The e-newsletter of the American Library Association | November 20, 2013

Digitizing Camelot
Timothy Inklebarger writes: “Archive staff at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum have been working feverishly for eight years to provide digital content for historic events leading up to the 50th anniversary of the president’s assassination in November. Now it’s their time to shine. Through its website the library provides access to 150 terabytes of information, including approximately 593,500 paper documents, 22,642 photographs, 1,436 sound recordings, and 121 moving images. Online visitors will soon have access to speeches, public events, and other moving images that are being digitally remastered.”...
American Libraries feature

For love of the written word
Mary Mackay writes: “The count is in: The official wrap-up of the 32nd Sharjah International Book Fair November 6–16 in the United Arab Emirates reported that 900,000 visitors had browsed more than 400,000 titles on display in Sharjah’s Expo Centre, 150,000 UAE schoolchildren had participated in more than 500 interactive activities and workshops as part of class trips, and 20 million people had used the Twitter SIBF hashtag for a total of 60 million interactions.”...
AL: The Scoop, Nov. 20

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Relief for Philippine libraries
ALA is accepting donations from the United States for libraries in the Philippines. The Philippines Library Relief Fund will help rebuild libraries and archives in the Philippines that were destroyed or damaged by Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) on November 8, the worst storm in those islands in 101 years. To donate by credit card, visit the ALA Development Office page. To donate by mail, send in the donation form (PDF file)....
International Relations Office; Library of Congress Blog, Nov. 20

Coretta Scott King meets Common Core
The ALA Ethnic and Multicultural Information Exchange Round Table continues its quarterly webinar series with a discussion of the Coretta Scott King Book Awards titles on December 19. The webinar will focus on curricular uses of the books in support of English Language Arts, History/Social Studies, Science and Technical Subjects Common Core State Standards. Register online....
Ethnic and Multicultural Information Exchange Round Table, Nov. 13

New: Statement of appropriate conduct at ALA conferences
From the statement: “ALA seeks to provide a conference environment in which diverse participants may learn, network, and enjoy the company of colleagues in an environment of mutual human respect. We recognize a shared responsibility to create and hold that environment for the benefit of all. Some behaviors are, therefore, specifically prohibited.” Andromeda Yelton has some background on this....
Conference Services, Nov. 15; Andromeda Yelton, Nov. 19

Workplace violence: Are you prepared?
Beatrice Calvin writes: “Workplace violence can be defined as any act or threat of physical violence, harassment, intimidation, or other threatening disruptive behavior that occurs at the work site. It ranges from threats and verbal abuse to physical assaults and even homicide. Nearly 2 million American workers are victims of workplace violence each year. Many incidents go unreported.”...
Library Worklife 10, no. 11 (Nov.)

Webinar on guides for community discussions
The ALA Center for Civic Life and Programming Librarian presented a one-hour webinar titled “Guides for Community Discussions: National Issues Forums (NIF) and Others” on November 5. The webinar featured presenters Patty Dineen, Carolyn Caywood, and Nancy Kranich. View the recorded webinar online....
ALA Center for Civic Life, Nov. 19

Early ALA posters now online
Denise Rayman writes: “Posters used by ALA during its early years are now digitized for long-term preservation and are available for viewing online. Subjects covered include the ALA’s work with the Library War Service to the American military during World War I, the importance of the freedom to read during World War II, celebrating the ALA 50th anniversary in 1926 (right) and the Carnegie Centenary in 1935, as well as librarianship recruitment and general library promotion during the early 20th century.”...
ALA Archives, Nov. 18

Blueprints for libraries, 2025
In an information environment where the only constant is change, many wonder where libraries are headed. Planning Our Future Libraries: Blueprints for 2025 envisions that future by bringing together library leaders with some of the brightest new minds in the profession. Editors Kim Leeder and Eric Frierson, alongside Brett Bonfield, John Chrastka, Lesley Farmer, Dave Harmeyer, Megan Hodge, Ben Malczewski, Krisellen Maloney, and Hugh Rundle, bringing their barrier-breaking perspectives to the task of reinventing the library in all its forms....
ALA Editions, Nov. 19

A LITA guide to data management for libraries
Since the National Science Foundation joined the National Institutes of Health in requiring that grant proposals include a data management plan, academic librarians have been inundated with requests from faculty and campus-based grant-consulting offices. Data management is a new service area for many library staff, requiring careful planning and implementation. Data Management for Libraries: A LITA Guide, by Laura Krier and Carly A. Strasser, offers a start-to-finish primer on understanding, building, and maintaining a data management service....
ALA TechSource, Nov. 19

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The South 9th Street Italian Market
The Italian Market is the popular name for the South 9th Street Curb Market, an area featuring many grocery shops, cafés, restaurants, bakeries, cheese shops, and butcher shops, many with an Italian influence. The historical heart of the market is the area of 9th Street between Christian Street and Washington Avenue, a short bus ride south on 12th Street or a 24-minute walk from the convention center. The market can be especially cozy in the winter when merchants use barrels of fire to keep shoppers warm and all of the smells are heightened....
South 9th Street Italian Market

The new Benjamin Franklin Museum
Dedicated to the life, times, and legacy of Philadelphia’s famous founding father, the Benjamin Franklin Museum at 317 Chestnut Street is has been open 9 a.m.–5 p.m. daily since August following a major two-year revitalization. This world-class museum features personal artifacts, computer animations, and interactive displays exploring Franklin’s life as a private citizen and statesman. Entrance to the museum courtyard is from Market or Chestnut Streets, between 3rd and 4th Streets....
Visit Philadelphia; Waterloo Region (Ont.) Record, Oct. 25

The Barnes Foundation
The Barnes Foundation, 2025 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, was established by Albert C. Barnes in 1922 to “promote the advancement of education and the appreciation of the fine arts and horticulture.” The Barnes holds one of the finest collections of Post-Impressionist and early Modern paintings, with extensive works by Renoir, Cézanne, Matisse, Picasso, Rousseau, Modigliani, Soutine, and de Chirico. One notable aspect is its display of different types of items and works in “wall ensembles” (right) that allow comparison and study of works from various time periods, geographic areas, and styles....
The Barnes Foundation

