LibrarianInBlack

Shopping MetaSearch with LookAhead searching

ResourceShelf has a post about ShopEasier.com, a new shopping meta-search site that uses pre-emptive search technology called LookAhead.  Whazzat, you ask?  It's where you start typing, and with each letter you type, your results show up and change.  If you're familiar with iTunes, it's what happens when you start typing in the internal library search box.  Type in "De" and results for "Delirium" and "Depeche Mode" will show up.  Keep typing so you have "Dep" and only Depeche Mode stays on the list (well, that is, if you have Delirium and Depeche Mode in your iTunes Library like the LiB does).

Anyway, ShopEasier pulls in results from six shopping databases: Froogle, Yahoo, ShopZilla, NextTag, Become.com, and Amazon.  This is not a "type in your search terms and hit enter" tool.  Just start typing your words, and watch the results appear and change.  Find which product you're interested in, then click on which of the six shopping databases you want to see it in.  Each opens in a new window so you can do quick comparison shopping.  A search for "ipod sh" brought back the results below.  My only suggestion is that they could show the lowest price in each database right there on the results screen.  That would make it even more of a time-saver.

Subscribe to YouTube video tags

Wendy Boswell has posted on Lifehacker about a simple way to create RSS feeds for YouTube videos with particular tags.  Here are some sample feeds:

http://www.youtube.com/rss/tag/library.rss
http://www.youtube.com/rss/tag/libraries.rss
http://www.youtube.com/rss/tag/librarian.rss
http://www.youtube.com/rss/tag/new+york+public+library.rss

Might be a good way to keep track of whether or not anyone's using your library's reference collection as a dominos set ;)

found via A Feed Is Born

LibVibe

A new daily library podcast blog has launched: LibVibe.  The newsy radio shows are five minutes long and include discussion of libraryland headlines and offers many feed options and e-mail notification as well.  The show's host has a pure radio voice, that's for sure. 

Today's show discusses DOPA and WorldCat.org, among other things.  If you prefer to get your library news in audio format, this would be a good place to start!

Finding Experts on IM

I posted recently about a great article on finding experts online, including some useful newish online tools for doing so.  One of these tools, Qunu, connects users with live experts via Qunu's IM client.  The user chooses which subject area (s)he needs help in and is connected with an expert who has chosen that subject area as one of his/her areas of expertise. 

Sound like a virtual reference cooperative?  It is!  Except it's not being done by libraries.  The strength here is the user's selection of a subject area, and the auto-routing of the right user to the right expert.  This is the type of IM technology that we're looking for in libraries--a way to route users to the right librarian.  Luke Rosenberger has some additional thoughts on Qunu and has signed up himself as an expert in some library areas of expertise.

Ex Libris Acquired

Ex Libris (creator of the ALEPH 500 ILS, MetaLib, SFX, DigiTool, and Verde) announced that it has been acquired by Francisco Partners.  I'm not sure what this means in practical terms (the rest of the biblioblogosphere isn't either).  Keep an eye on it.

IE7 Auto-Roll-Out: Library Computers Impact

Microsoft is planning to push out IE7 to XP users whether you want it or not.

Microsoft plans to automatically push Internet Explorer 7 to Windows XP users when the browser update is ready later this year.     IE 7 will be delivered in the fourth quarter as a “high priority” update via Automatic Updates in Windows XP.

You will apparently be able to choose to postpone installation, however.  You may want to think about how this will affect your library's computers--both staff and public--if you're using IE.  If it's pushed out automatically, you'll need staff to go around to each computer to accept or refuse installation.  The update may also affect program or file path names (hopefully not though), how the browser interacts with your security software, how the browser's new security interacts with your website/databases/eBooks, any user instructions for IE (assuming that's what's on your public machines), etc.  And if you don't have IE on your public machines, bully for you.  Your life is a bit easier than ours.

