Blog Post #3

"Overview of LIS"

In this article, the author makes the point of stating that since the 1980s, the world of integrated library systems has changed dramatically. Instead of just keeping track of print material, ILS have become a tool for users to access multimedia as well as print materials. They have become necessary to keep track of information that libraries license the rights for, rather than buying them outright. Any type of digital resource is now made available through ILS. This article also provides a list of vendors and the kinds of services they offer on today's market. Many of them focus on web databases and media storage. In the end, the focus is always on the modern library user and how ILS can best serve the user.

I think that while it is necessary for ILS to be dominant in the library field, it is also necessary to make them easier to use and make them more accessible. Many ILS of public libraries are just bought because the vendor had the best price, rather than had what the user needs. If people cannot easily pick up how to use the ILS, then having the resource is pointless.


"Re-integrating the integrated library system"

This article offers an opposing viewpoint to the previous article. The author states that ILS are not being used as much as they once were because of a lack of integration and cohesiveness of the resource. Rather than having software that works well with other packages, libraries have just been buying what is convenient and what is purported to do the job. Customizing a library's online environment is wonderful, but only if it can do its job seemlessly, which most systems can not. Supplements of ILS need to run well enough with the ILS in order for libraries to do their jobs properly.

I think that this article does a good job of noting how people tend to grab at new technologies without seeing if they are the best option or how they will work in the future. Libraries need to think ahead and anticipate users' needs and build ILS for those needs rather than just buying ILS because it is the most up to date version. Libraries need to offer more simple interfaces that are more coherent, or else they will lose their users.