In May of 2022, we held the first KLASUsers' Mini-Conference to provide space and time for Keystone Staff and KLAS Users' to connect and learn from one another as well as share / discuss Keystone company updates and KLAS new features, tips & tricks, and new development suggestions. 2024's Mini-Conference will offer all of that and MORE! 

The 2024 KLASUsers' Mini-Conference will be a free, online event accessible via Zoom held:

• Tuesday, May 14 - 1:00-5:00 PM Eastern Time / 10:00 AM-2:00 PM Pacific
• Wednesday, May 15 - 1:00-5:00 PM Eastern Time / 10:00 AM-2:00 PM Pacific

Add the event to your calendar now, then review the initial schedule, and submit your registration form. Seminar date has passed. 

Sessions

This year will again feature sessions with topics of interest for all KLAS Users, as well as more specific Instructional Resource Center (IRC) and Library for the Blind and Print Disabled (LBPD) sessions. New for 2024 will be two sessions featuring updates from staff of the American Printing House for the Blind (APH) and from the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS). 

Session Types:

General sessions will share information and updates relevant to  all KLAS Users, and no conflicting sessions will be scheduled at the same time they are offered. During these sessions, there will limited time for questions and answers.

Workshop sessions are presented by Keystone staff member or a guest speaker. Attendees are encouraged to ask questions throughout the session. These in-depth presentations share information via different tools such as slides, live examples, and / or user experiences.

Birds-of-a-Feather (BoaF) sessions give participants the opportunity to exchange ideas in a group discussion setting. All KLAS Users are invited to participate in the BoaF sessions they feel are relevant to them. However, we do indicate for each session whether an IRC or LBPD audience might find it more applicable. Topics range from making the most of KLAS features to exploring broader service-related ideas. These sessions are not formal presentations with slides or software demonstrations. Instead, the format is casual and open. Moderators launch the discussion and keep the conversation on topic; participants are asked to come prepared to share and learn.

Tuesday, May 14

This is an initial schedule, and sessions are subject to change. Want to get more involved with the Users' group? Volunteering to moderate a BoaF session is a great way to get started!

Wednesday, May 15 

Registration

Registration is not required, but doing so helps us know approximately how many persons to plan on for each session. You will automatically be emailed a copy of your registration upon submission.

Attention, Keystone-hosted customers: We are currently rolling out a change to our hosting. This change is on our end and will NOT involve any charge to you, and you will still be hosted on AWS, with all the current services and benefits.

Our hosting services have previously been set up so that customers are divided by geographical region, and share a server within that region. We are now in the process of changing this so that each library has their own individual server. This enables us to locate the server in closer proximity to the library itself, and ensures that all the processing power of the server is devoted solely to that library's own operations.

We have already moved several libraries, and everything is functioning normally—in fact, we have been told that those libraries are seeing better performance and improved speeds!

There should be no update or changes needed to your KLAS installation on individual workstations; we just change where your KLAS shortcut is pointing, so that it accesses the new server. For Gutenberg libraries, or other customers with external integrations, we will coordinate with the NLS or the relevant other party as needed for a smooth transition. If your IT whitelists IP addresses, we will provide the new addresses early in the process so they can add it them the list.

If you have not already been contacted to schedule the changeover, be on the lookout. We are looking to get all Central and East-coast LBPD libraries transitioned to the new model, then Eastern IRCs, then move Westward. However, if you are further west and want to be fast-tracked, you are welcome to contact Customer Support and indicate your interest.

We hope this will be a positive change for everyone, and expect it to be a smooth transition!

The Program Committee and Keystone staff are excited to announce three upcoming opportunities to expand and share your knowledge of KLAS. The first will be an open Q&A session for our Instructional Resource Center users, the second is our next online KLAS Administrator Training session for Library for the Blind and Print Disabled staff, and the third is the upcoming 2024 KLAS Users' Mini-Conference.

2/15/2024 KLAS IRC User Q&A with Marion

On Thursday, February 15 at 3 PM Eastern / Noon Pacific we invite ALL KLAS Instructional Resource / Materials Center (IRC / IMC) users to join us for an open Q&A session with Marion, our resident IRC / IMC customer support guru. Do you have a question about a report or setting up a query, need to troubleshoot a WebOrder issue, or have a suggestion for how to improve IRC workflow? Marion will try to answer any and all questions posed to her during this session. If she can't, we'll be sure to take it back and get you a reply as soon as possible. Mark your calendar now, and join us there!

• Zoom Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87243860587?pwd=TmFvSHpINkxmVUZXalBqVVlGRmYvZz09
• Dial-in for Audio: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/ki2f3Rw3C
  • Meeting ID: 872 4386 0587
  • Passcode: 932252

This free, online session is being offered via Zoom and will be recorded and posted to klasusers.com for later review and reference. Feel free to email questions / features you want demonstrated in advance to  or post them as a reply below.

Online KLAS Administrator Training

March 2024 KLAS LBPD Admin Training

Our next Online KLAS Administrator Training session for library for the blind and print disabled users will be held March 25-28, 2024. Admin Training is an excellent opportunity to get in-depth training on all the features and settings that can help KLAS better support your library, staff, and patrons. During Admin Training, Keystone staff will get down into the nitty-gritty of the Admin menu walking you through the many options for Duplication on Demand, the WebOPAC, Reports and Queries, and more! 

Admin Training costs $600 / person, is held on Zoom, and runs from 1:00-4:30 PM Eastern Time each afternoon. Also, session attendance is kept small so each person receives the individualized attention they need. If you are considering attending, please note you must have:

• A KLAS Administrator role in your local system
• Authority to change records and policies for your KLAS system

The Online Administrator's Training article includes more detail about the training structure and content as well as a link to the registration form.

KLAS IRC Admin Training

We know there is interest in scheduling another Instructional Resource / Materials Center KLAS Administrator Training session, but we also want to put it on the calendar for a time that works for you! At this time, we need a commitment from at least two users from separate IRCs to schedule a session. The best part about being one of those is: you get to help use choose when it will occur! Like KLAS LBPD Admin Training, training will occur across four afternoons and will be an in-depth look with Keystone Trainers into the the available KLAS Admin Features and Functionality you can use to support your IRC's workflow and service models. We know control files and security setting can be very overwhelming, which is why we offer this training. All interested attendees should have:

• A KLAS Administrator role in your local system
• Authority to change records and policies for your KLAS system

We invite you to review the Administrator’s Training – What to Expect article to help you decide if this is something you want to attend. Then, head over to the KLAS Administrator Training Registration Form linked in the Online Administrator's Training article to indicate such.

2024 KLASUsers' Mini-Conference

Our final upcoming online training opportunity is FREE and open to ALL KLAS USERS! This is your heads up to mark yourself as BUSY from 1:00-5:00 PM Eastern / 10:00 AM-1:00 PM Tuesday, May 14 and Wednesday, May 15.

Sessions will be presented and moderated by Keystone staff and other KLAS Users', held via Zoom, and offer IRC and LBPD-focused as well as general KLAS content.

Please reply to this article with topic suggestions and / or if you're willing to present or moderate.

If you attended one of the NLS Regional conferences (or just checked out the slide deck), you already know we are considering offering a Cataloging Service. But what's involved, and how will it work? To get there, let's start with a look at what Keystone is already doing for your catalog.

Current Catalog Enhancements:

Every MARC Records file posted by NLS is then reviewed by Mitake here at Keystone, before being posted for download here. That review, and accompanying corrections as needed, covers:

• Language code
• Subtitle formatting 
• Series in non-English languages
• Remove publisher imprints from series (ex: Penguin Classics; Pocketbook)
• Audience Notes (typos & inconsistencies in 521/546, ex: split “Contains Sex & Strong Language” into two headings)
• Diacritics clean-up
• Annotation (combine tags so Audience Notes are included after standard annotation)
• Check for subjects with “stories” vs “fiction” (ex: combine “Mystery & Detective Stories” and “Mystery & Detective Fiction”)
• Ensure 082 & 072 exist
• Validate & normalize MARC

Additionally, we generate a query set of titles included in each Talking Book Topics (TBT) issue, pull the MARC record for the TBT monograph record if not included in one of the batch files, and pull MARC records on demand for Titles needed to load BARD transactions. For Keystone-hosted customers, we also load all MARC records, including both the regular batch files and any on-demand titles.

