Five Things I Wish My OPAC Did

When I'm not a tormented librarian, I have on occasion been a tormented library patron. One of the things that irks me as a patron is the cumbersomeness, inefficiency, unhelpfulness, and lack of customization of the online library catalog. At my library, we have a reasonably new, internet-based library catalog from a large and well-known vendor of library solutions. (Yes, that's what they call a catalog now, a "library solution".) As a library worker who remembers not only the original computer catalog, but actually using cards in a drawer, I know that the catalog is loads better now than it was. The thing is, it's just not as 'better' as it could be. Here are a few "solutions" I wish my library catalog had thought of:

"You might like this new book..."
I'd like the option to have alerts of new books added to the collection. Not for the entire collection, mind you, just subjects and authors that interest me. This could be by subject heading even. This is not a fantasy-land thing people--Amazon does it for me all the time.

Reading Level
I'd like the option to sort/filter on a one to five scale; one being popular works, five being high-level academic works. This is one of those things we could do in a much more efficient way than we currently do. Adding "Popular Works" to just a few of the subject headings never struck me as the best way to convey levels in reading matter--we miss too much this way.

Library Customization and Skins
I'd like to be able to customize the catalog interface based on my searching needs of the day. For instance, if I'm on an extremely sloooow connection, I'd like an option to use a text-only version. If I want to view bibliographic records on the main screen instead of holdings records, why not? If I don't like your font or color choice, why not let me use my own?

Reading/Reserve List
I'd like to be able to save a "for future reading" list to my library profile, with a built in reserve system. Let me explain: I add a book to my list. Every three weeks, my list is scanned, the computer picks any available book on the list, sends me an email telling me which book and offering me the choice to continue with the reserve and have it sent to where I want to pick it up, or cancel the reserve and put the book back onto my list, or delete the book from my reading list. I always see so many books I'd like to read someday, then promptly forget the title of them. Write them down?! You haven't seen my purse.

"Bare-bones" Printable Top Ten
I want to skip immediately from a search box to a printable list of holdings sometimes. Give me the option to get a list of "ten newest books on this subject/by this author." And make the printable list short enough to print on one page! What is it with making holdings records a page or two long, when the information they contain could fit on less than 1/4 sheet of paper or 1/8th if you got rid of the extra information and just gave me a table with author, title, call number and library branch, with a check mark if the book is available. Better yet, give me the option to search for books at my branch that aren't checked out.


You might notice some of these ideas draw on the models of some successful online business enterprises. (e.g. Amazon & Netflix) This is no accident--why not learn from success? Amazon manages a HUGE database that still manages to be searchable, makes suggestions to its customers to remind them that it's still relevant, solicits customer reviews of materials which are free for chrissakes and help the circle of marketing continue. Netflix doesn't let you forget about them--they send you a new movie when you're done with the old one. Every online business I know lets you opt-in to receive more marketing from them--why not libraries?

If our OPACs can't do it--it begs the question: Why can't they?