Rapid City, S.D. – July 1, 2010 – The Rapid City Public Library announces the July 14 introduction of new, state-of-the-art search technology that will make finding what the library has to offer easier and more engaging than ever before. The new system will reveal content like media and e-books, suggest recently added or popular items, ability to broaden or refine search results, and includes relevant websites and library databases. Library patrons can access all this from a single, “Google-like” search box.  This new way to search is available on computers at the library and anywhere you have internet access at www.rapidcitylibrary.org.

The new system is similar in look and feel to current popular websites and will allow the Rapid City Public Library to be a popular destination site for its community’s information needs. Whether searching on a subject or a specific book or CD, users will be more likely to be able to find what they are looking for more easily. The new system will return items that are clearly listed by relevance and can be effortlessly expanded or refined according to publication date, branch or library, language, or subject as presented in a Tag Cloud.  The Tag Cloud, which is found on websites like Flickr, helps users by presenting a grouping of words related to their searches that they can click on to launch new queries.

According to Greta Chapman, Library Director, “This new system provides highly sophisticated search results presented in a very simple way. We think everyone will find it extremely useful, whether you are a teenager looking for books for a term paper, or a community member looking for the latest fiction or important health information, or a patron who wants to explore everything we make available on a topic.”

Chapman continues, “Our users can easily move beyond the traditional online library catalog to a richer online discovery experience. You can get results that are expert without having to be an advanced user of an online library catalog.”

On Wednesday, July 14, the downtown Rapid City Public Library will be holding a premiere party from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. During this time all are invited to learn about the new online system, try it and ask questions.

Find out about library resources, services and events by visiting our website at www.rapidcitylibrary.org.

If you’d like to follow some of our progress, take a look at our evolving WebPAC.  An even more exciting option is the Encore page which will include article searching, our local catalog, faceted browsing, and a more intuitive interface.  Please note that some of the functionality won’t be turned on until we’re further along, but you can see something that’s closer to our final product here.

For those of you wanting to look at the system overview, there’s a basic product description available by clicking here.  The previous link to a basic system tutorial was restricted due to our contract with Innovative.

In the process leading to this selection, four ILS vendors were invited for in-house demonstrations, and SDLN members in the Black Hills region were invited to attend the demos.  ExLibris, Polaris, Innovative, and AutoGraphics provided demonstrations; of those vendors, ExLibris was the only company that did not submit a proposal.

RCPL informed the SDLN Executive Committee that they will retain full membership in SDLN; depending upon financial feasibility, that membership may include retention of RCPL’s bibliographic records in the SDLN database.  In addition, RCPL looks forward to begin discussions with SDLN regarding inter-operability of systems.

Now we use various social media tools – Flickr, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, del.icio.us, wikis, and more - to promote the library and its services.  Library staff members form teams for the each of the various social networking applications, and have outlined plans to promote services to the public and link to other social networking resources.

Online social networking resources provide us with a library-wide method for delivery of content, particularly of local content – information relevant to our users about library programs, events, and community issues.  The use of our social networking resources continues to increase significantly, which tells us we are being successful at reaching users in the way they want to get their information – online, timely, and interactive.

Please share ways in which your library uses social networking – by learning together we can all expand on the way we provide information to our patrons.

Dr. Sheryl Feinstein will present information on the teenage brain, in order to help us identify ways to interact with teens to provide effective customer service.  Some of the points Sheryl will present include:

• Gain insight into the mysteries of teen behaviors
• Apply this information in practical ways to effectively work with challenges inherent in these developing years
• Understand why a teen’s nature makes them especially vulnerable to peer pressure, both positive and negative
• Learn positive ways to communicate with and stay connected to teens

Sheryl is an Associate Professor in the Education Department at Augustana College.  She also consults at a correctional facility for adolescent boys, and at a separate site for emotionally and behaviorally disturbed adolescents.  She is the author of several books on teenage brain development, including Secrets of the Teenage Brain and Inside the Teenage Brain.

Sheryl will again inform us about how adolescents’ brains grow and develop, and why teens think and behave as they do.  But she’ll also move this to the next step, of how we can modify and adapt our interactions with teens to provide the most effective customer service for them and for all library users – how to effectively engage with teens, re-focus them when necessary, and help them understand that the library is shared space for all.

Sheryl is an Associate Professor in the Education Department at Augustana College.  She consults at a correctional facility for adolescent boys and at a separate site for emotionally and behaviorially disturbed adolescents.  Sheryl is the author of several books on the development and understanding of the teenage brain.

The session will be free to area librarians, but you must pre-register by contacting Jennifer Read jread@rcplib.org or calling her at the library at 394-6139, ext. 2213.

RCPL also has room for 1-2 people to join us in carpooling to SDLA this October. If you’re interested, please contact Kim Hodgson: KHodgson@rcplib.org