I learned about the free software program, JTacq, from this list several
years ago, and have been using it since then to save a lot of time in my
acquisitions process. The software developer had been getting income for
the project from Amazon commission fees, but Amazon stopped that practice,
so he's looking for libraries to pitch in to continue to support the
project.
I'm pretty happy with the software, but I feel that I should investigate
other options before we start paying for it. The program is a bit clunky at
times, though I do feel it's absolutely worth it, considering how much time
it saves me in typing title details, comparing prices, and holdings checks.
My question is: does anyone have other acquisition tools that you use that
can do these functions so I can compare? We're about to switch our ILS over
to Koha, and it sounds like their acquisition module can interface with
major library vendors, but not with Amazon the way that JTacq does.
I think it has a lot of other features, but these are the primary functions
I use:
- Import pricing and title information from Amazon
- Import lists from CSV file from other vendors
- Compare Amazon prices with other vendors
- Automated holdings check
- Pull in data from WorldCat for most titles (providing LC#)
- Export purchased lists into excel format
For those of you using JTacq currently, are there other paid services
you're considering? I believe the payment is optional at this time; are you
opting to pay? Are you getting any pushback from administrators on the
payment amount? If we do opt to stay with JTacq, we will be paying the 2%
contribution.
Thanks for any feedback you can provide!
--
Joelle Hannert
Library Technical Services Coordinator
Northwestern Michigan College
(231) 995-1684
Work days: M, T evening, Th, F
Received on Mon May 07 2018 - 12:13:21 EDT