Benchmark

In the January 29 issue of Cons DistList, Robert Milevski posted his
wishlist of features for a conservation management (inventory-control)
system.  I'd like to offer a two-part response to his message.
 
The first part appears below.  It describes a conservation management
system developed and marketed by Logic Associates.
 
The second part will appear in a future issue of Cons DistList.  That
part will explore some strategies for achieving Robert's ideal of a
"stand-alone PC system, linked to the library's mainframe."  This will
be of interest to conservators involved in designing their own system.
 
Part I.  A Software Package for Conservators.
 
BENCHMARK is a software package designed to record and report book
conservation activity.  It has been used in everyday operation at
several institutions since its introduction in January, 1990, and it has
undergone continuing enhancements based on suggestions from users.
 
BENCHMARK was designed to maximize ease of learning, ease of use, and
reliability of data.  We feel that it closely approaches Robert's ideal
of a system that is "quick and easy and foolproof."
 
BENCHMARK runs only on IBM-PCs and compatibles, and does not at present
offer links to other computers.  But it does meet Robert's other
specifications:
 
    1.  It tells you "what entered the shop, where an item is..., and
    when an item left the shop...."
 
    2.  It offers built-in month-to-date and year-to-date production
    reports, and it can easily produce weekly reports.
 
    3.  It automatically stamps a job number and the date of receipt on
    each item's database record.
 
    4.  It prints bookmark-sized work orders for each item.
 
    5.  It has five standard indexes, and allows any field to be
    "indexable and searchable."
 
    6.  It can accommodate technician activity reports.
 
    7.  It can be used by students with minimal training.
 
    8.  It includes fields for brittle book pH and treatment type.
 
A review of BENCHMARK appears in the _Wilson Library Bulletin_, December
1992, pp. 76-77.  For more details, contact
 
Roy Lipscomb, Proprietor
Logic Associates
1433 W. Thome
Chicago, IL 60660-1819
(312) 262-5927

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                  Conservation DistList Instance 6:48
                   Distributed: Friday, March 5, 1993
                        Message Id: cdl-6-48-011
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