Contents
U.S. & World News
ALA News
Booklist Online
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Round Table News
Awards
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Calendar

Mondowney accepts Detroit top post amid cash-flow kerfuffle
Detroit Library Commission President Georgia A. Hill announced August 17 that Jo Anne Mondowney accepted the top post at Detroit Public Library. Her appointment as director began August 24 and comes amid controversy raised in June over the city's redirection of tax money intended for library and public school employees to the city payroll and other obligations. The Detroit Free Press raised questions about the library's funding in a June 20 article that reported Library Commissioner Jonathan Kinloch as saying "library staff learned this week that the city spent $6.2 million in property tax money that was supposed to go to the library."...
American Libraries Online, Aug. 20

IFLA kicks off in Milan with opening session, caucuses
Mauro Guerrini, president of the Italian Library Association, was the first to welcome some 3,000 delegates from 136 countries to Milan for the August 23 opening session of the five-day World Library and Information Congress. Themed “Libraries Create Futures: Building on Cultural Heritage,” the conference is the 75th in IFLA’s 82-year history and the first in Italy since the federation met in Rome in 1964. Interspersed with the speeches were five multimedia tableaus titled “The Book of Books.” Also on August 22, delegates held several caucuses, grouped by language, giving delegates an opportunity to get the inside scoop on what the international agendas are for the various IFLA representatives. On August 24, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s Deborah Jacobs confirmed that the foundation was presenting IFLA with a $1.5-million three-year grant....
AL Inside Scoop, Aug. 23

LSTA grant advance saves Illinois town's only library
The south suburban Chicago town of Robbins will continue to enjoy uninterrupted public library service thanks to the infusion of $25,500 in emergency grant funding it was promised just days before a lack of revenue would have closed its doors as of September 1. The August 20 reprieve came two days after some 50 area residents joined Robbins Mayor Irene H. Brodie for a press conference, held at the William Leonard Public Library District, at which town officials and library patrons pleaded for donations to keep the library open until year’s end....
American Libraries Online, Aug. 21

Residents decry board vote to close Gwinnett County branch
An August 11 vote to close the three-year-old Dacula branch of the Gwinnett County (Ga.) Public Library at year’s end and shift some of the staff to the future Hamilton Mill Library has raised such ire in the burgeoning county some 70 miles outside Atlanta that trustees agreed several days later to reconsider their 3–1 vote at their September 22 meeting. GCPL Executive Director Nancy Stanbery-Kellam explained August 13 in a open letter that “the unexpected severe decline in the county’s revenue” had made it impossible for officials to stock and staff the Hamilton Mill facility, so trustees decided to draw on the resources of the Dacula branch....
American Libraries Online, Aug. 26

ALA mourns the loss of Senator Edward M. Kennedy
A strong proponent of libraries, Senator Kennedy worked tirelessly with our nation’s librarians to make sure everyone could get access to quality library services. His death is a great loss for this country. His passion for public service and the loss of his legislative skills will be felt on Capitol Hill for years to come....
District Dispatch, Aug. 26

AL publishes international supplement
American Libraries has published a digital supplement to its flagship publication, American Libraries Magazine, for the international library community. “Global Mission, Global Membership” is available in digital format only and coincides with IFLA’s 75th World Library and Information Congress August 23–27 in Milan. This supplement takes readers through the opportunities offered to members and the wider profession by the American Library Association. You can view, print, and share this digital issue of American Libraries....

Banned Books Week events, publicity tips
ALA’s Public Information Office is gearing up to work with the Office for Intellectual Freedom on the 28th annual Banned Books Week, September 26 through October 3. This year’s celebration will kick off with a “Read-Out!” event at historic Bughouse Square on Chicago’s North Side. Authors will perform readings from their banned or challenged books and will sign copies of their works. Online resources are available to help local libraries publicize Banned Books Week activities....

Book censorship map reveals national problem
Censorship in the United States is not limited to isolated pockets of the country. A new online map of book censorship shows that no area is immune to what is a national trend. The map has just been posted on the official website of Banned Books Week. The Google Map displays more than 120 book challenges—from Maine to Florida and from Long Island to San Francisco—that have occurred since 2007....

ALA teams with Reader's Digest for Make It Matter Day
ALA has signed on as a sponsor of Make It Matter Day, to be held October 3, an effort to encourage Americans to participate in literacy and education activities, organized by Reader’s Digest. Earlier this year, the editors at Reader’s Digest asked readers to identify a cause that mattered most to them. The winner was literacy and education. Reader’s Digest is encouraging the public to participate in literacy events at local Boys and Girls Clubs, YMCAs, and libraries. For details on how to enter and get involved, visit Make it Matter on the web....

