LINK 2.0 Koha

Update on 4.12 Upgrade

If all goes well, we are planning on doing the upgrade to LibLime Koha 4.12 the week of May 28.  It will most likely occur on the evening of May 29 due to the Memorial Day holiday.  Testing is underway and so far we have identified one bug that will need to be fixed prior to the upgrade.  We are working on the Release Notes and will make them available next week so that you can prepare for the fixes and new features that will be included.  At this time we do not expect substantial workflow changes.

We do expect that there will be a fix to Talking Tech (Harriet) so that patrons are not called for holds they have picked up (SCLS Support Ticket 40862). There is really no way for us to test this ahead of time, so we may want to be prepared for some tweaking to occur to this process on the day of the upgrade.

4.10 LibLime Koha Upgrade "Coming Soon"

 

We are planning to do the 4.10 LibLime Koha Upgrade in mid-January (no specific date yet).  The LibLime elves are working on completing the final bug fixes.  Next week, ILS staff will be doing additional testing in the sandbox and begin preparing the documentation for the upgrade.  Included in the 4.10 upgrade are:

• Last patron information (more details coming next week)
• Holds Managament which resolves the problems with manipulating holds when there are a large number on a single bib. See the Holds Managament document under Testing on the ILS Web Site Training page. We strongly encourage you to look at this in the sandbox as it substantially changes the way holds are displayed for staff.
• Display Agency code when checking in holds
• Improvements to relevancy ranking (more details coming soon)
• Many bug fixes (more details coming soon)

We realize there are a lot of "details coming soon", but we wanted to get the word out about this upgrade as soon as possible.

Following this upgrade, LibLime will be delivering to our sandbox a substantial number of additional bug fixes and enhancements pertaining to our contracted development. We are working on a complete list which is "coming soon."  This will be the beginning of LibLime Koha 4.11 which will also include our next phase of new development.

 

Testing, testing, testing

Testing in the LibLime Koha 4.9 Sandbox

I am pleased to report that we received a great response to our call for general software testing in the sandbox.  Here are some statistics:

• We had 16 checklists covering the various modules.
• We had 56 individuals participate in testing!
• The most tests that one person completed was 8.
• We had testers from 23 libraries.

This testing was in preparation for the 4.10 upgrade which will be coming in mid-January 2012.  We asked for people to test to identify bugs in the sandbox that can be fixed before we go into production.

Thanks to each and every one of you who helped out. You will be receiving a little Thank You in delivery.

More details on what will be included in 4.10 will be coming shortly.

Upgrade to 4.9 Sandbox: fixes to holds management and agency code at checkin

We recently received an upgrade to our Koha sandbox. Links to the sandbox can be found on the ILS web site Training page. Koha now displays the full library name and the agency code when checking in transit holds. You can try this out yourself in the sandbox. This is the development project we contracted to fix SCLS Support Ticket 40354.

I also would like to bring your attention to a substantial improvement in the way that holds management works from the staff side.  This is the completion of our first post go live development project which was contracted to improve the following:

You cannot place holds on titles with a large number of holds (e.g. Smokin' seventeen, The King's speech (DVD)) in the staff client. You can place holds on these titles in the PAC. Also, you cannot view the holds lists or change pickup locations for these titles. (SCLS Support Ticket 39880)

LibLime has provided us with documentation for the new holds development which you can find on the Training page under the Testing Documents section. Holds management will look quite different, so now is a good time to read the document and try out this new functionality in the sandbox before it is added to our production database. [Note: as of right now the sorting feature has ascending and descending order reversed.  We have reported this to LibLime.]

LINKcat Development Update

The Known Problems spreadsheet (web site password required) has been updated to include newly identified bugs and problem fixes since early September.  We have also created a document called "Detailed Descriptions of Prioritized Projects" which you will see right by the spreadsheet.  This document provides more information on where we are at with each project that does not fit well into a spreadsheet.  Both of these documents will be updated periodically.

We would like to point out that we don't have to "trade" one project for another.  We often see people saying this when talking about a problem in an email exchange.  All prioritized projects are actively being worked on in one way or another (writing specs, being quoted, in development, in testing, etc). The difference is in the order in which they are being completed.  In general, the problems that were reported earliest are at the top of the list of priorities. 

