Transcript Open Source Software for Libraries

Computers in Libraries
Arlington, VA
April 8, 2008
The Open Source Landscape
Marshall Breeding
Director for Innovative Technologies and Research
Vanderbilt University
http://staffweb.library.vanderbilt.edu/breeding
http://www.librarytechnology.org/
Program Description
Interest in open source software has shifted into high gear
with the emergence of multiple viable options, even
reaching into the ILS realm. Breeding provides an
overview of the recent developments in the open source
movement in the library automation arena, describes
some of the current products and projects underway,
and gives some perspective on this alternative versus
the commercial, closed source products. He discusses
some of the issues that libraries should keep in mind if
they are considering implementing an open source
automation system and shares his view on how the open
source movement will impact the commercial library
automation industry.
Open Source Software
Broad Trends
Open Source Infrastructure
IT Infrastructure
Linux
 Apache

– Lucene
– Solr
MySql
 PostgreSQL

Web Server deployment
Source: Netcraft www.netcraft.com
Operating System Market Share
IDC figures for OS on new server
shipments 3Q 2007:
 Windows Server: 67.1%
 Linux:
22.8%

– Slight gain for Windows/loss for Linux over
previous quarter
Trends
Open Source Software well established in
for general IT infrastructure
 Linux emerging as the dominant flavor of
Unix
 Commercial options continue to prosper

Open Source Library Software
(non-ILS)
General Infrastructure Components

Index Data
– YAZ toolkit
 Z39.50
 SRU/W
– Zebra XML Search Engine
– Metaproxy
 “metasearching proxy front end server for
integrating access to multiple back-end Z39.50compliant databases”
– MasterKey federated search engine
Open Search Federated
Search
LibraryFind
Open source federated search
 Built-in OpenURL resolver
 3-teired caching
 Customizable interface
 Developed by the University of Oregon
Libraries

dbWiz
Open source federated search utility
 Developed at Simon Frasier University

Masterkey
Developed by Index Data
 Highly optimized, multithreaded searching
of many databases
 Faceted browsing of results
 Demo: masterkey.indexdata.com

Open source software from OCLC
http://www.oclc.org/research/software/
 Several OAI utilities

– OAIcat
– OAIHarvester
SRU/W
 OpenURL 1.0
 Pears: text storage and indexing

Digital Repository Applications
Fedora
Open source digital repository engine
 Not an out-of-the-box solution

– Many organizations have developed their own
interfaces and applications built on top of
Fedora
VTLS Vital product based on Fedora
 Supported by Fedora Commons

– http://www.fedora-commons.org/
Dspace
Institutional Repository Application
 Originally developed by Hewlett Packard
and MIT
 http://www.dspace.org
 Widely deployed by Universities for
institutional repository projects

Keystone
Developed by Index Data
 Open source digital repository application

– Digital content management
– Federated search
– OAI harvesting
– Link resolver services
Open source discovery
products
AKA: Next Generation Catalogs
VUFind – Villanova
University
Based on Apache Solr search toolkit
http://www.vufind.org/
eXtensible Catalog
University of Rochester – River Campus
Libraries
 Financial support from the Andrew W.
Mellon Foundation
 http://www.extensiblecatalog.info/

– Just received a second round of funding from
Mellon
 $283,000 (April 2006)
 $749,000 (October 2007)
– Wider institutional participation
Fac-Back-OPAC
Initially developed Dan Scott Laurentian
University
 Further work by Casey Durfee at the
Seattle Public Library
 Based on:

– MARCXML
– Solr
– Django (Python-based Web application
framework)
Scriblio
Formerly WPopac
 OPAC based on WordPress

Open Source in the ILS arena
Products and trends
Open Source ILS enters the
mainstream
Earlier era of pioneering efforts to ILS
shifting into one where open source
alternatives fall in the mainstream
 Off-the-shelf, commercially supported
product available
 Still a minority player, but gaining ground

Tracking the Open Source
Movement
Through Marshall’s articles and
columns
March 2002: Open source ILS: still
a distant possibility
“I do not, however, expect to see such victories
of Open Source software over commercial
products in the integrated library system arena.
Both broad historical and recent trends argue
against a movement toward libraries creating
their own library automation systems—either in
an Open Source or closed development process.”
 Early open source efforts included Avanti,
Pytheas, OpenBook, and Koha
 3 out of 4 now defunct

Source: Information Technologies and Libraries, Mar 2002
Oct 2002: An update on Open
Source ILS