Midwinter bundled registration opens Sept. 1
Once again ALA is offering a special bundled price on the Midwinter Meeting and the Annual Conference if you register for both events during September. You can save 20% over the advance registration price you would pay if you bought each event separately. Included in your registration are the ALA President’s Program, the Author Forum, exhibits, discussion groups, committee meetings, the Opening Reception, the Technology Showcase, the Arthur Curley Memorial Lecture, and the Sunrise Speaker Series. See the registration page for more information....

New site supports Picturing America
The ALA Public Programs Office is making available a new, online community to support local programs that incorporate the National Endowment for the Humanities’ Picturing America collection of art reproductions.  The site, Picturing America for Public Libraries, features programming resources for public libraries that received the Picturing America collection, including free, print-ready images of select Picturing America images posters, flyers, and bookmarks....

Nation's libraries to celebrate Library Card Sign-up Month
In September, ALA and libraries throughout the country will celebrate Library Card Sign-up Month, a time when libraries remind parents and caregivers to bring their school-age children to the library to get the most important school supply of all—a library card. For example, the Yuma (Ariz.) County Library District will partner with a local radio station to promote Library Card Sign-up Month, with a 30-second public service announcement and a 3-minute interview with the library’s community relations manager. For more information and to download PSAs visit the Library Card Sign-up Month website....

Download Librarian Salary Survey data
The ALA–Allied Professional Association has just released two new downloadable versions of the 2009 edition of the ALA–APA Salary Survey: Librarian—Public and Academic.  One version contains only public librarian salary data and analysis and the other version is specifically for academic librarians.  The ALA–APA Salary Survey: Librarian—Public and ALA–APA Salary Survey: Librarian—Academic are available at the ALA Online Store....

PLA Advocacy Toolkit now available
Libraries Prosper: A Guide to Using the PLA Advocacy Toolkit, by Sandra Nelson, is now available for purchase. The first in PLA's new Train the Trainer series, this electronic publication supports Libraries Prosper with Passion, Purpose, and Persuasion: A PLA Toolkit for Success. Designed for a one-day advocacy-training program, this electronic publication will instruct library trainers on how to apply the fundamental principles behind Libraries Prosper to their own workshops....

Early registration deadline extended for LITA Forum
The early bird registration deadline has been extended for the 2009 LITA National Forum, “Open and Mobile,” to be held October 1–4 at the Hilton City Center Hotel in Salt Lake City, Utah. Prior to August 31, the registration rates are $50 lower.  Online registration is available, or you may fax or mail your completed registration form. Be sure to reserve your hotel room when you register; the deadline to receive the LITA rate is September 1....

YALSA Online Chat: Teen Read Week
YALSA’s September e-chat will focus on Teen Read Week. Join YALSA members on September 2 from 8–9 p.m. Eastern to share your plans for celebrating Teen Read Week 2009. YALSA holds e-chats on the first Wednesday of each month from 8–9 p.m. Eastern in ALA Connect. Can’t make the e-chat? The transcript will be posted online the next day on the YALSA Blog....

Voting now open in YALSA’s Teens’ Top Ten
YALSA invites all teens to get out and vote for the Teens’ Top Ten. Teens can vote for their favorite books from the last year in the annual poll. Teens’ Top Ten, an initiative of YALSA’s Young Adult Galley project, allows teens to voice their choices for their favorite books each year—it’s the only reading list with titles nominated and voted on by teens. Voting takes place through September 18....

ABOS announces 2009 conference: "Honoring the Past—Creating the Future"
ABOS has announced its 2009 conference, “Honoring the Past—Creating the Future,” to be held October 7–9 in Everett, Washington. ABOS is also offering three grants to attend the conference. All grant proposal submissions are due September 1. Registration information is available....

Exceptional websites for children
ALSC has added more recommended websites to Great Web Sites for Kids, its online resource containing hundreds of links to commendable websites for children 14 and younger. Sites are organized into diverse subject headings, and there is a special section with sites of interest to parents, caregivers, and teachers....

Learning Round Table chooses new name, retains mission
ALA’s round table dedicated to quality continuing education for library workers has changed its name from CLENERT to LearnRT. Under its new name, LearnRT will continue to promote quality continuing education for all library personnel, helping members network with other continuing education providers for the exchange of ideas, concerns and solutions. To learn more, visit LearnRT’s website....

