AMERICAN LIBRARIES DIRECTThe e-newsletter of the American Library Association | December 10, 2008

Contents
U.S. & World News
ALA News
Booklist Online
Denver Update
Division News
Awards
Seen Online
Tech Talk
Publishing
Actions & Answers
Calendar

SirsiDynix ad

AL Buyers Guide

U.S. & World News

The Holmesburg branch, an original Carnegie, is one of the 11 branches slated for closingPhiladelphia still on track for branch closings
Despite an outpouring of public concern and a cautionary note from city council, Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter seems unwavering in his decision to permanently close 11 out of the 54 branches of the Free Library of Philadelphia and eliminate Sunday hours at the three regional branches. In a December 8 town hall meeting, Nutter warned that the city’s financial health had deteriorated further and that the budget’s five-year deficit will be larger than the $1-billion estimate he gave November 1....
American Libraries Online, Dec. 10

Libraries nix dissed Christmas displays
In separate incidents, the holiday-spirit sensibilities of library patrons have trumped tradition at the Oberlin (Ohio) Public Library and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill: The first library heeded public comment by removing an edgy Santa art exhibit and the second by axing its years-long practice of displaying a Christmas tree in the lobby....
American Libraries Online, Dec. 10


H. W. Wilson ad

ALA News

Scott Nicholson to discuss gaming
The next installment in the series of ALA President Jim Rettig’s ALA Connections Salons will be an online discussion with Scott Nicholson, an expert on gaming in libraries. Nicholson is an associate professor in the School of Information Studies at Syracuse University and the chief scientist of the Library Game Lab of Syracuse. The discussion, entitled “Gaming Connections,” will take place in OPAL, 2–3 p.m. Eastern time, December 19....

Is the economy affecting your technology needs?
ALA TechSource wants to know how the economic crisis is affecting your technology needs. Have you been unable to purchase up-to-date equipment? Are you unable to afford the bandwidth that you need? Have you found a way to stretch your budget that you think others should know about? If you have anything you’d like to share, email ALA TechSource....
ALA TechSource blog, Dec. 5

Privacy Revolution logoPrivacy Revolution on Twitter
ALA’s Privacy Revolution initiative kicked off at the 2008 Annual Conference with one of the most blogged-about programs in Anaheim: the privacy panel featuring Cory Doctorow, Dan Roth, and Beth Givens. Now, the Privacy Revolution is getting ready to launch some exciting new steps. The best way for you to follow all of the action is via the Privacy Revolution Twitter feed. Answer the survey question: What is the biggest threat to privacy today? You do not need to join Twitter in order to vote....
OIF Blog, Dec. 8

Eliminating print won’t solve the problem
American Libraries Editor Leonard Kniffel writes: “‘I have this idea that I thought I would tell you,’ said the email message. ‘I am sure it’s not original, but with the economy and the whole environmental crisis, carbon footprint things going on, maybe ALA can finally have an option on their membership to not receive the magazine?’ Namely American Libraries. So began a December 3 posting to the ALA Council’s electronic list from Councilor Trevor A. Dawes.”...
AL Inside Scoop, Dec. 4

Booklist Online logo

Cover of DK's Animal LifeFeatured review: Reference
Uhlenbroek, Charlotte, ed. Animal Life. Oct. 2008. 512p. DK, hardcover (978-0-7566-3986-0).
The wonders of the natural world intrigue a large audience. Authored by a team of expert nature writers in association with the American Museum of Natural History, Animal Life provides an excellent overview of the animal world written at a level accessible to students and the general public. Introductory sections cover basics of animal life such as evolution, animal history, classification, and anatomy. Animal behavior receives the most extensive treatment, encompassing living space, hunting and feeding, defense mechanisms, sex and reproduction, birth and development, society, communication, and intelligence. Rather than focusing on detailed life histories of individual species, Animal Life utilizes representative species to portray behavior. Dramatic color photographs, some spanning two pages, are integral to the content....

Science Database Snapshot logoScience reference databases
Mary Ellen Quinn writes: “Confused about which science database to invest in? Here’s a rundown of science reference databases for school and public libraries. For comparison purposes, we asked the publishers for a starting price for high schools. For Facts On File’s Science Online, that price is $572 (2008 pricing); for McGraw-Hill’s AccessScience and EBSCO’s Science Reference Center, it’s $995; and for Gale’s Science Resource Center, it’s $1,300. As always, contact the publishers directly for pricing options.”...

@ Visit Booklist Online for other reviews and much more....


