Retiring Guy's Digest: 2011-03-27

Saturday, April 2, 2011

ALA Executive Director Speaks at Oklahoma Library Association Conference

Librarians are fighters, state conference speaker says. (Tulsa World, 4/1/2011)

Excerpt: The executive director of the American Library Association said the myth of librarians as timid, "quiet folk" is changing as they rise up against legislation that hurts public, school and academic libraries.

Librarians fight censorship and restrictive measures in copyright laws, as well as limited access to taxpayer funded research and cuts to education and library funding, Keith Michael Fiels said Thursday at the Oklahoma Library Association conference in Tulsa.

"We are not victims," Fiels said. "We are the good guys, and we are creating libraries of the future. ... We struggle with our image. But librarians have a growing reputation as valiant individuals."

Local History Treasure Trove @ the Grand Rapids Public Library

LINK

Obituary of a home: How we researched the history of one vacant house in Grand Rapids. (Grand Rapids Press, 3/31/2011)

Excerpt: On the fourth floor of the downtown branch of the Grand Rapids Public Library is a treasure trove of information about the city, its buildings and its inhabitants.

Materials like real estate listing cards, city directories, death records and drawers and drawers of newspapers on microfilm can help people find the story of their home. These are some of the materials we used to research the life story of one vacant house in Grand Rapids.

The point of the project, which will be reported in coming days, culminating Sunday, was to take a snapshot of a single home caught up in a wave of vacancy. When census figures were released last week for Michigan, they detailed an estimated 8,493 empty houses in the city of Grand Rapids, compared to the 4,743 homes listed as vacant the previous decade. (If you have a vacancy or foreclosure story you'd like to share, use this form to tell us about it.)

But the resources at the library aren't just for researching vacant homes -- they are available to anyone interested in researching the history of a house or other local building.

Friday, April 1, 2011

When was the last time you used a typewriter?

Click, Clack, Ding! Sigh ... (The New York Times, 3/30/2011)

Excerpt: Even by Brooklyn standards, it was a curious spectacle: a dozen mechanical contraptions sat on a white tablecloth, emitting occasional clacks and dings. Shoppers peered at the display, excited but hesitant, as if they’d stumbled upon a trove of strange inventions from a Jules Verne fantasy. Some snapped pictures with

“Can I touch it?” a young woman asked. Permission granted, she poked two buttons at once. The machine jammed. She recoiled as if it had bitten her.

“I’m in love with all of them,” said Louis Smith, 28, a lanky drummer from Williamsburg. Five minutes later, he had bought a dark blue 1968 Smith Corona Galaxie II for $150.

Etsy

Related article:
In the market for a typewriter? Cormac McCarthy is selling his. (12/1/2009)

How Much Fun Is This? New York Public Library Scavenger Hunt

New York Public Library Invites 500 to Overnight Scavenger Hunt. (Mashable, 4/1/2011)

Excerpt: The New York Public Library, which became the first public library to launch a Foursquare badge this week, is going one step further in mobile innovation by inviting 500 people to compete in a smartphone-based challenge for a library game night.

“Find the Future: The Game,” devised by renowned game designer Jane McGonigal, is a series of “quests” delivered via an app on players’ mobile devices that can be completed at the Library’s 42nd Street location. A group of 500 players will be invited to play the game for the first time at 8 p.m. on May 20 to tackle a list of 100 overnight challenges.

The challenges are designed to encourage players to explore and reflect upon the objects from the library’s collections. A player might be tasked, for instance, to scan a QR code located at the Declaration of Independence, and then respond to a creative essay prompt. Once enough quests have been completed, they will be “unlocked” for the public, who can begin playing the game online May 21.

On the One Hand, 216,000 New Jobs; On the Other Hand, the Pay Stinks

Jobs as Lays potato chips. Bet you can't live on just one.

LINK

Job Growth Suggests Resilience of U.S. Recovery. (The New York Times, 4/1/2011)

Excerpt: The United States economy showed signs of kicking into gear in March, as the Labor Department reported Friday that it added 216,000 jobs and knocked the unemployment rate down another jot, to 8.8 percent.

Many Low-Wage Jobs Seen as Failing to Meet Basic Needs. (The New York Times, 3/31/2011)

Excerpt: The Labor Department will release its monthly snapshot of the job market on Friday, and economists expect it to show that the nation’s employers added about 190,000 jobs in March. With an unemployment rate that has been stubbornly stuck near 9 percent, those workers could be considered lucky.

