I suppose I really can't call myself a "blogger" if I post as infrequently as I do. That will soon change. Announcement will follow in this entry.

I went to PLA. I was floored by how well the conference was organized. Some rooms did not have the capacity for the number of enthusiastic participants though. But I think that happens at all conferences. I was very pleased with the quality of workshops and can't wait to attend again in Portland.

Starting May 19th, I'll be the Web Library Manager for the Cleveland Heights-University Heights Public Library. I'm really excited about this position. It is pretty much my dream job. It's half reference, half working on web content and training others on how to get things up, etc. I'll be getting social networking projects off the ground. It is in a bit of flux as well since this is a brand new position for them. It's all the things that I have wanted to implement. I'm jumping off of walls, vibrating at the speed of light, etc.

So...I guess I'll be blogging a bit more. I've been using Twitter and exploring other tools here and there. I'll keep posting more often since I think this is the path of libraries' future and well, mine.

On my way to PLA

Waking up in Chicago, heading up to Minneapolis today. I love driving. There is nothing like seeing the country, whizzing past you at 70+ mph. I'm taking a leisurely drive up. I'm heading up to the Public Library Association Conference. I'm pretty excited since this will be my first PLA Conference and it has been a part of my long term professional goals.
I'm looking forward to attending programs like Mix It Up: Using Blended Learning for Staff Training and Think Outside the Book: Online Services as Outreach. There's a lot of amazing programs lined up and I'm looking forward to exploring a new city. I hope to run into some friends as well. See you in Minneapolis!

Ohio Library Council Northeast Chapter Conference

I attended the Ohio Library Council 2008 Northeast Chapter Conference on 19 March 2008. I think by far this was the best chapter conference I've attended.

The first workshop that I attended was the Many Genres of Christian Fiction that was presented by: Claudia Zimmerman, Holmes County District Public Library. There were many handouts for this workshop. The genres that were discussed were: chick lit, mom lit, lad lit, lady lit, contemporary fiction, fantasy & science fiction, suspense, legal thrillers and Anabaptist fiction, romance, westerns, historical and end of times/apocalyptic and biblical fiction. Since Hudson has a strong Inspirational section and I am unfamiliar with many Christian authors, I appreciated attending this workshop.

The second workshop that I attended, Under the Radar: Great Books that didn’t Make the Bestseller List, was absolutely amazing. The speakers were phenomenal and the handouts were comprehensive. The speakers gave impressive and quick book talks for a number of books. The subjects were Whodunnit? (Suspense/mystery books that were sure to keep you guessing and on the edge of your seat), It’s All About the Girl (female protagonists), Crazy Family Tree (quirky family stories), and Don’t Label Me! (books that really didn’t fall into any particular category). I got a lot of great ideas for book displays as well as handouts.
One of their handouts was a very small booklet that was made up of bookmarks folded over. It would end up using three pages of paper for each booklet. They asked everyone at their library for a list of their ten favorite books. I would like to do this if at all possible. It would be a neat thing to do amongst the staff and could be paired with the staff picks display downstairs. This was one of the best RA workshop that I have attended. This was presented by Carol O’Keefe and Stacey Hayman, Rocky River Public Library.

The third workshop I attended was Using WordPress for Internet Publishing (Laura Solomon, OPLIN) I appreciated observing a WordPress installation and configuration. If the Library would ever want to delve back into the blogging sphere, WordPress would be a great avenue. We could host it ourselves and not have to rely on any other company to host it. If anything, I learned a lot about the backend of WordPress.

The last workshop I attended was Writing and Crafting Your Virtual Library. It looked at how one presents their library on the Internet, ie. the face of the library is the library website. This was presented by Kathy Schnell, Cuyahoga County Public Library. Website usability and natural language (non jargon) can assist in creating a tool that can be informative and enhance the desirability of the library as an organization. Since I know that the Hudson Library is contemplating a website upgrade/update/overhaul, I felt this was very timely.

I obtained the handouts for Multigenerational Gaming @ Your Library. This seemed like a great program for Teen librarians and those that would like to plan cross generational programming involving gaming. I liked that the handouts included budget breakdowns for different funding levels and his proposal to the board.
I think Wii golf or bowling tournaments would be a hit for older patrons and would love to try it out.

I also got the handouts for Catch the Reading Bug: Update on Statewide Summer Reading Program in hopes of sharing this information with the Children’s Department. While this does not apply to my area, I was primarily hoping to grab information that would be useful for other departments.

The Northeast Chapter Conference continually has amazing workshops and I often find myself scrambling to grab handouts for those workshops that I’m interested in attending but can’t attend since I can’t be in two places at once.

Searching Blogs for Genealogical Information - Talk - March 15

I'll be giving a talk on "Searching Blogs for Genealogical Information" to the Hudson Genealogical Study Group at the Hudson Library and Historical Society on March 15th at 9:30am.

