Migration to viable platform for effective library operations: millennium experiences of two academic libraries in Nigeria

Abstract

The study assessed migration of digital content and provision of viable platform for effective library operations; the Millennium experiences of two academic libraries in Nigeria. This was with a view to providing valuable information for stakeholders to guide them in software subscription and development. The descriptive survey, method was adopted for the study. eighteen librarians/ 5 para-librarians from Covenant University and 20 Librarians/ 8 para-librarians from University of Lagos constitute the target population. The purposive sampling technique was adopted. Instruments of data collection were interview, focus group discussion (FGD) and Questionnaire. The study revealed that migration experience to Millenium software was not so smooth and easy. Respondents preferred it however because it is web-based and has wide range of operations and upgrade options to suit any emerging demand in the future etc. The challenges faced by the librarians include: Subscription to individual right to access (pot) in Millenium, vendor/host controlled actual content with Millenium, absence of in-depth feasibility study and testing the product before embarking on the migration exercise. The study recommended that subscription to any software should not be based on individual pot or module as with Millenium software but be open and integrated among others.