For a one-time setup charge, we can provide subject mapping and series mapping services, which involve combing through your headings to match them up with the ones generally included in certain MARC tags of the NLS records, and creating the filters and heading data to ensure the NLS headings load automatically from the MARC to the BibRec. 

Like everyone, the rapid increase in the number of new titles has made it harder and harder for us to keep up the current level of cataloging. For example, as part of ongoing Series maintenance, we're adding 50-100 new Series headings a month to each Series customer--way more than we anticipated when initiating the Series maintenance service and offered upkeep of new headings at no change after the initial set-up fee. The absolute last thing we want is to offer less right when you need more, but Katharina spent nearly an entire week this month on just Series maintenance (and she’s faster at it than any of the rest of us). While we will absolutely honor no maintenance charge for the first year, at renewal, ongoing support of new series headings will need to become a charged service for us to continue offering it.

Proposed Cataloging Service

To make our cataloging service more sustainable, we're looking to start with some structural changes.

Instead of working with the batch MARC Records files which come out twice a month (or so) from NLS, we will instead pull in the titles as they become available with a PICS API integration. This should give us a steady flow of Titles to review, rather than a twice-monthly blast from a firehose.

The other big change will be where we make the record updates. Rather than changing those files into everyone's separate database, and then having to do a bunch of maintenance in each of those databases, we plan to set up a centralized cataloging database. We will then do any cleanup and corrections to the titles there. Once the title is ready, we will then push it into the subscribing customer databases via a batch program. This will occur routinely overnight for standard new files, but can also be done immediately to push out a freshly reviewed on-demand back catalog title. 

Because we know everyone's patron base, staff and institutional preferences, and service approach is unique, subscribers will still have some options. You can choose whether you want to import the full record "our way" from the central database, if you want to exclude one or more specific MARC tags (ex – if you want to maintain your own series, you can get the rest of the record without the series tag). Or if you only want to overlay specific tags onto the NLS original (ex – if you chose not to get the full cataloging service but want to buy into Series maintenance), we can overlay that one MARC tag onto the original title as it comes from NLS).

Planned additional review & correction before pushing titles to subscriber databases:

• Narrator
• Alt length
• Pub year (print publication)
• Alt pub year (recording year) 
• Fiction/non-fiction checkmark
• Reading level
• Headings merges for typos / alt forms / etc
• Sequel heading
• Addition & removal of "Current TBT Issue" heading

So what will it cost? 

While we would love to just offer this to everyone, it is going to be a major time commitment. However, by distributing the cost of this staff time across customers, we hope to keep the charge well below what it would cost your library to hire even a part time cataloger.

As we finish developing this service, and the situation with the incoming records changes, these estimates are subject to change. Set-up fees may apply and will depend on the level of subject mapping and / or series set-up needed to make your database compatible with the centralized records. Please contact customer support for a full quote for your library.

1. Series Service: one-time set-up fee + $200/month ongoing at renewal
2. Basic Cataloging Service (no series): $250/month*
3. All-in: $400 /month*

*Initial set-up charge may be needed if subject mapping and series setup are not already been done.

I want to take some time to say Merry Christmas and Happy New Years to you all, my customers and friends. In my twenty years at Keystone I've tried to develop and foster relationships with all that have reached out to me for help. Keystone allowed and encouraged this and I'm thankful to them for trusting me with your care.

It's now time for me to start the next phase of my life. My wife Laura retired almost three years ago and it's time for me to join her. Friday December 30, 2022 will be my last day at Keystone. We plan to travel and enjoy spur of the moment adventures with family and friends. Plus a few “Honey Do's” that she's been listing over the years.

Thank you all and God Bless each and every one.
John Owen

Hello KLAS users,

Please note that KLAS does not yet officially support Windows 11. While we have had users running successfully on version 21H2, we now have reports from users running Windows 11 version 22H2 that it is not compatible with KLAS. This version is newly released and in the initial stages of roll out.

We are working to identify and resolve the issue, but it may take some time.

If at all possible, please do not upgrade to Windows 11 version 22H2.

We will let you know once we have solved the compatibility issues and Windows 11 is fully supported with KLAS.

Keystone Systems is pleased to announce an updated version of the Scribe, our duplication on demand appliance.

The Scribe 2.0 merges the current Scribe components into a single unit thus providing the computing and storage of the Scribe Mini along with the duplication slots of the Scribe Tower in one device. It is a smaller package, with the cartridge slots being more tightly packed than the current Scribe Tower and new shelving units on each side providing organization for the mail cards.

The new design makes use of a manufactured computer case, meaning we longer need to manufacture Scribe Tower cases locally which was one of the recent bottlenecks in filling Scribe orders.

The Scribe 2.0 maintains the light strips to provide the status of each duplication slot by indicating whether it is duplicating a cartridge, completed, or has encountered an error. However, the hardware controlling the light strip has been updated to a new component we can control, with the expectation that the lights remain more reliable.

(click on the image for a closer look)

All Scribe Systems (whether a standalone Mini, a Mini plus Tower, or the new Scribe 2.0) have access to the same functions, including the web monitor, regular and walk-in duplication modes, and the upcoming ability to unlock and repurpose white NLS cartridges.

Due to increases in the prices of components, the cost of a Scribe 2.0 is $1,750. Existing orders for Scribes will be fulfilled with Scribe 2.0 systems, and the pricing at the time of order will be honored.

“Life is a journey, not a destination.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson

Late last year, I reached the age where I became eligible for full Social Security retirement benefits. I decided at that point that I wanted to be able to spend time doing fun things with the family and travel during a time when my health was not a problem. My wife, Aimée, retired a couple of years ago, and she has been patiently waiting for me to join her. We have seen a goodly number of people who have worked longer years, and then had mobility or other health issues facing them by the time they retired. As such, during these last few weeks, I have been drawing to a close my time at Keystone.

When my career at Keystone started in August of 2004, I was unfamiliar with the programming language used here. I’ve always enjoyed learning new things, finding it fun to figure out how programming languages work. This set the stage for an enjoyable, new challenge.

The NLS Books on Tape program was not, however, unfamiliar territory. My father, Joe White, had retinitis pigmentosa, and his vision had regressed, several years prior to his passing in 2002, to the point where he was eligible for the program. He was a customer of the Louisiana State Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, and I had seen the tapes, floppy discs, green boxes, and the player when our family visited him and my mother at the house where I grew up. He often talked about how much he enjoyed listening to the books and magazines. He and my mother would comb through the TBT listings when they were sent, to pick out those titles he would be interested in hearing.

I’m a back-room kind of guy. I talk in geek-speak, and usually need real-people interpreters in order to effectively interact with customers. For that reason, you may not know me, even though I’ve been here a while. You may be more familiar with some of my favorite projects, in which I have played a major role, that are still around – Nightly (both the original, now termed “physical”, version and the more recent service queue fill version), Excel export, some accessibility improvements with browses and Supertabs, the Service Queue tab in the Patron module, and the PIMMS interface.

I won’t delve into the geekiness of all of the fun I had working on all of those (as well as others), but I would like to let you know that working on the nightly programs was a very personally rewarding experience. Though my Dad was no longer around, I still felt a personal connection to serving content to the patrons in the best way I could, because I approached the project as if my Dad were here to receive the results. (Louisiana is a KLAS customer; so, if he were still a patron, that would have been the case. How rewarding that would have been!)

There is one other project left for the end of this list. Along the way in my journey here, I have worked and reworked, and reworked again the series processing in KLAS. Aspects of series processing have gotten very complex over the years. In the latest KLAS release (7.7.65, currently in testing) is my last big project – taking into account when serving a patron a series involves a single title that appears in multiple series, or a single KLAS title that houses a compilation of multiple entries in a single series. It has been a fun challenge to end my time here. My sincere hope is that these updates serve you and the patrons well.

I have enjoyed working with the management and staff at Keystone. They have helped me grow over my time here, both technically and professionally. I have welcomed the times I have gotten to meet with you, the customers. It is both important and interesting to understand your work and how we software developers can best serve you. I appreciate your feedback, positive or negative, as it has always helped improve our process.

Thank you for all you do to serve this sector of the public. Your work is truly a valuable public service. I am genuinely honored to have played even a small part in it.

Peace and Good Fortune to you all!
Brian White

Hello, KLASusers! Although we are in an off-year between full KLAS Users’ Conferences, we still want provide opportunities for you to keep up-to-date on KLAS New Features, provide feedback and development requests, and network with each other. With that in mind, just like our last non-conference year, we are working with the Programming Committee to facilitate monthly webinars and will be hosting a “bite-sized” mini-conference this summer.

This began with last month’s Keystone-presented webinar on Cataloging for Duplication, and will continue following a pattern of one LBPD user-presented, one IRC user-presented, and one Keystone-presented webinar per quarter.

APH Roundtable Webinar

For this quarter’s IRC webinar, we have a Roundtable on the APH Census, with discussion on how you go about the census process and how KLAS can better support that work. That roundtable is scheduled for Tuesday, February 22^nd, at 3pm Eastern Time, and will be moderated by Jared Leslie, Director of Media and Development at the Foundation for Blind Children in AZ, along with Sally Shreck, Specialized Media Coordinator at the Maryland School for the Blind IRC, and Allen Huang, Director of Accessible Instructional Materials and Outreach Services, and Kathy Segers, Educational Consultant, at Tennessee Resource Center for the Visually Impaired. We hope you’ll be able to join in, learn from their approaches, and provide your own perspective!

Connection details will be posted about one week before the webinar.

Save the Date: KLAS Mini-Conference

Like 2020’s mini-conference, we plan to take an afternoon in early May to share Keystone Updates and KLAS New Features. This year, we are also adding a second afternoon, which will include a Users’ Group Meeting to review and vote on a bylaws change, and a few user-led Birds-of-a-Feather sessions.

We plan to stagger IRC, General, and LBPD content as much as possible to ensure you get as much out of this as possible with the least time investment. While the exact schedule is still to be determined, we currently have the week of May 9^th (the week before the NLS Conference) earmarked for our two-day, bite-sized, online mini-con.

Admin Training

While broader webinars and networking events are great, sometimes you need a more specific, hands-on, deep dive into KLAS and how to make it work best for your specific situation.

A fantastic way to do that is to join us for Administrator’s Training! 

This year’s dates for Admins at LBPD libraries are:

• June 6-9, 2022
• September 12-15, 2022

We want to host a session for IRC Admins as well, but we need you to help us set the dates! If you can commit to a session, please let us know so we can work with you to set up dates.

Our Online Administrator's Training article has more info about training structure, pricing, and a link to register. Because of the significant time investment needed from Keystone staff to host Admin Training, we will need at least two confirmed attendees for any session to proceed.

Keystone Systems continues our analysis of the remote code execution vulnerability (CVE-2021-44228) related to Apache Log4j (a logging tool used in many Java-based applications) disclosed via GitHub on 9 Dec 2021. As we and the industry at large continue to gain a deeper understanding of the impact of this threat, we want to relay our current standing, mitigation of, and continued diligence to defend against this and other potential attacks.

In addition to monitoring the threat landscape for attacks and developing customer protections, our operations team has been analyzing our products and services to understand where Apache Log4j may be used, and are taking expedited steps to mitigate any instances. Currently, we have identified one piece of software core to the KLAS application that was vulnerable.  The vendor that produces the software identified has provided mitigation steps for the Log4j threat, and those actions have been put into place in Keystone’s hosting environment.  For Keystone’s self-hosted customers, if your IT has allowed us access to your system, we are rolling out this action as well. 

If your IT department has questions, or for self-hosted customers that would like to apply the correction themselves, please don’t hesitate to contact Keystone.  If you are interested in the technical details for the affected software, please see the vendor’s security report.

As always Keystone will continue to utilize industry best practices to keep your databases as safe as possible.  Those practices include daily network and penetration scanning, enterprise class anti-virus software, daily malware scanning, and a dedicated patching schedule.  If you, or your IT department, have any questions about Keystone’s security practices please submit a request for our annual SSAE SOC II audit report. 

Thank you,

Lee Higley
IT Manager
Keystone Systems

We planned to offer our next KLAS New Features webinar on Thursday, August 19, but after learning NLS will be offering "Training for finding Marrakesh Treaty materials on BARD" that afternoon we chose to postpone rather than conflict. Then, we moved it to Thursday, August 26 only to learn of another NLS training as well as APH's EOT meeting to be held that afternoon. After consulting with the KLAS Users' Group Officers and Program Committee, we chose to reschedule a second time based on their feedback.

Therefore, the next KLAS New Features webinar will now be held at 3 PM EDT / Noon PDT on TUESDAY, August 24.

We were so excited with the attendance at the 2021 KLAS Users' Conference last month and wanted to make sure as many of y'all as possible join us for our upcoming live webinar, so here ya go! Below is all the relevant info. We hope you'll be able to join us!

SAVE THE DATE for our next KLAS New Features webinar!

Who: Any and Every KLAS User! We'll be covering the latest new features and functionality for our IRC, LBPD, and others. 

What: KLAS New Features Webinar

When: 3 PM Eastern / Noon Pacific Tuesday, August 24

Where: Keystone's Google Meet

Meeting link: https://meet.google.com/yhp-whfr-tyf
Dial-in for audio: +1 662-547-1247‬ PIN: ‪316 831 303‬#
More phone numbers: https://tel.meet/yhp-whfr-tyf?pin=2972669584815

If you have any questions you'd like us to answer, or other input please feel free to comment on this article, post on the discussion forums, or send us an email. To receive a calendar invite, please send an email to  Drea () with your request. This webinar will be recorded and posted to klasusers.com for later review. 

KLAS v7.8 is coming!

After two years of small updates, we’re really close to bidding farewell to KLAS v7.7 and rolling over to v7.8. This will not be a big change at all from your perspective, but I want to give you a heads-up about what’s coming and why.

The first KLAS v7.8 release will likely include other fixes and improvements, but the update triggering the version change should be completely invisible. That update is to Open Edge (OE), the framework and programming language we use to build the KLAS interface. The new version of OE will provide us access to new options for programming KLAS, keep us up to date and allow us to get any bug fixes on that end of things. However, nothing should change to the look and feel of KLAS. How it runs, what is available for users, and how we support it will all remain the same.

To make sure the update to the back-end doesn’t introduce any problems on the front-end, we’ll be doing a lot of rigorous testing. We’ll also rely on feedback from our Early Release customers even more than usual so we can be sure we haven’t missed anything. Fortunately, we do not anticipate any changes or problems. This won’t be a major conversion (like the one from 7.6 to 7.7), just a big update. 

So, in short, v7.8 will be an update for us, but not any different for you. Don’t worry, we’ll keep those bi-weekly small updates coming with all the bug fixes, improvements, and new features we can squeeze into them.

So... whatever happened to v.8?

If you attended the 2018 KLAS Users’ Conference in Idaho, you probably remember testing our prototype user interface for the web-based KLAS v.8. It’s something that we and you were really excited about, so it makes sense that we get questions about it on occasion.

For quite a while, we didn’t have much to say. That’s because, right after the 2018 conference, we realized just how big the need was to get Duplication on Demand up and running at full scale ASAP. We shifted gears pretty hard, switching our attention to: taking Scribe from a proof-of-concept to a fully-realized appliance capable of supporting a library’s full circulation; getting Gutenberg integration in place; and building screens, workflows, and features to support this whole new approach to service.

Additionally, we needed to keep up with the development needs of our IRC/IMC customers, bring new customers online, and keep everything else running. That “keep everything else running” was complicated by the deployment of 7.7 and all the development needed to support it, and a massive server crash that prompted our migration to all cloud hosting.

Unfortunately, the pivot to duplication ate up the time and resources we’d hoped to devote to KLAS v.8. But there’s is good news! With Duplication on Demand finally getting to be as robust and fully-featured as we envisioned, and the needs of our IRC / IMCs lining up with some things we needed to do anyways... we’re finally able to provide an update: we are at work on the foundations of v.8!

To be clear, it’s still a very long road ahead. Building an entirely new UI (informed by the prototypes and user testing from 2018, and everything new we’ve added to KLAS since) is a huge undertaking requiring a lot of development resources. However, the other major task will be the need for the UI to communicate with the database storing all of your information by way of APIs. Finally, the APIs needed to be built and implemented so that they allow existing programs in KLAS to function alongside any user interface we build moving forward—we know from painful experience that we can’t rebuild all of KLAS at once and release an entirely new interface with everything you need ready and working on day 1.