Denver Update

Downtown Aquarium RestaurantDenver’s Downtown Aquarium Restaurant
This entertainment and dining complex features a public aquarium with more than one million gallons of underwater exhibits that feature 500 species of animals in several different ecosystems; an interactive Sting Ray Reef touch tank; a restaurant with excellent views of rays, sawfish, sharks, and shovel-nosed guitarfish; and an upscale Dive Lounge....
Downtown Aquarium

Division News

Steven RosengardBecome a YALSA runway model
What’s your look? Do you, or someone you know, have a professional fashion sense that you think others can learn from? Do you like to find just the right clothing that combines your individual style with a professional appearance? If so, then you could walk the runway at YALSA’s first-ever fashion event hosted by Steven Rosengard (right) of Project Runway Season 4, in Chicago on July 10. Applications (PDF file) are due by January 30....
YALSA Blog, Dec. 5

James PattersonJames Patterson to deliver special session at AASL Conference
Best-selling author James Patterson will be the speaker at a special author session at the 2009 AASL National Conference, “Rev Up Learning @ your library.” The conference will take place November 5–8, 2009, in Charlotte, North Carolina. Patterson chose to present at the AASL National Conference because he knows that school library media specialists are on the front lines in the effort to get kids reading....

Advocacy toolkits for school librarians
AASL is launching two new toolkits exclusively for school library media programs. The School Library Media Health and Wellness and Crisis Toolkits are designed to address the needs of and resources available to school library media specialists to build stakeholder support in their programs. They will be introduced to attendees of the School Library Advocacy Institute on January 23 during the 2009 ALA Midwinter Meeting in Denver....

ALSC Online Course logoJump-start your career with an ALSC online course
Start the New Year building your career skills by taking an exciting new online course from ALSC. Courses include: “Reading Instruction and Children’s Books,” “The Newbery Medal: Past, Present and Future,” “The Tech-Savvy Booktalker,” and “Sharing Poetry with Children.” Registration opens December 29, and discounted rates are available for ALSC members....

PLA offers budget and finance workshop
PLA is offering public librarians an opportunity to learn practical skills and knowledge that will help them better manage their libraries’ budgeting process. The Budget and Finance workshop, taught by Sandra Nelson, is scheduled for January 14–15 in Decatur, Georgia, and features an intensive, small-group environment. For the full course description, instructor biographies and registration information, visit the PLA website....

Smartest Card messenger bag, from PLAThe PLA CafePress library store
PLA is offering a collection of distinctive graphics and products with a public library bent on CafePress, an online retailer that produces and dispatches user-customized products on demand. Check out PLA’s shirts, bags, mousepads, bags, license plate frames, cards, postcards, and posters....
PLA Blog, Dec. 5

Awards

I Love My Librarian award winnersI Love My Librarian Award winners announced
Librarians in our nation’s 123,000 libraries make a difference in the lives of millions of Americans every day. On December 9, ten librarians were recognized for service to their communities, schools, and campuses as winners of the Carnegie Corporation of New York/New York Times I Love My Librarian Award at a ceremony and reception in New York City hosted by the New York Times. American Libraries Editor Leonard Kniffel writes: “AL Inside Scoop went backstage before the show to watch the winners prep for their speeches. They chatted nervously, words like ‘star treatment’ being bandied about.” More than 3,200 library users nationwide nominated a beloved librarian....
I Love Libraries; AL Inside Scoop, Dec. 9

PLA awards nominations due December 15
The deadline to nominate colleagues and public libraries for one of the 2009 PLA awards is quickly approaching. PLA members can submit an awards application through the PLA website. The deadline for submitting an application is December 15....

Deadlines approaching for two PLA scholarships
The application deadlines for two of the schools participating in PLA’s Leadership Fellows program are quickly approaching. Applications to the Leadership Development Program at Columbia University’s Business School are due to the PLA office January 9. Applications to the Senior Executives in State and Local Government program at the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, are due February 20....

New ALA scholarship in new media
The Peter Lyman Memorial/SAGE Scholarship in New Media will be offered with the support of SAGE Publications. The scholarship was created in memory of Peter Lyman, former university librarian and professor emeritus of the School of Information at the University of California, Berkeley. The scholarship will support a student in an ALA-accredited master’s program in Library and Information Studies pursuing a specialty in new media. The recipient will receive a $2,500 scholarship as well as a travel stipend to attend the ALA Midwinter Meeting....

AIA/ALA Library Buildings AwardsHonoring the best in library design
The American Institute of Architects and LLAMA created the biennial AIA/ALA Library Buildings Award program to encourage excellence in the architectural design and planning of libraries and to recognize outstanding accomplishments in library architecture. Awards may be given for new buildings, additions, renovations, restorations, conversion to library use, and interior redesign and refurbishing. For more information, visit the award website. Submission deadline is January 5....
Leads from LLAMA, Dec. 4

YALSA names Morris Awards finalists
YALSA announced the five finalists December 8 for the inaugural William C. Morris Award, which honors a book written by a first-time author for young adults. The award is named for William C. (Bill) Morris, a longtime publishing executive beloved in the library world for his enthusiasm for promoting literature for children and teens....

