OCLC Members Council

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OCLC Members Council Resource Sharing Interest
Group February 6, 2007 Lamar Veatch, State
Librarian Georgia Public Library Service
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Georgias Public Libraries
382 facilities 159 Counties 58 Systems
Per Capita Funding 8th in State Funding 44th in
Local Funding
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What is PINES?

• A consortium of 46 (out of 58) Georgia public
  library systems
• 265 facilities and bookmobiles
• A common ILS - on a central server
• A union database of 8.8 million items
• A shared patron file - over 1.6 million PINES
  cardholders from all 159 Georgia counties
• Over 17 million circulations in 2006

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PINES Participating Libraries
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PINES Governance

• Executive Committee nine representatives from
  member libraries
• Elected by PINES member library systems
  staggered terms.
• Meet quarterly or as needed.
• Module-specific subcommittees make policy
  recommendations.

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What Makes PINES Special?

• The PINES library card is free to any resident of
  Georgia, and may be obtained from any PINES
  library.
• The PINES card can be used at any PINES facility,
  as if at the home library.
• Materials may be returned to any PINES library.
• Centralized support provided by state library
  agency (GPLS).

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What Makes PINES Special?

• Users may request materials delivered from any
  PINES library to local library, at no charge.
• New books are protected from intra-PINES loans
  for 6 months.
• FY06 - 452,000 intra-PINES loans (6,000 loans
  in FY00).
• A statewide courier service began in October 2004
  with service to all PINES headquarters libraries.

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Focus on the Patron Experience

• Agree to a common set of policies and
  procedures--patrons have a consistent experience
  at any PINES library.
• PINES libraries agree to common fine structures.
• Overdue notices processed centrally for all
  member libraries.

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Focus on the Patron Experience

• Fines and fees may be paid at any PINES library.
• Charges for lost materials are returned to owning
  library other fines are kept at collecting
  library.
• Up to 50 items may be checked out on a library
  card at any one time.
• No limit on the number of holds that may be
  placed by a patron.

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What are the benefits?

• Dramatically increased access to statewide
  combined library collections
• Convenience of using all 265 member libraries
  throughout the state
• Interlibrary cooperation
• One statewide library card
• Economy of scale leverage library funding.

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Financial Benefits

• Estimate to replace automation
• systems in all PINES libraries 15 million
  
• Estimated annual maintenance for
• individual automation systems 5 million
• PINES annual operations 1.6 million

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Services from PINES Central

• Training for 1,200 PINES staff in libraries
  across the state. Training is conducted
  regionally to reduce travel demands on libraries.
• Printing and mailing of overdue notices for all
  PINES libraries
• Helpdesk via phone, email or web, available 24
  hours/day.

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WHAT DO PATRONS LIKE BEST ABOUT PINES? Comments
from the PINES User Survey

• It SIGNIFICANTLY expands the choices of books
  and other materials available to me. I appreciate
  this so much because I live in a rural part of
  the state with a very small local library.
• Allowing books to be check out from other
  libraries is WONDERFUL. This way, the Pines
  System is like one gigantic library making
  available a tremendous selection of books
  regardless of where the books are physically
  housed.

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Crossroads for PINES

• Initial 5-year software contract for PINES ended
  in June 2005.
• 2003-2004 PINES staff conducted a comprehensive
  survey of the library automation marketplace.
• Is the software driving the policy/procedure, or
  is the policy/procedure driving the software?

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What Do PINES Libraries Need?

• We asked hundreds of librarians in focus
• groups around the state
• Ease of use for customers
• Enterprise-class relational database
• Scalability (ability to grow with PINES)
• Flexibility
• Data security
• Reports designed to correspond to annual
  reporting requirements

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The Evergreen Project

• Evergreen ILS was developed using Open Source
  software.
• Software development began in June 2004.
• All 252 PINES libraries migrated to Evergreen
  software on September 5, 2006 over the Labor
  Day Weekend.
• Transactions, customer records, and online
  catalog records were migrated from the former
  system.

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Evergreen Features

• Search capabilities similar to popular commercial
  websites.
• Google-like spell-checking and search
  suggestions.
• Added content, including book cover images,
  reviews, and excerpts.
• Scalability for growth.
• Enhanced security features to keep customer
  information confidential.
• Customer empowerment to manage own accounts.

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Evergreen Core Technologies

• Database Postgresql
• Logic/glue languages C and Perl
• Web server Apache mod_perl
• Server operating system Linux
• Server hardware x86-64
• Messaging core Jabber
• Client side software XUL

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Evergreen Design

• Cost-effective server software is designed to
  run on inexpensive commodity hardware with an
  open source operating system.
• Reliable the software is designed to run in a
  clustered environment, giving it enterprise-level
  high availability and failover.
• Flexible Evergreen's staff client is
  cross-platform (Windows, Mac, Linux).

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http//open-ils.org/blog/?p56
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Next Steps

• Migration of the six library systems waiting to
  become PINES members over 600,000 more
  Georgians served
• Develop Acquisitions module Collaboration with
  University of Windsor
• Work with partners on protocols to share
  information with other automation systems
• Develop a children's web-based catalog

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Evergreen Enhancements

• More self-service options, including online bill
  pay for customers
• Enhanced links with GALILEO Georgias Virtual
  Library
• Online library catalog that can be used on mobile
  devices
• Cooperative enhancements with like-minded
  institutions and organizations

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• PINES online catalog
• www.gapines.org
• Evergreen software development
• www.open-ils.org

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lveatch_at_georgialibraries.org 404-235-7120