We’re excited to say this key building block, the suite of APIs that will provide the machine-to-machine communications needed for v.8 to function, is now underway!

You may have noticed these APIs cropping up in Release Lists this year, and more are coming. For now, IRCs that maintain student data, orders, and catalog info in more than one system are using and will be using these APIs to integrate with third party systems, but the beauty of APIs is that once they are in place, any compatible system can use them.  The programming we’re doing now to integrate with other systems will be the thing that allows us to integrate with the browser-based KLAS v.8 in the future (while still allowing the v.7 interface to be used during the transition).

How long will this take? It’s really hard to say. It ultimately depends on what other development is needed, what new needs crop up which we haven’t anticipated, and what resources open up for us to take this on. But getting the APIs in place is incredibly important foundational work, and we’re really excited to finally get them on the front burner and in progress.

With the KLAS.com revamp successfully launched, we’ve started planning and looking ahead to reorganizing and redesigning KLASusers.com as well.

It’s important to us that this site can serve as a valuable resource for you, as well as a place where the user’s group can come together and collaborate on common issues. The appearance of the site isn’t as important... but we do want it to be pleasant to look at. A much higher priority is that the revamped KLASusers be easy-to-navigate and convenient to use (for all of our users—accessibility will be absolutely required in the revamp). Finally, if we’re able to add in some new features to facilitate user interaction, that’s a big plus!

We have our ideas about how to achieve all of this, but we want your feedback. Drop by Drea’s recent forum post to let us know what you’d like to see in a revamp, if there’s anything you don’t want us to change, or if you have any thoughts or feedback on our ideas below. We hope to hear from you!

A couple of examples of what we’re hoping for in the revamp:

Our current plan is to fold the current Documents and Recordings sections together into a Knowledge Repository (maybe just called "Resources"), so you can find all of the how-to information, downloads, and other "good stuff" without needing to know what format the resource is in. Of course, this section especially will need good indexing and searching.

Another change we’re aiming for is for users to be able to log in from any page and stay on that page rather than being redirected to their profile. This should make it a lot more convenient to access restricted content.

We’d also like to be able to include comments sections on articles, so it’s easy for you to ask questions or provide feedback on blog posts and resource articles without needing to switch to a forum post or email.

A lesser (but still high) priority is for the new version to be easier for Drea and I to administer. That won’t be as apparent to you, but it will help us get new content up on the site quickly. Right now, handling recordings can be especially tricky, so we hope the new site will allow us to more easily post new recordings in a way that will allow you to view them on the site itself and maintain a proper level of security for library-specific recordings that may include patron data.

So how does all that sound? Anything else you want us to be thinking about or try to address in the revamp? Please drop by the forums (since we don’t have that comments section yet) and let us know!

NLS has requested that we (and the other NLS providers) extract and submit some data for them to review. For each of our NLS Libraries, we will be providing NLS with the following statistical information on October 1.

We will be generating these data files for NLS and submitting the information to NLS directly, so you don't need to do anything. We will also send a copy to each library, so you know what was sent to NLS and can review the data for your own information.

Readership: a list of all patrons that received materials from the library during Fiscal Year 2020. The list will include the Patron PIMMS ID, whether they are marked Individual or Institution, and whether they received at least one of the following during FY 2020:

• Digital Audio book
• Hard Copy Braille book
• E-Braille brook
• or Network Library collection item

Note that audio and hard copy braille readership activity includes both books circulated by the library and magazine subscriptions sent by NLS. Network library collections include large print books, descriptive videos, and local magazines. BARD download activity is not included, as NLS already has that information.

Circulation: a count of all circulations this year broken out by library and by medium: Talking Books on Cartridge; Hard Copy Braille; and E-Braille on Cartridge. Circulation counts include counts for book/monograph circulation only. Local magazines/serials sent on cartridge are not part of these counts.

Note that Audio circulations are a count of the number of titles sent on cartridge instead of the number of cartridges sent. Hard copy braille circulations count the number of volumes sent, e-braille is the number of titles sent.

A note about the Readership & Circulation Report: Be aware that the number of people in the Readership list we provide to NLS probably will not match the total from your Readership & Circulation report. The R&C report total includes all accounts that you have updated that year, even if they did not receive something. With that in mind, if you have questions about how these lists do and do not line up with your R&C report, please let us know.

A couple of years ago now, we started offering webinars to help keep the Users’ Group informed and connected, from the open forum KLAS Q&A with Katy webinars to library-specific Duplication training webinars. As we transition to an every-other-year conference format, we’ve ramped up the webinar schedule, including user-led sessions and roundtables in addition to our Keystone-presented sessions.

COVID has only increased the need and popularity of these sessions—and not just for us, but for everyone who uses webinar platforms.

For most of the past few years, we’ve been using Join.Me and had mostly positive experiences and feedback for its ease-of-use and reliability. However, with offering so many more webinars to a broader selection of our users, and with Join.Me’s servers a bit bogged down from increased use, there was a definite shift.

This was particularly apparent in the Keystone Updates and New Features in KLAS sessions that we held in place of our usual Users’ Group meeting during the online NLS conference. The turnout for those sessions was fantastic, but unfortunately caused a few technical issues as our platform and our moderator struggled to keep up with the turnout.

In light of all that, we started the search for a replacement.

This month, we are officially making the switch to Google Meet. From our testing in-house and with a few pilot meetings, we’re confident that it will be easier for us as hosts, and will see a lot less of the lag that was plaguing our attendees.

It also has some features that we think will prove beneficial, including automatic captioning, and the ability to show attendees’ webcams in a tiled display for a better “round-table” feel. You’ll be able to enable or disable the captioning and change views any time to suit your preferences, so give it a try!

You do not need a Google account to join us using Meet! However, if you are logged into a Google account, it’ll automatically bring you into the meeting with that account name. If you don’t want your personal or otherwise irrelevant Gmail name visible make sure to log out or switch accounts before joining the meeting.

We hope you’ll try it out and join us at the upcoming Virtual Programming roundtable this Thursday or at one of our other upcoming webinar sessions! Hopefully, this will be an improvement for everyone who had technical difficulties or bandwidth issues with Join.Me. If you do have any feedback about the new platform or difficulties joining a session, please let us know as we keep working to provide excellent online sessions!

In March of this year, Katy and I undertook a rather large project that we're now happy to see come to fruition. For the past few years, we've been discussing updating the look and feel of Keystone's website with the goal of creating something more modern, with some additional features, but still maintaining our commitment to providing info on an easy-to-use and easy-to-navigate site. To help us with this endeavor, we chose to work with Alison Meeks of AM Graphix. We're excited to say that as of yesterday, the new and improved klas.com is now live!

The content we previously provided is still available, but we hope we've enhanced it and made it all easier to find. One of the great new features we added for current KLAS Users is the ability to submit a "Support" request from any page on the site using the "Support" button in the right-hand corner. Also, the whole site is mobile-friendly and responsive to the size of your browser window.

Below are some additional screenshots of the shiny, new klas.com. We invite you to spend some time checking it out!

The Current Customer OPACs page has been updated to a modern, graphical style, showcasing the logo of each library or organization in addition to the text name. It has also been broken into new sections: Featured, Talking Book Libraries, and Instructional Resource Centers. (Note: Prefer a text-only approach? We've added that version of the list to the KLASusers.com menu!)

The Products and Services: Scribe Duplication System page is new! It includes information about the Scribe, as well as some photos.

We've included some new testimonials from KLAS users on the home page. Thank you to everyone who provided a quote for us--we appreciate your kind words and support!

Finally, this is and will be an ongoing effort. Now that the new look and new organization is in place, we have plans to edit much of the content, so we'd love to hear your feedback!

As efforts to slow the spread of the Coronavirus / COVID-19 ramp up, we wanted to share some info with you all:

1) Keystone Support will still be available

We are prepared to work from home if needed, and currently have no plans to close or restrict hours.

2) Working from home with KLAS

Working from home can't help you keep up with circulation during closures, but letting Reader Advisors (and other staff who do their jobs only or primarily in KLAS) work from home is easy with v7.7.