Keith Haring “We the Youth” mural restored
A mural created 26 years ago by pop artist Keith Haring got a makeover recently. Created with the help of children in 1987, “We The Youth” features many of Haring’s signature dancing figures in eye-poppingly bright colors. It’s the only collaborative public mural by the late artist that is still intact and at its original site, at 22nd and Ellsworth Streets in South Philadelphia. Artist Kim Alsbrooks was chosen to restore the work for the city’s Mural Arts Program....
Associated Press, Nov. 18

David Lee King’s travel tips
David Lee King writes: “I’ve been doing a lot of traveling the past 7–8 years, mainly for speaking and consulting engagements. And I have picked up some travel tips along the way, including: You have to communicate with the airline if you miss your flight, or they will automatically cancel your whole round-trip ticket.”...
David Lee King, Nov. 8

Keep your laptop secure when you travel
Alex Cocilova writes: “Of course your laptop is coming with you on your trip. It’s our entertainment at the airport and on the plane. It’s our office umbilical cord—because you know you can never completely escape work. But there are all too many ways that it can come to harm—or even disappear with someone who covets it as much as you do. Follow these tips for laptop security, and you won’t have to ask Santa to bring you a new one.”...
PC World, Nov. 18

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AASL conference draws authors and crowds
Laurie D. Borman writes: “The 16th AASL National Conference and Exhibition in Hartford, Connecticut, themed ‘Rising to the Challenge,’ drew some 3,000 school librarians, administrators, and exhibitors over its four-day run, November 14–17. The biannual gathering featured 168 exhibitors, an authors’ alley where dozens of writers and illustrators signed books during the course of the conference, an author-librarian tweetup, and an unconference in the evening, as well as concurrent sessions and informal networking events.” See more coverage and Twitter Talk on the AASL Blog....
AL: The Scoop, Nov. 15, 19; AASL, Nov. 19; School Library Journal: NeverEndingSearch, Nov. 17

2014 Teen Tech Week
The time has come to DIY @ your library! Registration for Teen Tech Week, YALSA’s annual celebration of digital literacy and technology via the library, is now open. Held next year on March 9–15, Teen Tech Week is a chance to demonstrate the value your library gives to the community. Use the week to raise awareness about how your library creates a space to extend teens’ learning beyond the classroom where they can explore, create, and share content....
YALSA, Nov. 15

YALSA joins Giving Tuesday
YALSA has joined #GivingTuesday, a first-of-its-kind effort that will harness the collective power of a unique blend of partners—charities, families, businesses, and individuals—to transform how people think about, talk about, and participate in the giving season. Taking place December 3, the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, #GivingTuesday will harness the power of social media to create a national moment around the holidays. YALSA will be using a platform called Thunderclap to flood Twitter and Facebook with a “Support libraries” message....
YALSA, Nov. 15

Literary landmark designated for Larry Brown
United for Libraries, in partnership with Friends of the Lafayette County and Oxford (Miss.) Public Library, designated the library a Literary Landmark in honor of Larry Brown (1951–2004) on November 11. Brown, award-winning author of Joe and Big Bad Love, was a frequent patron and strong supporter of the library, establishing the Larry Brown Writers Series. Born in Lafayette County, Brown gave the keynote address at the library reopening after renovations in 1997....
United for Libraries, Nov. 19

Start an academic Friends group
United for Libraries has made available a free toolkit to those looking to start a Friends of the Library group at a college, community college, or university. Academic Library Friends: A Toolkit for Getting Started—You Can Do This! (PDF file) was written by Charles D. Hanson, director of Kettering University Library Services in Flint, Michigan. The toolkit provides information on the value of a Friends group, how to get started, developing a mission, and marketing....
United for Libraries, Nov. 19

New guide for physics selectors
ALCTS has published Sudden Selectors Guide to Physics Resources by Michael Fosmire, a new title from the ALCTS Collection Management Section. The latest in the Sudden Selectors Guide series, the book explains the basics of physics to the nonscientist and lays the groundwork for collecting and using physics materials. It is available both in softcover and as a downloadable PDF....
ALCTS, Nov. 19

A fresh look at microforms
Managing Microforms in the Digital Age, a new ALCTS online publication by Kitti Canepi, Becky Ryder, Michelle Sitko, and Catherine Weng, addresses trends in bibliographic control, storage environment, current vendors and resources, and microform terminology. A revision of the division’s 1977 “Guidelines for Handling Library Orders for Microforms,” the publication offers some basic information about managing microform collections....
ALCTS, Nov. 19

Discover best practices for institutional repositories
The Institutional Repository: Benefits and Challenges, edited by Pamela Bluh and Cindy Hepfer, arms readers with the information they need to begin planning a successful institutional repository by presenting best practices related to libraries and institutional repositories and reflecting the variety and scope of topics with which IR managers must be familiar....
ALCTS, Nov. 19

Linked data webinar series
LITA is offering a series of webinars on linked data. The series begins with “Linked Data Primer” on December 5, continues with “Coding Experiments to Transform MARC to Linked Data” on January 14, and concludes with “SKOS, SPARQL, and Vocabulary Management” on February 11. Participants may register for one or more webinars....
LITA, Nov. 14

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Natalie Ziarnik receives 2014 Bechtel Fellowship
ALSC and its Special Collections and Bechtel Fellowship Committee have awarded the 2014 Louise Seaman Bechtel Fellowship to Natalie Ziarnik (right), head of the children’s department at the Ela Area Public Library District in Lake Zurich, Illinois. Ziarnik will spend four weeks or more reading and studying at the Baldwin Library of Historical Children’s Literature at the University of Florida....
ALSC, Nov. 15

2013 Gerald Hodges Award
The Gerald Hodges Intellectual Freedom Chapter Relations Award recognizes an intellectual freedom–focused organization that has developed a strong multiyear, ongoing program or a single, one-year project that exemplifies support for intellectual freedom, patron confidentiality, and anticensorship efforts. The award consists of $1,000 and a citation. The deadline for 2013 nominations has been extended to January 1....
Office for Intellectual Freedom, Nov. 18

Deadline extended for two new awards
The Library Instruction Round Table invites nominations for two new awards. The LIRT Librarian Recognition Award will be presented to an individual librarian in appreciation for her/his contributions to the field. The LIRT Innovation in Instruction Award will be given to a library that demonstrates innovation in support of information literacy and instruction. The nominations deadline for both is January 15....
Library Instruction Round Table, Nov. 19

