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Practical Open Source Software for Libraries

Nicole Engard, ByWater Solutions, USA

Chandos Information Professional Series

…an excellent resource for students, librarians and information management specialists.
Catholic Library World

This book is recommended for any librarian interested in learning more about open source options, and for general library studies collections.
Online Information Review

 - 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. The reader is provided with links to a toolbox full of freely available open source products to use in their libraries.

Readership: Staff at all levels within Library and Information Services as well as LIS students studying to become librarians.

£49.50 / US$85.00 / €60.00

An e-book version of this title is available to purchase as part of a Collection or Pick n Mix. Visit Chandos Publishing Online

About the author

Nicole C. Engard is the Director of Open Source Education at ByWater Solutions. Her primary 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.

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Numeric Data Services and Sources for the General Reference Librarian
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Transforming Research Libraries for the Global Knowledge Society

Contents

PART 1 INTRODUCTION TO OPEN SOURCE
PART 2 PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS FOR LIBRARIES

PART 1 INTRODUCTION TO OPEN SOURCE

What is open source?
 - Scratching an itch
 - Freedom for all
 - The costs of open source
 - Prevalence of open source
 - Sharing
 - Notes

Community and open source
 - Working together
 - Governing in open source
 - Health of the community
 - Notes

Debunking the myths
 - Homegrown is not open source
 - How can it be any good if it’s free?
 - Security and open source
 - Not worth the risk
 - Notes

Open source and libraries
 - Library budgets
 - Gift cultures
 - Thinking ahead
 - Notes

PART 2 PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS FOR LIBRARIES

Open source for day to day operations
 - Operating system
 - Virtual machines
 - Office suite
 - Statistics and data gathering
 - Improving day to day services
 - Notes

Open source web access
 - Open source web browsing
 - Expanding Firefox
 - A new browsing experience
 - Open source emailing
 - Instant messaging
 - A web of options
 - Notes

Open source media applications
 - Photo editing
 - Desktop publishing
 - Audio editing
 - Screencasting
 - Conclusion
 - Notes

Open source on the web
 - Getting files onto the web
 - Content management
 - Consulting with colleagues
 - Wikis
 - Conclusion
 - Notes

Open sourcing collections
 - Digital collections
 - Institutional repositories
 - Community built collections
 - Baskets of knowledge
 - Notes

Open source research tools
 - Subject guides
 - Additional research tools
 - Online course management
 - Teaching our patrons
 - Notes

Open source library automation
 - Open source faces
 - Open source it all
 - Taking the leap
 - Notes