Beginning on August 27th, the Library will replace links to the Classic Catalog with either the DePaul VuFind Catalog or DePaul WorldCat Local interfaces on all library web platforms. We came to this decision after a lengthy review of the current state and future of the three catalog and discovery systems available to us individually as well as through our membership with the Consortium of Academic & Research Libraries in Illinois (CARLI).
Some key critical limitations found with the Classic Catalog (WebVoyage version 6) during our investigation include:
- A lack of ongoing technological support or enhancements for the underlying system powering the Classic Catalog by the software vendor Ex Libris
- An inability to search and discover new research resources purchased by the Library for DePaul community use
- CARLI will no longer begin projects aimed at improving this service and is beginning a lengthy but necessary process to replace this system
– I-Share Next - Not ADA compliant
- Unable to surface titles from CARLI consortia related projects, including print and ebook demand driven collections.
- Classic Catalog usage has fallen to 25% since the launch of DePaul WorldCat Local in the fall of 2011
Let us know what you think!