On June 1, the Library will go live with the FOLIO Library Services Platform for managing day-to-day operations including the Library Catalog. This is the first time since we introduced the online catalog in 1988 that we’ve changed system vendors. Preparations, led by Joel Pearce, Director of Resource Management and Systems, have been ongoing for over a year.
As the migration date draws nearer, the Library will suspend all book and film purchasing & ordering. Faculty, students, and staff who would like the library to acquire books and films in early summer should get in their requests as soon as possible. The deadline for requesting print books and DVDs is May 6; the deadline for e-books and streaming films is May 13. Ordering will resume on July 5. Requesting items through interlibrary loan will not be affected.
FOLIO, unlike our current, proprietary system, is an open-source platform run by the library community—FOLIO stands for the “future of libraries is open”—which means we won’t be tied to one vendor and will be able to participate in the development of new apps and features. The catalog layer, VuFind, is also open source and was originally developed by librarians at Villanova University. The transition demonstrates the Library’s ongoing commitment to open source software. In fact, Lafayette Library is the first academic member worldwide of the Open Library Foundation, which supports FOLIO, VuFind, and other open source library projects.
Library users will notice these changes:
The staff of the Library appreciate your patience as we make this transition, especially as we expect that there will be some bumps along the road. If you notice problems with the new Catalog or with FullTextFinder, please don’t hesitate to report them to us at refdesk@lafayette.edu