The Future of Integrated Library Systems: Moving toward new models and open systems Marshall Breeding Director for Innovative Technologies and Research.

The Future of Integrated Library Systems: Moving toward new models and open systems

Marshall Breeding Director for Innovative Technologies and ResearchVanderbilt Universityhttp://staffweb.library.vanderbilt.edu/breedinghttp://www.librarytechnology.org/

Massachusetts Library AssociationPre-Conference:The Future of the ILSTuesday, May 6 9:30 10:30am

AbstractLibraries demand choice. No matter which ILS (Integrated Library System) a library uses, the future is changing rapidly and libraries are facing difficult choices. This presentation will provide a review of the business and industry trends affecting ILSs as well as forecast what emerging technologies in the next generation ILS will bring to libraries.

Current Status of the Library Automation Industry

Technology LandscapeMost ILS products from commercial vendors matureNone less than a decade oldApproaching end of life cycle?Evolved systemsNo success in launching new systems in the commercial sphereHorizon 8.0Taos

Current VintageALEPH 5001996Voyager 1995Unicorn1982Polaris1997Virtua1995Koha1999Library.Solution1997Evergreen2004Talis1992

Business LandscapeLibrary Journal Automated System Marketplace:Opportunities Emerge in the midst of Turmoil (2008)An Industry redefined (2007)Reshuffling the Deck (2006)An increasingly consolidated industryMoving out of a previous phase of fragmentation where many companies expend energies producing decreasingly differentiated systems in a limited marketplacePrivate Equity playing a stronger role then ever before; VCs exitNarrowing of product options Increasing dissatisfaction with purely commercial, closed source optionsOpen Source opportunities rise to challenge the grip of traditional commercial model

Library Automation History

Industry Health 2008Overall industry showing some growth; individual companies more profitable then ever.Mixed company growth according to personnel counts:Ex Libris +6%Innovative + 5%Library Corporation -10%SirsiDynix -28%ILS sales represent smaller portion of revenueMany smaller libraries purchasing automation systemsVery few large library ILS procurements

Other Business ObservationsCreative tension aboundsLevel of innovation falls below expectations, despite deep resources and large development teams.Companies struggle to keep up with ILS enhancements and R&D for new innovations.Pressure from investors/owners to reduce costs, increase revenue Pressure from library customers for more innovative productsSome companies investing in technology; expanding markets

ILS Migration TrendsFew voluntary lateral migrationsForced MigrationsVendor abandonmentNeed to move from legacy systemsExit from bad marriages with vendorsExit from bad marriages with consortia

Role of the ILS in Library Automation StrategiesIts never been harder for libraries to justify investments in ILSNeed for products focused on electronic content and user experienceNext-gen interfacesFederated searchLinkingElectronic Resource Management

A new direction in library automationA successful pitch for new automation software is one that enables significant transformation toward a new vision of the library.Cant keep doing the same thing in the same wayBack-end systems make only a moderate impact on customer service delivery

An age of less integrated systemsIncreasingly dis-integrated environmentCore ILS supplemented by:OpenURL Link ResolversMetasearch / Federated SearchElectronic Resource ManagementNext Generation Library InterfacesRFID / AMH

No longer an ILS-centric industryPortion of revenues derived from core ILS products diminishing relative to other library tech productsMany companies and organizations that dont offer an ILS are involved in library automation:Cambridge Information GroupProQuestSerials SolutionsWebFeatBowkerSyndetic SolutionsAquaBrowserMuse Global

OCLC in the Automation IndustryInitial foray into next-gen interface arena: WorldCat LocalTechnology acquisitions:OCLC Pica purchased Sisis on July 1, 2005 for $4,504,700OCLC Pica purchased FDI on Nov 2, 2005 for $8,913,100OCLC purchased Openly Informatics for $1,950,000OCLC purchased DiMeMa on Aug 14, 2006 for $3,916,200EZproxy acquired in Jan 2008Library automation services at the network levelNot an ILS?An ILS killer?

