Table of Contents:
- Sirsi Appoints Chief Marketing Officer
- Unicorn 2004 Offers Unicode Compliance
- Sirsi Unveils PocketCirc Handheld Circulation Solution
- Sirsi Announces Wireless and IP Telephony Solutions Designed for Libraries
- Sirsi Offers Sun Ray 150 Ultra-Thin Clients
- Tech Logic now Sirsi SIP2-Certified
1. Sirsi Appoints Chief Marketing Officer
Angus Carroll has joined Sirsi as Chief Marketing Officer. Reporting to Sirsi CEO Patrick Sommers in this new position, Carroll will have overall responsibility for the company's integrated marketing strategies and tactics. Functional areas within Sirsi reporting to Carroll will include product management, corporate marketing, communications, and third-party and channel partnerships. Carroll brings to Sirsi more than 20 years of marketing experience in the information, education, and software industries.
Carroll holds an MBA in marketing from Fairleigh Dickinson University. He sits on the board of ECNext, a company that helps publishers optimize online content for Internet search engines. He is also a director of the Association of Applied Paleontological Sciences. Carroll has also published numerous non-fiction articles in the areas of travel, history, and science, including feature articles on rare chess books (co-authored with James Weinheimer at Princeton University Library) and early paleontological books and papers (co-authored with William B. Ashworth, Jr., of the Linda Hall Library at the University of Missouri).
2. Unicorn 2004 Offers Unicode Compliance
Unicorn 2004 will include a number of new features and enhancements, chief among them a new option for support of the Unicode Standard. Unicorn 2004 will also include WorkFlows 2004, which was introduced into beta earlier this year with Circulation and Cataloging modules, and now with Serials Control and Acquisitions modules. The general release of Unicorn 2004 will come in the fall. Along with other computing industry leaders, Sirsi's support of Unicode will enable its customers to better serve the multi-lingual needs of their institutions and users. Thanks to Unicode's standard encoding of characters, Sirsi customers using Unicorn and WorkFlows, as well as library users accessing Sirsi online public access catalogs, will be able to search, store, and retrieve all international character sets (roman and non-roman characters alike).
3. Sirsi Unveils PocketCirc Handheld Circulation Solution
Sirsi PocketCirc, a new circulation staff solution that helps libraries to extend services, increase operation efficiency, and save staff time, was unveiled at ALA in Orlando. Sirsi PocketCirc merges the simplicity of a handheld device with the online and offline circulation functionality of Sirsi's WorkFlows staff client and Unicorn Library Management System – including the ability to use wireless connections. Sirsi PocketCirc will be released in conjunction with Unicorn 2004 this fall. "Sirsi PocketCirc provides several advantages to performing traditional functions," said Berit Nelson, Sirsi's vice president of product management. "It frees library personnel to serve users and perform both online and offline circulation operations away from a computer by using a handheld device. By carrying the power of Sirsi within a PDA, staff can assist users when lines form; move into stacks for on-the-spot assistance, charging of materials, and record updating; and even use Sirsi PocketCirc on bookmobiles." Other benefits include the ability for staff to use a PDA to automatically update library records, or as a helpful option when there are power outages or when networks are down — all capabilities are possible because Sirsi PocketCirc can work in offline mode for upload into the Sirsi system later.
4. Sirsi Announces Wireless and IP Telephony Solutions Designed for Libraries
Sirsi has introduced two new consulting services for libraries interested in installing wireless and IP telephony (IPT) technologies within their facilities. These state-of-the-art networking technologies offer significant benefits to libraries – one benefit related to public service and the other to library productivity. Installation of WiFi hotspots in facilities can make libraries the "place to go" for the best in wireless access, while implementation of IPT can ensure that the vast amounts of data created and shared within libraries can be delivered faster and more reliably while integrating voice, data, and email.
