EbookMobile 2.0Revamping services based on user feedback

Kathryn LybargerKLA/SLA Joint Spring Conference #jsc2013March 21, 2013

We add lots of ebooks to the catalog…

Catalog

CopyCataloging

BatchLoading

Original Cataloging

…but how do people know?

Catalog

Catalog search

?Selector

New book feeds for ebooks

Our method for print books isn’t really suitable

Requires call numbers in MFHD for sorting

Requires item records

Built-in embargo for labeling

EbookMobile

New ebooks feeds

Pulls from Voyager database

Feeds specified by call number ranges(in bib records)

Easy to specifyStarting call numberEnding call number

Example feeds (what I had in mind)

MathematicsQA

AlgebraQA150 -> QA273

Numerical Linear AlgebraQA184 -> QA205 (linear algebra)QA297 -> QA299.4 (numerical analysis)

Feeds for cataloging status“I’d like a feed of all of the ebooks from Knovel.”

--Engineering librarian

Ebooks for Law or Med Center?

All original cataloging

Not just for ebooks…“How can we let people know about new anime and manga?”

--Japanese selector

Feeds based on subject headings?

Feeds based on series?

Other searches…“How can we promote our collections during the Year of Russia?”

—International librarian

Books about Russia or former Soviet republics?

Books by (or about) Russian authors?

Books and movies in Russian / related languages?

Arbitrary database queries

More flexibility

Must be set up by librarian

Types of feeds people are actually asking for

Output: Atom feeds (like RSS)

In progress: Cover images

Shift in focus

Ebook-mobile

E-bookmobile

Implementation

CacheQueries run nightlyLocal MySQL database populatedQuery output may be used in multiple feeds(BLOB queries can be slow)

FeedsBuilt on the fly from the local database

Configuration

SQL query including:EBM_FIRST_DATEEBM_LAST_DATE

LifetimeHow long should it stay on the feed?

Embargo?How new is too new?

Future plans: Easier configurationQuery type

Call number?Subject headings?Arbitrary query?

TriggerRecord addition?Record modification?

Software is open sourceCode is available on my GitHub repositoryhttps://github.com/zemkat/EbookMobile

Uses:PHP (code)MySQL (cache)Oracle (Voyager query)

Tested under Linux/Apache

More open source softwareOther GitHub repositories underhttps://github.com/zemkat

Voyager

Connexion

AutoHotKey

… (more on the way)

Feed Readers – what do you use?Google Reader shutting down on July 1

Other web-based readers

Email clients

Apps

Any questions?

Contact me

Kathryn LybargerBlog: http://pc.blog.zemows.org/Kathryn.Lybarger@uky.edu

GitHub repository:https://github.com/zemkat/EbookMobile/