LibrarianInBlack

Comparative Study of Federated Searching Products

Check out this study of federated searching products commissioned by the National Library of New Zealand. They looked at every product I know about. The results are detailed and I think will serve to help those of us shopping around for federated search products in the upcoming fiscal year, like me for instance. Thank you New Zealand! Lots of good stuff is coming from there lately...

Toy Fair's Top Ten Strange Products

Wow. Weird toys. Very weird toys. The one that really gets me is BABOOCHI. The weird thing is, people will buy these things...

Shame on Orson Scott Card

In a shameful display of homophobia, Card has written an article against gay marriage, claiming that the "dark secret of homosexuality" is that homosexuals only want to get married to give themselves a false sense of normality. Card also wrote a well-publicized article back in 1990 entitled "The Hypocrites of Homosexuality," which is even more anti-gay. Goes to prove that artistic talent and being a good person don't always go hand in hand. Shame on him.

The Beginners Guide to Weblogs and RSS

Steven Cohen (of Library Stuff fame) is teaching an online class for beginners on weblogs and RSS through LearningTimes.From the program overview:

"If you have ever thought about creating your own weblog or utilizing an aggregator to read news but have been a bit skeptical then this training session is for you. This hands-on training will explore some of the current software tools that are being used to publish to weblogs as well as read content via RSS. During this online workshop, the attendees will have the opportunity to post/publish to a weblog, explore the features available with the software, as well as examine content via a news aggregator."

Get more info on the workshop at the LearningTimes website.

Nancy Pearl and Orlando Bloom are Top Sellers

Blake posts on LIS News that up at PLA, the Nancy Pearl action figures are being bought as much as the Orlando Bloom READ poster (ahhh, Legolas). Congrats to Pearl, and a totally random note on Bloom: Why do librarians like him so very much? My theory is that it has to do with more than just his sheer good looks. It's the whole Legolas-the-Elf character--intelligent, good looking, gentle, immortal--more than it is the actor himself. And elves just seem like the type of people you'd find in a beautiful library somewhere. You don't see people swooning over Bloom's character in Pirates of the Caribbean...swarthy pirate boy is not for me, I say. But Legolas, oh yes.

Textbooks for blind students "come alive"

Assistive Technology experts at the University of Buffalo have developed , prototype social-studies electronic textbooks that include text as well as descriptions of all graphic elements (which has been lacking in all Braille textbooks to date). From what I remember of social studies books, there were tons of pictures, maps, charts, and photographs that contained a wealth of significant information. So, inclusion of the graphical elements in this new e-textbook system is a great step forward. The student can either listen to the textbook or read it in Braille. And because the file is electronic, the students can search for certain words of passages, instead of tediously skimming the Braille pages.

Alternative Site for the Borg Mod

Since the site hosting the Borg PC mod crashed (bwah ha ha ha, the power we have), I looked for an alternative site and found one. This site isn't in English, but it has pictures of the Borg PC mod, so if that's all you're after, go crazy. Just please, don't crash their server too ;)

Borg Cube Case Mod

Yes, I'm a Trekkie. Yes, I'm a computer geek. And yes, I love this Borg Cube PC-case mod, a creation of Xor’Arch. Sweet case modding gorgeousness.

Overdrive Digital Audio Books

Check out this article on Overdrive offering digital audio books in WMA format. Downloadable, Windows Media, what more could a girl ask? I know that the California Califa Consortia's e-book committee (which I am on, incidentally) is considering jumping on board with Overdrive. This WMA option makes it all the more appealing. Ooh, downloadable & accessible. Mmmmmmmm.....

Cheap Multifunction Printers

Tech TV's "Call for Help" ran tests on several multifunction printers, and their ultimate recommendation, based on functionality and price, is the Canon MP390. At $199.99, it's reasonably priced and does a whole lot more than your typical cheapie home printer. Read the complete results for all printers tested here.

More Vinyl Than Tweed

How long is it going to take for this stereotype to die? Until everyone who saw The Music Man in its first run dies off?!?!

In a NYT article describing Diane Keaton's fashion sense (just the fact that this article was written at all distresses me greatly), author Ruth LaFerla refers to Keaton's dowdiness: "For the better part of her 30-odd-year film career, Keaton has hidden her light under bowler hats, oversize jackets and calf-grazing skirts--and almost always prim gloves--cultivating a persona that on screen and off is less siren than librarian."