Technology Partners for these services include Cisco Systems, Inc., the leader in networking for the Internet; Global Solutions Group, providing information technology design; and Bluesocket Inc., the leading vendor of open-systems wireless local area network (WLAN) systems to secure and manage wireless access to networks and the Internet. Sirsi library wireless hotspot services begin with an onsite, assessment allowing engineers to determine the best placement of wireless access points throughout the library building. This professional network design ensures that the library is fully covered with an RF (radio frequency) signal. "This makes certain that a good strong signal is available to each staff or patron 802.11 capable device," said Cook. "And, we develop a solution to meet that library's exact needs for WiFi." After the Sirsi plan is designed, Global Solutions Group installs and supports the network for the library and ensures that the Bluesocket Wireless Gateway security and management features are implemented to maximize the systems' integrity.
Sirsi's IP telephony services provide a complete implementation package for integrating IPT into existing library networks. IPT converges voice traffic, data traffic, and video traffic over the same network. "The greatest benefits of IPT are cost-effectiveness, easy implementation, and innovative services like using a single infrastructure to provide Internet access and telephone service," said Cook. "Additionally, IPT is software-oriented allowing these solutions to be easily integrated and scaled to meet other services and applications. Sirsi only uses Cisco, recognized as the leading authority on IPT systems."
5. Sirsi now Offers Sun Ray 150 Ultra-Thin Clients
Sirsi now offers the Sun Ray 150 Ultra-Thin Client with integrated smart card technology to users of its Java-based WorkFlows 2004 staff client software. These interoperable desktop computing solutions are ideal for cost-conscious, productivity-oriented libraries seeking to reduce the maintenance, upgrade, and operations costs associated with most PC client environments. With the Sun Rays, all application processing and storage remain on the server. In addition, the "stateless" nature of Sun Ray Ultra-Thin Clients allows for complete session mobility, improved workflow, central system management, and a rich, simple user experience. The new Sun Rays are available for WorkFlows 2004, the latest version of the powerful, flexible software that the library staff uses to interface with Sirsi's Unicorn Library Management System.
"These Ultra-Thin Clients with smart cards enable library staff members to access WorkFlows work sessions from any desktop unit within their workgroup," said Lamar Jackson, Sirsi's director of global alliances. "All a staff member has to do is swipe his or her smart card, which contains the staff member's profile, and the Sun Ray client opens up the staff member's work environment – regardless of who may have just been using that desktop. And since all computing occurs on the server, every user gains server-class performance of WorkFlows and other Sirsi solutions; which in turn, reduces the cost of putting comparable resources on every desktop. Users can move their session from desktop to desktop, supporting increased mobility, collaboration, and the ability to share desktops."
6. Tech Logic now Sirsi SIP2-Certified
Tech Logic's ACS Terminal version 1.4.0 is SIP2-Certified for the Unicorn Library Management System. "I am really looking forward to serving Sirsi clients to discuss automated solutions, listen to their needs, and explain how Tech Logic can personalize each system to meet the needs of each specific library," said Charlie Boyer, Tech Logic chief operating officer. "We are delighted to have received Sirsi SIP2-Certification, and we plan to make the most of it," said Boyer. Tech Logic Corporation provides effective material handling solutions and hardware for the library; only the library. Tech Logic products are designed to save the library time and money, improve the effectiveness and health of library staff, extend the life of library materials, reduce inventory, and allow the library to improve service to their patrons.
Sirsi Update Contact Information:
Stephanie Westbrook, Public Relations Manager (stephaniew@sirsi.com)
About Sirsi
In 2004, Sirsi Corporation (www.sirsi.com) celebrates 25 years as the strategic technology partner to more than 10,000 libraries around the world. A strong, growing company, we are dedicated to providing the library community with forward-thinking information technology solutions, including Sirsi Unicorn Library Management System, the first client/server-based and UNIX-based integrated library system; Sirsi iBistro and iLink, the first e-Library solutions with streaming enriched content; Sirsi Rooms, the first suite of context management solutions; and Sirsi Director's Station, the first information analysis tool for library executives. Sirsi maintains operations in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Colombia, the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Denmark, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Australia, and China.