when calculating item usage in retention and deselection projects.

A new configuration option,DIGITIZATION_REQUESTS, is now available in the table found in Configuration > Collection Development > Workflows > Usage Calculation. When enabled, Rialto includes digitization requests in the total usage count used for generating project recommendations.

Digitization requests represent instances where users or staff request the creation of a digital copy of a physical item.

By incorporating digitization requests into the overall usage calculation, libraries gain a more accurate understanding of how their collections are accessed and valued. This helps institutions make better-informed decisions when identifying titles for retention or deselection.

Search Within Recommendations

January 2026Resource ManagementURM-313438

Users can now search within the recommendations list in both retention and deselection projects. A new search bar has been added to the View Recommendations page, next to the existing sort control. You can search by several indexed fields, including:

• Keywords
• Creator
• Edition
• MMS ID
• Publisher
• Title
• Title Local Labels

Any selected facets remain applied when running a search. If no titles match the entered keywords, the page displays a message indicating that no results were found.

This improvement makes it easier to locate specific titles among large recommendation sets.