Only two weeks left for PLA award nominations
There are nine PLA awards and grants that highlight the best in public library service and honor those bringing innovation, creativity, and dedication to public libraries. Many of the awards include an honorarium provided through the generosity of PLA sponsors. Nominate yourself, your colleague, or your library by December 2....
PLA, Nov. 19

Apply for Academic Friend Conference grant
The United for Libraries/Sage Academic Friend Conference Grant enables a person who is active in his or her college or university Friends of the Library group, or an academic library staff member who works in development, to attend the ALA Annual Conference. Apply by January 15 for the grant of $850, plus full registration for the 2014 ALA Annual Conference in Las Vegas, June 26–July 1....
United for Libraries, Nov. 19

SJSU library school wins Sloan-C Award
The School of Library and Information Science at San José State University is the recipient of a 2013 Sloan Consortium Effective Practice Award, honoring innovation in online education. The award recognizes the SLIS’s effective use of the Sloan-C Quality Scorecard for the Administration of Online Education Programs, which the school uses to measure the quality of its online graduate programs....
San José State University SLIS, Nov. 13

Scottish Books of the Year
The winners of the annual Saltire Literary Awards were announced at a ceremony in Glasgow on November 14. The Scottish Book of the Year Award went to John Burnside’s Something Like Happy (Jonathan Cape), an acclaimed collection of short stories. The Scottish First Book of the Year Award was jointly given to American author Tim Armstrong’s Air Cuan Dubh Drilseach (On a Glittering Black Sea)—the first-ever Gaelic sci-fi novel—and Eunice Buchanan’s As Far As I Can See: Selected Poems and a Tale....
Saltire Society, Nov. 15; The Scotsman (UK), Nov. 15

2013 Governor General’s Literary Award
Eleanor Catton, winner of the Booker Prize in October, has now claimed Canada’s Governor General’s Literary Award for fiction for The Luminaries, a mystery set in the 19th-century gold rush in New Zealand. The Canadian-born, New Zealand author was the youngest-ever (28) winner of the Booker, for which she took home about $80,000. The Governor General’s prize is worth another $25,000....
AbeBooks’ Reading Copy, Nov. 18

2013 Butler Book Prize
Stephen Reid, Canada’s most notorious bank robber, is the winner of the 2013 City of Victoria (B.C.) Butler Book Prize for A Crowbar in the Buddhist Garden: Writing from Prison (Thistledown). The book is a collection of unflinching, harrowing essays that detail Reid’s experiences as an addict, criminal, writer, and prison inmate. The prize, worth $5,000 Canadian, was awarded at a gala event on October 16 in Victoria. Reid was unable to attend, as he is still serving time for a 1999 bank robbery....
AbeBooks’ Reading Copy, Nov. 15

2013 Royal Society Young People’s Book Prize
Look inside Space by Rob Lloyd-Jones (Usborne) has won the Royal Society Young People’s Book Prize for 2013. The announcement was made at a ceremony at the Royal Society in London on November 11. The winning title was chosen from a shortlist of six by more than 1,000 young people at more than 100 schools and youth centers across the UK....
Royal Society, Nov. 12

2013 Polari First Book Prize
Mari Hannah was named the winner of the 2013 Polari First Book Prize, given for a debut work that explores the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender experience, on November 13 for her debut novel The Murder Wall (Pan). She was presented with £1,000 ($1,612 US) by Vincent Francois, chair of the UK LGBT Network. The book features a lesbian detective operating in a typically male-dominated environment....
The Bookseller, Nov. 14

2013 Green Carnation Prize
Andrew Solomon’s Far From the Tree (Chatto & Windus) has won the Green Carnation Prize, which celebrates lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender literature. The book is a study of family that tells the stories of parents who learn to deal with exceptional children. The prize was founded in 2010 by author Paul Magrs and journalist and blogger Simon Savidge as an award celebrating the best fiction and memoirs by gay men....
The Bookseller, Nov. 19

2013 Business Book of the Year
Brad Stone’s The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon (Little, Brown) has won the £30,000 ($48,350 US) Financial Times and Goldman Sachs Business Book of the Year award for 2013. The award, which recognizes the book that provides “the most compelling and enjoyable insight into modern business issues,” was presented November 18 at a ceremony in London. Editor Lionel Barber said the book “captures the culture of Amazon and the character of its founder Jeff Bezos,” describing it as “a must-read for disrupters around the world.”...
The Bookseller, Nov. 19

American Library in Paris Book Award
Fredrik Logevall has won the first American Library in Paris Book Award for his Embers of War: The Fall of an Empire and the Making of America’s Vietnam (Random House). The library plans to offer the $5,000 award annually for what its jury considers the most distinguished book of the year about France or the encounters between France and the United States. The jury cited Embers for its “thematic relevance for an American institution in France, and its cautionary pertinence at the present.”...
New York Times: Arts Beat, Nov. 18

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Lafourche Parish supports its libraries
Voters in Lafourche Parish, Louisiana, rejected a measure November 16 that would have taken property tax money that currently goes to public libraries and used it to build a new jail. The parishwide proposal failed by a vote of 56% in an election that saw a 15% turnout. Over-the-top racial comments by parish council Chairman Lindel Toups (right) apparently struck a nerve with library supporters....
Thibodaux (La.) Daily Comet, Nov. 16; Houma (La.) Tri-Parish Times, Nov. 13

Twiggs library closes two weeks after it’s built
The Twiggs County (Ga.) Public Library closed for lack of funding November 19 without employees knowing when it would reopen. A contentious meeting took place the same day in which County Commission Chairman Kenneth Fowler attempted to have the sheriff and deputies remove Commissioner Tommie Lee Bryant. In the end, the county did not allocate $14,000 for the library to continue operations. Fowler and Donald Floyd voted to fund it, while Bryant voted not to. The brand-new library, which opened in early November, was built with mostly state money. Its operating budget is funded locally....
Macon (Ga.) Telegraph, Nov. 20

UNT libraries face severe budget crunch
The University of North Texas Libraries in Denton were notified November 13 that they must absorb an additional $1.7 million in costs annually to pay benefits for employees through student usage fees (rather than general state funding), a move that set off a flood of social media complaints and a new Save the UNT Library blog. The library might have to cut roughly the same amount from its acquisitions budget and other services to make up for the loss. However, Dean of Libraries Martin T. Halbert released a statement November 15 saying that speculation was premature. Brian Mathews adds, “To me the most interesting component of this story is the advocacy.”...
Denton (Tex.) Record Chronicle, Nov. 16; Save the UNT Library; Chronicle of Higher Education: The Ubiquitous Librarian, Nov. 17