Flickr Fear

Michael Stephens's latest post on ALA TechSource, "Flickr + Libraries = Scary, Scary, Scary to Some Folks," addresses in a straightforward manner some of the concerns and fears that library staff and patrons (and anonymous e-mailers trying to scare libraries into running away) have brought up about Flickr.  From his post:

Look at the big picture of how this site and many others are used and can benefit your online presence. Let's teach our users about the good and bad of online communities, BUT LET'S NOT just close the door and lock it!

Upcoming Speaking Engagements

This fall is a busy time for me.  Not only will I be finishing up my book for ALA, but I'll be speaking all over Northern California.  Here's where I'll be--stop by and say hi :)

• October 11, 2006 @ Sacramento Public Library’s All Staff Day – Building a Successful eBranch
  
• October 18, 2006 @ Future of Libraries Workshop @ San Francisco Public Library – Social Software for Libraries
  
• October 27, 2006 for Assn. of Jesuit Colleges and Universities (San Francisco) – IM Reference
  
• October 2006 – "Cultivating Tech-Savvy Library Staff: Competencies & Tips" with David King @ Internet Librarian Conference (Monterey)
  
• October 2006 – "Reaching Patrons: Online Outreach for Public Libraries" @ Internet Librarian Conference (Monterey)
• November 2006 – "What’s New in Technology" with Scott Bauer and Michael Porter @ California Library Association Annual Conference (Sacramento)
  
• November 2006 – "IM Reference" panel with several librarians @ California Library Association Annual Conference (Sacramento)
• November 2006 – "Implementing Technology Core Competencies with Staff"  @ California Library Association Annual Conference (Sacramento)

Belmont Library Photos

I recently took Karen Schneider on a tour of the Belmont Library -- the newly built branch of the San Mateo County Library (MPOW).  We both took a lot of photos.  Here's my batch.  Here are hers (one, two, three).

Ask The New Yorker's Librarians

The New Yorker has librarians.  And you can ask them questions!  Ask the Librarians is a monthly column from The New Yorker's two head librarians (Jon Michaud and Erin Overbey) on The New Yorker's blog, Emdashes.  The questions are about the publication itself, its staff and writers, and such.  You can submit questions to emdashes@gmail.com.  Pretty darn cool.

found via librarian.net

Library Technology site from the Lone Star State

Library Technology NOW is funded by the Texas Library Association and North Texas Regional Library System, and is dedicated to library tech news and reviews.  The site has undergone a site redesign with a whole bunch of new features, including a social networking site for library techies, a new method for collecting reviews, and more.  They have a blog too (feed here).  The site is still in the building-up stages, but shows promise!

flagrantdisregard.com's Flickr toys and libraries

Libraryman Michael Porter points to fd's Flickr toys as an easy free way to repackage your library's images for your website.  Since there are more toys and options than you can shake a finger at, you're bound to find one that will work well for your website.  Share images of your library, customers, and staff.  Put a face to your great services and resources!

Finding Experts

Library clips has a fabulous post about the process of finding experts, including some online tools one can use to find experts, expert information, and advertise oneself as an expert (erm, librarian anyone?): Ziki, Illumio, Qunu, and FAQQLY.

IMDB adds headshots

Gadgetopia noticed that IMDB (Internet Movie Database) has added headshot thumbnails of actors and actresses in their cast lists.  Nice!  One less click to see if that guy is that guy you think he is.

Amazon to offer downloadable movies?

Rumors are flying that Amazon is getting ready to offer downloadable video starting next month.  Amazon Digital Video would offer movies and television (ad-free, whoopah!).  A subscription model will reportedly be available, or individual programs could be purchased one by one.  Users would have to install special sofware (kind of like library users install Overdrive software for downloadable audio books).  Digital Rights Management will certainly be a big factor in the success or failure of this service, which some are calling a Digital Netflix.  You can read more over on ars technica.

