LSE Produces New Twitter Guide for Academics
"How can Twitter, which limits users to 140 characters per tweet, have any relevance to universities and academia, where journal articles are between 3,000-8,000 words long? Can anything of academic value ever be said in just 140 characters? A new Twitter guide published by the LSE Public Policy Group and the LSE Impact of Social Sciences blog seeks to answer this question, and show academics and researchers how to get the most out of the micro-blogging site. The Guide is designed to lead the novice through the basics of Twitter but also provide tips on how it can aid the teaching and research of the more experienced academic tweeter."-- LSE News and Media, 10/3/11 via Jennifer Howard, Wired Campus, 12/15/11
Getting Started with Twitter's Embedded Tweets Feature
"Somewhat lost amidst the news of Twitter’s revamped interface is a slightly more interesting tidbit for web developers: Twitter posts can now be embedded in other pages. The new Embedded Tweet feature works just like a YouTube movie, offering a short HTML snippet that you can copy and paste into any third-party website. Unfortunately using the Embed Tweet feature from Twitter is somewhat awkward since it’s buried in the new interface. First you need to click on a tweet, then click “details” and then you’ll see the embed option." -- Scott Gilbertson, WebMonkey, 12/9/11
Opening Up a World of Educational Content with YouTube for Schools
"We’ve been hearing from teachers that they want to use the vast array of educational videos on YouTube in their classrooms, but are concerned that students will be distracted by the latest music video or a video of a cute cat, or a video that might not be appropriate for students. While schools that completely restrict access to YouTube may solve this distraction concern, they also limit access to hundreds of thousands of educational videos on YouTube that can help bring photosynthesis to life, or show what life was like in ancient Greece." -- Brian Truong, The Official YouTube Blog, 12/11/11
The Trouble with Transparency and the Creative Arts
"One downside of increased transparency of many people’s lives, especially noteworthy people, is that it’s harder to divorce the person from their creations." -- Walt Crawford, Walt at Random, 12/9/11
What You Can do to Support School Libraries in Crisis
"There is a common misconception that technology replaces school libraries and school librarians. Rather, in reality the explosion of technology and information access makes having full-time access to a state certified school librarian and school library program even more critical for today's learners. There is an entire new skill set today's students will need as they enter the workplace, and school librarians are the leaders in helping teach these skills to students." -- Carl Harvey II, Huffington Post, 12/8/11
Friday, December 16, 2011
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Google: Zeitgeist 2011
As we fast approach the end of 2011, a myriad of end-of-year reflections become available. The first I've seen is a video posted on the Google Blog earlier this morning, Zeitgeist 2011: How the World Searched.
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
IES: Academic Libraries 2010
The Institute of Education Sciences (IES) recently released Academic Libraries: 2010 First Look.
Academic Libraries 2010 and it's supplemental tables are available in PDF via the IES web site. Special thanks to Stacie Marinelli, Reference Librarian at the National Library of Education for sharing this with the EBSS list.The Academic Libraries: 2010 First Look summarizes services, staff, collections, and expenditures of academic libraries in 2- and 4-year, degree-granting postsecondary institutions in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Findings Include:
Friday, December 09, 2011
Weekly Reader
If I Had College-Age Children, I Would Give Them This Advice for the Final Weeks of School: Don't Cheat
"I imagine this conversation would occur sometime during Thanksgiving, perhaps as we were washing up the endless number of dinner dishes and de-greasing the kitchen. No, no: let’s put it in a neutral location, as Tenured Radical and the returning college student are having a final cup of coffee at the airport while waiting out a flight delay." -- Claire Potter, Tenured Radical, 12/7/11
The Adaptation of Hugo Cabret
"In Brian Selznick’s Caldecott Medal–winning novel, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, protagonist Hugo muses, “Machines never have any extra parts. They have the exact number and type of parts they need. So I figure if the entire world is a big machine, I have to be here for some reason. And that means you have to be here for some reason, too.” Director Martin Scorsese’s film treatment, Hugo, evinces this philosophy from its opening sequence, in which a complicated clockwork system is turns into an equally bright and busy time-lapse shot of nighttime Paris." --Katie Bircher, Out of the Box (The Horn Book), 12/8/11
The All in One Fear and Public Speaking: 15 Resources
"It's one of the most common fears, they tell us. So why are we so nervous about our public speaking fears? Use these tips from the blog, along with examples from some fellow fearful speakers, to think about your public speaking fears and overcome them:" -- Denise Graveline, The Eloquent Woman, 12/7/11
10 Ways to Change the Minds of Tech-Reluctant Staff
"We often hear about tech-savvy educators and administrators who have an array of best practices and whose love for technology is evident. But as anyone who’s ever been part of a school or district knows, not all teachers and administrators are as comfortable or familiar with technology. In a recent “Question of the Week,” we asked our tech-savvy readers: “How do you get tech-reluctant teachers and administrators to use technology effectively?” Here are our readers’ top answers (edited for brevity)." -- Meris Stansbury, ESchool News (original post), 21st Century Fluency Project (reposted), 12/3/11
SLJ's Top Ten 2011: Technology
"You know what? There’s too much stuff. That might not be what you’d expect, coming from a technology editor. But looking back over the past year, I found myself wading through tons of gadgets, tools, and miscellaneous merch to get to the real goods, and by that I mean the substantive ideas that we wrote, talked, blogged, and tweeted about in 2011." -- Kathy Ishizuka, School Library Journal, 12/2/11
UNBSJ Students Protest for Study Space
"Students at the University of New Brunswick in Saint John held a protest at the campus Tuesday about a lack of quiet study space. Samantha Tinker, one of the rally organizers, said exams are slated to start next week, but the new $25 million Hans W. Klohn Commons is more like a computer lab and café than a library, with students clustered around tables chatting and working in groups. It also comes up short on basics, such as desk space, and even books, she said." --- CBC News, 11/30/11
"I imagine this conversation would occur sometime during Thanksgiving, perhaps as we were washing up the endless number of dinner dishes and de-greasing the kitchen. No, no: let’s put it in a neutral location, as Tenured Radical and the returning college student are having a final cup of coffee at the airport while waiting out a flight delay." -- Claire Potter, Tenured Radical, 12/7/11
The Adaptation of Hugo Cabret
"In Brian Selznick’s Caldecott Medal–winning novel, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, protagonist Hugo muses, “Machines never have any extra parts. They have the exact number and type of parts they need. So I figure if the entire world is a big machine, I have to be here for some reason. And that means you have to be here for some reason, too.” Director Martin Scorsese’s film treatment, Hugo, evinces this philosophy from its opening sequence, in which a complicated clockwork system is turns into an equally bright and busy time-lapse shot of nighttime Paris." --Katie Bircher, Out of the Box (The Horn Book), 12/8/11
The All in One Fear and Public Speaking: 15 Resources
"It's one of the most common fears, they tell us. So why are we so nervous about our public speaking fears? Use these tips from the blog, along with examples from some fellow fearful speakers, to think about your public speaking fears and overcome them:" -- Denise Graveline, The Eloquent Woman, 12/7/11
10 Ways to Change the Minds of Tech-Reluctant Staff
"We often hear about tech-savvy educators and administrators who have an array of best practices and whose love for technology is evident. But as anyone who’s ever been part of a school or district knows, not all teachers and administrators are as comfortable or familiar with technology. In a recent “Question of the Week,” we asked our tech-savvy readers: “How do you get tech-reluctant teachers and administrators to use technology effectively?” Here are our readers’ top answers (edited for brevity)." -- Meris Stansbury, ESchool News (original post), 21st Century Fluency Project (reposted), 12/3/11
SLJ's Top Ten 2011: Technology
"You know what? There’s too much stuff. That might not be what you’d expect, coming from a technology editor. But looking back over the past year, I found myself wading through tons of gadgets, tools, and miscellaneous merch to get to the real goods, and by that I mean the substantive ideas that we wrote, talked, blogged, and tweeted about in 2011." -- Kathy Ishizuka, School Library Journal, 12/2/11
UNBSJ Students Protest for Study Space
"Students at the University of New Brunswick in Saint John held a protest at the campus Tuesday about a lack of quiet study space. Samantha Tinker, one of the rally organizers, said exams are slated to start next week, but the new $25 million Hans W. Klohn Commons is more like a computer lab and café than a library, with students clustered around tables chatting and working in groups. It also comes up short on basics, such as desk space, and even books, she said." --- CBC News, 11/30/11
Friday, December 02, 2011
Weekly Reader
Academic Freedom or Educational Malpractice?
