laserblazer Posted October 9, 2013 Posted October 9, 2013 I've just learnt that we do not intend spending £300+ on the MLS support and our Librarian didn't use it at all this year, although I downloaded and installed the latest version. The worst bit is, she retires in 3 weeks time and we are interviewing for a new one. Some of the applicants have degrees in librarying but I bet they can't fix issues when microlibrarian throws a wobbly. Can anyone recommend a cost-effective alternative to run a small primary school library please?
X-13 Posted October 9, 2013 Posted October 9, 2013 Some of the applicants have degrees in librarying wut. Can anyone recommend a cost-effective alternative to run a small primary school library please? I really wish I could... We're using Junior Librarian and it's caused so many problems. 1
TechMonkey Posted October 9, 2013 Posted October 9, 2013 (edited) Koha - Open Source ILS - Integrated Library System Open Source Library System. Not used it but I seem to remember setting up for a poke around previously and it seemed good. Edited October 9, 2013 by TechMonkey 1
LeMarchand Posted October 9, 2013 Posted October 9, 2013 I've just learnt that we do not intend spending £300+ on the MLS support and our Librarian didn't use it at all this year, although I downloaded and installed the latest version. The support or JL? Most of my schools are still using older versions of JL as they don't want to pay the annual fee for something they rarely need to se. 1
laserblazer Posted October 9, 2013 Author Posted October 9, 2013 The support or JL? Most of my schools are still using older versions of JL as they don't want to pay the annual fee for something they rarely need to se. The support. Wasn't there a major issue earlier this year that needed an update to fix it?
LeMarchand Posted October 9, 2013 Posted October 9, 2013 Wasn't there a major issue earlier this year that needed an update to fix it? Not that any of my lot have reported to me! Maybe it only affected the current version.
MLS Posted October 10, 2013 Posted October 10, 2013 Hello, Hope I can help out. X-13, sorry to hear about your troubles, if you are still having problems I'd love to assist you. Please contact me on [email protected]. Laserblazer, sorry to hear your dropping our subscription and I hope the only reason we have been subscribed to previously, was not just to fix problems. We do provide a host of benefits with our subscription. I'll avoid advertising them on here but I am very happy to share over PM if anyone needs more info. If there is anything else I can help with then pleas edon't hesitate to email me directly. 1
X-13 Posted October 10, 2013 Posted October 10, 2013 (edited) I hope the only reason we have been subscribed to previously, was not just to fix problems. That's literally the only reason we have a subscription. And I still think it's wrong to charge for updates. We do provide a host of benefits with our subscription. I'll avoid advertising them on here but I am very happy to share over PM if anyone needs more info. Or... actually tell people openly what they DON'T have to pay for. Edited October 10, 2013 by X-13
witch Posted October 10, 2013 Posted October 10, 2013 Up until this year we have been very happy with the network version of microlib in one school, and a stand-alone in the other. But this year everything went wrong. The support is still ace, IF you can get through to anyone - and that is the problem. I have waited 45 mins and got nowhere on more than one occasion. I certainly cannot fix either problem! We are now in week 4 and neither school can use their library @X-13 There has always been a very good degree in library and information science - although these days it tends to be a masters. It is very detailed and not about stamping books! Don't fall into the trap of sneering at something you don't understand 1
X-13 Posted October 10, 2013 Posted October 10, 2013 Don't fall into the trap of sneering at something you don't understand Hey now, I sneer at things I understand as well. 1
laserblazer Posted October 10, 2013 Author Posted October 10, 2013 There has always been a very good degree in library and information science - although these days it tends to be a masters. It is very detailed and not about stamping books! Don't fall into the trap of sneering at something you don't understand I didn't mean my "degree in librarying" as a derogatory comment, it was the description the Dep Head gave me as several of the applicants had related degrees but with different names. I'm sure whoever we get will be very capable and will bring good stuff to the school.
witch Posted October 10, 2013 Posted October 10, 2013 I didn't mean my "degree in librarying" as a derogatory comment, it was the description the Dep Head gave me as several of the applicants had related degrees but with different names. I'm sure whoever we get will be very capable and will bring good stuff to the school. It wasn't your comment I was reacting too, but X-13's. I know you well enough to know that you wouldn't mean anything derogatory. Is it possible that the applicants will have experience on various library systems that you could look at? It would be on the application forms? 1
X-13 Posted October 10, 2013 Posted October 10, 2013 (edited) It wasn't your comment I was reacting too, but X-13's. Our librarian has library related qualifications. I said a similar thing to her [in jest, of course]. Edited October 10, 2013 by X-13
laserblazer Posted October 10, 2013 Author Posted October 10, 2013 Is it possible that the applicants will have experience on various library systems that you could look at? It would be on the application forms? I did suggest that to the DH but do they listen to me?
DjinnGA Posted April 12, 2018 Posted April 12, 2018 (edited) The alternative we went with is QuickTrack Pro For Schools It's software that just runs on the computer and is not at all web based (except looking up the book info when adding them). It's much cheaper than Micro Librarian at £157/year and comes with free support via email/TeamViewer and a barcode reader. They also sent a backup of the software on a USB Stick and helped us transfer our existing data from Micro Librarian. Edited April 12, 2018 by DjinnGA
Zoom7000 Posted April 12, 2018 Posted April 12, 2018 But this year everything went wrong. The support is still ace, IF you can get through to anyone - and that is the problem. I have waited 45 mins and got nowhere on more than one occasion. I certainly cannot fix either problem! We are now in week 4 and neither school can use their library This. I'd argue the support isn't great though and if you've been waiting 45 mins, you've been lucky. I was on hold for over an hour a few months back and then had to cancel the call to attend a meeting. The trouble is that there doesn't seem to be a user friendly (minimal setup) alternative out there.
Simcfc73 Posted April 13, 2018 Posted April 13, 2018 We've just set the ball in motion to move to Access-It. We got a decent deal and it will end up cheaper after year 2 by a few hundred quid. The interface looks nicer in the demo we got. Leaving Microlib seems easy enough, they even have a box on the termination contract for you to get a copy of your data.
LeMarchand Posted April 13, 2018 Posted April 13, 2018 Leaving Microlib seems easy enough, they even have a box on the termination contract for you to get a copy of your data. Just make sure you give them plenty of notice and be prepared for a lot of phone calls...
Quay12 Posted April 13, 2018 Posted April 13, 2018 The trouble is that there doesn't seem to be a user friendly (minimal setup) alternative out there. We are using QuickTrack Pro and the software guides you through the setup and the basic setup was finished in less that 30 minutes and then just needed to import the CSV files exported from MLS which the Peninsula Technicians helped me to export.
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