Techie Crafts with "Switch"

Switch is an online-only do-it-yourself show that combines electronics, design, and "fashion technology."   I found a short story about this show in the latest issue of BUST Magazine (which is the only women's magazine I've ever read and actually enjoyed--the lack of perfume samples helps).  Switch's projects and stories totally appeal to the crafty geek in me.  The website is still evolving, but you can view previous shows with projects like making a voice record/playback picture frame.  They have a podcast/vidcast feed and you can also sign up for e-mail notification of new shows. 

DOPA Passes: What Does This Mean for Your Library's New Website?

H.R. 5319: DOPA (Deleting Online Predators Act) passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 415 to 10.  The legislation now goes to the Senate.  Someday I will stop being amazed at the sheer ignorance of our elected officials.  Not yet though--this still shocks me.

ALA has asked that if your Representative voted against it, that you please email them a quick thank you for opposing DOPA. Here is the short list of Representatives who voted against DOPA:

Conyers (Detroit, MI)
Grijalva (Tuscon, AZ)
Hinchey (Saugerties, NY)
Honda (San Jose, CA)
Kucinich (Cleveland, OH)
Lee (Oakland, CA)
Lofgren (San Jose, CA)
McDermott (Seattle, WA)
Payne (Newark, NJ)
Schakowsky (Evanston, IL)
Scott (Newport News, VA)
Serrano (Bronx, NY)
Stark (Fremont, CA)
Watson (Los Angeles, CA)
Woolsey (Petaluma, CA) (LiB's rep)

What would the passage of DOPA mean?  The bill would "require recipients of universal service support for schools and libraries to protect minors from commercial social networking websites and chat rooms."  You get E-Rate = This Applies to You. 

They define social network websites as:
(i) is offered by a commercial entity;
(ii) permits registered users to create an on-line profile that includes detailed personal information
(iii) permits registered users to create an on-line journal and share such a journal with other users
(iv) elicits highly-personalized information from users; and
(v) enables communication among users

That is pretty much every website out there that allows interaction of any kind with users: Amazon, Flickr, Yahoo Groups, and as Alane Wilson from OCLC points out: Open WorldCat.  Plus any of those neat commercial solutions you've tapped to make your library website more interactive and friendly (Flickr, MySpace, Blogger blog with comments)? Nope...you have to block those from your minor users now.  Sorry.  It is, after all, all for the children.  We don't want them to actually experience what the online world is like or teach them how to be safe online.  It's better to just bury our heads in the sand, bury their heads in the sand with us, and pretend like they can't get access to these things elsewhere.  Yet one more way to "irrelevantize" (yes that's a word) ourselves even faster to this young generation.

If I was a Library Director, I wouldn't accept E-Rate money if my job depended on it.  I think if DOPA passes we'll see more and more libraries refusing E-Rate.  The amount of money and staff time you have to spend now on the filtering is borderline worth it strictly from a financial perspective.  Add this ridiculous incursion, and it's definitely not worth it to most libraries.  How shameful.

Kaiser Permanente Laptop with Patient Info Stolen

My HMO (though not for much longer) Kaiser Permanente, lost a laptop that had personal information about 160,000 of its Northern California patients on it.  Information lost includes names, phone numbers, and Kaiser Medical Record Numbers.  For more information, see the Wired News story.

Need for Continuous Learning

Meredith Farkas writes on TechEssence.info about ways to keep up our professional learning in libraries without spending a lot of money.  I highly suggest that managers and librarians read this article and discuss it together.

Meredith goes into detail on the benefits and examples of each, but her main suggestions are:

• free online professional journals
• blogs
• listservs and other online communities
• webcasts
• podcasts

She also lists practical tips for how to encourage professional development among staff, including actually giving them the time to do it (go figure!), professional development days, and staff meeting time to share current news and resources.  Thanks for this great article Meredith!

By the by, is anyone else stymied by the fact that you have to create an account to comment on TechEssence, or is it just me?

Nice downloadable library toolbar

I've always got my eyes peeled for downloadable library toolbars, and saw this one from the Morrisville College Library. 

