Library Technology Guides

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Statistical Report for OPALS

Statistics according to type and size categories

The following table presents the 2015 results according to the type and size of the library.

5 Responses for OPALS in 2008

3 Responses for OPALS in 2007

2023 : gen: 7.93 company 8.26 loyalty 8.43 support 8.64

2022 : gen: 8.87 company 8.85 loyalty 8.71 support 8.77

2021 : gen: 8.85 company 8.79 loyalty 8.71 support 8.76

2020 : gen: 8.83 company 8.82 loyalty 8.73 support 8.78

2019 : gen: 8.78 company 8.80 loyalty 8.64 support 8.74

2018 : gen: 8.92 company 8.93 loyalty 8.78 support 8.91

2017 : gen: 8.85 company 8.88 loyalty 8.74 support 8.85

2016 : gen: 8.59 company 8.58 loyalty 8.52 support 8.63

2015 : gen: 8.58 company 8.69 loyalty 8.55 support 8.69

2014 : gen: 8.48 company 8.66 loyalty 8.54 support 8.66

2013 : gen: 8.70 company 8.81 loyalty 8.75 support 8.79

2012 : gen: 8.63 company 8.76 loyalty 8.72 support 8.70

2011 : gen: 8.20 company 8.45 loyalty 8.46 support 8.35

2010 : gen: 8.43 company 8.63 loyalty 8.71 support 8.76

2009 : gen: 7.67 company 7.93 loyalty 8.00 support 8.12

Comments

Our library now benefits from a union catalog of OPALS users that also belong to the Church and Synagogue Library Association. This union catalog, implemented in 2015, was provided at no additional cost by MediaFlex working with CSLA member librarians to determine details such as search priorities. Media Flex is currently working with CSLA libraries that use other software platforms to include them, at their request, in this union catalog. [...] Library is impressed and grateful for the "extra mile" work Media Flex put into making this catalog possible. (Type: Church)

[...] (Type: Consortium)

[...] (Type: School)

Re: functionality, OPALS does not have a serials module (Type: Special)

Already have open source system but to date we have not used the electronic resources component. (Type: School)

good customer service when needed although not always quick to follow through with promised updates to program (Type: School)

OPALS support is excellent. They are very responsive to requests. Pricing (including hosting) is reasonable and affordable. We are very happy with the service and the product. (Type: School)

It has been a rough start moving from one vendor to another, but OPALS is very responsive to its customers needs. (Type: School)

Not using electronic resources yet. (Type: School)

As a small non-profit literacy program for at-risk children, this library system meets all our needs and then some. We also cannot say enough about the vendor (Bibliofiche) which over the years has provided an excellent service. (Type: Special)

We just went officially online this week. I can't answer the questions now. (Type: Synagogue)

Mediaflex (OPALS) has been one of the best automation companies I've worked with in my 24 years in library. They are very responsive to their clients and are constantly improving their open source product. I am very happy working with Mediaflex. (Type: School)

OPALS is a great value as it has the features of a next-generation OPAC and low-cost hosting and support. MediaFlex is patient and responsive toward its customers. (Type: Academic)

OPALS is open source software. Support has consistently been excellent. "5" rating for customer support reflects that there has been no change in past year. Ability to sort results of catalog searches and of most reports in multiple ways, while not adding to the complexity of the programs, is especially appreciated. Flexibility of Home Page design, and ability to create online "pathfinder" bibliographies of both library and non-library resources (including websites & uploaded PDF documents) are great features for libraries with limited or no access to their parent organization's websites. Customized webinar instruction on request is especially valuable. Electronic books in library's collection would benefit from easier-to-use display of content. Company is responsive to suggestions for product development. Minor changes are sometimes implemented almost immediately; major updates may take longer than we anticipate. (Type: Church)

OPALS is an open source product and has been very responsive to our needs. (Type: Church)

Very helpful and courteous technical support staff. Converted and uploaded our existing data and provided Webex tutorials that helped us learn to use the system. (Type: School)

Migrating to this system was painless and well supported. (Type: School)

Items in the library's collection (5 000) has to be review we've just merged whit 3 other libraries on the [...]. The language is an issue here, OPALS being dubiously translate in French. Plus little can be trully configured Above these points OPALS system is a stong mechanism. Il works very well for what it's supposed to do. The administration is very simple, clear and fast. And in 2 years we had no technical issue at all. Once that been said i think it won't pass the criterias of the new merged libraries group. (Type: Medical)

