Library Technology Guides

Kitchener Public Library upgrades discovery and event management with Vega LX. Innovative, part of Clarivate, announced that Kitchener Public Library successfully launched Vega Program for library events management and promotion and Vega Discover to help patrons uncover library collections with more relevant online search results. [Full Announcement].

Innovative Mobile expands push notifications to include circulation notices. Innovative, Part of Clarivate, is readying to launch additional push notifications for Innovative Mobile, adding account and circulation notices to an already powerful feature. This will allow libraries to reach patrons directly on their mobile screens, keeping pace with today's world. The enhanced push notifications are in beta testing now and are expected to be available by the end of the year. [Full Announcement].

Milton Public Library chooses Polaris and Vega Discover. Innovative, part of Clarivate, announced that the Milton Public Library in Ontario, Canada, has selected the Polaris ILS paired with Vega Discover to replace their current Sierra and Encore systems. [Full Announcement].

Innovative delivers patron email notices for consortia through LX Starter. Innovative, part of Clarivate, announced that LX Starter is now available for library consortia to provide their member libraries with a tool to create and manage branded email notices for patrons, while providing the consortium central office with access to manage and support notices across the member libraries. LX Starter for consortia was developed in collaboration with eight library consortia using Sierra and Polaris who have tested the new functionality including Mid-Hudson Library System in New York, which was the first beta partner to launch the notices for their patrons. [Full Announcement].

New York Public Library launches LX Starter. Innovative, part of Clarivate, announced that the New York Public Library is now using LX Starter to send email notices to cardholders. Part of the Vega Library Experience suite of solutions, LX Starter empowers to easily feature resources and events as part of their email notices. LX Starter was developed specifically for libraries to embrace the modern standards of email design and delivery, while providing valuable engagement metrics and data to showcase library impact. [Full Announcement].

Minuteman Library Network selects Sierra for its shared integrated library system based on functionality and security. Innovative, part of Clarivaten announced that the Minuteman Library Network in Massachusetts has selected Sierra for a five-year renewal after evaluating available integrated library systems on the market through a formal Request for Proposal process. [Full Announcement].

Well-being for Library Workers: Webinar Highlights. If so, or if you are not sure but you care about your personal wellness and the wellness of your community, watch a recording of the Well-being for Library Workers webinar hosted by Innovative, featuring international library consultant and former ALA President and recent ALA award winner Loida Garcia-Febo. In this session, Loida took a holistic approach to wellness, sharing vital information as well as tips and strategies to promote well-being in ourselves, in our libraries, and throughout our communities. [Full Announcement].

Mid-Hudson Library System launches modern patron email notices through LX Starter for consortia. Innovative, part of Clarivate, announced that the Mid-Hudson Library System in New York is the first library consortium to launch LX Starter for consortia, providing all member patrons with modern, engaging email notices. LX Starter takes patron email notices to the next level, offering libraries a modern design experience that includes a selection of templates to appeal to different audiences. Included for all Sierra and Polaris libraries, LX Starter gives libraries an easy-to-use design tool and email circulation notices integrated with the ILS, without the need to purchase additional third-party services or integrations. [Full Announcement].

Chester County Library System uses Vega Promote to connect with their community. Innovative, part of Clarivate, celebrates the Chester County Library System's use of Vega Promote to send library marketing emails to their community. [Full Announcement].

Vega Promote releases fresh email templates and unsubscribe automations. Innovative, Part of Clarivate announced the most recent release of Vega Promote for email marketing which includes a refresh on the out-of-the box email templates adding over 100 professionally-designed, customizable email marketing templates. This release also includes a new, one-click unsubscribe email header automatically added to all emails to support sender reputation and compliance with new anti-spam guidelines. [Full Announcement].

Innovative collaborates with Baker & Taylor to streamline the ordering process for library materials. Innovative, Part of Clarivate, announced a deeper collaboration with Baker & Taylor, releasing an enhanced integration between the Polaris integrated library system and Title Source 360 ordering system, further streamlining the materials ordering process for libraries. This improved integration gives library staff a one-step ordering process without requiring additional ILS workflow steps for the library to prepare for the materials. Once library staff order materials through Title Source 360, they will not need to touch their Polaris ILS while Baker & Taylor bibliographic records are shared automatically with the library's Polaris system. With that information, Polaris will automatically create the purchase order needed and send it to Baker & Taylor while also assessing the new records and deduplicating them per the library's guidelines. [Full Announcement].

Vega Discover new releases include accessibility, security, and user experience improvements. Innovative, Part of Clarivate delivers new releases to the Vega Discover discovery interface every two weeks including new functionality, user-suggested enhancements, and bug fixes. These releases are automatically deployed at every Vega Discover library giving libraries immediate access to new features. [Full Announcement].

Expanding Your Library Analytics with LibraryIQ. If you're interested in improving the data-driven decision-making at your library through better reporting and analytics, then you may be interested in our recent webinar on Expanding Your Library Analytics with LibraryIQ. [Full Announcement].

St. Louis County Library District amplifies programming with Vega Program. Innovative, part of Clarivate, announced that the St. Louis County Library District in Missouri is using Vega Program to help organize and publicize library events, and to allow their community to register for these events and book meeting rooms. [Full Announcement].

Sierra 6.2 release includes user-requested features and interoperability development for the future. Innovative, Part of Clarivate, announced that Sierra 6.2 is now generally available for all customers and includes new features requested by Sierra users through Idea Exchange as well as user experience enhancements, API developments, and foundational work for future releases. [Full Announcement].

Schaumburg Township District Library joins the Innovative family. Innovative, part of Clarivate, announced that the Schaumburg Township District Library in Schaumburg, Illinois have selected Polaris as their new Integrated Library System, Vega Discover Premium as their new discovery layer, Vega Program to manage events and room booking, Vega Promote to foster engagement with their community, and the Innovative Mobile app to provide the power of the library to their patrons wherever they are. [Full Announcement].

Showcasing your digital repository in Vega Discover. In a recent webinar, Vega Discover Senior Product Manager Samantha Cunning provided an overview of what will be the protocol for harvesting the OAI-PMH metadata from a digital repository into Vega Discover, where the digital repository becomes searchable and viewable by patrons using Discover's trademark clean, intuitive interface. [Full Announcement].

Your role in the Clarivate Voice of Customer Survey. Clarivate is preparing to launch its first Voice of Customer survey of 2024 on May 21. Clarivate sends this survey twice a year to a list of randomly selected customers from all three business segments, including libraries who work with Innovative. [Full Announcement].

New Clarivate Video highlights commitment to Think Forward. Clarivate has prepared a video that presents its vision for the future, and its commitment to its Think Forward initiative. [Full Announcement].

That's a wrap: Highlights from the IUG 2024 Conference. The spirit of community, collaboration, and celebration prevailed at the Innovative Users Group (IUG) Conference March 25-27, in Detroit, MI. The event was attended by more than 400 IUG members and Innovative staff, including executive leadership, product experts, User Experience (UX) specialists, customer support and others. Participants took advantage of the opportunity to share knowledge and expertise, learn from each other, collaborate and network, and come away inspired to deliver patron-centered library experiences for their communities.Innovative product announcements [Full Announcement].