INWOOD, WV, June 7, 2002- The Library Corporation (TLC), creator of BiblioFile and SchoolLibrary.Solution, has aligned with library automation vendor Surpass Software to meet the needs of small school libraries and school districts that prefer a distributed library automation system. TLC will continue to serve large school districts with its own centralized integrated automation system, SchoolLibrary.Solution, an Oracle-based system that serves some of the largest school districts in the U.S.
TLC will sell Surpass Software's automation products to primary and secondary schools - Surpass's target market. While TLC's SchoolLibrary.Solution provides centralized library automation on a single Oracle database server for each school district, the Surpass product provides library automation that is maintained at the school level, providing a database server at each site. "We believe Surpass offers the best solution for districts that want individual schools to manage their own library automation systems. The ease of use, advanced feature set, and reliability of Surpass's circulation module is unmatched in its market space," said Chris Laughary, Director of TLC's School Division.
"TLC's BiblioFile product successfully served thousands of schools on the DOS operating system before Microsoft produced Windows. If TLC had produced a version of BiblioFile for the Windows operating system, we believe it would function much like Surpass Central," Mr. Laughary said. "The Surpass development team, led by Danny Humphress, has done outstanding work with this product. Instead of diverting resources from TLC's Oracle-based SchoolLibrary.Solution, TLC has chosen to sell Surpass's product to the market segment previously served by BiblioFile."
Surpass Software has provided easy-to-use library automation to more than 1,000 schools in the past 17 years. Its product line offers a full-featured suite of 32-bit Windows and Web-based applications ideal for school libraries automating for the first time or upgrading from other packages. Surpass is known for its affordability, usually costing up to 25 percent less than competing systems. It's also known for easy adaptation to individual library needs and for continually integrating customer suggestions into new product releases.
"Together TLC and Surpass Software will offer schools and districts of any size a solution that fits their needs and budget," said Jarrett Volzer, president of sales and marketing for Surpass Software. "Both software solutions will provide libraries with the most reliable, easy-to-use software on the market. Surpass is pleased to align our company and products with TLC, a company that shares our vision for providing not only a high quality line of products, but also a high level of customer support."
TLC offers Surpass on a 60-Day Free Trial. For more information contact TLC at 800.325.7759.
The Surpass Software Automation Product Line includes:
- Surpass Central: Circulation, administration and cataloging
- Surpass Safari: Public access catalog
- Surpass Shuttle: Supports portable inventory barcode equipment
- Surpass Web Safari: Puts the library's collection on the Web
- Surpass Serials: Serials management for use with Surpass or other automation packages
- Marc Junction: Web sites in MARC format to integrate into the OPAC of any library automation software
Surpass Software was founded in 1985 by Danny Humphress. Surpass products are distributed from the company's sales offices in Calhoun, Georgia, Dublin, Ireland, and London, England. Visit www.surpasssoftware.com to learn more.
TLC's SchoolLibrary.Solution is a district-wide automation solution that frees school media specialists from maintenance responsibilities by providing school districts with a union catalog accessible via a multitude of tools, including KC Web, YouSeeMore, Circulation, Cataloging, Acquisitions, Bookings, Serials and Public Access Catalog.