Colombian Library Foundation wins $1-million Gates award
Leonard Kniffel writes: “One of the most misunderstood aspects of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s annual $1-million Access to Learning Award is the fact that it is given not for ideas but for achievements, not for potential but for sustainability. This year’s winner, the Fundación Empresas Publicas de Medellin (EPM Foundation) in Colombia, for its Network of Public Libraries, makes the concept clear.”...
AL Inside Scoop, Aug. 25

Jamaican national library wins award to save historical documents
The National Library of Jamaica has been awarded just under J$3 million (US$33,500) through the 2009 Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation. The money will be used for the conservation of the Enos Nuttall Manuscripts—documents dating back to the late 19th and early 20th centuries that record significant milestones in Jamaica’s history. The AFCP, created by Congress in 2001, aims to assist less-developed countries in preserving museum collections, ancient and historic sites, and traditional forms of expression....
The Jamaica Gleaner, Aug. 23

ACRL seeks nominations for 2010 awards
For more than three-quarters of a century, ACRL has been committed to celebrating the achievements of academic and research librarians through the presentation of awards, grants, and fellowships. ACRL urges members to nominate colleagues whose work has influenced their thinking and growth as an academic librarian and whose contributions merit recognition by the profession. Nominations must be submitted by December 4....

YALSA offers more than $35,000 in grants
YALSA plans to award more than $35,000 in grants and awards to YALSA members this year. Members can use the awards to attend Annual Conference for the first time, start a research program, add to their library collection, and more. The deadline for most grants is December 1. To learn more, visit YALSA’s Awards and Grants page....

Heinemann-Raintree sponsors AASL Research Grant
Heinemann-Raintree will sponsor the AASL Research Grant, beginning with the 2009–2010 awards season. More information on this and other AASL awards and grants can be found here. The purpose of the AASL Research Grant is to serve as a model for future school library media research. The grant will award $2,500 to up to two school library media specialists, library educators, library information science, or education professors. Applications will be available September 1....

Google book scanning project gains three major opponents
Microsoft, Yahoo, and Amazon signed on to a coalition that opposes the search giant’s proposed settlement with the Authors Guild and the Association of American Publishers. The coalition, assembled by the Internet Archive and Gary Reback, a Silicon Valley antitrust lawyer, was announced August 26, but several library and journalism associations have already agreed to take part, including the New York Library Association, the Special Libraries Association, and the American Society of Journalists and Authors....
Los Angeles Times, Aug. 20

Stanford offers special collections in Second Life
Stanford University Library’s special-collections department has begun to post exhibits and materials both on campus and online in Second Life, letting anyone view temporary presentations, even long after they have been physically removed from public viewing. The Second Life library began as an experiment in 2006. At first, some content was added, along with links to university websites. Now, a few exhibits and even a documentary are available online, and more content is on the way....
The Wired Campus, Aug. 20

Volunteers to rebuild burned school library
About 160 volunteers had spent August 21 at Faylane Elementary School in Garden Grove, California, creating the new library—building shelves and tables, stacking books, and placing colorful bean bags on the floor. Less than 12 hours later, it was all burned and water-damaged. The fire broke out about 7:55 a.m. August 22 as a result of electrical malfunction in the room, said Garden Grove Unified School District spokesman Alan Trudell. Now, volunteers will rebuild the brand new library, repairing what officials estimate to be about $15,000 in damage....
Orange County (Calif.) Register, Aug. 24

Tutors ousted from Huntsville libraries
Paid tutors are no longer welcome at the Huntsville-Madison County (Ala.) Public Library and its branches. Executive Director Laurel Best said she recommended the policy because the Madison branch library had become overrun with tutors and their clients. “We’ve had a lot of complaints that there was no room at the library because all the tables were taken up by tutors,” Best said August 20. The policy, adopted by the library’s board of directors, says people or companies that need a business license to operate cannot hold paid tutoring sessions at any library location....
The Huntsville (Ala.) Times, Aug. 21

New Sugar Grove library is beautiful—when it’s open
After Sugar Grove (Ill.) Public Library officials dedicated their stunning new building on August 8 with speeches, a ribbon-cutting ceremony, and cake, the library opened for business for three hours. Then it closed for two days. An estimated 1,200 visitors came to the $8-million, 24,000-square-foot library on opening day to ooh and ahh over the new building’s spaciousness. But money allows the library to be open only 44 hours a week, compared with 58 hours a week less than three years ago. Voters approved a bond issue in 2004 to pay for the library’s construction, but they repeatedly rejected requests—most recently in April—for more operating funds....
Chicago Tribune, Aug. 19