Marshall BreedingMarshall Breeding awarded a Fulbright grant
Marshall Breeding, director for innovative technologies and research at Vanderbilt University, is spending three weeks in Córdoba, Argentina, in December as a Fulbright senior specialist. He is working with the Acuerdo de Bibliotecas Universitarias de Córdoba, a consortium of academic libraries, to assess their current state of automation and help them with service improvement and resource sharing....
Boletín Acuerdo de Bibliotecas Universitarias de Córdoba, no. 17 (Oct.)

Cover of Bibliotekar'Russian Booker prize goes to Bibliotekar’
Writer Mikhail Elizarov won the 2008 Russian Booker prize of $20,000 December 3 for his mystical novel Bibliotekar’ (Librarian), published in 2007 by Ad Marginem in Moscow. The plot revolves around a young man who arrives in a provincial town and unwittingly becomes a librarian involved in a quest for a lost tome titled The Book of Meaning....
Vesti, Dec. 4; Goumen & Smirnova agency


Seen Online

"Obama is Unbwogable" bumper stickerObama Africana
Africa’s response to Barack Obama’s election victory is the theme of an exhibit and ongoing collection at Northwestern University’s Melville J. Herskovits Library of African Studies. The exhibit includes a collection of newspapers, DVDs, a poster, a T-shirt, and a bumper sticker that reads “Obama is Unbwogable,” designed by Lorna Abungu. The term was coined in 2002 by Gidi Gidi Maji Maji, a Kenyan hip-hop duo, in their song titled “Unbwogable.” It means “unbeatable” or “unstoppable.” “Obama’s election is an event of enormous significance in Africa,” Curator David Easterbrook explained....
Daily Northwestern, Nov. 20

Resolution could spell disaster for New Jersey libraries
Advocates for the Bayonne (N.J.) Public Library predict disaster if the legislature enacts a November 21 resolution by the New Jersey State League of Municipalities to slash funding for city libraries in half during fiscal year 2009. State law (enacted in 1944) requires municipalities with libraries set up by public referendum to dedicate one-third of a mill of each property-tax dollar to the library. The league wants that fixed amount cut in half, arguing that it “far exceeds the reasonable needs and requirements of the free public libraries.”...
Jersey City Jersey Journal, Dec. 8

Allen WeinsteinU.S. Archivist Allen Weinstein resigns
On December 7, historian Allen Weinstein, Archivist of the United States, submitted his resignation to President Bush, effective December 19. Weinstein, who has Parkinson’s disease, cited health reasons for his decision. Deputy Archivist of the United States Adrienne Thomas will serve as acting Archivist until a new Archivist is appointed....
PRNewswire, Dec. 9

Virginia Sanchez in AfghanistanReservist librarian recruits books
Naval reservist Virginia Sanchez is on leave from her position at the Long Beach (Calif.) Public Library’s Dana branch while she serves near Kabul, Afghanistan. She is sharing her passion for literacy by expanding the library at her base, Camp Blackhorse, and with a little help from the Los Cerritos Elementary School, she can expand the children’s section. Students and teachers at the school are collecting children’s books to send to her so that enlisted men and women can make video recordings of themselves reading for their children at home....
Long Beach (Calif.) Uptown Gazette, Dec. 5

Dartmouth's Milton Reading RoomVisit Dartmouth’s Milton Reading Room
If you missed your chance to celebrate John Milton’s 400th birthday on December 9, you can still go online to enjoy a thoroughly annotated version of Paradise Lost in the Milton Reading Room. The Dartmouth College site—created by English Professor Thomas H. Luxon—offers annotated versions of a number of other Milton poems as well, including Paradise Regain’d and Samson Agonistes....
Chronicle of Higher Education,
Dec. 8

Winding Line painting by Winslow Homer. Courtesy of Plainfield Public LibraryPlainfield’s Homer painting fails to land a bid
The Plainfield (N.J.) Public Library’s Winslow Homer original painting Winding Line failed to land a bid December 3 matching its reserve price of $2 million at a Sotheby’s auction in New York City, and the auction house will now seek a private buyer for the 1875 oil on canvas, library officials said. Sotheby’s will have 90 days to find a private buyer willing to meet the reserve before the auction house stops actively offering it, Library Director Joe Da Rold said, after which it has agreed to store and insure both the oil painting and a library-owned Homer watercolor for three years....
Bridgewater (N.J.) Courier News, Dec. 3

Five years for Brazilian book thief
A Brazilian court has sentenced Laessio Rodrigues de Oliveira to a five-year prison sentence for the theft of several rare books from the Instituto de Pesquisas Jardim Botânico in Rio de Janeiro. Oliveira was arrested in 2004, and had stolen books from several other Brazilian institutions, including the National Museum in Rio de Janeiro, the Historical Archive in Blumenau (Santa Catarina state), and the Mário de Andrade Library in São Paulo, which were found in his home at that time....
PhiloBiblos, Dec. 8; Jornal do Brasil (Rio de Janeiro), Dec. 3

