[Koha] Library System - good system, LC problem

[Bernadette Cassidy]

Greetings all,

 

I would concur with much of what Steven has said re Koha. As for LC
classification, at our library we've come up with a temporary solution
of including LC numbers in the biblio in the notes section!! Seriously
once the developers come up with a solution to LC numbers will be great.


 

___________________________________________

Bernadette Cassidy

Library & Learning Coordinator  

Allan Bean Centre for Research and Learning in Rehabilitation

Private Bag 4708

Burwood Hospital  

Christchurch 

New Zealand

Tel: (03) 383 9492

Fax: (03) 383 7500

-----Original Message-----
From: Steven F. Baljkas [mailto:baljkas at mb.sympatico.ca] 
Sent: Thursday, 22 April 2004 8:21 a.m.
To: Peter Gichiri; koha at lists.katipo.co.nz
Cc: baljkas at mts.net
Subject: Re: [Koha] Library System - good system, LC problem

 

Wednesday, April 21, 2004    15:05 CDT

 

Greetings, Peter,

 

Just a 'quick' reply to your message inquiring about Koha, that others
on the listserv will hopefully augment with their wisdom.

 

First, I (and many others) think Koha is a great system. It is extremely
versatile and compared to other ILS that one would have to purchase at
significant cost, it is astoundingly good.

 

In terms of technical support and further development, the prospects are
at least as good. Most questions to the listserv receive a response
within 24 hours, usually less. The community is very good at lending a
hand with advice.

 

Development is continual and the nice thing there is that, being an open
source product, your library could direct further development along
lines that would give you features you wanted simply by financing the
programming and/or appealing to the Koha community to see if some nice
volunteer could effect the change you wanted.

 

As people write in to the listserv with different questions and requests
for features, many are added to the programmer's 'bug' lists for future
work. If you look back at the archive of message, you can see how much
has been accomplished in just one year (something we should all be
applauding and thanking the developpers for)!!.

 

There are only 2 significant issues that I can see in terms of your
library adopting Koha.

 

The first is that it would be preferable if there were a member of the
systems administration team who were familiar or willing to familarise
him- or herself with the program so that you would have technical
support closer to home.

 

The second -- and this is really the major one -- is that Koha is NOT at
present compatible viz. LC classification numbers. I am not sure what
the progress has been in the last several months towards that. I know
that the understandable focus of the developpers has been on achieving a
stable 2.0 release, which is now done.


In the meantime, perhaps somebody on the development side could reply
with a guesstimation on how long it might be until LC-numbers are usable
within Koha. Also, if there is a library that uses LC classification
that has found a way around this issue, it would be helpful to let the
community know.

 

Hope this lengthy response helps a bit, Peter. I think your library
would ultimately benefit greatly by adopting Koha.

 

Best wishes in your automation/migration project,

 

Steven F. Baljkas

library tech at large

Koha neophyte (and cheerleader!)

Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

	----- Original Message ----- 

	From: Peter Gichiri <mailto:pgichiri at strathmore.edu>  

	To: koha at lists.katipo.co.nz 

	Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 2004 4:09 AM

	Subject: [Koha] Library System

	 

	I am an assistant librarian working at Strathmore university, an
up-coming university in Kenya, Africa. We are scouting for a library
system that will address all the aspects of the library. We are using
the Library of Congress systems of cataloging books. We hope to have a
system that is compatible with other departments of the university for
we share enough information with other department. The university has a
well laid computer network.

	 

	Is Koha a suitable system and what are is the best way ahead.

	 

	Peter Wanyoike Gichiri

	Ass. Librarian

	Strathmore University

	 

	
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