This story represents a next-best implementation of the "library discovery" feature which requires no UX work and very little mobile work.

Currently, the library registry has /libraries and /libraries/qa endpoints that serve a complete list of libraries in alphabetical order by name. The Android version of SimplyE presents this list as-is; the iOS version rearranges it so that NYPL and Brooklyn are always at the top.

The library registry has the ability to perform rough geolocation based on incoming IP and find libraries within a certain radius of that location. This feature isn't currently used and there are probably some problems with it – some on the server side and some due to incomplete data from libraries.

The proposal is to start using this geolocation feature, but not in the way it was originally intended. Instead of sending a feed containing only the libraries within (let's say) 150 kilometers, with a search function serving as backup, we will serve a complete list of libraries with the "nearby" libraries promoted to the top.

For the most common current case – library patrons living in New York City – results on both platforms will be similar to the current iOS implementation – NYPL and Brooklyn (or Brooklyn and NYPL) showing up at the top of an otherwise alphabetical list. For other cases – library patrons who live somewhere else – the results will be similar. "Your" library will tend to show up at the top, with the rest being available as an alphabetical list.