Emory Libraries and Information Technology will be replacing Reserves Direct, its current online course material reserve system, with a different cataloguing system, effective May 2014.
Reserves Direct is an internal database developed by Emory Libraries that houses electronic course material that teachers upload for students to use.
The new system, which is called Ares, is a commercially available platform developed by Atlas Systems.
Reserves Direct currently houses course material since 2001 when Emory Libraries first developed the database, according to Head of Access Services for the Robert W. Woodruff Library Amy Boucher.
The database was developed internally because a commercial system was not available at the time, Boucher said. She added that Emory Libraries decided to switch to a commercially available system because it was a more sustainable option. The new system, which she referred to as "Course Reserves," does not require "in-house development work" because it has a vendor that conducts ongoing product development.
When the new system goes live on May 14, it will automatically migrate course materials from fall 2011 up to fall 2014 that have already been uploaded.
If professors want to retain materials prior to fall 2011, they must specifically request this from Emory Libraries, Boucher said.
The new Course Reserves database is able to perform all of the functions of Reserves Direct. These features include immediate access to uploaded materials, the ability to archive past materials, the ability to group materials by date and subject and automated email notifications for newly added materials, among others.
"It's quite similar to what we have now," Boucher said.
There are two main differences between Course Reserves and Reserves Direct, according to Boucher. The new system is able to integrate into Blackboard, which is an online course management software. This means students and faculty can now access the database through a link on Blackboard as well as through the external URL.
The second difference is that through Course Reserves, instructors will be able to directly request books and articles through discoverE, which is Emory Libraries' shared catalog for physical and electronic resources. Reserves Direct does not connect to discoverE, so instructors currently must request those materials by contacting library staff.
Other universities that use Ares to streamline their library reserves include the University of Chicago, the University of Florida and Ryerson University in Toronto, according to the Atlas Systems website.
After May 14, the page's URL will redirect users to the new tool.
"We'll be prepared to help library patrons in any way they need with the new system when it rolls out in the summer, and in the fall when students come back," Boucher said.
– By Rupsha Basu
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