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What's new
**
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**Invitation
for Participation/ Registration
for International Conference on
Digital Libraries (ICDL 2006)
December 5-8,
2006 – India Habitat Center, New
Delhi, India
www.teriin.org/events/icdl
ICDL is a major international
forum focusing on digital
libraries and related issues. It
aims to consolidate and expand
concerted efforts to bridge the
digital divide. ICDL2006
proposes to focus on Information
Management for Global Access
through the creation, adoption,
implementation and utilization
of DLs. It also intends to offer
a common platform to put forth
innovative ideas, discuss
classical knowledge management
and DL concepts in an open
forum, and promote closer
cooperation between experts and
end- users. About 40 renowned
and experienced speakers from
India and abroad will be sharing
their experiences. For detail
information about the conference
please visit the website
www.teriin.org/events/icdl
As you may be
aware that TERI had earlier
organized the ICDL
(International Conference on
Digital Libraries) 2004,
in partnership with Department
of Culture, Ministry of Tourism
and Culture, Government of India
from 24 to 27 February 2004. The
conference was inaugurated by
Hon'ble President of India. More
than 750 participants from 36
countries and 55 invited
speakers from 16 countries and
80 contributed speakers shared
their experiences on a single
platform.
The conference was able to
create awareness and enthusiasm
within the community which
afterwards witnessed several
digital library and knowledge
management initiatives in India.
Registration Information
:
For details about the conference
registration fee for all
presenters and participants and
other registration information,
please refer to the conference
website (www.teriin.org/events/icdl
)
Sponsorship details, Products &
Services Exhibitors and business
sessions
For details visit conference
website (www.teriin.org/events/icdl)
or e-mail at icdl@teri.res.in
For any queries contact at –
Debal C Kar
Organising Secretary
ICDL2006 Conference Secretariat
TERI,
(The Energy
Research Institute)
Darbari Seth
Block
IHC Complex, Lodhi Road
New Delhi - 110 003, India
Phone - 91-11-24682141, 24682111
or 24682100
Fax - 91-11-24682144, 2468 2145
E-mail
ICDL@teri.res.in
**DVD
Debate: Fiscal Prudence or
Censorship?
Charlie Jackson
-- An effort to remove Braveheart, The Passion of the Christ, Saving
Private Ryan, various
Shakespeare adaptations and any
other R rated DVD from public
libraries hit a wall last week
when the Loudoun Library Board
of Trustees rejected a request
from county supervisors to stop
purchasing adult-oriented
videos.
Read on …
Librarians
an endangered species
04.02.2006 (Queensland Times)
KATE GASTEEN
FORGET the chronic doctor shortage and shrinking tradie quotas, it's librarians
that experts are warning will be the new endangered species of professionals.
With recent figures pointing to an anticipated shortage of 10,800 public library
staff in the United Kingdom by the year 2010, the Australian Library and
Information Association (ALIA) this week signalled a campaign to promote
careers in libraries. Executive director Sue Hutley said the organisation
was looking to improve its recruitment and retention strategies in the face of
an ageing workforce dominated by librarians over the age of 45. Ms Hutley
attributed part of the reluctance of young people to take up librarianship
degrees to the stereotypical image of a librarian as a bookish woman spending
her days shelving books and hissing "sshhh". "People don't just shelve books
anymore," Ms Hutley said. "One of the things ALIA is trying to do is point
towards the future and what we are about is linking people with ideas whether it
be a child reading a book, or a person with a research idea from full text or an
oral history." Information technology, research and service are the skills
of the modern librarian who can specialise in different fields, Ms Hutley said.
University of Queensland Social Sciences and Humanities Library manager Bill
Beach was optimistic about the future for librarians noting it was a profession
that many adopted after opting out of one career. Mr Beach said a broader
base of skilled professionals serviced modern libraries. "You can liken
libraries to the military in that for every person on the frontline
there's at least 10 people behind them," Mr Beach said. Ipswich Grammar School's
David Cunningham studied part-time after work for 10 years to fulfil his
dream of becoming a teacher librarian. "It was because my Dad had a wall full of
books and whenever I had a question he could go to the shelves and find the
information I needed," Mr Cunningham said. "It inspired me to! help people
in that same way. "You have got to have a passion! for service." Mr Cunningham
said the information revolution had ensured librarians had an important role in
teaching others to access information. "We are an information centre and we are
teaching people to find the information that they need. "I am disappointed more
people aren't involved." But it's a role he is passionate about and
believes men have a duty to embrace particularly in schools. "So boys realise
that books aren't just for girls," he said.
Scholarship winner
The Management Committee of the Marion E
Robertson Children's
Literature Award is pleased to announce that
the winner for 2006 is
Teneille Bush from the Blue Mountains City
Library. Teneille's
commitment to the field of children's
literature is commendable and she
is a most worthy winner. Teneille will be
sponsored to attend the CBCA
8th National Conference and Expo from 4 - 6
May 2006.
Lorraine Janson
For the Management Committee of the Marion E
Robertson Children's
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Storm over gay kindergarten books
NSW Premier Morris Iemma has criticised a Sydney kindergarten for
teaching very young children about gay and lesbian families.
Mr Iemma said toddlers were being confronted with adult issues at an
age when they should just be having fun.
"Personally, I believe it's inappropriate for a childcare centre to
be a battleground for gender politics,"
But Marrickville Mayor Sam Byrne said books used in the kindergarten
were approved.
Read on ...
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Auto-Graphics First-to-Market with Book-Buying Functionality through
AGent Platform of Library Automation Solutions
POMONA, CA. – March 13,
2006 –
Auto-Graphics, Inc. (AUGR.PK), a technology innovator providing library
automation solutions for over 35 years, today announced an industry first – the
ability for libraries to offer online book-buying functionality to their
patrons, while sharing in the sales revenue generated through the company’s
AGent™ platform of products including VERSO™ ILS, Search and even the ILL
Resource Sharing products. This groundbreaking program has been developed in
partnership with Baker & Taylor – a worldwide distributor of books, video,
music, and games – with the vision to provide public libraries a powerful
revenue generating opportunity that supports the ongoing needs of their
libraries, while increasing community awareness through word-of-mouth referrals
and a library-branded website. This novel technology will significantly change
the library market, expanding the library’s role from a borrowing entity to an
online destination where patrons can easily and immediately purchase items.
Read more
The
Vacuum blog, written by Edward Vielmetti,
announced that the ILL system, MiLE, in
Michigan has been "irrevocably" hacked. He
includes a number of links that discuss the
issue in his post, if you want more
information on that particular incident. The
larger problem is that the culture of
openness and access that libraries embody is
being put to the test by hackers (or
crackers) who use that open access to
destroy our resources.
Post continues
Libraries fear digital lockdown
Libraries have warned that the rise of digital
publishing may make it harder or even impossible to access items in their
collections in the future.
Many publishers put restrictions on how digital books and
journals can be used.
Such digital rights management (DRM) controls may block some
legitimate uses, the British Library has said.
And there are fears
that restricted works may not be safe for future generations if people can no
longer unlock them when technology evolves.
Article continues
H.W. Wilson’s Book Review Digest
Turns 100
Book Review Digest
now joins the company of reference icon Readers'
Guide to Periodical Literature, as an
H.W. Wilson product in service to library users
for more than 100 years.
Introduced in 1905, Book Review
Digest is now available in both the familiar
print form and on WilsonWeb online, as Book
Review Digest Plus
http://www.hwwilson.com/databases/brdig.htm
and Book Review Digest Retrospective: 1905-1982
http://www.hwwilson.com/databases/
brdig_retro.htm
NLS2006 Call for Papers
The ALIA New Librarians' Symposium 2006 Call for Papers is closing at the end
of this month!
This is your chance to present to an enthusiastic and engaged audience of your
peers. If you've never presented before, this is a great place to start, and
we're offering a peer review process for those who do submit. If you've
ever considered presenting at a conference, but were too intimidated by the idea
of hundreds of big wigs staring at you up on stage, NLS is for you. If, however,
you know what you're doing, you're an old hand at this - come and show the rest
of us how it's done. We welcome submissions for non-traditional delivery methods
as well - workshops and other types of interactive presentations are welcome.
Submitting is easy - you don't need a complete paper (yet!), just an abstract.
For all your guidelines, visit us at
http://conferences.alia.org.au/newlibrarian2006/
- and while you're there you might like to sign up for our mailing list, to get
all the NLS news, announcements, and, coming up, some nifty competitions.
IFLA 2005: Report of
Achievements
14 December 2005
Dear Colleagues
This year, 2005, was an exciting and productive
year for IFLA. Dominated by
engagement with the World Summit on the
Information Society (WSIS -
http://www.itu.int/wsis), it was also a most
successful year in many other respects
including professional work, membership services
and addressing the governance and
administration of the Federation.
The Three Pillars, adopted by
the Governing Board in December 2004,
provides a powerful framework for both the
presentation and the reconsideration of
IFLA's activities and priorities. Its
elements - Society, Profession, Members -
identify the domains of IFLA's work for
libraries and information services world wide,
which are supported by IFLANET, IFLA HQ,
the regional and core activity offices, and the
Governing Board. A number of initiatives
have been taken to strengthen the
alignment between IFLA's operations and its
priorities including the re-presentation
of the budget in terms of the three pillars and
the initiation of a strategic plan which
will be considered by the GB at its March
meeting. The Board has also established
the Working Party on Governance to review
the operation of IFLA's statutes, which were
approved in 2000. Some ideas from
the Working Party will be circulated for comment
early in 2006. This may result in some
changes to the Statutes being put to the
members this year and others being considered at
a later date.
The Society Pillar recognises
the vital role of libraries and information
services in building strong and healthy
communities, nations and organisations.
Our WSIS advocacy, over the last four years
through the Geneva phase and to this
November's Summit meeting in Tunis, highlighted
the important role that libraries play in
creating an information society for all (a
report will shortly appear on IFLANET). We
must now hold the governments to the
commitments they made in the WSIS process.
Our success in this process, including our very
successful pre Summit conference at the
Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Egypt, is the result of
coordinated work by many colleagues including
national associations, individuals and
those who were able to join national WSIS
delegations. It has been a
demonstration of the strength and importance of
our Members Pillar - which we have also
strengthened this year by implementing the new
national association fee structure and by
introducing the new "other associations"
category. And, to encourage rejuvenation
of the profession and IFLA, the December
Governing Board meeting confirmed the
continuation of the Student Affiliate
category.
IFLA's commitment to societal issues was also
demonstrated in the continuing work of
FAIFE, which included an investigation and two
statements on the human rights situation in
Tunisia (the host of WSIS), and the dedicated
advocacy of CLM, which extended its work on IP
policy from WIPO to the WTO ministerial meeting
this month. These core activities project
our professional interests in regard to society,
tackling many of the contextual issues which
affect the operations of libraries and
information services around the world.
In addition, IFLA responded to the dreadful
Tsunami, which hit several nations around the
Indian Ocean twelve months ago, and to the
following disasters in other regions. We
drew attention to the importance of libraries
and information services, offered support to our
colleagues in difficulty and established the
IFLA Relief and Development Partnership (IRDP)
together with several major national library
associations. IRDP will enable us to
provide some assistance in response to future
disasters, mainly to help the assessment of the
damage and planning for the future but also to
promote disaster preparedness.
Through this initiative we help to build, and
rebuild when necessary, the strong professional
structures which are the emphasis of the
Profession Pillar. Other professional
activities this year have included: the very
successful World Library and Information
Congress in Oslo; the programs of IFLA's
sections and divisions; and three very important
meetings, the Interlending Conference in Tallinn
in September, the High Level Colloquium on
Information Literacy and Lifelong Learning at
the Bibliotheca Alexandrina last month and the
IFLA Meeting of Experts on an International
Cataloguing Code (IME ICC3) in Cairo this month.
These and the work of PAC, ALP, ICABS and
UNIMARC contribute to the vitality and relevance
of our global profession. Their programs often
result in publications, such as the very timely
Preparing for the Worst, Planning for the Best:
Protecting our Cultural Heritage from Disaster (ed
Nancy Gwinn and Johanna Wellheiser, IFLA
Publications no. 111, Munich, Saur, 2005), as
well as articles in IFLA Journal which moved to
Sage Publications in 2005, laying the foundation
for a higher quality and more attractive
journal.
In February, we welcomed Dr Peter
Lor as our Secretary General, launching him into
a very busy program of work with the Governing
Board, the Professional Committee, the staff and
other colleagues to streamline the operations of
IFLA. Peter commissioned an external
review of IFLA's business processes which was
considered by the GB in December resulting in
the implementation of some of its
recommendations and further consideration of
others. It is clear that the highest
priority is to renew IFLA's IT systems, both
IFLANET and the 'back end' business systems, so
as to make the organisation more responsive and
efficient. The 2006 budget makes provision
for the first stage of this renewal, the
detailed project planning, but it is evident
that additional resources will be needed to
complete the project without delay.
