Posts Tagged 'about vala'

VALA Annual Report 2008/2009

 

VALA has had yet another busy and successful year in 2008/9.

During the year, our general meetings have continued to provide stimulating speakers on a wide range of topics (often followed by an enjoyable social event for those able to join speaker and Committee at dinner). The VALA Award, a Travel Scholarship and the VALA Student Awards were announced in November at VALA's 30-year celebrations.

Read more: VALA Annual Report 2008/2009

VALA Annual Report 2006/2007

 

VALA has had yet another busy and successful year in 2006/7.

During the year, our general meetings have continued to provide stimulating speakers on a wide range of topics (often followed by an enjoyable social event for those able to join speaker and Committee at dinner). The VALA Award, a Travel Scholarship and the VALA Student Awards were announced at the November meeting.

Read more: VALA Annual Report 2006/2007

VALA Annual Report 2005/2006

 

Report for 2005/2006 The highlight of this year was, of course, the thirteenth biennial conference, held in February 2006 at Crown. On the theme "CONNECTING WITH USERS", the conference attracted the largest number yet of delegates from throughout Australia and overseas, including 62 from New Zealand. The trade exhibition was also very successful, and many non-delegates were able to visit the exhibition and the vendor presentations by using visitor passes.

Read more: VALA Annual Report 2005/2006

VALA Annual Report 2004/2005

 

VALA has had yet another busy and successful year in 2004/05.

During the year, our general meetings have continued to provide stimulating speakers on a wide range of topics (often followed by an enjoyable social event for those able to join speaker and Committee at dinner). The VALA Award, a Travel Scholarship and the VALA Student Awards were announced at the November meeting.

Read more: VALA Annual Report 2004/2005

VALA Portal Overview

Welcome to VALA's new Web Portal

We trust you enjoy the experience and find the additional functions useful.

As part of VALA's 30 year anniversary celebrations we have moved our Web portal over to the Joomla Open source content management platform. There are a number of very good open source content management platforms (such as Drupal) that are being used in libraries. We choose Joomla because of the very active local Joomla community and the large number of extra plugins available especially in the area of social networking and community building.

VALA is all about the use of technology, and VALA's Biennial Conference is all about the way we use the latest technology to engage and communicate with our clients and each other. It is therefore timely and appropriate that VALA uses one of the open source content management platforms to give VALA members, conference delegates, and the broader library and information community, access to more and richer content.

What can you get on the new VALA Web Portal?

Quality Information and Content

VALA provides access to a large repository of quality peer reviewed library technology papers, presentations, and podcasts. The new VALA web site allows VALA to introduced improved navigation and search functionality as well as linked tags. This makes it easier for you to find the information you are looking for. Better still, to support our aims VALA makes this information freely available.

Events

Check out VALA's calendar of events to stay informed of up coming events as well as look back at past events.

Share and Interact with Content

Use the RSS as well as the share features to bookmark and share the VALA content.

As a registered user on the VALA web portal you are also able to post comments on much of the content, access news feeds, and interact with other VALA community members. After you have logged in access the User Menu to view and change your details, search for other community members, and of course logout.

Social Networking

The new VALA web portal is integrated with other social networking platforms and services. You can link to the VALA's Facebook and LinkedIn pages, as well as check out VALA's Delicious tags, Flickr photos, and YouTube videos. You can also follow us on Twitter.

To protect your privacy and rights, as well as the privacy and rights of the other members of this online community, we ask that you familiarise yourself with VALA's Code of Conduct Statement, Copyright Statement, and Privacy Statement.

VALA's History

VALA was established as the Victorian Association for Library Automation in 1978 in response to the emergence of automated library catalogues and other technologies that were revolutionising the industry at the time.

The first VALA conference was held at the University of Melbourne in 1981. From this small beginning the VALA conferences have grown into the largest fully peer-reviewed library technology conference in Australia. Held every two years in Melbourne, the VALA Biennial Conference is now recognised as the premier library and information technology conference within this region, and attracts delegates from across Australia, New Zealand, Asia, and beyond.

Recent innovations at VALA conferences include the launch in 2008 of the very popular L-Plate series of lectures. This is a series of introductory sessions focusing on technologies that will be discussed in more detail during the VALA conference.

