Yearly Archives: 2012

190 posts

News: Phoenix Public Library Employment Opportunity Deputy Library Director

Phoenix Public Library seeks an experienced and effective leader to direct the operations of the Information Technology and Digital Initiatives division.  This position has full responsibility to administer the operations of a major library division, and help to define and articulate the vision, strategic directions and priorities for their division and the library system.  Incumbent serves as a member of Library Administration to plan, develop, and implement innovative, community-oriented library services for which Phoenix is known and works under the general direction of the City Librarian.    Download the entire job document here: DeputyLibraryDirectorPHX

Travels, Touring & Thanks – Hamburg, Germany 2012

Edlef, Julia, Michael & Beate at Hamburg’s Miniatur Wunderland It was very nice to receive some photos of my last full day in Germany from Edlef Stabenau this week. The librarians from the University Library of TUHH, a small university focused on engineering, Beate (@unzeit) and Edlef (@edlef), were most welcoming to me, and to Christoph and Julia, my colleagues from the Zukunftwerkstatt. We toured the incredible Miniature Wonderland and chatted about our everything. Thanks again for the warm welcome! Here’s a MediaSite recording of my “Learning Everywhere” talk: http://www.tub.tu-harburg.de/blog/2012/11/01/learning-everywhere-transformative-libraries-services/ Find out more about TUHH: http://www.tub.tu-harburg.de/en/home/about-us/

A future librarian’s promise – A TTW Guest Post by Carlie Graham

Note from Michael – Carlie is a WISE student taking my Hyperlinked Library course. Carlie wrote this post as part of her course blogging.   I’ve been reflecting on what kind of librarian I wish to become, and in the process, I discovered the social media guidelines I developed form a beautiful basis. As a future librarian, I promise the following to members, colleagues, and to myself that I will: Be curious. My learning will never be finished. I want to learn from colleagues and members, and promise to never be afraid to say “I don’t know.” I will give others the […]

Amazon lockers

Amazon lockers, a photo by WordShore on Flickr. John Kirriemuir writes: In a Co-operative supermarket in Birmingham. The Amazonification of consumerism, from the manufacturers factory to the customers hands, continues. This intrigues me as a consumer. It also intrigues me to consider what libraries might do with similar.

Lost Faith: College Students’ Photoshopification and Information Literacy

When I finished library school around the year 2000, the shift from print to online was well underway. OPACs were common place, CD towers had already migrated to online databases, and teaching search strategies to students was seen (by librarians and faculty member alike) as an essential piece to teaching the research paper. Yet, even as the changes were happening around us, the mental models used by our students were not moving as quickly. The essential information literacy problem we faced was that students tended to believe almost anything they found on the web, especially if a website had a […]

Thanks Gates Foundation Global Libraries Technology Work Group!

While in California for California Library Association and our SJSU SLIS faculty retreat, I was invited to present via teleconference for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Global Libraries Technology Work Group. The meeting was in Seattle and try as we might, zipping up and back from San Jose wan’t in the travel cards. Via teleconference, however, I was able to present “Tomorrow’s Libraries: Technologies & trends shaping libraries” for the group. The slides are here: For slides please Contact Michael Special thanks to Darrin Hoerner and Chris Jowaisas at gates and the good folks on the SJSU campus for making […]

Thanks Internet Librarian International!

I am behind in a few posts, but I wanted to make sure I gave a big shout out to the delegates, organizers and advisory board of this year’s Internet Librarian International conference. I was honored to be a conference co-chair this year. It was a wonderful two days in London, filled with intriguing discussions and ideas from around the globe. This conference always energizes me because of the perspectives our delegates bring. I especially enjoyed participating in the closing plenary with conference co-chair Donna Saxby. Check out the roster of presentations here: http://www.internet-librarian.com/2012/programme.php

Office Hours: The Evolving LIS Core

My new column is up at LJ: http://lj.libraryjournal.com/2012/11/opinion/michael-stephens/an-evolving-lis-core-office-hours/ User studies—research concerning patterns of information use in our everyday lives, in times of crisis, and as members of certain populations (students, the aging, etc.)—define the first part of this core. Appreciating the diversity of cultures in relation to library service should come early, as our grads will be citizens of the world. Second, the core would include an emphasis on the ever-changing technological landscape. This might include coding, hardware, and all those things once deemed the realm of the IT department but would also include understanding the architecture of participation and […]