Cataloging

I was also able to get WebJunction to work for me. The class I took was Introduction to Cataloging for Non-Catalogers. Although I recognized a lot of what this class covered and it was definitely aimed at beginners, I did learn a few new things and thought it was very interesting. The first section was just an introduction to libraries. They overview the different types of libraries – public, school, academic and special, their functions and what each different type of library collects. The following section covered library catalogs and OPACs. They talked about what they are and the reasons we need them. They also mentioned S.R. Ranganathan’s five laws of librarianship as well as Charles A. Cutter’s Rules for a Printed Catalogue which I thought was very interesting because I don’t believe I’ve heard of them before. It’s always intriguing to continue to learn how complex the inner workings of libraries really are. The next section covered cataloging in more detail. They discuss what it is and its different parts – descriptive cataloging, classification and subject analysis. They then go into detail about all three, what they consist of, their advantages and rules. I never knew about the Anglo-American Cataloging Rules and thought it was interesting how they’re used to maintain consistency in descriptive cataloging. Next they went over the purpose of MARC records – a vehicle for the cataloging information. They show examples of what different MARC records look like in different OPACs which I thought was pretty cool. They also gave good descriptions of what goes into making a MARC record. Lastly they go over the 3 types of cataloging – add item/linking/barcoding, copy cataloging and original cataloging. They go in depth about all of them and describe what goes into each procedure. I definitely knew about copy and original cataloging but the add item/linking/barcoding was new to me. Although it’s a very simple method, I hadn’t heard of it before and it was interesting to learn about. Overall I think this class was quite informative and helpful. It was also organized very well. I feel it would be a useful tool to study from or just a great overview to refresh your memory.

Weeding... YAY!

I figured out how to get Webjunction to work so that I could take a class. The class I took was titled Weeding: It's Not an Option. This class encompassed so much information that it's really hard to choose what to summarize. Some of the most interesting information was about the history of weeding which I had never learned about. I learned that weeding is actually a fairly modern concept for libraries. Libraries used to be considered more valuable if they owned more items rather than than the quality of the items they did own. A new philosophy developed because of the costs of storage and because the useful life of information had become much shorter. Some of the terms most often used as synonyms of weeding include: deselection, culling, inventory control, and surplus identification. Reasons for weeding include: the bad items obscure the good items, it enhances the experience of browsing, appreciating and using, inappropriate materials can drain resources, the bad items encroach on other areas, there simply isn't enough room, and the bad items limit access. Most libraries have a need for both a weeding project and ongoing weeding. The usual general criteria for weeding are 1.)use or lack of use 2.)physical condition 3.)duplication or redundancy 4.)superseded 5.)age 6.)historical perspective 7.)inappropriate and 8.)mistake. There is also the famous crew method (MUSTIE) M for misleading, U for ugly, S for superseded, T for trivial, I for irrelevant, and E for elsewhere. System reports can help us identify red flags that indicate that something needs to change. A system report can easily be done with an automated system. This is a general overview of the course. There was a TON of information. The end of the course consisted of making an actual weeding plan for your library. I wrote out what I would do but obviously didn't put it in place. I gained a wealth of information from the course. I would feel much more confident if I ever had to weed a collection. I think the course was great for beginners especially.

School Collection Development

Found a site that has a Highschool/Middle School Library collection development plan and thought I'd share it.  It's pretty short.