“the open source systems such as the
three mentioned above are but a small
blip on the radar. Compared to the
thousands of libraries that acquire
automation systems from commercial
vendors each year, the handful that use
open source systems cannot yet be noted
as a trend. “
– Discussed Koha, LearningAccess ILS, Avanti
MicroLCS
Source: Information Today, Oct 2002
http://www.librarytechnology.org/ltg-displaytext.pl?RC=9975
… then the world changed
Mar 2007: On update on Open
Source ILS
“As I look back at my 2002 column on open source ILS, I see that I
mentioned both Koha and the Learning-Access ILS. Over this 4-year
time period I have seen Koha usage increase from a single library
system to two or more library systems plus a few individual public
libraries and a large number of other small ones. The
LearningAccess ILS is used in 15 libraries. Evergreen currently
represents the largest group of libraries sharing a single open
source ILS implementation.
Over the same time period, well over 40,000 libraries have purchased a
commercial ILS. So, relative to the entire library automation arena,
those using an open source ILS still represent a minuscule portion
of the whole.
That said, conditions are ripe for a more rapid adoption of open source
ILS than we have seen in the past. “
Source: Computers in Libraries, Mar 2007
http://www.librarytechnology.org/ltg-displaytext.pl?RC=12445
Mar 2008: Making a business case
for Open Source ILS
We’re living in a phase of library automation characterized
by an increased interest in open source-not just in
back-end infrastructure components but also in the
mission-critical business applications such as the
integrated library system. Open source library
automation systems, including Koha and Evergreen,
have been propelled into the limelight. Recent survey
data fails to corroborate broad interest that libraries are
ready to adopt open source ILS. The success of early
adopters of open source ILS now serve as a
catalyst for others. Paths now exist with more
mature systems and professional support options.
As the open source movement matures, these system
will need to compete on their own merits and not solely
on a philosophical preference.
Source: Computers in Libraries, Mar 2008
http://www.librarytechnology.org/ltg-displaytext.pl?RC=13134
Apr 2008: Automation System
Marketplace
“Last year marked the launch of the open source
ILS into the mainstream; it received major
attention in the press and at library conferences.
From a business perspective, open source ILS
contracts represented a very small portion of the
library automation economy. The success of
early adopters' implementations has already
diminished skepticism. Many indicators suggest
that open source ILS contracts will displace
larger percentages of traditional licensing
models in each subsequent year.
Source: “Automation System Marketplace: Opportunity out of Turmoil”
April 1, 2008
An industry in turmoil
Disruptions and business decisions to
narrow options have fueled the open
source movement
 Benefit to libraries in having additional
options
 Traditionally licensed and open source ILS
alternatives will coexist in the ILS arena

Open Source vs Traditional
licensing
Taking sides?
 Both viable options
 Avoid philosophical preference
 Which best supports the missions of
libraries?
 Which approach helps libraries become
better libraries

Current Open Source ILS
Product Options
Koha: first Open Source ILS
Koha + Index Data Zebra = Koha ZOOM
 Components:

– Perl
– Apache
– MySql
– Zebra: search engine option for larger
installations
Libraries committed to Koha

300+ libraries

Horowhenua Library Trust
Nelsonville Public Library

– Athens County, OH

Crawford County Federated Library System
– 10 Libraries in PA

Howard County, MD
– Service area population: 266300
– 4.7 million circulation transactions in 2006
– 1 million volumes


Central Kansas Library System
Santa Cruz Public Library
– Central, 9 branches
– 2 million volumes

Near East University Library
Koha
Evergreen
Developed by the Georgia Public Library
Service
 Small development team
 June 2004 – development begins
 Sept 5, 2006 – live production
 Streamlined environment: single shared
implementation, all libraries follow the
same policies, one library card

Libraries using Evergreen

Georgia PINES
– http://gapines.org

Georgia PINES:
– 1 Installation
– 54 Public Library Systems
– 260+ library facilities
– Does not include municipal systems: Atlanta-Fulton County,
Cobb County
Province of British Columbia in Canada –
Northern PINES
 Kent County, MD
 Under consideration by academic libraries in
Canada

Evergreen
OPALS

Open source Automated Library System
– http://www.mediaflex.net/showcase.jsp?record_id=52

Developed and Supported by Media Flex
– Harry Chan
– Original developer of Mandarin
– Installation ($250) and Hosting services ($750)
South Central Organization of (School) Libraries
 consortium of K-12 school libraries in NY

Libraries using OPALs





Dutchess County BOCES School Library System Union Catalog
Rockland County BOCES School Library System Union Catalog
– manage as many as half a million unique titles and close to a
million holdings.
South Central Organization Of (School) Library Systems
– 1.7 million titles and more than 3 million holdings for 300
schools
24 school libraries in Rockland County use OPALS open source
software to manage the daily operations of their libraries
In New York State, 15 BOCES School Library Systems provide
interlibrary loan services and building level management services to
900 school libraries using OPALS open source software
Source: Harry Chan. MediaFlex
SCOOLS
NextGenLib





ILS designed for the developing world
Originally traditionally licensed, introduced 2003
Transition to Open Source in Jan 2008
122 Installations (India, Syria, Sudan, Cambodia)
Collaborative project:
– Kesavan Institute of Information and Knowledge Management
– Versus Solutions
– Versus IT Services Pvt. Ltd

http://www.librarytechnology.org/ltgdisplaytext.pl?RC=13150
Learning Access ILS
Learning Access Institute
 Turnkey Open Source ILS
 Designed for underserved rural public and
tribal libraries
 http://www.learningaccess.org
 Defunct?

