Keynote
Breakout Sessions 1
Alma consortia resource sharing models
Alma supports a range of consortial activity, including workflows for walk-in borrowing and lending in consortia, consortial resource sharing, and integration with broker systems to streamline ILL processes. In this session, we will review these models, with an emphasis on the benefits for consortia, especially individual member libraries and their patrons.
Katy Aronoff, – Ex Libris
Using Best Bets and Database Recommender in Summon
Ways in which Best Bets and Database Recommender might be used to enhance the user experience will be discussed.
Katy Silberger, Marta Cwik, – Marist College
Using Excel and VBA with APIs to Wow Your Colleagues and Patrons
Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) are a powerful way for libraries to gather data, including usage statistics, bibliographic information, and metrics. In the context of an academic library, the presenters will describe their workflow for pulling data from APIs into Excel with Visual Basic Applications (VBA). Using two examples , they will explain how and why this method provides a user-friendly solution that empowers other departments, inside and outside the library, to gather data independently. They will demonstrate their use of Scopus and Ulrich’s Web APIs.
Hao Zeng, Annamarie Klose Hrubes, – Yeshiva University, William Paterson University
Breakout Sessions 2
Improving Patron Services through the Alma Resource Sharing Models
The Connecticut State Colleges & University System went live in our implementation of Alma in January 2017. Ex Libris offers two models of resource sharing in the Alma product: the Resource Sharing Network and the Fulfillment Network. As part of the migration, the decision was made to implement the Fulfillment Network model for resource sharing between the member institutions. While this has enabled patron access to resources across the system, it is not without its challenges to the user experience, and to staff workflow. This presentation will discuss the opportunities and challenges of this resource sharing model, our workarounds, and suggestions for product improvement. Additionally, we will discuss how recently released Alma features have improved the usability of the product.
Parker Fruehan, Veronica Kenausis, – Southern Connecticut State University, Western Connecticut State University
Primo at Binghamton University Libraries
In 2011, Binghamton University Libraries implemented Primo. While Primo is the default search on the Libraries’ homepage, the Libraries have continued to support ALEPH. In this presentation, we will discuss
our experience working with Primo including how its implementation was received by bibliographers as well as faculty and students. We will also discuss how we are planning to adapt and customize Primo due to the recent decision by SUNY to migrate to ALMA. This presentation is intended primarily for other SUNY attendees who will be also moving to Primo as part of the ALMA implementation.
Erin Rushton, David Schuster, – Binghamton University Libraries
EzProxy Server Migration
In the summer of 2016 members of Lehman College Library along with CUNY Office of Library Services implemented the change from a local campus proxy server to a consortium hosted server for off campus database access. This transition changed the off campus log in feature and switched from a user name/password to a 14 digit library barcode with no password. The new log in feature made it essential that all patron library barcodes be activated when the ID cards were issued. This process had to be organized through a joint effort by Library faculty, Campus IT representatives, Public Safety and members of CUNY OLS. Student information being transferred from several separate locations were established by using a secure method of delivery and monitored that the data was uploaded correctly. The Library database list consisted of 183 products from 54 different vendors and all had to be coordinated with the new server change. These challenges were anticipated and making the change during the summer allowed for a smaller number of users to experience issues instead of switching during the Fall or Spring semesters. We plan to go over our procedure, show statistics, and discuss best practices for institutions changing servers and off campus database access.
Stephen Walker, Sean O’Heir, – CUNY Lehman College
Breakout Sessions 3
Using Shelf Report at UConn Stamford
This presentation will be a report on one library’s experience with using Alma’s Shelf Report. We are a regional campus library (Stamford Campus) of the University of Connecticut with about 60,000 volumes. We switched from Voyager/Summon to Alma/Primo in 2015 and have been weeding consistently over the last several years. We have recently started inventorying the collection using Shelf Report and would like to share our library’s experiences. I will share process, procedures, and what we learned.
Nancy Dryden, – University of Connecticut, Stamford
1-2-3 Database A-Z
Yale University Library recently migrated from the Springshare A-Z list solution to a Blacklight-based solution. The end result is the product of two years of research, planning, testing and implementation. Learn about our process intergrating 360Core and the 360Search API, Voyager and Blacklight, and share your own A-Z list successes and challenges.
