Introduction to the Open SiteSearch Suite

Welcome to the foremost product for information integration, the Open SiteSearch Suite – the comprehensive solution for managing distributed library information resources in a World Wide Web environment. The Open SiteSearch Suite offers tools that integrate electronic resources under one Web interface, control access to resources, and build text and image databases locally. Unlike any other information resource product available today, the Open SiteSearch Suite provides the tools you need to bring users and information together, whether they exist across a campus, across the country, or around the world.

As a new licensee of the Open SiteSearch Suite, you will appreciate the tremendous flexibility the suite offers, flexibility to create exactly the information resource system your users need. You control how the interface looks, how information is accessed, what information resources are available, what information is displayed, and much more. How you implement the suite at your organization is entirely in your control.

If you are an existing licensee of Open SiteSearch version 3.x (or earlier), you will appreciate the powerful new capabilities provided by the redesigned Open SiteSearch software. The product's new Java-based architecture, for example, allows you to extend and customize practically any feature of the software, giving you the power of a full, object-oriented programming language to customize the suite as you need it.

The Open SiteSearch Suite gives you all the tools you need to integrate your information resources and to build creative, innovative ways for users to access that information.

Where to Begin

The topics in the table below will help you implement the Open SiteSearch Suite at your organization. It is recommended that you explore the topics in the order they are listed below. If you are installing the Open SiteSearch Suite for the first time, you should print this document and use it as a handy reference as you go through the installation process.