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Reference Future-Present

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Published by rwatstein November 23rd, 2008 in future, libraries and reference. 0 Comments

As reference content continues to be reimagined in increasingly dynamic ways—with immediacy, multimedia, and social networking at the fore—it is more than just evolving. It is getting wholly reinvented, by all. Library Journal asked reference publishers and librarians to share their expectations for the future by coining their own definition of the term Reference 3.0. Their replies challenge and inspire.

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New Online: Issues in Science and Technology Librarianship, Fall 2008

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Published by rwatstein November 23rd, 2008 in web 2.0, libraries and library services. 0 Comments

This issue’s theme is Web 2.0. Articles include: Science Experiments: Reaching Out to Our Users, Web 2.0 as Catalyst: Virtually Reaching Out to Users and Connecting Them to Library Resources and Services, An Undergraduate Science Information Literacy Tutorial in a Web 2.0 World, Making Research Guides More Useful and More Well Used.

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Library Journal’s Reference 2009: E-Reference Ratings

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Published by rwatstein November 23rd, 2008 in libraries, library services, digital and reference. 0 Comments

This year’s annual Reference supplement introduces a new resource that is every reference librarian’s dream: E-Reference Ratings, a master list of nearly 180 subscription-based electronic resources in 14 categories evaluated by scope, writing, design, bells & whistles, ease of use, and linking. To be updated quarterly; you’ll wonder how you ever lived without it.

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European Online Library Launches

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Published by rwatstein November 23rd, 2008 in libraries, digital, Europe and Europeana. 0 Comments

The British Library in London is among more than 1,000 cultural organizations making contributions to a European online library. The free multimedia venture, Europeana, will also see input from the European Commission and the Louvre Museum. Internet users will be able to access more than two million books, maps, recordings, photographs, archive documents, paintings, and films. These will be sourced from institutions across the EU’s member states.

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Emory and George Mason Team Up on Zotero Project

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Published by rwatstein November 23rd, 2008 in libraries, cataloging and open source. 0 Comments

Emory University Libraries and the Center for History and New Media at George Mason University have entered a cooperative partnership on Zotero, the free, open-source bibliographic manager. A team of librarians, information technologists, and faculty members led by Connie Moon Sehat, Emory Libraries’ new director of digital scholarship initiatives, will extend the research capabilities of the software in collaboration with Zotero’s main development team.

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A Place of Refuge

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Published by rwatstein November 23rd, 2008 in libraries, library services and patrons. 0 Comments

Pulitzer prize-winning author Junot Díaz recounts how the library helped him discover a world he wouldn’t have known otherwise and how for him, as an immigrant child, the library was a place—and a concept—he never could have imagined. Some Hispanics, like Díaz, who was newly arrived from the Dominican Republic, will dig right in and take advantage of everything the library has to offer. But many others remain strangers to the library, perhaps because they are never made aware of helpful library services because of a lack of library outreach efforts or bilingual staff, or a darker reality for some Hispanics, because they fear being identified as illegal immigrants.

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Architecture as Advocacy

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Published by rwatstein November 23rd, 2008 in libraries and architecture. 0 Comments

The new Amsterdam Public Library is an architectural gem that features skylights, terraces, a seven-story atrium, walls of windows, stunning views and an open floor plan that constantly presents new spaces and interesting places. The facility is the foundation of the city’s redevelopment for the Oosterdokseiland area—and the heart of the library’s new attitude.

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Scan on Demand: Open Library and Boston Public Library Put a Twist on Scanning Projects

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Published by rwatstein November 23rd, 2008 in libraries, library services and digital. 0 Comments

In a demand-driven solution to what to scan first, a patron request to digitize any public domain book on the shelves of Boston Public Library can be submitted via Open Library’s site.

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Reference Librarians in the Age of Google

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Published by rwatstein November 15th, 2008 in libraries, librarians/information professionals, Google and reference. 0 Comments

At a symposium hosted last year by Columbia University’s library system, Steven Bell, a librarian from Temple University, took a controversial stand. In a public debate before an audience made up almost entirely of reference librarians, Bell argued for the abolition of the reference desk by the year 2012. His position wasn’t as radical as it might sound. He wasn’t advocating that his listeners retire or find new jobs. To the contrary, he said he believes that their services are more important than ever. But with the Internet changing not only the ways that people—students, scholars, and even librarians—conduct research, but also how they communicate, he believes the old model of a desk staffed by highly trained reference librarians is well on its way to becoming outdated, perhaps even extinct.