"It is time for NYU to take action to silence Andrew Ross. His encouragement of students to default on their loans is irresponsible and reckless—an act of educational malpractice I would argue—and something that should not be tolerated from anyone on the staff of an institution of higher education. Academic freedom does not give Dr. Ross the right to knowingly advise students to do something that will harm them for years to come, and that violates a legal contract between the borrower and ultimately the federal government. Does he also suggest that they steal and evade taxes?" -- Diane Auer Jones, Brainstorm / The Chronicle, 12/1/11
Cambridge U Press Would Like to Rent You and Article
"Will researchers pay for short-term access to journal articles? Cambridge University Press is about to find out. The publisher has just announced a rental program for articles from the more than 280 peer-reviewed journals it publishes. For just £3.99, $5.99 or €4.49, users are now able to read single articles online for up to 24 hours, a saving of up to 86% compared with the cost of purchasing the article,” the press said in an announcement. “After registration and payment, the reader is e-mailed a link, through which they can access and read the article in PDF format as often as they wish during the subsequent 24 hours.” -- Jennifer Howard, Wired Campus, 11/30/11
Announcing YouTube Analytics: The Next Generation in Insight
"Video can transcend language and cultural barriers. It can showcase real human moments all across the globe, even the silly ones. Take the video of the talking twin babies. That video was shot in Brooklyn, and has been viewed more than 10M times in the US and 30M times outside the U.S. 5% of its views came from Brazil, another 5% from Russia. Turns out, 1 out of 100 people in the Philippines watched these two babies from New York. One of the great joys of a global platform is finding out that people from afar can relate, connect, and appreciate your videos." -- Ted Hamilton, YouTube Blog, 11/30/11
Social Networking: Making the World Smaller One Tweet at a Time
" I am not a social media expert. I just wanted to get that out of the way. I know that this title exists, that people give talks on social media and companies are hiring people to Tweet for them and to set up blogs. I’m not that person. I’m just an author who uses social media to connect with other people in the reading and writing community." -- E. Kristin Anderson (Guest Contributor), ALSC Blog, 11/30/11
"It is time for NYU to take action to silence Andrew Ross. His encouragement of students to default on their loans is irresponsible and reckless—an act of educational malpractice I would argue—and something that should not be tolerated from anyone on the staff of an institution of higher education. Academic freedom does not give Dr. Ross the right to knowingly advise students to do something that will harm them for years to come, and that violates a legal contract between the borrower and ultimately the federal government. Does he also suggest that they steal and evade taxes?" -- Diane Auer Jones, Brainstorm / The Chronicle, 12/1/11
Cambridge U Press Would Like to Rent You and Article
"Will researchers pay for short-term access to journal articles? Cambridge University Press is about to find out. The publisher has just announced a rental program for articles from the more than 280 peer-reviewed journals it publishes. For just £3.99, $5.99 or €4.49, users are now able to read single articles online for up to 24 hours, a saving of up to 86% compared with the cost of purchasing the article,” the press said in an announcement. “After registration and payment, the reader is e-mailed a link, through which they can access and read the article in PDF format as often as they wish during the subsequent 24 hours.” -- Jennifer Howard, Wired Campus, 11/30/11
Announcing YouTube Analytics: The Next Generation in Insight
"Video can transcend language and cultural barriers. It can showcase real human moments all across the globe, even the silly ones. Take the video of the talking twin babies. That video was shot in Brooklyn, and has been viewed more than 10M times in the US and 30M times outside the U.S. 5% of its views came from Brazil, another 5% from Russia. Turns out, 1 out of 100 people in the Philippines watched these two babies from New York. One of the great joys of a global platform is finding out that people from afar can relate, connect, and appreciate your videos." -- Ted Hamilton, YouTube Blog, 11/30/11
Social Networking: Making the World Smaller One Tweet at a Time
" I am not a social media expert. I just wanted to get that out of the way. I know that this title exists, that people give talks on social media and companies are hiring people to Tweet for them and to set up blogs. I’m not that person. I’m just an author who uses social media to connect with other people in the reading and writing community." -- E. Kristin Anderson (Guest Contributor), ALSC Blog, 11/30/11
ALAO Newsletter: November 2011
A new ALAO Newsletter , Vol. 29 No. 4 (Dec 2011), is now available. This edition features:
- President's Report
- Past President's Report
- 2011 Jay Ladd Distinguished Service Award
- ALAO Diversity Scholarship Reflection
- Interest Group and Committee News
"I encourage you to review ALAO’s offering of spring workshops as the dates, locations, & themes come out over the next several weeks. They provide excellent opportunities for presenters and attendees." -- Brian Hickam, ALAO Newsletter President's Report, 11/30/11
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
The Future of Publishing
Voya Magazine, more specifically @voyamagazine on Twitter, shared this video earlier today. Posted by Penguin Group USA, it's a creative look at the publishing industry - backwards and forward.
An interview with the video's creator is available on the Penguin USA blog post, The Future of Publishing.
An interview with the video's creator is available on the Penguin USA blog post, The Future of Publishing.
Friday, November 18, 2011
Weekly Reader
Smartphones in the Library
"Finding the right technology to use in the library, particularly the kind of devices that will best suit the largest number of patrons, can be an arduous task when considering the wealth of new advancements that are available. Many of these items can be costly or not intuitive to the user. But two new tools have proven themselves useful and user friendly in all varieties of libraries." --Jane-Rebecca Cannarella, ACRLog, 11/12/11
How Mainstream Media Outlets Use Twitter
"Mainstream news organizations have made the social media tool Twitter a daily part of how they communicate with audiences. But how do those organizations actually use the technology: How often do they tweet? What kind of news do they distribute? To what extent is Twitter used as a new reporting tool or as a mechanism for gathering insights from followers?" -- Pew Research Center Publications, 11/14/11
My Teacher is an App
"So I hope no one minds if I continue to try to document the ways in which “education” is being reframed in this country at the peril, I think, of losing everything that is best about schools and teachers and classrooms." -- Will Richardson, Read, Write, Connect, Learn, 11/12/11
WC3 Releases New Web Privacy Standard
"The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has released the first draft of a new web standard aimed at improving online privacy. The W3C’s new Standard for Online Privacy is a set of tools that will ultimately enable your browser to stop sites from tracking your every move on the web.
The first draft of the new privacy standard revolves around the “Do Not Track” (DNT) HTTP header originally introduced by Mozilla as a part of Firefox 4. The DNT header — a bit of code sent every time your browser talks to a web server — can be used to tell websites you don’t want to be tracked. The goal is to give you an easy way to opt out of often invasive tracking practices like behavioral advertising." -- Scott Gilbertson, WebMonkey, 11/15/11
Employees Like Work More When Social Media is Involved
"When employees are allowed to access social media networks at work one to two times each day a new study has shown that they are more satisfied with their jobs and more likely to stick with an employer. The study found that even employees who are simply offering the chance to check Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other networks on their lunch breaks were more satisfied with their employer." -- James Johnson, The Blog Herald, 11/15/11
Pay Attention in Class
"As college costs have skyrocketed, students and their parents have come to view the college experience more and more as a financial transaction. They are the customer, and the college is the business. That consumer mentality—which I have argued is not as bad as many in higher ed make it out to be—has nonetheless led to high expectations about the quality of everything on campuses from dining options to dorm rooms." -- Jeff Selingo, Next (A Chronicle Blog), 11/9/11
"Finding the right technology to use in the library, particularly the kind of devices that will best suit the largest number of patrons, can be an arduous task when considering the wealth of new advancements that are available. Many of these items can be costly or not intuitive to the user. But two new tools have proven themselves useful and user friendly in all varieties of libraries." --Jane-Rebecca Cannarella, ACRLog, 11/12/11
How Mainstream Media Outlets Use Twitter
"Mainstream news organizations have made the social media tool Twitter a daily part of how they communicate with audiences. But how do those organizations actually use the technology: How often do they tweet? What kind of news do they distribute? To what extent is Twitter used as a new reporting tool or as a mechanism for gathering insights from followers?" -- Pew Research Center Publications, 11/14/11
My Teacher is an App
"So I hope no one minds if I continue to try to document the ways in which “education” is being reframed in this country at the peril, I think, of losing everything that is best about schools and teachers and classrooms." -- Will Richardson, Read, Write, Connect, Learn, 11/12/11
WC3 Releases New Web Privacy Standard
"The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has released the first draft of a new web standard aimed at improving online privacy. The W3C’s new Standard for Online Privacy is a set of tools that will ultimately enable your browser to stop sites from tracking your every move on the web.
