Introduction to Koha

Intro to the Koha Open Source ILS Nicole C. Engard Koha Documentation Manager nengard@gmail.com

A bit of History • Koha was started at the Horowhenua Library Trust (HLT) by Katipo • They needed a new ILS (because of a Y2K bug) • They got no suitable responses to their RFP • none of the vendors actually read it - because none of their solutions would actually work • Katipo thought - it’s just a database, how hard can it be? • Neither HLT or Katipo wanted to be vendors so they decided to release it under the GPL - didn’t want to write the project and then try to sell it. They also looked at it as if you give something out you’ll get something back. http://www.web2learning.net/archives/2775

A bit of History • January 5, 2000 Koha went live • Announced to the world on July 2000 (article in Library Life in NZ). • Soon after the release HLT won some awards and the software started selling itself - just like they wanted. • When 1.0 was released in July 2000 it only took 20 minutes before someone first downloaded the system. http://www.web2learning.net/archives/2775

A bit of History • By 2002 things really got moving with new developers and US interest at the Nelsonville Public Library in OH • In 2008 Koha 3.0 was released introducing some amazing new features: • Zebra search engine • Tagging in the OPAC • Improvements to: • label creator • notices • guided reports • and more http://www.web2learning.net/archives/2775 http://koha.org/news/koha-version-3-released

Koha Today • In 2009 Koha 3.2 will include: • A completely revamped Acquisitions module • ‡biblios integration • More advanced Circulation rules • Lots of new sources for OPAC enhanced content • LibraryThing • Syndetics • Babelthèque • Improved Serials management • And so much more!! http://www.web2learning.net/archives/2781

The Community • It’s impossible to talk about Koha without mentioning the community • Open source is about sharing and community while you can just download and use Koha - it’s a much more rewarding process if you join the community • Ways to contribute • Help with documentation • Help with coding • Help with debugging • Educate fellow librarians about open source and Koha http://koha.org/about/get-involved

Open Source Philosophy Open source revealed a fundamental truth about humans that had gone largely unnoticed until the connectivity of the Internet brought it into high relief: labor can often be organized more efficiently in the context of a community than it can in the context of the corporation. The best person to do a job is the one who most wants to do that job; and the best people to evaluate their performance are their friends and peers who, by the way, will enthusiastically pitch in to improve the final product, simply for the sheer pleasure of helping one another and creating something beautiful from which they all will benefit. (p.8) http://www.web2learning.net/archives/2848

Open Source & Libraries Libraries and Open Source Both... • Believe that information should be freely accessible to everyone • Give away stuff • Beneﬁt from the generosity of others • Are about communities • Make the world a better place -- Horton, G. http://tinyurl.com/3jvumn

Show me what it can do!

Thank You Nicole C. Engard Koha Documentation Manager http://koha.org/documentation nengard@gmail.com

Introduction to Koha

by Nicole C. Engard on May 14, 2009

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Introduction to Koha — Presentation Transcript