Support from members for this enhancement and
for the continuing work of IFLA, and especially
the core activities, will be essential if we are
to fulfil our mission fully. To that end,
the GB approved the creation of an IFLA Fund,
which has already raised some money to assist
our advocacy efforts. The membership
renewal form will include opportunities for
members to contribute further to advocacy and
the core activities. We encourage you and
your organisations to contribute so that IFLA
can continue to be the strong global voice for
libraries and information services.
Our heartfelt thanks to all who have contributed
so much to our success this year: members,
officers, staff and supporters.
We wish you
all the best for 2006 - Happy New Year!
Alex Byrne Claudia Lux Peter Lor
President
President-elect Secretary General
Open Content Alliance Expands Rapidly; Reveals
Operational Details
Just a few
weeks after its launch, the Open Content Alliance (http://www.opencontentalliance.org)
has already added dozens of new members to its Open
Library project (http://www.openlibrary.org).
Twenty-four new participants have joined the initial
10 founding members. All contributors have committed
to donating services, facilities, tools, and/or
funding. Microsoft Corp. has joined the effort with
the announcement of MSN Book Search, a new mass book
digitization project. The Research Libraries Group (RLG;
http://www.rlg.org),
a major library bibliographic utility, has also
joined OCA, contributing its bibliographic metadata.
In contrast with Google Print’s close-mouthed policy
toward its proprietary digitization equipment, the
Open Content Alliance has released extensive details
on its Scribe system, as well as other options for
participants and users.
Article
continues
Just a few weeks after its launch, the Open Content Alliance
(http://www.opencontentalliance.org)
has already added dozens of new members to its Open Library
project (http://www.openlibrary.org).
Twenty-four new participants have joined the initial 10
founding members. All contributors have committed to
donating services, facilities, tools, and/or funding.
Microsoft Corp. has joined the effort with the announcement
of MSN Book Search, a new mass book digitization project.
The Research Libraries Group (RLG;
http://www.rlg.org), a major library
bibliographic utility, has also joined OCA, contributing its
bibliographic metadata. In contrast with Google Print’s
close-mouthed policy toward its proprietary digitization
equipment, the Open Content Alliance has released extensive
details on its Scribe system, as well as other options for
participants and users.
Article continues
" Lorcan
Dempsey has posted an announcement on his (Ed. note:
originally stated as "her", see comments) blog about the
inclusion of user-provided reviews in the Open World Cat
Catalog. This new feature uses "Wiki-like" technology to
store the reviews on the backend and allows anyone who
is interested to post their thoughts on the book in
question. The comments on his post are arguably more
interesting than the post itself, however. I especially
liked the idea presented by Fiona about making reviews
published in professional journals available in this
way. She makes a great point that they are not always
accessible if you don't have the hard copy of the
journal in your hands. While the addition of user
reviews is a great start, a collaboration between a
professional journal and this service might be even more
useful." --
Robin Hasting
Author,
David Bergen wins the 1005 Scotiabank Giller Prize
Toronto, ON
(November 8, 2005) - David Bergen has been named the 2005 winner of The
Scotiabank Giller Prize, Canada’s premier literary prize for fiction, for his
novel The Time In Between, published by
McClelland & Stewart.
MSN Book Search, launched earlier this month, to deliver
search results.
Microsoft continues to work with the British Library on its development of the
infrastructure for the National Digital Library.
Microsoft and the British Library today announced a strategic
partnership to digitise 25 million pages of content from the Library's
collections in 2006, with a long term commitment to digitise still more in the
future.
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**An
International Training Program on
"INFORMATION":
STIMULATE
= Scientific and Technological
Information Management in Universities
and Libraries:
an Active Training Environment
(Edition 6)
Information about this training program
can be found on the WWW starting from:
http://www.vub.ac.be/BIBLIO/itp/
The program is planned to take place
mainly in Brussels, Belgium,
from Monday morning October 2 to
Thursday evening December 21, 2006.
Language used is English.
**RIVER
OF OPPORTUNITIES IV
ALBURY, NSW
November 11-12th 2006.
The 4th River of Opportunities, a joint
workshop from the Victorian
ALIA Library Technicians Group and the NSW
ALIA Library Technicians
Group, will be held at the Sundowner Hovell
Tree Inn, Albury
NSW,11-12th November 2006.
Commencing with registration at 8:30am on
Saturday 11th November, we
are offering a full program on informative
speakers in the morning
with library tour(s) in the afternoon.
A dinner will be at a local venue on the
Saturday evening. This will
be at your own expense.
Sundays program will include "a word from
our sponsor" RAECO, topical
issues, more speakers and time for
"communities of interest" and
general group discussion.
We aim to finish at noon, followed by lunch
before heading home.
The cost will be
ALIA Members $115
Non Members $150
This includes morning teas and lunch.
Accommodation is at own cost. Bookings at
the Sundowner Hovell Tree
Inn are now being taken. You can choose
from room only or include
breakfast in your tariff. Ph 02 6042 3900
to book.
Accommodation and registration must be
confirmed by 6th October 2006.
Watch this site for further developments.
Cheers
Clare Bristow and Libby Brackenridge
CONVENORS
: E-mail:
clare.bristow@deakin.edu.au
: Website:
http://www.deakin.edu.au
Joan
Brewer Award - SA School Library
Association.
http://www.slasa.asn.au/
Congratulations
to Award Winner Helen Richter of Barmera Primary School.Helen has been a teacher librarian for
many years. She was joint founder of the
Riverland Hub Group and has been its coordinator
for 20 years. Helen provides students with an
excellent basis in information literacy and
actively promotes and shares her ideas.
Well done Helen!
The Astrid Lindgren Memorial
Award 2006 goes to the American author
Katherine Paterson.
The jury's motivation is as follows:
"Katherine Paterson (USA) is a brilliant psychologist who gets right under the
skin of the vulnerable young people she creates, whether in historical or exotic
settings, or in the grim reality of the USA today. With a deft aesthetic touch
she avoids simple solutions, building instead on the inner strength and courage
of her main characters."
Press photographs and information about the award winner can be found at the
Memorial Award website,
www.alma.se and Katherine Paterson's own website,
www.terabithia.com.
H.R.H. Crown Princess Victoria will present the award at a ceremony at Skansen
in Stockholm on 31 May 2006. The ceremony is open to the general public.
Two
new qualifications, the Diploma and Advanced Diploma in Applications of ICT in
Libraries.
The qualifications are based on the
Peoples's Network training and were developed by the Scottish Library and
Information
Council (SLIC) (http://www.slainte.org.uk)
and validated by the Scottish Qualification Authority (SQA) (
http://www.sqa.org.uk). The qualificationsare applicable across the UK and
may also be of interest to library staff elsewhere.
Millennium City Academy, an associate college of London Graduate School
ofManagement, has now been approved by SQA to offer these awards, which willbe
delivered on a Distance Learning basis.