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The Librarian and the Elf

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Published by rwatstein November 15th, 2008 in libraries. 0 Comments

Janet Bailey, technical services librarian at the Abilene (Tex.) Public Library, touts the wonders of Elf, a web-based and email tool for library users to keep track of library borrowings: “Once upon a time there was a librarian who could not seem to return her books and DVDs on time. She had overdue issues. Soon all of their cards were blocked with late fees. This made her family sad, for they really liked to read, listen to ‘Hank the Cowdog,’ and watch DVDs.”

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Fortress of Comic-Tude

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Published by rwatstein November 15th, 2008 in libraries, library services, collections and comics. 0 Comments

As the comic art bibliographer at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Randy Scott is responsible for growing and maintaining the largest library comic book collection in the world. With about 240,000 comics and books about comics, the collection is larger than that of the Library of Congress. If Scott could have his way, he would have a $5,000 monthly budget. However, like most publicly funded entities these days, he doesn’t quite have his dream budget. Scott has just more than $1,000 a month to work with.

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Sweden’s Library Bus of the Year

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Published by rwatstein November 15th, 2008 in libraries, library services and books. 0 Comments

Peter Thuvander and Martin Hedenström of the design group Muungano have won the Swedish Library Bus of the Year award for creating a bookmobile for the town of Kiruna, Sweden’s northernmost city. The award is sponsored by the Swedish Library Association. Because of the lack of sunlight during most of the year in the area it serves, the bus is well-lit when dark to attract users. It offers books, multimedia, computer games, and internet access.

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Trenton Resolves Branch Crisis

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Published by rwatstein November 15th, 2008 in libraries and economics. 0 Comments

Neighborhood branch libraries in Trenton, New Jersey, have been granted a reprieve allowing them to remain open at least through the end of next year, library officials announced November 10. The branches will stay in operation partly by shifting staff from the main library and limiting hours there, thanks to an agreement with State Librarian Norma E. Blake, library director Kimberly M. Bray said.

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Branch Closings and Budget Cuts Threaten Libraries Nationwide

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Published by rwatstein November 15th, 2008 in libraries, library services and economics. 0 Comments

public library budgets in the wake of revenue shortfalls and dire economic news. In a grim November 6 speech in which he called for sweeping job cuts and service reductions in many city departments, Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter announced the permanent closing of 11 out of 54 library branches and the elimination of Sunday hours at the three regional branches. “Make no mistake,” Nutter said. “This will be a mid-year revision of epic proportions.”

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N.Y. Public Library Puts its ‘Treasures’ Online

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Published by rwatstein November 15th, 2008 in libraries, digital, collections and NYPL. 0 Comments

The New York Public Library quietly rolled out a new video series last month. Titled “Treasures,” it showcases 11 gems of the library’s vast collection of more than 50 million items. And since then it has joined Facebook, broadening an online reach that already included YouTube and iTunes pages to gain more of an audience — which, for one of the world’s largest public libraries, includes “everybody from preschool toddlers to the greatest writers in the world,” says president Paul LeClerc.

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OCLC Members Council Meet to Discuss Similarities and Differences in Libraries Worldwide

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Published by rwatstein November 15th, 2008 in libraries and OCLC. 0 Comments

Global library cooperative Online Computer Library Center, Inc. (OCLC) has announced that the OCLC Members Council recently met in Dublin, Ohio, to discuss similarities and differences in libraries around the world, continue planning a transition to a Global Council and Regional Councils to extend OCLC participation, and elect a council delegate to the OCLC Board of Trustees. Under the direction of Members Council President Loretta Parham, Library Director and CEO, The Atlanta University Center, delegates also heard reports from OCLC senior management and staff, and discussed the worldwide library cooperative’s plans and activities.

