[OPEN-ILS-GENERAL] Media request regarding K12 library automation

[Rogan Hamby]

This is an expansion on one of Jason's points but I think it's worth
echoing - the distinction between FLOSS and proprietary software in terms
of quality, reliability, ease of use, etc... is non-existent.  Anyone who
says otherwise is FUDing things.  Why?  Simply, because an open source
license has no impact on any of those factors, not one tiny bit.  Now, you
can discuss is open source project Alpha reliable, robust, etc.... and you
can discuss is it more robust or reliable than proprietary software B.  But
you can't talk about open source versus proprietary, it's nonsense.

One day, half the world's musicians who could sell their music instead
decide to let people freely copy and remix their music.  The other half do
not.  Who makes better music?  But, you say, that choice as nothing to do
with how good their music is, does it?  No, it doesn't.  And that is
exactly the point, not a parallel but the same point - they've open sourced
their music in the same way that we talk about open sourcing software.

Now, you can also talk about is vendor or support company C better than
vendor and support company D.  That is also a meaningful discussion.

So, is there no difference between open source and proprietary?  Of course
there is, but it's in those aspects that relate to the licensing as that
what is inherently different and therefore inherent differences are
consequences of that.  That gets into the issues that Ron touched on.




On Tue, Jul 15, 2014 at 12:05 PM, Jason Etheridge <jason at esilibrary.com>
wrote:

> Hi Kylie,
>
> > How does open source software “work” exactly for K12 schools?
>
> Open source software can work just like other software, the difference
> is that you have more options--you have the freedom to develop your
> own expertise with running and using the software, or paying someone
> else to do it, or some combination of the two.
>
> For Evergreen (and Koha), there are multiple organizations (commercial
> companies, cooperatives, libraries, etc.) that offer support, hosting,
> customization, training, etc. for the software.  Not a single one of
> these entities "owns" the software, which is freely licensed for use,
> distribution, and modification.
>
> There are also online (and sometimes offline) communities (like this
> one), comprised of people (and companies and organizations) that use,
> develop, test, document, and make suggestions about the software.
> They collaborate and help each other use and improve the software, but
> it's essentially a volunteer effort.  The software license empowers
> the community.
>
> > What’s the implementation process like?
>
> This can vary depending on who is doing the work.  Generally, you
> decide whether you want or need to start from scratch with cataloging
> your inventory and registering your patrons/students/users, or if you
> want to migrate data from an existing system, or some combination of
> the two.  For some scenarios, it can happen quickly, for others, it
> may take a couple of months.  There will typically be a project plan.
>
> > Where is the software hosted?
>
> A running instance of the software in use by a hypothetical library?
> It could be hosted at a datacenter by a hosting company.  Or it could
> be hosted in-house (or at a datacenter) by a local IT department.
> There are no restrictions here, and a lot of options.  Some companies
> will even support a library that runs the software locally.
>
> > What are the greatest benefits of Evergreen?
>
> It has to be the people and how their efforts all add together to make
> a larger whole.  You _could_ treat Evergreen just like a piece of
> proprietary software and pay some vendor or consultant to manage all
> the details for you.  But you'd get the most _benefit_ from
> interacting with the community, sharing your ideas, your expertise,
> your difficulties, because this sharing will have a larger impact and
> ultimately make the software better, even if you don't funnel money
> directly into improvements by paying someone to do development (which
> is a nice option to have).
>
> From a technical/feature-set mindset, Evergreen is built for
> scalability, for large consortia.  It can handle a huge amount of data
> and complexity.  It may be overkill for a K12.  Yet a lot of smaller
> libraries use and are very happy with Evergreen.
>
> > How do upgrades, etc. work?
>
> This too can vary, particularly depending on who is doing the work and
> how the software has been configured.  Evergreen _can_ be deployed in
> such a way that minor upgrades can happen seamlessly without any
> downtime, and major upgrades very quickly (while allowing for a
> read-only view of the catalog and SIP interface during the upgrade).
>
> > What are the potential challenges of using open source software?
>
> From a technical standpoint, it's not much different from proprietary
> software, though proprietary software can have its own challenges.
> Any type of change can be hard for folks.  In the past, there would be
> a lot of "FUD" cast against open source software, and there may still
> be pockets of that.  These days, in my opinion, open source is
> ubiquitous, though often used behind the scenes.  Even proprietary
> vendors often use open source tools and components, like Linux, MySQL,
> PostgreSQL, Apache, Perl, etc.  They benefit from the open communities
> behind these, and libraries can benefit from having this same openness
> be higher in their technology "stack".
>
> Can anyone think of anything else we should tell Kylie?
>
> --
> Jason Etheridge
> | Support Manager
> | Equinox Software, Inc. / The Open Source Experts
> | phone: 1-877-OPEN-ILS (673-6457)
> | email: jason at esilibrary.com
> | web: http://www.esilibrary.com
>



-- 

Rogan Hamby, MLS, CCNP, MIA
Managers Headquarters Library and Reference Services,
York County Library System

“You don't have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop
reading them.”
― Ray Bradbury <https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1630.Ray_Bradbury>

“You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit
me.”
― C.S. Lewis <http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1069006.C_S_Lewis>
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