technology Archives | Page 14 of 33 | American Libraries Magazine

Troubling Decision Nixes Net Neutrality Rules

By Beverly Goldberg | January 14, 2014

Earlier today, a federal district court struck down net neutrality, the nondiscrimination rules of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) governing how internet service providers deliver online information. ALA President Barbara K. Stripling swiftly responded to the decision in Verizon v. FCC (PDF file) by expressing the Association’s disappointment at this blow to a principle ALA has long advocated: … Continue reading Troubling Decision Nixes Net Neutrality Rules →

CES 2014 Unveiled

By Jason Griffey | January 7, 2014

A quick walk and talk through the madness that is CES Unveiled, the official media event of the International CES, where the press can find “the latest products in one room and get a preshow look at what will be making headlines during CES.” [video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-SKy2kAdkrQ width:420 height:315 align:center]

A New Year’s Vision of Libraries as Bookstores

By James LaRue | January 6, 2014

Beth Bacon, vice president of content management at Seattle publishing platform Booktrope, posted a piece December 30, 2013, on the idea of libraries as ebookstores. On the surface, there is much to commend it. Many bookstores have closed, and the more than 15,000 public libraries in the United States—more, ALA tells us (PDF file), than … Continue reading A New Year’s Vision of Libraries as Bookstores →

Open Access Everything

By Meredith Farkas | December 23, 2013

With the growing cost of higher education, declining library budgets, and the crisis in scholarly publishing, it can sometimes be difficult to feel optimistic. Looking at the creative efforts to address these issues through publishing gives me ample hope. Many academic libraries are working to make the scholarly and creative output of their communities widely … Continue reading Open Access Everything →

Chicago Public Library’s New Website Goes Amazon

By Timothy Inklebarger | December 20, 2013

The library has contracted with the Toronto-based tech company BiblioCommons to develop and run the website. The BiblioCommons platform allows patrons not only to have a more interactive experience with other CPL users by way of comments and reviews, but also with the patrons of other library systems that also use BiblioCommons, such as in … Continue reading Chicago Public Library’s New Website Goes Amazon →

On the Perils of Licensing; or Bah Humbug Capitalism

By Christopher Harris | December 16, 2013

Cory Doctorow shared the sad tale on December 15 of one family’s holiday hopes being dashed by bah-humbug capitalism and the slippery nature of contractual licenses. Here is Bill's story, with another type of license taken from Clement Clarke Moore’s A Visit from St. Nicholas. ’Twas the night before movie time, when all thro’ the house Not … Continue reading On the Perils of Licensing; or Bah Humbug Capitalism →

Assistive-Adaptive Technologies

By John J. Burke | December 9, 2013

Libraries are all about people—both the people who use their services and the people who work there. Some key areas of concern for libraries relate to patrons with disabilities and patrons who use the library as their primary access point for technology. Library staff members need to know what technology barriers patrons may face and … Continue reading Assistive-Adaptive Technologies →

Library Design Showcase Submissions Open

By Phil Morehart | December 9, 2013

American Libraries is now accepting submissions for the 2014 Library Design Showcase, our annual feature celebrating new and newly renovated or expanded libraries of all types. The showcase will be featured in our September/October 2014 issue. We are looking for libraries that are shining examples of innovative architecture and that address patrons’ needs in unique, … Continue reading Library Design Showcase Submissions Open →

Libraries on the Vine

By Phil Morehart | December 3, 2013

“We avoided it for awhile,” says Gail Shackleton, director of library services at Appleby College, a 7–12 grade school in Ontario. She and library technician Stefania Mulyk administer the library’s social media presence, which already includes Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterest, and YouTube. They waited to adopt Vine until four months after the app’s introduction because of … Continue reading Libraries on the Vine →

Continuous Learning

By Karen Muller | November 26, 2013

Funds shift, coworkers leave, a new director arrives. Such unexpected job changes may require you to learn a new skill—fast. In my experience, I feel as though I can learn nearly anything from books. Even if I need to take a class, watch a webinar, or participate in a hands-on demonstration, reading about a topic … Continue reading Continuous Learning →