But many of the jobs being added in retail, hospitality and home health care, to name a few categories, are unlikely to pay enough for workers to cover the cost of fundamentals like housing, utilities, food, health care, transportation and, in the case of working parents, child care. [Emphasis added.]

A separate report being released Friday tries to go beyond traditional measurements like the poverty line and minimum wage to show what people need to earn to achieve a basic standard of living.

So which one of the above is the April Fool's Day story?

Charlotte Mecklenburg Update: "Save our library" say Matthews residents

Charlotte Mecklenburg libraries haven't seen such large-scale reductions since the Great Depression. (3/17/2010)

All the Rage in Jersey

Jersey City Free Public Library puts "The Jersey Sting" on shelf at every branch, and some have more than one copy. (The Jersey Journal, 4/1/2011)

Excerpt: The Jersey City Free Public Library now has multiple copies of "The Jersey Sting" on its shelves, giving its patrons access to the new book that details the story behind the massive 2009 corruption probe that ensnared numerous Hudson County politicians.

On Tuesday, The Jersey Journal reported that the book, written by Star-Ledger reporter Ted Sherman and former Ledger and current New York Post reporter Josh Margolin, was extremely hard to find in Hudson County, where there are no first-run bookstores and few public libraries had the book in stock.

But now Jersey City library patrons can find at least one copy in all of the system's 10 branches, with multiple copies in the larger facilities, according to Assistant Library Director Sonia Araujo.

Araujo said the library system now has 14 copies, and 24 additional copies have been ordered. Several copies will be housed in the main branch's New Jersey Room.

Related article.
"You're kidding!": Jersey title allegedly hard to Find in Jersey. (3/30/2011)

Library Advocacy @ the Wisconsin State Capitol

Library supporters have their day at the Capitol. (Waterloo-Marshall Courier-News, 3/30/2011)

Excerpt: Once a year, a day at the Capitol is set aside for the state’s librarians, library patrons and library board members to meet with their legislators and express their thoughts and concerns with the elected leaders. This year, members of the Wisconsin Library Association went to speak with their representatives March 22.

Marshall Community Library Director Diana Skalitzky attended the event to let Rep. Keith Ripp and Sen. Mark Miller know how the local library serves the community and why the repeal of maintenance of effort could cause problems.

Friends of the Sun Prairie Public Library: A History of Giving Back to the Community

Sun Prairie has a true friend in the Friends of the Library. (Sun Prairie Star, 3/31/2011)

Excerpt: From staffing the Read Before Book Store to paying for maintenance on the Sun Prairie Public Library’s saltwater aquarium, the Sun Prairie Friends of the Library group has a long history of giving back to the Sun Prairie community.

The group was founded in August 1988 by Isabel Bauman. The goals of Friends of the Library include planning and implementing programs to promote library resources and services; raising funds for special purposes and encouraging gifts, endowments and bequests to the library; providing volunteers for library projects; and promoting community awareness of the library and library events. Over the past 23 years, the Friends group has been responsible for a number of library projects, including construction of the current building.

In 1996, Friends of the Library became a non-profit organization, complete with 501(c)(3) status. A year later, the Friends group, which was chaired by Tom and Betty Gene Diener, agreed to pay $25,000 over a two-year period, for the book store space in the library. Friends of the Library also had the task of raising $2 million to build the current library.

Betty Gene said her husband, Tom, used to refer to Friends of the Library as “the conduit between the fundraising and the city” for the new library.

“All the money went through the Friends to build the library,” Betty Gene said. “We did all the collecting.”

Getting the Word Out in Lodi About Library Funding

Local library could face cuts. (Lodi Enterprise, 3/30/2011)

Excerpt: Local library directors are trying to decide how proposed budget cuts will affect them at a time when circulation is at an all-time high.

But while the financial future is unclear, advocates are urging library users to speak up if they value public library services.

Lodi Public Library co-director Trisha Priewe said there are no hard numbers yet but the state's proposed 2011-13 biennial budget could affect local libraries.

Thursday, March 31, 2011

Concord New Hampshire Editorial Board Challenges Community to Love and Value Its Library

Library inspiration. (Concord Monitor editorial, 3/29/2011)

Excerpt: There are folks in Concord who don't believe the city needs a new library. They argue that libraries are 20th-century relics, that their tax dollars could be better spent, that the Green Street facility suits us just fine, thank you.

