LibraryWorld Announces the Ability to Attach Digital Documents to Catalog Records

On Thursday, March 29th LibraryWorld will enhance its catalog application to allow users to attach PDF and JPEG documents to catalog records.

Multiple PDF and JPEG documents can be attached directly to catalog records. Thumbnails of both PDF and JPEG files are displayed to provide instant feedback on the contents of each document. Thumbnails of a PDF or JPEG file can be used as the book jacket image for a catalog record.

Libraries with Standard service subscriptions can store up to 1,000 files and each file can be up to 512K in size.

Patrons will be able to view attached documents, thumbnails and full expanded files through the online patron access catalog (OPAC) application.

'Realia' record type added

LibraryWorld Realia Object

The category type "Realia" refers to any 3-dimensional object that occurs in real life. Another definition by a New York Times author refers to Realia as "eccentricity worth preserving." What an exciting classification term! Over the past few years Realia objects have grown increasingly popular [and relevant] to many library collections. University libraries will often receive donations that include non-text items relevant to the story of that collection. Special libraries often obtain preserved animal specimen, old photographs, musical instruments, the list goes on and on. The diversity that the category type allows for requires careful cataloging (how does one, for instance, write a catalog description for a lock of Sylvia Plath's hair?) to be sure. But with the increasingly rich world of multimedia objects the Realia classification appears to be an important option to offer our customers.

To create a new Realia record, navigate to the Catalog app from your main library page. Click 'New Record', and select the 'Realia Object' from the first option on the far right of your screen.

Once clicked you will be prompted to manually enter the catalog information. Please note that the 'medium' field has been auto filled as Realia for you. You can also create a Realia record via the 'Material Type' descriptions, which provide general definitions for each material type classification option available to LibraryWorld customers.

Happy Cataloging!

LibraryWorlds new features: a user perspective

As we have mentioned before on this blog, we love hearing from you! Your feedback is motivating us to develop new features and upgrades at an inspired pace. That is why when Holland Kessinger from the Edmund L. and Nancy K. Dubois Library at the Museum of Photographic Arts in San Diego wrote to us with some feedback on the new features we had to know more. Holland was nice enough to acquiesce our request and shared some terrific insights on taking her library to the cloud, and how the new features have enhanced the user experience of her patrons.

Q: Can you share one unique fact or feature of your library?

A: The Dubois Library is one of the largest photography libraries in the country. It’s collection is incredibly diverse and includes more than 500 rare books, hundreds of periodicals, auction catalogs, annuals, ephemera, calendars, artist books, and more. It is an amazing resource of materials on photography!

Q: How has taking your library to the cloud impacted your library?

Dubois Library, Museum of Photographic Arts

A: As for taking the library to the cloud, it has worked amazingly well for our library. As a solo staff member of a small library with an even smaller budget, I need to focus time and energy on meeting the information needs of our visitors, not on dealing with hardware and software issues. I’ve had very few instances where the catalog was inaccessible due to servers being down. And, I don’t worry about data lock-in; the few exports I’ve done from the catalog have been very easy and straightforward.

Q: So how have the new features (Google Book Preview, OPAC listings) enhanced the services your library provides?

A: I think it’s pretty obvious that Amazon and Google have had a significant impact on how we search and view information. Users of our online catalog expect to see more than just bibliographic information; they want lots and lots of images, book teases, previews, added content, etc. Google Book Preview meets this expectation and makes the information gathering process a more robust experience. The new “Recently Added Titles” encourages visitors to return again and again to see how the Library collection is constantly expanding. Both of these new features just enhance the whole experience for users of the catalog, and helps us keep pace with what is happening all over the Internet.

Holland's point about aesthetics is well taken. People expect their user interface to look and feel like their favorite sights on the Internet, and offer the same conviniences. At the bottom of the Dubois Library's homepage there are links to our iphone app, integrated social media widgets, and a link to Holland's terrific OPAC page, which is fully customized and inviting to the patrons of her library.

If you would like to have your library success story featured on this blog, please e-mail groggel@libraryworld.com for more information.

Improved feature: Patron Import

Now you can customize the column order when importing patron records.

This means that you are no longer required to populate the spreadsheet that LibraryWorld sends when importing patron data. Instead, match the column number on your spreadsheet to the appropriate data field in the patron import application.

For example, I export my patron records in the required tab delimited format. The Excel spreadsheet needs to be saved as TEXT. The data included in this document is: Column A--Bar Code, Column B--Name, Column C--Organization, Column D--Branch, and so on.

All I need to do to accurately import this record into my library is login to my LibraryWorld account, click on 'patrons' in the left nav bar of the main page, select the 'import' tab on the upper portion of the screen, and match the data fields with the appropriate column labels.

Based on the example information above, here is what my screen should look like before importing: