North Bethesda, MD, November 14, 2012 – LibLime, a division of PTFS, announces the public release of LibLime Koha 4.12.

LibLime Koha 4.12 has been in beta production release among sponsoring libraries since June 2012. After completing a rigorous beta testing phase, the application is now publically available for all as a download at http://www.liblime.com/demos as well as http://www.koha.org/liblime-koha. Release Notes are available at each site. The source code is also available for public access in the LibLime unified git repository located at https://github.com/liblime/LibLime-Koha.

The latest version of LibLime Koha continues to add deeper support for consortia and enhanced performance for larger and larger collections with increased circulation traffic. With all LibLime Koha versions since 4.8, the entire codebase continues to run in the Plack environment for increased performance. LibLime Koha 4.12 continues to provide libraries with the most advanced functionality and performance available in the open development ILS arena.

Some of the new functionality in LibLime Koha 4.12 includes many features designed by and for librarians to allow for local customizations in OPAC design and some additional SIP2 messages. New features in LibLime Koha 4.12 include:
• Provision of local customization of zebra relevancy rankings so sites can customize the types of materials displayed first in a search results set
• Option to apply limits on a basic OPAC search by adding a drop down to the OPAC masthead
• Expansion of search limits in both the OPAC and Staff search interface (advanced page) providing for local flexibility in the set up of the advanced search page
• Limitation of item holdings display to just "home" library of the searcher in the OPAC so patrons can see materials available to them at their home library quickly
• Addition of the ability to limit search results by “book” in format and “adult” in audience
• Addition of unique identifiers throughout the OPAC to allow easier jquery customization
• Expansion of holds queue report to add status information
• Enhancement of SIP2 for ITG communication to pass messages regarding 'Lost Item' status
• Enhancement of SIP2 to pass message regarding shelving location

About LibLime - PTFS
LibLime – PTFS is the global leader in providing support for the Koha open source ILS. Rather than sell software licenses for static, hard-to-customize software products, the PTFS LibLime Division educates libraries about the benefits of open source, enabling them to make choices about how best to provide their communities and staff with better technology services. The PTFS LibLime Division then facilitates deployment of Koha in libraries by providing outstanding consulting, development, implementation, and support/hosting for libraries of all types and sizes. PTFS is also the developer of the world’s leading content management software, ArchivalWare, and specializes in meeting library personnel staffing requirements, digitization, and metadata keying services. For more information, see http://liblime.com or http://ptfs.com or http://archivalware.net.

Library Skates its Way to Victory with Unique Campaign

Farmington Hills, Mich., Nov. 13, 2012 — Gale, part of Cengage Learning and a leading publisher of research and reference resources for libraries, schools and businesses, today announced that Auraria Library in Denver, Colorado is the winner of the Out-of-the-Box Marketing Contest, launched in September at R-Squared – The Risk and Reward Conference. Auraria Library will receive $5,000 from Gale to make its marketing idea a reality.

“At Cengage Learning we took a risk by supporting a radically different type of conference and our reward has been seeing all of these amazing ideas developed,” said Nader Qaimari, senior vice president of marketing, Cengage Learning. “We were impressed with all of the submissions, but we felt that Auraria Library’s campaign really connected with its core audience in a unique way.”

In line with the immersive spirit of the R-Squared Conference, where librarians learned how to reinvent themselves and strengthen their role as vital parts of their communities, Gale asked conference attendees to develop out-of-the-box marketing ideas for their library. Submissions were evaluated on their originality, whether they were exciting, different and risky, as well as the actionability of the idea. Auraria Library’s campaign “Books and Boards” was selected as the winner.

Auraria Library, a tri-institutional library serving three separate institutions of higher education in downtown Denver, wanted to create a campaign that would resonate with their active urban students. The “Books and Boards” campaign does that by leveraging Colorado’s action sports culture, specifically skateboarding - it’s one of the top three states for skateboard parks per capita and the sport has exploded on the Auraria campus. Using the money from Gale, the library will purchase 200-300 professionally-built skateboards. The skateboard graphic will be determined through a graphic design contest, which will create a buzz about the project well before the boards arrive on campus. The boards will be given away to high school students, incoming freshman and at other campus events.

“We are so excited that Gale has recognized our innovative campaign – to use skateboarding as an opportunity to rebrand and reconnect with our active students,” said Joseph Sanchez, instructional designer who wrote, directed and skateboarded in “Books and Boards.” “We wanted to promote a radically different image of the library and with this contest money we’re going to be able to do that.”

