My first day of the blues

Well, today was a wash.

I wasn't sad, or depressed or whathaveyou - it was just a day where I wasn't motivated to work hard.  I was able to get a few tasks done, but not a lot in direct contrast to my previous week and a half where I was going a mile a minute.

Naturally - it came when I started assessing software.  There's a part of me that just enters lockup mode when I get into the nit n' gritty of how software works.  Especially when I'm the one who has to set it up.

I am assessing two ILS's for use.  One is LibraryWorld, which was recommended by my good friend Brian (who is also a Dalhousie Alum), which is completely web-based and BookCat which is downloadable software. Right now, I'm leaning towards LibraryWorld.  I've been moving back and forth, but right now the thing I like about LibraryWorld because it has an OPAC built in.  I'm not going to get into the price differences and the layout differences - long story short is LibraryWorld is simplified, more expensive and easier to use, BookCat is a bit more complex, cheaper but you can design your own forms/templates which can help you out if you're looking for a local build.

The main issue right now, is that my choice probably won't mean much because I think that the boss is going to go with what is cheapest.  I know, I know, it's a developing country and longrunning costs (LibraryWorld has an annual fee) as well as initial upfront payments (LibraryWorld costs a little bit more) mean a lot.  I had my request for a year's subscription to WebDewey Abridged ($75 USD, about $202.50 Eastern Caribbean) turned down until I exhaust all other options - i.e. asking the local libraries if they have a DDC we can borrow.  Ok, I can see why he's doing this - it makes total sense and I'm not saying he's crazy, or doesn't understand the situation (he understands it way better than me, he's lived here all his life), but I need a Classification Manual and if we don't have any local partners who are willing to share, I'll need to buy access to something I can use right away because I'm not really keen on waiting for DDC 21 to ship to the islands (also bear in mind that DDC 22 is coming out soon).

*sigh*

On the plus side, I've gotten a pretty good handle on both ILS's, I was even able to design a Serials database in BookCat which doesn't come with one.  The downside to that is that we have to maintain a different database for Serials than we do for Books.  Now, that isn't much of a problem for most libraries, in fact it is a matter of course!  It's just that the collection is small and the fact that it doesn't really grow that fast tells me that it wouldn't necessarily need separate database for the foreseeable future.

The ILS's aren't hard to use, it's just the task of cataloguing the items, processing them and then shelving them that is one of the daunting tasks.  There is also the need of getting labels, barcodes and stamps which we will need to buy - I'm hoping I won't be asked to undertake a detailed justification of why we need to purchase those.

In order to get some back up for my position, I'm trying to arrange meetings with local librarians to see where they procure those processing supplies so I can present the best case scenario for pricing and whatnot.

In the meantime, I think I'll buy my own version of WebDewey and just get the DD numbers from my wireless laptop into our items.  It's just going to make things a lot quicker.