Library Technology Guides

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Volume 4 Number 05 (May 1984)

Local systems market survey update

The following two reports complete the returns from the 26 vendors identified by the editors as actively promoting software or turnkey systems for integrated library automation in North America during 1983. Items on the activities of the other 24 vendors were included in the April issue of LSN.

As of the end of 1983, the 26 vendors were supporting more than 614 operational sites worldwide and another 75 systems were awaiting installation, Of the total of some 690 sold systems, 190--more than a third of the total--had been purchased in 1983.

Among the turnkey vendors, two companies--CLSI and Geac--reported gross sales in excess of $15 million, and Data- Phase reported the next highest figure -- between $5 and $9 million. CLSI also led the turnkeys with the largest number of installed and accepted systems (209), with DataPhase and Geac tied for second place (65 each). CLSI reported the highest number of new system sales (29) during 1983, followed by Geac (21) and a new entrant, 00W Inc. (16). The other turnkey vendors reporting ten or more new systems sales in 1983 were Data Research Associates, and Dynix. It appears that the most active suppliers of software was Systermhouse Inc., which markets the MINISIS package (30) and VTLS, with 16 sales during 1983.

Virginia Tech reports that by the end of 1983 there were 50 installations of the VTLS software. During 1983 16 systems were sold. [In responding to the survey, Virginia Tech pointed out that its policy is to install the software within three weeks of hardware installation. Hewlett Packard requires approximately three months to deliver the hardware.] Gross sales figures were not available. However, the software sells for $60,000 which would suggest a 1983 income of just under $1 million. To compare this revenue with that of the turnkey vendors, the volume of hardware sales needs also to be considered; the average hardware costs are reported as being $200,000 per system. Modules operational at all user sites are: circulation, local cataloging, interlibrary loan, materials booking, OCLC interface, and the MiniMARC interface. Some libraries are also using the hardware to support word processing on software supplied by Hewlett Packard.

[Contact: Center for Library Automation, 416 Newman Library, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061.]

Systems Control, Inc. reports that it was supporting 4 SCICON installations by the end of 1983, one of which was a multiprocessor configuration. One system was upgraded during the year, and none were awaiting installation at the end of the year. The library division of the company had gross sales of less than $1 million and did not make an after tax profit for 1983. The modules which were operational at the end of the year were: circulation, local cataloging, global authority control and the OCLC interface.

[Contact: Systems Control, Inc., Commercial and Industrial Systems, P.O. Box 10025, Palo Alto, CA 94303.]

CARDEX in MINISIS: serials control update

The February issue of LSN (Vol. IV, No. 2) contained a listing of the vendors offering automated serial control systems. Systemhouse (see the local system market survey in the previous issue of LSN) recently began to distribute the CARDEX software for serials control as part of its MINISIS software package.

MINISIS is a generalized information management system designed to run on the Hewlett Packard 3000 series of minicomputers. It was developed by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) as a low cost hardware/software package to support online data entry and interactive retrieval. MINISIS performs essentially the same functions as ISIS--the Integrated Set of Information Systems software package developed by the International Labour Office to operate on mainframe computers.

MINISIS was developed primarily for use in bibliographic information systems but is also used in other applications including records management. Library automation systems based on MINISIS have been installed at the University of the Netherlands Agricultural Library in Wageningen, the University of Singapore and the Marigold Library System in south central Alberta. In Alberta, the system is used to support acquisitions and cataloging. In this installation the automation of circulation control and provision of an online patron access catalog was also considered but rejected because of the costs of telecommunications among the 27 member libraries.

The software includes substantial data validation and authority control capabilities, including a tri-lingual thesaurus file feature. Global change capabilities are available in batch processing mode. Searching capabilities include keyword and Boolean searching of both index files and the full text of records. Truncation is supported. A function designated as the Print Processor allows extensive user modification of the contents and formats of screen displays and printed products.