Bill Drew talks about it more on Baby Boomer Librarian.  I like the simple look and feel of it, the fact that it was created using a free toolbar-maker, and that it doesn't include any ads or branding you often get with the free options.

Elements of Style for Designers

Strunk and White's The Elements of Style is a master tome for any writer (or it should be if it isn't).  I consult it whenever I write professionally--a good habit instilled in me by my undergraduate English professors. 

Christina Wodtke (Boxes and Arrows) has written an article entitled "The Elements of Style for Designers," which takes the twenty-two key reminders from Strunk and White's book and converts them to reminders for web designers.  The principles cross over amazingly well and I'd recommend this as a good read for anyone involved in the web design process.

found via A Passion for 'Puters

Archived webcast on wikis

Meredith Farkas's SirsiDynix Institute Webinar on Wikis has been posted (webcast + slides), so if you missed it like I did (I was in Idaho speaking about wikis, among other things) you can still check it out.

Frappr map of your MySpace Friends

You can use Frappr to automatically create a map of your MySpace friends quickly and post it on your MySpace page.  Just enter your MySpace URL into a form, and voila!  You can save your map and automatically add it to your MySpace profile if you like, or use the code and put it exactly where you want it.  Kinda cool!  I added a map of my whopping 12 friends to my MySpace profile--take a look.  My only complaint is that it's a bit wide and widened the page overall.

Nancy Pearl Action Figure Travels

There's a Nancy Pearl Action Figure Flickr pool of our fine plastic librarian friend in various scenes and settings.  It's a small pool right now, but growing!  The photo at the left was taken by bibliona. Thanks to Connecticut Librarian Maura Deedy for pointing this out to me :)

New NetLibrary features

July 31st, OCLC's NetLibrary is launching some new features for their text and audio eBooks: NetLibrary 4.0.  The NetLibrary 4.0 product page gives a lot of information on it.  I'm always curious about who gets these e-mails.  As a customer for both their text and audio eBooks, one would think we'd see it, but no.  Some of the new features that stand out to me:

• new more intuitive navigation
• search term spell-checking
• more advanced search options
• faster search response time
• eAudiobook subject browsing

NetLibrary has created a brief demo you can view to get a sneak peak.

Search Engines Strategies Conference

Anyone from libraryland attending the Search Engine Strategies 2006 Conference/Expo?  It's August 7-10 in San Jose.  It's geared toward the topic of optimizing your company's (read: library's) visibility in search engines, search engine marketing and optimization, and such.  There are a lot of parties happening after hours , including Google Dance V, an actual dance at the Googleplex. 

I was thinking "Hey, this looks cool--I wonder if I could steal away for a while" but then saw the registration fees, and choked on my lunch.

Teen-friendly Libraries in Idaho

A Times-News (Twin Falls, Idaho) article, "Libraries adapt to attract new generation," discusses some of the ways the Jerome Public Library is reinventing itself to be more teen-friendly and teen-relevant, including "a domed listening station hooked into a 300-disc CD changer." Sweet!

text eBooks for iPods?

eBook and iPod rumors are flying.  A post on the Engadget blog is claiming that progress is being made toward making eBooks for iPods.  These would, of course, be text eBooks one would buy through the iTunes store.  This would not mean that all the eBooks (text and audio) that we have at the libraries would magically be iPod compatible tomorrow. 

The important impact of this news is (and Michael Feldstein at e-Literate agrees) that this would bring eBooks (the text kind) quickly into the mainstream, which would be quite a feat.

ALA is Flickring

ALA TechSource has a Flickr account.  And they've already got quite a few contacts from the library world.  This is great, and I look forward to seeing more and more photos from our ALA!

DC Comics Stamps

The DC Comics stamps from the USPS have been released, for all of y'all wanting some style on your utility bills :)  Postcards are available too.

