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PC Reservation(c) is the Most Widely Used Application for PC management in Public Libraries of ALL SIZES Worldwide.

In use at over 5,500 libraries in 8 countries, the product that defines PC management for libraries is PC Reservation®.

It was librarians that defined the scope of the original release and since it's first release in 2000, librarians have continued to define and refine this remarkably versatile solution. Over 600 mouse-click preferences morph PC Reservation into millions of unique configurations that fit the needs of every library regardless of size or budget.

Because EnvisionWare was founded to serve the needs of small to midsized libraries, the rich feature set is the same whether you invest less than $2,000 for a small library or deploy at library systems similar to some of our larger customers like The New York Public Library, Chicago, Free Library of Philadelphia, Phoenix, Denver, Atlanta, and many more.

Manage by turns, minutes, sessions, first-come first-served, or using the most remarkable patron-considerate solution available. Over 1,000 libraries have migrated from competitive, legacy solutions to the power, flexibility, and reliability of PC Reservation.

We would like to tell you more and we invite you to ask our customers why they chose EnvisionWare as their self-service solutions provider. Join the customer list from the tab above or call one of our regional offices to learn more. You can download an instant-install full function package or work with one of our Systems Engineers in the deployment of a test system.

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The comments from our customers are just a few of the hundreds of great reference comments that come into EnvisionWare regularly. We will provide source information to any library so that you can speak directly with these customers or with any customer shown on our customer list.

 

 

PC Reservation is a registered trademark of EnvisionWare, Inc.

 

Feature Highlights

 

• PC Reservation is unique because it links directly to ILS borrower databases, LDAP, or other sources for validation instead of creating and using secondary patron databases (although a secondary or separate database is an option).

• No separate database to manage - no special patron management software to learn.

• PC Reservation auto discovers components and supports DHCP for Clients.

• It practically configures itself.

• Distributed processing means that Clients can operate stand-alone or connected to a Management Console. Each branch can operate independently. (Don't let the competition lead you astray, we don't require dedicated hardware at the branches.) There is no single point of failure in a branch or in a system.

• PC Reservation operates at the same speed whether serving a library with 5 computers or 5,000 computers, and it's impossible to experience an outage beyond the limits of a single building.

• While EnvisionWare was founded to serve the needs of small to midsized libraries, the architecture has been remarkably well suited to large systems. Performance is unmatched, which is why EnvisionWare services many of the largest libraries in the United States. The same software provides the same features to the smallest libraries because of our scaled pricing structure.

• All time management products require some form of Client component and PC Reservation is no exception. In the case of PC Reservation, the Client is intelligent enough to operate independently in case of a network failure and it also performs all of its timing functions to maintain efficient network bandwidth. EnvisionWare Clients auto-update when new versions are posted by the system administrator. PC Reservation client configurations are centrally managed from the Management Console.

• No local configurations to update or maintain.

Direct Link to ILS instead of Separate Patron Database

For the most part, 3rd party vendors like EnvisionWare depend on SIP/SIP2 as the method of connecting to an ILS borrower database. SIP provides validation of barcode, fine and other patron status but the SIP "standard" does not provide for patron type, age, and other information that is required for a time and access management system.

Other companies chose to develop separate patron databases, some of which would synchronize with the ILS via SIP so that added fields could be manually maintained for age, group, patron type, Internet Filtering, and other criteria. EnvisionWare's approach was different because our distribution model is different. We provide products through regional resellers and we also market through major ILS vendors. As such, we have a direct channel to ILS developers. So we asked the ILS vendors if they would agree to customize SIP by adding age, patron type, and some other information to their standard SIP messages. Nearly everyone agreed. Since it's not standard, all the interfaces are different but we worked with each vendor to certify and test our interface for the enhanced data. The result is that we uniquely connect DIRECTLY to the ILS patron database without an intermediary patron database. No secondary database means less maintenance, lower cost, and reduced concerns over patron privacy. Is it an extra burden on your ILS server? No. A SIP validation transaction is less work than an OPAC lookup.

The net result is a much higher degree of reliability, the absence of yet another server to maintain, and slightly better cost than some of our competition. Of course the performance is better too because we are connecting directly to the ILS.

So there's no server?

If you want a server you can have a server. EnvisionWare is committed to customer choice, so our architecture provides lots of options for customers. Our SQL database which runs on Windows, Linux, UNIX, Solaris, and other platforms, is an option that can be used to centrally store statistics and to enforce global policies among other services. What's interesting is that it can work passively so that a network communication failure to the server has absolutely no impact on the operation of your enterprise network operation.

Installation, DHCP, Subnets

When you run the PC Reservation Client Windows installer, the Client automatically discovers the Management Console in the branch and reports its IP address and computer name. The system administrator (locally or centrally) can then automatically configure the Client with a friendly name. If the IP address changes the system handles it automatically. (Note: The Management Console is a reference or circ PC in most libraries.)

