One of my favorite things...

by Joy Nelson on Nov 10, 2014

As you all are aware, we are just finishing up a major upgrade cycle on our partner’s sites to Koha 3.16.4. One of my favorite times in the Koha community is the release of a new version. What I love to see is the list of new features and fixes in the new release. Nicole also sends out a list of new features in a press release (coming soon!) that the ByWater library partners have sponsored. We have a list of 10 new features/fixes that were sponsored by a libraries. Keep your eyes out for that list!

Seeing these lists highlights the nature of the open source community we work in. We all know that Koha is comprised of people and libraries across the globe. This is the physical community that we are involved in. For me, it is the relational aspects of the community that I enjoy the most. In a day, I can interact with someone in France, then New Zealand or Australia along with my coworkers and library partners across the United States. When I see a work with this international group of people or see a long list of developments, it points out that we all have a stake in making Koha the best ILS we can. We all pitch in and work as a group towards a common goal.

Being able to sponsor a development in Koha is a great way to become involved in the community. We encourage it!! But it is not the only way. You can find some great information on the Koha community page about becoming involved. If you are a librarian, library user or developer there are options for you. One of the easiest ways to get started in the Koha community is to join the conversations (or start a conversation) in the Koha IRC channel. Just like the old EF Hutton commercial… “When librarians talk, developers listen”. Developers love to know how libraries are using parts of Koha and what works and what doesn’t work. You all are the experts in how your library operates and that knowledge is a crucial component in how the community operates. Check out the website for other ideas (testing bug fixes!, submitting reports to the wiki, commenting on open tickets). We look forward to hearing from all of you!!