The first draft of the new privacy standard revolves around the “Do Not Track” (DNT) HTTP header originally introduced by Mozilla as a part of Firefox 4. The DNT header — a bit of code sent every time your browser talks to a web server — can be used to tell websites you don’t want to be tracked. The goal is to give you an easy way to opt out of often invasive tracking practices like behavioral advertising." -- Scott Gilbertson, WebMonkey, 11/15/11
Employees Like Work More When Social Media is Involved
"When employees are allowed to access social media networks at work one to two times each day a new study has shown that they are more satisfied with their jobs and more likely to stick with an employer. The study found that even employees who are simply offering the chance to check Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other networks on their lunch breaks were more satisfied with their employer." -- James Johnson, The Blog Herald, 11/15/11
Pay Attention in Class
"As college costs have skyrocketed, students and their parents have come to view the college experience more and more as a financial transaction. They are the customer, and the college is the business. That consumer mentality—which I have argued is not as bad as many in higher ed make it out to be—has nonetheless led to high expectations about the quality of everything on campuses from dining options to dorm rooms." -- Jeff Selingo, Next (A Chronicle Blog), 11/9/11
Monday, November 14, 2011
Leaving Library World
I know I haven't been very active on this blog over the past few years. I've been busy pursuing my MBA. Over time I've realized that, while I'll always love & support libraries, my work interests lie elsewhere. So, I am leaving my position as a librarian at Thanksgiving and will be starting a new and exciting job in the corporate world in early December. At the same time, I will be leaving Library Cloud as a contributor. It has been a pleasure being involved in this blog, and I look forward to watching its continued success as a reader.
Thursday, November 10, 2011
working with Twitter
The decision to go with Twitter (verses Facebook or Google+) for the Instructional Resource Center was not quick or easy. A consistent web presence exists; the IRC web site was one of the first things I developed when starting as a curriculum librarian at AU and in recent months I have been rebuilding it in Drupal. I've used a blog for the IRC since 2005; it features news, information, and new book updates for the IRC and juvenile collections. We've been lucky to have LibGuides for several years, and resources for Education students and general IRC pages are part of the collection.Taking steps to add another resource required careful consideration:
A final question, one of significance, how much time am I willing /able to expend on maintaining the project? Regardless of the social media choice, time and effort will be needed to make the resource viable. Periodic discussions with my student workers and students using the IRC helped me with the decide to use Twitter for the IRC. Why Twitter? It's will provide opportunity for quick, simple, short, and timely updates that will supplement the web site, blog, and LibGuides.
I posted the first IRC tweet on Tuesday morning @ircaulibrary
- How will the proposed addition work with existing resources?
- The library has a Facebook page, is it necessary to have two?
- Do students want the IRC on Facebook?
- Students have AU Gmail accounts, but are they using Google+?
- Are students willing to use Google+?
- How popular is Twitter with college students?
- Will Twitter character constraints help or hinder use?
A final question, one of significance, how much time am I willing /able to expend on maintaining the project? Regardless of the social media choice, time and effort will be needed to make the resource viable. Periodic discussions with my student workers and students using the IRC helped me with the decide to use Twitter for the IRC. Why Twitter? It's will provide opportunity for quick, simple, short, and timely updates that will supplement the web site, blog, and LibGuides. 
It took time to research and determine who the IRC should follow, I selected a mix of children's literature, education, AU accounts, and educational technology to start. Using a library background and university colors allowed me to brand the page. To publicize, I've created Twitter widgets for the IRC blog, requested a link be placed on the main IRC page sidebar with the blog feed, posted to the IRC blog, and utilized the library's digital signage to scan the account rotate the five most recent tweets.
I have a short list of subjects to tweet for the next several weeks. At this point, the only drawback has been ...
I usually tweet using my iPhone app, and was surprised to see the little "over capacity" whale shortly after making the account live. In the last three days, I've been subject to "over capacity" while posting tweets - and - when showing students the account. I'm hoping the little whale, cute as he is, does not become problematic (though several of my students indicate he's a regular occurrence).
Monday, November 07, 2011
ALAO 2011: Tweeting @ALAOorg
This is the first of several planned "conference in review" posts reflecting on ALAO 2011. I'm going to start at the end, so to speak, featuring Twitter hash tags created and used for the conference and individual sessions. Tweeting during a presentation is relatively new to me; I remain somewhat uncomfortable typing while the presenter is speaking about his or her topic. Instead of my laptop, I chose to use the Twitter app on my phone as it's less conspicuous and certainly quieter.
Rob Snyder, Bowling Green University, shared a great Twitter widget during his spotlight session Timesaving Templates: Techniques for Quick Creation and Maintenance of LibGuides. Using the Twitter resource page, he developed a series of Twitter Widgets to consistently update a current events LibGuide.
With a Twitter account planned for the IRC, I was immediately intrigued by how easily these widgets could be developed and placed in blog posts, Facebook, web sites, and (of course) LibGuides. I spent a few minutes at lunch creating three Twitter widgets to follow the ALAO 2001 conference:
While a few issues immediately come to mind when incorporating this into a classroom, hash tags are social bookmarking and anyone can use them for any reason, it would be easy to create a set of tags - controlled vocabulary, so to speak - that would serve to connect a variety of library resources for students. I will definitely be exploring this option further. Enjoy perusing tweets from #alao2011, #alaowebtools, and @ALAOorg!
Rob Snyder, Bowling Green University, shared a great Twitter widget during his spotlight session Timesaving Templates: Techniques for Quick Creation and Maintenance of LibGuides. Using the Twitter resource page, he developed a series of Twitter Widgets to consistently update a current events LibGuide.
With a Twitter account planned for the IRC, I was immediately intrigued by how easily these widgets could be developed and placed in blog posts, Facebook, web sites, and (of course) LibGuides. I spent a few minutes at lunch creating three Twitter widgets to follow the ALAO 2001 conference:
While a few issues immediately come to mind when incorporating this into a classroom, hash tags are social bookmarking and anyone can use them for any reason, it would be easy to create a set of tags - controlled vocabulary, so to speak - that would serve to connect a variety of library resources for students. I will definitely be exploring this option further. Enjoy perusing tweets from #alao2011, #alaowebtools, and @ALAOorg!
Wednesday, November 02, 2011
Library Cloud @ ALAO
It's time for the ALAO Annual conference!
This year’s conference theme, Academic Libraries: Constant Change, Constant Opportunity "offers library administrators and personnel, vendors, and consultants an array of opportunities network and learn about current trends, technologies, services and strategies" (ALAO 2011). Program information is located on the conference web site and includes conference abstracts and a useful conference grid. Library Cloud bloggers are presenting at two sessions:
This year’s conference theme, Academic Libraries: Constant Change, Constant Opportunity "offers library administrators and personnel, vendors, and consultants an array of opportunities network and learn about current trends, technologies, services and strategies" (ALAO 2011). Program information is located on the conference web site and includes conference abstracts and a useful conference grid. Library Cloud bloggers are presenting at two sessions:
BREAKING TRADITION: RESTRUCTURING TO DEAL MORE EFFECTIVELY WITH ELECTRONIC RESOURCESKaren Plummer (University of Akron), Frank Bove (University of Akron)Session 1, Henry Room - 10:10 am to 11:00 am
On April 13, 2011, the Electronic Services Department (ESD) was born! The ESD was created by recognizing the increasing prominence of electronic resources to our users. To effectively manage those resources and efficiently deliver information electronically, we have broken with traditional organizational structure, merging the Cataloging and Systems Departments, and adding web development and electronic resources management personnel. This presentation will discuss the who, what, when, where, and why of our restructuring process.
WEB TOOLS: THE MORE THINGS CHANGE
Sara Klink (Stark State Community College)
Diane L. Schrecker (Ashland University)
Spotlight Session 3: Leveraging Web Tools for Reference and Collaboration
Hardin Room - 2:00 pm to 2:50 pm
Nothing says “Constant Change, Constant Opportunity” like web tools. New resources are available with stunning regularity; many are educational and rife with potential to enrich student learning. Non-traditional library web resources are often integrated as viable tools for reference, instruction, and collaboration. This session will feature an overview of several of our favorite tools and how we use them. Try something different! These tools are simple to use, available on and off the cloud, and easily adapted for LibGuides, Campus Guides, Library blogs, and more.
