Run your business on autopilot with Oskar. Describe your business once—Oskar builds the full system behind it: bookings, payments, schedules, staff, and clients all connected.
Libraries today are more than quiet shelves of books—they’re vibrant hubs of learning, collaboration, and innovation. From bustling university study rooms to community-focused public libraries, these spaces juggle diverse resources like study desks, group rooms, media labs, equipment rentals, and even events like workshops or lectures. Managing these dynamic spaces, however, can feel like an uphill battle. Traditional booking systems often overwhelm librarians with complex dashboards, endless configuration menus, and a steep learning curve that demands more time than it saves.
Enter Oskar: the library reservation system that sets itself up.
Unlike conventional tools that drown users in technical settings, Oskar feels like a trusted partner who listens to your needs and builds a custom reservation system in minutes. It’s not just software—it’s your personal backend team, designed to streamline workflows and enhance the experience for both librarians and patrons. With Oskar, you don’t need to be a tech expert to create a professional, user-friendly booking system that perfectly fits your library. Just tell Oskar what you want, and watch it transform your vision into reality faster than you can reshelve a cart of books.
Modern libraries are multifaceted, managing a diverse array of resources, services, and events. A university library might oversee dozens of study desks, group rooms for collaborative projects, and specialized media labs, while also offering laptop rentals and hosting study skills workshops. A public library might manage community rooms, equipment loans, and children’s storytime events. Coordinating these manually or through outdated booking tools often leads to:
A modern Library Reservation System solves these problems with real-time visibility, self-service booking for patrons, and automation that frees up staff time. Oskar takes this a step further by removing setup complexity entirely. Through a conversational, chat-driven process, Oskar builds a tailored system that aligns with your library’s unique needs, ensuring smooth operations and a seamless experience for everyone.
Setting up a library reservation system with Oskar is as natural as chatting with a colleague. The process is flexible, intuitive, and designed to align with the real-world demands of libraries—whether academic, public, or private. Let’s walk through the steps to create a tailored booking system, highlighting Oskar’s simplicity and power at every stage.
1. Start With a Chat
Your journey begins at oskaros.com, where a clean, inviting chat interface welcomes you. Forget navigating complex menus or clicking generic buttons—you simply start typing to tell Oskar what you’re looking to build. This open-ended conversation allows you to describe your library’s resources, services, and events in plain language. For example, you might say:
“We need a booking system for 12 individual study desks, three group study rooms, and two media labs. We also offer laptop rentals and host weekly study workshops that need reservable spots.”
Oskar’s advanced natural language processing interprets your input, asking smart follow-up questions to clarify details, such as: “How many people can use the group rooms?” or “Are the workshops open to all patrons or specific groups?” This conversational approach eliminates the frustration of traditional software setup, where librarians might spend hours deciphering technical jargon. With Oskar, you focus on defining the core components—resources (e.g., desks, rooms, labs), services (e.g., equipment rentals), and events/courses (e.g., workshops or lectures)—while Oskar builds the foundation of your reservation system.
2. Create an Account and Preview Your Booking Page
Once you’ve outlined your library’s setup, Oskar invites you to create an account to save and secure your configuration. This quick step unlocks a personalized dashboard where Oskar presents a live preview of your Booking Page—the public-facing interface patrons will use to reserve spaces, services, or event spots. The preview is pre-populated with the resources, services, and events you described, organized into a clean, intuitive layout.
During this phase, you can refine the core setup directly through the chat interface. Want to tweak the structure? Just tell Oskar. For example, you might say, “Can we rename the study desks to ‘Quiet Study Pods’ and add a separate section for workshop bookings?” Oskar updates the preview in real time, letting you:
No configuration panels or coding skills are required—just direct, real-time edits through a conversational interface. This preview phase ensures the core structure of your booking system aligns perfectly with your library’s needs before moving forward.
3. Proceed With Your Setup
When the Booking Page preview feels right, a bright yellow “Proceed with this setup” button appears in the chat interface. Clicking this button finalizes the core structure of your booking system, locking in the resources, services, and events you’ve defined. This marks the transition from preview to a fully functional system ready for further customization.
