Rolling Prairie Library Executive Director Beverly J. Obert writes “Welcome to 2006, a new year, a clean slate just waiting for new ideas and plans to take shape. What are your New Year’s resolutions for your library? Whatever you wish to do, planning is the first crucial step…Last fall, I was privileged to attend a workshop on Libris Design. This is a software program developed by the California State Library through an LSTA Grant. By using this massive access database, you can design a library down to the smallest detail….In the end you can print out reports that show exactly what is in each area, the furniture and space needs, collection space and approximate cost. This is a very powerful and versatile tool.”
Beverly attended the Libris Design workshop which was sponsored by the North Suburban Library System last September. Over 600 librarians and library planners are now trained in the use of Libris Design.
New libraries posted to the Recently Constructed Libraries database include Rohnert Park, Livermore, Vineland in San Jose, Buena Vista in Burbank, Central Park Library in Santa Clara, Mission Valley in San Diego and Saratoga in Santa Clara County. We invite you to take a virtual tour of these magnificent new buildings and to share your new library by posting to this site.
Collection Preservation. The collection is your library’s single largest asset. All library facilities should be designed to maximize protection against major losses, including earthquake, fire, water damage, and theft. Addressing these needs early in the planning process can help to minimize the risk of catastrophic loss. This topic is covered in depth in Collection Preservation in Library Facility Planning. Assistance with implementation of guidelines in this document is available from the California Preservation Program. See http://calpreservation.org for information on consulting services. For further information on collection preservation and disaster planning see the WebJunction Focus, Disaster Planning and Recovery in Libraries.
Revised versions of the facility planning documentation and of the help documents have been posted. All have been updated to reflect the new version 5.0 of the Libris Design software. Check them out!
National City celebrated the opening of its new library on August 13. This long awaited library was one of the first “Libris Design-ed” facilities and served as a beta-test site for the Libris Design software. To view a slide show of the new facility and construction progress, log on at http://www.geocities.com/ncpl_2005/. Libris Design sends its congratulations and thanks to Anne Campbell, National City Library Director. Look for images and construction data in the Public Library Facilities Database on the Libris Design website.
Libris Design 5.0 contains updated furniture and equipment pricing, building construction costs, many new inventory items, new expert models, facility planning text on electrical requirements and updated telecommunications information as well as improvements to the user interface screens. Check the website for information on upgrading to 5.0. Users may import current projects from any version of 2.0 or 3.0 into 5.0 without losing any of the work on their library models.
Libris Design 5.0 will be making its debut at the California Library Association Annual Conference on November 5. Users who have 3.0 on CD may pick up the Libris Design 5.0 CD at the Libris Design booth at the CLA Exhibition Center. Mini-workshops will be offered on “Importing Data” into the newer version. Libris Design staff will be available Saturday and Sunday to assist users in migrating data into the new version.
Infopeople will be offering two-day Libris Design training soon! Sign up for the IFPworkshops mailing list or the Libris Design discussion list to be notified when signups are available. See this page for more information on the training.
Libris Design has undergone a major facelift. Site navigation is now located at the top of all the pages. All of the content has been reviewed and updated, and we have added a discussion list and a blog to keep things current, and keep you up to date! If you have comments on the new design, we’d love to hear from you.
Many of the planning documents have been revised. Check this page to get the latest versions!
