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I'm looking for a few libraries interested in being test sites for a service providing easy-to-use reports on circulation and database usage. Xan Charbonnet has developed a very sophisticated reporting capability for Westbank, as well as reservation and printing control for their public access stations (Xan has worked at Westbank since he was in high school, and he developed the services to meet the specific needs of Westbank librarians). Beth Fox believes that other CTLS libraries could benefit from the reporting services Xan has developed for Westbank. If the services prove valuable, CTLS might be able to provide them for members. If you'd like to be considered as a test site, read on and let me know, especially if you have questions. Bob Gaines -----Original Message----- From: Xan Charbonnet [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Tuesday, October 28, 2003 1:40 AM Bob, Since our meeting, I've been developing the infrastructure for the Web applications we discussed. By the end of the week, I expect the following functions to be working: 1) Extension of catalog reporting capabilities via custom filtering, sorting, combining, etc of catalog text reports. Especially when combined with circulation data, this allows the creation of some very powerful reports. 2) Tracking of Web database usage. Can establish separate accounting for local / remote / staff access. Data are displayed in graphs which allow comparison of multiple databases on the same graph. 3) Graphing of circulation data by time of day, day of week, month, etc. Large staffing implications. All these services are totally Web-based, and the only system requirements are a reasonably modern Web browser and a catalog system that outputs text reports (should be all of them). A high-speed connection might be nice for some of the reports, since they may require large text files to be uploaded. Caching is implemented at my end to reduce these transfers to a minimum. It's getting to the point where it would be helpful to identify a handful of other libraries willing to beta test these services. Ideally, Spectrum, Athena, and possibly Follett would be represented. That way, I could get their input on feature additions or usability improvements, and you could gauge the usefulness of the services to see if CTLS may be interested in buying them for the system. You probably have a better idea than anyone of which libraries would be most open to trying this out, and if you're interested in the possibilities, I'd really appreciate your help in that area. Thanks very much! -Xan