UCLA faculty rallies to save arts library
The news has provoked strong responses from local academics and now faculty members at UCLA have started an online campaign to save the library. “Our goal is to keep the library open but also to demand more transparency,” Steven Nelson, an associate professor in UCLA’s Department of Art History, said in an interview August 19. Nelson and George Baker, also a professor in the art history department, have launched a Facebook page and an online petition intended to rally support for the library. In less than a day, the petition attracted more than 350 signatures from all over the world and had 3,200 by midday August 26....
Los Angeles Times, Aug. 19

Library window lawsuit settled
A settlement has been reached in a legal battle over dozens of allegedly defective windows that make up the shimmery copper exterior of the $32.3-million Des Moines (Iowa) Central Library that opened downtown in 2006. On August 18 the library’s board of trustees gave unanimous approval to the settlement, which will cover an array of materials and labor associated with the broken windows. The amount will ultimately depend on how many windows break in the future, but at roughly $8,000 per window, the settlement is easily worth several hundred thousand dollars....
Des Moines (Iowa) Register, Aug. 19

Denver Public Library to consider hour cuts, closings
To make up for a budget shortfall of nearly $5 million next year, Denver Public Library officials are considering cutting back service hours, closing branches, and even selling buildings. The city of Denver is expecting a total shortfall of $120 million next year, and all departments have been asked to cut 14% of their budgets. For the public library, which gets 89% of its revenue from the city’s general fund, that translates to a reduction of $4.5 million, on top of cuts from previous years. In 2003 the library system had to take a 7% cut, or $3.5 million....
Rocky Mountain (Colo.) Independent, Aug. 20

Nine Massachusetts community libraries lose certification
Residents of the cash-strapped city of Fitchburg are living in a bibliographic tundra with just 21 hours of weekly library service and no borrowing privileges in many neighboring cities and towns. This year, the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners denied certification to Fitchburg and eight other cities, because of shortcomings in library hours, operating budgets, or acquisitions of new materials. In times like these, it is too much to require that local libraries stay open a minimum of 63 hours a week....
Boston Globe, Aug. 24

Library union says, “Not on our backs!”
Workers are ready to fight for their jobs in the wake of a Rockford (Ill.) Public Library Board proposal to lay off two-dozen union workers and six staffers to close a projected $1.7-million shortfall. After an August 21 night union meeting downtown, dozens of library workers departed grim-faced and determined. At least one left in tears. The 90-minute union meeting came after the Rockford Public Library Board approved a reorganization proposal August 17. Although weeks in the making, the Library Board—as stipulated in a labor agreement—gave the union just 10 days to craft an alternative proposal....
Rockford (Ill.) Register Star, Aug. 22

Budget cuts put brakes on Medina Library bookmobile
State cuts in support for local libraries mean the Medina County (Ohio) District Library’s bookmobile will no longer travel its usual 11,000 miles a year or make 29 weekly stops during the summer to serve more than 105,000 people at schools, nursing homes, and special county events. Library director Carole Kowell said the bookmobile will no longer go out on Mondays or Fridays, starting in September. Most stops covered in five days will now be covered in three with other visits eliminated completely....
Brunswick (Ohio) Sun, Aug. 23

Gates Foundation library program grows under former Seattle librarian
Deborah Jacobs went from helping build Seattle’s state-of-the-art Central Library to visiting libraries overseas with no heat or running water and budgets as low as $30 a month. In her first year on the job at the Gates Foundation, she has directed an expanding program called the Global Libraries Initiative, which aims to improve free access to computers and the internet in public libraries. She presented a $1 million prize August 25 to a foundation in Medellín, Colombia, for its innovative use of technology in libraries to promote community development....
Seattle Times, Aug. 25

D.C. library offers free language courses
For the past six weeks dozens of Washington, D.C.–area students have participated in a program sponsored by the library and Global Language Network, a nonprofit language services provider, to offer free foreign language courses to D.C. residents. For two hours each week beginning last month, volunteer instructors taught Farsi on Mondays, Spanish on Tuesdays, and Russian on Saturdays....
Washington Post, Aug. 20

