Monies and OCLC new Browser req.

[David Merchant]

At 10:33 AM 2/11/99 -0800, Wilfred Drew wrote:
>Maybe I'm missing something here.  Why wouldn't you want the latest browsers
>for public stations?

It's not quite a matter of want only, unfortunately.

>We are currently using IE 4.0 on our computers.  It is free.  It can also be
>locked down in a Windows 95/98  or Windows NT environment. Why shouldn't
>libraries be finding monies to keep powerful enough machines out there to
>provide the latest in information resources for their patrons?

We're trying to find monies to buy books (the average copyright age of our
collection is too embarrassing to admit in public), monies to unfreeze
frozen positions, monies to replace very very old elevators, monies to
replace an heating and cooling system that goes down every week, etc, etc,
etc, etc.  Unfortunately, monies are tight, we would LOVE to find monies to
keep powerful enough machines.  And we are trying, very much so.  And to a
degree succeeding. 

>We are continually replacing computers in our library.  We build it into our
>budget.  Currently we have 6 public machines all of which are Pentium based.

We have 22 public machines in Reference center, and we have computers in
Media center, Government Docs, the Electronic Classroom as well (and 30+
staff computers, and some of the staff needs access to some of the services
that will demand upgrading browsers to 4.0 versions).

>The oldest is two years old and the newest is 6 months old.  I know money

We have too many 286 machines, to let you know the age of some of ours!

>and staffing make such things difficult for many libraries but the effort
>must be made.  Technology is a moving target and we must move with it.

The effort is being made, a strong, long, continous, ardous effort.  Effort
isn't always enough, there is only a limited, finite amount of funds the
boar, the reagents can dole out, and other departments are making their
strong, long, continous, ardous efforts to get monies for technology as
well.  And then, when I was at UTK, there are State budget shortfalls where
they come to the University and demand money gets returned, and let me tell
you, that works havoc on budgets.  The library there said "personnel is #1
priority" and so they would cut back on book buying and upgrading of
technology rather than lay off an employee (which was very honorable on
their part to do that).  I don't understand vendors who think money for
libraries grows freely on trees, or that library budgets are always stable
and/or easily expandable.

TTFN,
David Merchant
Systems Librarian, Louisiana Tech University
   http://www.latech.edu/tech/library/
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