[LISNews] The LISNews For February 16th 2010

Tue Feb 16 11:28:56 CST 2010

On Tuesdays we take a look at the stories that got the most comments in the last week.

-[1] - Sarah Palin follows the lead of Cliff Stoll
   http://lisnews.org/node/35899/
-[2] - Kindle Books in Snack Sizes
   http://lisnews.org/node/35895/
-[3] - Wi-Fi Turns Rowdy Bus Into Rolling Study Hall 
   http://lisnews.org/node/35937/
-[4] - Man to Serve 140 Days in Jail for Beating Houston Librarian
   http://lisnews.org/node/35912/
-[5] - Facebook as a Library Tool: Perceived v. Actual Use
   http://lisnews.org/node/35917/

And here's the latest from LISNews:

--Crowds Flock to Presidential Library (~not~ a Founding Father) for President's Day
- http://lisnews.org/node/35961/
-Front Page Story by birdie Posted Tuesday February 16th at 9:28 AM
-Read 103 times - 0 Comments
YORBA LINDA – Lured by the offer of free admission, cherry pie, and a chance to meet Abraham Lincoln, Orange County
residents and visitors from as far away as Temecula, flocked to the Richard Nixon Presidential Library & Museum to celebrate
Presidents Day.  By 10 a.m. the parking lot at the Library was full and visitors trekked from overflow lots across the
street to climb aboard the presidential helicopter or pose for pictures with impersonators of presidents George Washington,
Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt.  "I thought it would be good to try and remember what Presidents
Day is about," said Dawn Koscelnik of Yorba Linda, who brought her three sons to the Library. "It's not about going and
buying things, but seeing history."  Story from the OC Register.

--Invisible Online Book Reviews
- http://lisnews.org/node/35959/
-Blog Entry by tiny.e Posted Monday February 15th at 3:09 PM
-Read 70 times - 0 Comments
Why Google and Other Humans Don't Read Your Book Reviews:  Try running this very specific Google search - "Manhood" by Mels
van Driel review - and you will not find the L.A. Times among the results - at least not within first three pages that
humans would care to flip through. How come might you ask? Well the answer is simple - there is nothing whatsoever that
tells Google that this post is a book review about this particular book.  And this is not just an isolated problem with this
book review from this particular newspaper. The issue is widespread across all major U.S. and international media outlets.
Either due to lack of tools or lack of understanding how search engines and other software works, people notoriously don't
make their content discoverable.

--NYPL Librarians Take Questions 24/7
- http://lisnews.org/node/35958/
-Front Page Story by birdie Posted Monday February 15th at 2:13 PM
-Read 324 times - 0 Comments
The crack team at the New York Public Library is where to go when the Google machine leads you down a dead end. Today the
NY Post talks to the six senior librarians who field hundreds of questions a day from their station in the Rose Reading
Room. While the most common calls are simply inquiries about obtaining library cards, there are also several dozen "cherry
questions" a day.  Those cherry calls often come from the writers of Mad Men, who have been making sure their portrayal of
the early '60s is accurate. Bernard van Maarseveen says it's questions like those that "keep us coming in each day."
Recently the writers have asked when taxis got their "off duty" lights, and what programming was scheduled to be on TV the
day Kennedy was assassinated.  Story from the NYPost.

--This Book is Overdue! Contest-Contest-Contest!
- http://lisnews.org/node/35956/
-Front Page Story by birdie Posted Monday February 15th at 11:06 AM
-Read 344 times - 0 Comments
Whoopee!  Three contests in one...enter to win a free mousepad (and who knows what other fame and fortune).  Three ways to
win: Here is a contest for This Book Is Overdue! 1) on the Facebook fan page, and another one on the 2) blog page of the
This Book Is Overdue website...pick your contest location and ENTER TO WIN!!!!!!!!  The author, Marilyn Johnson, will
personally mail a mousepad stamped with the zooming librarian to the person who posts the sweetest true story of a librarian
helping a patron in these digitally challenging times.  And to make it a triple threat, we'll add the ability for entrants
to enter the contest RIGHT HERE by posting their story about helping a patron as a 3) COMMENT BELOW THIS STORY.  Contest is
open through March 15.  

