Are You Ready? New Insignia Discovery Layer Coming November 9

UPDATE as of 11/16/15: This change is on hold for now. You will receive an email with a new release date.

On November 9, 2015 we are transitioning to a new version of the Insignia student catalog called the Discovery Layer. Hopefully you had a chance to read the previous blog post announcing this change.

Get a Sneek Peek

I have created two screencasts to give you an introduction to the Discovery Layer and its key features. I highly encourage you to watch both of them; they are about 10 minutes each.

• Intro to Discovery Layer pt. 1
• Intro to Discovery Layer pt. 2

What to Expect on November 9

I anticipate that the transition to the Discovery Layer will be pretty seamless. You won't need to make any changes to the catalog links you have on your library websites or other online resources. On November 9 the existing web address will point to the new Discovery Layer.

You can use the Discovery Layer in any web browser, including Chrome.

As a reminder, this change is only for the student catalog. The administrative part of Insignia will remain the same.

Try It for Yourself

Feel free to try the Discovery Layer before it goes live and send me your feedback. The test link is https://library.bvsd.org/library/discovery (note that we will only use this link during the testing period).

Email me, amy.hitchner@bvsd.org, with any questions. Thanks!

New Insignia Discovery Layer Coming November 2015

UPDATE as of 11/6/15: This change is on hold for now. You will receive an email with a new release date.

On November 9, 2015 we are transitioning to a new version of the library catalog called the Discovery Layer. I think you’ll find the new interface to be more appealing and user friendly, especially the results list and the title details screens.

Here is a screenshot of the results list*:

And one of the title details screen*:

*The options on these screens might be slightly different when we go live on November 9.

Testing and Next Steps

Currently, a team consisting of teacher librarians, Rae, and myself are testing the Discovery Layer and reporting any issues to Insignia. If there are no major issues by early November, we will move forward with the new interface on November 9.

During our testing window, I will make several screencasts that will introduce the features of the Discovery Layer. Look for those screencasts within the next few weeks.

What is your role?

You will need to familiarize yourself with the new Discovery Layer by watching the screencasts that I will be publishing soon. You may also need to update your lessons plans that refer to the library catalog.

If you are feeling particularly ambitious, you can try the Discovery Layer right now by going to this URL: https://library.bvsd.org/library/discovery (Please note: we will only be using this URL during the testing phase.)

Will you need to update your links to the library catalog?

No (thank goodness).

When we go live on November 9, the link you are currently using for the library catalog—the one on your desktops and websites—will automatically point to the new Discovery Layer. You won’t need to update any links, as long as the link you are currently using is https://library.bvsd.org/library

Next steps

This is the first of several communications you will receive about this change. I want everyone to know what to expect on the morning of November 9. You are always welcome to contact me (Amy Hitchner) or Insignia if you have any questions about the Discovery Layer.