OK, you know what? I'm a librarian AND a siren. And I know there are lots of us out there--male and female. I own more vinyl than tweed, more pleather than wool, and not a single oversize jacket. How exactly, then, do I fit in with Ms. LaFerla's stereotype, that she so casually throws into her oh-so-high-brow fashion article? To suggest that the antithesis of a siren is a librarian is not only just plain stupid, but also very, very untrue.

Perhaps I'm getting irked over nothing, but I wrote a letter to the editor, I was so pissed. Anyone want to join me?

Rock on, you librarian sirens.

Anyone want to co-present with me at CLA?

OK, I am going to shamelessly use my blog to solicit some co-presenters for November's California Library Association Annual Conference.

I would really like to do an IT program on "What's New in Tech." I could do it alone if I had to, but panel programs really are so much more interesting. My idea would be to focus on new everything...hardware, software, gadgets, websites, online technologies & services, etc. Very free-form, kind of like throwing 20 new things at people and letting them digest it all later.

I know that I have some California readers. If you'd like to join me at CLA for this "What's New in Tech" panel, please e-mail me. The more, the merrier!

RLG

Well, I'm not sure how this one managed to get by me, but a big thanks to a certain librarian in Fairfax, CA who pointed out an article, "The InfoDiet: How Libraries Can Offer an Appetizing Alternative to Google," in The Chronicle of Higher Education (02/20/04) that highlights this lovely resource.

RLG, RedLightGreen, is a search engine that searches over 120 million books. It offers a single search box (like Google) and a five star relevancy ranking system, but the interesting part is the results screen, which offers you suggestions on how to refine your search by subject, authors, and languages related to your search. Inside each item record, you can get citation information in four styles, and also link to see if your local library has the book. I love this idea. I want metasearch engines (like WebFeat) to take a page from RLG's book, and include this kind of automated search-coaching into their products.

You can find out more about the project at RLG's homepage.

Free 64 MB Flash Drive

Back in January, I posted about a free 32MB flash drive. FreeAfterRebate.com now lists a free 64MB flash drive through Office Max. I love this website.

Hacking the Library

Kendall Clark, faculty research associate in the University of Maryland's semantic web lab, is writing a new column for XML.com entitled "Hacking the Library." The column will be devoted to "shar[ing] some of the library science tricks I've picked up in my own efforts to manage my dijalog lifestyle," using code, ontologies, and theory. I'll definitely be watching this one!

Thomas is Online

Thomas Register has launched ThomasNet.com. The database combines material from Thomas Register & Thomas Regional. Does this mean, just maybe, that we can get rid of all those darn green books? Maybe? Thanks to Gary Price for the link.

Bush Administration Ignores the Hearing-Impaired

The Bush administration has secretly ceased closed captioning for 200 television shows. No warning or reasoning, they just decided to stop. Some of the shows that are no longer being closed captioned are "The Simpsons," "Law and Order," "X-Men Evolution," and "A&E Investigative Reports." A lot of the shows on the dropped-list are cartoons, leading me to believe that the young hearing-impaired (and those who are young at heart) will be most directly affected.

The National Council on Disabilities is charging the administration with censorship, in that they are "telling the nation's deaf what they can and can't watch." The Bush Administration has long been known to further its political agenda through government censorship (no freaking surprise). In 2002 they directed federal government organizations to censor their web content based on the current administration's values and goals. This included a CDC page explaining how to use a condom to prevent the spread of STDs, and various Department of Education pages that conflicted with Bush's worldview. The Orwellian-age continues...

E-mail Annoyances

Steve Bass has made a chapter about e-mail freakishness from his book, PC Annoyances, available for free download. He explains the fixes for various problems in several different e-mail programs, such as Outlook, Eudora, & Netscape. This is good--very good. Thanks Steve!

Skywalker Ranch Wines

Francis Ford Coppola is bottling wine made of grapes grown on George Lucas's Skywalker Ranch. At $30 a bottle for the Chardonnay, I don't know how well it's going to do. I mean, damn, you can get a $2 bottle of Chardonnay at Trader Joe's. Long live Two-Buck-Chuck!