To them we'd offer this challenge: Take a drive to Portsmouth, check out the lovely and spacious city library there and think hard about what sort of future you want for Concord.

The Portsmouth library, which opened several years back, is large - 38,000 square feet - and sunny. On a recent afternoon, it was full of colorful children's artwork and buzzing with activity.

In Portsmouth there is ample room to display the library's books, DVDs and periodicals. The reference area is bright and open. There is a room just for teenagers, a cafe, a sun room and a private story-time area. There are private rooms available for tutoring sessions or group work. There is a special collections room for local historians and several rooms for residents and community groups to hold meetings.

Executive Order #22: Governor Walker's Read to Lead Task Force

The Disconnect Between Paying For and Receiving Services

It’s no contest in five towns. Elections draw few candidates. (Boston Globe, 3/31/2011)

Excerpt: Patricia Mikes of the Massachusetts Municipal Association said fielding candidates in local elections has been an ongoing problem, especially since the economy tanked.

“It’s just becoming a much more difficult job [with the] fiscal stress that most communities are under, between their budget problems and lay-offs, on the municipal and school side, and the increases in health insurance’’ costs, she said. “It just goes on and on.

“And residents want more for less. They want all the services, and don’t want fees and taxes to be increased. People are asking: ‘Why are there potholes? Why isn’t the library open when I need it?’ It’s a thankless job,’’ she said. [Emphasis added.]

"Blood Money" @ the Marathon County Public Library

County will allow anti-abortion group film at library. (Wausau Daily Herald, 3/31/2011)

Excerpt: Marathon County officials agreed today to allow the showing of a controversial anti-abortion film at the downtown Wausau library on Sunday.

Library Director Ralph Illick canceled the event last week, arguing that protesters of the film would affect library operations. The group sponsoring the event, 40 Days for Life, sued Illick and other county officials in federal court on Wednesday.

A hearing on the group’s request for a restraining order against Illick, that would have allowed the event to go forward, is scheduled in federal court in Madison tomorrow afternoon. An attorney representing the group was not immediately available to discuss whether the members plan to take any further legal action.

Marathon County Corporation Counsel Scott Corbett said county officials conferred with an attorney for their insurance company and determined that there was not enough evidence that protests would lead to a “civil disturbance” to cancel the event.

Related articles:
Editorial: "Library should be an open forum to all". (3/31/2011)
Marathon County anti-abortion group plans to file lawsuit. (3/30/2011)
"Blood Money", library meeting room use, and charges of censorship. (3/29/2011)

Popular Science iPad Subscriptions Off to a Promising Start

Popular Science Sells 10,000 iPad Subscriptions in First 5 Weeks. (Mashable, 3/30/2011)

Excerpt: Popular Science magazine has garnered more than 10,000 subscriptions for its iPad app, Bonnier Technology Group publisher Gregg Hano confirmed to Mashable Wednesday.

That might be only a sliver of the 1.2 million print subscriptions Popular Science has maintained to date, but it’s a promising start.

Since its launch in April 2010, the magazine has been selling an average of 10,000 to 12,000 single issues per month at $4.99 apiece, the same as its basic newsstand cover price. Although the app itself has received largely positive reviews from press and consumers, the latter were frustrated by the price.

“The problem was that readers could subscribe to the print version of Popular Science and get a discount, but they couldn’t on tablets,” Hano explains. “When Apple decided to offer up a subscription model, we [finally] found a way to give consumers what they want,” he adds.

Founding Member of Friends of the New London Public Library is Greatly Missed

Van Handel remembered by Friends of Library. (Waupaca Now, 3/9/2011)

Excerpt: The children from BABES were special to his heart, and Corky was passionate about all children. He wanted nothing more than to make a difference in the life of a child. He proved this many times as a founding member of the Friends of the Library. He was their first president in 2003 and took the lead again in 2007. Over the years the library was able to bring in entertainers and storytellers, buy puzzles, books and book bins. The Friends also purchased support items for the library. The list goes on and on.

Corky had ideas on how to raise funds for the library. "Corky was the Brat King," said Faye Wohlrabe, current Friends board member. "From the very first book sale and brat fry we had in September of 2003, he took on the grilling job. He even built the grill himself!"