--Don't Forget About Us
- http://lisnews.org/node/35955/
-Blog Entry by Anonymous Patron Posted Monday February 15th at 11:00 AM
-Read 950 times - 7 Comments
I am a librarian by career choice. I am also one of those patrons that librarians both love and neglect. I place masses of
holds, get my materials, pay my fines, use many of the Web-based resources, and can come and go without ever actually
speaking to anyone who works in the library. This has been my modus operandi for the past fifteen years and it is my strong
perception that most libraries are happy to keep it that way. As I continue through my 20s and am looking at my 30s very
shortly, it's a place where I see a failing on the part of public libraries.   There has been a lot of change in public
libraries from what I remember even from my own not particularly distant past. Summer Reading Programs have gone from a
stickers posted on a paper star with my name on it on the library wall to daily and weekly programs, huge prizes, and an
ever increasing number of statistics on circulation, hours read, and maintaining reading levels over the summer. Teen
Services has gone from an awkward set of shelves and all of the Sweet Valley High books to entire rooms, dedicated
librarians, focused programming and 98% of magazine covers in library literature for the past several years. And as the
population in general and the librarian population has aged (this is not a myth nor an ageist statement—my library director
pointed out in a staff meeting last week that 58% of our full time staff is over 50—we are not an anomaly), we are seeing an
increased focus on services to the Boomer and Senior generations. These are all good and excellent things.  However.  While
we are addressing the needs of these specialized populations, we are failing to engage people who are a huge portion of our
tax base and potential advocates: adults between the age of 20 and 40. When I speak to friends in my age group: smart,
educated, engaged people—they do not use the library—either because they feel unwelcome, it's open at inconvenient hours (no
evenings or weekends) or they just don't see any personal benefit until they become parents and are bringing their children
to story times.   Public libraries have the opportunity to draw in 20-30s who have nowhere else that makes them feel
particularly welcome. We've graduated and all of the support that we had through high school and college has suddenly
dropped out from under us. It is becoming acknowledged as a cultural shift that the Millennials/Gen Y are, in general,
delaying marriage and/or childbirth, and we have an entirely new generational type to reach out to with library services. 
For at least the last decade, we’ve focused on the idea that teens needed their own dedicated space and resources and
libraries have made a concerted, and largely successful, effort to step up and provide a place where teens could go, could
express their own interests, would be welcome and relaxed and where they weren't required to spend money. Additionally,
significant populations of students are thriving in the academic libraries with extraordinary outreach being done by their
librarians. Are public libraries and adult services stepping up to the plate to meet the expectations and foundations our
teen librarians and college librarians are struggling so hard to put into place? Too often, the answer is no.   This is not
a problem solely in libraries; it extends to community organizations in general. Filling this gap is one of the reasons
Starbucks has done so well: it's given young adults a non-alcoholic place to call our own, where we could be young and hip,
can sit down and talk with a friend or be alone, and created a third place away from work and home. In these spaces, one is
not identified by job, or marriage status, or affiliation. One can just be a person for the time and space of a cup of
coffee. Community spaces are lacking and as we see Starbucks (and other coffee shops) across the nation close, here is an
opportunity where libraries can step in if they are willing to reach out.   So why public libraries? Because we are a
resource and a space already in place. We are a community center, whether it's part of our outlined mission or not, and
because if these people don't see us as a valuable resource for them, why should they continue paying taxes to support us? 
What can libraries do?   Appeal on a funky intellectual level. We miss the unique and interesting subjects that we explored
in college--where we took philosophy, archaeology, Mayan history, or mid-18th century French literature. Now we sit in
cubes, stare at computer screens, and spend much of our day absorbed in the present, the current, the Twitter and Facebook
timestream. Shake us out, remind us of the cool things we used to study, get an engaging professor from a local uni, or a