Open Source AlternativesExplosive interest in Open Source driven by disillusionment with current vendorsBeginning to emerge as a practical optionTOC (Total Cost of Ownership) still roughly equal to proprietary commercial modelOpen Source still a risky AlternativeCommercial/Proprietary options also a riskThe SirsiDynix announcement changed the landscape of the ILS marketplace;the traditional ILS market is no longer a haven for the risk adverse. (http://pines.bclibrary.ca/resources/talking-points)

Open Source InitiativesMultiple projects to develop Open Source ILSKoha ZoomEvergreenOPALS-NA (K-12 Schools)Delft Libraries Multiple projects to develop Open Source Next-gen CatalogsVU Find (Villanova University)C4 prototype (University of Rochester River Campus Libraries)

Andrew W. Mellon FoundationSoliciting a proposal for the design of an Open Source ILS for higher educationLed by Duke UniversityEarly stages. Proposal in developmentFirst and Second stage funding for eXtensible Catalog

Market share / PerspectiveOpen Source ILS implementations still a very small percentage of the total pictureInitial set of successful implementations will likely serve as a catalyst to pave the way for othersSuccessful implementations in wider range of libraries:State-wide consortium (Evergreen)Multi-site public library systems (Koha)School district consortia (OPALS-NA)

Open Source CompaniesIndex DataFounded 1994; No ILS; A variety of other open source products to support libraries: search engines, federated search, Z39.50 toolkit, etcLibLimeFounded 2005. Provides development and support services for Koha ILS. Acquired original developers of Koha in Feb 2007.Marc Roberson VP Library PartnersJohn Rose VP Strategic marketsDebra Denault -- Operations ManagerEquinox. Founded Feb 2007; staff formerly associated with GPLS Pines development teamCare AffiliatesFounded June 2007; headed by industry veteran Carl Grant.

Impact of Open SourceFormidable competition to commercial closed-source productsAlternative to the traditional software licensing modelsPressure to increase innovationPressure to decrease costsPressure to make commercial systems more openDisrupts the status quo

Open source ILS BenchmarksMost decisions to adopt Open Source ILS based on philosophical preferencesOpen Source ILS will enter the main stream once its products begin to win through objective procurement processesHold open source ILS to the same standards as the commercial productsHold the open source ILS companies to the same standards:Adequate customer support ratios, financial stability, service level agreements, etc.Well-documented total cost of ownership statements that can be compared to other vendor price quotesDo the Open Source ILS products offer a new vision?

New Generation of Library Interfaces

Working toward a new generation of library interfacesRedefinition of the library catalogTraditional notions of the library catalog are being questionedBetter information delivery toolsMore powerful search capabilitiesMore elegant presentation

Redefinition of library catalogsMore comprehensive information discovery environmentsIts no longer enough to provide a catalog limited to the traditional library inventoryDigital resources cannot be an afterthoughtForcing users to use different interfaces depending on type of content becoming less tenableLibraries working toward consolidated search environments that give equal footing to digital and print resources

Comprehensive Search ServiceMore like OAIOpen Archives InitiativeConsolidated search services based on metadata and data gathered in advanceProblems of scale diminishedProblems of cooperation persistEg: Royal Library of Denmark

Web 2.0 FlavoringsA more social and collaborative approachWeb Tools and technology that foster collaborationTagging, social bookmarking, user rating, user reviews, community interaction

The holy grail of New Gen Library InterfacesA single point of entry into all the content and services offered by the libraryPrint + ElectronicLocal + RemoteLocally created Content

Interface expectationsMillennial generation library users are well acclimated to the WebUsed to relevancy rankingThe good stuff should be listed firstUsers tend not to delve deep into a result listGood relevancy requires a sophisticated approach, including objective matching criteria supplemented by popularity and relatedness factors.Did you mean? and other features to avoid No results foundMore like this / related content

