by Kalleen Marquise on Dec 7, 2022
One of my favorite aspects of Aspen Discovery is how flexible and pliable the system is. I have the exciting job of helping our new partners implement Aspen Discovery and making it work for their library or libraries situation. We understand that every library or consortium is wholly unique - that is the fun of it! We have a system that can bend to your will and do exactly what you need it to.
This is why using Aspen in a consortium will alleviate some of your biggest headaches. Did you know you can completely customize each individual branches search results? We can decide what patrons see on their libraries catalog. Don't even get me started on the flexibility of the system going forward.
As we all know the pandemic has brought special challenges to the library world. The amazing thing about Aspen is that the configuration to define what patrons see in searches is super easy to use - meaning your admin users can alter what patrons are seeing at any point to accommodate whatever situation has arisen. Have you had to stop sharing resources due to Covid-19? Well you can easily remove other branches' materials from the patrons view by removing them from your searches.
Custom Search Results
The meat and potatoes of your Aspen configuration all boils down to the library systems and locations in 'Primary Configuration' in your administration menu. This is what allows Aspen to provide unique setups for each branch in your system. When we say we can do it all, we mean it! Using location or library system settings you can do any of the following configurations.
Each branch in the system can have individual urls where we show only the branch specific items as available and every other branch as available somewhere else. Any eContent material available to that branch would be included as currently available. Even further, if only some branches share items we can only show those branches as available somewhere else and exclude the branches who are not sharing materials. You can also include only your branches materials to patrons and exclude other branches. This setup entirely depends on your special consortium situation. Another amazing thing about this configuration is that we can change it any time! For example, if you stop sharing materials due to inclement weather or pandemic closures we can change the search results and your site will update overnight. If you have questions about your current configuration please feel free to reach out to us!
IP Address Detection
Aspen has this super neat feature where we can input the IP address for a specific branch and if you do a search within that branch, Aspen will follow the configuration you specified in that branches 'location' settings. This means you can specify what results you want them to see in the catalog while on site and the language changes from showing as 'On Shelf' to 'It's Here'. Although this may not be as useful during the pandemic, we know it will be an exciting change when patrons can visit your branch again!
Catalog Design
Each library can have an individual URL for their catalog and their own exclusive theming. This allows each branch to use their own specific logos or colors. This level of autonomy is lovely for consortiums.
eContent Collection Scoping
We are able to individually scope settings for eContent collections. This means each branch or location can have only the specific results for their patrons. We can currently individually scope Axis360, Overdrive, Hoopla, Cloud Library, any sideloaded econtent. Additionally, for Overdrive collections we can specify your unique advantage collections.
Open Archives Scoping
In addition to eContent collection scoping, you can now scope Open Archives' collections! This means if a branch wants to include a specific local collection through open archives, they can have those results show in their specific catalog and no one else's.
Custom Permissioning
We understand managing consortia can be very difficult! Mark Noble, Aspen Architect, created an incredibly granular system of assigning permissions. Because we have so many customization capabilities in Aspen, we understand that there is a need to also customize permissions!
Within Aspen, you can create specific 'roles' with whatever set of permissions you want that role to use. You can then assign those roles out to your staff. One of the really cool things about the list of permissions is that we have all of our permissions broken out into library system OR location specific settings. This means you can give staff permissions only to make changes to their specific branch or locations settings. For example, if you wanted members of each location to be able to only make new browse categories and add system messages only for their catalog- you can do that without it affecting any other site!
Patron Perspective
For a patron, this high level of customization we can do is great for them! We can prevent frustration by making sure they are only finding results that are available for them. We also want to ensure access of information to your patrons by guaranteeing we have all of your eContent that is available in the catalog and findable, as well as programs, resources, or any other amazing information your branches and consortia provide to your patrons!
Learn More About Using Aspen in A Consortium
Customizing Results in a Consortium
What We Love About Consortiums
SWAN Library Services: How We Did It
There are so many more advantages to using Aspen in a consortium! If you have questions about how we have set up your consortium or how we could work with your unique situations please reach out to us and we would love to explore your options.
Read more by Kalleen Marquise