local expert on a strange subject. Give us an objective other than coming up with the most cutting and witty 140 characters
of the day.   Make things available at our time. Yes, you have families and want to spend time with them. No, you can't
assume that the single or young librarians on staff are going to pick up all the slack on this. Our time is just as
important as yours. But many young adults work a weekday schedule and if that is when your book groups, computer classes, or
interesting lecture series are--then there is no relevance to these working adults.   Give us a place where we can meet
people. Once graduated, we no longer have new classes to introduce us to new people, nor the comfort of university
coordinated groups and activities. Increasingly, we are relocating away from established circles of friends and family for
jobs. Libraries can provide opportunities to make friends and make connections in our communities. It needs to be carefully
thought out and marketed though. If programming is publicized as “family” or “all ages” events, it usually won’t attract
young adults. Similarly, book groups or movie nights where the selections are obviously chosen to appeal to the Boomer or
Golden generations will also turn off younger people looking for someone their own age.   Help us start our own businesses
or get grants. We are told to start our own small businesses but are unaware how to, how to get funding, where to get space,
who to market to or how to, what kind of government grants are out there. The Head of Reference at Lebanon Public Library
set up a small business center in her library, collecting resources together and advertising to people in her small town
that it was there. The former Business Specialist at Champaign Public Library went out to local businesses with his card and
said "here, let me help you for free with no strings attached."  He told me that he got a lot of skepticism, followed by a
whole lot of enthusiasm.   Let us volunteer to do something other than dust books. I know, many places have rules in place
about letting volunteers do things that are under staff purview. But Friends groups should hopefully come in all ages and
with all kinds of unusual library promoting skills. Is there a way you could get volunteers in to help the library with
marketing ideas, program presentations, training events, mobile websites, neat gadgets and gizmos? What pie-in-the-sky wish
could you ask for that someone in the community might be able to provide?  Work with our needs. It's 2010 and libraries need
to figure out a way to have online fine payment. My library is working on it; is yours? We learn through online classes and
online tutorials—create some for your website/library or hire somebody to do it. Have programs specifically targeted at this
age group: budgeting, paying off student loans, buying our first houses, how to get into graduate school, networking and
developing your personal brand online with LinkedIn and other sites, going green, decorating or recycling in small spaces
for apartment dwellers etc so on and so forth. Appeal to us as adults, not just people making your circ stats go up or being
responsible for bringing kids in to the many YS programs. Young parents would like to be treated like adults separate from
being parents, too.  You might need to serve alcohol. I know many libraries can't do this, but could you partner with a bar
or local wine shop who would be willing to host an off site library program? I might not go to the bar on my own just to sit
and feel odd drinking alone, but hearing a cool library-sponsored lecture at the local wine shop is something even the
hesitant loner can get into.  Tell us the obvious stuff. You don't always have to hide marketing behind fancy and vague
signs and messages.  What if you just put up a subway/bus sign that said, "Free Downloads for Your mp3 and E-book Reader at
your the Library. (your URL)," or "Why Pay for Text Answers to Questions? Text the Library at 55555," or "Save Money and Go
Green: Use a Public Library," or "Remember Reading that Wasn't Required? We have Fun Books too," or "Libraries = Stuff
You've Already Paid For With Your Tax Dollars."  What might happen then?   Libraries run the risk of alienating a group who
could be our strongest and most dynamic users and advocates. But we also have the chance to help these people make positive
human connections, to further their education, to develop themselves and create new ideas, businesses, stories, and
opportunities. It is our obligation to engage this lost generation to ensure the future vitality of our libraries.  It may
take a shift to think beyond appealing to families and the specialized age groups but I encourage you to do so. Otherwise
you might miss the majority of adults who walk through the doors or who walk past thinking a library is only a place for
children and retirees.    by Abigail Goben La Crosse Public Library http://hedgehoglibrarian.blogspot.com 

