Weekly reader wrap-up

As an academic librarian in Ohio, one of the more interesting and important announcement / article links in my reader this week was from the OhioLINK What's New Blog:

• New Executive Director for OhioLINK Announced
  "Ohio Board of Regents Chancellor Eric D. Fingerhut announced Thursday, September 30th that Jeffrey G. Trzeciak has been selected as the next Director of OhioLINK. He was nominated by the OhioLINK executive director search committee, which was formed on March 17, 2010, and co-chaired by Lev Gonick of Case Western Reserve University and Dr. Victoria Montavan of the University of Cincinnati" -- OhioLINK What's New, Zoe Stewart-Marshall (9/30/10)

More information about this announcement:

• Chancellor Fingerhut Announces Jeffrey G. Trzeciak as Director of OhioLINK
• Moving On, Mcmaster University Library, University Librarian

I need to stretch the term "weekly" a bit this week, the first entry is an article from last Friday (9/24) afternoon. It caught my attention because we discussed the idea of having a few Kindles in the library briefly in a staff meeting a few weeks ago after an update on OhioLINK's digital text book initiative. The remaining blog posts caught my attention for one reason or another (weeding and bad hair) throughout the week.

• Why There's No "Kindle" Freedom in Libraries
  "We're shifting to a publishing economy that makes sharing illegal. If you can afford it, a Kindle delivers books to you faster than any library has, and much more simply. Libraries are working with companies like Overdrive to license and share music and books, but the most popular platforms won't play with libraries, and these alternate systems cost a lot - before you even pay for content - and frustrate those who would rather use their own devices and think their libraries are being stupid and backward by not using the popular platforms." -- Inside Higher Ed,Library Babel Fish, Barbara Fisher (9/24/10)
• Half the Books are Checking Out Permanently
  "The average book in an academic research library is only checked out once every 50 years. That is why Library Dean James Bracken is looking to reduce the library’s in-house collection by 50 percent." -- Kentwired.com, Frank Yonkof (9/22/10)
• Can't Get Out of Your Own Way, Me Neither
  "It's one of those days: I can't believe how trapped I feel, how overwhelming every task appears, and how lousy my hair looks. It's all tangled together, of course, this sense of being unequal to the task of making it through the day." -- Brainstorm, Gina Barreca (9/28/10)
• Libraries Make it Personal
  "At a time when technology is said to be creating a gulf between librarians and students, a handful of libraries are trying to make their relationships with undergraduates a bit more personal." -- Inside Higher Ed, Steve Kolowich (9/28/10)
• Sudden Thoughts and Second Thoughts
  What's the Biggest Mistake You've Made as a Leader
  "It’s a long road and hard work becoming an effective leader, whether you are responsible for the vision and direction of a library, a single unit or program within the library that needs leadership for it to survive, or leading your colleagues in an association effort." -- ACRLog, StevenB (9/29/10)
• The Biggest Mistake a Leader Can Make (Video)
  Imagining the Future of Leadership (Series)
  "Through Imagining the Future of Leadership, a symposium at the Harvard Business School and accompanying blog series, expert thinkers gathered to investigate what is necessary today to develop the leaders we need for tomorrow. "-- Harvard Buisness Review Blogs (8/31/10)

This last one isn't a blog feed, it's a Facebook link and definitely fun ...

• Portland's Heathman Hotel Library is One of a Kind
  "Guests who wander up to the Heathman Hotel's mezzanine discover one of the most exclusive libraries in the country: 4,000 volumes, all signed by the author and most of them first editions." -- The Oregoinan, Tom Hallman Jr. (9/21/10)