Library Technology Guides

Statistical Report for Polaris

2009 Survey Results	2008 Survey Results	2007 Survey Results
Product: Polaris Response Distribution Statistics Category Responses 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Mode Mean Median ILS Satisfaction 92 1 1 2 1 1 13 52 21 8 7.79 8 Company Satisfaction 92 1 1 1 4 4 6 48 27 8 7.80 8 Support Satisfaction 91 2 1 2 1 1 17 45 22 8 7.68 8 Support Improvement 87 3 1 1 3 13 12 8 29 17 8 6.83 8 Company Loyalty 91 3 1 1 1 5 2 5 37 36 8 7.68 8 Open Source Interest 90 27 21 13 2 6 10 4 3 3 1 0 2.28 1 Category Total Yes percent Considering new ILS 92 6 6.52% Considering new Interface 92 6 6.52% System Installed on time? 92 84 91.30%	Product: Polaris Response Distribution Statistics Category Responses 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Mode Mean Median ILS Satisfaction 51 2 3 4 5 21 16 8 7.73 8 Company Satisfaction 51 4 3 2 5 15 22 9 7.76 8 Support Satisfaction 51 1 4 4 3 8 11 20 9 7.41 8 Support Improvement 0 not applicable Company Loyalty 52 3 1 1 2 1 2 3 14 25 9 7.33 8 Open Source Interest 51 15 13 6 3 2 7 1 1 3 0 2.29 1 Category Total Yes percent Considering new ILS 53 5 9.43% Considering new Interface 53 3 5.66% System Installed on time? 53 48 90.57%	Product: Polaris Response Distribution Statistics Category Responses 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Mode Mean Median ILS Satisfaction 59 1 1 1 5 12 18 21 9 7.78 8 Company Satisfaction 64 1 1 3 2 11 20 26 9 7.89 8 Support Satisfaction 64 1 3 2 8 17 33 9 8.11 9 Support Improvement 0 not applicable Company Loyalty 63 2 2 2 3 5 7 18 24 9 7.49 8 Open Source Interest 62 20 11 11 3 5 4 2 3 1 2 0 2.27 2 Category Total Yes percent Considering new ILS 64 1 1.56% Considering new Interface 64 2 3.13% System Installed on time? 64 1 1.56%

Comments

Very satisified with PLS

I like the Polaris company and its philosophy of service. However, we really miss some of the functionality we had on classic Dynix. Ex: temporary status changes, claimed returns, etc. That being said, there was NO WAY I felt we could continue a relationship with SirsiDynix. We had absolutely no faith or trust in the company or the direction they were taking.

The State of [...] is looking at open source for public libraries. If this becomes a reality, we will migrate in the future. Nothing against Polaris, but one system in the state would be a great benefit for all our patrons, especially if a delivery system were implemented as well.

Polaris has exceeded our expectations this year and done an outstanding job. We are very happy with them.

The more Polaris expands, the less available Polaris becomes for support. While this is to be expected on some level, as a smaller library it often feels we are overlooked. We don't even get sales calls any more.

We have been customers since 1995 and have always received excellent service. Prompt customer support is important to our system and Polaris has always responded quickly with exceptional professional assistance.

We hve been very pleased with the customer support received from Polaris. They have been responsive and worked hard to accommodate our needs.

We just went live with Polaris in January 2009; it has been a year of discovery and hard work but we are very happy with our decision to move to Polaris.

All computers in the Library should use GNU/Linux. It is intellectually indefensible to use It is shameful for a Library to use any computer software which is encumbered by proprietary license.

We are currently using SirsiDynix Horizon and migrating to Polaris in May 2010. Responses above refer to Polaris.

We are on Polaris Hosted, and it was a tough transition with many issues with our equipment and the remote desktop connections. It took almost 8 months for everything to actually work together smoothly where we were not getting disconnected, and all the printers could move easily between the remote desktop environment and the regular environment. This was the first time I have seriously questioned if we had made the right choice. It is working out now very well, but the process was anything but smooth, and I had lots of complaints and issues. I do not know if I could say the service had gotten worse, however: it was a whole new set of problems. Service was responsive and caring, but it all took too long to get right. Some issues turned out to be ours, some Polaris, some our ISP. The whole mess aged me quite a bit.

There are features and functionality missing from this system, but we think it is by far the best. We'd like to see a little more attention to academic library needs; a cell phone PAC immediately; better kids PAC interface and search engine.

As our library is part of a consortia, most direct technical support issues are relegated to the consortia IT staff to communicate with the ILS vendor, and the libraries of the consortia deal with our own IT staff to report issues or problems. To switch to a new ILS would require either convincing all libraries of the consortia, or splitting from the consortia itself. The leaves OSS ILS possibilities in a rather bleak place.

We used Polaris when we were part of a consortium. We kept the same ILS when we left the consortium and are more satisfied with it now than ever.

Our parent org, [...] is a Microsoft shop, and drove our choice of Polaris originally. I would be very suprised if they would entertain the thought of open-source. On the other hand, if the budget shows a huge benefit, that's a very serious consideration this year.

Our parent org, the [...], is a Microsoft shop, and drove our choice of Polaris originally. I would be very suprised if they would entertain the thought of open-source. On the other hand, if the budget shows a huge benefit, that's a very serious consideration this year.

Our parent org, the [...] , is a Microsoft shop, and drove our choice of Polaris originally. I would be very suprised if they would entertain the thought of open-source. On the other hand, if the budget shows a huge benefit, that's a very serious consideration this year.

What we really need is a way for databases to be searchable from the OPAC. I realize this would take alot of agreement from vendors etc - but it's what libraries need to provide the kind of searching patrons expect.

[...] is considering undertaking an open source ILS project on behalf of the libraries throughout the state. This may eventually influence how our consortium approaches managing its ILS. It is too early to tell whether this consortium would elect to migrate from its current vendor to a state-supported open source ILS.

Tech. support at Polaris is extremely responsive and the people very pleasant. We always feel like we're a "most favored" customer.

Thank you. We've been very happy with Polaris. Their customer support is phenomenal. They also support a very strong user''s group and listen carefully to the enhancement requests and even more importantly take action. They've been great to work with.

Recently reviewed responses to requests for information from Liblime (Koha), Sirsi Dynix, Innovative, and elected to remain with Polaris.

We are part of a large automation consortium (over 150 libraries in 150 different municipalities operating under different bylaws and funding arrangments). As such we do not deal directly with the vendor or system support.

We have only been on this system for just under a year. We have not run any annual reports yet, so it's hard to give a complete grade to Polaris. Next year we will be better able to answer these questions. Being that we are part of a regional system, questions about contracts and customer support are difficult to answer as the system deals with this, we just see the outcome.

We receive Polaris through the county library district so my answers are a bit skewed as far as we don't interact directly with Polaris very often.

Customer service is outstanding.

We do not feel our version of Polaris was adequately tested before installation, but it's working pretty well now.

We love Polaris

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Library Technology Guides is a service provided by Marshall Breeding, independent consultant, author, and speaker.