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
ALAO 2011: It's not too late
Register for ALAO 2011
– deadline October 21st
The exciting ALAO 2011 Conference on November 4th:
- Opening keynote with ACRL Vice-President/President Elect Steven J. Bell
- Presentations, posters, and spotlight sessions, all centered on change in today’s academic libraries
- Vendor spotlights
- Lunch with colleagues
- Plenty of time for networking
- and more!
The ALAO 2011 Pre-Conference on November 3rd features:
- Opening keynote by Instructional Design Librarian Lauren Pressley, from Wake Forest University
- A panel discussion on ACRL’s The Value of Academic Libraries: A Comprehensive Research Review and Report with Ohio academic library leaders
- Lunch, and time for networking with colleagues
ALAO is pleased to announce an evening social on November 3rd. This informal affair will be an excellent time to mingle and network with colleagues from the region, meet ALAO board members, and enjoy delicious hors d’oeuvres . The social will take place at the ALAO 2011 Conference headquarters, Hilton Toledo, in the Pine/Willow rooms from 7-9:30 pm. Please RSVP only if you plan to attend the social.
Important links: Conference Registration and RSVP for Pre-Conference Social
* Originally posted on CMCIG blog 10/12/11
Monday, October 03, 2011
ALAO PreConference Social
The Academic Library Association of Ohio (ALAO) is proud to announce an evening social, to take place after the November 3rd pre-conference. This informal affair will be an excellent time to mingle and network with colleagues from the region, meet your ALAO board members, and, of course, enjoy some delicious hors d’oeuvres. A cash bar will also be available.
The social will take place at the ALAO 2011 Conference headquarters, Hilton Toledo, in the Pine/Willow rooms from 7-9:30pm.
Please RSVP only if you plan to attend. We hope to see you at this exciting event!
The ALAO 2011 Conference Planning Committee
http://www.alaoweb.org/conferences/conf2011
Please RSVP only if you plan to attend. We hope to see you at this exciting event!
The ALAO 2011 Conference Planning Committee
http://www.alaoweb.org/conferences/conf2011
Friday, September 30, 2011
Weekly Reader
OhioLINK, OCLC Report Reveals Surprises about Circulation
"OhioLINK and OCLC Research have released a report of, and the data set used in, a joint study of OhioLINK circulation, to better understand the usage patterns of books in academic libraries and support further research in this area. The study, which incorporated usage data from 2007-2008, was limited to books and manuscripts because these materials typically circulate, and circulation is a significant element in evaluating collections." - OhioLINK What's New, 9/29/11
OCLC & OhioLINK Release Extensive Data Sets on Book Usage Patterns in Academic Libraries
"OhioLINK and OCLC Research released on September 21 what is likely the largest and most comprehensive study of academic library circulation ever undertaken. Among the more interesting findings, the "80/20" rule, which says that 80 percent of a library's circulation is driven by approximately 20 percent of the collection, may not be accurate." -- Michael Kelly, Library Journal, 9/29/11
No Projector? No Problem. Use QR Codes + SlideShare to Share Your Slides
"Here's a useful and easy social-media option speakers can use to put their slides into the hands of the audience right away--even if there's no projector or the projector's not working. From the SlideShare blog, we learn how: First, upload your slides to SlideShare, the popular website for making slides easily available. Then create a QR or "quick response" code like the graphical bar code at right with a link to the SlideShare version of your presentation. The code embeds an easy-to-scan version of the web address where your slides reside."-- Denise Graveline, The Eloquent Woman, 9/27/11
The Question of Control in the Classroom
"The August 24 post, What Does Your Syllabus Say About You and Your Course?, in which I asked a series of questions designed to encourage revisiting the syllabus in terms of its role in setting course norms and establishing the tone of the course generated some interesting responses. I am always pleased when a post stimulates reaction, including disagreement. This is how we learn and grow as professionals. It also makes blogs worth reading, in my opinion. I do have to say, however, that I found some of the assumptions embedded in the responses troubling. I have been thinking about the issues they raised and thought it might be useful for us to continue the conversation." -- Maryellen Weimer, The Teaching Professor Blog, 9/28/11
Dynamic Views: Seven New Ways to Share Your Blog with the World
"As we said a few weeks ago when we launched a completely rebuilt, streamlined authoring and editing experience, we’re in the process of bringing you a much improved and modernized Blogger. The next phase of these updates starts today with seven new ways to display your blog, called Dynamic Views. Built with the latest in web technology (AJAX, HTML5 and CSS3), Dynamic Views is a unique browsing experience that will inspire your readers to explore your blog in new ways. The interactive layouts make it easier for readers to enjoy and discover your posts, loading 40 percent faster than traditional templates and bringing older entries to the surface so they seem fresh again." -- Antin Harasymiv, Blogger Buzz, 9/27/11
Why I Killed My Facebook Account
"Many Facebook users are in an uproar over new changes, while bigger ones are about to be unveiled. I’ve had a Facebook account since 2005. Today, I killed it. Didn’t just deactivate it, but deleted it. The whole kit-and-kaboodle. Why?" -- Joe Hardenbrook, Mr. Library Dude, 9/25/11
Blended Learning - Cutting Edge Or a Double-Edged Sword
"Instructional Designer and Teacher Kimberly Greene provides deep insights into Brandman University’s implementation of a blended learning environment in their School of Education. In the presentation, Greene discusses the goals of the effort, many of the technologies and approaches used, and identifies what worked well and what they’ve been working to improve." -- K. Walsh, Emerging EdTech, 9/25/11
"OhioLINK and OCLC Research have released a report of, and the data set used in, a joint study of OhioLINK circulation, to better understand the usage patterns of books in academic libraries and support further research in this area. The study, which incorporated usage data from 2007-2008, was limited to books and manuscripts because these materials typically circulate, and circulation is a significant element in evaluating collections." - OhioLINK What's New, 9/29/11
OCLC & OhioLINK Release Extensive Data Sets on Book Usage Patterns in Academic Libraries
"OhioLINK and OCLC Research released on September 21 what is likely the largest and most comprehensive study of academic library circulation ever undertaken. Among the more interesting findings, the "80/20" rule, which says that 80 percent of a library's circulation is driven by approximately 20 percent of the collection, may not be accurate." -- Michael Kelly, Library Journal, 9/29/11
No Projector? No Problem. Use QR Codes + SlideShare to Share Your Slides
"Here's a useful and easy social-media option speakers can use to put their slides into the hands of the audience right away--even if there's no projector or the projector's not working. From the SlideShare blog, we learn how: First, upload your slides to SlideShare, the popular website for making slides easily available. Then create a QR or "quick response" code like the graphical bar code at right with a link to the SlideShare version of your presentation. The code embeds an easy-to-scan version of the web address where your slides reside."-- Denise Graveline, The Eloquent Woman, 9/27/11
The Question of Control in the Classroom
"The August 24 post, What Does Your Syllabus Say About You and Your Course?, in which I asked a series of questions designed to encourage revisiting the syllabus in terms of its role in setting course norms and establishing the tone of the course generated some interesting responses. I am always pleased when a post stimulates reaction, including disagreement. This is how we learn and grow as professionals. It also makes blogs worth reading, in my opinion. I do have to say, however, that I found some of the assumptions embedded in the responses troubling. I have been thinking about the issues they raised and thought it might be useful for us to continue the conversation." -- Maryellen Weimer, The Teaching Professor Blog, 9/28/11
Dynamic Views: Seven New Ways to Share Your Blog with the World
"As we said a few weeks ago when we launched a completely rebuilt, streamlined authoring and editing experience, we’re in the process of bringing you a much improved and modernized Blogger. The next phase of these updates starts today with seven new ways to display your blog, called Dynamic Views. Built with the latest in web technology (AJAX, HTML5 and CSS3), Dynamic Views is a unique browsing experience that will inspire your readers to explore your blog in new ways. The interactive layouts make it easier for readers to enjoy and discover your posts, loading 40 percent faster than traditional templates and bringing older entries to the surface so they seem fresh again." -- Antin Harasymiv, Blogger Buzz, 9/27/11
Why I Killed My Facebook Account
"Many Facebook users are in an uproar over new changes, while bigger ones are about to be unveiled. I’ve had a Facebook account since 2005. Today, I killed it. Didn’t just deactivate it, but deleted it. The whole kit-and-kaboodle. Why?" -- Joe Hardenbrook, Mr. Library Dude, 9/25/11
Blended Learning - Cutting Edge Or a Double-Edged Sword
"Instructional Designer and Teacher Kimberly Greene provides deep insights into Brandman University’s implementation of a blended learning environment in their School of Education. In the presentation, Greene discusses the goals of the effort, many of the technologies and approaches used, and identifies what worked well and what they’ve been working to improve." -- K. Walsh, Emerging EdTech, 9/25/11
Monday, September 26, 2011
2011 ALAO Program & Schedule
Conference Schedule at a Glance
Session Abstracts
Friday, September 23, 2011
Weekly Reader
Transmedia Storytelling (A Fun Way to Blog)
"Ever have one of those days where you’d spend more time thinking about something to write about than actually writing the post itself? That’d be this morning for me! Instead of your traditional blog post, I thought I’d put together a ‘How-To’ video of sorts. I’ve always been fascinated with transmedia storytelling (technique of telling stories across multiple platforms and formats using current digital technologies) and thought I’d use my “slow morning” to provide a very simple example of it. If this is new to you, I think you’ll really appreciate this creative approach to content creation and the various ways you can get really creative with it." -- Chris Vaughn, Social Media Today, 9/21/11
Know Thine Audience
"They are students, they are faculty members. They are hobbyists and autodidacts.