Because KLAS v7.7 secures your connection with seamless HTTPS instead of a VPN, Keystone-Hosted users can connect from anywhere. So long as your staff have access to home internet, they can take KLAS home with them. It will just work--no VPN or additional set-up required.

If you are still on Keystone-hosted version 7.6, you can connect from home using the instructions we gave after recovering from the SAN failure. No special VPN required, just the correct version of the OpenVPN software. If you need us to re-send instructions, let us know.

For Self-Hosted users, additional set-up may be needed to connect to your servers off-site. For 7.7, we should be able to create an activation key that will allow remote access. For 7.6, start with your own IT, and let them know that we're here to assist if needed.

Finally, if you have reduced staff handling your mail, we have strategies in this Forum Post: Short Staffed? Strategies to keep up.

3) Quarantined Inventory

If you need to quarantine returned books or other inventory from some or all of your patrons, contact Customer Support.
We can help you set up an addition circulation status (NAC:QTN), allowing you to track what inventory is currently set aside to allow any contamination to die off. If you find other measures are called for, we can discuss your needs and help you determine the best strategy.

In short, please know that we are here to support you and any efforts you are taking to stay healthy and protect your patrons.

First, we'd like to share a note with you from James Burts, Keystone Executive Vice President,

"Dealing with the new realities of Covid-19 has certainly been a very strange time. At Keystone, we began having staff wanting to work from home and self-isolate on March 12th, and over the following 2 weeks had increasing numbers of staff opting to work from home. As of March 30th, our local county mandated that we all self-isolate and work from home. I certainly hope you’ve not seen a change in our ability to support you all.

Fortunately, we’d already taken the steps necessary to allow all our staff to work from home effectively— steps we’d taken expecting that it would help us in the event of a snowstorm or hurricane that made roads unsafe. Instead, the road are nearly empty, but it’s simply getting people together that’s unsafe. Who would have thought??

We continue to be available to help you and your staff in anyway we can. Whether that’s helping create new workflows to quarantine materials, or helping your staff work on record cleanup while they are working from home without access to your collection— we are here for you all. We have provided some ideas for managing these strange times on KlasUsers.com, and are always interested in hearing other ideas you may have. If you have any questions, or any ideas that you would like to implement, please reach out to us. We’ll be happy to help talk through your thoughts, and help address your needs."

Next up, as part of our ongoing work to support you, a few more tips and tricks, this time for:

1. Strategies for serving patrons when you have a restricted card run
2. Blocking service to prisons or other institutions

Or you can follow these links for our previous suggestions:

• How can you connect to KLAS if you use a Mac?
• How can I quickly increase the number of books we're sending our patrons and / or titles we're duplicating onto a cartridge for them?
• Do I need to shut off Nightly?
• WebOPAC Notice
• Emailing your newsletter
• Record clean-up

Tip 1:

Strategies for serving patrons when you have a restricted card run.

Nightly sorts patrons that need service by:

1. Serve Code (least frequent to most frequent, with List Only ahead of Autoselect)
2. Last Served date (none to oldest to most recent)

This gives priority to patrons who haven’t been served for a while, and gives List Only patrons a better chance of getting their titles before they go out to Autoselect patrons. Under normal circumstances, this setup ensures that everyone will be served in a reasonable timeframe, even if you restrict your card run and don’t get to everyone who needs service each day.

However, these are not normal circumstances. If you’re currently running on a skeleton crew and severely limited card run, your Nightly Auto patrons might languish at the end of the list.

While these circumstances are in place, or even when the floodgates re-open and you need to play catch-up, you may want to switch up this order from time to time. If you would like to change up the order of the Nightly sort to give different patrons a shot at getting books, please contact Keystone Customer Support—and then be sure to let us know when we should put it back.

Tip 2:

Blocking service to prisons or other institutions:

If your Department of Corrections requires that service is suspended during this time, we can apply a block to all inmates for you. This will stop all circulation to those patrons for a specified period of time, though it does not impact their NLS direct magazines. Please let us know how to identify incarcerated patrons (such as by Patron Type), and how long you need the block to remain in place.

If a nursing home or other facility requests that you stop service to their patrons, you can apply a similar block. You would first need to set up a "Quarantine" block (let us know if you need assistance). Then, find the patrons who live in that place and add the block to each record. If you don't already have relationships set up linking the patrons to the facility, you can find them by querying on the address.

Quick Search –

• Main Status | Equals | A
• City | Equals | Raleigh

Advanced Search –

• Address | Street Address | Matches | 8016 Glenwood

This query will limit your results to active records in the target city, with an address matching the facility’s street address. The idea is to be just specific enough, hence why I recommend searching the street address only for the number and street name. If it isn’t a common street, you might even leave off the number, and review results to see if the facility has multiple buildings.

And that's it for this week's tips! We hope these have been helpful for you; please continue to let us know how we can help!

What a week! ...and it’s only Tuesday.

As I’m sure all of you know, one of our servers decided that 2020 was just too much for it and bit the dust on Monday morning. Our 7.7 customers dodged the worst of it--we’ve been moving everyone to newer servers as they migrate to the new version--and have seen little disruption. Unfortunately, the rest of you have had significant downtime, and we apologize.

We attempted to resuscitate the server without success. At that point, our disaster recovery procedures went into effect: backups were recovered and our valiant IT and Dev team spent the rest of the day and night porting them to a new cloud server and getting everything rebuilt. Since then, we’ve been working with everyone to get VPNs pointing to the new server location, correcting settings to restore printing and reports, and doing a whole lot of troubleshooting. (All while Nancy is also running an Administrators Training.)

Up next: finish getting all the WebOPACs and WebOrder systems back online and functioning normally.

So, while we know this process hasn’t gone as quickly as hoped, please be assured that we are doing everything we can to get you back in business ASAP. Thank you all for your patience and assistance!

I don’t know about you, but when I stop and look back at how far we’ve come since January, how my goals and focus have shifted to keep up with your needs and all of our new developments...it’s been a long year!

KLAS Version 7.7

The new version of KLAS is a major update, with some big changes on the back-end, high-volume Duplication on Demand support, and a rapid “Agile” development cycle.

The Beta deployment of 7.7 to North Carolina Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped at the beginning of the year allowed us to track down and fix a ton of issues -- all while getting Gutenberg integration in place and developing the new deployment processes. We were finally able to start bringing more libraries on board in May, and are now working on bringing our IRC/IMCs up on the new system as well.

All but three Keystone-Hosted libraries now have at least a 7.7 Preview database, we’re making steady progress on self-hosted libraries, and we’ve begun work on the Perkins National Deaf-Blind Equipment Distribution Program (PNDB)’s database as well as our first 7.7 IRCs!

It has been a long road, but we’re now well on our way to a full conversion to 7.7. Development for the new version has been rolling along beautifully all the way up to our current version, 7.7.20.

New Features

There have been too many New Features over the past year to name, but here are some highlights:

• The new installation and upgrade processes reduce or eliminate the need for admin access, IT assistance, and multiple downloads.
• KLAS can now handle the extended UTF8 character set, including more diacritics.
• HTTPS encryption replaces VPNs to keep your data secure while allowing a more streamlined installation.
• eCommerce Integration is now available.
• The Merge Query Function has been added to the Patron and Catalog modules, allowing you to do more with queries than ever.
• The ability to Query on Patron Subscription information is now available in Patron.
• The Apply / Remove Headings to Query Set tool allows you to update Subjects or other Headings on a batch of Titles all at once.
• The Batch Update Patron Medium tool allows you to apply Profile changes to a batch of Patrons.
• You can now print eDocs from the Shipping Wizard.

And that doesn’t include the numerous new features implemented to support Duplication on Demand!

Duplication on Demand

As those who’ve used or are still using the original PCC workflow know: it’s a very hands-on process and unfortunately prone to errors.

The new Duplication workflows, which leverage a dedicated appliance such as a Scribe or Gutenberg, were designed to shift as much of the work as possible from library staff and external programs back to KLAS itself. A complete conversion to Duplication on Demand, rather than just using DoD or PCC as a supplement to traditional circulation, is a huge paradigm shift which necessitated some trial-and-error -- and a whole lot of development.

We found it necessary strike a balance between updating and re-using old processes (like mail card batches and the nightly programs now used to refill Service Queues), completely new programming, and everything in-between.