--Olympic Fever in Canada's Libraries
- http://lisnews.org/node/35954/
-Front Page Story by birdie Posted Monday February 15th at 8:33 AM
-Read 239 times - 0 Comments
Canada's caught Olympic fever, and the country's libraries are not immune. Library and Archives Canada has mounted two
outdoor exhibits, one in Vancouver and one in Ottawa, featuring portraits of Olympians past. Twenty-three of the finest
athletes the land of the maple leaf has produced are the stars of Portraits In The Street and Portraits On Ice. Photographs,
drawings, and paintings all combine to showcase medalists and other history-making participants in the Winter games.  The
Great Gretzky Meets The Great Warhol. (Serigraph On Paper by Andy Warhol, 1983.)  More from Seattle PI's Book Patrol.

--My Library Route
- http://lisnews.org/node/35952/
-Blog Entry by AndyW Posted Monday February 15th at 1:26 AM
-Read 191 times - 0 Comments
(This entry is part of Ned Potter’s Library Routes Project. The idea is to write an entry detailing how you got into the
profession along with what made you decide to do so and/or the career path which has taken you to where you are today. I’ve
been wanting to write this entry for a long time.)&#160;  Just under ten years ago, I was standing out in the summer sun
surrounded by acres and acres of various types of plants in pots. Wide brim hat on my head, sunglasses keeping the glare at
bay, everyday was warm when you wore jeans to work. Shorts are not your best option when you are working with pesticides,
herbicides, and other chemicals that carry labels that say “Caution”, “Warning”, or even a few “Dangerous”. As I was given
rather fair skin and an inclination for contact dermatitis, jeans were part of my own work uniform. The site was 400 acres
in size nicknamed The Orchard; it was a former orchard cleared, graded,  covered in gravel, and had rows and rows of rib
houses (much like the ones in the picture to the side). Hundreds of these houses were on the side, some as long as football
fields. As my first job out of college, I was hired as an Assistant Manager of Irrigation and Chemical Application. This
meant running the water pump, managing the watering of areas, creating spray schedules for chemical applications, and
maintenance and repair of literally miles of PVC piping and hundreds of sprinkler heads. Our group was the smallest, but it
was tasked with one of the most vital aspects to commercial horticulture.  In the previous four years, I went to the Richard
Stockton College of New Jersey outside of Atlantic City. I had completed a Bachelor of Science in Biological Science (A B.S.
in B.S., I would joke) with a late concentration on horticulture. I was doomed from the start, I think, since I certainly
could name and explain all of the plant cellular operations and chemistry but my taxonomy was terrible. But I didn’t want to
work at a desk at that time; I wanted to be outside, working with my hands, and with a job where I couldn’t take the work
home with me. This nursery was the right fit for a me at the age of 22.  My college chemistry found some use to the chemical
work, as you needed to find different dilutions for chemicals before applying them from giant sprayers. There was always
weeds to kill, growing through the gravel and dirt, in the edges of the houses and along the inner roadways. And there were
certainly other pathogens that needed attention: mold, mildew, fungus, and insects of all types and stripes. And the
watering was nearly year round; when the houses were covered, it could get up to 60 degrees or hotter depending on the
amount of light that the polyurethane covering allowed in. In January, the rose plants would arrive and we would grow them
up to size to send to the big box stores like Home Depot and Lowes for their spring garden sections. Between our site and
the other company site close by (a larger 800 acres, now 1,200), it was quite the operation.   To an extent, I liked the
work there. I do like playing with the big toys such as front end loaders, tractors, fork trucks, and other vehicles. My
real attraction was being able to do something for which I could see a result. When I watered, a plant grew; when it got
sick, I applied treatments to make it better. The downsides are really all I have left in terms of memory for the place
beyond those feelings; low salary, little benefits, unfair treatment of migratory workers, a somewhat poisonous corporate
atmosphere with little room to advance, and repetitive seasonal work. I got a promotion to the propagation section (where
cuttings were grown up), but within six months they decided they didn’t need me anymore.   Rather than fire me right then,
they gave me “another chance” by assigning me a near Herculean task building more rib houses on the nearly acquired
property. It was an impossible task given in the cold of winter, given not enough manpower, tools, or time to complete it. I
resigned myself sticking it out; they were not going to make me quit.   Three months later, I got my walking papers. I think
I smiled the whole drive home. The tribulation was over.  In another six months, I found work at a much smaller commercial
nursery deep in the southern parts of New Jersey. Fairweather Gardens is a tiny operation which specializes in a variety of