Flat-Panel-Man hates CRT-Man

...they have a fight, Flat-Panel-Man wins, Flat-Panel Man... (sung to the tune of They Might Be Giants' "Particle Man"). So, yeah. For the first time, global shipments of liquid crystal displays in 2004 will surpass those of cathode ray tube (CRT) units, market research firm IDC said Thursday. It's about time. See the story here.

Eragon gets a script-writer

LiB's favorite book of recent years, Eragon, is being made into a movie. Peter Buchman will be writng the script. Buchman wrote the script for Jurassic Park III. That particular film got really awful reviews, but Buchman has a lot of good material to work with in Eragon. Who will they cast as Eragon himself, do you think? My current vote is for Spencer Treat Clark (from Gladiator, Unbreakable, and Mystic River). To me, he just has the look...

California Online Voter Guide

For my California readers, the state launched a new site today helping voters figure out what's what. The California Online Voter Guide gives ballot information, where to register to vote, where to vote (for me, the place seems to change from one election to the next), and links to other voter info sites.

A Red Dwarf Movie?

Fans of the Red Dwarf series will be thrilled to hear that in a recent interview, Chris Barrie (AKA Arnold Rimmer) has stated that a Red Dwarf movie (to star the original cast) is in the early stages of development. Whoo hoo!

eHistory

While the homepage of this online history resource is not particularly impressive, the sheer amount of information it contains is overwhelming. eHistory contains over 130,000 pages of historical content; 5,300 timeline events; 800 battle outlines; 350 biographies; and thousands of images and maps. Just as an example, if you go into maps, and choose Maps of the Civil War, you get 26 large, quality, color maps of various areas, battles, and events (such as the progress of emancipation). This is an extremely detailed resource, and one I'll keep in my back pocket for those tough history homework questions I get on the virtual ref desk.

Chronology of Animation

For all the true animation freaks out there: Iowa State University's Chronology of Animation. A truly extensive resource.

Be a Librarian For a Day!

An interesting Woman's Day competition rewards the best essay with a day as a Librarian. Interesing PR for libraries I guess, though somehow it makes me feel like the profession is being devalued a little, as though any person can just waltz in and start doing reference. But, perhaps I'm just being defensive after having to come up with a reply for the thousandth time to the inevitable random-relative question: "So, you're a librarian? Why do you have to have a degree to do that? All you do is read stories to kids and stamp books." *sigh* My canned response so far is to state that I am an information broker, just like a stock broker, except I deal in information, and my services are free. Does anyone have any other good responses to that oh-so-fun question?

Mass Amount of PowerPoint Presentations

The Nebo School District in Utah created an insane number of PowerPoint presentations with money from a TLCF Professional Development Grant. They cover school-aged topics like the Pledge of Allegiance, Apollo 11, Martin Luther King, Proper Keyboarding, Bobcats, Gravity, the ABCs, Erosion, Microbiology, Spain, the Civil War, Van Gogh, Geometry, the list goes on... All in all, when printed out, they have 12 pages of presentations! I contacted the webmaster and he states that the site is meant as a resource for educators, and teachers are welcome to use them in the classroom. But, if they are to be used in any type of commercial venture, the teacher's permission would need to be obtained. And, as always, all proper citation of this site as the source of the materials is expected. A great resource, hiding there on the web...Enjoy!

Geek & Pagan Hierarchies

Which geeks look down upon which other geeks?
Which pagans look down upon which other pagans?
Frighteningly, as both a science fiction fan and someone who studied mythology, I rank rather highly on both charts.

Barcode Yourself

As barcodes abound in our libraries--on our books, on our library cards--now we get to barcode ourselves! To the left, you see LiB's barcode. You can diagram, print, and scan your barcode. Apparently, I am worth $6.85. A great bargain! I think at our next All Staff Day, we should wear these instead of nametags.

Online Resources for Seniors

This great article at SmartMoney.com points out several online resources for seniors and elder care. A good collection of sites for any library with a "Senior Services" category on their webpage.

100 Generations CD-R Test

Alright, so some guy named Brian made copies of copies of copies of CD-Rs and documented his experiment. This is something I had always wondered about, and it's good to see that someone with a lot of spare time actually did it, and had the presence of mind to share his results. And, the results may surprise you.

Yahoooooooo-new

Yahoo launched a new search engine today. Check out Chris Sherman's article on Search Engine Watch for more detailed information. Let's test this thing out...