Interface expectations (cont)Very rapid response. Users have a low tolerance for slow systemsRich visual information: book jacket images, rating scores, etc.Let users drill down through the result set incrementally narrowing the fieldFaceted BrowsingDrill-down vs up-front Boolean or Advanced Searchgives the users clues about the number of hits in each sub topicAbility to explore collections without a priori knowledgeNavigational Bread crumbs

Deep searchIncreasing opportunities to search the full contentsGoogle Library Print, Google Publisher, Open Content Alliance, Microsoft Live Book Search, etc.High-quality metadata will improve search precisionCommercial search providers already offer search inside the bookNo comprehensive full text search for books quite yetNot currently available through library search environments

Beyond DiscoveryFulfillment orientedSearch -> select -> viewDelivery/Fulfillment much harder than discoveryBack-end complexity should be as seamless as possible to the user

Library-specific FeaturesAppropriate relevance factorsObjective keyword ranking + Library weightingsCirculation frequency, OCLC holdings, scholarly contentResults grouping (FRBR)Collection focused (vs sales-driven)

Enterprise IntegrationAbility to deliver content and services through non-library applicationsCampus portal solutionsCoursewareSocial networking environmentsSearch portals / Feed aggregators

Smart and SophisticatedMuch more difficult than old gen OPACSNot a dumbed-down approachWed library specific requirements and expectations with e-commerce technologies

Architecture and StandardsNeed to have an standard approach for connecting new generation interfaces with ILS and other repositoriesProprietary and ad hoc methods currently prevailDigital Library FederationILS-Discovery Interface Group

New-Gen Library InterfacesCurrent Commercial and Open Source Products

Endeca Guided NavigationNorth Carolina State Universityhttp://www.lib.ncsu.edu/catalog/McMaster Universityhttp://libcat.mcmaster.ca/Phoenix Public Libraryhttp://www.phoenixpubliclibrary.org/Florida Center for Library Automationhttp://catalog.fcla.edu/ux.jsp

AquaBrowser LibraryQueens Borough Public Libraryhttp://aqua.queenslibrary.org/Oklahoma State Universityhttp://boss.library.okstate.edu/University of Chicagohttp://lens.lib.uchicago.edu/

Ex Libris PrimoDiscovery and Delivery platform for academic librariesVanderbilt Universityhttp://alphasearch.library.vanderbilt.eduUniversity of Minnesota http://prime2.oit.umn.edu:1701/primo_library/libweb/action/search.do?vid=TWINCITIESUniversity of Iowahttp://smartsearch.uiowa.edu/

Encore from Innovative InterfacesDesigned for academic, public and special librariesNashville Public Libraryhttp://nplencore.library.nashville.org/iii/encore/appScottsdale Public Libraryhttp://encore.scottsdaleaz.gov/iii/encore/appYale University Lillian Goldman Law Libraryhttp://encore.law.yale.edu/iii/encore/app

OCLC Worldcat LocalOCLC Worldcat customized for local library catalogRelies on hooks into ILS for local servicesTied to library holdings set in WorldCatUniversity of Washington Librarieshttp://uwashington.worldcat.org/University of California Melvyl Catalog

SirsiDynixRecently announced their next generation discovery environment named EnterpriseRelies on Globalbrain technology from BrainwareMany legacy interfacesEnterprise Portal SolutionRooms / SchoolRoomsiLink / iBistro (legacy)Product based on FAST announced in March 2006 withdrawn

VUFind Villanova UniversityBased on Apache Solr search toolkithttp://www.vufind.org/

Library-developed solutionseXtensible CatalogUniversity of Rochester River Campus LibrariesFinancial support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundationhttp://www.extensiblecatalog.info/

The Next Generation of Library Automation

Working toward a new ILS VisionHow libraries work has changed dramatically over the last 20 years.ILS built largely on workflows cast more than 25 years agoBased on assumptions that have long since changedDigital resources represent at least half of most academic libraries collection budgetsThe automation needs of libraries today is broader than that provided by the legacy ILS