Back in Blackout
"Considering that only 10 to 15 percent of students fully cooperated with the Harrisburg University of Science and Technology’s ban on social media sites last year, the extent to which it succeeded in provoking genuine thought about how (and how much) such sites should be used is debatable. All the more reason to try again -- the operative word being 'try.' 'We did it in the first place last year to raise awareness, particularly in the classroom, about the uses of social media and how it impacts the business of learning,' said Eric Darr, the university’s provost and creator of its now-famous social media blackout. And even though the vast majority of students bypassed the university’s network and logged in to sites such as Facebook via their smartphones or at home (Harrisburg is non-residential), about a quarter reported better concentration, more interest and more productivity in the classroom during the blackout." -- Allie Grasgreen, Inside Higer Ed News, 9/21/11
"Ever have one of those days where you’d spend more time thinking about something to write about than actually writing the post itself? That’d be this morning for me! Instead of your traditional blog post, I thought I’d put together a ‘How-To’ video of sorts. I’ve always been fascinated with transmedia storytelling (technique of telling stories across multiple platforms and formats using current digital technologies) and thought I’d use my “slow morning” to provide a very simple example of it. If this is new to you, I think you’ll really appreciate this creative approach to content creation and the various ways you can get really creative with it." -- Chris Vaughn, Social Media Today, 9/21/11
Know Thine Audience
"They are students, they are faculty members. They are hobbyists and autodidacts.
They still prefer to read texts in print, but they are intrigued by the possibilities of digital, especially when it comes to scanning huge swaths of text for key words and phrases. They travel in herds and pledge allegiance to tribes; their social instincts are stronger than their market instincts. Their actions speak louder than their survey responses." -- Steve Kolowich, Inside Higher Ed News, 9/21/11
"But what has it done for me? Firstly, due to the excellent feedback I have received it has proved my original point that infographics are a wonderful way of communicating. The majority of us are visual creatures, turned on more by the eye, than the depth of detail. To that end, my CV has attracted some lovely comments and in less than a month, 954 downloads. Would my standard CV have received the same level of interest? No chance. So I am embarking on a new journey, to turn our ‘detaily’ product collateral into slick, one page infographics that convey the essence of our key message in a few seconds, rather than a few minutes. As soon as they are complete I will share them with you, together with our current collateral and you can give me your feedback and tell me what you would prefer to receive as a consumer." -- Gareth Case, Social Media Today, 9/20/11
Back in Blackout
"Considering that only 10 to 15 percent of students fully cooperated with the Harrisburg University of Science and Technology’s ban on social media sites last year, the extent to which it succeeded in provoking genuine thought about how (and how much) such sites should be used is debatable. All the more reason to try again -- the operative word being 'try.' 'We did it in the first place last year to raise awareness, particularly in the classroom, about the uses of social media and how it impacts the business of learning,' said Eric Darr, the university’s provost and creator of its now-famous social media blackout. And even though the vast majority of students bypassed the university’s network and logged in to sites such as Facebook via their smartphones or at home (Harrisburg is non-residential), about a quarter reported better concentration, more interest and more productivity in the classroom during the blackout." -- Allie Grasgreen, Inside Higer Ed News, 9/21/11
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
2011 ALAO Conference: Early Bird Registration
ALAO Conference 2011Early Bird Registration Ends September 26th
Register Now!
2011ALAO Conference on November 4th includes:
- Opening keynote from Steven J. Bell, Associate University Librarian at Temple University and ACRL Vice-President/President-Elect.
- Presentations, posters, and spotlight sessions, all centered on change in today’s academic libraries
- Vendor spotlights
- Lunch with colleagues
- Time for networking
ALAO is excited to offer a professionally valuable and engaging pre-conference on November 3rd. The pre-conference features an opening keynote delivered by Lauren Pressley entitled, “Change and Opportunities for Today’s Academic Libraries.” The day continues with a distinguished panel of Ohio academic library leaders discussing ACRL’s “The Value of Academic Libraries: A Comprehensive Research Review and Report.”
Registration is available for the conference only, pre-conference only, or both. Special discount rates available for students, retirees and early registrants.
Waiting for Wonderstruck
After seeing the movie trailer for Hugo while waiting for Harry Potter 7 and remembering how I enjoyed The Adventures of Hugo Cabret, I've been not-so-patiently waiting for our copy of Wonderstruck to arrive in the library. I discussed the books pending arrival during the Mock Caldecott panel last week. I've tried not to read the inevitable discussions and comparisons between Selznick's 2008 Caldecott Award winner Hugo and his newest novel, Wonderstruck. It's been difficult.
Leaving work yesterday, I noticed our copy has arrived (I'll be putting my name on the list). This morning, despite my best intentions, I read an interesting post by Robin Smith on the Horn Book's Calling Caldecott blog. Judging by the number of copies "in process" and "on hold" in OhioLINK, I'm not the only person looking forward to reading Wonderstruck.
Monday, September 19, 2011
ALAO Newsletter, September 2011
The ALAO Newsletter, Vol. 29 No. 3 (Sept 2011), is now available. Featured in this edition are:
- President's Report
- 2011 Conference and Pre-Conference
- Jay Ladd Distinguished Service Award Nominations Sought
- ALAO Interest Groups & Committees
- People and Library News
"We are over 600 members, representing more than 100 libraries, organizations, and businesses. We provide support, encouragement, and continuing education opportunities for academic library staff from all over Ohio through our workshops, annual conference and other programs." -- Welcome to ALAO.
Friday, September 16, 2011
Weekly Reader
Is it Time to Rethink E-Books?