Free Directory Assistance

Okay, this is one of those things that you have to try for yourself, and then you'll be telling everyone else about it: friends, family, library users. 

Free411 (1-800-Free 411 / 1-800-373-3411) is a completely automated free directory assistance service that works on cell and land lines.  I know my cell phone carrier charges $1.50 for each directory assistance call.  No longer will I fall for that! 

Just call the number, give the city and state, choose whether it's a business, government, or residential listing, and say the listing's name.  You'll then start to hear a 12-second advertisement, which you can bypass by pressing a certain key (*cough* 2) on your keypad.  The number is given to you twice.  I tried it four times with four different listings in four different cities, and the voice-recognition software got each listing correct--even the number for our local library, which is notoriously hard to find for directory assistance.  My only criticism is that it doesn't auto-connect you like some of the directory services do.  But hey, I'm thrifty enough to dial the numbers myself to save a few bucks.

found on Cool Tools

Good handout on Boolean Operators

Laurie the Librarian is all about the sharing!  She recently gave us a guide for evaluating databases and Library Tips for Students Success.  Now she hands over a cheatsheet on Boolean operators she created for students at Yukon College.  Thank you so much for sharing your work Laurie!

Gummy Bears and the Seven Deadly Sins

For pure gratuitous silliness, gummy bears enact the seven deadly sins.  To the left: envy.  Anyone else remember the chemistry experiment where you throw a gummy bear in hydrochloric acid and it screams (well, hisses as it disintegrates, but it sounds like screaming)?

found on Boing Boing

Heat and CBC podcasts

Canada, home of the cooler weather.  I'm jealous.  It's been 95-105 here for over a week, getting down into the mid-80s at night at the coolest.  "Bah," you say?  "It's over 100 where I live," you say?  Wait a moment before you scorn the wimpy Californian. The LiB has no AC at either home or work, which is not unusual for Northern California apparently.  So, no relief at all.  Hot, hot, hot.  And then some more hot.  And my poor kitty, what with the fur coat and extra pudgin' and all :(

Okay, so yes, back to Canada.  Not only is it cooler there right now, it's home to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, who is offering a slew of podcasts.  I just subscribed to the Quirks and Quarks feed myself.

Web-based Chart Creator

I love flow charts.  I can't help myself.  They're great for showing workflow, project management stages, even sitemaps (if you tweak 'em a bit).  I make more than I should and it's always a tedious process using the junk software I've found up until now.  But lo and behold, Stephen Abram points us to Gliffy, a free web-based chart creator for flow charts, floorplans, layouts, network diagrams, etc.  Why is it so cool?  You don't have to download any software, you can collaboratively build the flow charts with others, and since they're hosted on Gliffy's site, you can link to them from anywhere.  Yay!

A billion renditions of Batgirl

Batgirl, everyone's favorite superhero librarian (sorry Rex Libris), is having a portrait fiesta over on Live Journal as hundreds of artists submit their own renditions of the fair Barbara Gordon.  It started with some original designs by Andi Watson, then went crazy.  Someone should convert all of these into a Flickr pool.

found on Library Tourguide to Technology

Google Librarian Newsletter #5: LiB's Story

The 5th Google Librarian Newsletter is up.  This issue features:

1. Attendee photos from the ALA conference
2. A brief movie about Google's experience at ALA
3. an announcement of the new Google Teacher Newsletter
4. Tips of the Trade movie: Real librarians tell stories of how they've used Google to help their users
5. plus stories from some of us (like me) who didn't make the movie-cut (just not photogenic enough I guess) but whose stories Google still decided to share

Get your Info*Nation on: promoting lib/info careers

Check out Info*Nation, a Canadian site devoted to careers in libraries and information sciences.  It's an inspring site to refer anyone to, Canadian or not, who is interested in our profession.  Their "At the Core" section discusses the major principles of the profession, including public service, intellectual freedom, etc.  They have sections that talk about the personal and professional skills required by the profession, the benefits of working in this area, interviews with real people, sample job descriptions, library world blogs, and how to get more information.  I don't think I've ever seen the LIS profession so simply, and well, outlined.  Nice work!