Doors open at the Central Library the first day of the Enoch Pratt book sale. From the Baltimore Sun videoBook-sale bedlam at Enoch Pratt Free Library
The line of eager buyers at Baltimore’s Enoch Pratt Free Library book sale stretched more than half a block December 5, but no Black Friday–style madness erupted at the opening of the three-day annual event. Proceeds from the sale of hundreds of thousands of books, magazines, CDs, DVDs, records, and other materials at bargain-basement prices will go to the library’s acquisitions budget, said Pratt CEO Carla D. Hayden. Last year, the sale brought in about $10,000, according to library spokesman Roswell Encina. The video (1:32) shows why....
Baltimore Sun, Dec. 5

Book group wars
Jocelyn Bowie was thrilled by the invitation to join a book group. She had just returned to her hometown, Bloomington, Indiana, and thought she had won a ticket to a top echelon. Bowie cannot pinpoint the precise moment when disillusion replaced delight. Maybe it was the evening she tried to persuade everyone to look beyond Oprah Winfrey’s picks, “and they all said, ‘What’s wrong with Oprah?’” The last straw came when the group picked The Da Vinci Code and someone suggested the discussion would be enriched by delving into the author’s source material....
New York Times, Dec. 5

Ida KidderLibrarians helped tame the West
Around the turn of the 20th century, graduates of the University of Illinois GSLIS (then called the Illinois Library School) headed to places like Texas, North Dakota, Idaho, and Oregon. In July 1908, Oregon State University hired its first professional librarian, Ida Kidder (right), an ILS graduate. Betsy Hearne, professor emeritus at the library school, shared stories about the early graduates of the library school for a short video broadcast on the Big Ten Network. She spoke about graduates establishing libraries in places where, in some cases, they were the only librarian within a 130-mile radius or the only single female in town....
Chicago Tribune, Dec. 8

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Tech Talk

Canon PowerShot A1000 IS point-and-shoot cameraHow to buy a cheap digital camera
Corinne Iozzio writes: “Point-and-shoot digital cameras are easy to tote, simple to use, and most important, they have the features to satisfy the majority of casual photographers. At first glance, these cameras often appear very similar, and you might get the impression that it would be safe to pick one at random, but a closer look tells a very different story. The one thing these 15 models do have in common is affordability; each one of them rings up at $250 or less online. Here’s what you need to look for when shopping for a new point-and-shoot camera.”...
PC Magazine, Dec. 5

Working in beta
American Libraries Associate Editor Greg Landgraf writes: “One of my favorite programs at the recent LITA National Forum was a presentation on library web labs given by Jason Battles of the University of Alabama and Jody Combs of Vanderbilt University. At its heart, the concept is an adaptation of Google Labs. Library web labs list new and experimental services offered by the library—usually though not necessarily web-based—and offer ways for patrons to try them and offer feedback. The library can then use that feedback to improve the service before its official release.”...
AL Inside Scoop, Dec. 4

The first mouse, invented by Douglas Englebart at the Stanford Research Institute in 1968.What’s your favorite mouse?
Matt Buchanan writes: “December 9 is the 40th anniversary of the first mouse (right). Since then, it’s evolved into different shapes, sprouted buttons, lost its tail, and mutated all kinds of other crazy ways. My favorite mouse ever is Logitech’s MX500, which set their ergonomic standard for years, all the way through the wireless G7 gaming mouse, and to some extent, their current Revolution series. It doesn’t have a laundry list of features or 10 million buttons—it’s just a simple, but perfectly evolved mouse. The worst mouse ever has to be Apple’s hockey puck, no need to explain there.”...
Gizmodo, Dec. 9

Mogulus logoTop 10 consumer web apps of 2008
Sometimes it’s important to take a step back and realize that the apps to which we’ve grown incredibly accustomed are just barely beginning to register with the general public. This was a year in which two major events had worldwide impact on the Web. These events focused the world’s attention, had more consumers creating more online content, and had more people searching online for information than ever before: the Beijing Olympics and the U.S. Presidential elections. Many of these apps have those events to thank for their exposure and adoption....
ReadWriteWeb, Dec. 9

Second Lifer Rosie Simca explains what happened that fateful day: "I found a neat nail salon, and thought it a good idea to get my nails done. Then to my amazement this creature comes out of nowhere and breaks through the glass ceiling. I was horrified and frozen to my seat as its giant tentacle arm swooped me up and slammed my body against the wall."The strangest sights in Second Life
Mark Sullivan writes: “Welcome to Second Life, by far the most popular and well-used virtual world. I went in search of the strange and unexpected in Second Life, and I wasn’t disappointed. People do some strange things in the virtual world of Second Life: They build avant-garde structures and environments, they remake themselves with odd faces (or bodies, or clothing), they fly, they get stuck in walls and fall through floors, they role-play, they switch genders, they play pranks. Here are some snapshots.”....
PC World, Dec. 8