Library services used by homeless get support in Minnesota
Across Minnesota, many low-income and homeless people turn to public libraries for health information and educational resources. The downtown Minneapolis Central Library sees up to 400 homeless visitors on any given day and word is spreading that the library has services that can help those who need it. Now those programs are getting a financial boost.”...
Minnesota Public Radio, Nov. 16

Orland Park holds public hearing
The Orland Park (Ill.) Public Library board met November 18 to take up its new budget and to hear comments from the public on its internet filtering policy. About 75 people attended the meeting, the first since the policy came under scrutiny October 21, when two individuals demanded restrictions on access to pornography that were similar to policies at several nearby public libraries. Orland Park Mayor Dan McLaughlin entered the debate November 12 when he asked Library Board President Nancy Healy to consider putting filters on adult computers. ALA and the editors of the Chicago Sun-Times disagree with that approach....
Chicago Tribune, Nov. 17–18; Chicago Sun-Times, Nov. 19

NYPL looks to save some stacks
Jennifer Maloney writes: “The New York Public Library’s new plan for the renovation of its landmark Fifth Avenue building envisions a high-ceilinged reading room with up to six levels of century-old book stacks preserved at each end, according to a Manhattan architect and other people who have seen the plans. The revised design represents a response to the outcry over schematics the library released in December 2012 that called for demolishing the building’s seven-level book-stack structure, which provides structural support for its Rose Main Reading Room.”...
Wall Street Journal, Nov. 15

Montana librarian faces dismissal over aromatic oils
Problems with a sinking foundation closed the Meagher County City Library in White Sulphur Springs, Montana, for eight weeks in 2009. A mold incursion in 2011 forced the county to reconstruct the library’s janitorial room, and concerns about the building’s air quality shut down the library for most of October. Now, a dispute about the use of aromatic oils to mask a musty odor, sewer gas, and cleaning chemicals threatens to keep the library’s hours of operation shortened and could end with Director Debbie Benedict’s dismissal....
Great Falls (Mont.) Tribune, Nov. 14

Recovered fraud funds go to Sacramento library
A judge on November 15 approved a restitution payment of $480,000 to the Sacramento (Calif.) Public Library Authority out of assets seized from three people convicted in a fraud case in 2011. Most of the funds were recovered from a house owned by one of the defendants in the fraud case, former library employee Dennis Nilsson. Officials estimated that the library lost approximately $825,000 in a fraudulent billing scheme....
Sacramento (Calif.) Bee, Nov. 15

Attempt to reinstate Gorton school librarian fails
After hearing the concerns of parents, teachers, and students regarding the lack of a full-time librarian at Gorton Junior High School in Warwick, Rhode Island, which was eliminated in the summer due to budget cuts, the school committee considered reversing that decision November 12 but ultimately the motion failed....
Warwick (R.I.) Beacon, Nov. 14

Neil Gaiman joins Edinburgh library fight
Acclaimed author Neil Gaiman (right) has joined parents and fellow novelists to criticize plans to lay off dedicated school librarians across Edinburgh, Scotland. Around 12 librarian posts could be eliminated at the city’s 23 high schools as part of a budget cut that would save £400,000 ($644,490 US). The proposal has provoked outrage among librarians, who have branded it a “big fat cut” that will discourage kids from reading. Gaiman expressed his concern by tweeting messages to his 1.9 million followers....
Edinburgh Evening News, Nov. 7; Society of Authors, Nov. 19

Václav Havel Library opens in Paris
Mayor of Paris Bertrand Delanoe and Czech Ambassador Marie Chatardova opened the Václav Havel Library in Paris on November 6. The Bibliothèque Václav Havel is located in the northern part of the city at 26 Esplanade Nathalie Sarraute (off Rue Pajol). Named after the former Czech president, the library offers 40,000 volumes, 3,000 DVDs, and a space dedicated to video games....
Czech News Agency, Nov. 7

London’s French expats get their own library
A small London library has partnered with a counterpart in Paris to offer modern French-language classics to appeal to the capital’s huge population from across the Channel. The Church Street Library at 67 Church Street in Westminster hopes to attract French expats after it struck an agreement with the Place des Fêtes library in Paris. The two libraries have already exchanged 150 books....
The Independent (UK), Nov. 8

Asian resource-sharing agreement
Librarians in China and other Asian countries have agreed on strengthening collaboration and promoting resource sharing in the digital era. More than 80 chief librarians and representatives from Asian countries and the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions signed the Declaration of Kunming at the Asian Library Curator Forum, which kicked off November 18 in Kunming, China. Watch the video (2:25)....
Xinhua, Nov. 20; CNTV News (Beijing), Nov. 19

A new national library branch in South Korea
The National Sejong Library is scheduled to open December 12 in Sejong City, a new planned city in South Korea created to house government ministries and national agencies. The exterior of the library is in the shape of a book with two wings that are slightly lifted up towards the sky. The library is also attracting attention as an eco-friendly, low-energy-use facility. In addition to its role in support of government, the Sejong Library will also serve as a public library....
Dong-A Ilbo (Seoul), Nov. 9; Daelim, June 28

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Google Book Search case dismissed
After eight years of litigation, the US District Court for the Southern District of New York upheld the fair-use doctrine November 14 when it dismissed Authors Guild v. Google. At issue was whether Google’s scanning of more than 20 million copies of books from research libraries to create a searchable database constitutes a fair use under copyright law. Judge Chin’s ruling (PDF file) was an emphatic affirmation that yes, the Google Book Search project is a fair use. The Authors Guild plans an appeal. The Library Copyright Alliance welcomed Chin’s decision. Kevin Smith, Nancy Sims, Carrie Russell, Mark C. Rosenzweig, and others offer some commentary....
District Dispatch, Nov. 14; Office for Information Technology Policy, Nov. 14; New York Times, Nov. 15; Scholarly Communications @ Duke, Nov. 17; Copyright Librarian, Nov. 14; AL: E-Content, Nov. 19; Library Juice, Nov. 20; Library Journal: InfoDocket, Nov. 14