Please see
http://www.lgsm.ac for full details, or checkhttp://www.ictl.org.uk
for a look at the online course materials.
Literature Award
PLA Announces 2006 Award Winners
The Public
Library Association (PLA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA)
has announced the winners of seven distinguished service awards.
*Is
GOOGLE Being a Fair Use
User?*
by
Bessie Mayes
Technical Service Senior Advisor/Cartographic Consultant
SPAWAR Systems Center, Pacific
bessie.mayes@navy.mil
Some technology revolutions can be very subtle in the
beginning. Perhaps you have noticed that the number of computer commercials
outnumber commercials for television products, with the exception of the Super
Bowl season of course. The technology markets are driven by the consumer’s
desire for convenience, relaxation, and saving time. There are many new
technological surprises these days to accommodate those masses too. For
instance, Sony Corporation has a new product that may change the way we
read books in the future. You are familiar already of course with email,
e-journals, and e-commerce, but are you aware of e-paper? Sony’s new device will
allow the user to read up to eighty books on a device they call the Sony
Reader. The company developed this reader last year, and is now marketing it
to the public. The device weights only 9 ounces, and looks just like a book with
a LCD screen. The Sony Reader
is adjustable, meaning you can manipulate fonts, and is easy to carry around.
Just think, instead of thumbing through a paper copy of your favorite novel, you
now have the luxury of pressing a button to flip to the next page. However, my
question after reading about this new item was how could I acquire a digital
book that could interface with this device and how much would I have to pay?
What if I told you that someday in the future, you may be able to download your
favorite book into your Sony Reader directly from a library’s website?
summarizes findings of an
international study on information-seeking
habits and preferences.
The sixteenth annual report on the provision and
use of library
services to schools and
children in the UK
shows that while more than half of the nation's
children are thought to be public library
members, only around one-third actively use the
library to borrow books. There is a diverse
range of activities and services being developed
by public libraries to cater for children and
children's satisfaction with their local library
is high. The report expresses concern over the
longer term management and strategic planning of
both school library services and public library
services for children. The report summarises
trends over the past five years, examines the
roles and numbers of staff working with children
and considers service provision, resources, and
expenditure. [Claire Creaser and Sally Maynard,
'A survey of library services to schools and
children in the UK 2004-05'. LISU, Loughborough
University, December 2005. ISBN 1901786943]
http://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/dis/lisu/
pages/publications/sch-chil05.h
THE INFINITE LIBRARY
Researchers are welcoming
Google's plan to digitize millions of books, but
the implications for libraries are profound
 By Devin
Crawley
Read the whole article
Going Digital One Book at Time
The
Wall Street Journal today has an interesting
article about the meticulous and tedious task of
scanning library books for digitization.
Scanners literally pluck one book at a time from
library shelves, bring them to the six-foot
tall, five-foot wide machine, placing the book
on a V-shaped tray with two digital cameras
looming over the right and left side. Once the
picture is taken, the human scanner makes the
necessary adjustments and then turns the page.
This is part of a huge effort by the Internet
Archive to digitize the world's books. The
nonprofit has received funds from Microsoft,
Yahoo!, Hewlett Packard, and Adobe Systems, as
well as several university libraries, to do so.
While Google's efforts have come under fire due
to potential copyright violations, the Internet
Archive's effort, called the Open Content
Alliance, is focusing only on books published
before 1923, which are no longer under
copyright. The process costs nearly 10 cents a
page, but more than that, it takes time; in one
year, just 2,800 books have been digitized. With
Yahoo! and Microsoft recently on board, the
effort will likely broaden and speed up. -
Read the whole story...
The
OTHER Book Projects
by Paula J. Hane
With all the press coverage lately about the
Google Print project, as well as our two
NewsBreaks this week, which cover the Open
Content Alliance and Microsoft MSN Search book
digitization projects, it looks like books may
have achieved the status of "the next big
thing," as Barbara Quint suggested. But, as we
talked about these recent developments, she and
I agreed that many other worthy book search and
access projects seem to be lost from view. So,
here’s a brief roundup of others that deserve
recognition, including homegrown and commercial
efforts.
The volunteer effort Project Gutenberg (http://www.gutenberg.org
) has been around since 1971—it’s the oldest
producer of free e-books on the Internet. On its
site, it now reports 17,405 e-books (that are in
the public domain) and is averaging 250 new
books per month this year. Books may be freely
downloaded. Project Gutenberg is a participant
in Yahoo!’s Content Acquisition Program. This
provides a search of book metadata (author,
title, brief description, keywords). Google
provides a search of approximtely the first 100
KB of the full text. Michael Hart, founder of
Project Gutenberg, has estimated that "there are
already well over 100,000 eBooks already
available free for the taking on various
Internet sites, perhaps 50,000 of them from the
various Project Gutenberg sites."
Other book projects include the California
eScholarship Initiative (
http://www.cdlib.org/programs/
escholarship.html), the Electronic Text
Center at the University of Virginia Library
(
http://etext.lib.virginia.edu),
and the Humanities Text Initiative at the
University of Michigan (http://www.hti.umich.edu
), to name a few. The Online Books Page is a
book index of some 20,000-plus free Web texts
edited by John Mark Ockerbloom; it’s hosted by
the University of Pennsylvania Library
(http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu
).
There are also several European library and
publisher initiatives. Reuters recently reported
that the German association of book publishers
plans to build a network by next year that will
allow the full texts of the publishers’ books to
be searched online by search engines, but it
will not provide the texts to Google and the
other engines.
The European Commission adopted an initiative in
June titled "i2010: European Information Society
2010" in which digital libraries are a flagship
goal. On Sept. 30, 2005, at a meeting in
Brussels, Belgium, the commission unveiled a
strategy for making "Europe’s written and
audiovisual heritage available on the Internet."
It presented a first set of actions at the
European level intended to feed into a proposal
for digitization and preservation for
presentation in June 2006. At present, several
initiatives exist in the member states, but they
are fragmented. To avoid creating systems that
are mutually incompatible and that duplicate
work, the commission proposes that member states
and major cultural institutions join the EU
effort.
Other companies serving up access to digital
books include NetLibrary, ebrary, and Knovel, as
well as major publishers like Elsevier,
McGraw-Hill, Oxford University Press, and
others. Services aimed at the library market
tend to focus on providing many value-add
services and tools for users—and don’t forget
these are all available free to library users
with their library card.
OCLC’s NetLibrary recently chose Autonomy as its
technology partner to provide academic, public,
corporate, and special libraries with improved
search and retrieval functionality. Autonomy’s
technology allows NetLibrary to index e-books,
e-journals, and other content types regardless
of format and/or location and make them
available through a single search interface.