found via Stephen's Lighthouse

U.S. History website

Philadelphia is home to a lot of good things.  I'm vegetarian, so I can't say cheese steak, but I hear it's swell :)  Lots of other good things though, including the Independence Hall Association, a group responsible for USHistory.org.  Mark this one down right now chaps, because the next time someone needs early American history homework help, you'll want to remember it.  They have an insane amount of information about Philadelphia events and history, but a smattering of general colonial and revolutionary resources as well.  There's a virtual tour of Betsy Ross's house, an extensive site about Valley Forge, more information about Ben Franklin than you can shake a key at, and they've got a good set of web links in other historical areas as well.

found via the Internet Scout Report

Technology Competencies Session from ALA

More on competencies today.

Three speakers (Kevin Moderow, Michelle Robertson, and Richard Wayne) spoke at ALA about technology competencies programs in their libraries.  You can view a concise write-up of the session over on the LITA blog.  There are some good ideas and tips here.  I know I'll probably end up contacting these folks as I make progress on the book...

21st Century Librarian Skills

Meredith Farkas has written a well-thought-out essay (Skills for the 21st Century Librarian) including a list of basic technology competencies and, more importantly, higher-level competencies that 21st century librarians need to thrive in a modern library.  Also, Karen Schneider has added a few of her own over on Free Range Librarian.  Update: even more from Karen.  From Meredith's original post:

[W]hat I really think library schools aren’t teaching students is the “big picture” topics; how to really be able to keep up with technology, make good decisions about its implementation, use it and sell it to others.

Absolutely. In doing the research for my book for ALA on technology competencies and training for staff, I am struck by how much of this area is focused on the minutae.  Can you reboot a computer?  Do you know how to create a bulleted list in word processing software?  Can you communicate via e-mail and IM?  So little of the competencies, or job descriptions, is focused on the skills we all use from day to day: project management, the willingness to experiment, change management, and (perhaps most importantly) constantly keeping up with what's out there--both in the library and outside of it.

There are a set of competencies that staff need to be able to function in a modern library.  Period.  Yes, you have to be comfortable sending an attachment via e-mail.  I wish that didn't have to be said, but it does...in just about every library I know of.  But if you're working a reference desk, you also need to be comfortable with online reference sources.  It's not an okay decision to say that you simply prefer print and choose not to learn about all the databases your library has, or the wealth of free online resources out there, or learn how to use a variety of different search engines to their utmost capabilities.  There is a larger tier, now, of high-level information competencies that we all have to meet--not because we're afraid of becoming obselete, or because online is replacing print, but because not to do so is to serve our customers less than optimally.  And that's just not acceptable.

Salary Survey Results

Michael McGrorty has posted the results to his survey about librarian salaries and the perceived need for a non-mandatory minimum salary level for all librarians.

Eye-tracking: why it's important to your and your library's website

Stephen Abram has listed some good resources about eye-tracking.  Basically, you need to be concerned about this because: different age groups track content in different patterns.  And instead of having one design/layout for your website that capitalizes on only one of those group's eye behavior, you could gear each different audience's page toward the way that group's eyes and mind receive content.  What a concept!

Library Videoblogging ideas

David Lee King offers up some more ideas of what libraries can do with videoblogging.  I particularly like these two:

• movie trailers of movies your library just got in
• capturing all library events so more patrons can "attend"

Google offers accessible search

Google has released Google Accessible search for the blind and visually impaired in their test lab.  Sites come back higher in the simplified search results screen for having navigation that's easier to get around via keyboard, or that's the theory anyway.  I did several searches in regular Google and Google Accessible and got the same 20 results in each one. I wonder if it's actually working. Here's the excruciatingly brief FAQ about the accessible search, for further puzzlement.

