Join the cooperative and be part of something special
It’s no secret that libraries are frustrated with their traditional ILS vendors. Dissatisfaction ranges from loss of control over development direction to surprise costs for new features and improvements. That’s why libraries large and small across Pennsylvania are joining the PaILS cooperative and using SPARK, the open source ILS for Pennsylvania that uses
Evergreen.
The ILS is one of your library’s most significant investments. Shouldn’t you love it and the relationship you have with its developers? Now you can…by participating in PaILS and SPARK to enrich the library experience for patrons and staff.
For your patrons: Enhanced access to library resources
- SPARK is easy to use, with a clean, patron-friendly interface.
- SPARK is accessible for patrons of the smallest libraries and fully featured for the power users of the largest.
- SPARK is highly reliable and available for your patrons whenever and wherever they need to access library resources
For your staff: Robust functionality in all ILS areas
- Cloud-based hosting eliminates the need for expensive servers and the staff to maintain them.
- The Evergreen open source community directly influences the development of the ILS, so your voice is heard in a way not possible with a commercial ILS vendor.
- You receive professional support from Equinox. Equinox was founded by the original developers and designers of the Evergreen ILS so you can be assured of quality support whenever you need it.
- SPARK supports your library’s operations with robust functionality in circulation, cataloging, serials and acquisitions and provides sophisticated reports to help you monitor activity.
For your library: Reliable, Affordable and Flexible
- Your library’s migration costs to SPARK may be covered by PaILS through an LSTA grant.
- There are no hidden costs with PaILS and SPARK. PaILS membership is affordable and annual maintenance fees are clearly disclosed. There are no additional fees for updates, bug fixes or new modules.
- SPARK is exceptionally reliable, tracked at 99.99% uptime.
- You have greater control over your ILS functionality. Implement the functionality you need now, knowing you have a system that can grow with you as your needs change.
- For libraries that have the resources and choose to innovate new capabilities in their ILS, open source provides the flexibility to do so.