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You Might be a Librarian If…

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Published by rwatstein November 9th, 2008 in libraries and librarians/information professionals. 1 Comment

Last year U.S. News and World Report selected librarianship as one of the best careers in 2008. Shortly after that McSweeney’s posted “Ten Reasons to be a librarian.” In the last decade or so, mainstream media has dubbed librarians as “hip” and “cool” and the stereotype of the dowdy-cat-sweater-and-glasses librarian has started to fade. Now hipster librarians are totally rocking cat sweaters and glasses. “You might be a librarian if: You compulsively reshelve items and straighten shelves when browsing at Barnes and Noble” ….

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Innovative Libraries Overseas

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Published by rwatstein November 9th, 2008 in libraries and innovation. 0 Comments

Marshall Breeding writes: “I’ve been extremely fortunate over the last few years to have had the opportunity to travel to many different parts of the world and speak and work with librarians in many countries. It has been great to have the chance to see first-hand some incredible libraries that demonstrate creative approaches to library services, innovative uses of technology, expansive resource sharing, and pragmatic approaches to library automation. In my experience, many of the libraries that most push beyond the traditional boundaries can be found in other parts of the world. Let me give you a quick tour.”

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German Libraries Hold Thousands of Looted Volumes

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Published by rwatstein November 9th, 2008 in libraries and collections. 0 Comments

Records indicate that Berlin’s Central and Regional Library purchased “more than 40,000 volumes from the private libraries of evacuated Jews” through the City Pawn Office in the 1940s. And, this being Germany, the librarians maintained meticulous record books to keep track of their purchases—even though parts of the German capital were already in ruins. As always, preserving order was paramount. The librarians signed each volume and gave it an accession number, beginning with the letter J. No one knows how many stolen books are still on the shelves in German libraries today, although experts, like historian Görz Aly, estimate that there are at least one million.

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Gaming Symposium: Complex Games Lead to Complex Thinking

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Published by rwatstein November 9th, 2008 in libraries, American Library Association, library services and gaming. 0 Comments

Modern games aren’t trivial, and librarians who dismiss them as such do their patrons a disservice, presenters told some 215 attendees of the second annual ALA TechSource Gaming, Learning, and Libraries Symposium. Held November 2–4 in Oak Brook, Illinois, the event was replete with examples of how the complexity of modern games prepare young people for their futures. The oft-mocked Pokémon series, for example, has more than 500 characters, each falling into one of 17 types that may be particularly strong or weak against other types.”

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Assignment Alert Services: Do Teachers Know About Us?

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Published by rwatstein November 9th, 2008 in libraries, education and library services. 0 Comments

As a way to reach out and serve area schools, many public libraries offer a service commonly termed Assignment Alert. The idea is to give teachers and school librarians an easy online way to get help from the public library in identifying resources such as booklists, Websites, movies and books to support curriculum - but how much are assignment alert services used?

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The Library Student Bill of Rights

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Published by rwatstein November 2nd, 2008 in libraries, education and librarians/information professionals. 0 Comments

Char Booth writes: “The skills that are becoming essential to the increasingly demanding, complex, and collaborative world of librarianship should be better addressed by the education we receive. Systemic reform of the LIS curriculum is critical if libraries are to survive, beginning with aggressive adoption and progressive interpretation of the newly revised 2008 ALA accreditation standards. In order to create a more vibrant and resilient profession, the students of library and information studies programs should be entitled to the following rights.”

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Paper: Service Equality in Virtual Reference

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Published by rwatstein November 2nd, 2008 in libraries and reference. 0 Comments

Research is divided about the potential of e-service to bridge communication gaps, particularly to diverse user groups. According to the existing body of literature, e-service may either increase or decrease the quality of service received. This study analyzes the level of service received by different genders and ethnic groups when academic and public librarians answer 676 online reference queries. Quality of e-service was evaluated along three dimensions: timely response, reliability, and courtesy. This study found no significant differences among different user groups along any of these dimensions, supporting the argument that the virtual environment facilitates equitable service and may overcome some challenges of diverse user groups.