Muppet Woes

Godammit. Disney bought the Muppets.

I have a distinct feeling that they're going to frell this up, just like they did with Winnie the Pooh. Now, I admit I am an A.A. Milne purist, but Pooh does not wear a shirt, except when it's winter and he wears a little red sweater. Nor is his fur orange. And yet, Disney deemed it necessary to clothe the poor bear and make him a bright unnatural color. What's next? Will Gonzo's nose be replaced with something less phallic? Will Miss Piggy and Kermit be "just friends"? Oh dear...

Weed it Baby

A goodnatured article on weeding. Personally, I derive great joy from weeding. Maybe a little too much. I think, for me, the satisfaction is similar to that which I feel when I clean a closet or re-organize my kitchen cupboards. I know, Type A personality issues... I embrace my neuroses!

Cingular buys AT&T Wireless

Well, that's nice. Just got an AT&T phone plan. Son of a.... I know these mergers don't usually affect service, but something about this one makes me feel kind of icky. Then again, maybe my crappy reception will improve, and my coverage area will get bigger (as they promise it will). *cross fingers*

Ten Tips for Managing a Successful Web Redesign

Computerworld has a new article on successful web redesigns, something every library should do every few years or so. The ten tips they offer are brief, but serve as good reminders for the basic things to consider when changing your virtual look.

ADHD Information Online

Research Buzz highlights a new online library of ADHD information. The site's server is getting overloaded with the amount of traffic generated by Research Buzz's post, so the site may not work right away...

FURL

Alright, everybody else is posting about it, so here 'tis. Furl is a new web browsing tool that lets you save and organize useful web pages in a personal "web page filing cabinet". An alternative to del.icio.us. Explore at will!

Down with Elsevier!

Cornell is dropping several hundred Elsevier subscriptions, a move that Elsevier (of course) is downplaying. Cornell's deal with Elsevier is still costing them $1.7 million and consumes a fifth of the university's total periodical budget. To me, that is still insane. Other universities are expected to follow suit, some cancelling Elsevier subscriptions altogether. I say, good for them. Elsevier has abused its monopoly on scientific journals for a long time, and is a prime reason the open source journal movement has really taken off. Shame on them for being so greedy--they deserve to lose customers, and money.
If you're interested in how online and print publication prices have spiraled out of control, check out this recent article in the Charleston Advisor. The author writes: "[W]hen we buy journals which cost a lot, we should be able to expect that “a lot” translates into a figure that is not the same thing as “perfectly outrageous.” Good reading.

Harry Potter Trivia Game Download

Geez, two HP posts in a week. You'd think I was a fan or something. Anyway, there's this great downloadable game (for PCs and Macs) of Harry Potter Trivia. It's a little slow-moving, but that would be a good thing for kids who don't read very fast... Or hey, maybe it just seemed slow because of the 4 cups of coffee I have coursing through my veins.

Catwoman Game

While I still have to be convinced that Halle Berry will make a good Catwoman (I am much attached to the Michelle Pfeiffer version), an Electronic Arts Catwoman game is definitely right up my alley. Will it be ready in time for the Holidays? If so, it'll be on my list for sure.

Questioning my ALA membership once more...

Jessamyn's tongue-in-cheek post about the website for ALA's accessibility workshop not actually being accessible. Anyone want to organize a massive membership "un-registration" ? I think if it was well-organized we could send a pretty clear message. There are so many things ALA is doing wrong right now...

ObitsArchive

Marylaine Block's Neat New Stuff drew this one to my attention. The ObitsArchive is the "largest and most comprehensive collection of newspaper obituaries and death notices in the United States." Searches for some recent obituaries that I know exist were hit or miss, but I was happy with the hits--I think patrons would be too.

Wi-Fi-FreeSpot™ Directory

While definitely not a complete listing, this site is a good place to point patrons who are looking for free local area wi-fi spots in cafes, restaurants, coffeeshops, hotels, airports, libraries, malls, etc. Mmmmm, wi fi.