Migration Updates for week of 1/10/2011

FAQ

The Koha migration FAQ has been updated. SCLS staff are compiling answers on all types of issues pertaining to the migration.  You will see "dead" links where future topics will be posted.  Check back frequently for new information. http://psw.scls.lib.wi.us/ils/koha/faq/index.html (login required)

Check-in Notes

This week we approved development for the new check-in notes feature.  This feature will allow you to create a check-in note for any item.  Check-in notes will appear when the item is checked in. Staff will have the option to keep or delete the note at that time. The really good news is that the existing check-notes from your item records will migrate into the new check-in notes on Koha.

Ownership of Items and Editing Item Statuses

Another development project we are working on is the "ownership" of items.  This feature will prevent staff from one library accidentally modifying items from another library. However, libraries need to be able to change many of the item statuses for all libraries' items. This week we approved a development project that allows libraries to modify statuses even if they do not own the item.

Third Party Product Vendor Collaboration

This past month we have been working with LibLime and some of our third party vendors. We have been testing checkout and check-in on a self check unit that is on loan from ITG. We are testing check-in to assure that libraries will be able to use automated materials handling (sorters) with Koha.  We sponsored a project to add to the SIP2 data that is transmitted from Koha in order to handle holds check-ins.  ITG has been working closely with LibLime on this.

We have been working with Talking Tech to fine tune the call-in and holds notification call out processes. Again, Talking Tech is working closely with LibLime.

LibLime has also been finishing the electronic ordering, receiving and invoicing component of the acquisitions module (GetIt).  They are working with all of the vendors with which we do electronic ordering.

This project has become a truly collaborative effort between libraries and multiple vendors.

 

 

LINK 2 Koha Migration--the final stretch

We are closing in on the final month of our Koha migration.  This seems an appropriate time to provide an overiew of where we are at with the various aspects of this project.

Software Development

We are close to receiving all of our final development and we are testing as fast as we can.  We will then continue to work with LibLime/PTFS to fine-tune the projects based on the reports we provide them from testing. All development should be in place by the end of 2010 so that we have a stable database for you to do your final training in January (see under Training below).  The training database will be upgraded at that time. LibLime/PTFS is also working on the response time issues and they are working with all of our third party vendors to make sure those products work well with Koha. Please see the Development Projects status page if you are interested to see where we are at with all of the projects (ILS web site login and password required).

Preparation for Go Live

SCLS is preparing to support the ILS libraries during the Go Live on January 17 and 18. We will be providing a variety of ways to assist with what will most likely be a stressful period for the libraries.  Please read the recent blog post regarding the Go Live details. It is important that ILS libraries read this post as soon as possible as we are asking for information from you by Friday, December 17.

Koha Comments and Questions

We have continued to receive great comments and questions via the Koha Comments and Questions form. However we have had difficulty in keeping up with answering them! We have discussed this with the ILS Committee and they have agreed that it would be OK if we do not address each submission directly.  We will either add them to a FAQ or incorporate them in to our training. Please do continue to submit your comments and questions as we will continue to review them and they are very helpful to us.

Training

The hands-on serials workshops are being conducted now.  All other hands-on workshops are completed.  For the next several weeks, we recommend that staff continue to use the Koha Training database to familiarize themselves with navigation and the basic functions. When the training database is updated with our new development in early January, that would be a good time to conduct final in-depth training in the library. To assist with this we will be producing a variety of to-the-point webinars and online tutorials to address new development and specific functions. Staff will be able to watch these on demand. These will be posted on the Koha Training page. Now would be a good time to watch the webinars already recorded and also found on that page. If you have suggestion for training topics, please use the Koha Comments and Questions form and include the words "Training topics" at the beginning of the Comments box.

Data Migration

We have begun the final cutover phase of the data extraction.  On December 9, all bibliographic and item records were extracted from Dynix.  We are about to begin testing item records.  See the Migration Events page for specific details of the remainder of the data migration.

PR and Patron Education

The SCLS PR and Patron Education committees have been busy too. The PR Committee is working on ways to inform patrons of the various down-time and the changes coming to LINKcat.  The Patron Education Committee is developing materials such as bookmarks and online tutorials to assist patrons with using the upgraded LINKcat.

SCLS Technology Staff

The technology staff are working on various aspects of the migration as well.  For a peek behind the scenes, see the recent TechBits post.  It would be fair to say that virtually everyone at SCLS has been involved in the LINK to Koha migration in one way or another.

"Today we are the shapers of the world tomorrow"--Walt Disney

At the SCLS All Directors meeting on May 27, I talked about goals and directions for the shared ILS in 2011.  It might seem odd to think about 2011 when we are so entrenched in the current migration to Koha.  However, we need to continue to look to the future and with Koha we will have the opportunity to shape the ILS and the PAC to meet library needs for years to come.  At the meeting, I mentioned several areas we might explore in 2011, once our migration is behind us.  Two of these were based on topics presented at the recent WiLS Peer Council meeting.

