CompuMentor staff interviewed staff at eight organizations (states, regional systems, and TekDesk) providing support for PAC computers, as well as the staff of PA Computing. We were also fortunate enough to review the interviews Richard Miller of the Nebraska Library did with eight states regarding technical support for PAC computers. These states varied greatly in their approach, ranging from the state providing circuit riders to the local systems being almost totally on their own.

The need for technology support for PAC computer varies greatly. Many providers indicated that generally speaking the PAC computers are working fine, and there is not a huge need for support. Others we were much more concerned about the issue. Where they are offered, technical support services are well used. All providers indicated a desire for more staffing to provide more and better service. The interviews (as well as the SLA survey) do not indicate that there is a nationwide technical support crisis, but they do reveal pockets of libraries where it is a serious concern, and each of these pockets is in a unique situation.

Here are the themes that emerged from these interviews:

Effective system lock down of PAC computers makes all the difference. Centurion Guard (a hardware lockdown tool) is a godsend. PA Computing reported that this makes all the difference. The Shawnee Library System (Illinois) support staff reported that the number one thing they really want to do was get out to every library to stabilize and lock down the computers. The Tennessee support staff reported that they spend 85% of their time working on PAC computers. While these computers are locked down using the PA Computing tool, they still spend a great deal of time on them because they are "not locked down properly or local staff forget to push the right button after unlocking the computers."

It also appears that this technology has really improved in the last few years. Centurion Guard is relatively new and works very well. For example, the Winding River system in Wisconsin reports virtually not problems with their PAC computers, as they are three years old and locked down.

Standards and standardization of computer systems is incredibly helpful in reducing the technical support burden. The ability of the state to enforce standards varies greatly. In those states with regional systems, the regional systems can often have more influence. Local library systems obviously can have the most influence, but small libraries that are part of local systems tend to have better access to technology support. Other than the Gates computers, there is a really mixed bag in terms of standardization out there. The range is from Georgia, where the SLA just purchased 2960 computers for libraries, to Colorado which is the "local control state." In the SLA survey only 8 of 24 SLAs coordinated the purchase of public access computers. However, we can assume that some regional systems are coordinating the purchase of computer in states where the SLA does not. The bottom line is that providing a consistent and appropriate baseline configuration for PAC computers, including system lockdown, would make providing technical support much easier for the providers.

The role the SLA or regional library system plays in providing or supporting Internet access can greatly affect the technical support picture in a positive way. Connecting to the internet is a very common support need. Many states and regional networks play significant roles in connecting libraries to the internet. In these cases, they often provide technical support "up to the point of the router in the library." Many states and regional systems also provide centralized services such as internet content filtering, spam filtering, and email and web hosting. In the SLA survey, 14 of 24 states have statewide networks that libraries can connect to, and 17 of 24 SLAs provide technical assistance getting them connected. Getting libraries connected to the internet, and maintaining those connections is much easier to support when the SLA is the ISP or an intermediary getting libraries online.

OPAC and shared catalogues also insert the SLA or regional system in to the PAC support equation. These systems require a level of support that is much more sophisticated than maintaining a locked down PAC computer. The same team of people that support OPAC and shared catalogues provides most of the support for PAC computers that is available from SLAs and regional systems. The SLA survey also shows that many SLAs are already in the business of providing technology support for back-office applications.

Everybody agreed that technology skills and training at the librarian level are priority area of needed improvement. The support people often reported that one thing that would make their jobs easier is a person on the other end of the phone with better technical skills. Some librarians still have trouble typing a complex URL in to the Address box in Internet Explorer. While some regional systems provide training on network administration or "how to talk to a computer support technician" most of the training being provided is not on topics that will help with troubleshooting or maintenance. There is a lot of training on Office application, web site development, and library specific technologies like OPAC or shared catalogues. Of the SLA respondents, 12 of 24 reported that they provide training to librarians on network administration.

All staff providing technology support to rural libraries reported that pro-active, in-person visits would be very helpful if they had the capacity. A model where the support staff pro-actively check in with rural libraries would help identify problems, build personal relationships, and in many cases pre-empt future problems. Many rural librarians hesitate to call for help, even when it is available. On the other hand, support staff would like to reduce the emergency site visits because they are a very inefficient use of the technician's time.

There is still a need for more computers, and for upgrades to existing computers. Many commented on how people are waiting in line to use PAC computers in rural libraries. We did not explore whether or not libraries have the physical space to hold them. Others need to be upgraded. Additional research is needed, but there are many computers from Gates that still have Windows NT on them. If these could be upgraded to Windows 2000 they may be more functional.

Most people we interviewed would love to provide more support if they had the staff and funding to do so. At the same time, there was general consensus that the long-term solution to this problem must include the libraries taking responsibility for technical support themselves. It is widely accepted that public access computing is now a standard library service that the public can and should expect. It logically follows that the local library needs to take responsibility for maintaining the PAC computers. The SLAs and the regional systems can provide some technical assistance around planning and sharing of best practices (as it does with other library functions), but at some point the local libraries must take ownership for technical upkeep in the same way it does for re-shelving the books. This feeds back to the desire for more training of library staff, libraries having documentation and cheat sheets, and local governments budgeting effectively.

(document prepared by George Gundrey, based on work produced by the CompuMentor Library Project Team: Mary Duffy, George Gundrey and John Lorance)