CR2 Blog the knowledge blog
  • scissors
    January 22nd, 2014LISWire aggregatorLISWire

    1/22/2014
    CONTACT:
    Nathan Curulla
    (888) 900-8944
    sales@bywatersolutions.com

    Three New Libraries Join VOKAL With ByWater Solutions’ Koha Support

    ByWater Solutions, an open source community supporter and the U.S.’ forefront provider of Koha support, is happy to welcome Illsley Public Library, Essex Free Library and Maclure Library to the Vermont Organization of Koha Automated Libraries (VOKAL). All three libraries are now live on the Koha integrated library system through VOKAL.

    VOKAL now has nearly 60 libraries using the system which has over 1 million items available to 100,000 patrons. The VOKAL shared catalog can be searched at http://catalog.kohavt.org.

    Nicole C. Engard, VP of Education at ByWater Solutions spoke of VOKAL’s growth:

    “I have had the pleasure of visiting many VOKAL libraries over the years and am always happy to see new members. The staff at these libraries are eager to learn about and participate in open source and always make great additions to both the Koha and ByWater communities.”

    About the Vermont Organization of Koha Automated Libraries (VOKAL):

    The Vermont Organization of Koha Automated Libraries (VOKAL), is a project of the Green Mountain Library Consortium dedicated to creating a shared catalog and Integrated Library System.

    In 2007, the Stowe Free Library, the Carpenter-Carse Library (Hinesburg), and the Kimball Public Library (Randolph) joined with Sheila Kearns of the Vermont Department of Libraries to explore options for an ILS system to replace Follett. They decided on Koha, and in May of 2008, this team became VOKAL. For more information about VOKAL, please visit: https://sites.google.com/site/vokalvtpublic/home

    About Koha:

    Koha is the first open-source Integrated Library System (ILS). In use worldwide, its development is steered by a growing community of libraries collaborating to achieve their technology goals. Koha’s impressive feature set continues to evolve and expand to meet the needs of its user base. It includes modules for circulation, cataloging, acquisitions, serials, reserves, patron management, branch relationships, and more.

    Koha’s OPAC, circulation, management and self-checkout interfaces are all based on standards-compliant World Wide Web technologies–XHTML, CSS and Javascript–making Koha a truly platform-independent solution. Koha is distributed under the open-source General Public License (GPL). For more information about Koha, please visit: http://koha-community.org

    About ByWater Solutions:

    With over 10 years of experience, ByWater Solutions offers customized hosting, data migration, configuration, installation, training, support options and development of the enterprise class open source library system, Koha. Offering a 24/7 technical helpline, ByWater Solutions’ clients have the support system they need to make their software work for them. ByWater Solutions pledges to share 100% of all developed code to the Koha community for the strengthening and advancement of the Koha ILS. For more information about ByWater Solutions, please visit: http://www.bywatersolutions.com

  • scissors
    January 22nd, 2014LISWire aggregatorLISWire

    OCLC introduces WorldCat Discovery Services, a new suite of cloud-based applications that brings together the FirstSearch and WorldCat Local services. Set to launch in March, the new suite will enable discovery of more than 1.3 billion electronic, digital and physical resources in libraries around the world through a single search of both WorldCat and a central index that represents nearly 2,000 e-content collections. This will make it possible for more than 18,000 FirstSearch libraries to offer a richer discovery experience.

    “Development of WorldCat Discovery Services is another significant step in our work with members to deliver innovations and new services that drive library costs down and information access up. We have enormous potential to use our collective talents and the capacity of cloud computing to deliver continuous innovation for our users,” said Skip Prichard, OCLC President and CEO.

    WorldCat Discovery Services will offer library users and staff access to rich, global bibliographic content available only through WorldCat. A central index will enable information seekers from mutually subscribing libraries to search authoritative sources from providers such as EBSCO, Gale and ProQuest. Direct link resolution from citations to full-text resources will be available for libraries with holdings in WorldCat and the WorldCat knowledge base. Resources not available electronically can be delivered through integrated interlibrary loan.

    “OCLC is letting its mission drive its actions,” said Angi Faiks, Associate Director of Access, Instruction and Research Services, Macalester College in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and a participant in beta testing. “OCLC is reinforcing its public purpose by providing more access to more information for more people. Making library collections more accessible can only help us fulfill our mission as libraries.”

    “I see WorldCat Discovery Services as an ideal combination of applications for librarians and end users alike,” said Kurt Munson, Resource Sharing and Reserve Librarian, Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, and part of the Reference Advisory Group. “WorldCat Discovery can help us do the complicated work librarians do, and yet it is simple enough for users to just walk up, use it and find what they need.”