Libraries ready for a new courseLevel of dissatisfaction with the current slate of ILS products is very high.Large monolithic systems are unwieldyvery complex to install, administer and maintain.Continue to be large gaps in functionalityInterlibrary loanCollection developmentPreservation: print / digitalBook bindingRemote storage operations

Less Proprietary / More OpenLibraries demand more opennessOpen source movement greatest challenge to current slate of commercial ILS productsDemand for open access to dataAPIs essentialBeyond proprietary APIsIdeal: Industry-standard set of APIs implemented by all systemsCurrent DLF initiative to define API for an ILS for decoupled catalogs

Open but Commercial?As library values evolve toward open solutions, commercial companies will see increasing advantages in adopting more open strategiesOpen DataWell documented database schemasAPIs for access to all system functionalityMore customizability; better integrationOpen Source Software?Key differentiation lies in service and support

Comprehensive automationNeed the ability to automation all aspects of library workSuite of interoperable modulesSingle point of management for each category of informationNot necessarily through a single monolithic system

More lightweight approachMore elegant and efficientEasier to install and administerAutomation systems that can be operated with fewer number of technical staff

Redefining the bordersMany artificial distinctions prevail in the legacy ILS modelOnline catalog / library portal / institutional portalCirculation / ILL / Direct consortial borrowing / remote storageCollection Development / Acquisitions / budget administrationLibrary acquisitions / Institutional ERPCataloging / Metadata document ingestion for digital collectionsDigital / Print workflows

Separation of front-end from back-end ILS OPAC not necessarily best library interfaceMany efforts already underway to offer alternativesToo many of the resources that belong in the interface are out of the ILS scopeTechnology cycles faster for front-end than for back-end processes.

Service-oriented ArchitectureWork toward a service-oriented business applicationSuite of light-weight applicationsFlexibility to evolve in step with changes in library services and practices

Enterprise interoperabilityInteroperate with non-library applicationsCourse managementAccounting, finance, ERM applicationsExternal authentication servicesOther portal implementations

Massively consolidated implementationsState/Province-wide ILS implementationsIncreased reliance on consortiaIncreased Software as a Service / ASP options hosted by vendorsRadical simplification of library policies affecting services offered to patrons

Fitting into the Global EnterpriseLeverage capabilities of search engines: Google, Google Scholar, Microsoft Live, Ask, etcOCLC WorldCatSort out the relationships between the global enterprise and local systemsLeverage the content in enterprise discovery systems to drive users toward library resources

Revise assumptions regarding MetadataReliance on MARC widely questionedXML widely deployedThe next-gen ILS must natively support many flavors of metadata: MARC, Dublin Core, Onix, METS, etcLibrary of Congress Subject Headings vs FASTApproaching a post-metadata where discovery systems operate on actual digital objects themselves, not metadata about themHigh-quality metadata will always improve discoveryIncorporate content from mass digitization effortsIncreasing proportions of rich media content: audio, video

Competing in an crowded field of information providersCommercial Web destinations increasingly overlap with services offered by librariesExpectations of users set by their experiences with commercial destinationsWeb-based library services need to be on the same levelPressure to revamp library interfaces, discovery, and delivery tools

New models of Software DevelopmentRole of commercial partners Break out of marketing / consumer modelSubstantial dialog that shapes the direction of product developmentIncreased partnershipsAccelerated development cyclesCost-effective / realistic cost expectations

Evolution vs RevolutionWhat we have today is a result of 35 years of evolutionIs it possible to break free of the constraints of these evolved systems toward a new generation that will offer a fresh approach?Are libraries now willing to let go of the of ILS legacy of times past and move forward with library automation cast in a new mould.

A unique opportunityWeb 2.0 has invigorated libraries toward more open and collaborative strategiesService Oriented Architecture provides a platform for assembling library systems more in tune with the needs of todays librariesIntense interest by both libraries and vendors to catch up and move forward in delivering library interfaces that work better for todays Web-savvy users

Questions / Comments