The product literature developed by Systemhouse, the commercial vendor of the MINISIS software, lists appropriate library automation applications as:

• purchasing/accounting
• cataloging and indexes
• interlibrary loan
• circulation control
• journal issue control
• user browsing, and
• SDI services

The MINISIS software is priced at $50,000 Canadian. The price includes documentation, installation and training. Software maintenance is mandatory and is charged at $5,000 Canadian per annum. The software is offered to nonprofit groups at substantial discounts.

Earlier this year Systemhouse began distributing the CARDEX software-programs specifically designed for serials control by the Agricultural University of the Netherlands--as part of the MINISIS package. This "user contributed software" is included in the price of MINISIS. Systemhouse will provide software support for CARDEX, but this will be limited to the correction of problems and refinements; the company does not expect to undertake significant developmental work on the serials control capability.

The CARDEX software displays next expected issue information, allowing checkin to be accomplished with a minimum number of keystrokes. It can identify missing and overdue issues and will generate claims for these items. The software also supports the maintenance and printing of routing slips.

[Contact: Systemhouse Ltd., 2827 Riverside Drive, Ottawa, Ontario K1V 0C4 Canada (613) 526-0670.]

Gaylord announces Turnkey GS-3000 Catalog Management System

Gaylord Brothers, Inc., has introduced a "new but old" approach to turnkey automated systems with the introduction of its GS-3000 Catalog Management System which offers libraries a stand-alone turnkey installation to support online patron access catalogs and/or more sophisticated staff searching, and local cataloging capabilities. The system is not designed to support circulation functions, but offers interfaces to existing automated circulation control systems.

The "new" element in this system configuration is the fact that it is designed to support that activity which many of the older turnkey vendors are only just beginning to introduce--online patron access catalogs. Something "old" is represented by the concept of a limited function stand-alone system rather than an integrated system capable of supporting all aspects of library automation. Most turnkey vendors are currently striving to achieve fully integrated systems.

The resulting GS-3000 product is likely to have appeal for several sectors of the market: libraries which currently manage their circulation activities on Gaylord's distributed processing circulation control system, and those with other stand-alone systems--manual or automated-- for circulation control which are seeking alternatives for the provision of online patron access catalog capabilities.

The system offers patrons keyword searching with automatic truncation capabilities; Boolean searching is available for library staff in both the Tech Services and Reference modules. Searches by access points other than keyword or Boolean logic are said to have an average response time of 2 seconds. Both full and abbreviated MARC formats are supported, and GS-3000 can accommodate records for all types of library materials. The system offers limited parameterization capabilities in relation to screen formats and the design of brief record formats.

GS-3000 offers different software modules which may be used singly or in combination. It is unlikely that any library would choose to install all three major modules. Instead, a library would select either the basic Patron Access Catalog capability or the enhanced Reference/Desk Public Access Catalog software. Either package may be enhanced by the Technical Services module.

The Public Access Catalog supports only patron access catalog functions. It provides patrons with menu driven keyword searching capabilities and automatic truncation. Available access points include author, title, subject, call number, LCCN, ISBN, GPO number and government document classification number. It includes user-friendly prompt sequences and help capabilities. However, Boolean searching is not supported in this module. In systems which do not include the Technical Services Module described below, records may be added to or deleted from the data base only through the processing of machine-readable data from an external source such as bibliographic utilities or commercial tape providers. The Public Access Catalog component of the system does not support any local catalog maintenance.

The Reference Desk/Public Access Catalog module provides additional capabilities which allow library staff to perform Boolean searching and display records in the full MARC format. It includes the capabilities of the Public Access Catalog module and allows the local creation of community information / referral files. Like the Patron Access Catalog module, this component does not support the local creation and maintenance of the data base-such functions must be performed on an external system and loaded into the GS-3000.

The ability to create and maintain the bibliographic file locally, supporting original cataloging and the maintenance of existing records, is provided by the Technical Service module. This also enables a library to produce the machine-readable tapes required for the production of COM catalogs. This module supports Boolean search capabilities but, as it is intended only for use by library staff, does not offer user- friendly interfaces with prompting and other capabilities.