After a few years, The Friends of the Library were able to fund the after school movie licensing fee and incentive prizes for the summer reading programs. One year they ordered dollar bills in a sheet from the U.S. Treasury and the children were allowed to cut off a crisp, new dollar bill when they accomplished their goals. "That was a big hit with the readers," said Connie Zolkoske, current Friends president. "We had our biggest participation that summer." Corky and his wife, Diana, purchased the library's subscription to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinal for years.

Zolkoske said it has been a big blow to the entire library not having Corky around. "He was the idea guy. He'd get so excited about raising money and putting it to good use for the kid

Wausau Daily Herald Editorial: "Library should be an open forum to all"

Our View: Library should be a forum open to all. (Wausau Daily Herald editorial, 3/30/2011)

Excerpt: Marathon County Public Library officials were wrong to block a screening of an anti-abortion film at the downtown Wausau library. They should reverse their decision and offer an apology to the group, 40 Days for Life, that had its event wrongly canceled.

According to Marathon County Corporation Counsel Scott Corbett, a planned screening of the film "Blood Money" by Wausau's 40 Days for Life chapter was canceled because library Director Ralph Illick believed planned protests against the film would disrupt the library's normal business.

That argument won't fly. It effectively punishes the group for something someone else might do.

In fact, that policy would give veto power to any outside group that threatened to protest at the library. Imagine that a group of white supremacists wanted to picket a Hmong Association event. Should the library cancel the Hmong group's event? Obviously not.

Part of what is so valuable about libraries is that they are public spaces open to anyone. Libraries have a special role in protecting the public discourse.

Related articles:
Marathon County anti-abortion group plans to file lawsuit. (3/30/2011)
"Blood Money", library meeting room use, and charges of censorship. (3/29/2011)

We're Thinking of Calling It MOMS: Maintenance of Membership Support

Governor Scott Walker's proposed budget threatens public library funding. (Appleton Post-Crescent, 3/31/2011)

Excerpt: Libraries have been roughing it through tightening budgets over the years, though cuts have largely gone unnoticed by the public. But the prospect of losing municipal dollars — if the 2011-13 state budget survives intact — could mean some libraries will have to reduce hours or slash spending on books and other materials.

Either of those moves would put pressure on collection needs and create problems in how materials are shared.

Meanwhile, circulation and computer use has been on the rise.

Librarians say funding cuts are especially worrisome for smaller libraries, whose cash-strapped communities probably would look to them first for budget reductions.

"That's why that (maintenance-of- effort) law is there. To make sure you don't join a system and then ride on the coattails of every other municipality's funds and just benefit from being in the system," Rortvedt said.

Budget-tightening outcome.

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Wisconsin Census 2010: The Biggest Losers

Largest percentage loss. Minimum population: 2000. (Source)

The reason for Hallie's precipitous decline? The village of Lake Hallie was formed from part of the town of Hallie on February 18, 2003.

"You're Kidding!": Jersey Title Allegedly Hard to Find in Jersey

Book about Hudson County corruption harder to find than a subpoena. (The Jersey Journal, 3/29/2011)

Excerpt: Anxious to get your hands on "The Jersey Sting," the new book about the 46 public-corruption arrests that rocked the state two years ago?

Good luck finding it in Hudson County, where there are no first-run bookstores and few public libraries have it on their shelves.

Of the county's 12 municipalities, only two -- Secaucus and Kearny -- have libraries that own copies of the book, a fact that surprised Secaucus Public Library Director Jenifer May.

"You're kidding," May said. "Pretty much anything with New Jersey in the title, we try to get in as soon as possible."

But wait a minute. I count 35 copies owned by libraries in the Bergen County Cooperative Library System. Does Terrence need a little seminar on libraries, technology, and resource sharing?

Just 1 copy in LINKcat; no holds.

Marathon County Anti-Abortion Group Plans to File Lawsuit

Anti-abortion group plans lawsuit against county's library director. (Wausau Daily Herald, 3/30/2011)

Excerpt: A local anti-abortion group plans to file a lawsuit against Marathon County’s library director after he canceled the showing of a controversial film.

An attorney for the group said the county’s offer of an alternate facility for the event was unacceptable.

Members of the organization, 40 Days for Life, accused library director Ralph Illick of censorship yesterday. Illick canceled a showing of “Blood Money” scheduled for Sunday, and said he was concerned protesters would affect normal operations of the library.

