[Web4lib] An Analysis Of Open Source ILS Market Penetration

[Emele Dykes]

Karen & Bill,

I'd agree with your statements.  It's a slow moving barge but I don't 
think you're seeing it up to steam yet.  Let me share my take on what is 
happening with libraries in my province, British Columbia, Canada.

Our province has a type of library board that influences all of the 
libraries in our province.  The province noted that some of the smaller 
libraries who had been on some older SirsiDynix ILS were going to be 
suffering due to lack of support for their systems, and knowing that the 
small libraries didn't have the capacity to deal with major changes to 
technology, the province stepped in and made a strategic partnership 
with Evergreen.  As far as I know, some of these small libraries should 
have already switched over to Evergreen this fall.  In addition the 
province made a blanket statement about wanting all libraries in the 
province to embrace Evergreen within 5 years. 

Interestingly enough there has been no mention from management at our 
library about Evergreen but I am aware that our CEO is apart of the 
provincial group that deals with the Evergreen plan.  I suspect in a few 
years when our contract with Innovative comes up for renewal that 
discussions will occur within our library about ILS choice.  In addition 
I suspect that there will be a strong push for Evergreen, and that 
budget money from the province might be tied to our choice of ILS (ie 
pick Evergreen or lost funding). 

On the other hand, I suspect and hope that a few years down the road 
Evergreen will be a robust enough system (and its kinks worked out) 
that  a large and busy library system like ours could successfully adopt 
it. 

Perhaps I might compare the adoption of open source ILS systems to a 
slow moving freight train heading up a hill.  By no means has the hill 
been crested, and by no means is the train at full steam.  The train is 
still building power and speed.  You can't even see all the workings 
going on inside of it but engineers are busy adding fuel to its fire, 
and when the train crests the hill it is going to come barreling down 
the other side faster then many suspect it was capable of.

Emele Dykes, B.Comm.
Web & Database Administrator
Greater Victoria Public Library
http://www.gvpl.ca

e-mail: edykes at gvpl.ca
phone:  (250) 413-0352 x261

"Do not adjust you mind, it is reality that is malfunctioning."



Bill Hudson wrote:
>> plan, and deploy. I'm not sure what the report demonstrates except the
>> "slow-moving barge" syndrome. Or am I missing something?
>>     
>
> Karen, I think you are dead on. I was recently at a state level meeting with
> a rep from GA Pines and saw a lot of interest from others at the meeting.
> The Pines folks have had conversations with others from all over the world
> and at that time, 19 different states. There is a great deal of interest in
> the open ILS, and Evergreen in particular. A slow moving barge is probably a
> good analogy, but if the development of the Evergreen product continues at
> its current pace, I expect it to put a serious hurt on the other major ILS
> vendors within less than 5 years.
>
> Bill Hudson
>
>  
> ****************************************************************************
>
> Bill Hudson, Deputy Administrator
> Manager, Information Technology Services
> Library System of Lancaster County
> 1866 Colonial Village Lane, Suite 107
> Lancaster, PA 17601
> V. 717.207.0500 x1269 F.717.207.0504
> www.lancasterlibraries.org
>
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