mobile technology Archives | American Libraries Magazine

Illustration of a woman "surfing" on a library card through different icons related to library systems including a book, a money sign, and an ebook

2024 Library Systems Report

By Marshall Breeding | May 1, 2024

Previous cycles of business consolidation have yielded a layered landscape with distinct levels of competition. At the top, a handful of large organizations with considerable resources—Clarivate, EBSCO Information Services, Follett School Solutions, and OCLC—continue to expand their portfolios, covering multiple business sectors and library types. Middle-tier companies, including Axiell, ByWater Solutions, The Library Corporation (TLC), … Continue reading 2024 Library Systems Report →

2023 Year in Review

January 2, 2024

Another record year for book challenges Preliminary data from the Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) through August 31 showed a 20% increase in reported book challenges for 2023—surpassing the record set in 2022. The data also showed an increase in challenges that targeted multiple titles, with libraries in 11 states receiving challenges that included 100 or … Continue reading 2023 Year in Review →

A photo of one of the Wi-Fi-enabled benches installed by the Pioneer Library System in Oklahoma

Sit and Surf

By Bill Furbee | May 1, 2023

The twist? Those patrons are doing this all outside while sitting at benches placed throughout the community—sometimes mere steps away from their own homes. PLS is one of a growing number of libraries nationwide to install high-tech, solar-powered benches that offer more than just a place to rest; they also provide free Wi-Fi and charging … Continue reading Sit and Surf →

Devices on the Go

By Carrie Smith | March 1, 2022

Launchpad User: Rebecca Colbert, head of collection and bibliographic services, Las Vegas–Clark County (Nev.) Library District What are Launchpads? Launchpads are tablets with preloaded educational apps and games, produced by Playaway. They enable digital learning without the need for Wi-Fi or internet access. Each tablet is for a different educational level and subject area, such … Continue reading Devices on the Go →

Wired for Wireless

By David Lee King | January 4, 2021

According to the Pew Research Center, more than 81% of US adults own a smartphone, up from 35% in 2011. That share is even higher for adults ages 18–29 at 96%, while just over half of people age 65 and older own one. Roughly one in five American adults are “smartphone-only” internet users, meaning they … Continue reading Wired for Wireless →

Staff (top) and patron views of Curbside Communicator.

Don’t Touch

By Carrie Smith | September 1, 2020

Curbside Communicator Unique’s Curbside Communicator automates curbside pickups for holds and creates a simple communication link between patrons and library staff to facilitate the process. Rather than requiring patrons to reserve a time slot in advance, Curbside Communicator allows patrons to arrive anytime during designated hours and use their mobile devices to check in and … Continue reading Don’t Touch →

Plug into the Census

By Taylor Hartz | March 2, 2020

Citywide collaboration in Baltimore Baltimore received a $250,000 grant from the state of Maryland to support census outreach efforts, led by the Baltimore Complete Count Committee (BCCC). The committee has worked closely with local libraries to implement a plan for “bringing the census to the people,” says Austin C. Davis, census project manager for the … Continue reading Plug into the Census →

Mobile phone with Demco DiscoverMobile app.

Reaching Patrons on the Go

By Carrie Smith | June 1, 2018

DiscoverMobile by Demco The recently launched DiscoverMobile app connects communities to everything their libraries have to offer. The app is available to all types of libraries and is designed to run on both Android and iOS devices. The app is hosted and maintained by Demco—libraries manage only their own content and branding. Libraries can add … Continue reading Reaching Patrons on the Go →

Get Responsive

By Marcus Banks | November 1, 2017

The profusion of mobile devices means that half of public library users who visit library websites do so from their mobile device. This proportion is likely to keep increasing. But just because patrons can access a library website on a mobile device does not guarantee that the site is easy to use. Sites that were … Continue reading Get Responsive →

Mobile Comics Plus: Library Edition from Recorded Books

Reading Remotely

By Patrick Burke | September 1, 2016

Comics move online Independent audiobook and ebook publisher Recorded Books and comics distributor iVerse Media has partnered with IDW Publishing to update its Comics Plus: Library Edition service. Comics Plus: Library Edition supplies libraries with digital graphic novels and comics that can be accessed by patrons from any web-based device. Patrons can check out as … Continue reading Reading Remotely →

Streamlined Software

By Patrick Burke | May 31, 2016

Apollo automation at Biblionix Public library automation provider Biblionix has updated its award-winning integrated library system, Apollo, with new functions to make life easier for librarians. Apollo helps public librarians streamline their day-to-day tasks such as circulation management, collection management, and new patron sign-up. Because of its multi-tenant design, changes and updates are available as soon … Continue reading Streamlined Software →

Mobile Beacon, which provides mobile Wi-Fi devices (pictured above) and grants to libraries and other organizations for Wi-Fi lending programs, is one of the nonprofits that has filed a lawsuit against Sprint over a contract dispute. Photo: Mobile Beacon

Temporary Injunction Extended to Transition Libraries to New Wi-Fi Network

By Timothy Inklebarger | February 3, 2016

Last November, Educational Broadband Service-designated providers Mobile Beacon and Mobile Citizen successfully requested the court impose a 90-day injunction on Sprint’s plan to shut down its WiMax network and transition customers to the LTE network. Mobile Beacon and Mobile Citizen said they needed the injunction because contract negotiations collapsed with Sprint, which bought their former … Continue reading Temporary Injunction Extended to Transition Libraries to New Wi-Fi Network →

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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