DES PLAINES, ILLINOIS, Aug. 26, 2002: Endeavor Information Systems announced today that the Columbia University Libraries, New York City, New York, selected the Voyager integrated library management system to manage the 7.5 million volumes of the eighth largest academic library system in the United States. Voyager replaces the NOTIS system at Columbia. Since 1994, Endeavor has converted over 220 NOTIS libraries, including 18 ARL members who previously used the NOTIS system.
The data conversion of Columbia's 3.5 million bibliographic records and 1.5 million authority records will be handled by Endeavor's data migration and implementation teams, who have extracted and migrated the unique NOTIS data for libraries of all sizes.
With growing population of over 21,000 high-caliber students (6,500 undergraduate, 14,500 graduate and professional), the Columbia Libraries searched for a system that would provide stability as the library grows and as Columbia researchers continue to take advantage of the resources of a networked world. Seamless integration with the existing campus authentication system was also important: the Voyager system facilitates authentication of users via external validation systems such as LDAP or Kerberos. Within the Voyager systems, patrons are validated for Z39.50 and Voyager-to-Voyager connections via access control groups based on IP address, IP range, domain name or patron groups.
With large collections of foreign language materials and students from 140 countries, the integration of Unicode™ standards was also important. With the globalization of the Web, students and researchers now expect to be able to find information in all languages and scripts. Voyager's incorporation of the Unicode™ standard will provide the framework that extends this ability to the library catalog.
"Endeavor is a company with the vision to continually develop software systems that anticipate the needs of academic and research libraries like Columbia," said Columbia representatives. "We are very pleased to find a system in Voyager that recognizes the integral processes of libraries and accommodates those needs with advanced technology."
"With now 33 ARL members who have shared needs, the smart design of Voyager is a solid decision for so many institutions like the Columbia University Libraries, and all libraries that demand flexibility, security and usability as they grow," said Jane Burke, Endeavor's President and CEO. "Endeavor continues to develop Voyager with the scalability to serve the world's largest libraries, valuable mid-size libraries and the very important single-librarian institutions that make up our international knowledge management community."
About Columbia University Libraries
Columbia University Libraries is the nation's eighth largest academic library system, with 7.5 million volumes, 49,000 serials, as well as extensive collections of electronic resources, manuscripts, rare books, microforms and other non-print formats. The collections are particularly strong in humanities and history, architecture, East Asian and other Area Studies materials, oral history, theater, and original materials in English and American literature and history. The collections and services are organized into 22 libraries, supporting specific academic or professional disciplines. The Library's web site www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb is a gateway to the print and electronic collections and services.
About Endeavor Information Systems
Endeavor Information Systems, based in Des Plaines, IL, was founded in September of 1994. Over 1,100 academic and research libraries of every size have chosen Endeavor's high performance Voyager integrated library system, 38 libraries have selected ENCompass and 46 have selected LinkFinderPlus. Endeavor offers a complete line of library solutions for traditional and digital collections. Visit Endeavor at www.endinfosys.com for more information about Voyager, ENCompass, or LinkFinderPlus.