LARS Information

LARS Overview

LARS Library is a binding preparation software package designed to make library binding quicker and easier for libraries. LARS is a Microsoft Windows based package that takes full advantage of the Windows GUI (graphical user interface) to make the program easy to use. Its bindery counterpart LARS Bindery has been is use at Bridgeport since 1992 and services all of our current library customer base.

The LARS product is available to Bridgeport customers, this includes software installation, staff training, full support, documentation and updates as they become available. The primary users of LARS are typically accounts that have a steady flow of binding work. For existing Bridgeport customers a LARS database already exist containing all of the periodical titles that you have previously bound with us. If your library is thinking of changing to Bridgeport we will do the conversion of you existing binding records to a LARS database.

Some of the features of LARS that make it easy and efficient for libraries to use.

LARS is designed with the philosophy of being a flexible tool for the librarian, such that it does not force all libraries that use LARS to work in the same way. Part of the design of the product is that it is customizable to meet the needs of the library. One of LARS key strengths is the fact that customer response has driven the development of key features in the program. Suggestions from library and bindery users alike have gone into developing this product.

The first and major time savings with LARS is that the library no longer needs to maintain a physical binding ticket file. This eliminates searching for a binding ticket in the box only to find its misfiled or that you don't have enough to bind all the copies that you need to send. Also it eliminates the need to re-file those binding tickets when the shipment comes back in.

Periodicals

With LARS you search through a database containing all of the periodical titles that you have previously bound using one of several search keys. Once you recall that title all the permanent information that was part of the last binding (cloth & stamping color, spine format, call numbers, etc.) is retrieved from the database you just need to provide the variable information (volume, issue numbers, year, etc.) for that title and the piece can be saved and a binding ticket produced. The reason I say 'can be saved' is that you have a range of options right from the job screen, to provide special physical handling instructions, inserting a title note for your future use, reviewing the title's history, or make a temporary change to this binding such as indicating the presence of an index or supplements.

You can also make permanent changes to the title format, an example of this would be if a serial changed publication format and it was no longer possible to bind an entire year in one volume you may want the spine to indicate issue numbers or pages. You can quickly make theses changes to the format, check them with the on-screen spine view, and then save the changes permanently so that the next time the title is bound the proper format is retrieved.

New titles can also be quickly added the use of a title style which we customize for your library so the new titles can be quickly and correctly formatted to match the rest of your collection.

Monographs

For books, thesis and other monographic items LARS provides an easy method of formatting titles to match your current collection. Through the use of title styles you can recall a blank template that is setup with the default values and spaces for title, variable (thesis), and/or call number information for that type of material. If for example your library always binds thesis work in a green cover material with gold stamping a LARS title style can be setup to provide the proper format so that the user does not have to re-type that information each time. Also if multiple copies of that item need binding LARS provides a feature where the information can be preserved on screen so that multiple copies can be printed, this is true for all LARS items.

Reporting

LARS provides a wide range of reports to help you manage your library and Bridgeport will customize a report to help you meet your library management needs free of charge. Reports can be sorted in a variety of ways including full alphabetical, call number, ISSN etc. .