The fastest ISPs in America
Fiber-optic service is dramatically faster, and satellite service is substantially slower, according to PC Magazine’s SurfSpeed, a utility that grabs pages from several popular websites to measure actual internet surfing speed. Taken as a whole, DSL and cable connections were more than five times as fast as satellite. Fiber-optic connections were 152% faster than that. The average cable service provider gets you online at 688 Kbps, while the average DSL lets you surf at just 469 Kbps—cable connections, on average, are 47% faster. Take a look at the state-by-state roundup....
PC Magazine, Dec. 2

Publishing

Cover of the new Harry Potter LexiconRevised Harry Potter lexicon in the works
The cover of The Lexicon speaks volumes about the lengths to which a West Michigan author and publisher have gone to get the guide to the Harry Potter book series into the hands of readers. An Unauthorized Guide to Harry Potter Fiction and Related Materials appears boldly below the title and above librarian/author Steve Vander Ark’s name. A paragraph further details the fact that neither author J. K. Rowling nor a host of others with trademarks and other interests in the Harry Potter series had any part in making the book, set to be released January 12. Using the judge’s detailed, 68-page ruling in the copyright lawsuit that his publisher lost in September as a guide, Vander Ark rewrote his book to comply with the law....
Muskegon (Mich.) Chronicle, Dec. 5

Illustration from a copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard on view at the New York Public Library. The skull accompanies one of the stories, “The Tale of the Three Brothers.” Photo courtesy of ScholasticBeedle the Bard unveiled at New York Public Library
A handwritten and hand-illustrated copy of J. K. Rowling’s newest book, The Tales of Beedle the Bard, was unveiled December 3 at the New York Public Library to generate publicity for the commercial release of the book the following day. The copy on view at the library is one of seven the author created by hand and was lent for the exhibition by Arthur A. Levine, the original Scholastic editor who purchased the first Harry Potter book in 1994 for $105,000. Scholastic has also donated three copies of Beedle the Bard to each of NYPL’s 87 branches....
New York Times, Dec. 3; Scholastic, Dec. 4

Reed Business Information sale postponed
The verdict is in and the answer is: no sale. Reed Elsevier has announced that its torturous, nine-month campaign to sell Reed Business Information, its magazine division, is over. Reed announced to the stock market December 10 that it has “terminated discussions with potential bidders” and that due to the poor economic outlook, shareholders would get more value by the company hanging on to Library Journal and Publishers Weekly. But Reed wants to sell RBI in the “medium term when conditions are more favorable.” Meantime, RBI will be “structured and managed” to make it more profitable; and that normally means redundancies, magazine sell-offs, or both....
paidContent, Dec. 10; InvestEgate, Dec. 10

Cover of The Trillion Dollar MeltdownThe best business books of 2008
To look back at the books produced in the beginning of 2008 is to glimpse a more innocent world, an Eden seemingly free of financial crisis and the impending gloom of 2009. But by spring the first of the bad-news reads had appeared. Regardless of the season, numerous valuable works were published in 2008, including a few that understood the sad shape of things to come. One of the best is former banker Charles R. Morris’s The Trillion Dollar Meltdown (PublicAffairs), which explains what happened and why in under 200 pages. It is being revised and retitled for paperback release as The Two Trillion Dollar Meltdown in February....
Business Week, Dec. 4

American publishers should go for translations
Bob Hoover writes: “Houghton Mifflin Harcourt was so threatened by the recession that it admitted late last month that it was temporarily freezing the acquisition of manuscripts. This is panic mode for a publisher. If the freeze mentality spreads to other publishers, where will the material come from for new titles? Easy: Translations of books already published abroad. Republishing them in English for American readers addresses three issues: Saving money, European literary snobbery, and competition for American hacks.”...
Pittsburgh (Pa.) Post-Gazette, Dec. 7


AL Buyers Guide ad

Actions & Answers

Welcome to the Age of New Frugality
Steven Bell writes: “You can feel it. We’re going through a cultural shift. Thank the economic meltdown. I’ve noticed a number of writers pointing to a trend that could impact academic librarians, but will more likely make its presence felt in the public library sector. Still, it’s a trend to which we should pay attention, and perhaps there may be ways academic libraries can make their own contribution. Call it the Age of New Frugality.”...
ACRLog, Dec. 8

Number 3 thing to do: Do volunteer workTop 10 things to do when you become unemployed
Jamie Frater writes: “With the American economy (and many others in the world) potentially on the verge of collapse we are all subject to being out of a job any minute. One day we’re working, paying the bills, and enjoying happy hour. The next day we are unemployed and panic is starting to set in. Don’t worry! Here is my top 10 list of things you should do. If you have extra tips for people who have lost their jobs or are going to lose their job, please add them in the comments.”...
List Universe, Dec. 2