Immediately after clicking “Proceed,” Oskar prompts you to personalize your account with organizational details to ensure the system reflects your library’s identity. You can:
These details create a branded, trustworthy experience for patrons. Once completed, you’re taken to your Oskar account dashboard, where you can fine-tune the system’s logic and manage ongoing operations.
4. Fine-Tune the Logic in Your Account
With the core setup finalized, the Oskar dashboard becomes your hub for fine-tuning the booking system’s logic to match your library’s specific needs. This is where you dive into detailed adjustments, using intuitive tools and the “Ask Oskar” button (located in the top right of the dashboard) to chat with Oskar for guidance. The fine-tuning process allows you to implement advanced rules to ensure smooth operations, such as setting group-specific booking limits or configuring controls to prevent overbooking.
If you’re unsure about a setting, simply click the “Ask Oskar” button and ask, for example, “How do I limit group room bookings to one per person daily?” Oskar responds with step-by-step guidance, ensuring your rules are applied correctly. This combination of dashboard tools and chat support makes fine-tuning both flexible and accessible, requiring no technical expertise.
5. Share and Go Live
With your booking system fully customized, it’s time to share it with your patrons. Oskar offers multiple sharing options to ensure accessibility:
Patrons can reserve spaces, services, or event spots with a single click on a mobile-friendly interface—no account or login required. For ongoing management or adjustments, the “Ask Oskar” button provides instant chat support, helping you optimize settings or address new use cases, such as adding a new workshop series or tweaking rules during peak seasons.
Let’s explore how a university library might use Oskar to manage its study spaces, equipment rentals, and events.
Resources, Services, and Events
Setup Flow
The head librarian visits oskaros.com and chats: “We need a system for 40 study desks, four group rooms, two media labs, laptop rentals, and weekly workshops. Desks are bookable for up to four hours, group rooms for one hour, and media labs are for media students only.” Oskar asks smart follow-up questions, like whether workshops require pre-registration, and generates a Booking Page preview.
After creating an account, the librarian refines the preview via chat: “Let’s call the desks ‘Focus Pods’ and add a section for workshop bookings.” Oskar organizes the resources, services, and events into clear categories. Satisfied, the librarian clicks the yellow “Proceed with this setup” button.
Oskar prompts them to add the university’s name, logo, and contact info, branding the system. In the dashboard, they fine-tune the logic using the “Ask Oskar” button, setting rules like a maximum of one group room booking per person daily, a 30-minute buffer for group rooms, and a 24-hour lead time for media lab reservations. The system syncs with the library’s Google Calendar for staff visibility.
Final Result
Students access the Booking Page via a website link or QR code, choosing a Focus Pod, group room, media lab, laptop, or workshop slot. They enter required details (e.g., student ID for labs) and receive a confirmation email with a 24-hour reminder. Staff benefit from automated bookings, real-time analytics, and ongoing chat support for adjustments, ensuring a smooth, organized library experience.
Oskar is purpose-built for real-world library use, offering a suite of features to manage diverse resources, services, and events:
Oskar transforms the library experience for both staff and users:
Most reservation systems require manual setup, assume technical fluency, and fail to reflect real library workflows. Oskar stands out by:
Oskar evolves with your needs, incorporating user feedback to add features that keep your library ahead of the curve.
Libraries are changing—and the tools behind them should too. Oskar delivers a smarter, calmer way to manage study desks, group rooms, equipment, and events, empowering your team to focus on what matters: fostering learning and collaboration. Whether you’re running a bustling university hub or a cozy public library downtown, Oskar adapts to your world with no manual setup or steep learning curve—just a booking system that works.
Start chatting at oskaros.com—your library could be live in minutes.
A system that allows patrons to reserve individual study spaces or group rooms in advance, reducing overcrowding and streamlining access.
Yes. Oskar supports reservations for resources (e.g., desks), services (e.g., equipment rentals), and scheduled events (e.g., workshops).
No. Oskar offers one-click, no-login bookings on mobile or desktop for a frictionless experience.
Always. Chat with Oskar anytime via the “Ask Oskar” button in your dashboard for step-by-step guidance. Or contact us if you have further inquiries.