American Sign Language Resource

Check out the ASL University!  Dr. Bill Vicars provides this site free for everyone to use.  From his description:

ASL University is an online curriculum resource for American Sign Language students, instructors, interpreters, and parents of deaf children.  Feel free to use the various lessons and resources for self-study.  There is no need to  register  or pay (unless you want documentation to fulfill high school, college, or continuing education course requirements).   If you are a teacher, I give you permission to use the lessons to teach your in-person classes.  Enjoy! 

There is an amazing amount of information here, including a library full of topical essays on things like deaf culture and how to meet deaf people; a fingerspelling tool/tutorial; baby's first 100 signs, and much more.  What a fabulous resource available at no cost.

found via the Internet Scout Report

ALA President Seeks Emerging Leaders

I like the way Leslie Burger does business.  Unlike our former ALA President ¹, Burger's path jives with mine.  I can see her; I can see ALA; I can see me -- all in the same place.  Burger is currently looking for emerging leaders in our field.  From the call on her website:

Emerging Leaders 2007 will welcome and train 100 new librarians to get a jump-start in leadership. EL’07 kicks off with a day-long session during the 2007 ALA Midwinter Meeting in Seattle. Afterward, it will grow and develop online for six months, culminating at the 2007 Annual Conference in Washington, D. C.   Applicants will commit to participating in all three elements of the program!

You can find the letter of invitation and application on her website.

1. who left me with the trembly-angry-heebie-jeebies-of-disbelief at his ignorance and unwillingness to stand up for our professional-beliefs.

Pew Report on Blogging

The Pew Internet and American Life Project has released a new report: Bloggers: A portrait of the internet's new storytellers.  Some of the most interesting bits (as seen through the LiB filter):

• The bulk of the 12 million blogging Americans focus on their personal experiences and blog to a very small audience.
• A whopping 57 million online Americans are blog readers (39% of the entire online population).
• 44% of bloggers have also been published elsewhere.
• 77% of bloggers have shared original creative content (music, images, etc.)
• 44% of bloggers have remixed content they found online into their own creations (mashup!)
• 87% of bloggers allow comments (take that comment-spam-idiots...you can't beat us!)

Three words come to mind: creation, socialization, and sharing.

There's a second stage to the survey that you yourself might want to participate in.  Pew has created an online version of their "Blogger Callback telephone survey" and wants to hear from anyone.  Because these results won't be a controlled or representative sample, they won't be "official," but they'll give people more of a chance to comment.  If you're interested, check it out: http://www.psra.com/PewBloggerSurvey.html

Interesting discussion about IM & other VR options

The Dig_Ref listserv had a really great discussion recently (look for the Future of IM thread) about what libraries need in order to fold IM reference into our service model on a large scale.  A number of us chipped in, and I think we addressed a lot of the roadblocks that still exist.  Many of them are simply technological, and probably relatively easily solvable by the right people with the right skills. 

We talked about enterprise IM solutions, lightweight web-based chat (like that used by many companies' e-storefronts), commercial IM, the need for cross-compatibility, multiple monitors of one screen name, etc.  It's a good discussion for anyone wanting to get a good overview of where the library world is at with IM and any developers out there trying to figure out what it is we need from a large scaleIM reference solution.

History of Hacking Digital Rights Management

Every now and then I hear from a user who says "You know, I figured out how to get your Overdrive/NetLibrary downloadable audio eBooks onto my iPod, even though you're not supposed to be able to."  Usually, I say quietly "Good for you...so did I, just don't tell anyone."  Oops, guess I just outed myself ;)

Digital Rights Management (or the more accurately called Digital Restrictions Management) is there for a reason.  We know that.  But it's pretty easily hacked too.  So I was very interested to read this excellent multi-part article on Ars Technica:  Hacking Digital Rights Management.  Here are links to each part individually:

1. Introduction, FairPlay, and Windows Media
2. CDs, Adobe eBooks
3. Video Content
4. Conclusion and Future Predictions

I learned quite a bit, and my favorite bit is from the end:

DRM schemes are like houses: they have many ways in. If the front door is locked, there might be an open window. If the windows are bolted, check for a house key under the fake rock by the geraniums. If the main floor is secure, do the unexpected—slide down the chimney. The ingenuity shown by the various hackers is a testament to the creativity of the human spirit (and to the desire for unencumbered media).