Although OPALS is an open-source system, we purchased it from a company (Mediaflex), and that company provides us with technical support. We are very happy with their technical support services. (Type: Academic)

Our needs are rather minimal, and this system meets them well. We migrated from Horizon, which I, as the systems administrator, really liked. However, our schools never really used anything more than check in and check out, and I had to do run all the reports. OPALS lets individual sites do what they want to do. I do wish it were a real union catalog as that would make my life easier and data more consistent. However, there are things I like a lot: the user interface, circulation, bibliographies. And I do wish it were more customizable for the back end. (Type: School)

I am very happy with the vendor. The tech support is excellent. They are always there to answer questions and provide answers and webinars. (Type: School)

I researched library cataloging software for nine months before selecting OPALS. I found that OPALS met or exceeded the standards of the very best systems at a fraction of the price. In addition to offering a superior product, we have found that the staff at OPALS is the most helpful, friendly, and courteous group of people I have ever worked with in any setting. We could not be happier! (Type: School)

Have used OPALS for 9 years. Their support team is competent and courteous. Regular, multiple annual updates enable us to handle changing information resource formats without having to look for new or third party software. (Type: School)

Ours was a new library and collection. We received outstanding setup and configuration services as well as effective tutoring from their librarian-instructors. (Type: School)

We are pleased with OPALS for our smLl church library collection. (Type: Church)

[...] (Type: Government Agency)

OPALS is an excellent ILS which, because it's Open Source, is constantly improving based on customer needs and requests. There are still areas where the OPALS ILS is lacking (particularly tracking of digital devices and technology equipment), but these functions are being developed and improved over time. The customer service/user training aspect of OPALS is very good and highly responsive. (Type: School)

OPALS customer service is above and beyond. If your library has a specific need, they respond with a unique solution and in a timely fashion. The system is so intuitive. (Type: School)

Our OPALS Union catalog is fairly new. My member schools are still in the process of uploading records and learning how to use the resource. However, I am very happy with the support we have received from the company. (Type: School)

Support services from OPALS are THE BEST this longstanding librarian has ever experienced from any vendor, ILS or any other resource. Development work seems to be slowing down, and we would recommend they charge more to increase development. A basic serials and acquisitions system would be welcome, for example. Still, this is a great company and ILS, and we would highly recommend them, particularly for their commitment to service. (Type: Academic)

Students are liking the new catalog and being able to write their own reviews. Thrilled that I can catalog in Hebrew and the searching ability with each of the catalogs of MARC records is excellent. Books that I would not even dream of finding with our former program now appear in the catalogs that OPALS works with. OPALS is a dream come true after years of using Athena, Follett, and AlliancePlus. (Type: School)

There are little glitches in the program periodically that we discover at the time of data input or later. If it is later, sometimes it is hard to track back the circulation mistake. (Type: School)

Very happy with our current system. Would love more graphic options, but happy with what has been provided to date. (Type: School)

Would like to be able to include our own database subscriptions links on the home page. OPALS works very well for us and the support is terrific. (Type: School)

I love OPALS. It is not only our online catalog, but also our library's website. It is a one-stop-shop which is what I like. I also like that if I have questions, concerns, or suggestions, the people that are in charge of OPALS take my thoughts into consideration. (Type: School)

I love OPALS and especially the customer service component and the reasonable cost. The free state sponsored service is clumsy and the commercial products are costly. I will never switch from OPALS. (Type: School)

Question 7: This is our first year using OPALS. Support is outstanding to date, but cannot determine if this is "better or worse than the previous year" (Type: School)

We love OPALS. (Type: Consortium)

Great service! I am very please with OPALS and would highly suggest it to other librarians. (Type: School)

OPALS has just developed its self-service module, but I haven't had a chance to mount it yet. It is a very important missing piece. It wasn't much trouble working around the problem, because of the nature of our library, but I think this could have been a significant problem for other libraries. I had problems at first with the label printing part of the system. The set up is not really under my control and it has problems with different browsers and printers at different times. For the most part this has been dealt with well by the vendor, but I'm still a little mystified as to why I don't have more control. (Type: Theology)

We cannot evaluate the program's digital resource management capabilities. This is an early childhood education institution that promotes early childhood literacy and that does not use digital resources. (Type: School)

