The e-newsletter of the American Library Association | April 13, 2011
Contents
American Libraries Online
ALA News
Booklist Online
New Orleans Update
Division News
Awards
Seen Online
Tech Talk
Publishing
Actions & Answers
New This Week
Calendar
The State of America’s Libraries, 2011
The Great Recession may have come to an end, but hard-pressed Americans continue to turn to their local libraries for help in finding a job or launching their own business. This and other library trends of the past year are detailed in the State of America’s Libraries, 2011, released during National Library Week, April 10–16, as an American Libraries digital supplement and on the ALA website. Here are the key trends covered in the report....
Public Information Office, Apr. 11
Kicking our doors back open
Libraries have seen more than their share of fiscal cliffhangers recently, and the celebration of National Library Week, April 10–16, offers no respite. But through the power of social networks, a loyal customer base, and elected officials who eventually read the handwriting on the wall, some rays of light permeate the gloom. Yet for those who see the library as a brick-and-mortar collection of stuff, such as publishing consultant and e-book enthusiast Mike Shatzkin, the institution seems to be on the brink of running its course....
American Libraries news, Apr. 13; The Shatzkin Files, Apr. 8
The evolving library
Elise Valoe writes: “Over the last decade, a fundamental shift has occurred in how students perceive and utilize libraries. No longer seen as traditional book warehouses, libraries are now collaborative environments where individuals and groups converge to study, socialize, and gain access to resources. The library was once a place to find and check out books. But today, the library is a center of interactive learning.”...
American Libraries feature
Booking passage to a new home
Rick Haverinen writes: “When the U.S. Army Transportation School at Fort Eustis, Virginia, received marching orders from the Base Realignment and Closure Commission in 2005 to move its location, the school’s administrators realized that some of the caissons to be rolled along to Fort Lee, Virginia, needed to include the tonnage of the school’s collection of books. The expert Army transporters needed transportation for their own repository of recorded knowledge and culture, which had not been moved for nearly 60 years.”...
American Libraries feature
Obituary: Patricia Berger
Patricia Berger, 84, 1989–1990 ALA president, died March 27 from complications following a fall. Pat received the 1984–1985 Federal and Armed Forces Libraries Round Table Achievement Award, which recognizes promotion of library and information service and the information profession in the federal community. As ALA president, she appointed the committee that drafted ALA’s Preservation Policy....
AL: Currents
Seed lending libraries bloom
San Francisco Public Library’s Potrero branch has opened a seed-lending library, making it at least the fourth public library with such a program. Seed libraries allow patrons to “check out” carefully organized vegetable seeds to plant on their own. After harvesting the crops, they save and return seeds to be used in the next growing season. The East Palo Alto branch of the San Mateo County (Calif.) Public Library is starting one too....
AL: Green Your Library, Apr. 6; PC Sweeney’s Blog, Apr. 12
Most challenged books of 2010
Justin Richardson’s and Peter Parnell’s And Tango Makes Three tops the list of the ALA Top Ten List of the Most Frequently Challenged Books of 2010. The list was released April 11 as part of the ALA’s State of America’s Libraries 2011 report. The book has appeared on the list for the past five years and returns to the number one slot after a brief stay at the number two position last year....
Office for Intellectual Freedom, Apr. 11
Nation celebrates National Library Week, April 10–16
Americans continue to turn to their local libraries for help finding a job and other important services, as the nation celebrates National Library Week, April 10–16. The spokesman for this year’s National Library Week is author John Grisham (right), who recently spoke of the value of libraries in a video (3:10). Events within National Library Week include National Library Workers Day (April 12) and National Bookmobile Day (April 13). And each April is School Library Month, which celebrates the value of school librarians and their impact on student achievement....
Public Information Office, Apr. 11
New “Our Authors, Our Advocates” PSAs
Four new author public service announcements will be available to library advocates on April 13, through the “Our Authors, Our Advocates” initiative. The new PSAs by Neil Gaiman (The Graveyard Book), Kathy Reichs (Virals), Pam Muñoz Ryan (The Dreamer), and Carmen Agra Deedy (right, 14 Cows for America) are available on the I Love Libraries website. Through the initiative, authors lend their support for libraries through media interviews, podcasts, and public service announcements....
Public Information Office, Apr. 12
Audrey Niffenegger visits Aurora bookmobile
Audrey Niffenegger (right), library supporter and author of The Time Traveler’s Wife, Her Fearful Symmetry, and the illustrated novel The Night Bookmobile, raised her voice in support of America’s bookmobiles as 2011 Honorary Chair of National Bookmobile Day, celebrated on April 13. Niffenegger appeared at the Aurora (Ill.) Public Library on April 10, where she sat behind the wheel of the library’s bookmobile....
Visibility @ your library, Apr. 12
Quilters for National Library Week
Master Quilter Penny Halgren writes: “The United States celebrates National Library Week on April 10–16. Why are libraries important to quilters? There are a number of reasons. For one, most libraries carry books about crafts, quilting included. If the library you use does not have a book you are looking for, let them know. Another reason to celebrate National Library Week is that these days, libraries are becoming much more than buildings full of books. They are offering community projects that encourage fellowship, involvement, and learning a new skill.”...
How to Quilt, Apr. 11
National Library Week freeze mob at Holyoke Mall
Becky Plimpton, director of the Joshua Hyde Public Library in Sturbridge, Massachusetts, brought together about 75 people at the Holyoke Mall April 10 for a freeze mob session promoting National Library Week. Just after 4:20 p.m., the group took a spot and froze in place with book in hand (or on the floor) for five minutes. Watch the video (3:55)....
YouTube, Apr. 10
Register soon for National Library Legislative Day
National Library Legislative Day, May 9–10, is quickly approaching, and members of Congress need to hear from you and other constituents that support for libraries is always the best thing for our nation—particularly when the leaders of a Republican-led House of Representatives and a Democrat-led Senate have different ideas about the best course of action to recover from the economic recession. Mention American Library Association 2011 for the discounted hotel rate at the Liaison Hotel in Washington, D.C., and register for NLLD now....
