F.D. Bluford Library is a mid-sized library serving over 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students. In 2010, the Library began to transition from federated search technology to Web-scale discovery to meet user expectations. Users expected to have quick access to the library resources. The promise of discovery was an idealized solution for all stakeholders. Discovery platform vendors touted quick access to multiple resources using centralized indexing or highly-efficient database connectors. In the selection process, however, it became evident that there are no easy choices. Each platform currently on the market had advantages and disadvantages. The library’s task force therefore defined priorities and environmental factors to select the optimum solution while meeting an aggressive deadline for selection. This chapter discusses the particular needs of mid-size libraries and makes suggestions for an evaluation process.

Web content management systems (CMSs) are tools to help efficiently manage modern websites. Broadly defined, CMSs are database-driven software packages that allow people who are not HTML experts to create and edit website content, manage revisions and approvals for content, and help reduce the workload of maintaining a website. Within the past five years open source content management systems, created and maintained by a community of software developers and available without charge, have matured to become viable options for libraries that are not information technology juggernauts. Plone1, now in its fourth major release, is one such content management system that is now in wide use by libraries. [...]

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