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Re: [Koha-devel] Koha Foundation : Librarians comments


From: Russel Garlick
Subject: Re: [Koha-devel] Koha Foundation : Librarians comments
Date: Tue, 04 Apr 2006 08:39:39 +1200
User-agent: Debian Thunderbird 1.0.7 (X11/20051017)

Well done Irma.

Great to have some feedback on this idea.

Cheers

Russel

Irma Birchall wrote:
Hi all,

As promised, here is a short summary of comments received from a few librarians I spoke with, who have been involved in the evaluation and selection of a new ILS for their library, in the past 5 years. They all mention how challenging and time consuming a task it was. Especially for syndicated libraries.

Factors that have been mentioned regarding the adoption of proprietary software */over/* open source ILS are:

    * Not knowing of the existence of any open source, high-quality ILS.
      */Koha needs marketing!/*
    * How could they have determined whether the OS ILS is mature and
“business ready” enough for their purposes? * Is there continuum in the quality of the code through all the
      functionalities?
    * How can one rate this OS application when no other library in
      their district or network uses this OSS.
    * Longevity: Projects backed by commercials companies are seen to
      have more longevity.
    * Support: commercial software vendors have support staff dedicated
      to helping customers solve problems with the product.  For busy
      librarians, this was the main benefit in using proprietary software.
    * Rapid updates: libraries struggle anyway to keep up with change.
       Don’t open source projects all follow the “Release Early, Release
      Often” paradigm? Some functions might need upgrading but the rest
      is just fine.  How would that work?
    * These librarians accept: closed source code, having limited
      influence over roadmap, high costs, and limitations in functionality…
    * Traditionally, libraries have depended on proprietary software
      despite their limitations.  */There was no quality alternative./*//
    * These libraries or their parent organizations have no clear IT
      strategy regarding the use or non-use of open source application
      software.

Regarding Koha starting a Foundation or perhaps becoming part of an existing one: a few of the thoughts expressed

    * The response was positive when I mentioned that Koha is now 5!
      Multilingual and used in libraries around the globe.
    * They would feel more comfortable adopting an open source product
      if it had published books/manuals/documentation this would be seen
      as a strong indicator of the software’s level of maturity and
      adoption.  The Foundation could publish these.
    * How active and lively is the Koha community?  Being part of a
      Foundation could add to the expertise to the Koha community.
    * Becoming an independent foundation was viewed as a confirmation of
      professionalism and longevity.

Hope that helps,

Irma


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Russel Garlick
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