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Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden on October 21 announced she had removed the head of the US Copyright Office, who last year asserted to Congress that the office should be independent and no longer under the LC umbrella. Maria Pallante (right) will become senior adviser for digital strategy, according to an LC release. Karyn Temple Claggett, currently the associate register of copyrights, will head the office while a national search is conducted for a new Register of Copyrights....
Roll Call, Oct. 21; Library of Congress, Oct. 21 |
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International Games Day is back to celebrate games in libraries on November 19. This annual tradition is an initiative run by volunteers from around the world and hosted by the ALA Games and Gaming Round Table, in collaboration with Nordic Game Day, the Australian Library and Information Association, and L’Associazione Italiana Biblioteche. This year’s event blog is focusing on the ways that libraries can play with little or no materials budget....
ALA Games and Gaming Round Table, Oct. 24 |
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Halloween is the time for spooky stories. Join ALA around the Round Robin Campfire and continue the story in this video (3:38) before the day’s end on Halloween, October 31. Post your responses on YouTube or any other social media platforms you wish (creepy video responses encouraged) with the hashtag #ALACampfire. Add your piece and share it so that someone else can pick up the tale. All responses should follow the latest part, not just the ALA video. After Halloween, ALA will compile the chapters and create a “complete” video story to share....
ALA Tumblr, Oct. 24; ALA YouTube channel, Oct. 24 |
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Ellie Diaz writes: “In 1933, Nazis threw 2,000 books deemed ‘un-German’ into a pyre at Friedrichsplatz in Kassel, Germany. This fall, a different pile of forbidden books will be constructed in the same location. To kick-off documenta 14—a series of art exhibitions hosted every five years—100,000 books that have been banned around the globe will be used to create a replica of the Greek Parthenon. The structure, which held its groundbreaking on October 22, will serve as a symbol of democracy and a retaliation against censorship.”...
Intellectual Freedom Blog, Oct. 22 |
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Quetzalli Barrientos (right) writes: “For me, library residency programs seem so new and so ‘in.’ It seems like everyone wants a resident at their library. However, residency programs have been around for a while. One of the earliest was Ohio State University’s Mary P. Key Diversity Residency Program that began in 1989. Like many things, residency programs have their pros and cons. The following information is based not only on my own experience, but on experiences that I have heard from other residents.”...
ACRLog, Oct. 24 |
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In October 2015, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Provost Martin A. Schmidt asked Director of Libraries Chris Bourg to convene and lead an Ad Hoc Task Force on the Future of Libraries. The task force was charged with seeking broad input on how the MIT Libraries ought to evolve. In this report, the task force describes a bold new vision for the library as an open global platform rooted in shared values and mission, supported by innovative approaches to community and relationships, and informed by an expanded emphasis on research and development....
MIT Ad Hoc Task Force on the Future of Libraries, Oct. 24 |
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A new edition of Shakespeare’s complete works will name Christopher Marlowe as coauthor of three plays, shedding new light on the links between the two great playwrights. Marlowe will be listed as coauthor of the three Henry VI plays in the New Oxford Shakespeare to be published by Oxford University Press. Scholars used databases of plays and other Elizabethan writings to search for distinctive words or combinations of words. “That kind of Big Data was never available until very recently,” said Gary Taylor, one of the project’s senior editors....
Reuters, Oct. 24 |
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Linda Flanagan writes: “School librarian Mary Ann Scheuer remembers a 2nd grader who couldn’t keep up with the class during reading time. The child was a grade level behind in reading, and while the rest of the class could sit quietly for 30 minutes, engrossed in Horrible Harry, this child began to act out after 10 frustrating minutes with the book. On Scheuer’s recommendation, the teacher introduced the student to the same story via an audiobook; he listened, then sat alone with the book to read on his own.”...
KQED News: Mind/Shift, Oct. 23
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The “Autism Welcome Here: Library Programs, Services, and More” grant, sponsored by Libraries and Autism: We’re Connected, awards a total of $5,000 in one or more grants to initiate a new and creative program or service, bring an already-existing program to a library for the first time, or enhance a service a library already offers. All programs or services proposed must benefit people with autism or their families, directly or indirectly. Completed applications must be submitted by December 1....
Libraries and Autism: We’re Connected
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Michael Cherry writes: “3D-printed bookmarks are a fun and easy project for librarians interested in 3D printing. They are a great way to introduce patrons to computer-aided design and don’t require as many light years to 3D print. Their quirkiness will appeal to technophobes and gadget enthusiasts alike. Moreover, they are a unique, outside-the-box project that will engage teenagers, while making a fun Teen Read Week or teen book club activity.”...
The Library As Incubator Project, Oct. 25
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Walter Glenn and Chris Hoffman write: “Windows Update is supposed to work silently in the background, but it may refuse to continue if it can’t install an individual update. This can happen on Windows 7, 8, or 10, but it’s become especially common with Windows 7. Sometimes updates will error out, or sometimes Windows Update may just get stuck ‘searching for updates’ forever. Here are a few ways to give it a kick start.”...
How-To Geek, Oct. 25
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Kevin Marks writes: “It’s been getting harder for me to read things on my phone and laptop. I’ve caught myself squinting and holding the screen closer to my face. I’ve worried that my eyesight is starting to go. But there’s a movement in design circles to reduce the contrast between text and background, making type harder to read. Apple, Google, and Twitter are guilty. If the web is relayed through text that’s difficult to read, it curtails that open access by excluding large swaths of people, such as the elderly, the visually impaired, or those retrieving websites through low-quality screens.”...
Backchannel, Oct. 19
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