As would be expected in a system designed to link with external record sources and existing circulation control systems, GS-3000 offers conversion and interfacing capabilities. Circulation system interfaces can be developed for Gaylord, CLSI and DataPhase circulation control systems. At present the circulation system interfaces will support only look-up of the circulation system files--a patron would use GS-3000 to identify a wanted item and then access the circulation files to determine whether or not it was available for loan. The interface, the GS-3000 terminal emulates a circulation system terminal. The linkage will not support the transfer of messages--for the placement of holds or reserves, for instance--to the circulation control system.

Conversion services are offered for the loading of machine-readable records from OCLC, Autographics, Brodart and those in the Library of Congress MARC format. The source records are converted by Gaylord and made available to the user library on magnetic tape or disk. Conversion software at the user site allows these records to be loaded into the GS-3000. At present there is no capacity for records to be loaded directly from a utility, or for the transfer of formatted records online. Once records have been loaded, those libraries with the Tech Services software can perform local editing.

At present, there is no capacity for transferring records from the GS-3000 to any local circulation control system. This means that libraries which acquire their records from a source such as OCLC and then utilize them in the GS-3000 and a local automated circulation control system, may face a situation in which they have to coordinate and maintain three different "master" files of bibliographic records on the utility, on GS-3000, and on the local circulation control system.

The programs are written in Databus, Datapoint's proprietary programming language, and use Datapoint's P145 operating system. The system operates on Datapoint hardware.

The precise hardware configuration required for a particular library is determined by the number and type of records which dictate storage requirements, and the number of terminals to be supported by the system. Storage needs vary according to whether or not a library chooses to use full or abbreviated MARC records. [In promotional literature, Gaylord refers to the latter as the newer short form MARC." This is not a newly established national standard, but rather the company's description of the abbreviated MARC format used in its systems. The format was developed with advice from the Library of Congress.] GS- 3000 uses full MARC records only in the Reference and Technical Service modules. Storage of full MARC records requires more resources than storage of records in a brief format.

Gaylord recommends that its clients estimate their patron access terminal requirements on the basis of one terminal for every 40,000 annual circulations.

The larger of the processors on which the system is offered can be configured with up to 1 MB of internal memory and maximum disk storage of up to 1012 MB. While there is a limit to the number of ports available for the attachment of terminals and printers, Gaylord sees no practical limits to the number of each that can be mounted on a single system. Dial access can be supported and networking software permits the linking of multiple processors. Software modules are priced as follows:

• Patron Access Catalog: $10,000 plus $1,000 per terminal
• Reference Desk/PAC: $15,000 plus $1,000 per terminal
• Technical Services: $8,000 plus $1,000 per terminal

(If Patron Access Catalog functions are supported on terminals used for Reference Desk/Tech Services functions, the additional per terminal fee for the other modules is waived. A library would not be charged more than $1,000 per terminal in terminal fees.)

• Record Conversion/Loading

  OCLC	$2,500
  Autographics	$2,500
  Brodart	$2,500
  Library of Congress	$1,500
  Gaylord	$1,000

• Circulation System Interfaces:

  Gaylord	no charge
  CLSI	$2,500
  DataPhase	$2,500

If a library were to install multiple processors multiple copies of the software would be required. However, only one software fee would be charged for each module provided that the system supported only a single unified data base.

Libraries may contract with Gaylord for full turnkey service entailing hardware and software supply and maintenance, conversion, installation and training. The hardware must be acquired through Gaylord, but libraries may choose to purchase hardware maintenance directly from Datapoint. The software license and software maintenance are bundled. A library cannot choose to forgo software maintenance. Annual hardware and software maintenance charges are approximately ten percent of the purchase price.