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MSN’s 10 Coolest Public Libraries

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Published by rwatstein November 2nd, 2008 in libraries. 0 Comments

MSN City Guides has selected 10 of the most interesting “secular temples to the worship of words,” from old school Beaux-Arts beauties to the airy halls of contemporary architecture. The South Euclid–Lyndhurst branch (right) of the Cuyahoga County (Ohio) Public Library is one. Also on the list is Chicago’s Harold Washington Library Center and the Thomas Crane Memorial Library in Quincy, Massachusetts.

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Editorial: Serving in Tough Times

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Published by rwatstein November 2nd, 2008 in libraries, library services and economics. 0 Comments

With the economy already anemic and the stock market crumbling, libraries will take their share of hits, but “despite the hard times, we must continue to tell the library story to our constituents and our funders so that libraries remain a priority.”

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Librariana on Exhibit

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Published by rwatstein November 2nd, 2008 in libraries, librarians/information professionals, art and museums. 0 Comments

Artist and reference librarian Katie Herzog is exhibiting her library-related artwork through November 22 at the Circus Gallery in Los Angeles. Titled “Librariana,” the exhibit is described as “a conceptual investigation of language, painting, and information science.” One piece, Phone Books, is an eight-foot-long depiction of 66 telephone books on a library shelf, made entirely of colored yarn hand-woven into metal lath. The weft thins at the base and the extra yarn is left hanging to the floor, creating a visual metaphor of information and its unraveling.

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Calvert County Keeps Tango

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Published by rwatstein November 2nd, 2008 in libraries and censorship. 0 Comments

Calvert County (Md.) library trustees voted unanimously October 21 to keep a controversial book about two male penguins where it is shelved—in the children’s section, along with other picture books. In December, Beth Bubser of Dunkirk filed a complaint about And Tango Makes Three to the county library staff, saying there was no warning on the book that it is about same-sex parents. The board affirmed Library Director Patricia Hofmann’s January decision to keep the book on the shelf.

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Video: Gaming at Oak Park Public Library

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Published by rwatstein November 2nd, 2008 in libraries, video, library services and gaming. 0 Comments

During the summer and autumn this year, Oak Park (Ill.) Public Library has held monthly teen gaming tournaments. This is a video (3:15) of sights and sounds from the September tourney, as well as an interview with Young Adult Librarian Monica Harris, who explains why and how the library got into gaming and the benefits it offers the library and the community.

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Boston Public Library: The Ultimate Search Engine

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Published by rwatstein November 2nd, 2008 in libraries and search. 0 Comments

Though libraries may increasingly become relics in the Google-driven Web 2.0 era, Allen & Gerritsen positions the Boston Public Library system as the ultimate search engine and portrays its librarians as “heroes of information” in a new campaign. A new campaign by the Watertown, Mass., agency, tagged “What do you want to know?” plays up the resources of the BPL’s 27 branches and focuses on the human element often absent from Internet-based searches.

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Alan Bennett Donates Archive to the Bodleian

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Published by rwatstein November 2nd, 2008 in libraries and collections. 0 Comments

English playwright Alan Bennett (The Madness of George III, The History Boys) has bequeathed his literary archive to the Bodleian library in Oxford. Bennett was originally prompted to hand over his archive by a former Bodleian chief librarian, David Vaizey, a friend since they met as undergraduates. He said that he saw the gift as a debt repaid. The Bennett archive, which includes original manuscripts and drafts for all his stage and television plays, is expected to be open to researchers by 2010.

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Neil Armstrong Donating His Papers to Purdue

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Published by rwatstein November 2nd, 2008 in libraries and collections. 0 Comments

Former astronaut Neil Armstrong has agreed to donate personal papers dating from the start of his flight career to his alma mater, Purdue University. Armstrong’s papers, boxes of which have already begun arriving at Purdue, will be an inspiration for students and invaluable for researchers, said Sammie Morris, assistant professor of library science and head of Purdue Libraries’ Archives and Special Collections. “For researchers, it’s going to be a boon. No one has been able to research these papers or study them,” Morris said.

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Blatant Berry: The Toll of American Library Association’s IRS Muzzle

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Published by rwatstein October 25th, 2008 in libraries and American Library Association. 0 Comments

Library Journal’s John Berry asserts that ALA’s leaders have used the IRS threat of revoking its charitable organization status to suppress political involvement, and librarians “need much deeper and better understanding of exactly where the line is drawn on ‘political speech’ and precisely how great the danger is.”