Not Just Angels on a Pin

By Jason Vaughan | November 25, 2013

In its Most Innovative Companies 2012 report that analyzes survey data from more than 1,500 senior executives, the Boston Consulting Group noted: “Innovation is rapidly moving up the CEO agenda across regions and industries. Seventy-six percent of respondents ranked innovation as a ‘top-three’ strategic priority—the highest level in our survey’s history.” Innovate on Purpose blogger … Continue reading Not Just Angels on a Pin →

Brave New Library

By Timothy Inklebarger | November 22, 2013

Participants at the conference got a chance to tour the lab and other innovative tech-centric initiatives at the library during the two-day event. The Maker Lab has a little over a month left at Harold Washington, before the temporary program ends on December 31. The Maker Lab is the first experiment with CPL’s Innovation Lab, … Continue reading Brave New Library →

Latest Library Links

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Alvin Wanjala writes: “The rise of generative artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots has popularized the term large language model (LLM), the underlying AI tech working behind the scenes. LLMs generate output based upon a predicted set of language in response to the user input, making it appear as if the AI is capable of thinking for itself. But LLMs aren’t the only large models in town; large action models (LAMs) could be the next big thing in AI. An LAM is an artificial intelligence system capable of understanding human input and performing a corresponding action.”

MakeUseOf, July 11
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Bellarmine University in Louisville, Kentucky, was partially evacuated July 15 after university officials received an email claiming “In the name of Donald Trump I have hidden highly lethal lead azide devices in the library and cafeteria.” Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, evacuated its library and dining halls after receiving bomb threats July 11. Evacuation orders in both cases were lifted after searches found no bombs. Many public libraries in Illinois, Minnesota, and other states have experienced threats over the past year, most recently at River Forest (Ill.) Public Library.”

WDRB-TV (Louisville, Ky.), July 15; WGAL-TV (Lancaster, PA), July 15; Book Riot, July 16; WLS-TV (Chicago), July 9
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C. Allison Sills writes: “In the dance between safeguarding patron privacy and navigating the law, community colleges confront a pivotal question: How do we fulfill our legal obligations without compromising the ethical and legal bedrock of our profession? In North Carolina, where I work, since the Parents’ Bill of Rights became state law in December 2023, community colleges have been pressured to compulsorily activate all patron checkout history for the first time in decades. The need to shield individuals’ privacy from potential abuse is paramount.”

College & Research Libraries News, July
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Steph Campbell writes: “From a combination of hype from Stranger Things, captivating performances on Critical Role, acceptance of ‘nerd culture,’ and so many other reasons, tabletop role-playing games have greatly increased in popularity over the past few years, and youth activities are reflecting this. Running games is often seen as the core for facilitating this interest, but you can connect your library’s book collection to this too. By displaying books that focus on themes from your library’s game sessions, you can help players find other stories that they relate to.”

ALA Games & Gaming Round Table, July 11
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Share innovative strategies and resources with your peers by submitting an education program proposal for the 2025 LibLearnX: The Library Learning Experience, taking place January 24–27, 2025, in Phoenix. The submission site is open now through August 12. The programmatic theme of LibLearnX 2025 is Reimagine, Refocus, Reset: Charting a Path for the Future. The LibLearnX Program Submission Guide provides detailed explanations of the learning formats and step-by-step instructions for submitting a proposal. Consult the Program Proposal Rubric for evaluation criteria and scoring and view a video on using the submission site to create and submit your proposal.

ALA Conference Services, July 15
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Summer is in full swing. This means getting outside, soaking up some sunshine, and listening to our favorite tunes—from oldies-but-goodies to today’s hits. In Episode 97, Call Number covers music. This episode includes conversations with librarian and Grammy Award–winning French horn player Joy Worland, as well as librarians who have organized programs for local patrons who love Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, and K-Pop. Attendees of ALA’s 2024 Annual Conference and Exhibition in San Diego also share memories of the first concert they attended.

AL: The Scoop, July 15
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Sheila Craft-Morgan writes: “Citations are a key measure of the impact of a researcher’s work. However, research in a variety of disciplines has found that women are less likely to be cited than men; citations contain geographic bias; and the Matthew effect—in which those who begin with advantage continue to gain advantage—leads to more citations for prominent scholars in a specific discipline. These findings contribute to the notion that scholarly knowledge comes from a homogenous group of researchers, thereby overlooking the contributions of other groups.”

American Libraries column, June

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