SirsiDynix Symphony 3.2.1 Released

Release offers new capabilities for Horizon and Dynix users, consortia and government libraries

SirsiDynix announces the general availability of SirsiDynix Symphony 3.2.1, the library community’s most open, evolutionary and customizable integrated library system. Horizon and Dynix users, corporate and government libraries that use SirsiDynix Symphony’s Accountability module and consortia will discover a number of powerful new features. Tested at 10 beta sites, both on local test servers and via SirsiDynix software-as-a-service (SaaS) hosted systems, SirsiDynix Symphony 3.2.1 is already in production at one site. This new release is now available for upgrading SirsiDynix users.

Enhancements to SirsiDynix Symphony in this release include:

A general release of the SirsiDynix Symphony Accountability module in the WorkFlows Client for Java, which will be especially useful for many corporate, government and military sites
New options for capturing statistics for multi-piece items
The option to use default operator of “and” for searches entered in the iBistro, iLink and Ecole online public access catalogs
More flexibility in serving borrowers whose cards are on the verge of expiration
Support for entering only key digits of barcodes
New “hold wrapper” print options that can be used to support patron hold pickup self-service
Updates to circulation to accommodate 3M RFID-based checkout
Updates to Floating Collections capabilities for use by consortia
Z39.50 search capabilities updated to support search by library group along with the previously supported “search all” and “search by library” capabilities

“We’re excited by our on-time introduction of SirsiDynix Symphony 3.2.1, a rapid follow-up release to SirsiDynix Symphony 3.2, which we made available in December,” said Gary Rautenstrauch, SirsiDynix CEO. “3.2.1 is an important release because of the many enhancements it offers to Dynix and Horizon users, government and military libraries and consortia. Furthermore, SirsiDynix Symphony 3.2.1 offers important platform support for SirsiDynix’s exciting new faceted search solution due out in summer 2008. Stay tuned.”

SirsiDynix Symphony 3.2.1 incorporates open, industry-standard technologies, offering the library community the most impressive list of features and capabilities. These include an open n-tier architecture, SaaS options, powerful “user experience” portal and search solutions, comprehensive integrated library management and productivity solutions, Java-based staff clients for all modules, fully documented application programming interfaces (APIs) that provide users unparalleled capabilities to customize and integrate the system, Unicode support, advanced business intelligence and reporting tools, support for SIP2 and NCIP and embedded and full Oracle database support.

“As with the 3.2 release of SirsiDynix Symphony, we had another incredibly successful beta testing period with an impressive number of participants,” said Berit Nelson, SirsiDynix vice president of product management. “This intensive testing period and the features we have incorporated into SirsiDynix Symphony 3.2.1 further highlight the dedication we at SirsiDynix have to remain the technology partner our clients can depend on to deliver on its promises.”

For more information about SirsiDynix Symphony 3.2.1, SirsiDynix users should visit the SirsiDynix Client Care Portal or contact their SirsiDynix sales consultant.

Meet up with SirsiDynix at ALA!

The 2008 American Library Association Annual Conference will be in Anaheim, CA, June 26–July 2, 2008.

Stop by our booth - #1678 - for a demonstration of SirsiDynix Enterprise... our powerful new faceted search solution that fits right on top of current SirsiDynix online catalogs. SirsiDynix Enterprise features fuzzy search technology that's an industry first and much more.

Don't forget to make an appointment to meet with your SirsiDynix consultant during ALA to discuss SirsiDynix Enterprise and more.

CODI members will meet at the conference on Monday, June 30 in the Marriott Anaheim Elite Room from 8-10 a.m.

Committee and business meetings take place June 28-July 1, 2008, and Council Meetings run to July 2. Education programs take place primarily June 28-30, 2008. The exhibits will be held June 28-July 1, 2008, at the Anaheim Convention Center, located at 800 West Katella Avenue in Anaheim. Programs and Meetings will take place in the Convention Center and hotels nearby.

Ron Reagan will be the opening speaker, Diahann Carroll will be closing speaker and authors Khaled Hosseini and James Frey, among others, will speak at the conference.

For more information about ALA's summer meeting, visit http://www.ala.org/ala/eventsandconferencesb/annual/2008a/home.cfm. See you in Anaheim!

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So You Say Your Library is Really about Books, so “Who needs anything 2.0?”

By Stephen Abram

What have you done for a book lately?