hard-to-find plants for the hardcore gardener. The Philadelphia Inquirer had done a story on them and, on a whim, I sent
them my resume and cover letter. This would end up being a very brief stint (I lasted about 3 months) but an important one
for me and my Library Route.  After returning from a short trip during which I got engaged to my now wife Kathy, I was just
about to tell the owners the news when they told me that they were firing me and giving me two weeks pay in lieu of notice.
I was devastated. As I was handing over the pruning sheers I had been given, one of the owners said something to me that got
me on the start of my route. He said:     Andy, you seems to have abilities and interests in other things for which you are
more passionate about. We’re wondering why you are not doing that instead of this.   For a long time, I thought it was an
backhanded insult given out while I was getting ready to go home to Kathy and tell her that I had been fired again. But as
the time stretched on after that day, I really started to think about it. Horticulture was something I could do, but it
wasn’t where my passion was. I could see during that job that I wasn’t at the same level as the owners who lived, breathed,
and knew horticulture.   I did find work again as a temp worker at DuPont (we lived in Delaware at the time), but it was a
way to pay the bills while I figured out what I was doing with my life. I had always had an interest in law, I thought, so
why not try out law school? I took the LSAT, applied to Widener Law, and was accepted into their&#160; night program.
Working full time, every Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday I would head up to campus for 3 to 4 hours of class time with other
parts of my day crammed with class preparation and studying. Kathy and I were virtual strangers to each other as our time
tables did not generally mesh well except on Sunday evenings or after 11pm every other night.   I loved law school as well,
but between working full time and studying the rest of it, it did not suit my learning style at all. There was no room to
breathe, to rest and relax, and to recuperate. In the end, the only class I did well on for both semesters was my legal
research and writing class. Everything else was dismal and put me on academic probation.  It was during this time, seated at
my computer in our little office we had in the apartment, that Kathy started talking about finding another career. She had
always been interested in librarianship since she was a high school student. It was there, sitting in my computer chair,
listening to her talk about it, that the thought first crossed my mind. Surely, I thought, it has to be easier than this law
school bullshit. I was sick and tired of the stress, the work, and being away from family and friends. I did well in my
research class, so maybe becoming a law librarian was a good alternative.   I took a semester leave of absence that fall
while Kathy attended Saturday classes held at the Free Library of Philadelphia by the staff of Clarion University. When she
kept coming back with tales about what she was learning and doing, I knew I found something I could do as well. That fall, I
made a proposal to Kathy: move to Clarion, get our degrees as fast as we can, and then move back. We’d live on student loans
and whatever work we could find as well as maybe some family charity. Within those four months, I applied and was accepted
to the program, found a place to live (a tiny single newly renovated single family house), packed our stuff one dark January
day, and moved out to Clarion.   This is my Library Route.  AndyW

--Do Smart Phones Thwart Public Records Laws?
- http://lisnews.org/node/35951/
-Front Page Story by Bibliofuture Posted Monday February 15th at 12:24 AM
-Read 311 times - 0 Comments
State leaders in Florida are in a battle with technology: new forms of communications that make it difficult for public
officials to follow the law.  The state has one of the best government public record laws in the country. Virtually every
public document is accessible to the public. And though the state is embracing the perks of advanced technology — the
Legislature just started piloting the use of electronic meeting packets, instead of printing them on paper — the use of cell
phones and BlackBerrys is causing concern. It's simply too difficult to archive all communications.  E-mails sent from a
BlackBerry are easily tracked and archived by government servers. But the wireless devices can also send electronic messages
in another way called "PINing," and those communications often are not tracked. The practice stirred controversy last summer
when staff members of Florida's Public Service Commission were caught exchanging PIN messages with a lobbyist for a utility
it regulates.  "People need to understand that they cannot use these kinds of modes of communications to conduct official
business if they have no way of capturing the record that it creates," says Anne Weissman of the nonpartisan watchdog group
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.  Full story on NPR

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