Trouble still ahead for some Healthcare.gov users
Roughly one in five visitors to Healthcare.gov won’t be able to buy insurance coverage November 30 when the bulk of repairs to the troubled website are supposed to be completed, the White House announced November 18. These 20% of frustrated site users will fall into three categories: those who aren’t comfortable using computers, those who encounter technical problems on the site, and those with complicated family situations that make it difficult to determine whether they qualify for subsidies to help pay for coverage....
Government Technology, Nov. 19; New York Times: The Conscience of a Liberal, Nov. 20

Public libraries overtaxed by giving healthcare help
PLA President Carolyn A. Anthony writes: “While government officials in Washington work to repair the Affordable Care Act’s enrollment website and Congress investigates the site’s breakdown, Maryland resident Marie Williams goes to her local library every week to take computer classes. Like many Americans, Williams does not have email or know how to use a keyboard. And yet, nationwide, patrons just like her are required to understand the new health care website, even as they lack basic computer skills, email, and internet access.”...
Al Jazeera America, Nov. 15

Two students launch Open Access Button
On November 18, at an international meeting of student advocates for expanded access to academic research, two undergraduates from Great Britain announced the launch of the Open Access Button, a browser-based tool that maps the epidemic of denied access to academic research articles and helps users find the research they need. David Carroll and Joseph McArthur created the button in response to their own frustrations with gaining access to research results....
Open Access Button blog, Nov. 18

Revamping the E-rate system
Caitlin Emma writes: “Supporters of a plan to overhaul the E-rate program for schools and libraries, which is being fast-tracked by the FCC and promoted by President Obama, want to phase out the days of the clunky computer lab and shift to putting technology directly into students’ hands all day. But the timeline is ambitious, and the effort faces challenges from some in the telecom industry, which provides money for the program through fees charged to consumers. Despite good intentions, the work could get bogged down by the regulatory process.”...
Politico, Nov. 19

Public libraries and web technologies, 2012
The new Library Research Service report, US Public Libraries and the Use of Web Technologies, 2012 (PDF file), presents the findings of the third iteration of its biennial study that documents the use of various technologies on the websites of nearly 600 public libraries throughout the US. The results showed that public libraries made big gains in social networking, mobile access, and text reference from 2010 to 2012....
Library Research Service, Nov. 18

Gender issues in library technology
Nicholas Schiller writes: “Conversations about gender relations, bias, and appropriate behavior have bubbled up all over the technology sector recently. On October 28, Sarah Houghton, director of the San Rafael (Calif.) Public Library, moderated a panel on gender in library technology at the Internet Librarian conference. I’d like to share my contributions to the panel discussion that day and explain how my understanding of the issues changed afterwards. It is my hope that more talking and more listening about gender issues will follow.”...
ACRL TechConnect, Nov. 19

Creative destruction in libraries
Caro Pinto writes: “Joseph Schumpeter defines creative destruction as a ‘process of industrial mutation that incessantly revolutionizes the economic structure from within, incessantly destroying the old one, incessantly creating a new one.’ As libraries struggle with how to position themselves to thrive in the digital age, how can we balance the traditional elements of librarianship like collecting and reference with the demands of the present, all without sacrificing staffing and support for collections, space, and community?”...
In the Library with the Lead Pipe, Nov. 20

Obama administration declassifies secret NSA order
The Obama administration has declassified a court order that allowed the National Security Agency to collect records on the internet activities of millions of Americans. The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court opinion (PDF file, right) permitted the NSA to collect records such as the “to” and “from” in emails as well as their time and date, but did not allow the collection of email contents. The government blacked out the date of the order. Tim Cushing writes that the documents are “at odds with continuous declarations that utmost care has been taken to prevent violating the privacy of Americans.”...
The Hill, Nov. 19; Techdirt, Aug. 1, Nov. 19

The scariest part about the internet of things
Brian Fung writes: “From ovens to garage doors to insulin pumps to vehicles, many of our devices are going to be connected to the internet in the same sense that our phones are now. Your bathroom scale might tell your refrigerator that you’re overweight, and your fridge might start recommending healthier recipes. That could be great, but it also vastly expands the universe of things that could go wrong, particularly when it comes to privacy.”...
Washington Post: The Switch, Nov. 19

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10 things you need to know about the Playstation 4
Jordan Minor writes: “Gamers can finally get their hands on Sony’s next-generation video game console. With its cheaper price point and stronger emphasis on gaming, the PS4 looks to undo the shortcomings of its predecessor while aiming to undercut its biggest competition, the Xbox One. Whether you are upgrading from a PS3 or are new to the platform, here’s what you should know before you make the leap.” Check out the PS4’s facial recognition feature....
PC Magazine, Nov. 15; ExtremeTech, Nov. 14

How to buy a laptop
Brian Westover writes: “The laptop market has undergone major changes in the last year, and there may be more confusion in the laptop aisle today than at any other time. Some laptops double as tablets, with hinges that bend and fold, while other touch PCs are actually slate tablets that come with accessory keyboards for laptop-style use. There’s simply too much variety in the laptop space for one size or style to fit every person’s needs. That’s where this buying guide comes in.” Jump ahead to find the 10 best laptops, the best ultrabooks, and the best gaming laptops....
PC Magazine, Nov. 6, 13–14

Can you use any charger with any device?
Chris Hoffman writes: “Every device—smartphone, tablet, e-reader, laptop—seems to come with its own charger. But do you really need all these chargers? Can you reuse the same charger for multiple devices? The Micro-USB connectors and chargers shipped with most modern smartphones and tablets are now supposed to be standardized. This is a topic that’s more confusing than it should be, given this standardization.”...
How-To Geek, Nov. 19

Make It @ your library
Katie Behrens writes: “Make It @ your library grew out of an IMLS grant-funded library program with the ‘intention of helping librarians realize makerspace projects in their communities.’ So far, the curating librarians have featured over 150 projects from Instructables that are good fits for the library, depending on available tools, materials, and time. Projects range from simple stamp making to a turn-signal biking jacket (wearable electronics, above) to a clay MaKey MaKey controller. The projects are sorted into five categories.”...
The Library As Incubator Project, Nov. 20; Make It @ your library