Gaylord sees its target market as being medium sized public libraries and small academic or college libraries with around 90,000 titles. Libraries with existing machine-readable files are of special interest. Gaylord estimates that the initial purchase price of a GS-3000 system sized to support a library with 95,000 titles, an annual circulation of 375,000, and 10 patron access catalog terminals would be $130,000. This price would include both the Patron Access Catalog and Technical Service modules as well as hardware and installation. The annual maintenance charge on such a system would be approximately $13,000.

Currently, only the patron access catalog software is operational. It has been installed at one site. Gaylord intends to exhibit all functions at the upcoming ALA conference in Dallas. Plans for the further development of the system include the addition of acquisition functions and the provision of support for word processing and financial calculations. The company does not plan to to offer circulation capabilities on GS-3000, preferring to provide this capability by interfacing to its own circulation control systems or the circulation systems of other vendors.

[Contact: Margaret Trinca, Gaylord Bros. Inc., Box 4901, Syracuse, NY 13221 (800) 448-6160 or (315) 457-5070.]

RCA announcement not end of videodisks in libraries

RCA's decision to abandon the videodisk player business does not signal an end for videodisk technology in libraries. True, libraries which had looked to the medium to provide a more durable alternative to videotape for educational and entertainment programs may need to reassess the relative merits of the technologies. But even in this area, the disk is by no means dead. The capacitance format promoted by RCA was that which offered the fewest advantages in terms of durability, and stop-frame and programming capabilities. The laser disks being promoted by player manufacturers such as Pioneer offer these capabilities (see LSN Vol. II, No. 10, October 1982, p. 74) and thus may be better able to withstand the competition from video cassette recorders. The plummeting costs of video cassette recorders and their recording capabilities were significant factors in RCA's withdrawal from the disk market.

However, it is not as an entertainment medium that the disk technology is expected to itself influence libraries, but rather as a relatively inexpensive machine-readable data storage and dissemination device. Such applications are being developed for the laser disks, not the capacitance disks promoted by RCA. As reported in "Tidbits from Online '84" in this issue of LSN, interest in video disk as a medium for data storage remains high. Data encoded on laser disks can be accessed and retrieved using consumer laser videodisk players, special accessing software and a microcomputer.

Libraries will, have their first opportunity to see an operational system based on this application at the upcoming annual meeting of the American Library Association in Dallas. Library Systems and Services Inc., has announced that its new BiblioFile product will be on display at the meeting. BiblioFile provides access to the complete Library of Congress MARC data base and The Library Corporation's ANY-BOOK acquisitions data base of more than one million English Language records and 20,000 publishers' names and addresses. The records are stored on laser videodisk. Indexes by author, title, ISBN, LCCN and title keyword are also stored on the disk. The disk will be updated and reissued each month. The data is accessed using a standard laser videodisk player. The BiblioFile system is desktop sized and is completely self contained. Its first application will be as data support for LSSI's MiniMARC system (see LSN Vol. IV, No. 3, March 1984)

[Contact: Library Systems and Services Inc., 1395 Piccard Drive, Suite 100, Rockville, MD 20850 (301) 258-0200.]

Tidbits from Online '84

Addressing the use of optical disks for the publication of material in machine-readable form Martin Hensel--a cofounder of Laserdata who is now with the Hensel-Nelson Company--also emphasized the potential of compact audiodisks as a digital storage medium. Audio disks lack a visual capability and have a lower data storage capacity. However, they do have the advantage of adhering to a single worldwide formatting standard Hensel postulated player systems costing in the region of $4,000 for videodisk based systems and less than $2,000 for audiodisk based systems.

Hensel believes that "real" operational disk-based products will be available within the next twelve months. The major area of lag at present is in the development of appropriate software for retrieval. Such software needs to be:

• compatible with the editorial content of the disks
• compatible with the microcomputers owned by users
• compatible with existing search software, such as the Microsearch programs developed by BRS

The technology is a reality; it is developing rapidly; and it brings with it numerous opportunities.

