Re: SIRSI

[Cook Library <cooklib@AUSTIN.RR.COM>]

On Wednesday, April 4, 2001, at 09:47 AM, Carole Holway wrote:

> Dear LM-Netters,
>
> Has anyone ever heard of or used of SIRSI library management system?
>
We have it in Austin, 78,000(?) kids. Our version is named WorkFlows, a
wide area server/client system. This is my first year with it and do not
have any experience with other systems. I do have considerable
experience with other types of "enterprise data systems." My two
problems are that it does not seem to be designed for school libraries.
The interface is geared for adult/trained library worker though I do
have 1st grade and above doing it themselves (with an adult "within
reach"). For example, when a kid tries to recheck a book the screen show
an alert with the wording, "This item already charged to this user." NOT
something like, "Would you like to check this book out again?" It is
replete with verberage (sp?) like "discharge" instead of "check in." The
second problem is that it is  not for schools. I can not simply sort on
a teacher's name and print out an overdue list. I have to have the
system administrator set up a schedule (weekly). That is no good if a
teacher wants to know now who has what books. I do get those reports as
a kid's teacher is at least a field in the database but it is not a
natural occuring one for the environment for which SIRSI is used. For
other reasons it seems to be quite demanding on /needful of a central
administrator.

It has a web interface that is OK, not too clunky. There are some ease
of aaccess issues.

It is rock solid, though, again, I have no experience with others. I can
be checking books in and a stream of kids can be checking out on another
station, while all our other schools are doing likewise. It has gone
down once this year.

Please post a HIT.


Tim

Timothy G. Lance / Librarian
Cook Elementary / Austin (Texas) I.S.D.
cooklib@austin.rr.com

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