People want content.  And they want it in an unemcumbered way.  They don't want to have to register it on one particular machine.  Most of us are using more than one machine in our lives--be it work vs. home, portable vs. desktop.  They don't want the darn thing to auto-encrypt after a set amount of time.  They want to be able to share things with their friends--just like they could do with physical media. 

Libraries have to be part of the solution here; not the problem.  With our current eBook models, we're coming down on the wrong side of this debate--not the side of content delivery, accessibility, and sharing (like we should).  We're coming off as being on the side of, well, company/business/profit.  This is not typically the role we like to fall into.  If we keep buyinig into these DRM-laden resources, not only will our users stop coming to us for content, but a lot of the content that we have legitimately purchased will become unusable, inaccessiable, non-preservable in the future.  Why are we accepting this model?  I know--there's no alternative and we need to keep the publishers happy.  But there is an alternative.  A few companies (Springer, BWI) are offering eBooks without DRM-laden nastiness.  This is the model we should be promoting to our other vendors.

Take a super-short librarian salary survey

Librarian Michael McGrorty has posted a super-short survey about non-mandatory librarian minimum salaries.  Please take 60 seconds and tell him what you think.

Ask.com Gets Jiggy with RSS Smart Answers

Ask.com's Smart Answers (direct factual answers to questions right at the top of your search results, even before the ads) is one of the reasons I encourage librarians to use Ask.com at the reference desk.  And now they've added something new to their Smart Answers arsenal.

When you enter the title of a blog or a feed in the Ask.com search box, the site link with its three most current headlines show up at the very top of the results page.  A search for Librarian in Black yields my three most recent entries.  Here's the results for a search for Boing Boing. 

I can see this as being very useful for people who are blog readers, but don't get the content delivered to them by RSS.  I'm amazed at how many people I see who say "Oh yes, I visit your site once a week--I like it!"  When I offer that they don't have to visit at all, but could have everything sent to them by RSS instead, they're not interested.  At any rate, if you are a frequent blog reader but don't use RSS, you could search for your favorite blogs in Ask.com and see the three most recent entries for each, without having to go to each site individually.  RSS is still simpler, but hey--different strokes for different folks.

Feeds are being manually added at this point for inclusion, so every feed on the planet isn't in there yet.  But the idea is to eventually expand this out to any content with a feed.  Read more on ResourceShelf.

How to Evaluate Databases

Laurie the Librarian has posted a guide to help staff evaluate subscription databases for the library.  She's also made it available as a 2-page PDF.  I like the the way she's presented the information as a series of questions and considerations.  I produced something similar for our staff at my previous position, but I think I like Laurie's better.  Great resource!

Searching for Art Images Online

ResourceShelf has put together a very nice list of searchable art museum databases.  Browse and serach options are noted for each collection (like the Getty Museum).  Some of the collections also include information about the artists, movements, and such.  Good resources for your users to know about!

Comic Strip Generator

The Comic Strip Generator lets you choose from hundreds of different comic templates and create little strips panel by panel.  Stephen Abram mentioned this site to me, and I feel like rather a tosser for not haivng played with it before.  You could create a witty one-panel advertising library services and blow it  up poster-size.  Have a 3-panel strip that advertises your online reference services.  The possibilities are endless.

Answers.com natural language tool

Answers.com has launched natural language searching that can be used straight out of the query box.  It is in beta, but seems to work fairly well from LiB's random testing.  Here are my answers to the question: "Why do dogs bark?"  Apparently, it's because they're lonely :(

found on ResearchBuzz