District Dispatch, Apr. 12
ALA Virtual Library Legislative Day
ALTAFF’s Virtual Library Legislative Day is part of the ALA National Library Legislative Day on May 9–10, when hundreds of library advocates will descend on Capitol Hill to meet with members of Congress and their staffs. Library advocates who cannot make it to Capitol Hill for the event can still be a part of the effort by calling and emailing their elected officials on May 10, or any time during the week of May 9–13....
ALTAFF, Apr. 12
Librarians headline national BTOP summit
More than 100 representatives of community anchor institutions, telecom policymakers, and broadband providers convened on March 29 at the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition BTOP Summit in Washington, D.C. The event was organized in order to demonstrate the success of the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program, which was created by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act—aka the “economic stimulus bill”—and enacted in February 2009....
District Dispatch, Apr. 8
Annual Conference guide for programming librarians
The ALA Public Programs Office announced a new online resource for librarians who present cultural and community programs and events: the Programming Librarian’s Guide to ALA Annual Conference. Part of ProgrammingLibrarian.org, with a conference calendar feature and consolidated listings of programs and events scheduled for the 2011 ALA Annual Conference in New Orleans, the guide is a one-stop resource to help programming librarians get the most of their conference experience....
Public Programs Office, Apr. 12
Commemorate the Civil War Sesquicentennial with programming
April 12, 2011, was the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War, and PPO, in partnership with the National Constitution Center and the National Endowment for the Humanities’ “We the People” initiative, is commemorating the milestone with a large-scale tour of the national traveling exhibition “Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War.” Online applications are being accepted through May 5....
Public Programs Office
A typical day in California: One million library visitors
The library is the one free community space that sustains democracy, levels the playing field, values the individual, nourishes creativity, opens young minds, builds community, supports families, builds technology skills, and offers sanctuary—all free of charge to the user. On October 4, 2010, California Snapshot Day (PDF file): 1,012,563 Californians visited a library, 770,831 items were checked out or renewed, and 26,962 people received literacy tutoring, homework help, and information literacy instruction at a library....
California Library Association
Multilingual programming for Día
Jeannette Larson writes: “Author Pat Mora, founder of El día de los niños/El día de los libros (Children’s Day/Book Day), is frequently asked is whether Día is only for Latinos and Spanish-speakers. The celebration is also an opportunity to recognize the beauty of any and all languages and cultures. One option for a storytime program is Mirror by Jeannie Baker, which is almost wordless but features side-by-side illustrations that highlight similarities and differences between an Australian and a Moroccan family. Mora offers more suggestions on her website.”...
ALSC Blog, Apr. 13
Michigan student to serve as OITP Google Policy Fellow
Jessie Mannisto (right), an LIS student at the University of Michigan, will serve as the 2011 Google Policy Fellow for the ALA Office for Information Technology Policy. The 2011 Fellows will spend 10 weeks this summer at Google’s host organizations in Washington, D.C., San Francisco, Toronto, and Ottawa working on internet and technology policy issues, including free expression, privacy, security, and intellectual property....
OITP, Apr. 11
ALA-APA Salary Survey now every two years
The publication frequency for the ALA-APA Salary Survey: Librarian — Public and Academic has changed to biennial. The next issue will be published in 2012. Library directors and human resources staff who are part of our random sample will be contacted by the ALA consultant between December 2011 and January 2012....
ALA–Allied Professional Association, Apr. 7
Mastering the challenge of library management
Change is essential but can be stressful, especially when it upsets established routines and patterns. In their new ALA Editions book The Challenge of Library Management: Leading with Emotional Engagement, Wyoma vanDuinkerken and Pixey Anne Mosley help library managers lead staff through episodes of change while remaining empathetic. Peppered with short narratives that use real-life examples of change principles, this book shows library managers how to engage library staff in the process....
ALA Editions, Apr. 12
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@ Visit Booklist Online for other reviews and much more.... |
Café du Monde
Lonely Planet writes: “The Café Du Monde is overrated, but you’re probably gonna go there, so here goes. The coffee is decent and the beignets (square, sugar-coated fritters) are inconsistent. The atmosphere is off-putting: You’re a number forced through the wringer, trying to shout over Bob and Fran while they mispronounce ‘jambalaya’ and a street musician badly mangles John Lennon’s ‘Imagine.’ At least it’s open 24 hours. You might be able to capture some measure of noirish cool as the drunks stumble past in the Edward Hopperesque wee hours.” The iconic French Quarter restaurant reopened two and a half months after Katrina....
Café Du Monde; Lonely Planet
Riverwalk Marketplace
Riverwalk Marketplace is a mall located in the Central Business District along the Mississippi River waterfront stretching from the base of Canal Street upriver to the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. It is connected to the adjacent Hilton New Orleans Riverside Hotel. By the 1980s, increased use of containers in shipping made some of the older riverfront wharves less useful, so two were demolished and the land was used as part of the 1984 World’s Fair. After the fair, this section was redeveloped into an upscale mall for both tourists and locals....
Riverwalk Marketplace; 1984 World’s Fair Photo Tour
Guide to getting bumped (or not)
Michelle Higgins writes: “Airlines regularly overbook flights to help offset no-shows and to ensure that flights are packed with paying customers. That may increase this year as airlines continue to cut capacity in an effort to keep up with rising fuel prices, leaving fewer seats for passengers. Most people volunteer to give up their seats in return for some form of compensation, like a voucher for a free flight, and there is a small but passionate group obsessed with accruing frequent-flier miles. Here are some insider tips to the bumping game. In most cases, do the opposite if you want to keep your seat.”...
New York Times, Apr. 6
YALSA celebrates Support Teen Literature Day
Librarians all across the country are encouraged to participate in Support Teen Literature Day on April 14. YALSA celebrates the event on Thursday of every National Library Week. Its purpose is to raise awareness among the general public that young adult literature is a vibrant, growing genre with much to offer today’s teens....
YALSA, Apr. 12
2011 WrestleMania XXVII Reading Challenge champs
Eric Jose, Marinna Vela and Brandy Eggleston were crowned national champions in the WrestleMania XXVII Reading Challenge in Phoenix on April 2, sponsored by YALSA and WWE. In addition to being named national champions, Jose, Vela and Eggleston won ringside seats to WrestleMania XXVII. WWE Legend Jimmy “Mouth of the South” Hart served as emcee....