Books and Literacy in the Digital Age

This article was chosen based on conviction. The world is technological, and this article questions, should books be as well? The writer talks bout the effect on youth in the age of technology, and what it has done to their attention spans and literacy skills.  What used to be the attention span of a book, became the attention span of a short story, and now is the attention span of a blog. This article gives a good point about the difference in today's teachings.  Can we really expect our children to be readers, when we don't open a book ourselves?  The author talks about reading to our children, which in turn will keep them reading throughout their lives. Schools are not helping either.  Instead of funding libraries they are funding computer labs in a false hope to promote literacy, but it has had no effect in that area. The author states, which we all will agree, that you have to be somewhat literate to navigate on the internet, post blogs, send texts, etc. Is this an advantage in education today?  I don't think so.  As much as you can learn online, there is also a huge part of the internet that is published inaccurately. The next thing the author touches base on is the digital reader.  I know the Kindle, Reader, and Nook have become popular, but to me there is nothing better than to Kindle that connection from the author to the Reader in your favorite Nook of the house.  I'd take the smell of a book forgotten over the illumination of a screen any day.  The author tells us how Amazon is already starting to pull copies like Orwell's Animal Farm and 1984 from the digital collection.  They even went as far as deleting them from Kindles where they had already been purchased!  The convenience is a plus and libraries have noticed, offering much more than only books; including movies, software, and audio files. Google tried to digitize every book ever printed, and failed.  Not one author wanted their published works readily available online for free, so the only books available are the ones where the copyrights have expired.  This usually takes 95 years after publication.  Although I disagree with the digitizing of books, it is a new way to help build a society of readers again.  I think it will promote literacy in the age of technology, but I still prefer to get lost in the pages of binding. I hope that libraries don’t fade into this new age; we will lose all the history we love.  Besides this new technology has not been around long enough to take over just yet. I agree with the author 100 %; there is nothing like reading a book and smelling its contents, but the world is changing and I think that maybe the digital book is a new way to recruit avid readers.

Do you think libraries will become paler in comparison to digital readers?

Would you rather stare at a luminous screen instead of cracking open a new book?

Do you think that the digitization of books will actually help society become more literate?




LTA103- Sarah Radtke

This was found in EBSCOhost. You can click on title to get to the link or the link is posted below, and you will need to be signed in to view it. http://web.ebscohost.com.proxy.jjc.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=1&hid=119&sid=6c85dea1-4615-451d-b62e-6d1a8f65950e%40sessionmgr110

Stanford Ushers In The Age Of Bookless Libraries

Can you have a library without physical books? According to Stanford University, you can. This NPR blog post by Laura Sydell reports how Stanford's new Engineering library is decreasing its physical book collection from 80,000 to 10,000--a decrease of more than 85%--with most of the collection being digital. Among the chief reasons for doing so are the ease of searchable databases for finding specific formulas, and the fact that engineering is such a rapidly changing field that traditional textbooks have rarely been able to keep up with the students' present needs. Eventually, they believe that even these 10,000 books will eventually be weeded out in favor of digital equivalents. This change heralds a growing trend by many libraries to spend more of their budget on electronic resources and less on physical books.

However the very concept of the bookless library does not sit well with some. For example, this blog post in School Library Journal's Editor-in-Chief Brian Kenney lambastes the headmaster of Cushing Academy for getting rid of it's library's 20,000 book collection and replacing it with 18 digital readers. He claims his will severely limit the variety of age-appropriate books that the students will have access to, many of which aren't available in ebook format, and that this will actually discourage voluntary reading.

In another case, this article by David A. Bell in the May 2005 edition of The New Republic addressed many of the pros and cons of research libraries removing their physical collections (pro: easily searchable databases of rare texts; con: an uncomfortable reading format that discourages slowly taking in the whole text), as well as the negative issues raised by the inadequecies of e-readers of that era--issues that are becoming increasingly moot with the advent of today's technologies such as the Kindle and iPad. While believing that the digitization of library collections is an inevitable process, he also believes that physical books can co-exist with ebooks in the libraries of the future, rather than be wholly replaced by them.

In my view, I am somewhat leery of the idea of a completely digitized library collection. As a reader since childhood and a longtime student, physically browsing the stacks has been an essential means for discovering new information; there are books that I have read that I would have never even looked for had I not picked them off the shelf and flipped through them on a whim. I also have found reading ebooks to be an uncomfortable experience after long periods of time. However, my time as a student has also made clear to me the inefficiency of searching for information using this method, when digital alternatives make such work faster and more accurate. I for one would like to see a coexistence between physical and digital texts in the libraries of the future, rather than having one at the expense of the other.

Playaway and Libraries

The article that I chose was Titled “Playaway: Preloaded Digital Audio-books”. I found this article using EBSCO Host through the Joliet Junior College (JJC) site. The link is the HTML form so do not have to be logged in to accesses the article. The article first goes over the basic appearance of the Playaway. The Playaways have art jackets much like the physical book versions. The main appeal overall that the article mentions convenience of not having to download the book to a device or to a computer. The device can also be used in a car via an adapter. As well as the prices that libraries will be looking at when buying Playways for their collection.