Five finalists were also recognized for their unique and risky campaigns including:

• Cedar Rapids Public Library – “Brain Drain” – Leveraging the popularity of a local famers’ market, the library proposed covering storm drains in the area with images of children swirling down drains promoting the slogan “Avoid Brain Drain – Visit the Library” with a URL for a special landing page.
• Texas A&M University Libraries – “Come Ride With Us” – They proposed buying a “super” golf cart to not only connect the six libraries on their campus, but to use it as a tool to engage with students on many levels – delivering books to them, driving them to class, participating in “Aggie” sporting events, riding in parades and generally getting to their students wherever they are.
• Library of Virginia – “Marketing to a Captive Audience” – To pique the curiosity of people unaware of the library, they proposed placing custom printed toilet paper in public restrooms of nearby colleges, museums, hotels and restaurants. The paper would include quotes from the “Wrong Side of History,” teasers about upcoming library programs, QR codes to the LVA Mobile App and other digital resources.
• Boyd County Public Library – “Seeking Lost Love” – By sending out parodies of personal ads the library hoped to target an audience of younger singles who often don’t use the library at this life stage. Tactics included creating magnetic decals that say "For a Good Time Call" with the library’s logo and phone number and place them in bathrooms of local bars, clubs and restaurants; placing personal ads in the classifieds for "Library seeking New Readers;” and creating Match.com accounts to match readers’ interests with compatible books.
• Springfield-Greene County Library District – “We Speak Your Language” – In an effort to make patrons more comfortable using the library, they proposed moving away from the Dewey Decimal system to a new classification in which the library would have “thematic” neighborhoods. Using temporary graffiti to “tag” their local neighborhoods with codes that coordinated with the old Dewey system, they hoped to foster discussion among community members and encourage them to “break the code.”

For more information on the winning campaign or any of the finalists, visit the contest website here or contact Kristina Massari at kristina.massari@cengage.com.

About Cengage Learning and Gale
Cengage Learning is a leading provider of innovative teaching, learning and research solutions for the academic, professional and library markets worldwide. Gale, part of Cengage Learning, serves the world's information and education needs through its vast and dynamic content pools, which are used by students and consumers in their libraries, schools and on the Internet. It is best known for the accuracy, breadth and convenience of its data, addressing all types of information needs – from homework help to health questions to business profiles – in a variety of formats. For more information, visit www.cengage.com or www.gale.cengage.com.

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Charleston, SC – November 13, 2012 – BiblioBoard has been named the “Best New Mobile App” by the 12th Annual Charleston Advisor Reader’s Choice Awards. The Charleston Advisor, a journal that publishes critical reviews of online resources for libraries, sponsors an annual series of awards for the best and worst electronic products of interest to libraries.

Created by BiblioLabs, BiblioBoard is a free iPad® app that gives users access to historical anthologies that explore places, events, people and themes from across the centuries. Within BiblioBoard, there are a variety of anthologies available for purchase for $9.99 or less which generally include 75+ pieces of unique content such as books, images, videos, audio files, articles and other historical documents, all available for the price of a single paperback.

BiblioLabs partners with cultural institutions from around the world, including the British Library and the Biblioteca Nacional de Colombia, to make their content universally accessible on BiblioBoard. BiblioLabs has also created a free, user-friendly authoring platform (BiblioBoard Creator) that allows libraries, museums and subject-matter experts to create multimedia anthologies from their own content or from accessing a wealth of licensed, open source and public domain materials available within BiblioLabs’ core database.

In early 2013, BiblioLabs will launch BiblioBoard Institutional, a library version of BiblioBoard. Libraries across the world will be able to offer BiblioBoard as an IP authenticated product directly to their library patrons, instead of patrons personally purchasing each individual anthology. Patrons will be able to access the anthologies in BiblioBoard from the Web or any mobile device.

“We are honored that the library community has selected BiblioBoard as the Best New Mobile App,” said Mitchell Davis, Chief Business Officer of BiblioLabs. “Being recognized for creating a digital ecosystem that allows libraries to make their content available to world on the iPad and the Web, reaffirms to us that there is a need to help these great institutions share their wealth of knowledge, all while providing them with a new revenue stream.”

Download BiblioBoard for free in the App Store℠ (https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/biblioboard/id497998887?mt=8) or register to try the BiblioBoard Web version in beta at www.BiblioBoard.com.

About BiblioLabs, LLC
BiblioBoard was created by BiblioLabs, LLC a hybrid software-media company that created a multimedia authoring tool which enables curators and subject matter experts to discover, enhance and create new works from the wealth of licensed, open source and public domain materials available within their core database. BiblioLabs works with leading organizations around the world to create widespread commercial access to rare and interesting materials in an innovative way. To learn more about BiblioBoard, visit www.BiblioBoard.com.

Media Contacts
Kelly Hamilton
Director of Marketing and Communication
kelly@bibliolabs.com