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Five reasons to get excited about Linux on the netbook
Sarah Perez writes: “Late last year, we boldly proclaimed that your next computer might be a Linux PC. Thanks to the ever-growing market for the low-end machines dubbed ‘netbooks,’ this seemed like a real possibility at the time. But even netbook owners with machines that didn’t come with Linux pre-installed can still enjoy what this alternative OS has to offer. There are several versions you can try today, no purchase required. And there are even more soon-to-launch distros which really get us excited....
ReadWriteWeb, Aug. 20

Remember Cuil? Now it's a real-time search engine
Ben Parr writes:“Do you remember last year, when a startup named Cuil, founded by two ex-Googlers, made huge noise with the claim of having the largest search index in the world? The result was a huge initial traffic spike. But when it didn’t beat Google its traffic dropped. Now, it has suddenly reemerged with an array of new features based on bringing real-time news and search results. Did Cuil just launch its own competitor to Twitter Search and Facebook Search?”...
Mashable, Aug. 21

Complete guide to making Outlook faster
The How-To Geek writes: “If you are stuck using Microsoft Outlook at work, you've already experienced just how painfully slow it can get. But with a few quick tips you can make it usable again. First, you'll want to install the very latest Microsoft Office service pack. Also, keeping a nice, clean mailbox is probably one of the most obvious, but also most overlooked aspects of speeding up your Outlook experience. You can do it yourself by setting up a separate personal folders file, and then moving old email over there on a regular basis.”...
Lifehacker, Aug. 24

Twitter pro accounts coming by year’s end
Kim-Mai Cutler and Matt Marshall write: “Yes, Twitter will start earning some income this year. Cofounder Biz Stone said the company is in the first phase of rolling out commercial accounts that will entice business users to pay for premium services like detailed analytics. After that, the company might move into building business-oriented APIs, creating a commercial layer over the social network. ‘The commercial APIs would be out later this year,’ said Stone.”...
DigitalBeat, Aug. 20

Cool device watch: PogoPlug
Jason Griffey writes: “For better or worse, I’ve become a sort of gadget-review guy for TechSource, watching all the new hardware announcements for things that I think will be useful, novel, or interesting to libraries and librarians. This little bit of technology might be interesting for a few reasons, not the least of which is the future that it holds in its oh-so-small frame. The gadget, PogoPlug, plugs into a wall outlet and turns any USB external hard drive into a networked storage device, accessible via the internet from anywhere in the world.”...
TechSource, Aug. 19

Push Facebook updates to Twitter
Michael Gummelt writes: “Many people have asked us to make Facebook and Twitter work better together for those times when they want to share their content as widely as possible. We agree. Over the next few days, we will be releasing a feature that allows administrators of Facebook Pages to publish their Facebook updates to their Twitter accounts automatically.”...
Facebook Blog, Aug. 20

Sony e-book to offer free library checkouts
Nilay Patel writes: “Sony will soon release the Reader Daily Edition, as well as updated Mac-compatible eBook Library 3.0 software and a new library content service. We’re geeked about the library finder service, which enables you to check out e-books and other digital content from your local public library on any of the Readers—for free. The New York Public Library is the flashy public launch partner, but there are thousands more libraries looped in. The Reader Daily Edition has a seven-inch touchscreen and can pull content wirelessly. It’ll launch in December for $400.”...
Engadget, Aug. 25

Books without jackets: The new thing?
September will see the publication of three unusual-looking books: No Impact Man by Colin Beavan, Bicycle Diaries (right) by former Talking Head David Byrne, and The Adderall Diaries by Stephen Elliott. What makes these books so unusual-looking is that, even though they're hardcovers, their cover art is not printed on dust jackets but instead stamped directly onto the boards that hug their pages. The result is a handsome, eye-catching look that reflects a heightened awareness that books cannot simply sell themselves....
New York Observer, Aug. 24

Does Kindle stop you buying a book by its cover?
Chris Matyszczyk writes: “I confess I have not yet been warmed by the kindle of Kindle. Somehow, the presence of yet another machine in my already messed-up world might make me entirely unserviceable. However, an increasing number of literate beings are finding themselves rather aroused by their Kindle experience. Tuesday, I was regaled with the story of a rather happily married couple who believe that Kindle has changed not only the convenience of reading but actually their choice of books.”...
CNET News, Aug. 19