You’ve probably done a lot! You’ve catalogued them so they can be found. You’ve made bibliographies so people can find other books they may like or need for research. You’ve recommended books to patrons and friends. You’ve written book reviews. Maybe you’ve done an index to a book, or edited one, or written one. You’ve done book talks. Great! Library folks have been doing this sort of stuff for centuries and doing it well.

We do books so well. We just can’t get any better, any hotter, any more admired and loved!

Really?

I visit and see so many libraries – physical and virtual – and see so many innovations that excite me and promote books, reading and what we do so well. I also see a lot of folks who claim that new technologies are unnecessary in libraries and especially anything TwoPointOh! I fail to see the distinction and I don’t think it’s just me. Library practice demands that we look for anything that improves our mandates to promote learning, community, research, and reading.

Of course anyone can improve and do better. That’s why we call it information practice. You just keep practicing as professionals – just like medical practice, nursing practice, teaching practice and accounting practice. Professionals get better, though never perfect, with practice. There’s no denying that our traditional practice is a great thing. We protect, preserve and serve the human cultural and research record and connect users with the right books, at the right time, in the right place. That’s awesome. Then again, good information practice thinking demands that we ask what are the negative issues with the traditional way we practice and how can we get better or complement it?

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Client Spotlight: Tamara George, Director of Cobb County Public Library on SirsiDynix SaaS Hosting

Cobb County Public Library hosts 16 branches and a main library, all of which share a single collection, housed in different branches. The library is funded mainly by one source – the Cobb County government, with a small amount of additional funding by the state government of Georgia. Cobb County Public Library circulates approximately 3.8 million volumes annually to a population of 691,905 residents, making the Atlanta metropolitan area library the third largest public library system in the state.

“We are different than some other library systems of our size because of our single large collection shared among branches and because we have a central source of funding in our county government,” said Tamara George, Director of Cobb County Public Library. “However, we share the common concern of other large libraries of how to smoothly and seamlessly manage a collection of our size.”

Cobb County has utilized some form of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) since its partnership with DRA began in 1999. According to George, the library’s information services department did not have the staffing or the expertise to manage an ILS. After working with a consultant, the library opted to totally outsource the technological management functions of the system, including network, server and systems maintenance.

Gail Rogers, Director of Cobb County Public Library from 1999 until 2007, was another driving force in the move from local servers to a hosted solution. The decision to outsource all of the administrative duties to DRA ultimately proved a wise one, earning Cobb County Public Library the Urban Library Council’s first Award of Excellence in Public Library Management in 1999.

“Both the public and our library staff have benefitted greatly from this partnership. We have been able to create a much stronger support structure for our automated services by outsourcing them than we would have been able to do with our own resources,” George said. “At the time of implementation in 1999, we found the overall cost of outsourcing equivalent to having an in-house staff, but the effectiveness has been much greater.”

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SirsiDynix Institute News

The next SirsiDynix Institute webinar will be Friday, June 13 at 11 a.m. Eastern

Beyond Web 2.0: Taking the social read-write Web to the enterprise level

Over the past few years, many libraries have eagerly embraced Web 2.0 technologies. Blogs, wikis and social engagement with patrons have become commonplace. These new approaches to the Web are no longer considered new and cutting edge, and the Web is changing at a much faster rate. It's time to consider what comes next in the world of Web technologies.

Breeding will give his thoughts on how libraries can take Web 2.0 technologies to the next level and integrate these technologies into their core automation infrastructure to better support their strategic missions. Up until now, Web 2.0 technologies have been implemented mostly through informal processes. As the Web 2.0-inspired technologies mature, they need to become more central to a library's strategic mission and become integrated into its fundamental infrastructure. Tune in for Marshall Breeding's view of life beyond Web 2.0.

Marshall Breeding is library technology officer at Vanderbilt University's Jean and Alexander Heard Library and a leading library technology consultant. He is a prolific author who has written nine books and more than 100 articles on topics including library automation, Internet technology, networking, and library trends. As an accomplished speaker, Breeding has made more than 100 presentations to the library community through professional conferences and technology user group meetings. Online, Breeding maintains Library Technology Guides, a comprehensive resource and content site related to library automation, and lib-web-cats, a directory of libraries throughout the world.

Read more about this webinar, find out about upcoming speakers and access archived SirsiDynix Institute presentations, visit www.sirsidynixinstitute.com.