New Books

The Tech Set - Volumes 5, 6, 7, & 10

• # 5 Wikis for Libraries by Lauren Pressley

"Wikis for Libraries is a comprehensive guide to harnessing the power of the wiki as a collaboration tool, content management solution, and reference resource. Readers will learn how to leverage the potential of wikis to create internal knowledge bases and intranets within their organizations, facilitate collaboration among diverse team members, design library instruction tools, support special events, and create valuable online resources." - from the Foreword

• #6 Technology Training in Libraries by Sarah Houghton-Jan

"Emerging technologies enable libraries to create innovative new services which leverage the technology that patrons are currently using. But in order for libraries to remain relevant in this information age, librarians must be knowledgeable about these cutting-edge tools and trends. Technology Training in Libraries is an essential resource that outlines the steps to creating effective training programs from simple lunchtime brown bags to formal 23 Things courses, technology petting zoos, and peer trainer programs." - from the Foreword

• #7 A Social Networking Primer for Librarians by Cliff Landis

"The coffeehouses and student centers of generations past have been replaced by today's online social networks. A Social Networking Primer for Librarians explains how to use today's most popular social networking Web sites to reach out to library patrons, promote your library, and build community." - from the Foreword

• #10 Effective Blogging for Libraries by Connie Crosby

"Nowadays it seems as if everyone has a blog-but not all of them are successful. Effective Blogging for Libraries is a complete how-to handbook that provides practical tips and best practices for creating a winning library blog and informs readers about everything from blog posting techniques, to strategies for encouraging comments and dealing with negative feedback, to effective tagging. The book tackles approaches to blog marketing, managing staff bloggers, usability guidelines, and a variety of assessment methods." - from the Foreword

Virtual Shelving Practice

From the Stephens's Lighthouse Blog

Training Library Shelvers, Pages, and Clerks

Are you orienting a whole new team of pages for the new school year? Do you train shelving staff who are from the gaming generation?

I found this through LISNews who found it in a tweet via RT@shannonmmiller (Shannon Miller of the Van Meter, IA Library:

Check out Order in the Library…an online game using the Dewey Decimal system.

“There are three games you can play; the sorting game, the shelving game and the reordering game. There’s even a Spanish version. Go to it!”

I tried it and, sadly, failed and had to try again. Two slaps with a wet noodle for me. My library club shelving books days are over.

Stephen
Posted on: September 7, 2010, 7:11 am

VHS to DVD

As more of our collections become exclusively digital, the subject of this Ask the ALA Librarian article caught my eye.

VHS to DVD?
By Karen Muller
Created 08/26/2010 - 09:57

Q. With the increased use of DVD systems it has been suggested that we convert our VHS library of educational videos in VHS format to DVD. Is it a copyright violation to convert to DVD and discontinue use of the VHS tapes?

A. In most cases, yes, it would be a copyright violation. Reproducing a VHS to DVD without the prior permission of the rights-holder is an infringement of copyright. This kind of reproduction is not exempt because it is not “fair use” [2] as defined in Section 107 of the Copyright Code and it does not qualify as a lawful reproduction under Section 108 [3] of the Copyright Code.
However, in a situation where the VHS tape is lost, stolen or deteriorating or is in an obsolete format (a 3/4” tape is obsolete because the equipment is no longer being sold, but a VHS tape is not obsolete) and is not available in the DVD format in the market for a reasonable cost, the library can make a reproduction. But if the reproduction is in a digital format (DVD is digital), then that copy cannot leave the library premises.

Source URL: http://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/ask-ala-librarian/vhs-dvd

Music

While I am waiting for participants to arrive for my workshops I like to take advantage of the availability of streaming music and the speakers on my computer to set a mood. Usually I log into my Pandora account and pick one of my stations, but while reading a recent American Libraries Direct, I found a new source of streaming music.

Here's the snippet from the August 11 American Libraries Direct article about Grooveshark.

Listen to free music online with Grooveshark Steven Campbell writes: “Could Grooveshark be the best service for streaming music? A lot of people have taken to online music. It’s a great way to listen to your favorite tunes on demand and save your playlists or stations. There are many services that allow you to stream music, including Pandora and Last.fm, but my personal favorite is Grooveshark.”
...MakeUseOf, Aug. 10

New Book

• Public Libraries Going Green by Kathryn Miller

New Books

• The Complete Library Trustee Handbook by Sally Gardner Reed and Jillian Kalonick for the Association of Library Trustees, Advocates, Friends and Foundations
• Assessing Service Quality: Satisfying the Expectations of Library Customers by Peter Hernon & Ellen Altman

Survey by OverDrive

Survey Results Give Insights About Your Patrons

July 29, 2010 08:50 by Shannon Lichty

Over the last few years, our library partners have experienced significant growth in download audiobook and eBook circulation. OverDrive is actively developing new features to enhance your download service user experience, and figured the best way to do find out what users want, is to ask them - so that's exactly what we did!

In June, we concluded a survey, linked on 10 of our highest traffic websites, with more than 5,000 responses from patrons around urban and rural America. The survey included questions regarding demographics, computer/device usage, borrowing habits, general feedback on user experience, and suggestions for collection development.

If you're like me, who loathed statistics class in school, the phrase "interesting data" may not have you jumping up and down. But trust me, these statistics are genuinely interesting:

• 74% of users are female, between the ages of 30-59.

• Nearly 70% have a college and/or postgraduate degree.

• 60% learned about the download service from the library's website (if our past blog posts and training sessions weren't enough to get you to promote on your website, hopefully this is!)

• 87% listen to audiobooks on an MP3 player, 44% of which are iPod users.

• 33% of users own an eBook reader (e.g., Sony Reader, Barnes & Noble nook)
For those who don't own an eBook reader, 90% stated that compatibility of eBooks from the library is an important factor.

-from OverDrive's Digital Library Blog