Integrated System Open Source for Public Libraries

Since May 2004, the company has been an Italian promoter of the IOSSPL project Integrated System Open Source for Public Libraries.

The aim of the project is to elaborate specialised library software, which can be used by all public libraries in Romania, which at the present time do not have at their disposal a similar computerised system. Partners in the system are: The District Library “Ovid Densusianu” of the city of Hundeoara – Deva , CIMEC –Cultural Memorial Institute of the Romanian Ministry of Culture andCustoms, while a local Romanian company was chosen for the local promoter.
In 2006 the project was successfully closed on April the30th; the software called IBLA SOFT was presented in Bucharest at the 2006 Elag (European Library Automation Group) Conference, and soon will find application in several Romanians libraries. www.iosspl.org

IOSSPL is inserted in a pilot project, aimed at promoting agreements and economic collaboration between the different partners to exchange technology. From this viewpoint this company will have a vital role in the export of Italian Computer Know - How to Romanian experts, supporting the implementation of this sophisticated software.

The system will be open source; it will give those using it the possibility to extend the structure from its base, ensuring constant implementation. Furthermore, it will comply to international standards and at the request of The European Commission, regarding compatibility and the high level of communication with other specialised software products for public libraries. From The District Library “Ovid Densusianu” at the moment partially computerised, a case study will be initiated, to identify the electronic needs of all the different activities of the library, such as inventory, archives and forms for public users etc.. This study and the proposed solutions will be extended to libraries of different categories (district, municipal, city and communal.)

The system developed by the project IOSSPL, foresees the possibility, for all the libraries, which make use of the software, to communicate with each other via internet, notably increasing the level of coordination. In this way the transfer of data in the inventory of items from one library to another will be completely automized. It will be possible to insert multimedia elements for consultation by the public, to create subscriber forums and so a community on line between the readers of the library, furthermore favouring and improving all the other aspects of running a library. At the same time, in order that the staff of the public libraries is able to use the specialised computer system, professional computer courses will be organised, completing in this way a complete service which will give the Romanian libraries complete autonomy. The project will be left to the discretion of the Romanian Ministry of Culture and Customs, giving them the tools to develop the cultural activities of the nation.

The project IOSSPL, represents for the company, an important instrument as a contribution to the cultural growth in a social context, assisting, in this specific case, the fruition of knowledge on the part of Romanian citizens and confirming likewise the development of technological know-how for a country not only for economic development but also a cultural and social growth.