 Serving public libraries in Cayuga, Cortland, Seneca, Tioga and Tompkins Counties 
119 E. Green St. |
FALCONS Meeting
Date: August 16, 2007
Minutes: Motion to accept May's minutes: Waverly, seconded by Groton and approved.
Present: Homer, Cortland, Seneca Falls, Waterloo, Trumansburg, TCPL, Lodi, Apalachin, Aurora, Union Springs, Weedsport, Waverly, Newfield, Groton, McGraw, Auburn, Candor, Dryden, and Owego, Rex, Robert, June, Annette, and Eric from FLLS.
Absent: Alternatives, Berkshire, Cato, Cincinnatus, Fair Haven, Interlaken, Lodi, Marathon, Moravia, Newark Valley, Nichols, Ovid, Poplar Ridge, Port Byron and Spencer.
Announcements:
1. New Director in Homer; Priscilla Berggren-Thomas
2. New Director in Dryden; Diane Pamel
Old Business:
1. Downloadable Media will be provided by Overdrive. FLLS staff is currently reviewing and picking the titles that will be available. Initially we will only be offering audio books. Once the lists are populated it will be opened up for the member libraries to look at. Augusts System Meeting will be a demonstration of Overdrive and Marisa handed out brochures for it. We are looking towards an October launch with marketing material available for all libraries. FLLS will be adding graphics and links to member library web sites that we maintain and supplying them to the libraries that maintain their own web site. Currently it's only compatible with the Overdrive console/Windows Media Player, WMA compatible MP3 players or can be burned to CD. Overdrive is looking at adding iPod support in the future. Gates Computers still need to be investigated to see if the Overdrive software will work with them. There are bandwidth considerations as well as thoughts on ability to burn CDs in the library versus downloading to an MP3 device.
2. Polaris 3.3 has been deployed and we're already looking to our next QA update. This QA release will fix a bug with the Patron Services toolbar and its missing icons. Label manager is set to automatically add all labels without clicking the icon to choose, this should be fixed so you only add the labels you want rather than deleting those you don't want at the end. The Item Record screen in cataloging will be user definable as to what screen you want to open it to. The QA release should also fix a problem with PowerPAC browse statistics and a bug in Reporting Services which will bomb out if you try to do a whole year. A 30 day notice will be given before the upgrade is installed.
3. The Gates Online Opportunity Grant is still in the works with the member libraries that qualified having been notified of such. Cortland had the largest grant of over $31,000. We will be looking to create a common hardware and software profile which we will be able to have installed on the computers by Dell. If any library has special software requests, let us know so that purchases and licensing of that software can be planned out in advance. Questions were raised about some type of PC reservation software as well as browser add-ons, this will be looked at as we get closer to purchase. All libraries will share the same software. It was noted by the Gates Foundation that the libraries should not speak to the press about this grant yet. Libraries not receiving Gates money will still be invited to purchase computers with the standard configuration.
4. Quick Bibs have been working well for the member libraries. Robert wanted it noted that the cheap ($1) DVDs that some libraries have been buying should not have a Quick Bib added for them, send them in for processing.
New Business:
1. The 2008 budget was presented and will increase by $3,588 over 2007 which is offset by additional staff clients purchased by some libraries in 2007. This is mainly due to an increase in Telecomm expenses while additional money is also being spent on Server and Firewall Support and an Air Conditioner Maintenance contract.
2. Simply Reports which allows the user to build their own reports from a menu may be available for Polaris at an additional cost to the member libraries. We are looking to have a presentation on Simply Reports at the next FALCONS meeting.
3. FLLS has hired a consultant to look at our logo and branding which may lead to a new FLLS logo. This would drive a change in the FLLS Patron Card design. We are also waiting for the Polaris Patron Merge functionality to be developed which would facilitate a move to a common card. No timeframe for either yet.
4. New peripheral pricing was announced. Epson receipt printer ribbons will still be $3 per ribbon while the Epson dot matrix receipt printer prices have dropped to $181. The new scanner being recommended is a HandHeld Products 3800G with USB cable, priced at $180. A flexible neck hands free stand accessory is $20. New Ithaca thermal receipt printers, priced at $213, were displayed. These do not use ribbons but use thermal paper instead. We can purchase the thermal receipt paper for $71 per box of 50 rolls which breaks down to $1.42 per roll. The new printers allow larger and more versatile printing and will not fade over time as ribbons are not involved. FLLS is stocking USB extension cables for $5 each. A question was raised about headphones. FLLS does not stock them but has purchased them on behalf of the libraries in the past. They generally run between $10 and $20.
5. June Gilligan announced an updated procedure for ILL books. The yellow slip that accompanies ILL books will have the due date on it that the member library should use when checking it out to a patron with a special loan period. June also tries to do all renewal requests on the same day.
Open Discussion:
1. Trumansburg asked if other libraries with wireless internet connections were having a problem where the wireless router needed to be reset. Cortland, Waverly, and Weedsport have a similar router and issue. We believe we have corrected Cortland's problem with a firmware upgrade. CNS department will work with the libraries to upgrade the other routers.
2. Trumansburg also brought up an issue with MySpace profiles on public computers. Partly it's a hole in the security on Windows 2000 that allows this to be installed. The security policies are not 100% secure. Windows XP computers have newer security software available and the CNS department has a plan in place to upgrade security on Windows XP computers to Microsoft Shared Computer Toolkit where it is not already installed.
3. Waverly has been investigating PC management software including PC Reservation and CASSIE. PC Reservation is over $5,000 while CASSIE is about $25 per computer per year with a $1,300 - $1,500 initial software install.
4. Robert announced that Susan Tompkins will be retiring on August 31 after 46 years with the Finger Lakes Library System. The cataloging position that she is leaving will be opening up in the near future.
5. Groton advised the members that Library Elf is a handy tool for tracking the books you and your family have checked out as well as notifying you when they are about to become overdue. FLLS has signed up with Library Elf.
6. Cortland has been experimenting with the Daily Cash Drawer and found that they usually have several hundred dollars more in the drawer than what Polaris is reporting. Possible that the fines are being collected by the clerk is clicking the "waive" button by mistake.
7. Waverly asked about deleting items. Items that are lost to patron should be deleted. When weeding, set to withdrawn and then delete. If it's the last item in the system then the bib record will also be deleted.
8. Dryden asked what to do with older computers when they have been replaced. CNS will develop a plan for cleaning computers of licensed software so that older computers can be donated or sold when they have been replaced.
Meeting adjourned:
Motion to adjourn by Newfield and seconded by Groton at 12 Noon.
Next Meeting:
November 15, 9:30 - 11:30 am