Building a dynamic image display in Drupal with Isotope
Meghan Frazer writes: “I am in love with Isotope. It’s not often that you hear someone profess their love for a JQuery library (unless it’s this), but there it is. I want to display everything in animated grids. I also love Views Isotope, a Drupal 7 module that enabled me to create a dynamic image gallery for our school’s Year in Review. This module (paired with a few others) is instrumental in building our new digital library.”...
ACRL TechConnect, Nov. 11

Create RSS feeds for Twitter
Amit Agarwal writes: “Twitter has dropped support for RSS Feeds but there does exist a slightly complicated solution that you may use to generate feeds for your various Twitter streams including Twitter search results, user timelines, and even Twitter lists. Without RSS feeds, it is difficult to use your Twitter data elsewhere. But here is a new workaround that is much easier to implement (you can get a Twitter RSS feed in two minutes) and more reliable as well.”...
Digital Inspiration, June 14, Nov. 15

Beautifully designed tech gifts
Chandra Steele writes: “The hardest people to buy for can be the ones who value design the most. Don’t worry; they even have difficulty shopping for themselves. The good news is that there are some universally acknowledged hallmarks of good design and PC Magazine has used them to pick out the gifts in our gallery. Once you’ve got a Dieter Rams– or Philippe Starck–designed gift in the bag, it’s time to move on to the rest of your list.”...
PC Magazine, Nov. 18

The Adobe breach and public libraries
Ken Westin writes: “We are a few weeks into the Adobe data breach announced in October and have seen the risks that it poses. Many think this breach only affects people who have purchased Adobe software, but this is not the case. Doing some research, I found that one of the key users of Adobe DRM is a company called OverDrive. Want to use your Kindle to check out an ebook from the local public library? Sure, but you will have to create an Adobe ID to do so, in addition to providing your library card number.”...
The State of Security, Nov. 18; CNET News, Oct. 3

OverDrive rolls out Netflix-like streaming video
Sarah Bayliss writes: “OverDrive announced a new streaming video lending service now available at the Los Angeles Public Library and rolling out at more pilot libraries this month. Over time, the service will be available to all libraries and schools that use OverDrive products. Using the Netflix-like service, borrowers will be able to watch videos and movies on any tablet, computer, or device with an internet connection.”...
School Library Journal: The Digital Shift, Nov. 20; OverDrive Digital Library Blog, June 28

Libraries and digital media
Ava Seave writes: “OverDrive dominates the US public library market with its digital platform. According to the company, they have annual revenues in excess of $100 million, are growing at a double-digit percentage, and are profitable. OverDrive’s business model is to be the most comprehensive supplier of digital materials for the most comprehensive collection of digital gadgets.” Be sure to read part 2 on library pricing models....
Forbes, Nov. 18–19

Goodreads comes to Kindle Fire HD, Paperwhite
Goodreads integration will be rolling out to Kindle Fire HD and HDX owners over-the-air in the next couple of weeks. Alternatively, you can visit Amazon’s website and download Fire OS 3.1 right now. Goodreads brings social book reading features to the tablet, so you can rate and review books and find out what your friends are reading. A Goodreads upgrade is also available for the Kindle Paperwhite....
Engadget, Nov. 18; GigaOM, Nov. 19

The fortuitous dis-integration of an ILS
Christopher Harris writes: “Innovative Interfaces has been a strong player in the integrated library system field for many years, but its new take on ebook management could thrive in the new field of dis-integrated services. As more big library systems turn to external discovery platforms and other extended digital services, the future of the all-in-one ILS looks increasingly iffy. Part of the problem is the unending struggle between innovation and stability.”...
AL: E-Content, Nov. 20

Preparing for digitization
Christina Duffy writes: “Planning a digitization project can be a lengthy process. Some practical aspects are considering the condition and format of items, and identifying what needs to be done to items to make them camera ready. In order to minimize the risks of wear and tear, all items should be assessed before appearing in the imaging studio. Here are some examples of what to look out for.”...
British Library: Collection Care blog, Nov. 19

The dividends of digitization investment
Judy Ruttenberg writes: “Today the Association of Research Libraries and Ithaka S+R, a nonprofit research and consulting group, released Searching for Sustainability: Strategies from Eight Digitized Special Collections (PDF file). The report was funded by an IMLS National Leadership Grant. From major research universities and national museums to small historical societies and colleges, the cases show the enormous and transformative contribution of digitized special collections to research, teaching, community building.”...
UpNext: The IMLS Blog, Nov. 20; Association of Research Libraries, Nov. 20

An author’s take on ebooks
Anthony Howard writes: “Last year, ebook sales in the United Kingdom more than doubled, as did their share of the entire books market—to almost 15%. Despite an understandable reluctance on the part of many readers to join this revolution (and in time it might well prove to be that) ebooks are here to stay. So why not embrace them and discover the advantages?”...
The Guardian (UK), Nov. 19

Italy experiments with ILL for ebooks
Sue Polanka writes: “I received an email message from Silvia Franchini in Italy about a new ebook ILL experiment with MediaLibraryOnline, the first Italian network of digital public libraries. MLOL operates in libraries in 12 Italian regions, in Switzerland, Slovenia, and in the Istituto Italiano di Cultura of Tokyo and Osaka. The program is in a six-month beta period to loan ebooks for 14 days across the MLOL network of libraries. The news is in Italian, but I offer an English summary here (based on a Google translation).”...
No Shelf Required, Nov. 19; MediaLibraryOnline

2014 Midwinter Meeting and Exhibits, Philadelphia, January 24–28. The Midwinter Scheduler is now open. Make the most of the Midwinter Meeting when you use the scheduler to plan your time, browse sessions and events, add personal meetings to your schedule, find an attendee, share your plans with others, create a list of exhibitors to visit, and keep track of all the details.

