For Immediate Release: July 5, 2006

Oakland Public Library Completes Network Upgrade

****************************************************

(Oakland, CA)— Users of Oakland Public Library computers and its Web site should notice a definite speed-up in response time this week with the completion of a major computer network upgrade across its 17 branch system. The project replaced old and outdated equipment, improved bandwidth of the WAN (Wide Area Network) circuits that connect locations to each other, transferred the old-style frame relay network to a more modern point-to-point system, and significantly increased bandwidth of the library’s external connection to the Internet. The results are much faster response time for both the public and staff using library computers and for users who remotely connect to the Web site.

“The network upgrade will significantly improve the speed of our Internet connections for those who use our system,” states Gerry Garzon, Deputy Director. “We want to thank the public for their patience during this process, and also for passing Measure Q in 2004, which enabled us to fund the upgrade.”

Over the past few months, the Oakland Public Library’s Computer Services Department worked closely with PC Professional of Oakland, AT&T, and a number of other vendors to implement the project. The last computer network upgrade took place in the early 1990’s.

The computer network upgrade is the first step in the Oakland Public Library’s larger technology improvement plan. In March, the Library signed a contract with Innovative Interfaces of Emeryville, California, to replace its current online catalog system with a new Web-based Millennium product. The new system is slated to go live by the end of the calendar year

###