"The father of the e-book passed away last week. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, died Tuesday, September 6, at the age of 64. Considered by most to be the man that jumpstarted the move toward digital books, Hart created the first fully digitized public document by hand-typing the Declaration of Independence into a University of Illinois computer. That was back in 1971, and Project Gutenberg has arguably paved the way for what we now know as e-readers and, most importantly, e-books." --
Thursday Threads: Authors Guild Sues Hathi Trust, Libraries Learn from Blockbuster, Publisher’s View of Self-Publishing
"Legal action against the digitization and limited distribution of orphan works unexpectedly hit the news again this week. This week’s DLTJ Thursday Threads starts with an overview of the lawsuit filed by authors organizations and authors against Hathi Trust over plans to make digital versions of orphan works available to university users. And while we’re wondering of libraries’ role in providing access to digitized works, we should also take note of an article in American Libraries Magazine on what we could learn from Blockbuster’s fall. And lastly, I point to a story of one author’s experience when her own self publishing with Amazon ran afoul of a publisher’s desires." -- Peter Murray, Distruptive Library Technology Blog, 9/15/11
Edit Your Videos with YouTube
"Until now, when you uploaded to YouTube, your video was hosted and shared, but couldn’t really be changed. If you wanted to trim off the end, swap out the soundtrack, or add an effect, you had to edit your video using a separate program and upload again.Starting today, you can edit your uploaded videos right on YouTube and maintain the same video IDs. This means you keep your view count and comments, and all existing links to your video will continue to work. No re-uploading necessary! " -- John Gregg, Broadcasting Ourselves, 9/14/11
Blogger Gets the Last Laugh
"Alex Christensen is getting the last laugh after a blog he created poking fun at his alma mater was shut down, and has now been restored. It started simply enough. After Washington University in St. Louis unveiled its website redesign in December, Christensen, a senior at the time, decided to poke a little fun at his university. He started the blog “Wash U Photo Captions” in December, posting what he calls the “ridiculous” promotional photographs from the university’s new website and adding his own snarky captions." -- Elizabeth Murphy, Inside Higher Ed News, 9/14/11
Cyberbullying 101: Fact vs Fiction (podcast)
"A great deal has been said and written about cyberbullying, but not all of it is true. As Cyberbullying Research Center co-director Justin Patchin said in an interview recently, it's "a concern that we need to take very seriously," but "it's certainly not an epidemic." Cyberbullying, said Patchin, is "bullying behaviors carried out using or facilitated by technology," which includes "a lot of the same kind of things we see at school and in neighborhoods, such as harassment or disrespecting or rumors or gossip that are now being carried out online." [podcast link] -- Larry Magid, CNet News, 9/12/11
"The father of the e-book passed away last week. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, died Tuesday, September 6, at the age of 64. Considered by most to be the man that jumpstarted the move toward digital books, Hart created the first fully digitized public document by hand-typing the Declaration of Independence into a University of Illinois computer. That was back in 1971, and Project Gutenberg has arguably paved the way for what we now know as e-readers and, most importantly, e-books." --
Thursday Threads: Authors Guild Sues Hathi Trust, Libraries Learn from Blockbuster, Publisher’s View of Self-Publishing
"Legal action against the digitization and limited distribution of orphan works unexpectedly hit the news again this week. This week’s DLTJ Thursday Threads starts with an overview of the lawsuit filed by authors organizations and authors against Hathi Trust over plans to make digital versions of orphan works available to university users. And while we’re wondering of libraries’ role in providing access to digitized works, we should also take note of an article in American Libraries Magazine on what we could learn from Blockbuster’s fall. And lastly, I point to a story of one author’s experience when her own self publishing with Amazon ran afoul of a publisher’s desires." -- Peter Murray, Distruptive Library Technology Blog, 9/15/11
Edit Your Videos with YouTube
"Until now, when you uploaded to YouTube, your video was hosted and shared, but couldn’t really be changed. If you wanted to trim off the end, swap out the soundtrack, or add an effect, you had to edit your video using a separate program and upload again.Starting today, you can edit your uploaded videos right on YouTube and maintain the same video IDs. This means you keep your view count and comments, and all existing links to your video will continue to work. No re-uploading necessary! " -- John Gregg, Broadcasting Ourselves, 9/14/11
Blogger Gets the Last Laugh
"Alex Christensen is getting the last laugh after a blog he created poking fun at his alma mater was shut down, and has now been restored. It started simply enough. After Washington University in St. Louis unveiled its website redesign in December, Christensen, a senior at the time, decided to poke a little fun at his university. He started the blog “Wash U Photo Captions” in December, posting what he calls the “ridiculous” promotional photographs from the university’s new website and adding his own snarky captions." -- Elizabeth Murphy, Inside Higher Ed News, 9/14/11
Cyberbullying 101: Fact vs Fiction (podcast)
"A great deal has been said and written about cyberbullying, but not all of it is true. As Cyberbullying Research Center co-director Justin Patchin said in an interview recently, it's "a concern that we need to take very seriously," but "it's certainly not an epidemic." Cyberbullying, said Patchin, is "bullying behaviors carried out using or facilitated by technology," which includes "a lot of the same kind of things we see at school and in neighborhoods, such as harassment or disrespecting or rumors or gossip that are now being carried out online." [podcast link] -- Larry Magid, CNet News, 9/12/11
QR Codes in action (with Mock Caldecott session)
Since 2002, I have had the pleasure of working with a College of Education professor and her children's literature class facilitating a Mock Caldecott session at the beginning of each fall and spring term. Prior to the panel discussion, students have spent several class periods studying picture books, elements of genre and illustrator's artistic style; evaluating the titles presented during our meeting provides
opportunity to put these tools (so to speak) to use.
I select titles that are new to the library, meet basic Caldecott terms and criteria (picture book, year published, and illustrator citizen or resident of United States), and generate a collection with a variety of artistic styles and representation of new and well-known illustrators. This year's resource packet featured a list of titles explored, Caldecott terms and criteria and About the Caldecott Medal, and Caldecott Confidential, a great article from the School Library Journal web site, and the Caldecott section from my Children's Literature Award Book Resource LibGuide. The panel designated Grandpa Green, by Lane Smith, as their winner (you can read more about the Mock Caldecott session here).
Time to tour the IRC before to the panel and peruse collections after completion is scheduled into the visit. The biggest draw after class is routinely our new book area, this year it was split with the QR code literature rack. Several students were intrigued by the different colored codes, armed with cell phones, bar code reader apps, and instruction, they happily checked out several of the resources - including the QR code on their LibGuide
I select titles that are new to the library, meet basic Caldecott terms and criteria (picture book, year published, and illustrator citizen or resident of United States), and generate a collection with a variety of artistic styles and representation of new and well-known illustrators. This year's resource packet featured a list of titles explored, Caldecott terms and criteria and About the Caldecott Medal, and Caldecott Confidential, a great article from the School Library Journal web site, and the Caldecott section from my Children's Literature Award Book Resource LibGuide. The panel designated Grandpa Green, by Lane Smith, as their winner (you can read more about the Mock Caldecott session here).
Time to tour the IRC before to the panel and peruse collections after completion is scheduled into the visit. The biggest draw after class is routinely our new book area, this year it was split with the QR code literature rack. Several students were intrigued by the different colored codes, armed with cell phones, bar code reader apps, and instruction, they happily checked out several of the resources - including the QR code on their LibGuide
State of the Blogosphere Survey
It's that time again, Technorati is conducting their annual State of the Blogsphere survey.
I do read the State of the Blogosphere reports, but haven't used Technorati for some time; one other Library Cloud post is labeled Technorati, it presents the 2010 State of the Blogsphere reported by Tech Crunch. If you are a blogger and interested in participating in the 2011 survey, here's the information (in part) from the Library Cloud inbox this morning."Technorati's State of the Blogosphere series chronicles the rise and evolution of the Blogosphere as we know it. Since 2004 we've seen explosive growth and maturing of this new arm of the fourth estate" (Technorati, 9/16/11).
