As a development partner with five other library systems, Mid-Hudson Library System [MHLS] will help ensure that Innovative's new Vega platform meets the unique needs of public libraries in today's world by participating in advisory discussions, usability testing, and beta testing. Vega, a new ultramodern catalog discovery platform from Innovative, promises to increase engagement and amplify collections of all types, helping public libraries strengthen and advance their crucial role in communities across the world.
Laurie Shedrick, MHLS Assistant Director and Technology Operations Manager said about the platform, "People expect libraries to provide modern tools, experiences, and outreach, and until now that technology has been behind. We're excited about Vega modernizing that experience and the ease of use it offers - we expect no learning curve as it's designed with the same principles that guide so many of our experiences today on services like Amazon and Netflix."
Vega is designed specifically to address many of the unsolved challenges inherent in current public library catalog platforms, including our own Encore catalog. Features include:
- Robust Discovery - Delivers personalized experiences with re-imagined lists, reading history, recommendations, and library outreach to promote higher-quality interactions.
- Work Roll-Ups - Eliminate endless scrolling by combining formats and editions into a single search result with one smart "hold" or "check-out" button, simplifying workflows and offering at-a-glance availability.
- Showcases - Provide access to related materials, people, and topics in a visual interface that encourages people to explore and uncover further areas of interest.
- Patron Engagement - A portfolio of tools, such as customer relationship management, marketing automation, website builder, and event management to strengthen libraries' connections to their communities.
- Accessibility - Responsive user interface works across devices, adheres to latest accessibility standards, and supports multiple languages.
- Cloud-based Design - Built as software-as-a-service, on a new multi-tenant platform.
The Vega platform will expand beyond discovery to include intelligence, analytics, marketing tools and services for public libraries, and easily integrate data and third-party software. A rich set of APIs offer deep connectivity to digital content providers, catalog enrichment sources, and more. "Now, more than ever, libraries need to be available anywhere, anytime. Like its namesake, the next North Star, Vega will lead people to a purposeful destination," said Yariv Kursh, General Manager of Innovative.
For more information please visit https://www.iii.com/products/vega/
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