i, quaid

Caught this recently, our local public library has chosen an open source solution (Koha ZOOM) and provider because, “We are convinced that open-source products provide greater functionality and control over what we can do with an ILS system,” (Dan Landry, Director of IT for SCPL). From the press release I was pleased to read that the library understands the related roles of free/libre and open source software and libraries:

SCPL has made productive use of open-source tools for the past eight years, and choosing the open-source Koha was a natural next step. “An open-source system also allows us a greater opportunity to be designers and contributors of the tools we use daily,” continues Dan. “Public libraries and open-source share a common vision of the importance of free and open access to information.”

Equally important is that the library is going to become a contributor to Koha. It’s like a library run by writers, imagine that:

The library plans to actively participate in the rapidly growing Koha community: “It is also important to us to participate in the growth of open source within the library community,” says Dan. “We are excited to be working with LibLime and hope to further the development of Koha jointly with other LibLime clients.”

LibLime, the company behind the Koha tools, provides information to assist libraries in choosing open source solutions. It seems well thought out and useful.