Additionally, NetLibrary is using several other
Autonomy features, such as cross-linking of
files, content summarization, content
suggestions, and spell-checking. These and other
features will be part of a major site
enhancement planned for this fall, called
NetLibrary 4.0. NetLibrary currently provides
customers with access to more than 95,000 full
texts of reference, scholarly, and professional
e-books, journals, and audio files.
ebrary has a growing selection of more than
60,000 full-text titles from more than 200
leading academic, STM, and professional
publishers. More than 40,000 of these full-text
titles are books. ebrary also offers users tools
like highlighting, notes, bookmarks, copying,
and printing. The ebrary Reader delivers pages
to a patron’s desktop page-by-page, eliminating
cumbersome downloads. InfoTools gives every
document word-level interaction to link to
additional information.
The bottom line is that all of these projects
and products are complementary. Users benefit by
having book contents searchable and available,
no matter what the source. In fact, content
that’s not digital could be in danger of
extinction. We’re clearly moving to a digital
information world.
Here’s what James Hilton, University of Michigan
associate provost and interim librarian, said in
a statement about the Google Print project
(
http://www.umich.edu/news/index.html?Releases/2005/Sep05/r092105):
"In the future, most research and learning is
going to take place in a digital world. Material
that does not exist in digital form will
effectively disappear. We need to decide whether
we are going to allow the development of new
technology to be used as a tool to restrict the
public’s access to knowledge, or if we are going
to ensure that people can find these works and
that they will be preserved for future
generations."
Paula J. Hane
is Information Today, Inc.’s news bureau chief
and editor of NewsBreaks. Her e-mail address is
phane@infotoday.com. NewsLink is a free
weekly e-mail newsletter featuring news and
resources for the information industry. If you
would like to become a subscriber, please visit
their Web site at
www.infotoday.com
or send a blank e-mail to join-infotoday@lists.infotoday.com.
Random House Goes Hollywood
Random House Goes Hollywood In an effort to optimize the value of its literary
acquisitions, Random House has signed a deal with Focus Features to create films
based on the publisher's titles. Focus, a unit of NBC Universal, will co develop,
co produce, and cofinance the pictures, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The deal reportedly gives Focus access to the back titles of Random's worldwide
imprints, as well as books in current circulation. Under the terms of the deal,
the film company--its recent releases include "The Motorcycle Diaries" and "The
Constant Gardener"--will not have automatic rights to every book from Random
House, as the publisher will still negotiate subrights separately for every
title it buys. Of course this is not the first time a U.S. publisher has
attempted to create a symbiotic relationship with the film industry. Earlier, in
an attempt that ultimately failed, Miramax Books, under the direction of Tina
Brown, was supposed to funnel hit titles to Bob and Harvey Weinstein's
Manhattan-based film company. In the end, there was little to show for the
experiment, and Brown left the company. -
Read the whole story... |
|
Google has started to make its library books available
Preserving public domain books
The world's libraries are a tremendous source of knowledge, much of
which has never been available online. One of our goals for Google
Print is to change that, and today we've taken an exciting step
toward meeting it: making available a number of public domain books
that were never subject to copyright or whose copyright has expired.
We can show every page because these books are in the public domain.
(For books not in the public domain we only show
small snippets of the work unless the publisher or copyright
holder has given us permission to show more.)
Article continues
The Renaissance Library
Collection is designed specially
for librarians, information specialists & book lovers. It includes
unique calendars, greeting cards, quality prints and posters based on full
colour photos of beautiful, magical old libraries
Just Released
The Renaissance
Library Calendar 2006
...San Jose group planned a "Texas Hold 'em" poker tournament to raise money to
build a children's storytime area at the new Almaden Library.
But "Hold 'em" turned to "Hold it!" when the Attorney General's office came
calling.
]"We found out that we could not hold our Texas Hold 'Em tournament and they
sent us a letter saying that what we were going to do was illegal," said Rich De
La Rosa with the Almaden Business Association. "It was a shock, because it's
done so much. Casino nights, poker nights are held by schools, churches, law
enforcement agencies."
Read the whole
article
...
a special selection of Halloween-specific urban legends for your enjoyment!
IFLA Reports From the 2005 World Library and Information Conference,
Oslo, August 14–18, 2005
Halloween urban
legends
The Google Print Library Project: A Copyright Analysis
Jonathan
Band1
On August 11,
2005, Google announced that it would not scan copyrighted books under
its Print Library Project until November, so that publishers could
decide whether they want to opt their in-copyright books out of the
project. Given the confusion in press reports describing the project,
publishers should carefully study exactly what Google intends to do and
understand the relevant copyright issues. This understanding should
significantly diminish any anxiety publishers possess about the
project.
Article continues
What is Books For Treats?
Books for Treats is a program that encourages you to give "gently read"
children's books at Halloween instead of candy.
Why give children books instead of candy at Halloween?
Books feed children's minds, while candy only feeds their cavities.
Books encourage children to read, and parents to read with them and/or
ask them about their books. Many children rarely receive books as gifts,
so even gently read books are special treats.
Word
from
Answers.com that they have partnered with
the Wikipedia Foundation
to use Answers.com's 1-Click Answers technology to create a co-branded version
of Answers.com to be called 1-Click Answers, Wikipedia Edition.
Article continues
Frankfurt plays host to the whole world of books
The Frankfurt Book Fair expects exhibitors and visitors
from more than 100 countries
Congratulations to Val Baird, 2005 Teacher Librarian of the Year.
As well as being the Teacher Librarian at Perth Modern School, Val is also
a member of the ECAWA Committee and the editor of LOGIN, the Treasurer of APEA,
WA Board member of the Joint Council of Professional Teaching Associations and
National Treasurer of JCPTA, Project Officer for the Values Education Project of
the JCPTA and lecturer of Information Systems at Canning College - and this is
only a very small sample of Val's contributions over the years.
Congratulations Val.
People's
Network
This site helps everyone to make the most of the online world: to enquire,
discover and read online for free 24/7 from anywhere with access to the web.
It’s just like going to your local public library to ask for help or find
information, but doing it online from anywhere at any time instead.
Libraries across England are working together to bring you these valued and
trusted services from one website so you can get the information you need
when you need it most.
Presentations to the Internet Librarian International 2005
This
page features links to World Wide Web sites, PowerPoint slideshows, and other
electronic resources used in support of presentations at Internet
Librarian International 2005.
Healthline is a new Health search engine with health related search results,
news and current issues.
Documentation
and digital preservation in the digital age.
The focus of the international colloquium is the application of
digital technologies to the long-term preservation of cultural and
heritage resources.