I had found many things interesting about this article that I had not really thought about much. Some of these being the ear buds and the batteries, these are part of the Playaway Device. From working at the Plainfield Public Library I have seen some pass by the desk. Some that arrived through the Holds/Bag/Bin with Ear buds some without. The same goes for the Batteries. Many patrons listen to books in audio form, most listen to them in their cars or while working on other daily tasks. My own mother listens to books on CD. I feel that a Playaway would be a great item for her to use. Travelers sometimes do not bring Books on CD with them for fear of leavening a CD in the car. If they had a Playaway they would not have to worry about that. I found that the Playaway device would be a great addition to a library with a high check out of audio-books.

We Still Need Libraries

The future of the library is being questioned. Are libraries really necessary with the availability of the internet and ebooks? Those of us that use the library and work in them know how valuable a service they provide. I found an article in the UK newspaper, Guardian, called, "We still need libraries in the digital age.” Ian Clark, the author of the article, states that in our troubled economic times the library is a valuable tool to bridge the digital divide, the gap between those with and without the internet. Public libraries are necessary not only to provide internet service, but help people learn how to use it.

This reminded me of something that happened this summer, here in Chicago. A FOX TV news reporter, Anna Davlantes, did a story on the Chicago Public Library. Hidden cameras were used to show the Harold Washington Library not being used, no one in the stacks etc. She concluded that with Illinois in such financial troubles, money spent on libraries is wasted. A few days later the commissioner of the Chicago Public Library, Mary Dempsey, wrote an open letter in response to the Fox story. Dempsey outlines the usage of the library including annual circulation of about 10 million items, 3.8 million internet sessions, 50,000 children involved in summer reading programs, and many other impressive statistics. Obviously these services are being used. You can read the entire letter here.
http://www.statelibraryofiowa.org/ld/tell-library-story/plot/foxnews

My personal experience shows increased library usage in these tougher economic times. When someone cannot buy books or a computer they come to the library. When searching for a job, they use the public library’s resources. If they want to do something fun and free with the kids the library has that too. If they want to fix the car the library has a database to help them out, and it’s because they have a library card. Libraries in general do a lot with the funding that they get and it is far from being wasted. Many people do need and use the libraries.

Anna Davlantes report-
http://www.myfoxchicago.com/dpp/news/special_report/library-taxes-closed-20100628

Is the iPad Fit for School?”

I was seeking an article about either e-readers or iPads for elementary school use. I did find several interesting articles, but the article that I will be sharing with the class is:

“Is the iPad Fit for School?” By Barack, Lauren. School Library Journal, May,2010, Vol. 56 Issue 5, p12.

Lauren Barack, a freelance journalist for School Library Journal, interviewed school consultants, librarians and teachers in this article which discusses the applicable uses for the iPad in K-8 schools, as well as high school settings. The article includes the cost of the devices, educational applications and how schools are looking to use the devices in the future with their students. After reading the article, do you think that iPads have a place in schools? What about the cost? Does the learning potential outweigh the cost?

The Hub: business model of the future for books and libraries?

After reading this little article and the others I have came across, I feel this one stuck with me. It goes on to mention that Libraries are /should /could be a hub for information seekers. I almost thought that it sounded interesting when stated like that, a "hub", because the way society is turning to modernization. Thinking of my Library going through a renovation and having 3 branches I feel it sounds very appealing to innovate that idea into at least one ,afterall there are 3, and why not design one to an idea "hub" for the patrons seeking that type of environment for pleasure or just to escape beyond the ordinary. Then on the other hand it is the posts that I read at the bottom of that article that turned me away a bit. The woman said she rather be dead before a library turns into a "Hub" spot. Considering her generation age plays a factor of her thought , It is the furture we are talking about and if books are on screens and libraries are interacting with others and we still want the libraies to get use, we should be incorporating whatever it is our community wants to keep getting its access to information. If we had 3 branches, not all need to be a "Hub", but why not 1?

Collection Development in Today's World

I found this article in EBSCOhost. It is called “Challenges and Possibilities for Collection Management in a Digital Age” by Tony Horava from Library Resources & Technical Services of July 1, 2010. http://web.ebscohost.com.proxy.jjc.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=7&hid=104&sid=d0fd7f6a-0df4-4838-803f-8888f978078b%40sessionmgr104. You will need to log in with your JJC account to access this article.

