Ebooks and Cloud Computing in the School Library

Technology and its specific applications in library work are not my skills of expertise. But, I sure know how to work and coordinate a project with people. So, when our library information systems needed an upgrade, I called on Romy Sebastian to help us again.

Romy Sebastian has a history with the Beacon Academy Library. He has seen us through three systems upgrades. From LIBRO to PLATONICXZ to MyRIZAL, Romy has stayed on course assisting us with the utmost understanding of a librarian who knows his technology. Now, we are considering the cloud version of the system but first things first: migration of our Online Public Access Catalog to a new web host.

L-R: Josef Halos of EBSCO, me and Romy Sebastian

I am excited at this migration project since my staff and I will be given a control of the administration panel 24/7, web page design and real time updating of the database. I promise to post in the blog our progress.

On the same day Romy was in school, Josef Halos of EBSCO came by as well. His purpose was to teach us how to access and use the ebook functionality of EBSCO. We have been dilly-dallying on this, because honestly, the package is pretty expensive. Josef Halos gave us a month of trial for the ebooks but I know, it will take me another month more to do the budgeting. 

Needless to say, a librarian’s work is not done in isolation (similar to writing a story and creating a book). Much has been said and written about the library being the heart of the school or the institution. These days, it has become the lifeblood of an organization. 

Filipino Librarian: Romy Sebastian

Romy Sebastian of the Miriam College library looks like your typical librarian: soft spoken, unassuming and low profile. But hold the stereotype. The man is a genius.



I met Romy a few years back when LIBRO was in its fledgling stage. Now, it's undergone several revisions with a web scripting program to boot. It carries all the library functions from acquisition to cataloging; indexing to inventory; circulation and reader's profile; reports and statistics -- the works! No wonder, commercial IT corporations have been after his heel with proposals to buy his brain child. Romy would simply shush them away, holding on to the belief that he developed the system as an advocacy to help Filipino librarians and their libraries.



He claims he has no programming background. He learned Visual Basic through self studying. Over the years, tracking the feedback given to him by patrons and friends who uses LIBRO, he was able to improve and add functions like archiving and Web 2.0 features. One challenge that faces him in this time of rapid technological advancement is piracy. There have been cases when LIBRO's programming language was acquired with his permission. He dismisses this to fate and continues on undeterred.

I was privileged to view his newest creation, PLATONICXZ, a web based library integrated system. Impressive. Again he shrugged his shoulders and humbly told me that it's not perfect. In this world that's being flattened by technology every bit and byte, the word perfect no longer exist.