"We'd love for you to share some information about blogging as your passion or your profession, that we can then share back with you, the bloggers, and everyone who is interested in you. It should take just 15 minutes of your time. The more responses we get the better the data we can deliver to you, so please share this link with other bloggers. http://www.psasurveys.com/detect.aspx?I.Project=a18214"
Friday, September 09, 2011
Weekly Reader
QR Codes Explained by Common Craft
"You may have seen these little codes around. They're in newspapers, on storefronts and products. They're called Quick Response (QR) Codes and they're meant to used with your smartphone. They could be a very big deal in the future. This video is one of our most requested titles and explains how QR codes make the real world clickable." -- Lee Lefever, Common Craft, 9/6/11
To Fix Higher Education, Start by Eliminating Tenure
"No one knows for sure if the higher education is the next "on-the-bubble" industry that is about to burst, but there certainly is considerable concern about the sustainability of traditional higher education. It's not that anyone suspects the top tier institutions are in jeopardy. But with over 3,500 institutions, and many of them struggling to attract sufficient students while balancing their budgets, there is a good chance some will not be here in the next decade. In response to the many problems faced by colleges and universities, a whole host of experts have written books offering solutions for what ails higher education." -- Steven Bell, Library Journal , 9/6/11
(Moral) Hazards of Scanning for Plagiarists: Evidence from Shoplifting
"Students are being scanned as well to make sure that the words in their papers were not swiped from other sources. Scanning papers began a decade ago when anti-plagiarism software was created to compare the phrases of student papers with other sources. The leading anti-plagiarism software is Turnitin, which compares student papers with academic journals, Internet web pages and its library of previously submitted papers. On its home page, Turnitin quotes an instructor as saying, “I used to spend hours on Google searching for unusual wording when I suspected that the paper was not written by the student. Now, I can search quickly with Turnitin!” -- David Harrington, David Harrington Economist, 9/4/11
Trading In ‘.edu’ for ‘.com’
"The news that, after what seems like forever, new Internet domain names will be allowed has sparked conversations among college CIO’s and communication specialists about the limits of the “.edu” domain. The news has also provoked serious talk about what might be gained by trading in those three letters strongly linked to higher education for Web addresses like “yourgreatuniveristyhere.com” or even something that ends in “.weberstate” or “.brownuniversity.”" -- Josh Fischman, The Wired Campus, 9/2/11
"You may have seen these little codes around. They're in newspapers, on storefronts and products. They're called Quick Response (QR) Codes and they're meant to used with your smartphone. They could be a very big deal in the future. This video is one of our most requested titles and explains how QR codes make the real world clickable." -- Lee Lefever, Common Craft, 9/6/11
To Fix Higher Education, Start by Eliminating Tenure
"No one knows for sure if the higher education is the next "on-the-bubble" industry that is about to burst, but there certainly is considerable concern about the sustainability of traditional higher education. It's not that anyone suspects the top tier institutions are in jeopardy. But with over 3,500 institutions, and many of them struggling to attract sufficient students while balancing their budgets, there is a good chance some will not be here in the next decade. In response to the many problems faced by colleges and universities, a whole host of experts have written books offering solutions for what ails higher education." -- Steven Bell, Library Journal , 9/6/11
(Moral) Hazards of Scanning for Plagiarists: Evidence from Shoplifting
"Students are being scanned as well to make sure that the words in their papers were not swiped from other sources. Scanning papers began a decade ago when anti-plagiarism software was created to compare the phrases of student papers with other sources. The leading anti-plagiarism software is Turnitin, which compares student papers with academic journals, Internet web pages and its library of previously submitted papers. On its home page, Turnitin quotes an instructor as saying, “I used to spend hours on Google searching for unusual wording when I suspected that the paper was not written by the student. Now, I can search quickly with Turnitin!” -- David Harrington, David Harrington Economist, 9/4/11
Trading In ‘.edu’ for ‘.com’
"The news that, after what seems like forever, new Internet domain names will be allowed has sparked conversations among college CIO’s and communication specialists about the limits of the “.edu” domain. The news has also provoked serious talk about what might be gained by trading in those three letters strongly linked to higher education for Web addresses like “yourgreatuniveristyhere.com” or even something that ends in “.weberstate” or “.brownuniversity.”" -- Josh Fischman, The Wired Campus, 9/2/11
Friday, September 02, 2011
Weekly Reader
Searching the Library and Beyond: A Graduate Student Perspective
"I just finished my MLS, and one of the issues raised frequently both in and out of the classroom was how to get college students and researchers to use the library website. Academic librarians I’ve talked with have spent hefty amounts of time (and money) designing sites that meet the self-described needs of patrons, but still find most of the searches that guide students to library resources to be coming from Google. I decided to take a look at my own search habits to get a sense of how, from the graduate student perspective, these tools might be employed, and hopefully generate some discussion about searching on the library website and beyond." -- Julia Skinner, ACRLog, 9/1/11
Online Education is Everywhere ... What's the Next Big Thing?
"Like many other colleges, Southern New Hampshire University is experiencing an online-education boom. But look under the hood of its digital learning operation, and what you’ll find in many ways resembles traditional education: students forking over substantial tuition payments to study in small, professor-led classes that last from eight to 11 weeks. So what innovation will put that model out of business? Answering that question will be the responsibility of a new two-person “innovation team” at Southern New Hampshire. It’s an unusual job description: Disrupt the disruptive innovation." -- Marc Parry, Wired Campus, 8/31/11
Stop Blogging - Start Thinking
"Here is what advice they don’t give you at those seminars or e-books on the magical power of business blogging and social media: They don’t tell you that blogging = content creation, i.e. writing (mostly), and for some photography, videography, illustration, etc. That blogging per se is a meaningless word, thrown out there to make it less intimidating for the non-writers amongst us to throw our thoughts into the great wide world of the Internet. That the only differences between writing a blog or writing an article for a newspaper are that with a blog, you will be less likely to suffer public humiliation should it be lousy, and a small but important fact that there is no editor to guide you, help you fix it, or simply say that your content is not worthy of publication." -- Neal Shaffer, Social Media Today, 9/1/11
Where Good Ideas Come From
"As a summer project we read Steven Johnson’s book 'Where Good Ideas Come From: The Natural History of Innovation. It’s a book that while not at all focused on libraries, gave both us a lot of really good ideas about how librarians working with teens can be innovative and work towards innovative practices in their libraries. Below you can read about some of our favorite ideas and how we see connections between them and teen library services." -- Jennifer Larson and Linda Braun, YALSA Blog, 8/30/11
New College Board Research: 86% of Young Americans Believe College is Essential
"New York, NY — One year after graduating from high school, most members of the Class of 2010 believe that earning a college degree is “definitely” worth it, according to a survey released today by the College Board, a not-for-profit organization. The comprehensive survey on college readiness and affordability, One Year Out, explores how young Americans assess their high school experience and its role in preparing them for life after graduation — be it work or postsecondary education." -- Peter Kaufmann (media contact), The College Board, 8/30/11
Nothing Right About this Copyright Ruling
"The world of copyright litigation is getting downright surreal. Recently a court struck down an appeal of a NY case involving reselling books from overseas in the U.S. Essentially, the court ruled that the first sale doctrine applies only to works manufactured in the United States." -- Maura Smale, ACRLog, 8/30/11
Anything I Wanted to Know About Library Marketing I Learned from a Shampoo Bottle
"The always brilliant Ned Potter wrote up a wonderful little primer on library marketing entitled “Three simple marketing rules all libraries should live by…” In his post, he emphasizes marketing the service, dropping the ‘how this works’ explanation, and promote the intersection of what the patron values with what the library values. Or, in other words, to use Pepsi as an example: Pepsi tells you that it refreshes, not that it is made with high fructose corn syrup and other ingredients; there is no Pepsi ad that walks you through how it is made; and Pepsi and its customers are both enjoy sugary caffeinated drinks and work to promote that relationship." -- Andy Woodworth, Agnostic, Maybe, 8/25/11
"I just finished my MLS, and one of the issues raised frequently both in and out of the classroom was how to get college students and researchers to use the library website. Academic librarians I’ve talked with have spent hefty amounts of time (and money) designing sites that meet the self-described needs of patrons, but still find most of the searches that guide students to library resources to be coming from Google. I decided to take a look at my own search habits to get a sense of how, from the graduate student perspective, these tools might be employed, and hopefully generate some discussion about searching on the library website and beyond." -- Julia Skinner, ACRLog, 9/1/11
Online Education is Everywhere ... What's the Next Big Thing?