Libraries and librarians in comic books
Mychal R. Ludwig writes: “LIS workers of all categories are quite commonly utilized in fictional settings as main and supporting characters, as well as for incidental run-ins with those primary persons. How exactly are these infoprofessionals portrayed in both personality and in comportment? I’ve gone through my own collection of comic books and found an encouragingly diverse set of librarians and other infoworkers.”...
INALJ, Nov. 18

Essential Scottish sci-fi
John Birch writes: “Science fiction has many strands and can be as fun or as serious as your tastes demand. You can choose from philosophical musings to pulp action, from hard science to science fantasy, from the far future to the day after tomorrow. Scotland has produced a diverse range of fiction to add to this weave. Try some of these works as an essential introduction to new worlds and speculations on Scotland’s future.”...
Scottish Book Trust, Nov. 4

The 25 best sci-fi books of all time
Megan Willett and Peter Jacobs write: “Science fiction is about imagination. The genre forces both readers and writers to think beyond the confines of their own universe while considering major themes like morality, family, and war. The best sci-fi books show both the opportunities and consequences of human innovation, while demonstrating the infinite possibilities of what could happen when we push the boundaries of science.” This list came from threads on Reddit....
Business Insider, Nov. 8

Ten great forgotten classics
Alison Nastasi writes: “The classics are classics for a reason, and while some novels hold timeless appeal, others have faded into obscurity. An interesting list highlighted in The Times Literary Supplement was written by editor Clement K. Shorter for the Illustrated London News in 1898. He named 100 of the best novels ever written. We browsed Shorter’s picks and selected 10 great books that should inspire further exploration.”...
Flavorwire, Nov. 16; The TLS Blog, Oct. 30

The girl myth in YA fiction
Kelly Jensen writes: “In the YA fiction realm—and beyond it, too—we trap teen girl characters into two mythologies. The first is that girls should only have decorated edges, smooth and palatable. The second is that of the girl who is ‘not like’ other girls, who often doesn’t know what it even means to be a girl. It’s these mythologies that stir intense reader reactions, and these mythologies continue because both authors and readers perpetuate them.”...
Book Riot, Nov. 18

Classic YA heroines of the past
Leah Pickett writes: “Young adults still enjoy reading, especially when the story is set in a sci-fi dystopian universe and the hero is their age. This got me thinking about how the literary heroes of today compare to those of YA novels past, and why girls cling to an abysmal role model like Twilight’s Bella Swan when they have so many others from classic literature to admire. Could The Hunger Games’s Katniss even exist without the spunky, brave, and arguably more complex heroines who came before?”...
Leah Pickett: WBEZ-FM, Chicago, Nov. 19

What would The Big Bang Theory characters read?
Brandi Smits writes: “What books would I recommend to my favorite TV and movie characters? I decided to examine the possible reading tastes of the ensemble cast of The Big Bang Theory. Some of the characters may be obvious in their reading preferences. How many times have we heard Raj talk about Twilight? So now, here are my recommendations for our nerdy male Big Bang friends.”...
YALSA The Hub, Nov. 19

Teens coming to America
Diane Colson writes: “Thanksgiving offers the perfect opportunity to appreciate the experiences of young people who have immigrated to the United States. All of the books listed here have appeared on various YALSA lists. They are true accounts; memoirs, biographies, and third-person accounts. There are also many great YA novels that explore the difficulties teens face when first encountering American culture.”...
YALSA The Hub, Nov. 18

Seven famous lost literary works
Jason Diamond writes: “In 1956, Ernest Hemingway discovered in a trunk stored at the Ritz Hotel in Paris for some 30 years several lost manuscripts and notes, some of which would eventually make up A Moveable Feast, one of the most famous literary memoirs ever. But think about the works by all the great writers that didn’t survive. Whether tossed into the fire, stolen, or just plain lost in a box somewhere, here are a few storied pieces of writing that we’ll probably never get to read.”...
Flavorwire, Nov. 19

JFK Library invites public to online tribute
The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Foundation in Boston announced November 19 the launch of An Idea Lives On, an online tribute to JFK that aims to create a multigenerational conversation about the many ways in which the legacy of our nation’s 35th president lives on today. Named for Kennedy’s observation that “A man may die, nations may rise and fall, but an idea lives on,” the project invites the public to participate in the creation of an interactive documentary....
John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Nov. 19

33 teaching resources on the Kennedy assassination
Julie Greller writes: “I have had an interest in the JFK assassination since 8th grade, when I wrote a research paper on it. This monumental event has captivated the world and has remained a mystery to those of us who believe that a conspiracy was involved. Friday, November 22, 2013, marks the 50th anniversary of Kennedy’s death. His youthful good looks will forever be frozen in time. This is a teaching moment for all students.”...
A Media Specialist’s Guide to the Internet, Nov. 18

JFK and the National Library of Medicine
Kenneth M. Koyle and Jeffrey S. Reznick write: “One chapter in John F. Kennedy’s legacy involves the National Library of Medicine. During his tenure as senator of Massachusetts (1953–1960), Kennedy cosponsored with Alabama Sen. J. Lister Hill a bill that transferred the library, then known as the Armed Forces Medical Library, to the US Public Health Service and named it the National Library of Medicine. Kennedy saw his vision realized in 1962.”...
Circulating Now, Nov. 18

Warren Report available through GPO
The US Government Printing Office has made the official digital version of the 900-page Warren Commission Report, published in September 1964, available on the agency’s Federal Digital System (large PDF file). The commission was created by President Lyndon Johnson and chaired by Chief Justice Earl Warren to investigate President Kennedy’s assassination. Georgetown University’s Lauinger Library, a federal depository library, provided a copy of the report for digitization....
Government Printing Office, Nov. 18

Oswald had an overdue library book
After the assassination, the FBI asked Dallas Public Library Director Lillian Bradshaw (who later became ALA president in 1970–1971) for records of Lee Harvey Oswald’s transactions at the library. The search took months, according to a current display at the J. Erik Jonsson Central Library, because circulation records, stored on microfiche, weren’t indexed. Oswald had checked out one book that was overdue at the time of his death: The Shark and the Sardines, by former Guatemalan President Juan José Arévalo....
Dallas Morning News: The Scoop Blog, Nov. 12

LC to preserve public broadcasting archive
Early interviews with John F. Kennedy, Hubert Humphrey, Thurgood Marshall (right), and Ronald Reagan are part of a collection of public broadcast recordings dating to the 1950s that will be preserved at the Library of Congress. Under a project funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and announced November 14, some 40,000 hours of radio and TV content is being digitized for long-term preservation. It will become the American Archive of Public Broadcasting and will be housed at the library’s National Audio-Visual Conservation Center in underground vaults in Culpeper, Virginia....
Washington Post, Nov. 14; Library of Congress, Nov. 14

