Member communiqué – January, 2016
Update from the Chair
Happy New Year, Co-op members!
One way to measure the achievements we continue to make together is through our membership growth. In the past nine months, nearly 20 member institutions have joined the Co-op from BC, Manitoba and Ontario, representing all types of knowledge sector institutions. Please join me in welcoming them all to our community, as we continue to grow stronger together!
Based on responses to our communication survey in late 2014, we developed an approach and plan that continues to guide our communications with over 2500 member-library staff, partners and friends. Our video and ongoing work towards a redesigned Co-op website (expected to launch in Q2) are examples of the work product guided by the plan. We will follow up with membership this year to ensure our communications efforts continue to be effective.
Interested in knowing about new developments? Look for communiqués like this one, engage in the various Co-op service communities of practice, watch the Board work on the Co-op website, follow us on Twitter or connect with Co-op staff this spring at six provincial and regional library conferences (watch for more information about conference plans this spring).
Our 2013-2016 strategic plan frames the Co-op’s activities. The Board will be discussing strategic plan renewal and process at upcoming meetings, and looks forward to hearing from members on our future directions.
Please mark your calendars and plan to attend our Annual General Meeting on Friday, June 17, 2016 from 1100-1300 Pacific. As in previous years, the meeting will be held in-person and by teleconference. Please watch for more information about AGM 2016 soon.
Our members, partners and staff collectively enable our achievements. Thank you all for collaborating in our shared successes!
Melanie Houlden, Chief Librarian, Surrey Public Library, BC
Thinking about updating your Integrated Library System (ILS)?
With almost a decade of experience, the Co-op is Canada’s most experienced Evergreen service provider. We now serve almost 100 libraries, all of which have a say in both software and service development priorities, as well as opportunities to contribute to our growing community. In 2015, our members’ satisfaction rate with support was a healthy 92%.
Evergreen itself is a full-featured ILS built using gold-standard open tools. This open approach means we have great opportunities to build and integrate library services, both now and in the future. Served up over CANARIE for maximum speed, our Software as a Service (SaaS) Evergreen solutions are the right choice for your library environment.
LibPress: a comprehensive website service for libraries
Is it time for your library to think about a new website? The sites we build are based on research and knowledge about the library user experience – work we did so that libraries don’t have to. Our customized WordPress library websites come with simple and powerful editing tools, full training and awesome support.
We’re hiring!
Know any qualified Systems Administrators or Software Developers? Please send them our way! We have two vacancies open.
Support bulletin regarding Microsoft Internet Explorer
On January 12, 2016, Microsoft will end support for Internet Explorer (IE) versions 8, 9 and 10. This means that Microsoft will provide no further security patches or support information for its older IE products.
Accordingly, Co-op Support will no longer resolve tickets relating to IE versions older than version 11, effective April 1, 2016. The Co-op strongly recommends that libraries running IE should upgrade to the latest version available or investigate a browser alternative like Firefox or Chrome.
As this issue also potentially affects end-users who are still using IE versions 8-10 on their home computers while accessing the Sitka catalogue, NNELS or LibPress sites, all library public service staff should be made aware and encourage users to consider either the free Microsoft upgrade to IE 11 or select another browser.