I'm currently crafting my talk. I'm grateful for the opportunity to speak to the Hudson Genealogical Study Group and look forward to presenting my talk. I'll be sure to post some notes.

I remember when I taught an Introduction to Blogging class last year. While there were not many people that attended, the age range of the participants took me by surprise. An eighty plus year old man and his wife started a necktie blog. A woman in her mid-fifties started a blog for "her ramblings". I felt like this was a great opportunity for different age groups to empower themselves with technology. Yes, there are millions of blogs out there but someone may come across it and your voice is heard. An electronic message in a bottle, if you will.

There is a feeling of hope when a person writes a blog entry. Hope that someone will read it, understand it and perhaps comment. Even if I never amass a huge readership such as Meredith Farkas or Karen Schneider, I'll at least know that I'm a part of something. My voice does matter and I am (hopefully) contributing to the knowledge of humankind. One of the many reasons why I'm a librarian...in the hopes of helping people better themselves.

Library blog shout-out and slide show

Slate has a really neat slide show on the architecture of libraries.
The slide show highlights some very impressive architecture and I'm reminded of the reading rooms of various downtown libraries that I have visited. [Every time I go to a city, I visit their library. Like a postman's holiday. :)]
The notion of library-as-monument is also discussed. There are arguments that are bandied about stating that libraries need to move beyond looking at themselves as places. While I somewhat agree, the notion that the library can serve as a community center still resonates with me. The library can provide programming and classes that enrich and educate the members of the community. It can be active in providing resources to those in need as in the case of those people affected by Hurricane Katrina. I would really like to see a page of information on the housing market, foreclosures, etc. I will tackle that as soon as possible.
We can get out to those people that can't get into the library through homebound service. We can provide space for community groups to meet, perform and grow.
While Ross Dawson believes that libraries will be extinct by 2019, I think that is only in the perception of what a library is to people today. Whether librarians go the way of the samurai and turn into rogue information mercenaries, we can only see. I think that the virtual libraries that we create (databases, blogs and wikis as informational tools and platforms, e-reference options, etc.) can serve the offline world as well. The only limits that we have are funding, time, staffing and our imaginations. The first one can be a major hurdle to overcome. However, with open source software, telecommuting opportunities and the fact that most "Web 2.0" initiatives do not take extra money. Time is minimal as well since it can take 15 minutes for a person to crank out an interesting blog entry.
Libraries still have the chance to be a part of this revolution (meaning not in the political sense but more in the massive change that will shake things up and turn people's worlds upside down!)

When I was in graduate school, I had a wonderful internship at the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh - Main Branch. It was an absolutely amazing experience. I enjoyed serving such a diverse patron population. I was ever fascinated by the range of questions I would receive. Their rich collection is second to none and it be attributed to the professional librarians and knowledgeable staff that work there. I truly cherished my internship. I know that it served as a bulk of my preparation in my current position. So, what brings me to this trip down memory lane?
The esteemed group of people have started a blog: Eleventh Stack.

Stephen Abrams, SirsiDynix's Vice President of Innovation, made a blog post at the end of December regarding 30 Library Technology Predictions for 2008. One thing that keeps ringing in my ears and should be clanging in some heads of others: "#14. Gaming, RSS and Blogs are totally normal in 2008. Not to be using them is to be well behind the curve of your average user. Few users will be able to point to them since they're just normal. It would be like asking users to point to HTML, CSS or SMTP. They're like the freon in your fridge."
I love taking on "new" technologies and incorporating them into the patron service plan. It's really neat and exciting to see CLP delving into the deep. I'm sure there will be tons to read about and you should definitely check it out!

Colorado "Harmful to minors" Bill

On February 13th, the Colorado Senate Judiciary Committee voted 4-2 to advance Senate bill 08-125 which bans the sale to minors of books and magazines that are “harmful to minors.”

I've read through the entire bill. I would hate to interpret this as a law.
"If a reasonable adult person finds the material or performance to have a predominant tendency to appeal to the prurient interests of minors, finds that the depiction of nudity or sexual activity in the material or performance is patently offensive to prevailing standards in the adult community concerning what is suitable for minors and s/he would find that the material or performance lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value for minors.."
My first thought was "Well, there goes that idea for an American Pie movie revival at the Denver cineplex." But seriously, how does one interpret what is pornography and what is not? Do we go with the notion, "I know it when I see it?"

What's really scary is that our collections have materials that adults have a constitutional right to access but unfortunately some might judge them to be harmful to minors. Therefore, libraries could potentially be held liable should a minor obtain said materials. This may have a chilling effect on freedom of expression and creating a rich collection to serve the needs of all users.

Anatomy, art, guides to enhancing one's sexual experiences, etc. These are not "filth" nor are they lacking "serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value." I know that words sometimes fail me when encountering a hostile patron that seeks to take a book off the shelf, even in role playing activities. I think it's because it just boggles my mind that anyone would want to repress anyone else's thoughts, feelings, creativity, etc.

