A Bit About The System:

1. Analysis and Recommendations for the Online Public Access Catalog of Old Lyme-Phoebe Griffin Noyes Library and the Libraries Online Consortium

2. A Bit About The System: • The online public access catalog is: • a computerized catalog of the physical holdings of individual libraries such as Old Lyme • the combined catalogs of the twenty-two other libraries in the consortium (LION). • The OPAC also allows users to: • view their accounts • renew books • request materials from other consortium libraries, • download audio books • view a variety of reader’s advisory lists.

3. …and Just a Bit More • The OPAC software is Millennium, a product of Innovative Interfaces. • Rather than connecting “multiple library automation systems” or only providing “libraries running Millennium with access to each others’ holdings,” LION chose to merge the holdings of all twenty-three of it’s member libraries into one database.

4. Organizational Chart The III servers are located in California. Access to them is limited to LION staff only. The LION servers run the public terminals located in each library and the web portal that allows users to access the catalog database via the Web.

5. Functional Requirements: • to allow easy searching of library holdings by patrons • to provide patrons the ability to self-serve needs usually met by librarians, such as renewals, requests, and reader’s advisory • to be able to integrate after-market products, such as downloadable audio books from Overdrive or LibraryThing tag clouds • to consolidate other services into one, easy to use portal. Ex: links to iConn, local newspapers, bestseller lists

6. Non-Functional Requirements: • to be customizable to each consortia library’s needs • to be user-friendly to a variety of user skill levels • to meet the financial needs of all libraries,regardless of funding level

7. Who Are the Users? • III training and support staff • LION information technology staff • Library Staff • Patrons

8. What Are Their Goals and Objectives? While all users have goals and objectives, those of the end-users are key: •   Library Staff – to provide excellent customer service to all patrons, regardless of their computer or information seeking skills. • Patrons – to find exactly what they are looking for in the shortest amount of time and effort.

9. A Little About the Environment: • The OPAC includes the individual libraries as well as the larger whole of the twenty-three together. • Each library catalog can be searched individually or collectively from any location and online. • All are located in south central to southeastern Connecticut. • Most are small, independent libraries serving populations under 10,000. • Several larger towns—such as Middletown and New London—serve more than 50,000. • The consortium also includes one college library, Mitchell College.

10. Now That We Have Some Background, How Do Things Work?Decision trees follow, describing the functional requirements:

11. Renewing Books: Start: Open OPAC Window Click: My Account Log in (patron last name & ID number) Click “X items currently checked out More than 1 item checked out? yes no Check “Renew all” box Renew all checked out items? yes no Renewable? Check “Renew all” box Check boxes for items to be renewed yes no Update Copy Status - Due On... Stop. Show denial msg.

12. Searching for an Item and Placing a Hold Start: Open OPAC Window Basic or advanced search? Basic Advanced Enter title, author or keyword in search box Enter title, author or keyword in search box Enter Boolean operators and/or other limiters Desired book found? yes no Request Hold? Continue search? yes no yes no Enter email address End session

13. Downloading Audio Books(Is book available? Is account clear of fines? ) Click “Download audio books” Select displayed title? yes no Enter title, author or keyword in search box Is audio book available? Desired audio book found? yes no Click: Add to cart yes no Request Hold? Continue searching? yes no yes no Enter email address Proceed to checkout

14. Forms Analysis: • A look at the forms on the OPAC for: • Book renewal • Basic searching • Advanced searching

15. Book Renewal Form: • Only available through OPAC. • To access, users must navigate through several screens: • 1) the OPAC home page • 2) an account login page • 3) through a link on account information page • Full instructions are available for library patrons at: http://207.210.128.10/screens/help_renew.html

16. Account Login Page: • Step 1: • Patron clicks “__ items currently checked out:

17. Account Information Page: • Step 2: • Patron checkes the boxes in the RENEW column • then clicks “Renew Selected”. • If a mass renewal is desired, click “Renew ALL”.

18. Account Information Page (con’t): • As seen in the decision tree, an item may not always be available for renewal. • If renewal has been successful it will be noted (See red arrow)

19. Basic Search Form: • When patrons log on to the OPAC home page, a basic search form is presented. • The default search is a title search. • Keyword, author, subject (LC Subject heading), ISBN number and call number are also available.