Matrix could help students evaluate internet info
In a paper they presented during the online “Rock the Academy” teaching symposium November 5, English professor Susan Miller-Cochran (North Carolina State University) and Rochelle Rodrigo (Mesa Community College) suggest that students be given a guideline (PDF file) to explore as they consider online texts. The two main questions they encourage students to ask are: How does the information change over time—is it constantly updated and revised, or static? And how has the information been reviewed?...
eSchool News, Dec. 5

Nicole Smith helps her son Ian make a movie at Laramie County's animation stationGetting animated
American Libraries Associate Editor Greg Landgraf writes: “Laramie County (Wyo.) Library System is now publicizing a year-and-a-half-old service that’s just plain cool: An animation station where kids can make their own stop-motion movies. County Librarian Lucie Osborn says the animation station helps to attract nontraditional library users, particularly boys, and encourages collaborations among children or between kids and their parents.”...
AL Inside Scoop, Dec. 8

“Speidi” = Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag, the arch-villains of uber-reality show The Hills on MTVKnowing what Speidi means will make you a better YA librarian
Sarah Ludwig writes: “As teen librarians, we have to connect with our users—and this may be true for us more than other library professionals. Teens are great at seeing straight through us, and being fake is no way to earn a teen’s trust or get them interested in using the library. With that said, there are some easy ways to learn about things that interest teens. I really can’t say enough about watching Gossip Girl if you want to connect with teen girls. Use Pandora or another music app to learn about new music.”...
YALSA Blog, Dec. 9

Adults are gamers too
More than half—53%—of all American adults play video games of some kind, whether on a computer, on a gaming console, on a cellphone or other handheld device, on a portable gaming device, or online, according to a recent Pew Internet and American Life survey (PDF file). Among older adults 65+ who play video games, nearly a third play games everyday, a significantly larger percentage than all younger players, of whom about 20% play everyday....
Pew Internet and American Life, Dec. 7

CLOCKSS logoSpringer to preserve content in CLOCKSS
Publisher Springer Science+Business Media is partnering with the cooperative electronic archive CLOCKSS to preserve the content of its more than 1,700 periodical titles. The archive ensures perpetual access to journal content that has been orphaned, abandoned, or interrupted. Springer, a founding member of CLOCKSS, has also submitted a proposal to the archive’s board outlining a pilot project to test the feasibility and legal issues surrounding the preservation of its eBook content....
CLOCKSS, Dec. 3

African-American library directors in the U.S.
This database of African-American library directors is housed and supported by the University of Kentucky Libraries, with major promotion and acknowledgment from the Black Caucus of the American Library Association. BCALA members Reinette Jones and Alonzo W. Hill are collaborating in the effort, adding new entries and updates as they are received....
University of Kentucky Libraries

Google Reader logoHow to use Google Reader like a rock star
Matt Singley writes: “Google Reader recently got a facelift; with a fresh look and features, a lot of people are buzzing about the service. Knowing that new users are signing up and veterans are looking for some ideas to make their experience even better, we have put together a quick how-to that should offer something for everyone.”...
Mashable, Dec. 7

"Flying Saucers Are Old Stuff," by Robert L. Ungar, Popular Science, May 1952, pp. 145-147Cover of May 1952 Popular ScienceGoogle Book Search puts magazines online
Google announced an initiative December 9 to enable full-text searches of millions of articles from more than 10 magazines (with hundreds more to come). Eventually, Google will begin blending magazine results into the main search results. For now, you can turn up magazine articles by trying an advanced Google Book Search. Unfortunately, no browsable guide to all the magazines indexed is planned....
Search Engine Land, Dec. 9

Gail Dunn explains service at the Picton branchAustralian library profiled for 2.0 excellence
If you visit the Picton branch of the Wollondilly Library in New South Wales, Australia, you will be greeted with the words “Find it @ your library.” The library was recently featured in a series of videocasts that feature best-cases practices of how libraries around the globe are using Web 2.0 materials. Gail Dunn, leader of library and information services at Picton, highlights her passion for words during library tours. She posts keywords around the circulation desk—discover, explore, indulge. Watch the video (17:55)....

Librarian workplace wellness
Emily Ford writes: “Workplace wellness is an issue that seems to be largely ignored by libraries, librarians, and library organizations. Literature searches in LIS databases return very few relevant articles on the subject. Why? I’d like to offer some suggestions on how we can begin to tackle the organizational culture and values regarding wellness issue in our libraries.”...
In the Library with the Lead Pipe, Dec. 3

Employee Learning Week logoIt’s Employee Learning Week!
Employee Learning Week (December 8–12) is an important opportunity for companies to demonstrate their commitment to workforce development. The American Society for Training and Development declared the week to increase awareness of the value of learning and its link to organizational results. The ALA–Allied Professional Association is offering an ELW library toolkit (PDF file) and a poster (PDF file)....
American Society for Training and Development; ALA–Allied Professional Association