Marin County Breast Cancer Rates

Now that I live in Marin and work for the county government (ahhh, libraries as part of government structure, another issue altogether), the whole mysterious breast cancer phenom in Marin is becoming more interesting to me. This article, oddly posted on Wired News, discusses and links to studies that have already been done, and calls for further studies, as no clear answer has been found. Various studies have said that the increased rates of breast cancer in the county are due to women not having children or waiting until later in life to have children, using hormone replacement therapy, drinking 2 glasses of alcohol a day, or adolescent exposure to local radioactive waste dumps. I've also heard that the fog line's geography relates to where breast cancer rates are highest, and that drinking from plastic bottles may have something to do with the increased cancer rates. This article does point to a lot of the resources available, all in one place. A strange, and disheartening, local phenomenon.

Ender gets screenwriters

The screenwriters for X2 have agreed to tackle the adaptation of Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow. Since X2 rocked (much more than its screen contemporary Matrix: Reloaded), and the Ender series also rocks, I sense a potential double-awesome movie coming our way... I didn't read the Ender books until college. I wish that someone had suggested them to me when I was young--somehow I think it would have made all the bullying a little easier to bear.

Super-Floppy Keyboard

Wow, this is cool. The product reviewer even folded the keyboard over a cat, as you can see. And we all know that that is the one true technology test for any librarian ;) I'm considering ordering one, just for kicks. Take a look at URTrend Technology's website for more cool stuff.

Harry Potter Translated Into Ancient Greek

A UK Classics teacher translated the first Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, into Ancient Greek. It is the longest work to be translated into Ancient Greek in over 1,500 years. Pretty cool.

Play Games For Money

22-year old Johnathan Wendel is a professional tournament gamer. He estimates that he makes $50K+ each year in tournament winnings. And that doesn't even count perks like free travel, hardware, and software. If my reflexes last, maybe this will be my new retirement plan...

Anger Gets You Somewhere...

Wired News reports that the Speech Analysis and Interpretation Laboratory at the University of Southern California is developing a new software program designed to detect callers' frustration when talking to an automated phone system, and transfer them to a human operator. So, the angrier you are the more likely it is that you will be automatically transferred to a real live human. I guess the new rule of thumb is, get really really loud and angry when you're talking to one of those automated phone trees.

Vader vs. Shakespeare.....Fight!

In a recent study, 71% of people aged 25-44 knew the quote "If only you knew the power of the dark side" came from Darth Vader, but only 10% knew that the Shakespeare quote "Now is the winter of our discontent" came from Richard III. I wish I could say I was surprised, but alas, I cannot. I think I'm allowed to ask this, as someone with two (useless) English degrees: is it really so wrong that people are more familiar with current cultural icons than with those that are considered to be classic and high brow? I've read everything Shakespeare ever wrote (or, rather, Edward deVere wrote, if you're on that side of the "who really wrote it" debate), and honestly, a lot of it didn't stick with me, especially the history plays. But, after seeing the first three Star Wars movies (episodes 4-6) 50+ times each, those well-crafted script lines have stuck. Come on, who doesn't remember "Luke, I am your father" followed by the hilarious "Noooooooo!" ? But all that icky quote-unquote Modern English from Shakespeare goes in one ear and out the other. Sad, but true. Now, had I read Richard III or Henry IV 50+ times, perhaps those lines would have stayed in my nonabsorbent mind a little better. But, who wants to read those 50+ times? Oh well. My only hope is that Lucas's recent travesties of film, AKA Episdoes 1 and 2, do not result with the next generation quoting Jar Jar endlessly... That would truly warrant a Luke-worthy "Noooooooo!"

Patriot Act Board Game

Hold onto your hats folks, the Patriot Act Game is here! Pick up Protest & Justice cards, and learn about the history of the Act. You can order a copy online for $25 (plus $5 for shipping in the US).

Interview with Microsoft's Robert Scoble

Scoble talks about where Microsoft's search engine technology is headed in this Search Engine Guide article. The most interesting part of it for me was the discussion of hard drive searching which (Scoble admits) currently sucks. He also discusses blog searching and improved photo searching. Good interview, good information.

Games are not to blame...

A BBC News article argues that violent video games do not promote violence in real life. Right on.

Adrian Speaks

I opened up my Hotmail account today (yes, I still use Hotmail) and found a message from my hacker hero, Adrian Lamo. Apparently, someone is keeping track of which sites mention or support him in his struggle against the Feds. And my post on LibrarianInBlack was one of the ones he chose to read and reply to. Adrian wrote, in part: "News is ephemeral; the thoughts of real people are less so....in summary, thank you." I think this is one way you know you're on the side of the good guys: when the person you support actually takes the time to personally say thank you.

