“There are two kinds of people in the world: those who divide the world into two kinds of people, and those who don’t” – Robert Benchley When I walk in to a library I can usually tell what type it is fairly quickly. I don’t mean public, special, academic, school, etc. but a library for stuff or a library for experiences. When I walk in to the Arlington Heights Memorial Library, IL it is obviously centered on experiences. When I go in to a museum library it is obviously about stuff. This isn’t to say that AHML doesn’t also have an […]
Tags Mick Jacobsen
25 posts
I have written previously about Digital Media Labs and their ilk. I have also been a small part of helping a number of libraries starting media labs of one sort or another. An aspect of DMLs that often gets lost in the shuffle of all the shiny hardware and expensive software is a place to display art. This space can be a wall in the main lobby of the library for photos, slides, graphic design work and whatever else can be put on a poster. A LCD screen or something that can be used to show films or a movie […]
I have been a part of this initiative as an instructor for the first two iterations and can not recommend it highly enough! Check it out if you live in one of the states involved. ILEAD USA Applications Available-“National Day of Application” November 1 The State Library continues its preparations to host ILEAD USA (Innovative Librarians Explore, Apply and Discover): The 21st Century Technology and Leadership Skills Institute for the States. This continuing education initiative will be held at the University of Illinois Springfield on March 25-28, June 17-20 and October 21-24, 2013. Our partner states in ILEAD USA are […]
Computer Labs are the ugly ducklings of libraries, very rarely get discussed, very few presentations on best practices, disgruntles reference librarians everywhere “I did not go to library school to help somebody play with Facebook”, and all that jazz. I have never understood that opinion but I am not here to try and change anybody’s mind about the need, but to discuss the future of computer labs in libraries (my experience is in public libraries). As background, mpow’s computer use statistics were down from last fiscal year, and this year looks to be down again. At our height we were […]
Perhaps I have been living under a rock but I just stumbled across the Idea Box from Oak Park Public Library, IL. Very interesting. TTW Contributor: Mick Jacobsen
We librarians are in a war for survival but we keep getting caught up in battles. The battle with Overdrive, the battle with Harper Collins, Penguin, other publishers, the battle with database providers, the battle with Apple, Facebook, and everybody else trying to limit choices/privacy, etc. and we are losing them and losing them badly. It is time to remember the War. I don’t know about you, but I am fighting the War to make the Library vital to my community and make the community I serve the best in the world. I don’t care about eBooks, I am not […]
If you can be in charge/start your/be part of a Digital Media Lab (DML) I highly recommend it… for you. Now, I think all the community building, etc. aspects of a DML are awesome and one of the futures of libraries – see a Library Journal article I co-authored for that all important aspect. However, this post is for those of you who are considering starting a DML and wondering if you will enjoy it as an aspect of your job. This is what my work life looks like being in charge of the Skokie DML ( I have other […]
I wanted to point to this great post about ILEAD U from Alicia Hammond, the Corporate and Small Business Liaison Librarian at the Schaumburg Township Library, IL. I have been given an incredible opportunity as a librarian. Earlier this year, I was accepted in the ILEAD U (Illinois Libraries Explore, Apply and Discover: The 21st Century Technology Tools Institute). This program is operated by the Illinois State Library and funded by a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. And it is really cool! Basically there are two things going on with this program. They bring a bunch […]
A few of my coworkers (Ruth, Erika, and Matt) had some fun this April Fool’s Day. Check out the entire run of images here. You know, there’s something to be said to working with people who come up with fun ideas. Furthermore, there is many things to be said about working under leadership that allows/encourages this sort of fun creativity. Patrons/members/customers can sense when people like what they are doing, it makes a difference. TTW Contributor: Mick Jacobsen
This is the third installment from the ILEAD U Project. Click here or on the category hyperlink to read more about it. – Mick Jacobsen Team Pandora was comprised of three libraries in the Springfield area- the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library (Jan Perone), Illinois State Library (Debra Aggertt, Sandra Fritz and Beth Paoli) and University of Illinois Springfield-Brookens Library (Pamela Salela). After a few meetings a final decision was reached by the group to try to improve services to Illinois State government agencies particularly those that had lost or did not have an agency library. Team Pandora had a major […]