The first goal is to expand the digital presence in LINKcat.  There are several great resources in the state of Wisconsin that we may be able to incorporate into LINKcat: the Wisconsin Digital Archives, University of Wisconsin Digital Collections, and Wisconsin Heritage Online.  Some of you may already be familiar with the projects and some of you may already be participating.  In 2011, we hope to explore ways to improve access to these resources for SCLS patrons.  This is a very attainable goal.

The second idea is to look at ways to reshape the way information is presented in the Public Access Catalog (PAC).  This goal is a little more lofty and will take years to attain.  Karen Coyle talked about the idea of the "semantic web."  This is a complicated concept and it is tied in to MARC cataloging.  If you are interested in this topic, please take a look at Karen's web site. For examples of what features might look like in a future PAC, see openlibrary.org and WorldCat identities.

In case, you are wondering about the quote.  I'm a bit of a Walt Disney fan and I appreciate what a visionary he was. It is amazing how many quotes there are from him that have to do with looking to the future. This one is on a pin that I purchased at Disney World.

SCLS migration to Koha is postponed until the end of 2010

The Go Live date for the SCLS migration to Koha is postponed until the end of 2010.

As many of you are aware, PTFS recently acquired LibLime—the vendor that is supporting our Koha ILS.  Patrick Jones of LibLime/PTFS met with SCLS staff last week and provided an update on the status of the SCLS development project. The good news is that there are around 50 out of our 110 active development features that are in some stage of completed development.  The not-so-good news is that all of the rest have little or no work done on them at all.  It is pretty certain that the core functionality determined by member libraries would not be completed in time for our projected Go Live date of September 7, 2010.

Given the two options of going live with less than our full slate of core development projects or postponing the migration to the end of 2010, SCLS has decided, based on feedback received from member libraries both at a meeting with libraries and Patrick on May 13^th and throughout the migration process, that it is important to have the system functioning as we need it on Go Live. 

There are other benefits to delaying the migration.  The summer training program was proving problematic due to staff vacations and summer reading program.  Postponing to the end of year means that the cataloging and acquisitions cutoff will be at a time when this activity declines naturally.  There will be one year-end process (on Dynix only) which means that libraries will have just one set of reports to work with for the state annual report.  Acquisitions libraries will be able to begin on a new fiscal year, instead of in the middle of a year in progress.  Migrating over one of the December holidays will mean that more libraries are closed for more days than if we migrated over the Labor Day holiday. 

Given that the end of the year seems a more ideal time to migrate, you may wonder why we picked Labor Day to begin with.  The reason was that we expected that we would need to be off of our Dynix Classic system by the end of November, 2010.  However, when the 2010 budget was set, it was decided to extend the Dynix maintenance agreement to the end of February, 2011.  The end of the year migration still gives us breathing room between the migration and the end of the Dynix maintenance agreement.  We have not selected an actual migration date, but here is a rough timeline based on the postponement:

• May-July: Migration committees continue development testing, data migration testing and setup
• August: Staff Koha “sandbox” with SCLS library data made available for training
• August-September: Provide webinars and online tutorials to introduce staff to Koha
• October-November: SCLS staff conduct regional hands on train-the-trainer workshops
• October-December: In-library training (done by library trainers)
• Late November/Early December: Acquisitions and cataloging cutoff
• December: SCLS staff conduct online refresher workshops
• End of December: Migration

Playing in the sandbox

We now have a Koha test PAC (online catalog for patrons) available for you to use to try out Koha searching, patron account management features, lists, etc. The test PAC is called a "sandbox," meaning that it's there to "play" in. So feel free to dive in and start playing. Don't worry about breaking anything! The sandbox contains SCLS data that was extracted from Dynix. The data is three months old, so anything that has changed in Dynix in the past three months will not be in the sandbox. Also, keep in mind that this a test setup, so some options are not fully set up.

The web site for the sandbox PAC is http://scls.sandbox.kohalibrary.com. I have set up a test login that can be used to log in to the patron account features of the PAC. You can search the PAC without logging in, but you can use this login to place holds, create private lists, etc. The login information is:

Login: koha

Password: koha

If you have comments or questions about Koha, please log them with SCLS staff by filling out this form: http://automation.scls.lib.wi.us/forms/koha.html. Please note that SCLS staff may not be able to respond to all comments individually.