Speaking on new directions for SDC Information Services, Kathleen Shenton indicated that the company plans to implement a dynamic new approach to its Orbit services. Among other things, SDC will offer a new private file service which will allow interested parties to test the use of Orbit for private files before fully committing to the service. Orbit is working with Saztec to offer the opportunity of mounting and accessing 250 pages of machine-readable data online for up to six months for a flat fee of $3,000.

The company is interested in making outside sales of the Orbit software. It was recently awarded an $8 million contract to support the operations of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in its use of the Orbit software. The current competitfve climate and the Patents Office contract have led the company to pay increasing attention to developing ways of making its software more user- friendly. A new interface product is currently in Beta test and is to be released next month.

Among the foreign products on exhibit was TINMAN, a data base management system developed by Informatics Management and Engineering Inc., a U.K. firm which is looking to expand its services beyond Europe. In addition to handling data base creation and management, the software is said to be particularly well suited to information retrieval, and for establishing connections to external systems such as remote data bases.

The company is promoting the software for a range of applications, including the establishment of local information systems. The data base management aspects of the software handle data formatting with users specifying the linkages that are to be established between different files such as the bibliographic data base and a thesaurus. The software can handle both bibliographic and full- text files.

In applications of the software for information systems, customers can choose a standardized package or the company will undertake a certain degree of customization. The standardized system permits some parameterization in terms of screen format, input control, help and error messages.

The "connecting" software module is called Interceptor. It supports automatic downloading of bibliographic records in any (specified) format, automatically accessing and connecting with a remote computer, performing a search, downloading the records, and converting them into the format of the local system.

The company does not yet have any fully operational installations for library applications. However, six sales have been made in Sweden where the system will be used to access bibliographic resource files and support local online catalogs. Modules to support circulation and acquisitions are being developed.

The software can be used on any micro that supports the MS DOS or CP/M operating systems, and a version is being prepared for micros which support UNIX. All applications require the use of a hard disk. The system is capable of supporting library data bases of 40,000 to 100,000 records. TINMAN can also be used in multiuser, multi-tasking environments.

[Contact: IME, Gough House, 57 Eden Street, Kingston on Thames, KT1 1DA, England (441) 546-7968.]

Also on exhibit at Online was In- Search, a microcomputer software package developed by Menlo Corp. to facilitate accessing, searching and downloading from databases mounted on Dialog. In-Search is available for Texas Instrument, IBM PCs and IBM compatible personal computers. It requires two double-sided floppy disk drives or one floppy and one fixed disk drive, 192 KB of memory, and a Hayes or Novation modem. The user-friendly package costs $399.

[Contact: Menlo Corporation, 4633 old Ironsides Drive, Suite 400, Santa Clara, CA 95050 (408) 986-0200.]

Zenith drops Beta format

Zenith Corporation, a major marketer of videocassette recorders has announced that it will end its affiliation with Theta format video and switch to the VHS format. In making this decision, Zenith joins the majority of the 30 brand names committed to VHS, including manufacturers Fisher, Hitachi, JVC, Matsushita, Mitsubishi, and Sharp. Other brand names produced by the VHS manufacturers include Akai, Canon, General Electric, J.C. Penney, Magnavox, Minolta, Panasonic, Philco, Pentax, Quasar, RCA, Sears, and Sylvania.

In Europe, Toshiba's British subsidiary has just announced a switch from Beta to VHS, although the parent corporation continues its commitment to both formats. Sony now stands almost alone in its commitment to the Beta format. Zenith was Sony's only U.S. licensee and all of the Japanese licensees have hedged their bets by supporting both formats.

Despite some very attractive technological innovations introduced by Sony in the last two years, VHS is outselling Beta more than three to one in the U.S. and Europe. The recent switches will further strengthen the market's bias toward VHS.

VHS as an industry standard may not have a long life, however. There have recently been extensive discussions among NV Philips (Magnavox and Norelco), Sony, and other Japanese firms to introduce yet another video format which might replace both Beta and VHS. All of the companies would support the same format. It may take two or more years for the new format to come to the market.

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