YALSA, Apr. 12
YALSA seeks member manager for The Hub
YALSA is looking for a member manager for The Hub, its teen literature-focused blog. The Hub provides a one-stop-shop for teens and librarians to help them locate high quality audio, video, and text content related to young adult literature. Applications for the member manager position are due June 1. Full details, including qualifications, duties and honoraria, are available on The Hub website....
YALSA, Apr. 12
Betsy Appleton is 2011 ALCTS Emerging Leader
Betsy Appleton (right), electronic resources librarian at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, has been selected as the ALCTS-sponsored Emerging Leader for 2010–2011. ALCTS sponsors one Emerging Leader who has chosen collections and technical services as a career and is a member of the division. For her Emerging Leader project, Appleton selected the Preservation Week Marketing Plan....
ALCTS, Apr. 11
Preservation Week thanks its sponsors
Preservation Week, coming April 24–30, is made possible by the generous support of its sponsors and partners. For the 2011 celebration, Preservation Week thanks Archival Products, Gaylord, the HF Group, Ithaka, and Familyarchives.com. Sponsors and organizational partners provide Preservation Week with a wealth of information and support for its free webinars. Be sure to download your logos, press release tips, event ideas, and speakers’ bureau information....
ALCTS, Apr. 11–12
ALSC Charlemae Rollins President’s Program
At the ALA 2011 Annual Conference in New Orleans, ALSC will be hosting the Charlemae Rollins President’s Program on June 27. The program is entitled “How Libraries can Best Serve Special Needs Patrons, Especially Those with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD).” The keynote speaker is Ricki Robinson (right), a leader in developing multidisciplinary treatment plans for children with ASD....
ALSC, Apr. 12
Mimi Ito to headline AASL closing session
Mimi Ito (right), international expert on mobile technologies and using new digital media in everyday life, will headline the closing session at the AASL National Conference and Exhibition in Minneapolis, October 27–30. Ito will speak about the value of digitally augmented social practices in education, countering the perception that new media is hostile to learning....
AASL, Apr. 12
ACRL 2011 draws record-breaking participation
More than 5,300 library staff, exhibitors, speakers, and guests from around the world met March 30–April 2 in Philadelphia and online for the ACRL 2011 Conference. Combined with the more than 440 people participating online in the Virtual Conference, ACRL 2011 had the highest combined registrant participation ever for an ACRL conference, with 3,533 face-to-face and virtual attendees from all 50 states and 24 other countries....
ACRL, Apr. 12
ACRL 2011: Walking the talk
Steven Bell writes: “If you attended ACRL 2011, I hope you enjoyed it. One of the things I really like about the ACRL conference is that it constantly evolves. A number of new initiatives were introduced this year. Some risks were taken, and some new things worked better than others. A few of the standbys may not be working as well as they used to. But it’s the way we want our own academic libraries to function.”...
ACRLog, Apr. 6
ACRL innovation contest at ALA Annual Conference
Looking for ways to increase innovation in your library? Join ACRL for its President’s Program at the 2011 ALA Annual Conference in New Orleans. Titled “From Idea to Innovation to Implementation: How Teams Make it Happen,” the program will feature Jason Young (right), author of the book Culturetopia: The Ultimate High-Performance Workplace and an expert on how workplace teams can obtain maximum productivity. The program will take place June 25. In conjunction with the program, ACRL is currently accepting entries for a contest featuring exciting library innovation projects....
ACRL, Apr. 11
PLA offers budget and finance workshop
PLA, in partnership with the Houston (Tex.) Area Library System, is offering a Budget and Finance Management Workshop taught by Sandra Nelson, May 17–18, at the Austin Memorial Library in Cleveland, Texas. This interactive CPLA workshop will provide the skills needed to manage all aspects of the library budget process successfully. Registration is now open....
PLA, Apr. 12
June Garcia will lead PLA fundraising-management workshop
PLA, in partnership with the Washington State Library, is offering a Fundraising Management Workshop taught by June Garcia, May 24–25, at the Seattle Public Library. This interactive workshop will provide the skills needed not only to develop an effective fundraising plan, but also implement it successfully. Registration is now open....
PLA, Apr. 12
New round of ALSC webinars
This year, ALSC is offering a regular schedule of convenient and affordable webinars. Perfect for busy students and professionals, these sessions last approximately one hour and give participants a brief but concentrated look into unique subject areas. ALSC’s reoccurring webinars are taught by highly regarded instructors and are offered four times between now and September to allow individuals more flexibility....
ALSC, Apr. 11
RUSA online reference classes
Public librarians, academic librarians, and library support staff are encouraged to sign up for the May–June offerings of Business Reference 101 and The Reference Interview, two popular online classes offered by RUSA. All courses will be administered using Moodle, an online course management tool. Online registration is now open for all of these opportunities, with significant cost savings for RUSA members....
RUSA, Apr. 12
AASL seeks 2012 Annual Conference presenters
AASL is now seeking presenter proposals for the ALA 2012 Annual Conference, June 21–26, 2012, in Anaheim, California. The deadline to submit a proposal is May 24. Proposal submissions will be accepted for 1 1/2-hour concurrent sessions or half- to full-day preconference professional development programs....
AASL, Apr. 11
2011 Marshall Cavendish Award
The Burnsville (Miss.) Public Library has won the 2011 Marshall Cavendish Excellence In Library Programming Award. This award, donated by the Marshall Cavendish Corporation, honors a school or public library that provides excellent programs that have community impact and respond to community needs. The library was cited for two programs, one on model aircraft and another to raise awareness about common ruses used by child abductors....
Office of ALA Governance, Apr. 6
2011 Sara Jeffarian Award
Harmony Middle School in Overland Park, Kansas, is the winner of the 2011 Sara Jaffarian School Library Program Award for Exemplary Humanities Programming. Harmony Librarian Ronda Hassig developed the winning program, “Harmony with Voice III: Our Poems Go Trans-Pacific.” The school library will receive a plaque and a cash award of $4,000, and the program will be included as a model in a national professional development session on library humanities programs....
