I would recommend Apache’s mod_proxy over Squid for a library setting, as it can be morphed into a general rewriting proxy easier than Squid can for off-site access.

It’s true that both can be made to perform the rewriting function, but the bar for entry is lower for Apache and it supports a broader set of authentication options than Squid does.

-- 
Andrew Anderson, President & CEO, Library and Information Resources Network, Inc.
http://www.lirn.net/ | http://www.twitter.com/LIRNnotes | http://www.facebook.com/LIRNnotes

On Aug 23, 2015, at 0:45, Cornel Darden Jr. <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> Hello,
> 
> There are open-source proxies available. I would give squid a try. http://wiki.squid-cache.org/Features/Authentication
> 
> At such a library, public domain materials are awesome! I would look into calibre as an ebook server and mamager. http://calibre-ebook.com
> 
> Of course, project Gutenberg and the internet archive will supply calibre with thousands of free books. Also, look into drm free publishers. With squid active, many non-drm options can be realized for eBooks too. Do not allow access to databases without authentication. 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone
> 
>> On Aug 22, 2015, at 11:06 PM, Nicole Askin <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>> 
>> 1. We don't currently have such technology, though we are definitely
>> looking at it beyond this project as well
>> 2. Either. From my understanding there aren't many/any comprehensive free
>> discovery products. We're currently making do with a Google custom search
>> engine, which is a very suboptimal solution
>> 3. Yes. I'm working on learning what I can, and we're working on tech
>> support options.
>> Thanks,
>> Nicole
>> 
>> On Fri, Aug 21, 2015 at 2:11 PM, Kevin Hawkins <
>> [log in to unmask]> wrote:
>> 
>>> We should probably clarify you're needs a bit.
>>> 
>>> Will you need technology that manages authentication of authorized users,
>>> or does your non-profit already have some tool (like a user login or proxy
>>> server) that can decide which users should be able to get access to your
>>> resources?
>>> 
>>> You mention "discovery options" ... are you thinking of a "discovery
>>> product" or old-fashioned federated search that provides a single user
>>> search interface that searches across many or all of your licensed
>>> products?  And a link resolver?
>>> 
>>> As a general rule of thumb, you can either have limited tech support or
>>> use open-source software but not both.  :(
>>> 
>>> Kevin
>>> 
>>> 
>>>> On 8/20/15 5:04 PM, Nicole Askin wrote:
>>>> 
>>>> Hello all,
>>>> I'm working with a non-profit that is offering access to research
>>>> databases
>>>> for patrons that do not otherwise have it. We are hoping to develop a
>>>> library portal to support users, ideally including both article- and
>>>> journal-level search. We'd like to do this as much as possible using
>>>> *only*
>>>> free and open source software, so I'm looking for recommendations on what
>>>> to use and, crucially, what works well together.
>>>> Some parameters:
>>>> -We have no physical location or physical holdings - don't need
>>>> circulation
>>>> or anything in that category, although access stats would be nice
>>>> -We do not have our own hosted materials - no need for a CMS
>>>> -We have very limited tech support
>>>> 
>>>> Any thoughts? I've been playing around with VuFind and reSearcher so far
>>>> but am definitely open to other possibilities, particularly if there are
>>>> good discovery options available.
>>>> 
>>>> Thanks,
>>>> Nicole
>>>> 
>>>>