In a responding letter, released to the Daily Herald this afternoon, county officials offered the group a meeting room at a county building across the street from the library.

The county’s corporation counsel Scott Corbett wrote that the library was a “limited public forum,” where a government agency is not required to allow persons to engage in every type of speech, according to a 2001 U.S. Supreme Court decision.

“In this particular case, the Marathon County Public Library has set limits on the use of the meeting rooms,” Corbett wrote. “As indicated...in the event that the showing of the movie would provoke a civil disturbance, the purpose served by the forum would be thwarted.”

Related article:
"Blood Money", library meeting room use, and charges of censorship. (3/29/2011)

Q & A with Fox Cities Book Festival Organizers

Burning Questions: Fox Cities Book Festival organizers. (Appleton Post-Crescent, 3/30/2011)

Excerpt: Why a Fox Cities Book Festival?

Kenney: I think that one of the common threads that we've seen throughout the creation of the book festival was the seed planted by Wisconsin's first Poet Laureate, Ellen Kort. She had this idea that it would be great to foster discussion and a joy of reading, and she was trying to think of ways that it might be best communicated… She gathered with many key players in the Fox Valley… and said, 'What do you think?' It was a process of a couple of years to incubate the idea and then four years ago it was launched.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Wisconsin's Hot 100: Municipalities with Biggest Percentage Increase in Population, 2000-2010

Minimum population: 2000. (Link to source.)

"Blood Money", Library Meeting Room Use, and Charges of Censorship

LINK to complete policy document

'Blood Money' to be screened. (Wausau Daily Herald, 3/28/2011)

Excerpt: The movie "Blood Money" will be shown at 10 a.m. April 2 at the Cosmo Theatre in Merrill and at 1:30 p.m. April 3 at the Marathon County Public Library, third floor.

"Blood Money" is a documentary film about the abortion issue narrated by Alveda King, niece of Martin Luther King Jr.

Anti-abortion group accuses library official of censorship. (Wausau Daily Herald, 3/28/2011)

Excerpt: A local anti-abortion group is accusing a Marathon County Public Library official of censorship for canceling the showing of a controversial abortion film at the downtown Wausau library.

Attorneys for 40 Days for Life’s Wausau chapter said in a letter addressed to county officials that library Director Ralph Illick blocked the event, citing the potential for counter-protests.

Illick declined comment this afternoon and said that he could not discuss “a legal matter.” Maratjavascript:void(0)hon County Corporation Counsel Scott Corbett said officials plan to respond to the complaint in a letter tomorrow but did not know what that message would include.

Library cancels anti-abortion movie in face of protests. (Wausau Daily Herald, 3/29/2011)

Excerpt: Janet Nichols, a member of the group, said library employees didn't ask questions about the topic of the film when the event was planned. She said Illick told organizers that he had seen plans for counter-protests on Facebook and felt allowing the showing would disrupt the library.

Corbett confirmed that Illick was the official who canceled the showing because a public disturbance would impair library operations.

The library's meeting room policy makes space available to all groups "on an equitable basis, regardless of the beliefs or affiliations of individuals or groups." But the policy also allows the library director to refuse use for any purpose that "may interfere with the normal use of the library."

Sources tell me that Scott Corbett, Marathon County Corporation Counsel, negotiated a venue change to another county building near the library.

The Kentucky Read Project: Everyone Present and Accounted For

Link to American Libraries. (Thanks to John Thompson for the heads up.)

The brief article notes that the project was started in 2008. I assume the officials pictured are still in office.

Monday, March 28, 2011

Music Sales: Let's (Not) Get Physical

Big Music's Big Decline, in Chart Form (Again). (Media Memo, 3/28/2011)

Augmented Reality App for Shelf Reading

iPad Apps for Children with Special Needs

iPad gives new hope to those with autism and other disorders. (San Jose Mercury News, 3/26/2011)

Excerpt: While hordes of iPad users whiled away their soggy Saturday by catapulting angry birds at green pigs, Marquis Alforja was expertly flicking his tiny fingers through the intricacies of a specialized app to learn how to spell -- and perhaps, one day, to actually speak aloud -- the word "S-W-A-N."

Nestled in his mother Marlene's lap, the 3-year-old San Jose boy with autism aligned the letters perfectly to their spots on the screen. Marquis, who does not talk, giggled with delight when the swan spun around on the bright screen in celebration.