Public Programs Office, Apr. 11
“Digital Harlem” wins RUSA award
RUSA has selected “Digital Harlem: Everyday Life, 1915–1930” as the winner of its 2011 ABC-CLIO Online History Award. Assembled by Stephen Robertson, Shane White, Stephen Garton, and Graham White, all at the University of Sydney, Australia, the online resource was cited for its novel and sophisticated approach to the presentation of primary-source ephemera. The award encourages, recognizes, and commends professional achievement in online historical reference and research....
RUSA, Apr. 12
Gale Cengage Learning Financial Development Award
The St. Charles (Mo.) City-County Library District has been named the Gale Cengage Learning Financial Development Award recipient for 2011 for its “Imagine” campaign. The campaign was created in 2009 with a project goal of $25,000 as a vehicle to cultivate donor interest for the St. Charles City-County Library Foundation which supports the library district. The beneficiary of its first year’s effort was the creation of early literacy kits for distribution to pre-readers and their parents....
Office of ALA Governance, Apr. 6
2011 Distinguished ILL Librarian Award
Ed Rivenburgh, information delivery services project director at the State University of New York at Geneseo, has been selected the winner of RUSA’s 2011 Virginia Boucher/OCLC Distinguished ILL Librarian Award. The award recognizes an individual for outstanding professional achievement, leadership, and significant contributions to the fields of interlibrary loan and document delivery....
RUSA, Apr. 12
BRASS Gale Cengage Learning Student Travel Award
Danielle Salomon, LIS student at the University of California, Los Angeles, and intern at the University of Southern California’s Crocker Business Library, is the 2011 winner of the RUSA Business Reference and Services Section Gale Cengage Learning Student Travel Award. The award enables a student who has demonstrated interest in a business reference librarianship career to attend the ALA Annual Conference....
RUSA, Apr. 12
Naperville librarian honored for romance savvy
It turns out that the romance novel collection at the Naperville (Ill.) Public Library is not only well-received with library patrons, but also area romance novelists. This is in large part because of Kathleen Longacre, adult services librarian at the 95th Street branch. She has been named Northern Illinois Librarian of the Year by the Windy City Romance Writers of America. She is being honored because of her support of the genre....
Chicago Sun-Times, Apr. 10
2011 Indies Choice Book Awards
The American Booksellers Association announced the winners of the 2011 Indies Choice Book Awards and the E.B. White Read-Aloud Awards on April 6, as chosen by the owners and staff at member stores in voting throughout the month of March. The Adult Fiction Book of the Year was Room by Emma Donoghue (Little, Brown), and the Young Adult Book of the Year was Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly (Delacorte Books for Young Readers)....
Bookselling This Week, Apr. 6
Sunday Times EFG Private Bank Short Story Award 2011
American writer Anthony Doerr (right) has won the 2011 Sunday Times EFG Private Bank Short Story Award for his story, “The Deep.” Set in Detroit in the early 20th century, the story is about a boy with a weak heart who is expected to die before he reaches manhood. Doerr receives a cash prize of £30,000 ($49,050 U.S.). The story was published in the April 10 issue of the Sunday Times....
Booktrust, Apr. 9
Librarians: Masters of the info universe
CNN Librarian Kerith Page McFadden writes: “Librarians, information specialists, knowledge managers, or whatever title a librarian might have—their skills are in high demand. And, though you might not know it, they are everywhere. And so in their honor during National Library Week, we enjoy the following tidbits of information.”...
CNN, Apr. 12
New rules: Student data privacy
In its effort to clarify student data privacy rules for researchers and education officials alike, the U.S. Department of Education proposed several changes to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) on April 7. The changes include tighter enforcement and directory information protection. In addition, the department appointed Kathleen Styles as its first Chief Privacy Officer....
Education Week: Inside School Research, Apr. 7
Police increasingly looking at emails, IM
Law enforcement organizations are making tens of thousands of requests for private electronic information from companies such as Sprint, Facebook, and AOL, but few detailed statistics are available. Police and other agencies have “enthusiastically embraced” asking for email, instant messages, and mobile-phone location data, but there is no federal law requiring the reporting of requests for stored communications data, wrote Christopher Soghoian, a Ph.D. candidate at the Indiana University School of Informatics and Computing, in a paper published April 10....
PC World, Apr. 12
8-year-old donates $1,200 to keep Jersey City library open
Paul Valleau (right) is not a typical 8-year-old boy. While most other boys in his neighborhood are playing video games or sports, Paul is raising money for the Jersey City (N.J.) Free Public Library system. On April 7, he presented Library Director Priscilla Gardner with a check for $1,212.84, money he earned from used book sales and a $400 donation. “I wanted to do this because I just couldn’t let the library close. I had to do something to help them,” said Paul. Watch the video (1:31)....
Jersey (N.J.) Journal, Apr. 8, 12
Huge rally kicks off campaign to repeal Ohio antiunion law
With chants of “We are Ohio,” an estimated 11,000 union supporters rallied at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus April 9 to launch the effort to overturn a law that would weaken public workers’ bargaining power. The crowd was the largest since the debate over Senate Bill 5 began in February. Melissa Cropper, a librarian for Georgetown schools in southwestern Ohio, said killing the law “is about saving the middle class and protecting the rights of workers. Corporations are getting all the breaks.”...
Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch, Apr. 10
Civil War photos on display at Library of Congress
Poignant, solemn faces of young men, women, and children who lived through or fought in the Civil War are the subject of a new Library of Congress exhibition, “The Last Full Measure: Civil War Photographs from the Liljenquist Family Collection.” McLean, Virginia, resident Tom Liljenquist and his sons donated some 700 photographs to LC—both ambrotypes and tintypes. The exhibition opened April 12, the 150th anniversary of the bombardment of Fort Sumter, which started the Civil War....
McLean (Va.) Patch, Apr. 11; Library of Congress, Apr. 12
Scranton students preserve Civil War documents
At the beginning of this semester, Kathryn Meier assigned the students in her Civil War class at the University of Scranton the task of investigating the War between the States using primary sources. Months later, the project is paying big dividends. The students spent weeks exhaustively uncovering and digitizing 62 previously uncataloged Civil War–era documents housed at the Lackawanna Historical Society, located on the school’s campus. The documents will soon be part of a website documenting Scranton’s history that staff members at the Albright Memorial Library are developing....