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New Report from OCLC Programs and Research: “Beyond the Silos of the LAMs”

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Published by rwatstein October 25th, 2008 in libraries and OCLC. 0 Comments

Subtitled “Collaboration Among Libraries, Archives and Museums,” the report highlights lessons learned from five library, archive and museum workshops held at RLG partner institutions in the U.S. and the U.K., and contains information about inspiring collaborative projects in campus environments. The bulk of the report, which is authored by Diane Zorich, Günter Waibel and Ricky Erway, is dedicated to the catalysts that allow collaboration to thrive.

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The Law Concerning Photos Taken at Your Library

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Published by rwatstein October 25th, 2008 in libraries, privacy and photos. 0 Comments

Bryan Carson writes: “Over the past two decades, there has been a substantial increase in the number of programs that libraries sponsor. It seems natural to document events by taking photographs. Pictures can be a powerful way of justifying a programming budget and can also be useful in attracting people to future lectures and programs. However, there are a few legal issues relating to photography that librarians need to be aware of, particularly the rights of privacy and publicity. In some situations, using a photograph of an identifiable person could be a one-way ticket to a lawsuit.”…

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Serving Patrons with Autism

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Published by rwatstein October 25th, 2008 in libraries, library services and disabilities. 0 Comments

The Scotch Plains (N.J.) Public Library and the Fanwood (N.J.) Memorial Library have produced a customer-service training video for library staff to help them serve individuals with autism and their families more effectively. The video focuses on what you need to know about autism and suggests specific techniques to offer more inclusive service to this growing and underserved population. Their Libraries and Autism site also has links to other useful resources.

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NYPL’s New LGBT Visiting Scholars Program

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Published by rwatstein October 25th, 2008 in libraries and NYPL. 0 Comments

The New York Public Library has created an LGBT Visiting Scholars program to provide travel stipends to New York City for up to three visiting scholars to do LGBT research in the library’s collections. The awards will be limited to emerging scholars or those who are unaffiliated with an academic institution. The selected Martin Duberman Scholars will receive travel grants that range from $1,000 to $8,500 and will be provided with workspace at the library to pursue their research.

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The Transparent Library: Library PR 2.0

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Published by rwatstein October 25th, 2008 in libraries, library services, marketing and library 2.0. 0 Comments

Social networking tools like Facebook and Twitter have expanded the grapevine, so use it to your advantage. Here are some guidelines for your libraries’ marketing 2.0 program.

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Finding the Underserved

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Published by rwatstein October 25th, 2008 in libraries and library services. 0 Comments

Surprisingly, it’s often the upper-middle classes that libraries are failing to serve, which cascades down to poorer service for the underprivileged. To compete in the information race, librarians must adopt market- or demand-based service models and more business-oriented decision-making

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MUVE into Virtual Worlds

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Published by rwatstein October 25th, 2008 in libraries and virtual worlds. 0 Comments

Virtual worlds are here to stay, says Tom Peters in the October issue of Library Technology Reports. In “Librarianship in Virtual Worlds,” Peters explores how librarianship can survive and thrive in these multi-user virtual environments (MUVEs). For libraries and library-related organizations interested in developing a presence in one or more virtual worlds, this issue of LTR may prove a useful tool for understanding the breadth and depth of the VW scene.

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Acclaimed Colombian Institution Has 4,800 Books and 10 Legs

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Published by rwatstein October 25th, 2008 in libraries and books. 0 Comments

In a ritual repeated nearly every weekend for the past decade here in Colombia’s war-weary Caribbean hinterland, Luis Soriano gathered his two donkeys, Alfa and Beto, in front of his home on a recent Saturday afternoon. Sweating already under the unforgiving sun, he strapped pouches with the word “Biblioburro” painted in blue letters to the donkeys’ backs and loaded them with an eclectic cargo of books destined for people living in the small villages beyond.

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University of Michigan Adopts Creative Commons Licenses

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Published by rwatstein October 25th, 2008 in libraries and copyright. 0 Comments

The University of Michigan Library has decided to adopt Creative Common Attribution-Non-Commercial licenses for all works created by the library for which the school holds the copyright. These works include bibliographies, research guides, lesson plans, research studies, and technology tutorials. The license allows anyone to copy, distribute, display, or perform a work or derivative works based on it, as long as the user gives proper attribution to the University of Michigan Library and the use is noncommercial….