Fashion your Firefox
Mozilla has released Fashion Your Firefox, giving Firefox users an easy way to discover and install add-ons and customize the browser based on their interests and online activities. On this website, add-ons that fit people’s online lifestyles are organized and available for installation. Add-ons are tiny pieces of software that add new features or functionality to Firefox, letting people customize their browser to meet their tastes. There are currently more than 1 billion downloads of Firefox add-ons....
iTWire, Dec. 8

First 10 fellows chosen for Indiana’s librarian diversity initiative
The Indiana State Library and the Indiana University SLIS in Indianapolis welcomed the first class of MLS fellows as part of the Librarians Leading in Diversity project. The program will eventually provide scholarships for 30 students from diverse backgrounds. Scholarship recipients will receive an annual stipend and must commit to work in an Indiana library for at least two years....
Indiana University Bloomington SLIS, Nov. 21

PULA logoPeople United for Libraries in Africa
This year is the fifth anniversary of People United for Libraries in Africa, an organization devoted to providing libraries and books to needful African communities. Since 2003, PULA has donated funds for the construction of a library for Malawi Children’s Village; helped build a community library in Butiru, Uganda; worked in cooperation with the Children’s Centre at the University of Nigeria in Nsukka to set up primary school libraries throughout the area; and helped establish libraries inside two Nigerian prisons....
PULA Newsletter, no. 6 (Oct.)

5-cent photocopies at the library!Hard-rock library reopening
Aaron Andzik made this exciting PSA (0:46) about the mythical Fairfield County (Mass.) Library reopening and all the wonderful things you can find inside, from hot librarians to five-cent photocopies. With a hard-rock soundtrack and a hard-sell attitude, how can you resist making a visit?...
Aaron Andzik

Jerry Bornstein, from the Baruch College videoBornstein talks about Baruch
Jerry Bornstein, deputy chief librarian at Baruch College’s Newman Library, shares his stories (4:28) about helping students learn how to find, evaluate, and use information: “The whole concept of a democratic society is based on an idea of an informed citizenry.”...
YouTube

Lorna Maguire, Open University archivistThe Open University archives
Archivist Lorna Maguire gives a guided tour of the Open University Library archive room (in Milton Keynes, U.K.) in this video (6:12) and talks about old editions of Sesame, some of the earliest course materials, and the diaries and papers of Betty Boothroyd, the first female Speaker of the House of Commons. OU is England’s government-supported, distance-learning university founded in 1969 and notable for having an open entry policy....
YouTube

Still from Photograph of Jesus film showing people from different erasPhotograph of Jesus in the Getty Images’ Hulton Collection
Getty Images approached producer Basil Stephens and Short and Sweet founder Julia Stephenson with the idea of setting up a film competition that would make use of images in Getty’s Hulton Collection in London. Filmmaker Laurie Hill won the grand prize of £5,000 with this submission (6:50) titled Photograph of Jesus, an animated documentary-fantasy based on stories of strange requests for impossible images. Narrated by Matthew Butson of Getty Images....
YouTube, Nov. 26; Inside Film, Dec. 1

Still from video showing A Tool Kit for Healthy School MealsLet’s cook with government documents!
Sarah Gewirtz, reference/government documents librarian at Alcuin Library, College of Saint Benedict/Saint John’s University, put together this video (2:06) praising the culinary delights found within government documents. The music is “Lime Jello Marshmallow Cottage Surprise,” by Joan Morris and William Bolcom from their 1986 album Lime Jello: An American Cabaret....
YouTube

The Huntingdon College Library ghost
A ghost named Frank is said to knock books off the shelf, move chairs around, and make noises in the Houghton Memorial Library, Huntingdon College, Montgomery, Alabama. Director Eric A. Kidwell (right) discusses the phenomena in this Montgomery Advertiser video (2:03). “We just wish we could get Frank to shelve books while we’re closed.”...
Truveo, Dec. 8

Go back to the Top

ALA 2009 Midwinter Meeting logo, Denver

ALA Midwinter Meeting, Denver, January 23–28. Advance registration prices have ended and onsite prices are in effect, as of December 6. If you registered for the Bundled Registration package, you may now go back into your registration and add any preconferences, institutes, or special events.

Library Technology Reports, December 2008

The final 2008 issue of Library Technology Reports is Open Source Integrated Library Systems by Marshall Breeding. In this issue, Breeding details the differences between using an open source approach to that of using conventional proprietary software for automated operations. His report defines open source and provides an overview of the various options currently available to libraries, including Koha and Evergreen. It also includes an overview of commercial support firms—including LibLime, Equinox Software, Media Flex, Versus Solutions, and Index Data—for open source ILS. NEW! From ALA TechSource.


