There are open source solutions created by librarians:  SubjectsPlus and
Library a la Carte.


On Sun, Aug 11, 2013 at 2:38 PM, Cornel Darden Jr. <[log in to unmask]
> wrote:

> Hello?
>
> Soringshre's link-rot tool has gotten much better. Even at alerting admins
> about broken links. I think $999 a year for the basic package is worth it
> since most librarians aren't coders like we 'ALL' should be! Maybe an open
> source solution created by librarians is needed. However database
> management will still require librarians to pick up those skills like SQL
> that we too often think isn't or shouldn't be a skill that a librarian must
> have. It's the 21st century!!!!
>
> Thanks,
>
> Cornel Darden Jr.
> MSLIS
> Librarian
> Kennedy-King College
> City Colleges of Chicago
> Work 773-602-5449
> Cell 708-705-2945
>
> > On Aug 11, 2013, at 11:21 AM, Robert Sebek <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> >
> >> On Sun, Aug 11, 2013 at 9:54 AM, Heather Rayl <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> >>
> >> I have to say that I loathe LibGuides. My library makes extensive use of
> >> them, too. Need a web solution? The first thing out of someone's mouth
> is
> >> "Let's put it in a LibGuide!"
> >>
> >> Shudder
> >>
> >> This fall, I'll be moving our main site over to Drupal, and I'm hoping
> that
> >> eventually I can convince people to re-invent their LibGuides there. I
> can
> >> use the "saving money" card, and the "content silos are bad" card and
> >> *maybe* I will be successful.
> >>
> >> Anyone fought this particular battle before?
> >>
> >> ~heather
> >>
> >> I'm fighting that battle right now. We have an excellent CMS into which
> I
> > have set up all our database URLs, descriptions, etc.Anytime we need to
> > refer to a database on a page, we use one of those entries. That database
> > just changed platforms? No problem. I change the URL in one place and
> > everything automatically updates (hooray CMSs!).
> >
> > All of our subject guides (http://www.lib.vt.edu/subject-guides/) are in
> > the CMS using the exact same database entries. I converted from our
> > failing, home-grown system into the CMS and then gave training on how to
> > maintain from there (remove an entry, add an entry, create a parallel
> > course guide)--using the same skills as maintaining any other web page
> that
> > librarian is responsible for. But apparently that's too hard.
> >
> > So we have a trial of LibGuides. NO ONE here has created a guide from
> > scratch yet,  but they all say this is going to be easy. No one will
> admit
> > that someone will have to recreate all those database entries (literally
> > hundreds) and then maintain those entries. When presented with this,
> > several librarians said--oh that won't be necessary, we'll just create
> > individual entries as needed on individual guides. WHAT?!
> >
> > If implemented, we'll have hundreds and hundreds of entries, any of which
> > could be out of date and nonfunctional, with no easy way to find and fix,
> > other than waiting for patrons to complain that the link doesn't work.
> Ugh.
> > All for several thousand dollar a year (as opposed for free in the CMS).
> >
> > And yes, those librarians' favorite example libguides have a dozen tabs
> > with hundreds of links on each tab. Overwhelm the patron with links--who
> > cares! Just let me recreate the Yahoo Directory I so miss with every
> > possible resource I can find online. Half those links don't work next
> > semester? Doesn't matter, as no one will ever maintain that page again
> (and
> > no patron will use it, since they will just Google these resources
> anyway).
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > Robert Sebek
> > Webmaster, Virginia Tech Libraries
> > (http://www.lib.vt.edu/)
>



-- 
Andrew Darby
Head, Web & Emerging Technologies
University of Miami Libraries