Libraries and service providers have come together to reshape the future of libraries and develop new technologies. The new initiative, FOLIO, provides a platform for libraries, service providers, and other organisations to team up to redefine library automation via open source projects. The goal is to cultivate interest groups, form partnerships and spark conversations that will lead to the creation of new services and technologies for libraries.
FOLIO, which stands for the Future of Libraries is Open, is a new community coming together to develop a reimagined library services platform (LSP), one that supports traditional resource management requirements and functionality, yet is engineered for innovation and growth through industry collaboration. At its core, FOLIO will allow for extensibility into new services for libraries and will dramatically change the technology ecosystem available to libraries, service providers and technology developers.
The initial code for the base platform, which offers features for integrating modular services, is planned for release on GitHub in August 2016. This will be a technical preview of the underlying platform for developers to familiarize themselves with the APIs and provide early feedback.
Following the August release of the FOLIO platform, code for applications will be released early and often, allowing librarians and developers to see, use and consider the code throughout the months to follow. The FOLIO community will build out the functional apps needed to operate a library, while innovating resource management and shared networked description for release in early 2018. Extended library management functionality will follow thereafter. The community will encourage developers to use the FOLIO platform to build new, integrated and transformative approaches to new service opportunities for serving library patrons.
EBSCO is providing the primary funding for the development of FOLIO with Index Data developing the initial platform and engaging deeply with the library developer community.
The Open Library Environment (OLE) Partnership is a collaborative of academic and research libraries that seek to build and operate innovative and open source software for library management services. Member libraries are Cornell University Library, Duke University Library, GBV-Common Library Network, Hbz-Hochschulbibliothekszentrum des Landes Nordrhein-Westfalen, Lehigh University, North Carolina State University Libraries, SOAS-University of London, Texas A&M Libraries, University of Chicago Library and University of Maryland University Libraries.
The collaboration is open, and even in its early stages, other libraries and service providers are joining the community and the conversation to spark innovation including libraries such as Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Charles University in Prague, National Széchényi Library (National Library of Hungary) and CALIS (China Academic Library and Information System) as well as organisations such as BibLibre, BiblioLabs, ByWater, Relais International and SirsiDynix.
The open source code produced by the FOLIO community will be made available under an Apache v2 license, allowing any individual, institution, collaboration or vendor to use the code for its purposes —commercial or otherwise. According to Sebastian Hammer, team lead for the FOLIO core developers and co-founder of Index Data, everybody owns the code.
EBSCO and other vendors plan to support libraries by providing hosting services that ensure libraries of all sizes can take advantage of the community’s projects. Libraries and consortia will also be able to integrate FOLIO software into their strategic infrastructures to diversify or extend their services. Community members might also leverage the Apache license to develop functionality or integrations that support their current needs, or build new service models for their campuses—a true source of community innovation using the FOLIO platform.
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