Archives

Occupying Technology

By Karen Muller | December 14, 2011

A few years ago an earnest-sounding college student called the ALA Library to gather information about librarianship as a career, adding that she didn’t want to work with computers. We all have days we’d be happy to see our technology replaced with pen and paper that doesn’t crash. But that is not our world, and … Continue reading Occupying Technology →

Hard-Boiled Mysteries and Soft-Boiled Poets

By Bill Ott | December 14, 2011

The world needs more hard-boiled mysteries written by soft-boiled poets. This admittedly peculiar insight occurred to me as I was reading poet and novelist Jim Harrison’s first crime novel, The Great Leader. The book immediately reminded me of another mystery written by a poet—my favorite modern poet, as a matter of fact—Richard Hugo. The interesting … Continue reading Hard-Boiled Mysteries and Soft-Boiled Poets →

Transforming Libraries, Transforming ALA

By Keith Michael Fiels | December 14, 2011

The digital “revolution” has been a major topic of public attention and discussion among librarians this year, as we are confronted by daily developments, announcements, and headlines related to ebooks. The transformation being brought about by digital media has been a strong emphasis of the Association as well. During the fall meeting October 21–23 at … Continue reading Transforming Libraries, Transforming ALA →

Chapters, Affiliates Display Their Strength

By Molly Raphael | December 14, 2011

ALA provides a strong, unified voice for our libraries. Much of the Association’s strength comes not just from our divisions, round tables, and other ALA units, but also from our chapters and affiliates. Each year, many chapters and affiliates invite the ALA president to participate in their conferences, providing a wonderful opportunity for both ALA’s … Continue reading Chapters, Affiliates Display Their Strength →

New from ALA Editions

By Karen Muller | December 9, 2011

With all types of libraries suffering budget crises, a key skill is to know where—and how—available dollars might be stretched. In Cost Control for Nonprofits in Crisis, G. Stevenson Smith interprets the principles of cost accounting for use in libraries and other nonprofits. Following an overview of the chapter, Smith provides tools and examples to … Continue reading New from ALA Editions →

Reach Out through Outreach

By Abby Johnson | November 18, 2011

Some of the most important library work I do is outside the library’s walls. Outreach—traveling offsite to bring service to potential users—is essential to serving my community and especially its children. Outreach allows librarians to put a friendly face on library services and to meet our patrons where they are (which is all the more … Continue reading Reach Out through Outreach →

An Unplugged Space

By Amanda Wakaruk and Marc Truitt | November 15, 2011

The physical library was once a place of refuge, an escape from distraction. But today, the constant need to connect and communicate has largely rendered this role obsolete. The power of coupling networking tools with instant access to vast amounts of information is now an essential feature of library programs, services, and facilities. A library … Continue reading An Unplugged Space →

A Guide to Ebook Purchasing

By Sue Polanka | November 15, 2011

For those libraries looking to purchase e-books, you are not alone. According to the Library Journal 2011 survey of ebook penetration and use in libraries, 95% of academic, 82% of public, and 44% of school libraries are already offering ebooks, and many more are considering it. For anyone contemplating purchasing ebooks, asking why is the … Continue reading A Guide to Ebook Purchasing →

Readers Are Fundamental

By Joseph Janes | November 14, 2011

I was all set to wax rhapsodic here about my iPad, how much I’m enjoying my new toy (and it is a toy, I know), how quickly I got to the point of loving the “app” idea for its convenience and speed, how interesting it is that I’ve started to begrudge using the web at … Continue reading Readers Are Fundamental →

Poet Laureate Philip Levine

November 14, 2011

At age 83, Philip Levine has been appointed 2011–2012 poet laureate consultant in poetry by Librarian of Congress James Billington. He took up his duties October 17, opening the library’s annual literary season with a reading from his work. “Philip Levine is one of America’s great narrative poets,” Billington said. “His plainspoken lyricism has, for … Continue reading Poet Laureate Philip Levine →

Helping Warriors Unleash the Power of the Pen

By Amy Hartman and Holly Baumgartner | November 8, 2011

The best pleasures in life are often unexpected, and we have been lucky enough to be ambushed by a program that has become one of the most extraordinarily rewarding experiences of our careers. The Sylvania branch of the Toledo–Lucas County (Ohio) Public Library and Lourdes College of Sylvania cosponsored the Veterans’ Writing Workshop, which began … Continue reading Helping Warriors Unleash the Power of the Pen →