New in 2010 will be the inaugural VALAtech Boot Camp. The VALAtech Boot Camps are a high end, practical, and technical, stream of workshops for library systems staff.

Recognising that VALA’s interests and activities carry across all sorts of technology within the library and broader information sector, the name was changed in 2006 to VALA - Libraries, Technology and the Future. It was at this time VALA introduced its new logo.

In 2008 VALA celebrated its 30th anniversary under the theme of 30 years of looking forward. To celebrate, VALA held a national roadshow in partnership with CAVAL.

In 2010 VALA launched its new web site. This web site, powered by the Joomla open source content management platform, allows VALA to offer more content, more interaction, and more services, to its members, as well as the wider library and information community.

Join VALA

Join VALA and come along to our regular general meetings.

VALA activities are a great way to keep in touch with people interested in the direction in which information technology is taking libraries. Come along, and pick up hints on how to direct the technology rather than be directed by it.

Membership gives you prompt notification of forthcoming meetings, and access to the biennial conference at member rates - and it's tax deductible!

• $93.50 for individuals (including $8.50 GST)
• $209.00 for institutional membership (including $19.00 GST)

Your membership will be current from 1 April 2013 to 31 March 2014. Renewals for existing members will be e-mailed in July 2013.

To join VALA, you can print off and mail our membership application form. This is published over the web in .pdf (portable document format). To view a .pdf file you will require a copy of the Adobe Reader (a free product) installed on your computer. Click on the Adobe Reader logo at the side to download a copy.

For more information about VALA's Aims

Read our Annual Report on all our activities.

About VALA

 

VALA - Libraries, Technology and the Future Inc. is an independent Australian based not-for-profit organisation that aims to promote the use and understanding of information technology within libraries and the broader information sector. VALA also offers its members access to a dynamic and professional network of information technology practitioners. See our membership section for details.

All VALA's activities, events, and member services are self funded, we receive no outside funding or finanical assistance.

In 2008 VALA celebrated its 30th anniversary under the theme of 30 years of looking forward.

To achieve its aims:

• VALA presents the largest fully peer-reviewed library technology conference in Australia. Held every two years in Melbourne, the VALA Biennial Conference is recognised as the premier library and information technology conference within this region. The conference attracts delegates and suppliers from across Australia, New Zealand, Asia, and beyond. For more information on future and past VALA conferences refer to the Conference section on this web site.
• VALA also holds regular general meetings to share and discuss the latest in cutting edge information technology trends. Open to all, the VALA general meetings represent a great way to stay up to date and build your professional network. Anyone working in the information industry is welcome to join us at these meeting. For more information on future and past VALA general meetings see our calendar as well as the General Meeting section on this web site.
• VALA makes freely available the papers and presentations from our past conferences and meetings. This repository represents the largest Australian based collection of peer reviewed and authoritative papers relating to library IT freely available on the web.
• VALA funds a Travel Scholarships to enable suitable persons to travel overseas to examine and report back aspects of library technology. For more information on our travel scholarships, as well as information on past VALA travel scholars, refer to the Scholarship section on this web site.
• The VALA Award, and the VALA Student Awards, recognise and celebrate excellence within the library and information technology community. The highest award VALA can bestow is the prestigious Robert D. Williamson Award. This award is bestowed biennially to an individual or organisation who, in the opinion of the judging panel, has made, or is making, an outstanding contribution to the development of information technology usage in Australian libraries and is positively and significantly influencing development in information technology usage within libraries. For more information on the VALA awards refer to the Awards section of this web site.

VALA's Aims

 

VALA - Libraries, Technology and the Future Inc. aims:

• To promote the use of information technology in data manipulation and management within and for libraries, library networks and information systems.
• To promote the education of practitioners and other people interested in the use of information technology for manipulation of bibliographic and information systems data.
• To promote and foster a general understanding of automated library and information systems, particularly amongst practitioners in the library and information dissemination industries.
• To promote and exchange information about the planning, analysis, implementation, operation, maintenance and use of telecommunications in library and information systems.
• To develop an educated public opinion on the value, role and importance of information, telecommunications and related technologies in libraries and information systems.