Even though he wrote The Googlization of Everything (And Why We Should Worry), Siva Vaidhyanathan has plenty of good to say about the company. “Google has actually treated us very well,” he said during his Auditorium Speaker Series speech. “Google does a good job with what they offer and they do it for free…. They’re … Continue reading Vaidhyanathan Speaks on the Limitations of Benevolence
Activist writer Dan Savage keynoted the ALA Annual Conference in New Orleans today by explaining how his new book, It Gets Better, was inspired by a rash of suicides by gay teens who commit suicide because they cannot picture a future that would be good enough to make up for the pain they are in … Continue reading Dan Savage Keynotes ALA Conference with Message of Positive Subversion
In accordance with the Association’s continued emphasis on diversity, small groups probed the varied facets of the issue during the Town Hall Meeting on Diversity June 24 presented by ALA’s Committee on Diversity. The goal was to provide members with an opportunity to gather and discuss key issues and develop strategies for use with the … Continue reading Town Hall explores staff, patron diversity issues
One of my biggest mistakes as a library administrator was getting rid of the card catalog. No, I’m not talking about replacing it with a digital version. Everyone did that back in the ’80s. That was a no-brainer. What I mean is that after we installed the OPAC, I sent the physical card catalog into … Continue reading Dead Trees We Have Known
Engaging with library users on the web is no longer restricted to simply putting a static HTML file on a server and calling it a successful website. Yet without technical assistance and forethought, content management can be an actively complex and frustrating process. A content management system like WordPress lets you manage your website more … Continue reading WordPress as a Library CMS
However much one learns while studying for that MSLS degree, some skills are learned on the job—perhaps with the help of a guide like Be a Great Boss: One Year to Success by Catherine Hakala-Ausperk. Part of the ALA Guides for the Busy Librarian series, the book provides a month-by-month program, starting with “Attitude” and … Continue reading New from ALA
Every year, in late March and early April, I’m consumed with putting together Booklist’s annual Mystery Showcase issue. For more than a month, my mind is clogged with crime novels: reading them, writing about them, editing what others have written about them, etc. But when that issue finally sleeps its Big Sleep, I run as … Continue reading The Ancient World
One of the best parts of my job, especially this time of year, is marveling at great achievements; how splendid it was to witness an old friend and erstwhile student, Eric Meyers, defend his dissertation last month. Eric’s dissertation covered a lot of territory; he studied the relationship between group information-seeking processes and the products … Continue reading As They Like It
There are fewer and fewer print dictionaries, and in fact the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, once considered a mainstay of the dictionary collection, seems to have altogether disappeared. But language lovers can take heart in the publication of a new and wonderful resource, the three-volume Green’s Dictionary of Slang, compiled by British … Continue reading Volumes of Vernacular
When we library staff members are struggling to respond to incoming phone calls, email, text/instant messages, tweets, Facebook and LinkedIn updates, and people stopping us in hallways to ask for help, it’s easy to forget that we, too, need learning resources and communities of support. Many of us who are responsible for organizing and providing … Continue reading Professional Growth through Learning Communities
In the summer of 1973, I attended my first conference of the International Federation of Library Associations (held in Grenoble, France) after becoming executive director of the American Library Association. The conference buzz was speculation about me (“Who is this Bob Wedgeworth?”), since I had just succeeded David Clift. Leo M. Weins, president of the … Continue reading A Tribute to H. W. Wilson
Librarians were well represented at the 2011 BookExpo America (BEA) in New York City, held May 24–26, in autographing lines, workshops, and publisher parties that lasted late into the evening. Although traditionally aimed at retail book buyers, BEA has been adding more and more programming for librarians each year; for 2011, Library Journal and School … Continue reading Book Buzz Still Packs Librarians into BEA
