April, 2000, Raleigh, NC - Keystone Systems, a leading producer of library automation systems, is proud to announce that KLAS, the Keystone Library Automation System, has been installed in the Broward County Talking Book Library, located in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Nestled on the ground floor of the main branch of the Broward County Public Library, the Talking Book Library is easily accessible to the many walk-in patrons. "We love the AA search for helping walk-in patrons. It makes it a cinch to match books the patron wants with books that are on our shelves," stated Joann Block, Librarian at the Broward County Talking Book Library. "We also really love the Z search. It makes serving our patrons on the phone a delight for us and them."

The KLAS system has allowed the Broward County Talking Book Library to become an interactive partner in the Florida KLAS network. This network, linking the regional talking book library in Daytona with the 11 subregional libraries across the state, has helped speed service to patrons while decreasing paperwork. "We like being able to order books without having to be concerned about whether they will be sent by us or our regional library," stated Ms. Block. "We are a team providing seamless service to our patrons."

The Broward County Talking Book Library serves over 4500 patrons from a local collection of nearly 49,000 copies of over 7000 titles. This collection is augmented by the regional library's collection of over two million copies of 56,000 titles. Since conversion to the KLAS system from READS II, the library has increased its average monthly circulation by 17% to 13,500 copies per month, or an average of 3 books per patron per month!

Keystone Systems, Inc. is an eighteen year old company based in Raleigh, North Carolina. Through extensive research and consultation, Keystone developers have created a powerful, yet elegant library automation system, KLAS, which has the flexibility to meet the specific needs of special, academic, and public libraries. Keystone's staff takes pride in assisting customers to obtain and fully utilize the best computer systems available. For more information about Keystone Systems or our KLAS products, visit our web site at www.klas.com.