Scranton (Pa.) Times-Tribune, Apr. 12
Libraries take you anywhere
Chris Bohjalian writes: “Beginning April 10, the Vermont Library Association is hoping to convey to Vermonters what a modern library is really like. VLA President Marti Fiske is among the masterminds behind a multimedia campaign to convince us that libraries are not the blacksmith shops of the 21st century. Three 15-second public service announcements are airing on television this week, along with three matching print ads, all of which share the theme, ‘Vermont libraries can take you anywhere.’”...
Burlington (Vt.) Free Press, Apr. 10; Vermont Library Association
Los Angeles City Council tackles porn
A Los Angeles City Council committee debated April 12 what to do about people who want to look at pornography on public library computers. The Arts, Parks, Health, and Aging Committee asked for input from the City Attorney’s office after the Chinatown branch received complaints in early January. People told librarians that adults and children waiting in line to check out books could see someone watching pornography on a computer. Councilman Ed Reyes said it’s the only reported incident....
Los Angeles Times, Apr. 13
The library card: A pop-culture fiend’s ticket to geek paradise
Linda Holmes writes: “There’s a big public library literally across the street from my bank and the supermarket where I most frequently pick up stuff like milk and paper towels. Across the street. As in: First I buy Diet Coke, then I dodge one SUV careening around the corner, and I’m there. And yet, until this weekend, I’d never been in it and I had no library card. I know. Why, when there’s such bitter frustration over pricing of all the things people actually buy, is library borrowing often only faintly heard about?”...
NPR: Monkey See, Apr. 11
Top school library in Colorado falls victim to budget cuts
Like anyone at any job, Laura Israelsen (right) wants to do good work. But sometimes even doing the best work can’t save anyone from the budget axe. “Last October, we were the first school library to be named Colorado Library of the Year,” Israelsen, a teacher-librarian at the Hulstrom Options K–8 School in Northglenn, said. But the Adams 12 Five Star Schools district has little choice, considering the proposed reduction in state funding to K–12 schools by $250 million overall....
KUSA-TV, Denver, Apr. 6
Cobb County finds a way to not close its libraries
Commissioners in Cobb County, Georgia, passed a mid-year budget revision April 12 that requires furlough days and across-the-board cuts for county departments, but keeps the county library branches open. Commissioners made the budget decisions in front of a crowd of about 300 people, mainly library supporters lobbying against closing most of the Cobb County Public Library branches, as was originally proposed by Commission Chairman Tim Lee on April 7 to fill a $2-million hole in the library budget. Of the county’s 17 branches, only the four regional libraries would have remained open....
Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Apr. 12
Pelham library director indicted
Robert E. Rice Jr. conducted more than 1,500 online auctions in “a number of schemes” to defraud the Revere (Mass.) Public Library while serving as its director, a prosecutor said April 7. Rice, now director of Pelham (N.H.) Public Library, pleaded not guilty—21 times—at his arraignment in Boston. He is accused of using city funds to buy items he kept for himself or sold online. An indictment alleged he stole more than $200,000 from the library from 2005 to 2009....
Nashua (N.H.) Telegraph, Apr. 8; WHDH-TV, Boston, Apr. 7
Bobby and Violet roost at the Bobst
Who knew the spectacle of a bird sitting on a nest could be so gripping? Outside New York University President John Sexton’s 12th-floor office in Bobst Library, Violet the red-tailed hawk sits. She sits some more. She turns her head to the right, cleans a feather. She pecks at a twig. The breeze ruffles her head. You are watching the NYU Hawk Cam, and its stars are Violet (named for one of the university’s colors) and her mate, Bobby (named for Bobst Library)....
New York Times: City Room Blog, Apr. 6
A rare look at the Vatican Library
Morley Safer and CBS’s 60 Minutes get a rare look (12:26) at the cultural and religious riches found within the Vatican Library. It's the pope’s library, but it contains much more than just church documents. There are manuscripts going back nearly 2,000 years on music and math, warfare and exploration, even cookbooks and love letters. The library is closed to the public, as it is a place for scholars only. “There’s about two million printed books,” library curator Timothy Janz told Safer....
CBS News, Apr. 10
Berlin library returns books stolen by Nazis
The Berlin State Library handed back 13 books stolen by the Nazis to the Jewish community April 13 as the German government pledged to redouble its efforts to return plundered cultural treasures. The emotional ceremony came about thanks to a new drive to research the provenance of state holdings with the aim of restitution, German Culture Minister Bernd Neumann said. The books returned at the event included 19th- and 20th-century novels, history books, poetry collections, travel guides, and bound newspaper volumes....
Agence France-Presse, Apr. 13
Top 10 Flip Video camera alternatives
David Pierce writes: “The Flip Video camera marked the birth of a revolution that turned everyone into videographers. Alas, it is no longer. Cisco, which purchased Flip in 2009, has decided to restructure its consumer business, which in part entails ending the Flip’s life. There’s an obvious culprit behind the death of the Flip camcorder: cellphones. But whether you want a video-focused device, or a Swiss Army knife gadget like the iPod Touch, we’ve rounded up 10 excellent, inexpensive, and simple ways to record on-the-go video.”...
PC Magazine, Apr. 12
26 ways to engage customers using video
Debbie Hemley writes: “Are you using video to connect with customers and prospective patrons? Videos will enhance client communication and collaboration, and help support and drive new opportunities. Here are some ideas about where you may want to spend time exploring video options. Qik is a mobile live-video-streaming and two-way videoconferencing application that allows users to stream live video from their cellphones to Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.”...
Social Media Examiner, Apr. 5
HTML5 made easy
Jason Griffey writes: “With the rise of HTML5 / CSS3, a number of web designers in libraries are trying to find the best way to either move their existing sites into a more modern framework, or sometimes just figure out what the big deal is about HTML5. Luckily, there are not only a ton of great resources for reference (like the great w3c Schools info), but my new favorite template is: HTML5 Boilerplate.”...
AL: Perpetual Beta, Apr. 13
New RFID standard
Lori Bowen Ayre writes: “Mick Fortune, of RFID: Changing Libraries for Good fame, notes that the new data model standard released by ISO just a few weeks ago (ISO 28560) ‘presents both a threat and an opportunity for suppliers.’ Now that we have a standard that provides guidelines for what to write to the tags (date elements) and how to write that data to the tags (encoding), there is an opportunity for interoperability between libraries and competition between RFID vendors.”...