Jennifer Nolte, Angela Sidman, – Yale University
IP Filtering is Dead. What’s next?
IP filtering has led us into a technological dead end. This presentation will review the problems associated with IP filtering and review the work that publishers and subscribers are doing to chart a way forward.
Rich Wenger, – MIT
Breakout Sessions 4
Leveraging License Management Capabilities in Alma
In this follow-up to ENUG 2016’s popular session on “License Management in CORAL versus Alma,” the presenter describes UConn Library’s transition of vendor and license management from CORAL to Alma. Whereas last year’s session reviewed the differences between the systems and explored the comparative advantages and disadvantages of each, this year’s session will explain how UConn Library executed the transition from a locally hosted, open-source CORAL eresources management system to the Ex Libris Alma next-gen services platform. Topics will include the benefits of moving licensing to Alma, the new system’s limitations, challenges of implementation, opportunities for collaboration, public display of important license terms in Primo, and especially workflow development and optimization within Alma. The presenter will display screenshots and perform live demos throughout this session. The presenter will actively solicit feedback and questions throughout the session, not just at the end. Attendees will gain a clear, contextualized understanding of the benefits and challenges of leveraging Alma’s license management capabilities.
Project and Change Management for a Successful LSP Migration
Moving from a traditional integrated library system (ILS) to a library services platform (LSP) represents the type of technological and organizational transformational change that can lead to motivated and empowered employees or demotivated and unengaged employees. Understanding the basics of project management and complex change at the outset can not only get the migration off to a good start but also provide the framework for a successful transition. This presentation will cover high-level project management as it relates to LSP migration so that participants can better understand the scope of the project in order to manage expectations and identify the necessary resources and potential difficulties. It will also include a discussion of change, transformational change in particular, as well as the components of complex change to consider as you prepare your organization, team, or co-workers for the migration. Lastly, the session will present some considerations for leadership that support successful transformation efforts.
Janetta Waterhouse, – University at Albany
The Path to Fulfillment
When Yale University Library brought up its unified discovery service, powered by Blacklight, we used the Summon API to integrate article discovery into that experience. We also continue to manage and support the native Summon interface. Running and offering these two discovery experiences in parallel affords the user different advantages as well as challenges. Learn about the different paths users in search of articles take through our discovery systems- and where opportunities for improvement may lie.
Jennifer Nolte, Steelsen Smith, – Yale University
Breakout Sessions 5
Metadata Migration Beyond Aleph
We all recognize that there is a need to prepare your library’s catalog for a migration beyond a traditional ILS. Of course the question arises what data in particular should we fixing. This talk will give a very brief description of such a migration, and talk about some of the particulars about what exactly are libraries fixing.
Kevin J Collins, Michael Edwards – CUNY, Office of Library Services, Harvard University
Group Fun: Migrating from Voyager to Alma/Primo in a cohort
Ithaca College, along with 5 other US institutions, went live with Alma in August 2017. The migration to Alma, as part of a cohort, has its share of advantages and disadvantages. In general, we’ll give an overview the plan Ithaca College used in our cohort migration, and what worked well and could have used improvement. More specifically, we will discuss topics such as preparing to migrate, creating a holistic plan, streamlining project/time management, training library staff, managing expectations, and what we would have done differently. The presentation will be around 50-60 minutes.
Terri Ann Coronel, Dan Taylor, – Ithaca College
UPenn implementation of Alma and Blacklight, plus integrations with other systems
We can report on the rationale, implementation, and preliminary results of our migration from Voyager to Alma and simultaneous replacement of our homegrown catalog with Blacklight. We have also done a number of integrations with other systems like ILLiad. (We can do either 30 or 45 minutes, whichever fits better in your schedule. We will both work on the presentation but at the moment only Chris is planning to attend.