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British Architect to Redesign New York City Library

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Published by rwatstein October 25th, 2008 in libraries, architecture, NYPL and design. 0 Comments

Norman Foster, the eminent British architect who has made something of a specialty out of inserting contemporary designs into historic buildings, has been selected for a major renovation of the New York Public Library’s landmark 1911 main building, on Fifth Avenue between 40th and 42nd Streets. Mr. Foster and his London firm, Foster & Partners, are to create a new circulation library in a space below the library’s Rose Reading Room and overlooking Bryant Park that now houses seven levels of stacks and a basement.

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Ousted Boston Library Chief will Open New Chapter in New York

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Published by rwatstein October 25th, 2008 in libraries and librarians/information professionals. 0 Comments

The embattled former head of the Boston Public Library has been hired as the New York state librarian and assistant commissioner of education in Albany. The New York state Board of Regents confirmed the appointment of Bernard A. Margolis at a meeting recently. “Just as the Yankees took Babe Ruth, Boston’s loss is our gain,” said Tom Dunn, New York education department spokesman. “We are thrilled.”

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Strapped Brooklyn Residents Hit Library Stacks for Free ‘Loans’

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Published by rwatstein October 25th, 2008 in libraries, library services and economics. 0 Comments

A Midwood movie buff, Miguel Salazar spent $50 last month on movie rentals - cash he really didn’t want to lay out these days with the city’s economy in turmoil. Salazar, a construction worker with fewer jobs, has decided to bypass Blockbuster or Netflix and head straight for the public library for his flick fix. “I come to save some money,” said Salazar, as he took out a copy of the drama “Broken Wings” from the Midwood branch last week.

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Library Use Rises as Economy Falls

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Published by rwatstein October 25th, 2008 in libraries and economics. 0 Comments

Haverhill (Mass.) Public Library Assistant Director Susan Katzenstein said the library is usually “an incredibly busy place.” But nowadays, “our usage is through the roof.” The Haverhill library is not alone. Across the region, local public libraries are reporting a surge in use, a trend officials tie directly to the economic hardship many are facing

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Library Journal Placements & Salaries 2008, Now Online, Finds Library Jobs and Pay Both Up

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Published by rwatstein October 19th, 2008 in libraries, librarians/information professionals and career. 0 Comments

Among the highlights in Library Journal’s 2008 Placements & Salaries Survey, more jobs at better salaries, and a surprisingly healthy outlook—despite evidence of longer job searches and more part-time positions. For the first time, the survey takes a hard look at the so-called information schools as opposed to the traditional library schools. And there’s much more, with individual sections on minorities, the library gender gap, job searching and where the jobs are, the changing academic library job environment, catalogers and archivists, public vs. private sector jobs, and on and on.

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BackTalk: $108…and Some Cents

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Published by rwatstein October 19th, 2008 in libraries and librarians/information professionals. 0 Comments

Reference librarian William Wisner looks at the changing face of the profession under technology’s ominous shadow and what the future seemingly has in store—and it’s not bright! Who’s to blame? You are!

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Economic Uncertainty Spreads to Library Endowments

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Published by rwatstein October 19th, 2008 in libraries and economics. 0 Comments

The stock market losses that have recently hit global markets might be taking some carefully stewarded library endowments along for the ride. Even as the market began its dramatic mid-September seesaw of alarming drops and partial recoveries, two public library executives lost their jobs at one of the few libraries ever endowed personally by Andrew Carnegie. Panicked stock-market sell-offs have paralyzed credit lines and bond markets at the state and municipal levels and only made a bad situation worse for libraries from Oregon to New Jersey.

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Library Journal Talks to Wasilla Public Library Director KJ (Kathy) Martin-Albright

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Published by rwatstein October 19th, 2008 in libraries. 0 Comments

The current director of the library at the center of the Sarah Palin book-banning allegations talks about the facility’s current state, why Heather Has Two Mommies is gone, and being in the spotlight.

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