The BCLA Library Technicians & Assistants Interest Group (LTAIG)
has launched a discussion forum at
http://ltaig.proboards21.com.
The purpose of the forum is to facilitate communication on various
topics related to the work and training of library technicians and
assistants.
The forum is open to library technicians and assistants everywhere
– especially those in British Columbia. You can choose to post
anonymously or become a registered member. For more information
click "register" from the menu at the top of the forum, or see the
user guide on our website.
Currently, forum topics include:
- the results of the 2005 LTAIG survey;
- technical & public services;
- on-the-job & formal training;
- web design; and
- library & information technology.
New topic ideas are welcome and encouraged.
The forum is located at
http://ltaig.proboards21.com. A user guide is available at
http://www.bcla.bc.ca/memfiles/10094543. Please send any
questions or comments to
ltaigweb@gmail.com.
From Cherie Sherley
It’s that time of year again and I’m looking for people to join in the
Email Around the world Project.
If you know of anyone who may be interested could you ask them to
contact me at csher12@eq.edu.au
and I will add them to the list.
I thought we'd make it very simple this year with a list of favourites
eg. My favourite books, foods, tv programs, movie, day of the year,
place to visit, sport, school subject, way to spend a weekend etc. I
think it's great for our students to see the differences and also the
similarities. If you could put individual students lists into the one
email it might cut down on the emails (I know this has become an issue
with many people). Make sure you add their names (first at least) and
year level. It always gives them a thrill to see their own name.
The address to send to is
isld@edna.edu.au
The School Library Association of Queensland will once again be hosting
the emails on their web site
http://www.slaq.org.au You can also find out what else is happening
on ISLD at http://www.iasl-slo.org
'Intelligent' tools lead to smarter searches
Is your search engine getting smarter? Thanks to an emerging concept
known as "intelligent searching," teachers and students soon might have
at their disposal a variety of online tools designed to help them more
effectively navigate the vast amount of information on the internet....
Article continues
The Library thing
Catalog your books online
-
Easy. Catalog your books
online (example);
no software required.
-
Powerful. LibraryThing
searches the Library of Congress and thirty other major libraries
around the world.
-
Free. Enter 200 books for
free; lifetime membership $10 (beta special).
-
Tagged. LibraryThing allows
blog/Flickr-style tagging (example).
-
Shared. Show everyone your
library, or keep your library private. You can even put a widget on
your blog to show people what you're reading.
-
Safe. LibraryThing's not going away, but
you can export your data.
Library 101: What You Need to Know to Provide Good Library Service in
the 21st Century
(An Infopeople Online Learning Course)
November 15, 2005 - December 19, 2005
This course is aimed at new
library staff and paraprofessionals without formal training in
library science. It will answer basic questions about the kinds of
fundamental library issues that can quickly turn into hot topics:
staff rights and responsibilities, user access and fees for service,
book selection and censorship, library funding and outsourcing, and
reader privacy.
You will receive a basic exposure
to library concepts, ethics and principles, with an emphasis on
their practical application in real-life situations. For example,
how would you respond to parents who ask to see what titles their
children have checked out? You'll learn what to do and what not to
do and why. Understanding the thinking behind library procedures
will help you provide better service and enjoy your work more fully.
Welcome to LISRadio. This is
a new and exciting series of interactive webcasts brought to you by the
School of Information Science and Learning Technologies at the
University of Missouri-Columbia. Our aim with these webcasts is to help
in "...creating and exploring the intersection of information and
learning." We hope to present interesting and stimulating conversations
with movers, shakers, and the odd gadfly or two in libraryland. Watch
the calendar for future programs in all series.
Andersen Fairy Tales
"classic folk stories and
fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen. Web-published children's books
with Flash animation and narration. Featuring cartoons, e-learning,
biography of Hans Christian Andersen, and links to the fairy tales."
Free Resources: Shakespeare’s MacBeth in askSam Searchable Database
A free, searchable database containing the
text of William Shakespeare's tragedy MacBeth has been
released by askSam Systems.The text from MacBeth
is available in a searchable, hypertext-linked askSam database. The
individual scenes are divided into separate documents in the database.
This allows users to easily search and locate scenes pertaining to
specific topics, the announcement states.
The askSam version allows users to search, browse,
and analyze the text. They can either view the text online or download
the searchable version of MacBeth with the free askSam viewer,
available at http://www.asksam.com/ebooks/Shakespeare/MacBeth.asp.
Mandarin Library Automation Announces Z39.50 Client Added to Mandarin
Oasis
Mandarin Library Automation, Inc. has announced
the addition of a Z39.50 client to Mandarin Oasis, a
centralized, Web-based library management system. This client allows
librarians to search Z39.50 sites and easily add items to their library
catalogs from these sites, according to the announcement. The Z39.50
"search and save" feature is integrated as part of the cataloging
function. In addition, the Z39.50 client is compatible with Unicode.
This allows librarians to search for MARC records in Arabic, Hebrew,
Chinese, or virtually any other language and save the resulting records
directly into their local catalog for no additional cost.
Open Content Alliance Rises to the Challenge of Google Print
What a great idea! Why didn’t we think of that? Google Print’s ambitious
effort to digitize the world’s book literature has inspired others to
initiate their own effort. And, with the Google Print program caught in
the snag of a copyright lawsuit, the sight of a relay race handoff keeps
hope burning for a brighter digital future. The just announced Open
Content Alliance (OCA;
http://www.opencontentalliance.org) creates an
international network of academics, libraries, publishers, technological
firms, and a major search engine competitor to Google—all working on a
new mass book digitization initiative. The goal of the effort is to
establish a flexible, open infrastructure for bringing large collections
of digitized material into the open Web. Permanently archived digital
content, which is selected for its value by librarians, should offer a
new model for collaborative library collection building, according to
one OCA member. While openness will characterize content in the program,
the OCA will also adhere to protection of the rights of copyright
holders.
Article continues
Debut
author joins big names in the 2005 Nestlé Children’s Book Prize
shortlist
A picture book from a young first-time author joins established names on
this year’s shortlist for the Nestlé Children’s Book Prize, formerly
known as the Nestlé Smarties Book Prize.
'Manga' publishers see cell phones as the future
Cartoon-strip publishers, whose printed-matter sales have been losing
steam, are actively embracing mobile media because cell phones are what
young people are spending their time and money on.
Article continues
So Gorgeous! So Brilliant! But Look Beneath
Several new memoirs and biographies about glamorous guys such as Warren
Beatty, John Lennon and Jimi Hendrix are hitting the shelves.