20. Advanced Search Form: • For those patrons interested in advanced features such as Boolean or material type searches (i.e. video formats only). • Instructions for using the form are printed beneath it, though not shown in the screen shot below. • For a view of the whole page, see: http://catalog.lioninc.org/search/X .

21. Data Flow Diagrams: Level 0 DFDs for: Renewing an Item Searching & Placing Hold Downloading Audio Books

22. Renewing Items: 4.0 View holds and/or blocks Patron 1.0 Change personal info 2.0 Request renewal of item(s) 3.0 Display completed request D1 Patron Inf. Database D2Shelf List Hold statistics system

23. Searching and Placing Holds: 5.0 View holds and/or blocks 4.0 Change personal info 5.0 Create preferred search Patron 1.0 Browse Catalog 2.0 Request/ Hold item 3.0 Display completed request D1 Cataloging module D2Patron Act. Hold statistics system

24. Downloading an Audio Book: 5.0 View holds and/or blocks 4.0 Change personal info Patron 1.0 Browse Audio book Catalog 2.0 Request/ Hold item 3.0 Display completed request D1 Cataloging module D2Patron Act. Audio stats system

25. Designing an Improved System

26. Recommendations for New System: • At this time a new ILS/OPAC system is not necessary. • The current system was put in place in September of 2006 and is still considered “new” by most users. • It is acknowledged from the highest management levels to the end-user patron that the present system requires some tweaking. • In some instances, corrective maintenance is necessary, while others simply need adapting.

27. Usability: Users and Testing and Iteration: • The Director of the Old Lyme – Phoebe Griffin Noyes Library ran a massive survey mailing in 2006 regarding customer service. • Due to this, she was hesitant to perform another survey, even an informal one. • At this stage of implementation, about a year post-installation, a heuristic evaluation seemed the best way to evaluate the functional requirements noted earlier.

28. Heuristic Evaluation

29. Easy Searchingof Library Holdings by Patrons: In-House • In the current system, patrons perform a title search as default. • For any other type they must select from a pull-down menu. • Many patrons are both elderly and have a low literacy of GUI interfaces and computers as a whole; searches often miss key hits. • Example, a search for “dogs” performed in the library would return a wide variety of titles, but would not include Marley and Me, a bestseller of 2006 and frequently requested item. • Recommended improvement: a default keyword search for in-house terminals.

30. Easy Searching:Online • Link to the catalog from the library’s homepage, www.oldlyme.lioninc.org, goes to the general consortia catalog. • Users searching the catalog from their home computers (often a more technologically savvy group) are searching the consortia-wide catalog of all twenty-three libraries, rather than searching just the Old Lyme collection. • Recommended improvement: change default search location to Old Lyme, and check for consistency between in-house and Internet search screens.

31. Integration of Aftermarket Products: Overdrive Audio Book Downloads • Although the new OPAC was installed in September of 2006, Overdrive did not go live until July of 2007. • This was due in part to financial constraints with some of member libraries. • Adapting the OPAC did cause some difficulties. • At this time, the only suggestion for Overdrive would be more prominent explanation of the unavailability of digital media because it is “checked out.”

32. Patrons Self-Serve Needs:Renewals, Requests, and Reader’s Advisory • Mostly working well currently. • The renewal & request process is hampered by an error screen shown when an account has a hold or block. • Information is communicated to the patron, the “why” is not. • Therefore, they must seek the assistance of a librarian for a function they could have understood on their own. • Suggested solution: error messages that indicate if a account hold is due to overdue fines, expired card, or other reason.

33. To Consolidate Other Services into One Portal: • Ex: links to iConn, local newspapers, bestseller lists. • At this time, these links are available through library home pages but not via the catalog (either online or in-house public terminals). • Suggested solution: Since this paper was begun in September, some libraries have solved this problem. Several links have been added to the home page. They can be viewed at: http://207.210.128.10/search%7ES17/

34. Sources: • Innovative Interfaces: Libraries We Serve: Consortia. http://www.iii.com/markets/consortia.shtml Accessed October 1, 2007. • Millennium System Announcement. www.lioninc.org. Accessed October 6, 2007.