Library apps for schools and colleges
A library register works until the books cross a few thousand and nobody knows who has what. A simple app fixes the daily work first; the rest can wait.
· 3 min read · For principals, college librarians and correspondents of schools and colleges
In many schools and colleges, the library still runs on a long register. A student takes a book, the librarian writes it down, and at the end of the year nobody is sure how many books are missing. If your library has grown past a few shelves, an app can take most of this work off the librarian's desk.
Signs your register has stopped working
- You cannot say quickly which books are out, and with whom.
- Overdue books are found only during the annual stock check.
- Students ask for a book, and the librarian has to walk the shelves to check.
- Inspection or accreditation visits mean days of counting and copying lists.
- New books sit in boxes because entering them by hand takes too long.
What a good library app does
The common name for this software is an integrated library system. It keeps one catalogue of every book and tracks each copy as it goes out and comes back.
- Each copy gets a barcode label. Issue and return become two scans, one for the book and one for the student's ID card.
- New books are added by scanning the ISBN, the number printed on the back cover. The title, author and publisher fill in on their own, and the librarian only checks them.
- Students and staff search the catalogue on their phones and see if a copy is on the shelf.
- Reminders for overdue books go out on WhatsApp or SMS, in Tamil or English, before the fine starts.
- The stock check is done with a phone camera, shelf by shelf, and the app lists what is missing.
Older books often have no ISBN. For these, Vizhi, our vision model, can read a photo of the title page and fill in the details for the librarian to confirm.
What it costs you in effort
The software is the easy part. The real work is the first catalogue. A school with 8,000 books, for example, may need a few weeks of scanning and labelling, done in short sessions by the librarian and two or three student volunteers. Plan it for the summer holidays or a quiet month. After that, daily work is lighter than the register.
Free, open source options exist. Koha is one that many libraries use. It is powerful, but it needs someone to set up and maintain the server. For a small school, a simpler app that links to your existing student list may suit better.
You can also point students to the National Digital Library of India, a free collection of books and study material, from the same app.
Questions to ask any vendor
- Can we import our current register, even if it is a spreadsheet?
- Does it use our existing student list, or must we type every name again?
- Does it work on an ordinary phone, without a special scanner?
- Can we export all our data if we leave?
- Who fixes it when something breaks during exam season?
If you are looking at a full school ERP for this, read school ERP or just what you need first.
How we can help
We build small library apps for schools and colleges that use your current student records, work on phones and send reminders on WhatsApp. We can help with the first catalogue too. See our services, or talk to us when it suits you.
