Dear TTW: I’m taking a little one-credit class called “The Thoughtful Professional” in my library school. One of the requirements of the class is to send the professor a short email with a “Heretical Idea” about libraries. During the last 30-minutes of each class we discuss the idea. The author remains anonymous.I wanted to share mine with you because a photo you put in your Flickr stream inspired me. Here it is: Throw away the library policy book; toss aside the library rules! Most library rules and policies serve no one, except the ineffective managers who implement and administer them. […]
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I finally had some time to read about the candidates and listen to the podcast from Seattle and I’d like to take just a moment to endorse Jim Rettig for president of the American Library Association. http://rettigforala.org/ A few reasons why: In the Q&A segment of the podcast, biblioblogger Gary McClay asks the presidential candidates “What does Library 2.0 mean to you?” Nancy Davenport answers first and discusses applying Web 2.0 tools to libraries and the association, promoting better communication. Nice answer, but Rettig really grabbed me with his response. Rettig replies (as best I can transcribe): Library 2.0 is […]
A lot of folks have been looking back at 2006. I realized today what a year it’s been: more library and librarian blogs, RSS gains even more ground, Wikis rule the school (and ALA), IM is embedded directly in pages where our users may find themselves, YouTube offers a way to share a “Ray of Light” and other library content, comments in the catalog, and innovations such as the WPopac offer a view of a bright, open future… wowza… Who knew that 2006 would shake out to be a year of “participatory culture,” to borrow a phrase from Henry Jenkins. […]
I’ve been following the ALA L2 Blogs and exchanging emails with many of the participants. This little bit comes from Don Wood, an ALA staff member who I go to meet in person at the ALA 2.0 Roadshow we did this spring. Don really taps onto something that is important: the concepts of L2 do not seek to push aside everything we’ve always done or alienate current users of libraries. My comment on Brian Gray’s blog pretty well sums up how I feel about how I see the spirit of this 2.0 project. Libraries should become, to coin a phrase, […]
A few folks have added their lists to the “Ten Ways to Lose Your Techie Librarians”: Karen: http://freerangelibrarian.com/2006/03/how_to_lose_your_tech_people.php Jessamyn: http://www.librarian.net/stax/1681 Librarian in Black: http://librarianinblack.typepad.com/librarianinblack/2006/03/ten_ways_to_los.html Caveat Lector: http://cavlec.yarinareth.net/archives/2006/03/12/fifty-ways-to-lose-your-techies/ (I love the bit about job descriptions being crammed full of every tech thing imaginable! And this wonderfully positive spin by Scott at http://www.rcpl.info/services/liblog.html, who commented on the original post. I’m putting them up top because they are really good! TOP 10 WAYS TO KEEP YOUR TECHIE LIBRARIANS: 1) Treat technology as being as important to your library as circulating books or having storytimes. 2) Try to have a “techie” on as many […]
Finally things have calmed down. Here goes a long overdue summary of what I took home from Monterey. #1 Public Librarians Rule I had high hopes for the track when we got the go ahead from Jane to put it together. I am super-pleased with the feedback I’ve received. (and send more if you haven’t…) There was such energy in the room… so, one thing I learned is the folks that work at PLS really seem to be interested in new technologies and serving their users. Public Librarians rule because they care about their users and their buildings and the […]