BIBLIOSTAT CONNECT

Easy online access to public library statistics from your state library

WHAT IS BIBLIOSTAT CONNECT?

• Bibliostat Connect is a powerful web-based software program, with online tutorials and help screens throughout, that offers access to public library statistics.
• The State Library worked with New York's Public Library System Directors Organization (PULISDO) and Informata to customize Bibliostat Connect for New York's tremendous warehouse of public library data. Informata is Baker & Taylor's e-commerce unit that develops web software applications tailored to libraries, educational institutions, traditional and Internet retailers and publishers.

WHERE IS BIBLIOSTAT CONNECT?

New York's public library data are available via the New York State Library web site at:
www.nysl.nysed.gov/libdev/libs/

WHAT DOES BIBLIOSTAT CONNECT OFFER?

Bibliostat Connect offers library managers and trustees:

• Easy access and manipulation of 17 years of New York's public library-specific data (1991-2007).
• Quick creation of rank order tables and colorful graphs, viewing of averages and percentiles, and organization of the results into a report or presentation.
• Free access to the latest national data from the Public Library Association's Public Library Data Service (PLDS), and the National Center for Education Statistics' Federal State Cooperative System for Public Library Data (FSCS).
• Free access to comparative statistics about libraries in nearby regions and across the country though a module that utilizes U.S. Census Bureau data. This includes statistics for income, education, age, ethnicity and more.

THERE'S MORE...

Bibliostat Connect permits users to select and compare public library statistics in three different ways:

• Alphabetically -- If you already know the libraries you would like to compare, this option allows you to choose libraries by name.
• By Peers -- Selecting libraries by peers is one of the most powerful features of Connect. Using this feature, you can quickly create a list of all libraries that meet criteria you define.
• By Benchmarks -- Benchmarks are statistical calculations based on groups of libraries that you define. An example of a benchmark would be the state average for the data element.

Bibliostat Connect allows libraries to identify peer libraries and compare public libraries within New York and across the country on hundreds of different measures, including:

• Circulation, attendance and registered borrowers
• Library collections and services
• Income, expenditures, staffing, salaries and benefits

Bibliostat Connect also offers online tutorials and help screens throughout the program to assist the user in navigating the software.

"New York has some of the best public libraries in the world and people across the nation are interested in finding out more about them. This information is crucial to library managers and trustees. As local communities and school districts move forward in implementing Regents policy to voluntarily create public library districts, accurate information about local library services and funding is critical." -- Janet M. Welch, former State Librarian and Assistant Commissioner for Libraries

WHAT DATA ARE AVAILABLE?

Bibliostat Connect allows users to access statistical data elements including:

• Expenditures
• Income
• Staff
• Holdings
• Circulation
• Interlibrary loans
• Demographics
• And more…

For more information on Bibliostat Connect and the New York State Library:

• Visit the New York State Library web site
• or contact Maria Hazapis at the New York State Library's Division of Library Development: (518) 486-1330

For more information, contact Maria Hazapis
Last reviewed and modified on October 24, 2008 -- asm
URL: http://www.nysl.nysed.gov/libdev/libs/biblcnct.htm