The Galecia Group, Apr. 11
Learn the basics of web-browser security
Marco Tabini writes: “Danger lurks behind every corner on the web: phishing, fake sites, stolen digital identities. Despite the cottage industry that has sprouted up to protect us from the evils of modern life, all it takes to enjoy a safe relationship with the Digital Age is nothing more than the lowly old browser, coupled with a bit of knowledge about the way the web works. Let’s take a look at the basic security features used by most web browsers.”...
PC World, Apr. 13
7 tools to create a mobile library website
Ellyssa Kroski writes: “Library websites are usually robust and information-packed, which makes it a challenge for many organizations when they consider going mobile. But if you’d like to build a mobile presence for your library to offer your patrons access to community features, library locator tools, maps, driving directions, image collections, videos, custom content, and even searchable mobile catalogs, you’ll want to check out these applications. Here’s a quick summary of each tool’s features and cost.”...
iLibrarian, Apr. 11
Pagination comes to Google Docs
Luiz Pereira writes: “In April 2010, we launched a new version of the Google document editor, created from the ground up to take advantage of the latest capabilities in modern web browsers like Chrome. Today, we’re doing another first for web browsers by adding a classic word processing feature—pagination, the ability to see visual pages on your screen. Pagination adds visual page breaks while you’re editing your documents, so now you can see how many pages of that report you’ve actually finished.”...
Google Docs Blog, Apr. 12
2011: The year the check-in died
Early in 2010, “checking in” on Foursquare, Gowalla, or Yelp was the cool new craze. In 2011, check-ins are going to go the way of the eight-track tape and disappear. How many of your friends are consistently checking in and broadcasting? How many “I just ousted Fred as the mayor of Starbucks” messages do you see in your stream? Across one network—a large and tech-savvy network—I see less than 1% of people checking in on any service, and the trend is down....
ReadWriteWeb, Apr. 12
11 tips for dealing with email overload
Dawn Foster writes: “Information overload is the bane of the web worker, and a primary source of that overload is our email inboxes. While I’ve previously mentioned a few strategies for dealing with email overload, I think it’s a good time for a post with a comprehensive rundown of my tips for managing email.”...
GigaOM, Apr. 1
ALA Annual Conference in New Orleans, June 23–28, 2011.
For the first time at Annual Conference, ALA is featuring a free Film Program, which will be showing Mine, The Most Dangerous Man in America, Library of the Early Mind, and Pink Saris.
The most dangerous man in America himself, former U.S. military analyst Daniel Ellsburg, who precipitated a national political controversy in 1971 when he released the Pentagon Papers, is the Auditorium Speaker on Sunday, June 26, 8–9:15 a.m.
Polls remain open to vote in the ALA election through April 22.
In this course, Joanna M. Burkhardt draws from her bestselling book Teaching Information Literacy: 50 Standards-Based Exercises for College Students to show you how to create challenging, engaging lessons and exercises that will give college students the foundation they need to distinguish between the easiest sources to find and the best sources to use. NEW! From ALA Editions. |
New this week
State of America’s Libraries, 2011 Currents (NEW) |
Great Libraries of the World
Pennsylvania Hospital, Medical Library, Penn Health System, Philadelphia. The hospital was founded by Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Bond in 1751, making it the first in the North American colonies. The first library book was donated in 1762 by John Fothergill, a British physician and friend of Franklin’s. The collection continued to grow and in 1847 the American Medical Association designated it as the first, largest, and most important medical library in the United States. It now includes the most complete American collection of medical books published between 1750 and 1850.
Rare Collections Library, State Library of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg. This state-of-the-art, climate-controlled facility opened in 2008 to preserve the state’s bibliographic treasures, among them the 422-volume Pennsylvania Assembly Collection purchased by Benjamin Franklin in 1745, books and pamphlets published in the state from 1685 to 1845, handwritten hymnals from the Ephrata Cloister, and early commonwealth newspapers. This AL Direct feature showcases 250 libraries around the world that are notable for their exquisite architecture, historic collections, and innovative services. If you find yourself on vacation near one of them, be sure to stop by for a visit. The entire list will be available in The Whole Library Handbook 5, edited by George M. Eberhart, which is scheduled for publication later this year by ALA Editions. |
Career
Leads from Librarian II, Youth Services (Latino Outreach), Santa Monica (Calif.) Public Library, Fairview branch. This is a bilingual (English / Spanish) professional librarian position, with supervisory functions relative to youth (ages 0–17), branch library operations, and Latino Outreach services. Participates in programming, development of the library collection, reference services, readers’ advisory, cataloging, materials circulation, information technology, or coordinating a specialized service or program. Performs youth programs, including storytimes and summer reading, some conducted in Spanish. Promotes library-school relations through class visits and supervises after-school programs, including a branch library volunteer tutoring program and a youth technology center. Spanish-language duties also include system-wide collection development (youth and adult), web content development, and computer classes.... |
Digital Library of the Week
Civil War in the American South is a new, collaborative web portal developed by members of the Association of Southeastern Research Libraries to provide one-stop access to materials about the American Civil War Era, 1850 through 1865. The new website was launched April 11 to connect users to primary-source materials held across ASERL libraries about the intellectual and cultural underpinnings of the Civil War. The site currently links to more than 3,600 digitized items, and is expected to grow to more than 5,000 items in the near future. The portal was developed for ASERL by the Digital Library of Georgia, and features advanced search functionalities to help users quickly discover the items they seek and to browse the collection by specific filters, including contributing library, format, and other aspects of the collection. Do you know of a digital library collection that we can mention in this AL Direct feature? Tell us about it. Browse previous Digital Libraries of the Week at the I Love Libraries site. |
Public
Perception “‘Libraries make no sense in the future,’ Mike Shatzkin said on stage in a library that dates back to 1828 [the Atwater Library in Westmount, Québec]. Anyone with internet access already has access to far more books than were in that library, he pointed out. ‘There is no need for a building.’ There will be an ongoing need for librarians, however; their skills will continue to be in demand, as will those of editors.” —New York publishing industry observer, consultant, and blogger Mike Shatzkin gave a presentation on “The Future of Books,” as reported in “Libraries Don’t Make Sense Anymore,” by Linda Leith, Toronto Globe and Mail Books Blog, Apr. 7. @ More quotes... |
Follow: National Library Week, Apr. 10–16, at: Texas Library Association, Annual Conference, Austin, Apr. 12–15, at: National Bookmobile Day, Apr. 13, at: Innovative Users Group, Conference, San Francisco, Apr. 14–16, at: Librarians’ Information Literacy Annual Conference, London, Apr. 18–20, at: Customers of SirsiDynix User Group Inc., Conference, Phoenix, Apr. 19–21, at: European Conference on Information Retrieval, Dublin, Ireland, Apr. 19–21, at: Popular Culture Association / American Culture Association, Joint Annual Conference, San Antonio, Texas, Apr. 20–23, at: American Libraries news stories, blog posts, tweets, and videos, at: |
Apr. 10–16: Apr. 30: May 1: May 1–4: May 3–6: May 9–11: May 9–12: May 28– June 6–7: June 12–15: July 5–8: Aug. 22–27: @ More... |
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Free access to Gale resources during National Library Week
Gale, part of Cengage Learning, is offering free access to six highly-praised online resources for use by any library during National Library Week and up through April 24. Librarians can download a widget to their homepage. Patrons can look for the widget on the library’s homepage, which provides single-click access to these online resources....