Chris Clement, Emily Morton-Owens, – University of Pennsylvania
Breakout Sessions 6
Withdrawing Materials from Alma: Two Approaches
Libraries are forever withdrawing items from their collections: items lost, missing, damaged, superseded, or even deliberately deselected, aka weeded. Yet librarians often want or need to retain information about these items, whether to conform to state statutes, to follow university policy, or just because we’re librarians and that’s how we do things. In this presentation, we’ll look at two processes for withdrawing materials from Alma. One is modeled after a legacy ILS procedure, and the other is Alma’s native method of handling withdrawals; both have been used in Alma by the presenter. Both single-item and batch procedures will be covered, from identifying barcodes to deleting holdings from OCLC. The intended audience is Alma users, those migrating to Alma, and those interested in Alma. Attendees should leave the presentation with an understanding of the pros and cons of each process and the groundwork for making their own decisions about which process to choose.
Janice Christopher, – UConn
Adjusting Your Package: Using the Central Package Manager in the NUI
The City University of New York (“CUNY”) has a single Primo installation with 22 institutions–each with its own view. Using the central package manager (“CPM”) in the new user interface (“NUI”) makes maintenance of these 22 views much easier. Learn how we’ve customized the NUI for our needs (both at the central/inherited level and at the individual institution level), discuss how this could be implemented at your institution, and get answers to your most burning NUI questions!
Alevtina (“Allie”) Verbovetskaya, – CUNY
Breakout Sessions 7
Welcome to the ‘The Matrix’: Our ILS Journey from Hardwired to Cloud-based and all the bumps along the way
After 20 years and 18 years (respectively) of working on the hardwired ILS system of Voyager, in 2016 Penn Libraries and Millersville University independently began the ever eventful journey down the rabbit hole into the world of Alma.
The transition from a hardwired system to a cloud-based system starts with a change in mindset. In this presentation, the discussion will revolve around our journey up to and after our summer go-live dates, how we each maneuvered some of the challenges we faced, inspiring and reassuring staff and professionals, changes in policy, our best practices, and, months later, what we would have done differently.
While this presentation will discuss Alma; challenges, tips, and lessons learned will be universal to any major library system change. The presentation will also highlight transition differences between a large institution and a medium sized one.
Krista Higham, DaVonne Armstrong, – Millersville University, University of Pennsylvania
Bringing Presentations Home: As Seen at ER&L 2017–Localized at MHC with ALEPH, ARC, & SFX
At ER&L 2017 in April, I attended various presentations around managing electronic resources. I was particularly interested in hearing about ideas for other ways than cost-per-use on which to base journal subscription reviews as well as how other libraries were tracking and managing perpetual access rights. Lucky for me, I saw and heard things that set my wheels turning. But how to bring these ideas home? How to make them work for my library, with our configurations, with our systems: ALEPH, ARC, & SFX? Hence … now at ENUG 2017 I can show how I used ALEPH, ARC, & SFX in combination to create reports of journal subscriptions for cancellation consideration not based on cost-per-use, and Steve Bischof, the Five Colleges ALEPH ILS Coordinator, and I will talk about how in ALEPH I intend to track and manage over time and through future-(ILS)-migration perpetual access rights information.
Sara Colglazier, Steve Bischof, – Mount Holyoke College, UMASS Amherst
Diamonds Aren’t Forever: Persisting Links When Migrating to Alma/Primo and Beyond
In summer 2017, Temple University Libraries migrated from Millennium (locally branded as “Diamond”) to Alma/Primo. In preparation for this switchover, we developed an application to redirect old permanent links from Millennium to the new Primo permalinks, providing continuity for users between the two systems. As a part of this project, we created a new service called Temple University Libraries Link Exchanger (TULLE), which allows library staff to exchange URLs from Millennium and Primo for system-neutral links that can serve as long-term persistent identifiers for record pages. In this presentation, we will discuss our reasoning for generating our own localized persistent links, share how we built this application using system identifiers (Alma MMS ID’s, Publishing PID’s), and outline our plans to integrate this service more directly into our evolving discovery systems, which will eventually transition to the open source platform Blacklight.
Emily Toner, Tim Bieniosek – Temple University
Breakout Sessions 8
Primo : Talk Therapy
A group chat – a group “therapy” if you will call it. Primo is the default catalog of Alma. Do you have any Primo frustrations you want to ‘vent’? Concerned about moving to the new UI? Excited about the potential for Primo Analytics? This session will be a general discussion of Primo topics.
Janice Christopher – University of Connecticut
Authority Control Practices : Open Discussion
An open discussion forum on authority control in any of the Ex Libris product systems.
Nancy Lin – New York University