    WorldCat Discovery Services will be available to FirstSearch users in March as part of existing subscriptions. FirstSearch will operate in parallel during a year-long transition so libraries can choose when to move to the new service.

    New features for FirstSearch subscribers include access to the central index that represents more than a billion articles, e-books and other e-content; a new user interface that adapts automatically to mobile devices; and the ability to manage access to digital collections.

    Additional new features provided for libraries that maintain up-to-date holdings in the WorldCat database include direct links to full-text resources to which they subscribe, a built-in A to Z list, and their library’s resources listed first in search results. Libraries that maintain holdings in WorldCat will also continue to benefit from increased visibility of their resources through search engines and other popular websites where research often begins.

    The WorldCat Discovery Services suite also offers subscribers several optional features for a fee, such as real-time availability, group view of available resources, management of course reserves or reading lists, or customized traffic and usage reports.

    “WorldCat Discovery Services is an important advancement for our loyal FirstSearch users,” said Andrew K. Pace, Executive Director, OCLC Networked Library Services. “This new suite has been developed and refined based on input and feedback from a 30-member Advisory Group and more than 650 FirstSearch beta test libraries around the world over the past 18 months.”

    WorldCat Local libraries will also move to WorldCat Discovery Services over the next 18 months. The transition will begin in April with a beta period when WorldCat Local subscribers can begin using the new services and plan transition activities.

    WorldCat Discovery Services is OCLC’s second cloud suite. WorldShare Management Services, released in 2011, is a cloud suite of library management applications that is helping libraries reduce library management costs, streamline workflows, and improve access to their collections and services. There are currently more than 180 libraries using WorldShare Management Services and 100 more libraries and library groups in implementation.

    Learn more about WorldCat Discovery Services during the ALA Midwinter presentation, “The Future of FirstSearch and WorldCat Local: What OCLC’s New Discovery Services Mean for Your Library,” on Saturday, January 25, from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. in the Pennsylvania Convention Center, Room 108 B.

    More about the new WorldCat Discovery Services suite https://www.oclc.org/go/en/worldcat-discovery.html is on the OCLC website.

  • scissors
    January 22nd, 2014LISWire aggregatorLISWire

    EBSCO Information Services Awarded Silver in Brandon Hall Group Excellence in Technology Awards
    ~ EBSCO’s Leadership & Management Learning Center™ Helps Achieve Silver for
    Best Advance in Performance Support Technology ~

    IPSWICH, Mass. — January 22, 2014 — EBSCO Information Services (EBSCO) today announced that it won a coveted Brandon Hall Group Silver award for excellence in the Best Advance in Performance Support Technology category. EBSCO earned the award as a result of its robust organizational learning solution, Leadership & Management Learning Center™ (LMLC).

    Leadership & Management Learning Center is a turnkey solution that supports and sustains formal and informal learning programs, promotes contextual learning, contains the most current content from business industry thought leaders and is easily accessible from mobile devices.

    Leadership & Management Learning Center’s unique customization options allow professionals to have quick access to premium content that matches the company’s core competencies. The resource also enables social collaboration and is easily integrated into the learning workflow.

    Tad Goltra, Vice President of Product Management, says recognition in Brandon Hall Group’s Excellence in Technology Awards shows the power of the LMLC solution. “Leadership & Management Learning Center is a unique, cloud-based solution that helps companies support and sustain their formal and informal learning programs. It offers an on-demand portal with strong collaboration capabilities, pre-populated with best practices content from industry thought leaders, which helps employees achieve their learning objectives.”

    “It is our honor to recognize this year’s award winners, who exemplify the commitment to innovation and excellence that drives growth and over-the-top business results,” said Mike Cooke, Chief Executive Officer of Brandon Hall Group.

    Rachel Cooke, Chief Operating Office of Brandon Hall Group who runs the awards program, stated, “With the innovation and unique differentiators demonstrated in this year’s entries, it
    is easy to see why these organizations are tremendously successful.”

    The entries were evaluated by a panel of veteran, independent senior industry experts, Brandon Hall Group senior analysts and executive leadership based upon the following criteria:

    • Product: What was the product’s breakthrough innovation?
    • Unique differentiators: What makes the product unique and how does it differ from any competing products?
    • Value proposition: What problem does the product solve and/or what need does this product address?
    • Measurable results: What are the benefits customers can expect to experience as a result of using this product?

