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December 01, 2008

New Summit Catalog Is Here

Big changes are in store for Summit, the popular library system used by Willamette University students and faculty to borrow books, CDs, DVDs, etc.

Summit provides access to more than 28 million items from 36 college and university libraries throughout Oregon and Washington. If you appreciate being able to choose from such a huge regional library collection, brace yourself for even more. The Hatfield Library staff has been working with other members of the Orbis Cascade Alliance to upgrade and improve Summit. When the project is completed in 2009, you’ll be able to access over 107 million items from libraries around the world with one easy search.

The original Summit system was installed in the mid 1990s, and although it has been regularly upgraded since then, recent developments in library services and products all indicate that it is time for a significant change. Working together, Alliance members have created an implementation plan for an improved Summit that promises to be more powerful and user-friendly. The upgrade of Summit requires programming for some innovative new features, but also builds on work recently done by libraries in the University of California system.

Summit services will continue without interruption until the upgrade is completed, but we do want to highlight a few things for you to be aware of during the transition:

• Continue using Summit as you normally would to find and request materials you need from other libraries. The address, summit.orbiscascade.org, will remain the same and you won’t have to submit any requests more than once.

• Courier service between Orbis Cascade Alliance member libraries is not changing and will continue to be fast and reliable.

• There will be some temporary changes in Summit’s ability to process renewals. For a limited time, Summit borrowing will be restricted to one loan period of six weeks. However, as soon as feasible, the capacity for renewing will be restored.

• Library staff will be on a learning curve as programming is tested, workflows change, and we implement the new Summit. Your patience and flexibility during this time of change are appreciated.

We are confident that you’ll appreciate the enhancements in store for this important service. If you’d like more information about the new Summit, read the FAQ at http://www.orbiscascade.org/index/new-summit or ask Liz Butterfield , Melissa Treichel , Bill Kelm , Deborah Dancik , or Joni Roberts .