We are very pleased that we now have four libraries actively using Scribe (with a fifth being brought online this month) and two live on Gutenberg!

The duplication workflows continue to be refined as we receive feedback from our pioneering libraries including the new KLAS screens (such as the Service Queue and Duplication Order tabs), the duplication appliances, and all of the communications in-between that make it all work.

KLAS Users’ Conference 2019 and More!

In early June, the Palm Beach County Talking Books Service and the Friends of the Palm Beach County Library hosted the 2019 KLAS Users' Conference in West Palm Beach, FL. It was a great opportunity to work with some of you in person during a hands-on pre-conference, a variety of Keystone- and user-led sessions, and even a duplication Petting Zoo where we demonstrated the workflows of both the Scribe and Gutenberg.

However, as we head into the off-year between conferences that doesn’t mean there aren’t any opportunities to learn more about KLAS or network with your fellow users. We introduced a variety of other opportunities this year -- from Q&A Webinars to an IRC Symposium. Thanks to all your positive feedback, we’ll be offering even more things like this next year as well!

KLASusers.com Content

Finally, we’ve made a significant effort in the last year to be more proactive in communicating what’s happening at Keystone and with KLAS. We hope you’ve found it beneficial even when we’re racking our brains trying to come up with yet another blog post topic or forum tip. So, if there’s something you’d like to have us cover in a webinar, a blog post, or a discussion forum tip please let us know.

In sum, it has been an amazing (and busy, and sometimes difficult, and ultimately rewarding) year, and I am looking forward to discovering what 2020 will bring.

It’s been a while since I’ve posted a 7.7 Rollout update! Back in July I posted about how the process works; all of that is still ongoing. However, now that 7.7 for IRCs is imminent, it seemed like a good time for a status update.

Current Status

We now have 10 Keystone-hosted and 3 self-hosted libraries running Live on 7.7!

More are testing their Preview databases, with only a few left on the list (don't worry, your Previews are coming soon).

Development has continued squashing bugs in the new version, as well as continually adding new features and improvements, especially for Duplication Service. (Overwhelmed by the Release Lists or just wondering what might be waiting for you in your next update? Make sure you didn’t miss my last post, a Quick Review of 7.7. Updates.)

7.7 for IRC / IMC

Some of you have been wanting the new version for a while, so I’m glad to tell you that it’s almost here!

A couple considerations:

WebOPAC & WebOrder

The updates to make WebOrder compatible with KLAS v7.7 are nearly complete! This was a major factor holding us back from inviting IRCs onto 7.7, but we’re nearly out of the woods--just some thorough testing and hopefully it'll be ready to go.

For IRCs using WebOPAC: only Version 4 of the OPAC is compatible with 7.7. If you are on Version 3, please get in touch to start the conversion (it’s included in your contract) ... or, if you’ve been considering making the jump to WebOrder, now is a perfect time! Not sure which version you’re on, or just want to see an example of version 4? Check the list of Current OPACs.

Hosting

If you’re Keystone-hosted, you can skip this section. However, those of you who are self-hosted may want to get started now getting your IT on board with 7.7 If you have a Windows server, we will need to install a Linux VM to run the database.

If your IT has any questions or concerns, please pass them along. We’ll be happy to answer anything and provide more specifics.

Ready to go?

If you’re ready to start the migration process and get a Preview database, please send an email to Keystone Customer Support to get on the list!

Have you been keeping up with the 7.7 Release Lists?

Our release schedule for v7.7 uses the Agile methodology to push out smaller but much more frequent releases. And of course, big changes (like some of the back-end improvements to v7.7, the transition to Duplication Service, and the implementation of e-commerce) always result in unforeseen ripple effects, usually in the form of lots of bugs to fix and additional improvements that are needed.

All of this is to say that v7.7 has already seen a ton of updates in its first 6 months.

If you have a lot of catching up to do, no problem! Here are some tips:

Download the Combined Release Lists, rather than one for each build.

In addition to posting a Release List for each individual release (called a “build”), I also post combined Release Lists. If you’re new to 7.7 or haven’t been reading Release Lists, you can get all of the bug fixes, improvements, and new features from builds 0 through 10 in a single download. The second download will be 11 through 20, and so forth.

Browse Highlights

I spotlight the most requested or highest-impact changes from each release. These highlights are listed at the top of the individual release list and the combined release list, and they’re a great way to get caught up on the big stuff.

Search for Keywords

Each issue has keywords for the “components” (essentially the module or section of KLAS impacted) and labels. If you want to browse through a certain set of relevant issues, you can use Ctrl + F to enter any of these keywords. Useful ones include Duplication (if have or are getting a Scribe or Gutenberg), MatRequest (for IRCs), or Patron Services (for Reader Advisors).

Recent Highlights

Finally, here are a few highlights from recent releases to whet your appetite...

For LBPH:

Batch Update Patron Medium

New Function on the Tools menu – Allows admin user to specify a set of values to apply to a given PatronMedium/Profile record for all patrons in the active query set. Ex. define a patron query and apply a new NSCutoff or NextServiceDate to the entire set, or create Service Queues to switch the entire set to Duplication service. Issue #KLAS-2025

Create Duplication Order from the Service Queue

Added an item on the Functions – Service Queue Menu that allows the user to create a Duplication Order from the top X titles on the patron's service queue. X defaults to the max titles on cartridge, but can be adjusted by the user if it makes sense to put a different number of titles on the cartridge (ex. the patron usually takes 5 titles on a cartridge but is requesting a 7-book series). Issue #KLAS-2043

For IRC* and Others:

*Version 7.7 is not yet available for most IRC/IMC customers, as we are finishing up the conversion needed for WebOrder to function with KLAS v7.7. However, we plan to get you on board starting very soon!

Patron Status Update - Validation to look for Pending MatRequests

Validation has been added to prevent a Patron Status change if that Patron has a Mat Request in a status of "Pending". Issue #KLAS-2000

Add Access to the Print Invoice function from the Materials Request

Added direct access to the Print Invoice function from the new invoice tab in MatRequests instead of requiring invoices to be printed from the Acquisitions module. Issue #KLAS-2004

Our developers have been very busy lately, implementing Gutenberg, ironing out eCommerce, and gearing up to start converting IRC / IMC customers to version 7.7, among other things.

But amidst all of that, we’re still listening for your feedback—and even relying on it more than ever!

So here are a few notes on how you are helping guide us forward.

1. KDAC (KLAS Development Advisory Committee

KDAC has some new members! A big welcome to Sam Lundberg of New Mexico Talking Book Library and Shawn Lemieux of New York State Talking Book & Braille Library, and thank you so much for lending us some of your time!

So, what goes on in a KDAC meeting? We spend a lot of the timesharing what we’ve been working on that month (making your KDAC representatives a great source of “insider information” about what we’ve been up to), as well as our plans and expectations about what’s coming up next. Through all of that, we’re listening to their feedback and taking notes about what they think of new features, what questions they think need to be addressed, and their suggestions on prioritization.

We also frequently have questions for them: should we pursue Option A or Option B to fix a specific issue? How can we make this or that easier? If we did things this way, would that cause any problems for you?

KDAC has been a big help in steering and refining our development, so I’m especially excited to find out what the new voices will bring to the table this year.

(Want to learn more about KDAC, view a list of all current members, or review the new guidelines? It’s all in the KDAC Article.)

2. Webinars & Other Non-Conference Stuff

I’ve been happy to do several Q&A webinars with the Users’ Group, and we’ve had a lot of positive feedback (thank you all so much!)... but I don’t want mine to be the only voice you hear.

Are there topics you want to hear about, or something you’d like to share? Whether it’s a new initiative at your library, your experiences implementing Duplication on Demand, or a discussion focused on a specific area of KLAS (like Serials or Accounts), we want to hear your topic ideas!

If you’d rather collaborate with another user or a Keystone expert, don’t hesitate to suggest it anyway; we’d be happy to help out or help you find someone who can.

A very easy way to weigh in on all this is to fill out the 2019 KLAS Users' Conference Follow-up Survey! Yes, even if you didn’t attend the 2019 conference!

If you’ve completed the survey and think of something new, or something that didn’t fit in the form, you are also very welcome to email us at Keystone or any of your Users’ Group officers, or you can post about it on the Discussion Forums.

