GIS Adds Personal Search Agent Tool
Polaris 3.0 release includes upgrades to PowerPAC portal, more
By Michael Rogers -- Library Journal, 9/1/2003
GIS has put a new twist on its PowerPAC portal product in its Polaris 3.0 release. A personal search agent, according to the vendor, will allow patrons to "save their personal searches to be run automatically at designated intervals and be notified by email when anything new since their last run becomes available."
Patrons can save an unlimited number of searches, select the frequency of runs, and view saved searches through their personal accounts. The personal searcher will assist researchers continually scouring for new information on their subjects as well as patrons simply desiring to know when a new book or DVD title is available for circulation.
Along with the personal search agent, Polaris 3.0 has been integrated with EBSCO's NoveList and Informata's The Content Café readers' advisory products. The new release also includes expanded virtual reference; patron authentication to e-sources; patron reading histories; unicode support for Arabic, Hebrew, and CJK; and extended ordering capabilities.