This article attempts to reconcile the difficulties with collection management and development in the digital age including a glimpse into the future. He proposes that collection development was much easier in the predigital age because resources available were finite. Now, there is too much information to really know what to do with it. Collection development used to include “decisions about weeding, cancelling serials, storage, and preservation.” These things are still important but are quite different. One important change that affects these activities is obviously technology and the way we communicate. With these changes, we as librarians must revaluate our ideas of collection development. I absolutely love the quote that the article uses about what libraries truly are: “libraries are not about books; they were, are, and will be about facilitating communication across space and time. Books have been a way to do that historically, but today there are other, often better, ways to accomplish this. Libraries need to become facile at supporting all sorts of media, and they must continue to embrace the new, or face the consequences of losing relevance to the mainstream culture.” To me, this sums up where libraries are as of right now. We are at a major turning point that will determine our importance in the future. If we are willing to change while still maintaining some of the old aspects of libraries that people enjoy, I think we will still be relevant for years to come. If we try to stay the way we are without even making an attempt to implement change, we will not be relevant to society. In my opinion, one great change that has had an impact on collection management is the development of “resource-sharing networks.” This allows libraries to share so that the libraries may not have to buy as many copies of a certain item. Also, this allows libraries to fill holes in their collection. The biggest challenge for collection development librarians is going to be how to effectively balance all of the library’s resources in order to build a relevant collection. Basically, we must always consider what will get used by the community that the library serves. If we have materials that are not getting used, then we have failed to provide the collection our patrons need or maybe we haven’t marketed our collection in a meaningful way. One point that is brought up in the article is the idea that the internet has brought about a sort of independence among users. They believe they are able to satisfy all their information needs with a simple Google search. Although this is true in some cases where only clarification of a subject is needed, in-depth research will not be addressed with this type of search. We must help our patrons see the wealth of information our collection provides and encourage them to ask questions. The author sums it up when he says “we need to think in terms of a knowledge management approach to our collections.” I believe there is also a need for special collections in both public and academic libraries. The author quotes a member of the ARL when he says we need to recognize “the unique and irreplaceable contribution that special collections make to scholarship and learning and to the general public good.” I find this to be especially true because although there is a ridiculous amount of information available to people, all of it is the same. Special collections allow the library to stay relevant as well as bringing an element of uniqueness to the library where the special collection is preserved. I also believe in having both in-house materials as well as online resources for patrons. If libraries do this with budget in mind, the collections will remain visible to users. At the end of the article, the author outlines ten ideas that can “redefine collection management in the networked era.” These ideas include: sustainability, considering what a collection does, change, effective decision-making about formats, reevaluating current practices, balancing competition and collaboration, seeking creative partnerships with publishers and vendors, measuring collection value in new ways, exploiting our new understanding of the collection to the best of our ability, and expanding our skills and expertise. If we do these things, the author believes the library will stay relevant to its users in future generations. I happen to agree because all of these ideas involve change and that’s exactly where the library world is heading.

E-Readers and Libraries

The topic I chose was what impact e-readers will have on libraries. According to the blog submitted by Daniel Freeman, three points of view agree that e-readers are the wave of the future. Libraries should look into acquiring them. But, one major problem arises with circulating e-readers. There could be a legal issue as far as copying the same title multiple times. Some research has been done in this area, according to the blog posted by Tom Peters (www.alatechsource.org/blog/2010/08/seize-and-solve-this-challenge.html )
indicating that industry leaders need to help solve the problem of limiting title usage. Can they develop an e-reader specifically for library use? I feel that libraries need to keep up with technology as much as possible and it seems to me that e-readers are a technology that many people are turning to. I think we need to collaborate with industry leaders to work out these issues so we can make this technology available to our patrons.

Gaming in Libraries

I have been reading blogs about gaming in libraries. The general consensus is that these activities are excellent ways for youth through teens to experience many different social skills, role playing skills, and dexterity, hand-eye and reflexes. Not all games are for everyone so libraries are offering Chess, Board/Card games, war games, and computer games; big games, Wii games, role playing games, and educational games (Game Shows).


Dr. Scott Nicholson of Syracuse University School of Information Studies, released his new book, Everyone Plays at the Library: Creating Great Gaming Experiences for All Ages, in late June. This book is about starting with the library mission, selecting games that meet the mission, running the gaming program, and then assessing the gaming program. It is appropriate for all types of libraries and all age groups - children, teens, adults, and seniors. Interesting stuff!

