Follett School Solutions Library Management Products










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Follett School Solutions
Library Management Products

by Karen Spring

Docid: 00011483

Publication Date: 1705

Report Type: PRODUCT

Preview

Follett School Solutions is the K-12 business of Follett Corporation,
offering library management products to school districts. Follett’s library
management portfolio provides school libraries with the tools that they need to better
manage library materials and catalogs, perform administrative tasks, and search for
information while also remaining cost-effective and efficient. This report profiles Follett School Solutions
library management
capabilities.

Report Contents:

Description

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Follett School Solutions’ main library
management product is its Destiny Library Manager. 


Related
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Follett School Solutions is the K-12 business entity of Follett Corporation (established in
1874), an educational company that serves thousands of schools and universities
throughout the US and nations throughout the world. As of 2017, Follett works
with 70,000 schools. 

In 2014, Follett School
Solutions became its own business, targeting the K-12 customer base and
simplifying three separate businesses (Follett Educational Services, Follett
Library Resources, and Follett Software) into one unit.

In school libraries, it helps users be more tech-savvy and intuitive
about the learning styles and needs of each student.
Users can manage administrative tasks and also work more closely with the
classroom teachers. Follett School Solutions’ library management portfolio allows users to:


Vendor

Name: Follett School
Solutions, Inc. 

Headquarters
13490 Ridgeview Drive
McHenry IL 60050 US
(877) 899-8550
Fax: (800) 852-5458
Web: https://www.follettlearning.com/
Type of Vendor: Library Automation Software Provider
Founded: 1874
Service Areas: Global

  • Automate Library Tools – Serve library staff and patrons,
    automating tasks such as cataloging, managing operations, and searching for
    information.
  • Browser-Access – Users have access through any Web browser and
    mobile apps that support bring-your-own-device (BYOD). 
  • One User Interface – Students can reach all print and digital
    resources (ebooks, audiobooks, free and subscription databases, etc.)
    through the Destiny Discover eBook software user interface.
  • Open Standards Support – Allows for the support of open standards
    which include Schools Interoperability Framework (SIF), Learning Tool
    Interoperability (LTI), OneRoster Security Assertion Mark-up Language (SAML),
    and Open Educational Resources (OER).

Destiny Library Manager 

The main component in the library management suite is the Destiny Library
Manager, which is designed to promote collaborative learning environments that
enables students to easily find the information that they need  Students,
teachers, and library personnel can access Destiny from any location at any time
via mobile apps – Follett Destiny App for both Google and Apple and Destiny
Quest App for Google – or a Web browser so that information is available when
they need it and by the method they prefer. Destiny Library Manager gives
students a federated search with results that show print materials, digital
books, Web sites, and databases. Students can open ebooks from the search
results. Other capabilities include: 

  • Integration with titles from OverDrive and Mackin. 
  • Native support for Follett eBooks with note taking, highlighting, and
    lesson messaging features. 
  • Federated searches of free and paid databases via OneSearch.

For librarians and other personnel, Destiny provides management features
including searching, inter-library loan, holds, reporting, resource management
products, and system administration tools. 

Destiny Library Manager can be further enhanced with add-on features like
barcode scanners, RFID inventory products, and reading programs. 

Version 14.5

Library management is currently in version 14.5. Version 15.0 is
expected to be released in the summer of 2017. 

Follett has added the following enhancements to version 14.5 of
Destiny Library Manager: 

  • Synchronization of Patron data between Destiny and Follett Digital via a
    secure HTTPS connection. 
  • Circulation usage reports now include Lightbox source and title
    information. 
  • Compilation of all data from libraries in one district that can be merged
    into a single report. 
  • A district import function allows for the import of MARC records for non-Follett
    ebooks. 
  • Label reports support an Excel output function. 
  • Customization of the Destiny Discover home page to show the ordering of
    ribbons and links. 
  • Improved report building. 

Applications

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Follett School Solutions’ library management products were created for
K-12 libraries.

Some customer projects are particularly ambitious, with a large number of
students, as well as multiple libraries and school campuses. Other customers include small school districts with
outdated technology who need to get a standards-aligned library up and
running. 

Environment

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The table below offers Follett’s suggestions for minimum and
recommended requirements. 

Table 1. Follett School
Solutions’ Destiny System Requirements
Platform Minimum
Requirements
Recommended
Requirements
Desktop and Laptop Platforms
Windows 7
OS X v10.10
Chrome OS

Browsers
Microsoft Internet Explorer 11
Firefox (latest version)
Google Chrome (latest version)
Apple Safari OS v10.10 has Safari v10 support – updated to Apple Safari 10

Display
1024 x 768 Resolution

Platforms
Windows 8
OS X v10.12 
Chrome OS

Supported Browsers
Microsoft Internet Explorer 11
Firefox (latest version)
Google Chrome (latest version)
Apple Safari (latest version)

Display
1024 x 768 Resolution

Tablets  Android 4.4
Android Browser
Chrome Browser
Firefox Browser

iOS 9
Safari Browser
Chrome Browser

Android 6.0 or later
Android Browser
Chrome Browser
Firefox Browser

iOS 10
Safari Browser
Chrome Browser

Smartphones and iPod Touch Android 4.4
Android Browser
Chrome Browser
Firefox Browser

iOS 9
Safari Browser
Chrome Browser

Android 6.0
Android Browser
Chrome Browser
Firefox Browser

iOS 10
Safari Browser
Chrome Browser

Support

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Follett School Solutions provides support through extensive training, customer service
hotlines, reference guides, and FAQs. The company also offers extended
support on a subscription basis. Support can be contacted at (877)
899-8550.

Pricing

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The cost for implementing Follett’s library management products is
configuration-dependent, with pricing available from the company’s direct sales
force. Follett’s sales department can be reached at (877) 899-8550. 

Competitors

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Follett Software’s library management products
compete with many different library automation products and services.
Competitors include:

  • COMPanion’s Alexandria for K-12
  • Ex Libris’ Alma library management services
  • Lucidea’s SydneyEnterprise
  • SirsiDynix’s BLUEcloud library services platform
  • ProQuest library management products

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About the Author

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Karen M. Spring is a staff editor for Faulkner Information
Services, tracking high-tech industries, including network security, ERP,
CRM, network management, Internet security, and software tools. She
writes regularly on high-tech topics for publications in the K-12 and
higher education industry. Previously, Ms. Spring was a marketing
specialist for two computer distributors, working closely with such
clients as 3Com, IBM, Okidata, Unisys, and Acer.

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