Achievement Unlocked

By Greg Landgraf | November 3, 2011

Gaming has gained a foothold in libraries, with good reason. It’s a popular service, and one that can offer educational, community, and information literacy benefits. Here we present three short articles on gaming in libraries. In “Serving Players through Selection,” Erik Bobilin and Nicole Pagowsky of 2011’s Emerging Leaders Team G discuss their research on … Continue reading Achievement Unlocked →

Latest Library Links

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Genevieve Trainor writes: “The Guinness World Record holder for Most Prolific Book Thief is Ottumwa (Iowa’s) Stephen Blumberg. The 23,600 volumes he accumulated between the 1970s and his arrest in March of 1990 were all stashed in his 17-room home. Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska, got involved with Blumberg as part of the FBI’s efforts to return the stolen manuscripts and rare books to their museums and libraries. Referred to as the Omaha Project, the information science proving ground involved four weeks, 44 catalogers and reference librarians and 600 volunteer hours to determine who might be the rightful owners.”

Little Village (Dubuque, Iowa), Dec. 4
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Casey Newton writes: “At the moment, no one knows for sure whether the large language models that are now under development will achieve superintelligence and transform the world. And in that uncertainty, two primary camps of criticism have emerged. The first camp, which I associate with the external critics, holds that artificial intelligence (AI) is fake and sucks. The second camp, which I associate more with the internal critics, believes that AI is real and dangerous. Today I want to lay out why I believe AI is real and dangerous.”

Platformer, Dec. 5
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Latia Ward writes: “One way to keep current with what students think of the library and its services is through Student Library Advisory Committee meetings. These meetings are a way to gather feedback and reinforce the library as a welcoming place. How do librarians create a welcoming environment within Student Library Advisory Committee meetings? Librarians create a welcoming environment through community, purpose, and dedicated space.” Also see part 1 of this blog post.

RIPS Law Librarian Blog, Nov. 13, Dec. 5
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Eleanor Hecks writes: “Few things are as frustrating to a user as when a site won’t respond. Unfortunately, it’s also an all-too-common scenario. Graceful degradation is a design approach that ensures the basics of a website will still function even if specific individual parts of it stop working. The approach removes single points of failure: just because one thing stops working doesn’t mean the system as a whole fails. A site following this principle fails in pieces instead of all at once, so the most important features remain available when some components encounter an error.”

Smashing Magazine, Dec. 6
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Camruinn Morgan-Rumsey and Lexi Lepof write: “On December 3, Knox County (Tenn.) schools received a list from the district of books to be removed from school libraries under Tennessee’s Age-Appropriate Materials Act. Knox County’s board of education voted in July, passing a policy to remove ‘explicit’ books from everyday student access in response to the new law. Some of the books on the list of nearly 50 titles might surprise parents. Among those to be removed are Shel Silverstein’s A Light in the Attic and Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five.”

WVLT-TV (Knoxville, Tenn.), Dec. 4
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Joe Foley writes: “Copyright rules vary from country to country and have changed over time. In the US, works created between 1929 and 1963 that gave notice and renewed copyright have 95 years from their first publication date. That means that on January 1, 2025, a host of works from 1929 will enter the public domain. This means that copyright will expire on Buck Rogers, Captain Easy, Horace Horsecollar, Tintin, Hal Foster’s first Tarzan comic strips and, yes, Popeye.” Other notable works entering public domain in the United States include the Marx Brothers’ first film, The Cocoanuts, contralto Marian Anderson’s first record, and Ernest Hemingway’s A Farewell to Arms.

Creative Bloq, Dec. 7; Everybody’s Libraries, Dec. 3, Dec. 7; Public Domain Review, Dec. 10
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Brittany Adams writes: “The digital landscape of libraries is expanding rapidly, with an increasing shift towards electronic resources and online services. As members of the library community, we’re witnessing a transformative era where physical collections are complemented—and sometimes replaced—by digital ones. This transition offers new opportunities for enhancing accessibility and engagement, but it also presents challenges, especially for young patrons and their families. It is essential to equip children and their caregivers with the tools and knowledge they need to navigate this evolving space confidently.”

ALSC Blog, Dec. 9

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