However you go about it, thank you for helping guide us and making KLAS and your Users’ Group better and better!

We’ve got some new information up for you this week! Let’s have a look...

1. Release Lists

As the v7.7 rollout continues, 7.7 itself has been under continuous improvement. I’ve just posted the most recent build, 7.7.14 (along with 12 and 13, which were very small builds targeted to fixing a few localized but important issues) to the 7.7 Release Lists page.

The new build has some great quality-of-life improvements, including some new options for your patron queries! For example, you can now query against patron subscriptions (including SER-DDB9 to find patrons with a BARD registration) and whether a patron is set up for Duplication service. A QuickRef with a list of all the new fields you can query against is also available on the Release Lists page. There are improvements for our IRC and other customers as well, so no worries--it's not all LBPH stuff.

2. Duplication Info

I’ve been sharing a lot of information about Duplication on this blog, to keep you all informed and up-to-date. But we know it can be a pain to have to go back and find something weeks or months later; especially if you aren’t sure if it was here, on the discussion forums, or somewhere else.

To address this, we’ve created a one-stop-shop for Duplication Info. You can access this page from the Main Menu, under Documents – Quick Reference (and it’s a static URL, so feel free to bookmark it if that works better for you).

From now on, all information having to do with Duplication that is posted to KLASusers will be added to the Info page to keep it easily accessible. I have a lot more planned for you (and would love to hear what you need most!) so I hope this Info page will be helpful for keeping it all organized.

3. Scribe Specs info sheet

A new document is available on the Duplication Info page--one that I think plenty of you will be interested in!

The Scribe Specs & Cost document briefly lays out all the specifics of the Scribe system. It covers what is included with a Scribe, the details for each component of the system, and how much it costs all in a streamlined front-and-back info sheet, perfect for your IT folks or funding agencies. Head over to the Info page to give it a download!

Interested in moving to a Duplication on Demand service model, but not sure how you’ll get enough cartridges and other supplies? There’s help available! NLS is offering supplies to all network libraries that are willing to transition to zero copy allotment--whether they plan to implement Gutenberg or Scribe.

Many of you have already heard about this and some have already put in their request, but please read on anyway—we’ve worked with NLS to make sure we’re accurately covering all the important details.

On top of that, we’ve developed a worksheet to help you plan your implementation process, including when you will need additional supplies.

Just the Facts

When you are ready, you can order from NLS:

• Up to half of your total need for cartridges and containers.

(Total need is calculated based on 5 cartridges per active audio patron, so half works out to 2.5 cartridges and cases per active patron.)

• Pre-printed cartridge and container labels with your library information

In return, you will need to work towards full duplication service. NLS expects libraries to zero out their copy allotment within 12 months of implementing duplication on demand.

Good Stuff to Know

Be aware that your supplies will arrive in one shipment on pallets. This is intended to be a lifetime supply, so please be prepared for a large shipment proportional to your patron base.

The cartridges will have the standard “white cartridge” passphrase, and will need to be reset to the peach passphrase using the NLS device, or using the Repurpose mode of the Gutenberg.

NLS encourages libraries to repurpose cartridges and containers from their existing collections to make up the other half of their need, and they can loan Scribe libraries a stand-alone device that will unlock white cartridges for re-use. The cartridge is then re-locked with the peach passphrase, so it will continue to be protected. (Check out our Thursday Tip on High-Capacity Cartridges for the trick to easily identify the best cartridges to keep for duplication.)

Timelines

NLS can only get so many supplies ordered and distributed per month. Currently, they are asking for two month’s lead time.

Being clear about your timeline and need will help NLS prioritize orders, as will holding off on requesting supplies if they will not be needed soon. NLS will also ask Keystone to confirm that we have an “authorized commitment” to proceed and a clear implementation schedule in place, so please coordinate with us before you make your request for duplication supplies to NLS.

To help you estimate when supplies will be needed, and in what amounts, we have developed the attached worksheet. Take advantage of our experience with several implementations, and have a look! Of course, we know you may still have questions or need more help making your estimates, so don’t hesitate to get in touch with us for assistance.

Worksheet

The attached questionnaire is intended to help guide you through planning your implementation of a Duplication service model using Scribe or Gutenberg, including generating estimates of supplies needed for the initial stages, specific goals, and action items.

It will be most useful before contacting NLS to order supplies.

• Duplication Questionnaire - Word
• Duplication Questionnaire - PDF

Prior to the 2019 KLAS Users' Conference, Katy and I received a request to present about the different ways we send out communications and what platforms are available to users to share info with one another. On Thursday morning at the conference, we shared our "Connecting with KLASusers" presentation on this topic... and we decided to use the presentation as an opportunity to learn just what folks in the audience knew about our communications platforms and efforts.

The agenda of the presentation started with klasusers.com, including the Key Notes blog, various resources on the site, as well as some tips and tricks on navigating the discussion forums. We then took some time to discuss the KLASusers e-list and share info about Keystone's social media presence.

Also, during the course of the presentation, we had anyone who wished to participate answer questions in a live poll. It was very interesting to see how many folks were and were not aware of who usually writes our Key Notes blog post and what kind of content they wanted to see more of. (And of course, we couldn't help but have a little fun with it.)

This week we wanted to share the presentation for those who were not at the conference so they have the opportunity to learn about all the different ways we try to share tips, ask questions, and share the latest news about KLAS. Also, we want you to know what communications channels are available to you as a user and how to make sure you're not missing out on important info. You can access the PowerPoint via the below link.

• Connecting with KLASUsers.com - PowerPoint

Another great resource to learn about how to stay up to date with the latest blog posts, forum discussions, etc. is the "Tips for dealing with klasusers.com FOMO" Key Notes blog from March of 2018 which including how to subscribe to specific discussion forum threads or categories, "favorite" forum topics, and the best way to find the latest Key Notes blog post and forum posts.

Please be sure to let us know if you have questions about these resources and / or how to use them.

About a month and a half ago, we began offering Version 7.7 preview databases to Keystone-hosted and Linux-based self-hosted LBPH customers. Since then, we’ve been hard at work—so I wanted to give you all a look into the process.

Creating a Preview Database:

Each preview database requires a conversion (from the 7.6 data structure to 7.7), followed by a whole checklist of other tasks, including basic duplication setup (to allow you to test new duplication features), testing, and loading the XPrint license (so you can print from KLAS without requiring a separate XPrint installation).

Status: Right now, I see 12 customers on our “Active Setup” list, most of which have almost finished checklists. That means we should be getting quite a few more of you on to the next steps very soon!

What Happens Next?

Once a preview database is ready, the Activation Key and a “Welcome Packet” of documentation go out to the library. This includes a task list of activities that we recommend the library completes to familiarize themselves with new features and to test the conversion and set-up more in depth. As they go through this list, the preview customer notifies us of whatever bugs or errors they come across.

For example, one thing our previewers just notified us of is that the latest version of Progress (the software we use to build the KLAS user interface) changed the highlighting it uses in browse tables.

Since the new style of highlighting is so much harder to see, the next build of 7.7 will include a fix to revert to the classic highlighting. (If you do like the new style better, it is possible for you to enable it as a customization to your klas.ini file—contact us for help.) Thanks, previewers!

Status: We have 5 customers who have their preview databases and are testing and reviewing them now, with the most recent getting their preview just this morning!

Going Live:

Once a preview customer has gone through the task list and is satisfied with the conversion, they are welcome to schedule their Live upgrade.

Congrats to Oregon and Arizona, our first customers to go Live on 7.7 (after North Carolina, who were our guinea pigs—ahem—I mean “Beta Testers”)!

What about Windows-based and IRC Customers?

For our IRC users, we have a little bit of development work left to do to get WebOrder fully compatible with version 7.7. Once that is complete, we’ll be getting you up and running as well.

For Windows-based self-hosted users, we continue to work on getting the version 7.7 server installation and upgrade process sorted out, and expect to be able to get preview databases set up for you starting in August.

For all of you: while we are sorry for the delay, the bright side is that we should have the process fully ironed out and bug fixes in place once we bring you up on 7.7. Please know that we are keeping the line moving as quickly as we can, while still meeting the other development and customer service needs that may come up in the meantime.

Hello, KLAS users! If you were able to join us for the 2019 KLAS Users’ Conference earlier this month, you heard a very exciting announcement from James Burts, Executive Vice President of Keystone Systems, Inc.