THOUSANDS PARTICIPATE ACROSS AUSTRALIA IN NATIONAL SIMULTANEOUS
STORYTIME
Today I was delighted
to join over 40,000 children in pre-schools, schools and libraries
around Australia to participate in National Simultaneous Storytime (NSS)
– a key National Literacy and Numeracy Week (NLNW) event.
An initiative conducted by the Australian Library and Information
Association, NSS is an exciting and fun way to promote the value of
reading books, and the vital role which libraries, schools, teachers,
parents and grandparents all play in stimulating literacy in our
children.
Whole press release
Google Invented
WorldCat?
From Marydee at Online
Insider
I just love it when journalists get it wrong.
IT Director, a publication
of Bloor, in an
article about next generation search, claims that Google invented
WorldCat. Wonder what OCLC's going to think about that!
National Libraries Of Japan And Holland Sign Joint Operating Agreement
The Koninklijke Bibliotheek (KB) in the Netherlands has signed a joint
operating agreement with the National Diet Library in Japan. The two
national libraries will cooperate in several areas, such as digitisation
and long-term digital preservation. By means of exchange programmes,
employees of both institutions will acquire experience and exchange
specific knowledge.
International Federation of
Library Associations and Institutions Committee on Free Access to
Information and Freedom of Expression
IFLA, WSIS and intellectual
freedom in Tunisia
* IFLA restates its strong commitment to the fundamental human rights to
know, learn and communicate without restriction.
* IFLA opposes any form of censorship and violations of these rights, and
consequently we look upon the human rights situation in Tunisia with
deep concern.
* IFLA confirms its wholehearted commitment to the success of the WSIS
process and expresses its concern that the policy positions of the host
nation might undermine the credibility of the process. We therefore urge
the Tunisian government to remove barriers to open access to information
for all its citizens that are imposed by its policies.
As a participant in the WSIS process IFLA has successfully put libraries
on the agenda. The aim is to promote a fair and just knowledge and
information society which is vitally supported by libraries and
information services.
Libraries are essential to a transparent, accountable, and democratic
Information Society in which they help to create a well-informed
citizenry and lay a basis for good governance. IFLA shares the common
vision of an Information Society for All adopted by the World Summit on
the Information Society in Geneva in November 2003. That vision
promotes an inclusive society in which everyone will be able to create,
access, use and share information and knowledge. This means providing
the opportunity for people to seek, receive and impart information and
ideas without restriction, in accordance with Article 19 of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Furthermore, IFLA regards
libraries as a living expression of this principle and therefore:
...
* IFLA urges the Government of Tunisia to remove the impediments to
freedom of access to information, freedom of expression and freedom of
association before, during and after the meeting of the World Summit on
the Information Society in Tunis in November 2005.
The official mission report, produced by the IFEX-TMG is available from
IFEX's website:
http://campaigns.ifex.org/tmg/TMGSept2005Report.doc
|
Libraries, Museums, and Public Broadcasters
to Address Community Needs
Washington, DC -- The Partnership for a Nation of Learners -- a collaboration between the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB)
and the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) -- today
announced its first-ever community collaboration grants. The
grants, totaling $1,447,022, will fund museums, libraries, and
public broadcasters in seven communities as they work together
to address specific, jointly identified community needs ranging
for asthma education to historic material conservation. |
Book Review Digest Retrospective: 1905-1982
Access a unique
record of books and reviews reflecting the ideas that shaped the 20th
century
Virtually every
major idea that shaped the 20th century found expression in books. The
reactions to those ideas are reflected in the reviews of those books,
and this new database makes it easy to search this vast record of
information. Reflecting nearly eight decades of H.W. Wilson’s Book
Review Digest, this database provides excerpts from and citations to
reviews of adult and juvenile fiction and non-fiction.
The digital Dark Age
"It all seems very
attractive - scanning
documents, taking pictures,
putting them into the
computer for safekeeping,
allowing us to throw away
hard copies and to save
space." Indeed, it is the
most dramatic record-keeping
revolution since the
invention of printing.
"But what happens some
time later," asks Connell,
"when we discover that we no
longer have the machines,
the programs - the hardware,
the software - the know-how,
to access all that
computer-based, digital
material?"
Read the whole article
Peek at 'Potter'
Harry & pals are back in 'Goblet,'
but unfortunately someone else has
returned too. We won't name him, but
surely you can guess.
Get the 'Harry Potter' Trailer
ENDEAVOR ANNOUNCES RELEASE OF VOYAGER 5.0
Latest
version of industry-standard library management system increases
functionality in several patron-facing modules, enhances patron
privacy
About Tales from
the vault
|
Library and Archives Canada (LAC)
is proud to present its Canadian pulp art and fiction collection,
straight from the special collections vault. The collection featured in
this virtual exhibit, Tales from the Vault!: Canadian Pulp Fiction,
1940-1952, is one of the very few known pulp magazine holdings in
Canada, and is available for consultation at
LAC.This site is
written in a snappy style similar to that used by the pulp writers of
the 1940s and 1950s. It highlights and exhibits portions (covers and
some text) of the English and French sections of the collection while
providing an introduction to the pulp fiction industry in general, the
beginnings of the Canadian pulp fiction industry, and selected areas of
discussion and themes found within the collection.
Google Takes On Copyright Laws
With Google's book-scanning program set to resume in earnest this fall,
copyright laws that long preceded the internet look to be headed for a
digital-age test. The outcome could determine how easy it will be for
people with internet access to benefit from knowledge that's now mostly
locked up -- in books sitting on dusty library shelves, many of them out
of print. -
Article continues
Helping Libraries in the Gulf Region
Recover and Rebuild
To help the libraries in the Gulf region
that were damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Katrina, the American Library
Association has set up an ‘Adopt a Library Program.’ The
program provides an opportunity for libraries of all types in the US to
provide assistance to the libraries in need.
‘…where
is the use of a book’ thought Alice, ‘without pictures or
conversations?’
On 21 September 2005, the original manuscript of
Alice’s Adventures Under Ground, one of the world’s most popular and
well known children’s books, will be available to internet users for the
first time. This latest addition to the British Library’s Turning the
Pages™ is a fully digitised version of the original manuscript
containing 90 pages and 37 illustrations. Its pages can be ‘virtually’
turned and viewed on-line on the British Library’s
website,
in the Treasures Gallery of the British Library and on a new CD-ROM.
The
Age of Nonfiction?
the
stastistics show a decline in fiction sales even while publishers are
putting out 17% more titles. (Bowker has
the
full story.) Biography, history and religion showed double-digit
increases for 2003. Some account for this as a post-September 11 reaction
- unprecedented American interest in the outside world. It is also
possible to view the trend aesthetically and suggest that perhaps fiction
hasn't been keeping pace with current events. (Indeed, how can it?)