Cengage Learning, Apr. 6
ProQuest tools and NLW sweepstakes
During National Library Week, April 10–16, ProQuest is offering free, open access to some of its most popular online resources, plus new tools for marketing your library’s research databases. Resources for genealogy, history, general reference, and homework help will be open. Like ProQuest on Facebook and you can enter the “My library rocks because…?” Sweepstakes....
ProQuest, Apr. 11
World Book Mobile launched
World Book has introduced World Book Mobile, a mobile-friendly version of its comprehensive reference database, which includes tens of thousands of articles and multimedia images, including maps, photographs, and illustrations. Anyone can access a concise edition of the World Book database by simply visiting World Book Online or its mobile site from a smartphone browser to perform quick searches. Subscribers to the World Book Web can log on through their school or library subscription....
World Book, Apr. 12
She’s got a secret that’s long overdue
Mary Kelly writes: “I am dying to know what the librarian ‘did.’ What shame is she hiding? Extending computer time to rogue patrons? Did she forget a subfield delimiter? Bun too tight? I am sure the crimes are horrible, like that awful blouse she is wearing. Good thing that ‘Bad Boy’ Devin is there ‘checking her out.’ Good thing for Rachel, after a hard day answering reference questions, unjamming printers, tossing out crazies, and removing God knows what from the book drop, she is probably ready for some hot, steamy romance.”...
Awful Library Books, Apr. 12
An anniversary for the Windies
It doesn’t take much to talk Selina Faye Sorrow into slipping on her replica of the dress Vivien Leigh wore in the barbecue scene from the film Gone with the Wind. You don’t know the dress? Then you are clearly not a Windy, as the ardent fans of the film are called. For the book’s 75th anniversary this year, you can find Windies gathered at the handful of Gone with the Wind museums around the country, dressing the part and reenacting scenes and sharing little-known details about the movie and the book....
New York Times, Apr. 12
A Flappers’ Dictionary, 1922
Jim Lewin writes: “Hidden deep within a box of materials that came into the shop this week was a short stack of magazines from the 1920s called Flapper. The July 1922 issue contained ‘A Flappers’ Dictionary.’ The dictionary went into some detail, listing the group’s slang and providing definitions. In the process, it also provided an insight: Through slang we can begin to discern attitudes and priorities and mindsets. So, whether you be airedale or biscuit, put down your dincher and pretend your munitions are fine for the moment.”...
Book Flaps: Musings of a Smalltime Book Peddler, Apr. 10
Anatomy gets animated in rare flap books
Nancy Mattoon writes: “A professor of Romance studies and a historian of medicine have pooled their expertise to create a new Duke University exhibit that ‘weaves together the history of science, medical instruction, and the intricate art of bookmaking.’ Animated Anatomies: The Human Body in Anatomical Texts from the 16th to 21st Centuries examines anatomical flap books, which take their name from the layers of movable paper flaps that can be lifted from the page to reveal something underneath, similar to pop-up books for children.” Watch the video of the exhibit (10:00)....
Booktryst, Apr. 12; YouTube, Apr. 5
Thoughts on a National Digital Library
David H. Rothman writes: “Can advocates of a well-stocked national digital public library system actually manage to enlist the support of conservative Americans like my friend George Roper, blogger at GM’s Place? Yes, as I see it—if the system will respond to community needs and enrich rather than war with local public libraries. George himself is unabashedly pro–public library and loves the national digital library idea. With public governance from the start, the library system would be more responsive to the populace.”...
LLRX.com, Apr. 9
A response to Jeff Trzeciak
Karen Schneider writes: “The latest kerfuffle from LibraryLand comes courtesy of Jeff Trzeciak, university ‘librarian’ at McMaster’s University in Hamilton, Ontario, whose April 8 speech (at 39:34) has garnered tart responses from other librarians and library directors. I take notice when a university ‘librarian’ seems quite proud to announce that the (self-inflicted) trend in his library is to significantly reduce the number of professional librarians (replacing some with Ph.Ds and IT people) and move out of the information literacy role.” Should we call it Trzeciakgate?...
Free Range Librarian, Apr. 10; Penn State University, Apr. 8; Attempting Elegance, Apr. 8; Guardienne of the Tomes, Apr. 9; ACRLog, Apr. 13
Public library: An American commons
Since 1994, Robert Dawson has surveyed hundreds of the more than 17,000 public libraries in the United States. The photographs presented in this slideshow, drawn from a current exhibition at the San Francisco Public Library, capture a broad range of American experience, from the Tulare County Free Library built by farmers in the self-governed black township of Allensworth, California, to a New Orleans library damaged by Hurricane Katrina, tagged with the X-Code of an Urban Search and Rescue Team....