Clearing the mind clutter
Jill E. Luedke writes: “As a teacher of lifelong research skills, it’s part of my responsibility to give students tools to help them handle their frustrations and preconceptions about research. How could I expect students to process what I was saying if their brains weren’t ready to receive the information? I began the experiment of devoting a few minutes of my sessions to guided mindful meditation as a way of preparing them to be receptive learners.”...
ACRLog, Nov. 18

Wikipedian in Residence programs
Dorothy Howard writes: “After three-and-a-half months at the Metropolitan New York Library Council, I’m still figuring out what it means to be a consortium-based Wikipedian-in-Residence. Consortium WiRs have a different set of tasks and responsibilities than the more familiar WiR model. In the traditional WiR role, the WiR generally presides over the editing activities of a particular institution and creates and edits content about the institution’s history, collections, and related topics. As I see it, there are three main types of WiR positions.”...
Wikimedia Blog, Nov. 15

Call for IFLA poster sessions
Interested in presenting a poster session at the IFLA World Library and Information Congress in Lyon, France? Presenters of a poster must be present on August 18–19, 2014, in order to explain their posters and hand out informational materials. The deadline for applications is February 3....
International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions

WorldCat shows dispersal of global resources
Karen Smith-Yoshimura writes: “A differentiating feature of WorldCat is that it includes more than two billion holdings of libraries from around the world. My colleague Roy Tennant recently generated statistics on the Arabic-language resources described in WorldCat records. I was struck by the dispersal of the holdings of those materials, as shown in this map (above).”...
Hanging Together, Nov. 19

Top 10 fears of a programming librarian
Jamie Lausch Vander Broek writes: “While planning a program earlier this year, a familiar fear sat in residence in the back of my mind. What if this turns out to be totally lame? It’s something I find myself thinking often during the planning process, along with repeated worries about marketing and connecting with an audience. Here is a list of my top 10 fears, which I present as potentially common to all programming librarians.”...
Programming Librarian, Nov. 14

Learning when to say “End program”
Marge Loch-Wouters writes: “One of the truly bright spots of youth librarianship is the sheer fun and creativity—the inventiveness—of our programming work with kids and families. But, we also know that, as good as our ideas are and as often as they work swell, the time comes when the program or format just isn’t making it anymore. The trick is to know when to say when—when to make a major change in direction or end a limping program.”...
Tiny Tips for Library Fun, Nov. 19

ARL Salary Survey
The Association of Research Libraries has published the ARL Annual Salary Survey 2012–2013, which analyzes salary data for all professional staff working in the 125 ARL member libraries during 2012–2013. Data are reported for 10,072 professional staff in the 115 university ARL libraries and for 3,823 professional staff in the 10 nonuniversity ARL libraries....
Association of Research Libraries, Nov. 19

A short list of Thanksgiving lesson resources
Richard Byrne writes: “American Thanksgiving is now about one week away. Thanksgiving-themed lessons are taking place in classrooms all over the United States. If you’re looking for some Thanksgiving lesson ideas, take a look at the following resources.”...
Free Technology for Teachers, Nov. 15

Mother Goose on the Loose iPad app
“Felt Board: Mother Goose on the Loose,” a new nursery rhyme and flannel board app for the iPad, is designed to help librarians, parents, and caregivers foster curiosity and a love of learning in young children. Developed by Software Smoothie, the app is based on Betsy Diamant-Cohen’s award-winning early literacy program, long offered in public libraries throughout the country. It is available at no cost from iTunes....
Mother Goose on the Loose, Nov. 14

YA app of the week: Shadow puppet
Carli Spina writes: “Shadow Puppet is a great new iOS app that has uses for both teens and librarians. The app, which has versions for iPhone and iPad, makes it easy to create slide shows of your pictures and add a soundtrack or voiceover to the resulting video. You can either take new pictures from within the Shadow Puppet app or load one or more images from your device’s camera roll. Once you have selected images, you can rearrange their order and then record an audio track with the click of a button.”...
YALSA Blog, Nov. 13

A visit to the Lovett School Story Studio
Buffy Hamilton writes: “On November 13, I had the opportunity to visit the Lovett School Story Studio Project in Atlanta. I have been following this project since its inception a little over a year ago, when it set out to explore the question: If a classroom were no longer filled with immovable desks aligned in rows, could it become a space that invited—even required—student collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking?”...
The Unquiet Librarian, Nov. 14

Hotel libraries: A growing trend
Elaine Glusac writes: “Traditional brick-and-mortar bookstores have proved vulnerable to ebooks and the web, but many new hotels aim to distinguish themselves with old-fashioned pages that guests can actually turn, housing libraries that range from historic collections to trendy ones. Newer literary-minded hotels are establishing places for the reader and browser to go that, in the best cases, further an understanding of the destination.”...
New York Times, Nov. 14

Differences between librarian and department head
Brian Herzog writes: “After I thought about it a bit, I realized that the differences between librarian and department head consist of a laundry list of the least-fun things about my job: paperwork, staff management, more meetings. The prospect of conveying in an interview for a department head job that you’re aware of these differences, and how you’d handle them, is an interesting challenge. Here are a few of my thoughts.”...
Swiss Army Librarian, Nov. 14

The lost art of library postcards
Jason Diamond writes: “We don’t celebrate our public libraries the way we once did. Yet, as anyone who’s ever dug through a box of vintage postcards will remember, the public library was once a landmark, a source of public pride that represented the best of a city. As we work to keep our local libraries open, these beautiful 20th-century postcards serve as nostalgic reminders of just what we’re fighting for.”...
Flavorwire, Nov. 19

Libraries and water features on postcards
Larry Nix writes: “Waterways and water features make very interesting settings for libraries. Sometimes the settings are spectacular, and sometimes they pose a great risk to the library and its contents. I’m always on the lookout for postcards that depict libraries in more interesting ways than the typical front façade view. Here are some postcards from my collection that depict libraries and nearby water features.”...
Library History Buff Blog, Nov. 17

The “joys” of library work
Roz Warren writes: “I’ve worked behind the circulation desk at a suburban Philadelphia public library for over a decade and I’m happy to report that most of our patrons are pleasant, reasonable people who are a joy to deal with. And then there are the others. Because we librarians are helpful and courteous by nature, we refrain from telling these folks off. Which, given what we’re dealing with, calls for its own special guide book.”...
Philadelphia Metropolis, Dec. 5, 2012

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