In this issue
December 2008

Cover of December 2008 issue

Laura Bush, Librarian in the White House

Top Stories of 2008

The World’s Greatest Music Library

User Tagging


Career Leads from
ALA Joblist logo

New York Yacht Club flag. Trademark by NYCC

Librarian/Archivist, New York Yacht Club. The New York Yacht Club Library is considered the largest and most prominent private collection of books on ships and the sea. Subject areas include yachting history, voyages, navigation, seamanship, shipbuilding, cruising guides, America’s Cup matches, naval history, and sailing reference works. The librarian works with the NYYC Library Committee to contribute to the club’s vision for the library’s growth and development and formulates a plan to implement that vision, including administrative decisions requiring initiative and judgment....

@ More jobs...


Digital Library of the Week

Unknown Indian man with car, 1916-1920, Winslow, Arizona

The Arizona Memory Project is an online effort to provide access to the wealth of primary sources in Arizona libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions. This initiative provides the opportunity to view some of the best examples of government documents, photographs, maps, and objects that chronicle Arizona’s past and present. The project was launched in March 2006 and has been granted the Arizona Centennial 2012 legacy project designation by the Arizona Historical Advisory Commission in support of the Arizona State Centennial Celebration. This is an OAI-compliant digital library and a registered data contributor on OAIster.org and the Open Archives Initiative.

Do you know of a digital library collection that we can mention in this AL Direct feature? Tell us about it. Browse previous Digital Libraries of the Week at the I Love Libraries site.


Public Perception
How the World
Sees Us

“I never knew libraries have so much to offer. From providing fun reading that can replace a missed episode of Gossip Girl to hardcore practice tests for a class in which I’m struggling, the library is like Disneyland for the mind. Sure, every year at least one of my classes goes on a tour of the school library, but discovering the magical wonders myself makes the library more appealing than having a librarian tell me the same thing four years in a row.”

—Beverly Hills (Calif.) High School Senior Shannon Matloob, in “Libraries Rule,” L.A. Youth, Nov./Dec. issue.


December 2008 issue of C&RL News

Megan Coder (SUNY-New Paltz) offers some suggestions on how academic libraries can take environmental action in “It’s Not Easy Being Green: Or Is It?” in the December issue of College & Research Libraries News.


Ask the ALA Librarian

Ancient scroll library

Q. The word “library” seems to be used in so many different ways now, from the brick-and-mortar public library to the digital library. Is there a good definition of what a library is?

A. We’re glad you asked. ALA’s Whole Library Handbook 4 offers this definition: “A library is a collection of resources in a variety of formats that is (1) organized by information professionals or other experts who (2) provide convenient physical, digital, bibliographic, or intellectual access and (3) offer targeted services and programs (4) with the mission of educating, informing, or entertaining a variety of audiences (5) and the goal of stimulating individual learning and advancing society as a whole” (p. 2). The definition was developed in consultation with several different sources. From the ALA Professional Tips wiki.

@ The ALA Librarian welcomes your questions.

Strahov Monastery Library, Theological Hall, Prague

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s School of Information and Library Science has opened registration for its Summer 2009 international programs. Anyone interested in taking part in the seminars in Prague or Oxford can sign up, either for academic credit or on a noncredit basis. Registrations must be received by February 1.

Calendar

Online exhibits:

Bibliothèque Nationale de France:
“Medieval Gastronomy: Food, Cooking, Meals.”

Duke University:
“Seven Elections That Changed U.S. History.”

Harvard University, Arnold Arboretum:
“Botanical and Cultural Images of Eastern Asia, 1907–1927.”

Library of Congress:
“Exploring the Early Americas.” Selections from the more than 3,000 rare maps, documents, paintings, prints, and artifacts that make up the Jay I. Kislak Collection.

National Agricultural Library:
“Popcorn: Ingrained in America’s Agricultural History.”

National Library of Australia:
“Who’ll Come a Waltzing Matilda with Me?”

National Library of Ireland:
“The Life and Works of William Butler Yeats.”

New York Public Library:
“Eminent Domain: Contemporary Photography and the City.” Features the work of five contemporary New York–based photographers drawn primarily from new acquisitions in the Photography Collection.

Ohio State University:
“Loose Women in Tights: Images of Femininity in Early Burlesque Performance.”

Prince Edward Island Public Archives and Records Office:
“Island to Island: British Immigration to Prince Edward Island, 1763–1870.”

St. Louis Public Library:
“Celebrating the Louisiana Purchase: The 1904 World’s Fair.”

San Francisco Public Library:
“Picture This: Family Photographs of Everyday San Francisco.”

Temple University:
“Curious Looks at Artists’ Books.”

Texas State Library and Archives Commission:
“Under the Rebel Flag: Life in Texas during the Civil War.”

Yale University:
“You Shall Tell Your Children: The Passover Haggadah.”

@ More...


Contact Us
American Libraries Direct

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AL Direct is a free electronic newsletter emailed every Wednesday to personal members of the American Library Association and subscribers.

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