Science Fiction & Fantasy Research Database

Hal W. Hall, MLS-holder and Science Fiction guru, has created an online, searchable index of secondary sources in science fiction and fantasty literature. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Research Databaseindexes 63,160 items, and the search mechanism seems to work pretty darn well. I only wish this was around when I was writing my Asimov papers back in college...

How to Manage Smart People

Smart people have a primal need to be managed by other smart people, and fortunately, many are. But, every manager could benefit from reading this article by Scott Berkun on the kinds of management tactics to which smart people respond the best. We've all had that manager who doesn't give us the tools we need to succeed, and then, when we succeed despite all odds, takes complete credit for what we've done. That manager needs to read this article.

NIST Guide for CD/DVD Care

The National Institute of Standards and Technology has published Care and Handling of CDs and DVDs--A Guide for Librarians and Archivists. It's a whopping 50 pages long, so check your printer for paper first ;)

Lascivious Librarians in San Francisco

Happy Birthday SFPL!

...and ten technologies that just won't die

These things just won't die! And there's probably a good reason, as they fill a niche that hasn't been filled by anything else yet. Again, in no particular order:

• Analog watches
  
• Dot-matrix printers
  
• Tyepwriters
  
• Broadcast radio
  
• Pagers
  
• Reel-to-reel tape
  
• Vacuum tubes
  
• Fax machines
  
• Mainframe computers
  
• Fortran
  

Tech on its way in...

Technology Review lists ten technologies that are most likely to affect our lives in revolutionary ways. Their ten are, in no particular order:

• Universal Translation
  
• Synthetic Biology
  
• Nanowires
  
• Bayesian Machine Learning
  
• T-Rays
  
• Distributed Storage
  
• RNA Interference
  
• Power Grid Control
  
• Microfluidic Optical Fibers
  
• Personal Genomics
  

In case you're like me, and don't know what on earth a microfluidic optical fiber could possibly do for you, check out the article for full explanations of both the technologies and the people behind them.

Library Databases in PC Magazine

There's a PC Magazine article letting folks know of all the cool-io online resources, beyond the web in general, that libraries make available to their patrons. Nice. Hey, what does your library call its databases? Online Resources? Databases? Online Informational Sources? Research Resources? There is absolutely no agreement in the field on what to call these durn things. One would think that, by now, we would have come up with something that both described the resources and that patrons could understand. If anyone has a brilliant suggestion from on-high, please, do share.

Sounds Online

Find sound clips of musical instruments & sound effects at FindSounds. Thanks to Chris Sherman of SearchEngineWatch.com for highlighting this spiffy site.

One More Reason Why Patrick Stewart is Cool

Star Trek Next Generation's Captain Jean Luc Picard, the oh-so-dapper Patrick Stewart, spoke out against manned space exploration in a BBC interview, stating "I would like to see us get this place right first before we have the arrogance to put significantly flawed civilizations out onto other planets." He continued, "It would take up so many resources, which I personally feel should be directed at our own planet." Damn tootin'. When school and library budgets are being slashed, health services are being cut, and Mother Nature is screaming out in pain, it is unconscionable to be spending billions to send people out to other worlds. I'm as die-hard a space-buff as the next person...but let's focus our attention inward first. Okay George? Thanks to Dr. Web for bringing this to my attention.

Librarians have a Plan B

Trying to get an answer to a question?
Plan A: Google the ba-jeezus out of it.
Plan B: Uhhhhhhh......
Unless you're a Librarian, then you have a Plan B, a Plan C, and so on. Why? Because that's your job. The New York Times has a thoughtful article written on DC-area Librarians and life beyond Google.

Don't Put Ads in my Feeds

A new online ad network, RSSAds (based in San Francisco), is working on simple ways to incorporate text ads into RSS feeds. No ads for me please. My RSS feeds are currently ad-free, and I like them that way. That's one of the reasons I prefer RSS to site-surfing--I don't have to deal with those god-awful flashing ads in the margins distracting me from the content.

Google Guide

Nancy Blachman's Google Guide is by far the best guide to using Google, for beginners & more intermediate users, that I've seen so far. I see great potential here for plopping patrons down with this self-guided tutorial, instead of the 20 minute "This is Google, this is how you search" lecture. Thanks to beSpacific for the link.