Ottawa’s new chief librarian wants to bring a wave of technological changes to the way the library is run.
With more than 25 years of experience with both the City of Ottawa and the Ottawa Public Library, Danielle McDonald says she is looking forward to leading the library and implementing the proposed changes. She took over from Barbara Clubb at the beginning of this month,
She says the first priority is implementing radio frequency identification (RFID), a mechanism for checking out and checking in several books at a time.
“It’s a way of automating our library,” says McDonald. “Right now, you would go into a library, borrow a book, and when you bring it back to the book return, someone has to take it out and then process it before it is processed from your account.”
Jennifer Stirling, OPL’s division manager, is in charge of system wide services and innovation. She explains that in order for RFID to work, books must have a “little tag” on the back cover, which lets the system process several books at a time. This allows people to return books, and have them processed automatically right away, which could help avoid late fees.
Instead of spending time scanning barcodes, “our staff can spend more time serving customers, answering questions, and help you with that research that you have,” McDonald says.
The first branch that is looking at obtaining books with RFID tags is the library’s Hazeldean branch. Stirling says that she hopes all of Ottawa’s libraries will implement the system within seven years.
A second change that McDonald is leading is the development and purchase of virtual desktop infrastructure.
“We have public desktops at the moment,” says McDonald. “Every computer has its own desktop and monitor … You have the box, then you have the monitor.”
Virtual desktop infrastructure eliminates the need for a “box” at each computing station. This saves space allowing for more computers.
But with technological changes come challenges, says McDonald. One is the unfamiliarity of staff and clients with the new technology. Training for staff will be rigorous to minimize the impact of this challenge, she adds.
Leading the library means that she will be much busier than before, she says, but is looking forward to learning new things. “That’s the fun part of any new job.”
McDonald says that her appointment is a “career highlight” and that she is looking forward to leading the library for a long time.