Design Observer: Places, Apr. 11
Five reasons librarians are the future of ed tech
Joshua Kim writes: “How many people do you know who started their careers in academic libraries and are now in leadership positions within academic computing? How many great educational technology folks that you have worked with have taken positions in libraries? The future of campus computing belongs to the librarians and the libraries, and that is a very good thing. Here is why.”...
Inside Higher Ed: Learn, Apr. 7
OCLC Research Library Partnership
Jim Michalko writes: “The OCLC Research Library Partnership is a new, or perhaps more appropriately, evolved entity that will launch on July 1 and extend the work of the current RLG Partnership. We hope that an expanded and more inclusive partnership will emerge over the next 2–3 years; we’d like it to become a considerably larger transnational group of research-led institutions. Notably, annual partnership fees are now significantly lower for most institutions.”...
HangingTogether, Apr. 11
Collaborating with faculty: A five-step program
Kim Leeder writes: “Like many academic librarians, I spend a lot of time reaching out to and trying to build connections with faculty members in my liaison departments. I love this part of my work, but it can be extremely challenging. Recently I’ve broken down my approach to relationship-building with faculty into five identifiable steps in order to be more deliberate about my efforts in the future. Those steps are the subject of this post.”...
In the Library with the Lead Pipe, Apr. 6
When not to Google
Kevin Purdy writes: “Google’s good at a lot of things, but it also has to serve a lot of interests. Any relatively modern search engine knows that, in order to compete and differentiate, it has to do something different, something better, or something special, aside from general ‘katy perry video’ searches. Here are the best search engines for tackling specific types of search.”...
Lifehacker, Apr. 5
Texas Tech in Times Square
Texas Tech University Libraries are getting profiled on the Thomson Reuters building in New York’s Times Square April 10–16 after winning the company’s Focused on Your Library Contest in December. Kaley Daniel and Julie Barnett submitted TTU’s winning essay, which focused on the exemplary services provided to students, faculty, and staff, including the bookcart-based Roving Reference librarians wearing red T-shirts sporting the word “Lost?”...
Thomson Reuters, Apr. 10
UNC debuts Civil War Day by Day blog
On April 12, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill launched its Civil War Day by Day blog, which draws upon the holdings of the Louis Round Wilson Special Collections Library to present original documents that are 150 years old to the day. Diary entries, correspondence, news articles, maps, photographic portraits, and images of artifacts will be among the items posted through April 9, 2015, the 150th anniversary of Gen. Robert E. Lee’s surrender....
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Skimming the surface
Dan Berrett writes: “An analysis of research papers written in first-year composition courses at 15 colleges reveals that many students simply copy chunks of text from the sources they cite without truly grasping the underlying argument, quality, or context. The results of the Citation Project were reported on April 7 at the annual meeting of the Conference on College Composition and Communication.” Maura Smale interprets what this means for academic librarians....
Inside Higher Ed, Apr. 11; ACRLog, Apr. 12
What I learned from Banksy
Brian Mathews writes: “I really enjoyed the Banksy movie, Exit through the Gift Shop. The film made me think of a recent project that we had in our library. It was titled Motivational Reflections and brought a street-art vibe into some of our bathrooms. The short version of the story: An enthusiastic student ends up in my office. She pitches an idea for a class project involving bathroom mirrors. Right away I was worried.”...
The Ubiquitous Librarian, Apr. 7
The Google Dictionary option
Phil Bradley writes: “I think that we’re all used to the ‘define:’ option in Google by now, aren’t we? But if you cast your eye down the left-hand menu (clicking to see ‘more search tools’ if necessary) there’s a Dictionary option. This provides you with a better result. It also provides useful examples and some helpful web pages to visit. Nice option.”...
Phil Bradley’s Weblog, Apr. 12
New group for federal librarians
To drive innovations in succession planning and knowledge management in the federal information community, the Federal Library and Information Center Committee has formed a New Librarians Working Group (NewFeds). NewFeds will support the development and advancement of early career professionals with less than five years of federal service. The working group is formalizing its committee infrastructure and setting an agenda for fiscal year 2012....
Library of Congress, Apr. 6
Trove of Walt Whitman papers identified
The National Archives announced the identification April 12 of nearly 3,000 Walt Whitman documents written during his service as a federal government employee. This trove of information, conclusively identified as Whitman’s papers for the first time by University of Nebraska-Lincoln scholar Kenneth Price, sheds light on the legendary poet’s post–Civil War thinking, as well as his published reflections on the state of the nation that soon followed. Watch the video (3:06)....
National Archives, Apr. 12; YouTube, Apr. 9
RDA and the eXtensible Catalog
In early March, Dave Lindahl and Jennifer Bowen from the University of Rochester’s eXtensible Catalog Office were invited to meet with the RDA Test Coordinating Committee at the Library of Congress to discuss XC’s partial implementation of RDA. The committee invited Dave and Jennifer to submit a written statement, which describes the benefits of implementing RDA for new metadata and discovery applications, for inclusion as an Appendix to the group’s final report. The report will include recommendations regarding whether (and how) the U.S. national libraries will implement RDA....
eXtensible Catalog, Apr. 8
Urban Libraries Council selected for Teen Learning Labs Project
The Institute of Museum and Library Services and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation will support a partnership between the Urban Libraries Council and the Association of Science-Technology Centers to manage the Learning Labs Project. Together they will commit $4 million to support knowledge-sharing activities for museums and libraries nationwide, a framework for measuring outcomes, and grants to create up to 30 new Teen Learning Labs....
Institute of Museum and Library Services, Apr. 8
Accessories for bookworms
Caroline Stanley writes: “What do you get for the book nerd who has everything? How about something that allows her to proudly display her love of literature for all the world to see? Here is a roundup of some of our favorite accessories for bookworms, from a tiny typewriter necklace (right) to a ring fashioned out of pages of Jane Eyre.”...
Flavorwire, Apr. 11
Designing a new action figure
Joyce Valenza writes: “I know the Nancy Pearl Library Action Figure is meant to be tongue-in-cheek. I have three in my office, representing both the deluxe and basic varieties. But after years of watching visitors try her amazing push-button shushing action, the joke’s worn thin. So how about this National Library Week, we create a gallery of teacher-librarian superhero avatars and consider their image and their superpowers? Here’s an image I created last month for a workshop.”...
School Library Journal: NeverEndingSearch, Apr. 12