- Develop, implement and support library-oriented automated systems
designed to:
- facilitate study, teaching, and research by Columbia students,
faculty and staff;
- improve the operations of the Libraries relating to the
acquisition, fund accounting, cataloging, processing, preservation,
information retrieval, circulation, and interlibrary lending of its
collections;
- improve the productivity of library staff in their work and
provide management statistics for quality control, budgeting, and
external reporting;
- manage human resources and personnel information specific to the
Libraries;
- contribute to national technology initiatives where appropriate.
One measure of the level of service provided by LSO is the growth
of the CLIO database at the current rate of ca. 130,000 records per
year; beyond this, LSO plans to load near two million records for
several periodical index and abstracting services during calendar year
1994. New functionality in existing systems is being implemented at a
steady pace. New systems and software are regularly being tested and
evaluated for use by Columbia. LSO also recently engaged a contractor
to perform additional mainframe programming and is considering using
this approach again in the near future.
- Manage the installation and on-going maintenance, repair, upgrade,
and replacement of computer hardware and peripherals of all types
including those for:
- in-library CLIO (ca. 200 terminals)
- in-library CLIO-Plus (ca. 50 terminals)
- other staff and patron-oriented workstations (ca. 400 PCs)
- network servers (4)
Of these, approximately 35 CLIO-Plus terminals were installed
during 1993/94; approximately 150 Ethernet-connected workstations were
installed during 1992 and 1993. LSO also assumed responsibilty for
four, library-specific "virtual" local-area networks during 1992 and
1993. In addition to terminals and PCs, LSO supports hundreds of
printers, barcode scanners, and other peripherals.
- Maintain and develop the computer-related skills of library
patrons and staff by:
- training them in the use of new and existing library-related
automated systems;
- developing and/or coordinating the creation of traditional and
computer-based training programs for use by other CUL trainers;
- preparing and maintaining patron and staff documentation for all
LSO supported systems, and selected external information systems.
Library Systems conducts and/or helps coordinate approximately
thirty-five recurrent training modules for library-related services
and tasks. This type of specialized training is vital in enabling
staff to make use of new information technologies.
- Participate in campus-wide planning
Library Systems staff participate in approximately two dozen Library,
AcIS and campus-wide planning and implementation committees in the
area of automated and networked information services, representing
library patrons' needs and contributing valuable perspectives from the
broader world of information management and retrieval.
- Participate in nation-wide planning and standards development
Library systems staff contribute regularly and substantively to ongoing
planning with other Ivy and research university libraries and professional
and technical organizations in make progress toward the goal of creating
the electronic, virtual libary.