Join us Saturday, February 10, from 10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. at the Hyatt Regency, Denver Convention Center (Mineral Hall E, 3rd Floor)

Libraries and open source software share a common thread: an innate desire to work together to solve a problem that an organization standing alone couldn’t solve. In the library profession, this takes the form of shared cataloging records, cooperative reference, consortia and interlibrary loan agreements, and regional book depositories. In open source software, organizations work together on discovery layers, integrated library systems and digital archives.

Smooth cooperation cannot be assumed, however. Conflicting goals, uneven institutional support and challenges communicating across time zones and cultures can hinder any project. How do open source projects move past these issues?

Join us at ALA Midwinter for a moderated panel discussion, where participants from open source projects will address these issues and more, such as:

How does the project scale in an organized manner?

How do participants provide input, help define requirements or contribute code?

How do features get prioritized for delivery and by whom?

Panelists will offer experiences from their communities, and participants will be able to ask questions about how open source software is developed across this broad set of communities. Participants will learn about how open source projects work and how they can get involved in a project’s goals and outcomes.

Panelists include:

FOLIO – Paula Sullenger, Texas A&M University

Koha – Galen Charlton, Equinox Open Library Initiative

Evergreen – Kathy Lussier, Massachusetts Library Network Cooperative

Fedora – Rosalyn Metz, Emory University

VuFind – Chris Hallberg, Villanova University

Samvera – Evviva Weinraub, Northwestern University

Moderator:

Peter Murray, Index Data

Click here to view the event on the ALA website.

If you will be at ALA Midwinter, be sure to join us Saturday evening for a FOLIO reception. Click here for more details.