    For more information about Leadership & Management Learning Center please go to: http://www.ebsco.com/promo/corporate-learning-brandon-hall-excellence-aw...

    About Brandon Hall Group, Inc.
    With more than 10,000 clients globally and 20 years of delivering world class research and advisory services, Brandon Hall Group is the most well--‐known and established research organization in the performance Improvement industry. We conduct research that drives performance, and provides strategic insights for executives and practitioners responsible for growth and business results.

    Brandon Hall Group has an extensive Repository of thought leadership, research and expertise in Learning and Development, Talent Management, Leadership Development, Talent Acquisition and Human Resources. At the core of our offerings is a Membership Program that Empowers Excellence Through Content, Collaboration and Community. Our members have access to research that helps them make the right decisions about people, processes, and systems, combined with research--‐powered advisory services customized to their needs. (www.brandonhall.com).

    About EBSCO Information Services

    EBSCO Information Services (EBSCO) serves the organizational learning needs of more than 100,000 corporations and institutions around the globe with innovative products and robust content from industry thought leaders. EBSCO’s flagship learning product, Leadership & Management Learning Center™ is a turnkey learning solution with pre-populated, highly-relevant content including corporate training videos, business e-books, journals, employee training material, business book summaries, case studies, comprehension tests and much more. EBSCO’s learning solutions are powered by EBSCOhost® and may be accessed via dedicated portals, learning management systems (LMSs), or mobile devices. For more information visit EBSCO’s website at http://www.ebsco.com

    ###
    For more information, please contact:
    Kathleen McEvoy
    Vice President of Public Relations
    (800) 653-2726 ext. 2594
    kmcevoy@ebsco.com

  • scissors
    January 22nd, 2014LISWire aggregatorLISWire

    NASHVILLE, TN – Ingram Content Group Inc., today announced that the Williamson County Public Library in Franklin, Tennessee has launched an innovative publishing program using IngramSpark®, Ingram's comprehensive print and digital independent publisher platform.

    "The creation of our first book and the development of our publishing program has been a labor of love and illustrates how libraries of today can move forward in new and exciting ways to serve their patrons," said Dolores Greenwald, Library Director, Williamson County Public Library. "Through the tools available from Ingram, more public libraries can easily assist writers to independently publish their works to benefit the writer, readers and the communities they live in - IngramSpark is such a great program."

    The Williamson County Library team used Ingram's easy-to-use publishing platform to develop and print copies of their first book, a children's book co-authored by library staff. The library has plans to expand the publishing program in 2014 with open submissions from the community.

    "We've had great success using the tools of IngramSpark to launch our special library publishing program," Dolores Greenwald said. "Using IngramSpark, we were able to print stunning four-color books at great value, and all the proceeds from our book sales will go directly back into the library to fund new adult and youth programs, to maintain and increase collections, and to provide new technologies, equipment and other improvements."

    The IngramSpark platform that was developed for independent publishers connects to Ingram's comprehensive print-on-demand and e-book technologies. Through the platform, libraries can easily launch publishing programs, and can set up and distribute print books and e-books simultaneously at minimal cost. The platform also provides worldwide access to leaders in online and traditional bookselling.

    "Libraries have long provided an essential service by making books and other information freely available and accessible to local communities," said Dan Sheehan, Vice President and General Manager, Ingram Library Services. "We are pleased that our IngramSpark platform provided the Williamson County Public Library team with the tools to take their publishing idea from concept to reality, and we look forward to assisting them with their future plans."

    Ingram associates will be discussing the IngramSpark platform at Ingram booth number 431 at the American Library Association show, January 24 - 28 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

    Follow IngramSpark:
    Like us on Facebook
    Follow us on Twitter @ingramspark
    #alamw14

    ABOUT INGRAM
    Ingram Content Group Inc. is a subsidiary of Nashville-based Ingram Industries Inc. Ingram provides books, music and media content to over 39,000 retailers, libraries, schools and distribution partners in 220 countries and territories. More than 30,000 publishers use Ingram’s fully integrated physical and digital distribution, logistics, and manufacturing solutions to access global consumer demand, and realize the full business potential of book content. Ingram’s operating units are Ingram Book Company, Lightning Source Inc., Vital Source Technologies, Inc., Ingram Periodicals Inc., Ingram International Inc., Ingram Library Services Inc., Spring Arbor Distributors Inc., Ingram Publisher Services Inc., Tennessee Book Company LLC, Coutts Information Services, and ICG Ventures Inc. For more information, visit www.ingramcontent.com