I can only hope that considerations are provided for libraries. I understand those people that wish to protect children. However, it is not up to libraries to shield others from information. I remember someone from grad school saying that "Libraries are dangerous places and they should be." Not with regards to bullets flying through windows, but I'm sure that does happen. People can have access to whatever information they desire at a library and to some people, whether it be political despots, fundamentalists, etc., that is dangerous.
I think that if someone really wants something, they'll find a way to get it. I'm not using this as a counter-argument to this bill. I just think that additional regulations make whatever is being regulated more appealing. Alcohol, sex, drugs, Harry Potter, Golden Compass...you name it. If someone has said, "Oh no! We must protect the children from this!" People will wonder what's all the fuss and naturally will be curious about it. If parents provide a forum within the home for knowledge and free thinking, children can be allowed to question and learn about something with their parents as opposed to their friend's older brother or sister.

If you happen to live in Colorado, please contact your State Senator and tell them that this bill will limit people (adult voters) from obtaining items that could potentially be considered "harmful to minors". Movies that are rated higher than PG-13 may no longer be purchased by libraries in Colorado. Art books, erotica poetry, etc. may be limited as well. Standards of indecency are fluid and it is unclear to me, where upon the slippery slope, it would end.

Midwinter, Reading Maps, oh my!

I'll write a very short recap of Midwinter. Some of this may be old news to some.
It was my first time attending as an ALA Councilor-at-Large. It was very enlightening and I look forward to serving. I'm going to definitely post more often in hopes of spreading information amongst my constituents.

Council I: Council received the Presidential Task Force on Graduated Dues report and voted to move forward with a survey of the ALA members. At the very least it will provide information to determine whether a graduated dues structure is feasible for ALA. Regarding the ALA website redesign: ALA has hired a Senior Usability officer and will be looking at user-centered design.
“A Resolution on Member Access to Electronic Lists of ALA” was brought forth by Melora Ranney Norman. This would enable any and all ALA members access to lists. Some people bristled at the notion that non-members of sections could potentially have access to the lists. Rebuttal statements to that included the point that at Annual conference and Midwinter, those associations and sections that have open meetings do not check at the door to make sure every person attending is a member of that group. Also, non-members could/would have read-only access to those lists until they choose to add that section to their membership dues. Additionally, groups that have closed meetings, such as awards or nominating committees, would still maintain closed lists. It was referred to the Task Force on Electronic Member Participation for clarification. I was befuddled by this since it seemed to be a no-brainer. We are an organization that prides itself on access to information. However, I understand that members of Council are very cautious in taking action.

ALA-APA Council: We learned about the progress made by ALA-APA's Certification Project for Public Library Administrators. The first batch of graduates completed the program this past fall. The number of graduates is increasing and CPLA will increase the number of the providers as well this year. They are gearing up to begin a program to address the needs of para-professional staff that has been funded by a grant from IMLS. The budget has been trickling upwards through subscriptions to Library Worklife newsletter, subscription access to the Salary Survey and items for National Library Worker Day. It's a very worthwhile organization that can use the support of ALA members. They are working to promote our interests whether it is regarding salaries, public awareness of what library workers do, etc. I support it not only because donations are tax-deductible but because I want to support a group that is looking out for my professional interests.

Council II: Council voted to give the Budget Analysis and Review Committee the task of investigating ways to shorten Council sessions so that they can end on Tuesday rather than Wednesday. We honored Pat Mora, Effie Lee Morris and Peggy Sullivan with Honorary Memberships in ALA.

Council III: “Resolution on Providing Accessible Workstations at ALA Mid Winter Meetings and Annual Conferences” was passed. This resolution calls for ALA to facilitate access to computer workstations and other accommodations for persons with disabilities during annual conferences and midwinter meetings. There was a resolution on the crisis in Kenya which called for an end to the violence and to the abridgement of freedoms in that country such as freedom of the press, etc. It passed with a narrow margin (67-65). “Resolution on the Confiscation of Iraqi Documents from the Iraq National Library Archives” passed and called for the return by U.S. and British military forces of cultural documents to Iraqi repositories.

It was a very exciting meeting and I look forward to Anaheim.
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I was very fortunate to attend the NEO-RLS reader's advisory learning group on February 21.

We discussed reading maps which are reader’s advisory tools that lead readers to other books that they might wish to read. By utilizing elements that are central to the book, (subject matter, read-alikes, other books by the author, etc.) reading maps explore recommendations in a different way.

Other libraries are using Flickr as a tool of hosting images and creating reading maps. Examples: http://flickr.com/photos/roundlakelibrary/ and http://flickr.com/photos/7384687@N03/439668465/

The group also discussed the possibility of having a reading map website that will be hosted by NEO-RLS where librarians and people can post reading maps. I am very excited about this and look forward to assisting where I can. I learned a lot and am energized to find additional tools that I can use to approach and assist our patrons in a new and different way.