This item is in: Chandos > Management issues and personal development > Academic libraries
Practical Open Source Software for Libraries
Nicole C Engard, ByWater Solutions, USA
- provides a toolbox of practical software that librarians can use both inside and out of the library
- draws on the author’s wide-ranging practical experience with open source software both in and out of the library community
- includes real life examples from libraries and librarians of all types and locations
- gives librarians tips for using open source software with in their organizations
- includes access to a companion website with up-to-date links and facts
Open source refers to an application whose source code is made available for use or modification as users see fit. This means libraries gain more flexibility and freedom than with software purchased with license restrictions. Both the open source community and the library world live by the same rules and principles. Practical Open Source Software for Libraries explains the facts and dispels myths about open source. Chapters introduce librarians to open source and what it means for libraries. Readers are provided with links to a toolbox full of freely available open source products to use in their libraries.
ISBN 1 84334 585 4
ISBN-13: 978 1 84334 585 5
September 2010
200 pages 234 x 156mm paperback
Approx. £47.00 / US$80.00 / €60.00
Not yet published
About the author
Nicole C. Engard is the Director of Open Source Education at ByWater Solutions. Her primarry role is to educate librarians about open source software with a focus on the Koha Integrated Library System. Prior to this she worked in both Special and Academic Libraries and attended Juniata College where she received her BA in Literary Studies and Computer Programming and Drexel University where she completed her MS in Library and Information Science. In addition to her daily responsibilities, Nicole has been published in several library journals and keeps the library community up to date on web technologies via her website "What I Learned Today…" (www.web2learning.net). Some of Nicole’s previous publications include articles in Computers in Libraries, ONLINE Magazine, and the Journal of Hospital Librarianship and columns in Collaborative Librarianship. She is also the editor of Library Mashups: Exploring New Ways to Deliver Library Data (http://mashups.web2learning.net) published in 2009. For her innovative uses of technology in libraries, Nicole was named one of Library Journal's Movers & Shakers in 2007.
Contents
Introduction to Open Source: defines open source and open source principles for libraries. Debunks the myths and provides a history of open source software. This section also include results from a survey on library perceptions of open source. Practical Applications: Provide librarians with a powerful toolbox of open source applications they can use at home. Tools include operating systems, office tools, web development, photo management, library management systems, digital libraries and even some fun applications. Many applications in this section include real-world library use examples.