SIRSI Corp. has announced a partnership with Library Systems & Services
(LSSI) to provide SIRSI libraries and their users with state-of-the-art
virtual library reference services. SIRSI also announced that
it will become a value-added reseller for ebrary's ebrarian for
Libraries database.
LSSI
SIRSI will integrate LSSI's Virtual Reference Toolkit (VRT)
2.0 software with its iBistro and iLink e-Library solutions for
library users and staff. This will provide the capabilities for
one-on-one virtual reference sessions and access to related electronic
content. As a result, library staff and users will be able to
find and interact with the references they need faster and more
easily, according to the announcement.
"SIRSI is dedicated first and foremost to delivering solutions
that assist libraries in serving their users better than ever
before," said Lamar Jackson Jr., SIRSI's director of global alliances.
"The integration of LSSI's VRT software with SIRSI's e-Library
products will offer powerful online reference capabilities to
the users of our customers' libraries. This is an important next
step in the continuing evolution of e-Library technologies, and
we are very pleased to be working closely with a respected partner
like LSSI to bring these benefits to the market."
"The goal of virtual reference is to provide library users ...
with the specific reference help they need when they need it,"
said Steve Coffman, vice president of product development for
LSSI's Reference Division. "By integrating LSSI's virtual reference
capabilities into SIRSI's iBistro and iLink solutions, library
staff and users will enjoy all the benefits of today's premier
virtual reference technology and do so within the powerful SIRSI
public interface environment."
ebrarian for Libraries
ebrarian for Libraries provides simultaneous, multiuser access
to ebrary's growing, searchable database of more than 10,000 books
from over 130 leading academic, professional, and trade publishers,
the majority of which were published within the last 2 years.
Under terms of the agreement, SIRSI will resell the ebrarian
for Libraries database as part of its Unicorn Library Management
System and iBistro Electronic Library. SIRSI is currently building
the necessary interface to its Unicorn system, which will make
electronic copies of ebrarian for Libraries resources directly
accessible to library users via iBistro. These expanded electronic
resources will be available to the more than 10,000 individual
libraries served by SIRSI throughout the world, as well as to
new SIRSI customers.
"ebrary offers a unique, highly flexible service that will greatly
enhance our offerings to libraries by allowing any number of library
users to simultaneously access books from leading publishers online—at
any time, from anywhere," said Jackson. "Additionally, ebrary's
database of full-text books is exceptionally strong in important
subject areas, including business and economics, computers and
technology, and humanities. We are very pleased to work with ebrary
and to be the first integrated library system vendor to offer
its customers this type of access to electronic resources. And
we are excited that this is just the beginning of SIRSI's partnership
with ebrary."
Source: SIRSI Corp., Huntsville, AL, 256/704-7000; http://www.sirsi.com.
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