On a LAN with multiple subnets, auto discover will not work due to inherent routing constraints. In this case the Client will not "see" the Management Console and will ask for an IP address of the console. The administrator needs only enter the IP address one time and the multiple subnets are handled from that point hence.

Reservation Stations and Staff Consoles work the same way, automatically configuring themselves at startup.

Filtering

EnvisionWare Filtering Options

Libraries that need to dynamically control filtering will appreciate the breadth of options available for PC Reservation. PC Reservation will dynamically enable/disable filtering based on patron type, age, and other criteria in the ILS (circulation system). This option works with any proxy-based filtering system.

If you presently use or are aware of a preferred system in which the filtering database operates on a hardware device independent of your firewall, it is probably a proxy-based solution. PC Reservation does not control filtering when filtering software is installed on each PC. Some of the more popular solutions include SmoothWall, Bess SmartFilter and other proxy systems. For customers requiring a turnkey solution from EnvisionWare, we offer the EnvisionWare Network Content Manager.

Some libraries want more granular control such as multiple filtering profiles that apply to different levels of users. This is termed Profile-based Filtering in PC Reservation. If you own or purchase an 8e6 Technologies R3000 series unit, you can implement virtually unlimited filtering profiles. PC Reservation will dynamically switch to different profiles as each user logs in, giving you virtually unlimited filtering control. Hundreds of customers have migrated from legacy solutions that used the 8e6 systems and found PC Reservation to be a remarkable upgrade in versatility and reliability.

NEXT GENERATION TURNKEY FILTERING

Dynamic Filtering Control is a core technology built into PC Reservation. DFC is an open architecture approach and is not dependent upon any specific brand of product. Virtually any proxy-based filtering solution will work with EnvisionWare’s Dynamic Filtering Control which allows libraries to dynamically enforce and change filtering policies based upon information contained in the ILS patron database.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF THE ENVISIONWARE NCM SG?

Interoperability Support Reliability Performance Scalability Features Plug and Play

INTEROPERABILITY

The NCM(SG) comes from EnvisionWare so you are assured that it is tested and certified before it leaves our labs and that it works with each release of our software. No guessing, no finger-pointing, just the assurance and our backing that the system will interoperate with EnvisionWare software and provide the control you need day in and day out.

SUPPORT

Whether you call or use the web form to contact EnvisionWare, or you search the Knowledge Base, your first tier support for the Network Content Manager comes from EnvisionWare. And you already know that support is the best in the industry.

RELIABILITY

The new SG series offers an unparalleled level of reliability, And the inherent technology ensures that the NCM will not be a barrier to Internet access in the event of a failure.
PERFORMANCE AND SCALABILITY

Whether serving 10 IP’s or 50,000, the NCM SG-series scales to fit your needs and we have sites as large as the Free Library of Philadelphia that use the SG to actually improve access to web sites.

A base system uses an 850 MHZ Celeron, 512MB of RAM and a proprietary operating system. The largest system has (2) Xeon 3.2 GHZ processors and 4GB of RAM, and a proprietary operating system.

FEATURES

We offer your choice of SmartFilter or our new NCM filter subscription. You can selectively block streaming media, prevent client downloads and pop-ups and ads, and a host of services compatible with EnvisionWare Next Generation software.

SMARTFILTER

-Human review by Control List Technicians
-Mature list quality assurance processes
-Rated most accurate by independent study
-Over 4.0 million categorized sites and growing daily
-Broad international coverage
-Incremental downloads (changes only)
-Download via HTTP or FTP
-Read from RAM or disk
-Tightly compressed list data storage
-Industry-leading list search speeds

PLUG AND PLAY

EnvisionWare uses the standard Policy Development process to obtain settings information from a site. Each unit is configured and tested prior to shipment. An electronic version of your settings is retained in your support record. Your NCM (SG) is shipped ready to plug in and use. The settings for your PC Reservation Management Consoles are provided with your NCM so that you simply input your Dynamic Filtering Control settings and you have automatic dynamic filtering settings enabled for your patrons. There’s no need to visit patron computers or to change network settings.

ILS Compatibility

ILS Interoperability - Partners (All Enhanced SIP2)

These companies are EnvisionWare strategic partners and work directly with EnvisionWare on certification, testing, enhancements, and development.

Infor Advance Infor Plus Infor Vubis Polaris Galaxy PolarisEnhanced SIP2 SirsiDynix Dynix SirsiDynix Horizon SirsiDynix Classic (DRA) SirsiDynix Unicorn SirsiDynix Symphony TLC Library.Solution TLC CARL.Solution TLC CARL.X