Surpass Copycat is the ideal tool at a small public library with a budget to match

“Surpass Copycat is very, very easy,” Walkerton (IN) Public Library Director Connie Jo Swanson reported. 

Whenever Connie can spare an hour, she works toward cataloging the entire 20,000-item collection.  Using Surpass Copycat, she catalogs in batches of 20 and can complete 40 or 50 books per hour.  Her assistant labels and shelves the volumes.  With 12,000 volumes completed, she estimates she will be ready for automated circulation in another six months.

“The biggest draw for Surpass was that we could do the cataloging ourselves,” Connie explained.  She had already priced retrospective conversion and found the cost was more than her entire annual budget for acquisitions!

Surpass Central administration and circulation software is already on duty at Walkerton.  Because Surpass still allows libraries to print catalog cards, it's ideal for libraries that want to transition to an automated system slowly because they can continue to keep the card catalog up to date.

Connie has found first-time automation with Surpass surprisingly easy and trouble-free.

“The technician and I sat down with the manual and spent just an afternoon getting my computer and Surpass running.  We customized the system so that it does things the way we want it to,” Connie remembers.  “I was on my own the next day!”

Connie is also thrilled with Surpass’ low maintenance.  “I can do 99% of the maintenance myself,” she said.  “For that our technician is also thankful!”

Connie gives a strong endorsement for Surpass.  “The value was incredible,” she concluded.  “Surpass was thousands of dollars less than other systems we looked at.  I would highly recommend Surpass to anyone.  It’s working beautifully!”