Read
the whole article
LibriVox
is an open source audio-literary attempt to harness the power of the
many to record and disseminate, in podcast form, books from the public
domain.
13th
September 2005
Redefining
a great library in the 21st century
Libraries
have traditionally existed to collect and organise information, make
access to knowledge more democratic, and preserve the record of ideas for
future generations. Now, information is ubiquitous: 500 million web pages
are just a keystroke away. Their content mutates constantly, and is
subject to no structure. Google and other search engines have
revolutionised the way people expect to access information. How do we
redefine the role of the library in such a rapidly changing context?
The
challenges for libraries in the digital age are particularly acute for the
British Library, which has achieved its reputation because of the scale
and scope of its collection, its celebrated Reading Rooms, and its
international Document Supply services. Clearly, we’ll continue to
collect print, manuscripts and other traditional material on a large
scale. However, in today’s world that is not sufficient: there are new
challenges we must address.
Read
the report
Shock
omissions from literary prize shortlist
British author Julian Barnes was named hot favourite
for the Booker Prize today, but the biggest shock was the omission of
three literary heavyweights from the shortlist for the prestigious award.
To the surprise of literary critics, the judges decided not to pick
three previous Booker winners - Salman Rushdie, J.M. Coetzee and Ian
McEwan - as finalists for the £50,000 ($92,000) prize.
Article
continues
Sharon
Uthmann - winner of the Dunn and Wilson Scholarship
The Dunn & Wilson Scholarship is a biennial award of up to $5000,
providing the recipient with an opportunity to investigate and research a particular
project relating to the practice of library technicians, thus increasing
the
recipient's professional occupational experience. Sharon's project will involve researching secondment opportunities offered
to library technicians nationally, covering all library sectors. The
results of this research will enable library technicians to have a readily
available resource for reference when identifying career opportunities available through secondments.
Sharon presented a paper at neXt titled "Multi skill me - secondment opportunities and issues at QUT library" in which she detailed the
benefits and issues of secondments to the individual, workplace and organisation.
Sharon is well qualified to research this topic, having climbed the career
ladder through four secondment opportunities herself.
Books from Scotland.com
The innovative new information site and online bookshop will go live in
Autumn 2005.:" We aim to be the most comprehensive e-commerce site on Scottish
books and writers on the web. The site will feature over 15,000
titles - fiction, non-fiction, children's books, classics,
food and drink, travel, guidebooks, history, academic, music, film
- and much more."
Win
an iPod in the 2005 IWR survey
Tell us what you think of Google and the rest of the info industry and
win Apple iPods and Sony digital cameras!
Christie
Week
The first ever Agatha Christie week starts
on 12th September. We're celebrating 75 years of Miss Marple! Join us!
Improved
Copyright Searching System to Debut about October 1, 2005
An improved copyright
searching system called eCO Search will be available on the Copyright Office
website about October 1, 2005. eCO Search offers new features, including
keyword searching and the use of a single database containing records since
1978 for monographs, serials, and recorded documents.
Article continues
Bilingual
Material in Libraries Draws Some Criticism
Critics say taxpayer money should not be spent on a population that can
include illegal immigrants or on proposals that promote languages other than
English.
MAKING
ONLINE INFORMATION FOR ALL AUSTRALIANS A REALITY.
With the support of the National Library of Australia, a reference group
comprising representatives from many of the country's peak library bodies has
been investigating the feasibility of creating a national, cross-sectoral
libraries consortium. The principal goal of the proposed consortium is to
negotiate and purchase national licences for certain key online information
resources identified as being of central importance to meeting the information
needs of Australians. This proposal is in accordance with Recommendation 9 of
the Senate's October 2003 report on the
Role of Libraries in the Online Environment.
Academic
libraries empty stacks for online centers
... a growing number of colleges and universities are rethinking and
retooling their libraries to better serve students reared in a digital age.
"While libraries are still focused on their physical collections, they
aren't the sole purpose anymore," says John Shank, director of the Center
for Learning Technologies at Penn State Berks College in Reading. The advent
of the Internet and the digitization of information has transformed the way
students learn, experts concur, and libraries are scrambling to keep up.
Read
the whole article
Swedish
library launches 'borrow a person'
STOCKHOLM, Sweden (AFP) — If you're one of those people who
thinks all lesbians are sexually frustrated or all animal rights activists
aggressive, then a Swedish library project that allows you to
"borrow" a real live human being rather than a book may provide
some useful insight.
The Living Library project will enable
people to come face-to-face with their prejudices in the hopes of altering
their preconceived notions, Ulla Brohed of the Malmoe Library in southern
Sweden told AFP.
"You sometimes hear people's
prejudices and you realize that they are just uninformed," she said.
This weekend, nine people, including a
homosexual, an imam, a journalist, a Muslim woman and a gypsy, will be
available at the Malmoe Library for members of the public to
"borrow" for a 45 minute conversation in the library's outdoor cafe.
Article
continues
HarperCollins
Taps SMS to Promote Children's Novels
HarperCollins has begun an aggressive text messaging program to promote
upcoming children's novels by The Princess Diaries author Meg Cabot. The
publisher will send a variety of content and promotions via SMS to Cabot fans
who join the Meg Cabot Mobile Club via the author's Web site. The club is
promoted via an extensive online media buy. –
article
continues
The
college library of tomorrow
Last
December, Google started on a wildly ambitious and somewhat controversial plan
to digitize the collections of some of the world's largest university and
public libraries in an effort to make hard-to-find books accessible by the
click of a mouse.
But
out of the spotlight, a number of universities are already working on
bookless, digital libraries that reflect a growing understanding of how
today's tech-savvy students access information.
Article
continues
Por-no-no:
A twisted trip through public libraries' battle with Internet pornography
"Johnson found herself where many American libraries and librarians find
themselves, balancing some patrons' freedom of speech and other patrons' right to
be free from potentially offensive material. American libraries can house
anything that is legal in the "outside world," including pornography;
but each library chooses what material it will make available. Most libraries
work to serve as community-oriented learning centers for everyone."
Article
continues
The
Future of the Book
Consider these options: hyperlinks within the e-book to Web content and
reference tools; embedded instant shopping and ordering; divergent,
user-interactive, decision driven plotlines; interaction with other e-books
using Bluetooth or some other wireless standard; collaborative authoring, gaming
and community activities; automatically or periodically updated content;
multimedia capabilities; databases of bookmarks, records of reading habits,
shopping habits, interaction with other readers, and plot-related decisions;
automatic and embedded audio conversion and translation capabilities; full
wireless piconetworking and scatternetworking capabilities; and more.
Read
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