YALSA’s Teens and Technology Interest Group sponsored a Pecha Kucha 20×20 session on programming and other technology issues for teen services. Pecha Kucha is a short-format talk. Each speaker prepares a slide show of 20 images, which each show for 20 seconds before advancing automatically, for a total presentation time of just under 7 minutes. … Continue reading In a Flash: Tech Services for Teens
The folks at Wikipedia “are lovers of the institutions of knowledge” and definitely libraries, said Sue Gardner at ALA President Roberta Stevens’s special program Sunday at ALA in New Orleans. The executive director of the Wikimedia Foundation, which operates Wikipedia, said that the wiki is not opposed to traditional media; and, in fact, “we want … Continue reading Sue Gardner Calls for Librarians to Dive in to the World of Wikipedia
“Librarians who think straight are actively engaged in creating the future. They are not trying to protect the past,” declared Stephen Abram, Canada’s 2011 Librarian of the Year and creator of the Stephen’s Lighthouse blog. The Digital Bridge to Somewhere panel on Sunday, June 26, was made up of men who planned for, created, and … Continue reading It’s Really About the Patrons
Transliteracy is a trendy word these days, and much like the Web 2.0 debate that took place a few years ago, there are those who question whether or not transliteracy is just a new, fancier term for information literacy. According to Bobbi Newman, one of the speakers on the Why Transliteracy panel that took place … Continue reading Trans-what? A Day of Literacies at the ALA Annual Conference
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
LearnRT’s “TEDx, Boot Camps, and Unconferences: Innovative and Low-Cost Staff Development Events” offered insights on using nontraditional methods to help library staff gain knowledge and insight to better perform their jobs. Janie Hermann, program librarian at Princeton (N.J.) Public Library, described how the library created a camp experience for its staff development day in 2009. … Continue reading Saving on Staff Development
An Open Letter from ALA President Roberta Stevens and ALA Executive Director Keith Michael Fiels: Dear Colleagues: Here is ALA’s new 2015 Strategic Plan (PDF file). The plan outlines the vision and goals that will guide us through what promises to be a period of unprecedented challenges and opportunities for libraries. It reflects the work … Continue reading Unveiling the ALA 2015 Strategic Plan
After “10 Reasons Why the Internet is No Substitute for a Library,” a 2001 article in American Libraries, received some unwelcome attention two weeks ago, we sought your feedback to help create an updated version. Based on reader comments and staff discussions, we’ve drafted this list of reasons why libraries matter in a digital age. … Continue reading 10 Ways Libraries Matter in a Digital Age
I have many friends who use the mobile location-based networking site Foursquare to broadcast exactly where they are at various points during their day using the GPS on their phone. In my Twitter feed, I see posts stating that one friend is at a conference, another is out to lunch, and another is at the … Continue reading Too Much Information?
In 2001, American Libraries published Mark Herring’s “10 Reasons Why the Internet Is No Substitute for a Library.” The article, a celebration of the importance of physical libraries in a digital age, was a hit. It hasn’t aged well. Yesterday BoingBoing published a photo of a poster made from that list, and the commentary is, … Continue reading Revisiting “10 Reasons”
London-based blogger, science-fiction author, and digital-rights champion Cory Doctorow opened Day 2 of the Conference on Privacy and Youth via Skype. “There comes a day when kids have to use their good judgment,” he said, arguing that adults are unwittingly undermining that goal by berating young people to guard their personal information while subjecting them … Continue reading Conference on Privacy and Youth: Day 2
The ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom's Conference on Privacy and Youth, currently meeting March 24–25 in downtown Chicago, is bringing together some 50 librarians, privacy advocates, educators, authors, artists, and policy experts to discuss the work they are doing to engage and educate young people in privacy protection so that they can make informed choices … Continue reading Conference on Privacy and Youth: Day 1