Maximizing the Impact of Digital Collections

The article that I read was about, just as the title describes, maximizing the impact of libraries’ digital collections. This sparked my interest because as we are now living in a more technological age this is a great way to advertise libraries to people who no longer or rarely use them, as well as increase the impact that they have on a community. The author describes 3 ways that this can be done: making digital collections available through search engines like Google, using RSS feeds, and utilizing discovery interfaces such as AquaBrowser. I think these are all great ways to make information more readily available to patrons and the general public alike, although I do believe the use of Google and other search engines may have the most impact. So many people in this day and age trust whatever information that they find after performing a quick search on the Internet. If libraries were able to incorporate their digital collections onto Google and the like, exposure would be tremendous. Not only would they be able to offer people a great, easily accessible source of valid information, but it could also have the potential of reshaping the image of the library as something that is still modern and relevant. What do you guys think? Will people actually use these digital collections if offered in these formats, or will it be a shot in the dark? Should certain information only be allowed to patrons, or should everything be available to the general public?

E-books: will they be the end of the printed book?

The article I read discussed the possibility of e-books making paper books obsolete. I feel this is relevant in today's society with all of the technology people have access to. The article listed pros (more portable and cheaper) and cons (reading at length on a computer screen can be hard on the eyes and people can read faster on paper) to e-books along with some sales statistics (sales of e-books grew from 2.9% last year to 8.5% this year). After reading the article I feel that e-books will give paper books some competition but that there will always be a demand for paper books. There will always be people like me who want the feel of the book in our hands. There will also always be people who just can't afford to buy their own e-reader or the e-books, so they will read the paper book. Lastly, there will be a part of the population that is not or doesn't want to be "tech savvy" and will want nothing to do with e-books. So what do you think? Will e-books make paper books obsolete?

Censorship and Collection Development

Censorship, book banning, book challenges have always been of interest to me in the library world. 
Ultimately as Librarians we may have the authority to make some decisions as to what books will be on our shelves.  As a Library Aide in a school I encountered the issue of "Self-Censorship" first hand with a parent who was convinced that the "Series of Unfortunate Events" books were "full of witchcraft" based on some propaganda she'd recieved from her church.  No matter what I did, she did not want to read the books or allow her children to read the books. In order to appease this parent,the principal decided I should let her have a say in some of the book choices that were made for the library.  I still have a bad feeling about this. There were books that some of the other students wanted to read, that were taken off the wish list based on this one parents opinions.  All because nobody wanted to deal with being accused of excluding her children based on their religious beliefs.  What would you have done? How can we resist the urge to choose what is "polically correct"?  How do we support the Freedom to Read and keep ALL of our community happy and well-read?

Problem with JJC email

It seems that the new JJC student email format is having problems so I have used the old format to contact those of you who have not been able to post.  Hope this solves the problems.
Dianne

Use of Technology in Libraries, Foursquare

I picked this topic because I am a Facebook junkie and love microblogging. New technologies are perennially attractive to libraries, and Foursquare is no exception. Foursquare is a location-based social networking game that uses the GPS integrated in your smart phone to broadcast your location to your friends. You can leave "tips", which are short messages which can recommend or oppose a location, which other Foursquare users in the area can read and act upon. When you reach your destination, you can "check in" and collect "badges" based on those check-in patterns, and compete to become "mayor" of a location when you have the most check-ins at a particular location. How would libraries use this tool? Imaging if patons can leave the tip, "Plainfield Library has great WiFi!" What if The Freinds group gave mugs, bookmarks, and totebags away to each week's "mayor"? What if you could notify visitors how to sign up for library cards, reserve meeting rooms, promote programming - all via a game? How would you use this tool to promote services in your library, and would you have any privacy concerns? Can't wait to discuss in class!

Posting to this blog

I discovered I skipped a step when I set up this blog in order to allow students to post to the blog.  I have now corrected this and all students will receive an email to their JJC account inviting them to be an author on this blog.  Please say yes. 

Resume Review Clinic at ILA

This year at the Illinois Library Association Annual Convention will be hosting a free Career Clinic with resume reviews.  They will be available from 1-6 p.m. September 29th and from 10:30 - 1:30 p.m. on Thursday the 30th.  Appointments will last 25 minutes and can be made by contacting Denise Zielinski at ila@ila.org.

By the way, if your participate in the Career Clinic you can get a complimentary pass to the Exhibits Hall.
Check out the details here: Career Clinic Announcement