A roomful of other parents of special-needs children gathered around, taking careful notes of app names, as their children traced cyberletters, etched cyberpumpkins, strummed cyberBalalaikas and decorated their virtual homes with hearts earned from figuring out addition problems.

They had gathered at Via West Campus in the hills above Cupertino for an ongoing seminar series to teach families how Apple iPads and the exponentially growing world of apps can be used for helping kids with autism, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy and other disabilities to better communicate and learn.

Businesses a Prime Target of Banking Cybercrime

LINK

Thieves join rush to online banking. (San Jose Mercury News, 3/27/2011)

Excerpt: Sarah Bulgatz, a spokeswoman for Charles Schwab, said the accounts were accessed through the victims' computers and not those of her company, adding that Schwab reimburses individuals for such losses. Under the federal Electronic Fund Transfers law, the liability of consumers who report an online bank loss within two days of discovering it is limited to $50 and only after 60 days are they liable for the entire amount.

But the law doesn't protect commercial, governmental or nonprofit enterprises. And the sizable sums those entities often maintain in their financial accounts make them attractive quarry for criminals. Of 504 small and medium-size businesses recently surveyed by Guardian Analytics, which helps banks and credit unions prevent theft, 32 percent said they had experienced an online-banking scam during the previous year.

While some banks have taken steps to prevent such larceny, many others have left themselves easy prey to hackers, who are becoming highly organized and using increasingly sophisticated tactics, said Guardian's CEO Terry Austin. With more and more people banking online, he added, "the banking industry in general needs to step up to provide a higher level of security."

Some people -- including Talbot of Golden State Bridge -- also are urging lawmakers to give commercial ventures the same reimbursements afforded individuals. They have formed an online organization -- Cyber Looting Awareness & Security Project -- to lobby for the change.

With current interest rates, perhaps this is the best approach to protecting your money.

Plans to Close Copley Square Facility on Sundays Gets Icy Reception

Boston Public Library

Library patrons pan plan to close Sundays. (Boston Globe, 3/28/2011)

Excerpt: College students fleeing campus libraries, where chatty pals stand in the way of a polished term paper. City residents showing off a historic landmark to friends visiting from out of town. Job seekers down on their luck. They all come to the same place on Sunday afternoons from October to May — the central facility of the Boston Public Library in Copley Square. But next fall, they may have to look elsewhere, after the library’s Board of Trustees approved a budget proposal last week that calls for closing the Copley library on Sundays, as part of a larger effort to keep neighborhood branches open and avoid layoffs.

“That’s terrible,’’ said Jojo Jacobson, 27, of Jamaica Plain, who brought friends visiting from Nevada to the Copley facility yesterday to take in its ivory staircases, arched ceilings, and rare books. Jacobson, an English tutor at Roxbury Community College, said she encourages her students to visit the library on Sundays because they have full-time work during the week.

Related articles:
Budget would keep all 26 branches open. (3/24/2011)
Library to host budget roundtables. (1/14/2011)
Boston Mayor: "I believe we have too many branches." (1/11/2011)
$350,000 in State Funding Keeps 4 Boston Public Library Branches Open Thru June. (1/5/2011)
Residents fight to keep 4 neighborhood branches open. (10/26/2010)
Editorial takes library officials to task. (9/11/2010)
BPL on the ropes. (7/1/2010)
Four library branch closings delayed. (6/22/2010)
Boston Magazine profiles Amy Ryan, Public Library President. (6/5/2010)
State funding at risk. (4/29/2010)
Library board votes to close 4 branches. (4/10/2010)
Recommendation to close 4 branches (among other cuts). (4/8/2010)
More than 100 gather to fight possible branch library closings. (4/4/2010)
The Skinny on Boston's branch libraries. (4/1/2010)
Library measures data published. (3/31/2010)
Don't close the book on us. (3/29/2010)
Citywide Friends of BPL to Hold Demonstration. (3/28/2010)
BPL Budget News Available at Website. (3/25/2010)
A Small Branch Makes a Big Impact. (3/24/2010)
Friends of Boston Public Library Host Read-in to Support Tax Increase. (3/14/2010)
Emotions Reach Boiling Point in Boston Public Library Discussion. (3/13/2010)
The Boston Public Library Dilemma, Continued. (3/12/2010)
Boston Speaks Up for Its Libraries. (3/10/2010)
Boston Public Library Branches to be Ranked in Consolidation Plan. (3/9/2010)
Boston Public Library Anticipating Budget Cuts in 2011. (3/2/2010)

Libraries and Ebooks: "The challenges just keep piling up."

