Aquabrowser ...Improved!

My former colleagues over at Columbus Metro Library have just launched a new catalog powered by Aquabrowser. Yes, there are lots of libraries across the country running Aquabrowser and other search discovery platforms... so what makes this newsworthy?

The implementation unlike others provides seamless integration into the "book bag"/place a request functionality and advanced search options. Other implementations simply shoot the customer back to a classic webpac -- resulting in a somewhat jarring effect. CML staff did work directly with MediaLab Solutions that powers the platform to solve this customer experience issue. The staff at CML should be very proud of the groundbreaking work that they achieved in closing the bridge between discovery platforms and the core functionality of the webpac -- reserving items.

My other personal favorite discovery platform implementation is the Queens Library's Aquabrowser. I love that Queens allows customers to first select a format type utilizing the tabs at the top of the page. I'm of the school that believes strongly that most customers know the format they want. If you want a book, you want a book, not a movie... but if you want a movie, you want a movie.

Kudos to Queens and CML for not settling for "out-of-the-box" implementations and pushing the search envelope. Improving search options is so important to providing smooth access to our collections.