Library solutions provider Ex Libris Group, Israel, has announced the release of version 4.3 of its MetaLib gateway and metasearch solution. Over 35 major enhancements, originating largely from requests of the MetaLib user community, focus on further streamlining staff workflows to maximise efficiency and reduce the total cost of ownership. Used in nearly 50 countries worldwide, MetaLib seeks to provide powerful yet flexible management tools that can be easily adapted to customers' local environments and practices. New functionality in this release is seen to increase this flexibility, enabling library staff to be even more responsive to the evolving needs of their users.
Significant enhancements have been made to the MetaLib back-office tools, including the addition of task-based wizards that enable librarians to activate MetaLib resources quickly and easily; to customise the user interface; and to create deep-linking URLs to integrate the MetaLib functionality with other applications. Enhancements aimed at MetaLib end users include tighter integration between MetaLib and the SFX OpenURL-compliant link server, also from Ex Libris. From their brief list of search results, users will now be able to link directly to the full text of articles in peer-reviewed sources when they are available.
Prerelease collaborative testing with a variety of existing MetaLib customers provided feedback to Ex Libris development, implementation, support, and product management staff as the new version was being finalised for general release. The participating customers included the Finnish National Electronic Library (FinELib), the California State University and Duke University.
