Space Missions
Can Your Library Automation
Software Do This?
David Hook
MDA
[email protected]
Library Databases
• Library Databases:
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Library Catalog
Serials
Loans
Order tracking
Queries
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Library Catalog
• Database: Library Catalog
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Contains library holdings: books, papers, tech notes
Structure: standard library catalog fields
Links to loans database & employee database
Online request feature
Canned query to show list of new items
• Future Plans
– Add more electronic resources
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Order Tracking
• Database: Order Tracking
– Tracks library orders, expenditures, budgets
– Quick YTD budget reports at the press of a button
• Future Plans
– Create reports broken down by department
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Queries
• Database: Queries
– Log of detailed queries/reference questions asked
and their solutions
– Captures resources searched, regardless of whether
anything found or not
• Future Plans
– Make search results public
Space Missions
Communication Tools
• Communication Tools:
– Need for better communication / awareness of library
services
• Databases
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What’s new
Blog
Newsletter
Discussion lists
Calendar of events
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What’s New
• Database: What’s New
– Contains recent company news – press releases, HR
notices, updates to the Intranet
– Output is ASP page embedded into main Intranet
page - displays 10 most recent postings
– Structure: Entire news posting is one field in database
• Future Plans
– Create web input interface
Space Missions
Blog
• Database: Blog
– Contains library/Intranet news, resource
recommendations, etc.
– Don’t refer to it as a blog
– Structure: entire post included in one database field
– Field for ‘blogname’ – can use DB to support multiple
blogs
– Tag link is a canned query to search database
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Blog
• Future Plans
– Enable RSS feeds
– Open it up for individuals to have their own blogs
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Newsletter
• Database: Newsletter
– Collection of space and robotics related news items
– Import headlines, first paragraph and URL of news
articles on the web into fields
– Fields for classifying news items
– Then use to generate weekly news summary by date
• Future Plans
– Enable other individuals to input
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Discussion Lists
• Database: Discussion Lists
– Similar to a web discussion forum
– By creating a field for ‘forum’, can use the database to
support several discussion forums but allow easy
search across all forums.
• Future Plans
– Enable threads
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Calendar of Events
• Database: Calendar of events
– Centralized schedule / calendar of events
– Anyone can add to it:
• IS service outages
• HR notices, social club events
• Guest speakers / lunchtime presentations
• Future Plans
– Promote
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Business Process
Support
• Business Process Support Tools:
– Business Process Documents
– Lessons Learned
– Acronyms
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Business Processes
• Database: Business Processes Documents
– Contains information about and links to company
business process documents
– Interface uses canned queries and image maps
– Two views – one based on organization structure, one
based on process flow
• Future Plans
– More detailed process flow interface
Space Missions
Lessons Learned
• Database: Lessons Learned / PPC
– Forum for capturing organizational lessons learned
– Program Phased Checklist – checklist of questions to
review at various stages of a program based on past
lessons learned
• Future Plans
– Link lessons learned database to program phased
checklist
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Acronyms
• Database: Acronyms
– Contains over 8,000 acronyms and definitions
– One of most used databases in the company
– Set up so that individuals can add acronyms that are
missing
• Future Plans
– Link definitions to business process documents
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Documentation Control
• Documentation Control Tools:
– Internal Document Tools
– Records Management Tools
– Specifications & Standards
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Internal Document
Management
• Database(s): Internal Document Management
– Series of indexes for managing internally-created
documents
– Reports / Proposals / tech notes / etc
– Interface uses ASP to generate next available number
– Linked to employee database
– Can generate lists of outstanding documents
• Future Plans
– Generate lists of documents by employee name
Space Missions
Records Management
• Database(s): Product Assurance Records
– Series of indexes for managing records in Product
Assurance Records department
– Databases linked through central database of
programs & suppliers
• Future Plans
– Open it up for others to input data
Space Missions
Specs & Standards
• Database: Specs & Standards
– Problem: Different standard vendors; different
interfaces confusing for users
– Specs & Standards database creates one interface to
all specifications and standards regardless of vendor
or format
– Tracks standards that are current vs. obsolete
• Future Plans
– Increase standards availability
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Other Databases
• Other databases:
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Database inventory
Spider
Supplier Selection
Internal Job Postings
Car Pool Board
Online Auctions
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Inventory of Databases
• Database: Database Inventory
– Contains list of all company recognized databases
and owners
– Links to the databases themselves (where applicable)
• Future Plans
– Develop standards
– Online database documentation
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Spider
• Database: Spider
– Captures results of Intranet spider
– Searchable index that integrates with other databases
• Future Plans
– Add search of external web pages
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Supplier Selection
• Database(s): Supplier / Product Selection
– Database of suppliers and products
– Indicates which suppliers are approved / disapproved
– Can find suppliers based on product / service
• Future Plans
– Automate supplier approval process
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Internal Job Board
• Database – Internal Job Board (in works)
– Index of current Internal job postings
– Field for ‘post date’ and ‘remove date’
– Output form only displays postings within the date
range
• Future Plans
– Complete database
Space Missions
Car Pool Board
• Database - Car Pool Board
– Allows users to post their own car pooling interests
• Future Plans
– Allow edit/deleting of postings
– Expand to include other types of postings – I.e.
classified ads.
Space Missions
Online Auctions
• Database - Online Auctions (in works)
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Originally devised for online auction for charity
Each item for sale is its own record in the database
Fields for auction start and end dates
Input screen allows bidding based on current highest
bid
• Future Plans
– Improve interface and test with multiple bids
Space Missions
Contact Info
[email protected]
http://davehook.blogspot.com
Space Missions