For daily ALA and library news, check the American Libraries website or subscribe to our RSS feed.
|
|
|
On July 17, in comments filed at the Federal Communications Commission, ALA questioned the need to review current net neutrality rules and urged regulators to maintain the strong, enforceable rules already in place. ALA President Jim Neal said, “The 2015 Open Internet Order is the right reading of the law, and we do not see any reason for the FCC to arbitrarily return to this issue now.” The ALA comments were filed with the American Association of Law Libraries and the Chief Officers of State Library Agencies....
Office for Information Technology Policy, July 17 |
|
ALA is always looking for ways to enhance its members’ experiences. ALA Connect is our online space where groups work together. Its platform is getting upgraded to a more flexible system that will be powered by Higher Logic. One new feature is that divisions and round tables will have their own branded space to communicate and collaborate. In order to maintain the integrity of information within our current system during the transfer, ALA will prevent new information input for a short period of time, August 10–31....
ITTS News, July 14 |
|
|
The American Association of Law Libraries says its July 15–18 conference in Austin will be its last in Texas, unless the state reverses its anti-LGBT policies. “A commitment to diversity is one of AALL’s core values,” reads a letter from AALL to its Texas leaders. “The recently signed bill to allow discrimination against LGBTQ families (HB 3859) and the pending anti-transgender ‘bathroom bill’ expected to be taken up during the legislature’s special session, directly harm LGBTQ people.”...
Austin (Tex.) American-Statesman, July 16; American Association of Law Libraries |
|
The day after a “monsoon storm” tore through the Phoenix area, many residents took to social media to question how the Burton Barr Central Library sustained so much damage. All five floors of the library flooded July 15 after the storm lifted the roof and caused it to move in a wave-like fashion, causing a sprinkler pipe in the ceiling of the fifth floor to rupture. Water rained down on bookshelves and ran through the building like a stream. City officials spent July 16 assessing the extent of the damage. The library is closed until further notice....
Phoenix Arizona Republic, July 15–16; Phoenix New Times, July 18 |
|
|
Frank S. Abderholden writes: “Walking into W. J. Murphy Elementary School in Round Lake Park, Illinois, following this week’s flooding, the first thing that comes to mind is either a bait shop or a bag of wet, dirty laundry. The school library was devastated by flooding July 12 after water knocked out a giant electrical box outside of the building and shut off power. Floodwater completely covered the bookshelves.” The school is asking for donations of clothing, books, and funding....
Lake County (Ill.) News-Sun, July 14; Third Coast Review, July 14 |
|
The Denver Public Library wants people to show a little skin; specifically, whatever part of you is home to a tattoo. They’ll recommend a book they think will speak to you based on the art you choose to wear every day. On July 17, tattoo photos were posted on the library’s Facebook page. Librarians Hana Zittel and Tara Williamson read the backstories left with each person’s tattoo picture, and then made personalized suggestions....
KUSA-TV, Denver, July 17 |
|
Mark Lenker writes: “As a librarian, I worry about the ways that emotion, especially anger, influences our interactions with information. So much of our political discourse is intended to arouse indignation, and I’m concerned about indignation’s impact on one’s ability to learn. Higher education needs to become more intentional about preparing students for inflammatory discourse as a potential hazard in the information landscape.”...
ACRLog, July 18 |
|
|
Ansley Stuart writes: “With the rise of the internet and electronic research resources, it is not uncommon for a librarian to hear that libraries are no longer necessary. What most people do not realize is how integrated librarians (and information scientists) are in organizing and providing information to the public. Many librarians realize that to help guide users to the best resources, they need to be proactive, not reactive, in their teaching of information literacy. This means being embedded in the subjects for which they are offering resources.”...
OUPblog, July 18
|
|
Ernie Smith writes: “The CD-ROM was sold to the public and the world as a way to bring interactive multimedia experiences into our homes. But beyond that, it was a huge amount of storage for a price that was insane to consider at the time. And that meant that some of the earliest products produced for the CD-ROM format were reference works. We take Wikipedia for granted these days, but the encyclopedia on disc was a big deal—especially because it was both cheaper and smaller than the alternative.”...
Tedium, July 13
|
|
Rebecca Rego Barry writes: “As we gear up for the 17th Library of Congress National Book Festival on September 2, take a look at this year’s poster, designed by Roz Chast. The New Yorker cartoonist was chosen for the job by a team of graphic specialists at LC. Its whimsical design depicts the festival from the books’ point of view, wondering what is going to happen to them today. Chast said, ‘I wanted to make a poster that expressed the excitement, appreciation, and delight I have for the books of my life.’”...
Fine Books and Collections, July 6
|
|
Mary Pennington writes: “In 1931, Congress authorized the Library of Congress to provide ‘books for the use of adult blind residents of the United States.’ This act was amended in 1934 to include sound recordings (talking books) and ultimately to include anyone with physical limitations that prevent reading regular print. The program is thriving and now sends out books to the vision impaired on flash drives. In the 1940s and 1950s, Bowen and Company produced the record players that were provided to clients of the Talking Book project.”...
Lux Mentis Booksellers, July 18
|
|
Lily Rothman writes: “In the July 16 season premiere, Game of Thrones continued its long streak of drawing on the real past to make Westeros come alive by using Samwell Tarly to make a point about real medieval libraries—sort of. As Sam gets to know the ropes of the Citadel, part of his thankless job is to work at the library. One of the details in that set is that the bookshelves, even outside of the restricted section, come with chains. That detail is one that medieval-history buffs will recognize as true.”...
Time, July 17
|
AL Direct is a free electronic newsletter emailed every Tuesday and Friday to personal members of the American Library Association.
|
Send news and feedback: aldirect@ala.org
Direct ad inquiries to: mstack@ala.org
AL Direct FAQ: americanlibrariesmagazine.org/al-direct
All links outside the ALA website
are provided for informational purposes only. Questions about the
content of any external site should be addressed to the administrator of
that site.
AL Direct will not sell your email to outside parties, but your email may be shared with advertisers in this newsletter should you express interest in their products by clicking on their ads or content. If the advertisers choose to communicate with you by email, they are obligated to provide you with an opportunity to opt-out from future emails in compliance with the CAN-SPAM act of 2003. Read the ALA privacy policy.
American Libraries
50 E. Huron St.
Chicago, IL 60611
800-545-2433, ext. 4216
ISSN 1559-369X
|