Growing e-reader demand creates challenges for library. (La Crosse Tribune, 3/27/2011)

Excerpt: La Crosse residents who unwrapped an e-reader at Christmas with visions of free library books dancing in their heads are realizing that dream isn't coming true.

"There are a whole lot of people who bought an e-reader thinking that the library as they know it would literally be at their fingertips," said Rochelle Hartman, information services manager at the La Crosse Public Library. "I have bummed out so many people these last six months."

Libraries are struggling to balance a centuries-old technology with e-readers, tablet-size devices for reading digital books and magazines. It isn't easy.

The La Crosse library's e-book vendor, Overdrive, has crashed because so many people wanted to download digital books. Overdrive offers more than 2,000 titles, but most are usually checked out. Waiting lists are long. And Overdrive isn't compatible with the Kindle, the most popular e-reader.

The challenges just keep piling up, Hartman said.

Related articles:
Publishers Weekly tracks ebook sales. (3/18/2011)
Word is getting out: Ebooks @ your library. (3/18/2011)
Ebooks continue to gain market share. (3/17/2011)
Publishers look to bottom line in formulating ebook policies for libraries. (3/15/2011)
News stories on HarperCollins ebook decision go mainstream. (3/5/2011)
9 years of book sales: trade and ebook. (2/17/2011)
Will ebook readers be wooed by Barbara Cartland? (2/12/2011)
The impact of ebooks on libraries. (2/11/2011)
OverDrive news release: Library eBook circs up 200% in '10. (1/10/2011)
Mashable: 5 ebook trends that will change the future of publishing. (12/29/2010)
Christmas 2010 the tipping point for ebooks? (12/24/2010)
Ereader as brown paper bag. (12/9/2010)
The ebook reader compatibility surprise. (12/3/2010)
Ereader ownership: Survey says.... (11/30/2010)
David Carnoy asks, "Does the Kindle pay for itself?" (11/29/2010)
Need to repair that ebook reader? (11/19/2010)
Who uses an ereader: Survey says.... (9/22/2010)
Book industry wrestles with print vs. pixels. (9/2/2010)
Coming soon to a screen near you: Ads in ebooks. (8/20/2010)
Ebooks now comprise 8/5% of book sales. (8/12/2010)
Genre paperback publishers drops print. (8/6/2010)
Ebooks and libraries. (5/4/2010)
Ebooks eliminate a free form of adversiting: the book jacket. (3/31/2010)
Ebooks: another round of false promises? (3/19/2010)
The skinny on ebooks. (3/8/2010)
Hardcover vs. ebook: Breaking down the costs. (3/1/2010)

Sunday, March 27, 2011

School Library Uses Books Trailers to Boost Interest in Reading

LINK

Coming soon to a library near you! Book trailers increase students’ interest in reading. (Cedar Rapids Gazette, 3/25/2011)

Excerpt: The music is eerie, the words forbidding.

“Thirteen years ago, a plane appeared out of nowhere … no pilot, no crew. The only passengers were 36 babies.”

It sounds like the introduction to television’s next “Lost,” but it’s a book trailer for Margaret Peterson Haddix’s newest series, “Found” – one of several trailers played in the library at Solon Middle School.

“This is all about marketing,” Kathy Kaldenberg, Solon’s media specialist, said. “Kids are just so drawn to multimedia. Any way that we can catch them, to keep them reading, is something we’re going to try.”

Not that book trailers are new. Book publishers have used them for years. However, it’s only recently that Solon’s middle and high school libraries have played the trailers continuously throughout the school day.

And students are taking note.

“The kids stop all the time because they are running on a loop,” said Karen Clingerman, media associate at Solon High School. “They see different things every time they are in the library.”

“Anything with music in it catches their attention,” Jennifer Bishop, the media associate at the middle school, said. “They will just stand there and watch.”

Then they go to the shelves and grab the books. Both Bishop and Clingerman said they have seen increased circulation of the books featured in the trailers.

Charlotte Mecklenburg Libraries: The Long Road Back

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Charlotte Mecklenburg libraries haven't seen such large-scale reductions since the Great Depression. (3/17/2010)