LearningAccess ILS
ILS Deployments
Unicorn
1704
Koha (Total)
Horizon
1612
Koha (LibLime)
Millennium
1289
Evergreen
Voyager
1183
OPALS
Aleph 500
1970
Library.Solution
700
200-300
90
272
58 / 170
Commercial Involvement
Companies formed to support
open source library products
The Open Source Business Front

Index Data
– Founded 1994; No ILS; A variety of other open source products to
support libraries: search engines, federated search, Z39.50 toolkit, etc

LibLime
– Founded 2005. Provides development and support services for Koha
ILS. Acquired original developers of Koha in Feb 2007.

Equinox.
– Founded Feb 2007; staff formerly associated with GPLS Pines
development team

Care Affiliates
– Founded June 2007; headed by industry veteran Carl Grant.

MediaFlex.
– Longstanding school library automation company. Latest generation ILS
developed in open source model
LibLime





Small, but growing, private company formed in
early 2005
Devoted to support of Koha and other open
source software
Launched by individuals involved with the Koha
implementation at the Nelsonville Public Library
Acquired the Koha activities of Katipo
Communications (Feb 2007)
Total of 20 FTE – Hiring industry veterans exiting
from traditional ILS companies
Equinox Software
Small company
 Devoted to facilitating libraries implement
Evergreen the open source ILS developed for
PINES
 Launched by individuals related to the
development and implementation of Evergreen
at the Georgia Public Library System
 Contracts to GPLS and other libraries for the
ongoing development and support of Evergreen

Care Affiliates
Recently formed company to provide
support for Open Source library
automation products.
 Carl Grant – Former COO of VTLS,
President of Ex Libris (USA), Innovative
Interfaces, DRA, etc.

Other Open Source Development
efforts
Duke University leading effort to develop
an open source or community source
project to develop a new ILS for higher
education
 Sponsoring project to design/build an
enterprise level automation system for
libraries in higher education
 Project currently in the grant development
phase, with likely start date of Summer
2008

Open Source Issues
Explosive interest in Open Source driven
by disillusionment with current vendors
 Seen as a solution to:

– Allow libraries to have more flexible systems
– Lower costs
– Not be vulnerable to disruptions that come
with mergers and acquisitions
Beginning to emerge as a mainstream
option
 TOC (Total Cost of Ownership) still roughly

Cost issues

Costs shifted from traditional software licensing
models
– No initial purchase of license or annual license fees






Hardware costs (same as traditional)
Vendor support costs (optional)
Hosting services
Conversion services
Local technical support (may be higher)
Development costs – vague models for nextgeneration development
Risk Factors

Open Source still a risky Alternative
– Dependency on community organizations and
commercial companies that provide development an
support services

Commercial/Proprietary options also a risk
– Opinions vary, but:
“the traditional ILS market is no longer a haven for the
risk adverse.”
(Northern PINES talking points
http://pines.bclibrary.ca/resources/talking-points)
Open source ILS Benchmarks
Most decisions to adopt Open Source ILS based
on philosophical reasons
 Open Source ILS will enter the main stream
once its products begin to win through objective
procurement processes

– Hold open source ILS to the same standards as the
commercial products
– Hold the open source ILS companies to the same
standards:
 Adequate customer support ratios, financial stability, service
level agreements, etc.

Well-document total cost of ownership
statements that can be compared to other
vendor price quotes
Measuring Interest in Open Source
ILS
Source: Perceptions 2007: an international survey of Library Automation
http://www.librarytechnology.org/perceptions2007.pl
Open Source Market share
Open Source ILS implementations still a small
percentage of the total picture
 Initial set of successful implementations will
likely serve as a catalyst to pave the way for
others
 Successful implementations in wider range of
libraries:

– State-wide consortium (Evergreen)
– Multi-site public library systems (Koha)
– School district consortia (OPALS)
Open Source perspective





Are open source ILS products taking library automation
in a new direction, or are they open source versions of
what we already have?
Will current slate of companies be able to support
increasing numbers of libraries without the same
difficulties as the incumbent ILS vendors?
The ILS landscape is forever changed by the open
source alternatives
Open Source ILS catching up with the Legacy ILS.
Urgent need for a new generation of library automation
designed for current and future-looking library missions
and workflows.
Questions?