Now that we’re back in the office and the Version 7.7 rollout is fully underway, here he is with the news for all NLS Network libraries using KLAS:

We are here to support you, and we fully understand the need to move to a duplication service model. Over the past year, we have put the browser-based KLAS Version 8 on hold to revamp the duplication process, to build in full integration with NLS’ Gutenberg Bespoke device, and to further develop the Scribe appliance debuted at UC2018.

Now, KLAS Version 7.7 is ready for full-fledged duplication service using the hardware of your choice. There has been a lot of excitement for Gutenberg—and understandably so—but NLS’ deployment schedule cannot support getting everyone who wants one of their devices up and running right away. Additionally, we have a lot of confidence in Scribe’s optimized workflow (whether you choose PCC mode, exclusive to Scribe, or Cartridge-recycle mode, now available on either hardware) and other features.

We want to make sure that all of our users who are moving to a duplication service model have the opportunity to implement the hardware that is the best fit for their library, on a schedule that works for them.

To achieve this goal, we have optimized the components used for the Scribe, crunched the numbers, and determined that we can provide one Scribe appliance per KLAS contract at no additional cost.

We pledge to work with you to ensure that you can get up to speed with duplication on the hardware of your choice, whether that means getting you a place in line for a Gutenberg, or getting a Scribe unit heading your way ASAP.

There you have it!

To help you determine whether a Gutenberg Bespoke device or the Scribe appliance is a better fit for you, we will be posting more information about Scribe's cartridge recycle mode and what each hardware option has to offer over the coming weeks. We will also be hosting a duplication-focused Q&A webinar in a few months (date to be announced soon). In the meantime, if you have questions about this exciting news, KLAS version 7.7, or moving to a duplication service model, give us a call or email

For questions about the Gutenberg device itself or NLS’ deployment schedule, please contact NLS directly.

Note: KLAS Version 7.7 for self-hosted Windows Server users should be available in August, and for IRC customers soon. All other users can request a preview database whenever they choose and, once they have gone through the preview checklist, schedule their conversion whenever they are ready. If you have requested a preview database and have not yet gotten your welcome packet and authorization key: keep an eye out! We’re working through the list and we’ll be getting to your library soon!

I have some great news, and I couldn’t wait until next Tuesday to post it! Our hard-working development team has gotten fixes in place, wrangled the new server, and generally addressed the various issues discussed in the last update.

This means that 7.7 Preview Databases are now available by request to all Keystone-hosted and all Linux-based self-hosted customers!

(Deployment for Windows-based self-hosted customers is still being ironed out; we hope to be able to offer Preview Databases to you soon.)

These demo databases will allow you to spot-check your data and settings to ensure that everything migrated correctly to the new version, train staff, and practice using the new features and duplication workflows. It will also allow us to do some load-testing of the new server to make sure that connection issues don’t crop back up, and that nothing new decides to go sideways on us.

Having a demo database in place also puts you on the fast-track to getting a live version. We will be bringing customers up live one every week or two, starting right away after the KLAS Users’ Conference (and maybe even sooner, if the demo roll-out goes well).

For more information on version 7.7, check out the New Release Webinar! (Note: you must be logged in to KLASusers.com to access that link.)

Future Updates

The wait for 7.7 has been longer than anyone had expected, but once you're upgraded to 7.7, future updates will come along much quicker! Instead of needing a large bundle of updates to be ready all at once, incremental updates will be applied to 7.7 about every two weeks. Fixes and improvements will go out steadily over time, rather than in a large batch after a long wait.

Even better, these updates will occur smoothly and easily, without any need to download and apply an update through your browser. For more information on how updates will work in version 7.7, see the Installation and Upgrades Post.

Duplication on Demand

Our new Duplication on Demand workflows are included in version 7.7, including full Gutenberg integration. NLS is in their final testing phases of this integration, but it is in place, and will continue to be refined and improved.

The Gutenberg device itself will of course come from NLS, and does require custom set-up per customer. We will work with them to fast-track our customers as much as possible, but there is a high demand, and only so many people at NLS who are able to do the set-up and testing needed. At the NLS Western / Southern Regional Conference, they indicated that they expect a pace of about 2 Gutenberg set-ups per month. Who gets one of these devices, and when, is entirely their decision; we can only work with them to get each device’s connection to KLAS in place ASAP.

For those who are considering a Scribe instead, we are pleased to announce that it now supports both the Patron-Centric Cartridge model and the Cartridge Recycling model! We were able to get this in place because the Cartridge Recycling workflow had already been developed to support Gutenberg—we just did a little tweaking and testing to make sure that it worked with the other hardware as well.

Final Thoughts

Thank you all so much for your patience!

We have heard loud and clear that Duplication (and particularly Gutenberg integration) is the priority that the Users’ Group has set for us, and have been hard at work on it since last year. We believe that the results are robust, flexible, reliable, and efficient; everything that we hope you can expect from a Keystone Systems product.

We know that the process has taken much longer than we initially announced, but we think that the final product will be worth the wait. We will continue to do everything we can to get those of you under a time crunch (or who are just eager to get started) up and running on a Duplication on Demand workflow of your choice as soon as possible.

For those libraries not racing to transition to a Duplication workflow, you haven’t been forgotten! With the bulk of the work finished for Duplication, we will be able to integrate improvements that will benefit you as well back into our development cycle.

We keep talking about all of the great new features in KLAS version 7.7 so... where is it? We wish this post was a release announcement, but unfortunately the timeline has been pushed back a bit.

The initial, controlled 7.7 release has rolled out as planned, and we were pushing to start a wider release in March. However, the controlled release uncovered a number of issues that have required additional development time and resources to address. None of them were critical, but added together, it was not the user experience we want to provide.

Additionally, in working with NLS to test Gutenberg integration, we have found several changes that need to be made there as well. Even though this integration is not required for version 7.7's release, it is a high priority and has taken a fairly large amount of development time.

While we do want to get this upgrade to you as soon as possible, we want to be sure that you will have a stable, reliable connection and no service interruptions. Right now, it's looking like it will be at least another month before we can promise that for our Keystone-hosted customers. For self-hosted customers it will be a bit longer (probably May) before we can get you Live on 7.7, though we should be able to get you started with a preview database prior to launch.

If you're interested in more of the technical details, read on! Otherwise, thank you for your patience as we polish up this major release, and keep an eye on the KLASusers email list for more information next month.

So why is this taking so long?

We've made a ton of back-end changes to KLAS that will result in a smoother, faster, better experience... but that also changes how it's deployed to the server, how it communicates with the server, where all of the little programs that run KLAS are located... pretty much everything.

We have been working through a long list of fixes as we nail down how some of our changes have jostled the system, both in the KLAS program itself and even more in the various processes that communicate between your user interface and the data on the server.

We've also been tracking down issues with the hardware itself, including moving our brave first-adopters back off of the new server while we track down an intermittent connection issue. We've even had our internet provider out to assist with testing our various connection points and switches.

In sum: we've been making a lot of minor tweaks, plus chasing some stubborn issues through the system from the staff client to the server and everywhere in between. We are making progress, but it's going to be just a little longer while we test all of our fixes to make sure they don't cause problems of their own.

Why are self-hosted customers going to take even longer?

Again, with all of those back-end changes, deployment of KLAS to the server is a very different process than it was for version 7.6.

With our hosted customers, we have control of all of the variables. Self-hosted customers, however, can have any combination of different hardware and operating systems in place. So for those customers, we are working on a process to ensure that we can get you up-and-running reliably on any system. Most likely, this will make use of a virtual machine.

We will need to work with your IT group to make sure they are prepared and comfortable with the new virtual machine installation process before going live. As we have more information about our new deployment process, we will communicate with you about a timeline for setting up a Preview database, which you and your IT group can use for testing.

And what about Gutenberg?

With the Gutenberg integration, there have been a few points where NLS's testing have uncovered a problem or potential problem, and several as well where we are simply approaching things from a different viewpoint. There are also some sticky points in-between, and some things that have come up on the Gutenberg side of the equation.

Again, however, we are making great progress at solving these issues as they are found, and our latest round of fixes is out for more testing even now.

We are really thankful for NLS pitching in to help us test this integration with their equipment; we're closing in on it together.