An e-pub by any other name?
Lorcan Dempsey writes: “I was in a meeting with a group of folks from research libraries the other week. I was interested in a particular terminological issue: ‘e-books’ and ‘digital books’ were each being used in conversation with no pattern of consistency. There was, however, certainly a tendency to use ‘e-books’ for materials available for license from external providers, and a tendency to use ‘digital books’ for materials digitized from library collections.”...
Lorcan Dempsey’s Weblog, Aug. 20

Wikipedia to limit changes to articles on people
Just as the English-language version of Wikipedia surpasses 3 million articles, its freewheeling ethos is about to be curbed. Officials at the Wikimedia Foundation, the nonprofit in San Francisco that governs Wikipedia, say that within weeks, the English-language Wikipedia will begin imposing a layer of editorial review on articles about living people. The new feature, called “flagged revisions,” will require that an experienced volunteer editor for Wikipedia sign off on any change made by the public....
New York Times, Aug. 24

Another reason for libraries to make their sites social
Jenny Levine writes: “Now that I’m on a smartphone that has a real web browser and is capable of multitasking (the Palm Pre), in fact, I find myself expecting it to act like my laptop. I’ve stopped carrying my laptop or my netbook to work each day because I can do so much on my phone. So here’s Mobile Developer Tip #1, my two cents: Use plugins and widgets, such as Share This, that let users automatically share your content.”...
The Shifted Librarian, Aug. 21

Sign, sign, everywhere a sign
Justine Shaffner writes: “When I was working at a public library, one of the most common questions at the reference desk was ‘Where is____?’ People would politely wait in line for five minutes just to find out where the bathroom was. I felt bad and wanted to post more directional signs. But the research showed that the more signs you had, the more they were overlooked. That’s why I was so entranced by Daniel Pink’s video (7:02) on emotionally intelligent signage. Turns out, it’s not just a matter of posting a sign; signs need to connect with their readers.”...
The Librarian is IN, Aug. 24

Help! I need somebody
Those of us who have ever had the luxury of working as part of a team—particularly that rare, unicorn-like beast that is the school library team—know how easy it is to take good co-workers for granted. Not sure how to approach a reference question? Consult the team. Need someone to grab the other end of that table so you can rearrange furniture for a DDR tournament? Ask a co-worker. But what do you do when suddenly you’re the only librarian in the building?...
YALSA Blog, Aug. 24

Who’s the greenest of them all?
Universities these days are scrambling to burnish their sustainability credentials, with efforts that include wind power, organic food, and competitions to save energy. But which university is the greenest? Several ranking systems have emerged to offer their take. The Princeton Review, best known as a test-preparation firm, recently came out with its second annual green ratings. Fifteen colleges earned the highest possible score. The Sierra Club also released its annual list of eco-enlightened colleges....
New York Times Green Inc. Blog, Aug. 20

The real-time library
Steven Bell writes: “Librarians across all sectors of the profession have spent considerable time discussing and analyzing the impact of Web 2.0 and what it means for libraries. As with all technology trends this one is evolving too. A few weeks ago my colleagues and I traveled to Princeton for a joint staff development program on digital reference. Stephen Francouer did a fine job of leading us through the evolution of digital reference, and shared his thoughts on where the technology and service is headed.”...
ACRLog, Aug. 25

Where to find book cover images
David Bigwood writes: “The other day I asked for suggestions about where to get book covers to include in the catalog. One comment suggest BookChaser.com. BookChaser is an experimental tool that lets people compare what book covers are available through different APIs. It uses four underlying services to look up that information: LibraryThing’s covers API, OpenLibrary’s JSON API, Amazon’s Associates Web Service and Google's Books API.”...
Catalogblog, Aug. 23

Fighting crime one book at a time
Nancy Mattoon writes: “As librarians are well aware, even in the book world no good deed goes unpunished. Getting the right book into the right hands seems innocent enough-until it isn't. Headline-hungry scribes sometimes seek to link books and crime; the permanent stain on The Catcher in the Rye after being found in the possession of both Mark David Chapman and John Hinkley post-crime is the most notorious example. But what of the notion that books can actually help fight crime? Two recent stories point out how the humble book may be a useful tool for the Thin Blue Line.”...
Book Patrol, Aug. 24

A book lover's guide to IKEA chairs
Jimmy Chen writes: “Say what you will about cookie-cutter culture, IKEA offers affordable furniture that doesn't smell like the ’70s. When enjoying your favorite book, it's important to be seated properly-or at least in a way that compliments your reading experience. Here is a guide to what to read, and in what chairs.”...
HTML Giant, Aug. 24

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