My high school has been using OPALS for 6 years and we love it. The lower school librarian (K-8) also switched to OPALS. (Type: School)

As new Head Librarian at the [...] Children's Library and first-time user of OPALS open source library system, I am very impressed. OPALS is and excellent system, and the service and care I have received from Bibliofiche is outstanding. I recommend Bibliofiche and OPALS to other Librarians. (Type: Public)

OPALS has been a fantastic company to work with. They have always been so receptive to suggestions and queries from our library consortium, and they bend over backwards to try to improve those experiences, based on customer suggestion and feedback. As a spouse of an IT professional, I understand a little bit how the programming world works, and know that minor issues can crop up from time to time as programming continues to be updated and streamlined. OPALS works quickly and efficiently to correct issues that crop up, and their turnaround time is usually very brief compared to other, larger companies. (Type: School)

Our library does not and will not manage eBooks, so we cannot answer that question. The system has an eBook management utility but we cannot assess it for the survey. In addition, this is our first year using OPALS and while service has been very good, we cannot compare our experiences with the past. (Type: School)

OPALS has always been responsive to our needs. Their technical support is great! Sometimes we will suggest an improvement, and they agree to it, but it doesn't always get done, there isn't always follow through. Overall, they have been a good company for us and I would recommend them. (Type: School)

Re: Improved service question. This is our first year. Service is excellent but cannot say how this compares with previous years yet. (Type: Academic)

It has been a pleasure to work with OPALS and their professional support staff again this year. (Type: School)

Have known, used and appreciated technology supported and developed by this group for decades. Their gold standard services made choosing this open source ILS an easy decision. (Type: Special)

I appreciate the OPALS/MediaFlex/Bibliofiche team very much! They are terrific to work with, and it is ideal that they not only improve the product, but also automatically install those updates. This is an affordable means for us to serve our patrons, even though we are in a unique situation. Love the flexibility of the team! (Type: Special)

We do not manage eBooks yet, but will use OPALS' eBook management technology when we do. We cannot comment on how effective that module is at this time. Anticipating it will be as great as the rest of the program we use (Type: Synagogue)

This is our eighth year using OPALS. The program has been updated several times each year and evolves to meet our changing needs. Technical support continues to be competent and courteous. (Type: School)

As of December 2015, our library includes 823 eBooks, 9723 pdf format eBooks and studies and 1878 printed books. The balance of resources are miscellaneous formats. Most of these resources are in Arabic followed by English and the system has managed these diverse materials and formats very well. This is just one of several hundred [...] libraries where we use this open source system. (Type: Academic)

No electronic resources in this library yet. (Type: Academic)

Started using OPALS in December 2015. Transition from our previous ILS almost seamless. We do not manage eBooks at this time and cannot comment on previous year's services. What we have experienced so far is excellent and have recommended the system to another synagogue in our area. (Type: Synagogue)

We have used OPALS for 3 full years and have been perfectly satisfied. Each year brings system additions and improvements that we find helpful. Technical support is seldom needed, but always quick and effective when we do need it. (Type: School)

We started using this system in 2008. Are very pleased with the system and technical support. Another library in our district will adopt OPALS this year. (Type: School)

Our library has very few E-Books. We will use the system's E-Book management functions when we do. (Type: Synagogue)

Great customer service and support they are always willing to investigate new ideas or useful changes/updates. (Type: School)

Our library does not have many electronic resources. We did not rank OPALS' electronic resource management application. (Type: School)

1st year using OPALS. We love our new system and its support staff. Cannot compare with past years so we did not click a rating for that. (Type: School)

System used since 2010; service and software is great. (Type: School)

The question has the service gotten better or worse in the past year leaves no option for remained the same. The service is already excellent. I don't believe it can get better. That's why I rated it a 5. (Type: School)

This system has worked so well for libraries in our district. (Type: School)

We could not rank the quality of service comparisons with previous years. We just switched systems in May 2015. The transition from our previous system was remarkably easy. Their tutoring enabled us to use the system almost immediately. (Type: School)

Program updates adapt to changes we need, without incurring new costs. Customer service is still outstanding... glad that does not change. (Type: School)

Our ninth year and still happy! (Type: School)

It is exciting to be apart of a company like OPALS that is always striving to improve and to stay in the forefront of emerging technology and ideas. (Type: School)

We appreciate the excellent support and service that we receive from OPALS. (Type: School)

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