"Like many other colleges, Southern New Hampshire University is experiencing an online-education boom. But look under the hood of its digital learning operation, and what you’ll find in many ways resembles traditional education: students forking over substantial tuition payments to study in small, professor-led classes that last from eight to 11 weeks. So what innovation will put that model out of business? Answering that question will be the responsibility of a new two-person “innovation team” at Southern New Hampshire. It’s an unusual job description: Disrupt the disruptive innovation." -- Marc Parry, Wired Campus, 8/31/11
Stop Blogging - Start Thinking
"Here is what advice they don’t give you at those seminars or e-books on the magical power of business blogging and social media: They don’t tell you that blogging = content creation, i.e. writing (mostly), and for some photography, videography, illustration, etc. That blogging per se is a meaningless word, thrown out there to make it less intimidating for the non-writers amongst us to throw our thoughts into the great wide world of the Internet. That the only differences between writing a blog or writing an article for a newspaper are that with a blog, you will be less likely to suffer public humiliation should it be lousy, and a small but important fact that there is no editor to guide you, help you fix it, or simply say that your content is not worthy of publication." -- Neal Shaffer, Social Media Today, 9/1/11
Where Good Ideas Come From
"As a summer project we read Steven Johnson’s book 'Where Good Ideas Come From: The Natural History of Innovation. It’s a book that while not at all focused on libraries, gave both us a lot of really good ideas about how librarians working with teens can be innovative and work towards innovative practices in their libraries. Below you can read about some of our favorite ideas and how we see connections between them and teen library services." -- Jennifer Larson and Linda Braun, YALSA Blog, 8/30/11
New College Board Research: 86% of Young Americans Believe College is Essential
"New York, NY — One year after graduating from high school, most members of the Class of 2010 believe that earning a college degree is “definitely” worth it, according to a survey released today by the College Board, a not-for-profit organization. The comprehensive survey on college readiness and affordability, One Year Out, explores how young Americans assess their high school experience and its role in preparing them for life after graduation — be it work or postsecondary education." -- Peter Kaufmann (media contact), The College Board, 8/30/11
Nothing Right About this Copyright Ruling
"The world of copyright litigation is getting downright surreal. Recently a court struck down an appeal of a NY case involving reselling books from overseas in the U.S. Essentially, the court ruled that the first sale doctrine applies only to works manufactured in the United States." -- Maura Smale, ACRLog, 8/30/11
Anything I Wanted to Know About Library Marketing I Learned from a Shampoo Bottle
"The always brilliant Ned Potter wrote up a wonderful little primer on library marketing entitled “Three simple marketing rules all libraries should live by…” In his post, he emphasizes marketing the service, dropping the ‘how this works’ explanation, and promote the intersection of what the patron values with what the library values. Or, in other words, to use Pepsi as an example: Pepsi tells you that it refreshes, not that it is made with high fructose corn syrup and other ingredients; there is no Pepsi ad that walks you through how it is made; and Pepsi and its customers are both enjoy sugary caffeinated drinks and work to promote that relationship." -- Andy Woodworth, Agnostic, Maybe, 8/25/11
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
The Digital Revolution and Higher Education
A new Pew Internet and American Life project was released on Monday (8/28) discussing online learning, and educational value; respondants for this particular survey were college presidents and the general public.
The Digital Revolution and Higher Education
"This report is based on findings from a pair of Pew Research Center surveys conducted in spring 2011. One is a telephone survey of a nationally representative sample of 2,142 adults ages 18 and older. The other is an online survey, done in association with the Chronicle of Higher Education, among the presidents of 1,055 two-year and four-year private, public, and for-profit colleges and universities." -- Kim Parker, Amanda Lenhart, and Kathleen Moore (8/28/11)
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Preconference @ ALAO Annual 2011
37th Annual Conference
Constant Change, Constant Opportunity
Toledo, Ohio @ Hilton Toledo
Pre-Conference — November 3rd, 2011
The Academic Library Association of Ohio is excited to offer a pre-conference this year, with a lineup that promises to be professionally valuable and engaging. The pre-conference kicks off with an opening keynote delivered by Lauren Pressley http://laurenpressley.com/library entitled, “Change and Opportunities for Today’s Academic Libraries.” Ms. Pressley is an Instructional Design Librarian at Wake Forest University, and is the author of So You Want to Be a Librarian and Wikis for Libraries.
Additionally, the pre-conference agenda includes a panel discussion on ACRL’s The Value of Academic Libraries: A Comprehensive Research Review and Report http://www.acrl.ala.org/value/ with a panel of the following Ohio academic library leaders:
- John Burke, Director, Gardner-Harvey Library, Miami University Middletown (panel moderator)
- Sara Bushong, Dean of Libraries, Bowling Green State University (panelist)
- Susan Scott, Director of the Library, Ohio State University – Newark Campus (panelist)
- Kathleen Webb, Dean of University Libraries, University of Dayton (panelist)
- Al Zavar, Director, West Campus Library, Cuyahoga Community College (panelist)
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Say Something Nice
I found this a great way to start my week. Featured on the August 26th edition of This Weeks Trends from the Official YouTube Blog is a fun video from ImproveAnywhere, illustrating if you give people a chance they just may Say Something Nice.
My favorite is the young boy quoting Buzz Light Year, "to infinity and beyond."
I forgot to say something nice! Today is the first Sunday the library is open for the 2011 fall term; it is nice to see so many students making use of the library, picking up and requesting books, working alone, in pairs, and in groups, and generally going about their business simply happy to be here (we are happy they are here, too).
My favorite is the young boy quoting Buzz Light Year, "to infinity and beyond."
I forgot to say something nice! Today is the first Sunday the library is open for the 2011 fall term; it is nice to see so many students making use of the library, picking up and requesting books, working alone, in pairs, and in groups, and generally going about their business simply happy to be here (we are happy they are here, too).
Friday, August 26, 2011
Weekly Reader
65% of Adults Use Social Networking Sites
"Fully 65% of adult internet users now say they use a social networking site like MySpace, Facebook or LinkedIn, up from 61% one year ago. This marks the first time in Pew Internet surveys that 50% of all adults use social networking sites. The frequency of social networking site usage among young adult internet users under age 30 was stable over the last year – 61% of online Americans in that age cohort now use social networking sites on a typical day, compared with 60% one year ago. However, among the Boomer-aged segment of internet users ages 50-64, social networking site usage on a typical day grew a significant 60% (from 20% to 32%)." -- Mary Madden & Kathryn Zickuhr, Pew Research Center, 8/26/11
Google Plus vs. Facebook ...What's the Difference?
"On 28th June, 2011 Google rolled out the beta version of its highly anticipated social networking site, Google Plus. It is no secret that Google has long been wanting to get a slice of the social networking market. So, what exactly is Google Plus and how does it compare to Facebook? In this post we are going to look at Google Plus Versus Facebook and examine some of their major differences." -- Louise Steiner, Social Media Today, 8/26/11
Not Guilty ... and Not Long Employed
"A Georgia jury has acquitted Frank J. Rybicki, assistant professor of mass media at Valdosta State University, of battery charges related to his shutting the laptop of a student in one of his classes in March. Rybicki denied hurting the student's finger, as she alleged, but said that professors have every right to shut a laptop when a student violates class rules or is rude by surfing the Web rather than using a laptop to take notes. Valdosta State, which removed Rybicki from teaching duties (but didn't change his salary) after the incident, has cleared him to return to teaching. However, in July, before his trial, the university informed Rybicki that this academic year would be his last." -- Inside Higer Ed News, 8/25/11
5 Steps to a Successful QR Marketing Campaign
"Are you wondering how to use QR codes to enhance your marketing? Keep reading to learn some tips for implementing 5 essential steps. Why QR codes? QR and other two-dimensional (2D) codes can be readily integrated into your current business marketing practices to bring your online content to a mobile audience in real time." -- Jeff Korhan, Social Media Examiner, 8/24/11
"Fully 65% of adult internet users now say they use a social networking site like MySpace, Facebook or LinkedIn, up from 61% one year ago. This marks the first time in Pew Internet surveys that 50% of all adults use social networking sites. The frequency of social networking site usage among young adult internet users under age 30 was stable over the last year – 61% of online Americans in that age cohort now use social networking sites on a typical day, compared with 60% one year ago. However, among the Boomer-aged segment of internet users ages 50-64, social networking site usage on a typical day grew a significant 60% (from 20% to 32%)." -- Mary Madden & Kathryn Zickuhr, Pew Research Center, 8/26/11
Google Plus vs. Facebook ...What's the Difference?
"On 28th June, 2011 Google rolled out the beta version of its highly anticipated social networking site, Google Plus. It is no secret that Google has long been wanting to get a slice of the social networking market. So, what exactly is Google Plus and how does it compare to Facebook? In this post we are going to look at Google Plus Versus Facebook and examine some of their major differences." -- Louise Steiner, Social Media Today, 8/26/11
Not Guilty ... and Not Long Employed
"A Georgia jury has acquitted Frank J. Rybicki, assistant professor of mass media at Valdosta State University, of battery charges related to his shutting the laptop of a student in one of his classes in March. Rybicki denied hurting the student's finger, as she alleged, but said that professors have every right to shut a laptop when a student violates class rules or is rude by surfing the Web rather than using a laptop to take notes. Valdosta State, which removed Rybicki from teaching duties (but didn't change his salary) after the incident, has cleared him to return to teaching. However, in July, before his trial, the university informed Rybicki that this academic year would be his last." -- Inside Higer Ed News, 8/25/11
5 Steps to a Successful QR Marketing Campaign
"Are you wondering how to use QR codes to enhance your marketing? Keep reading to learn some tips for implementing 5 essential steps. Why QR codes? QR and other two-dimensional (2D) codes can be readily integrated into your current business marketing practices to bring your online content to a mobile audience in real time." -- Jeff Korhan, Social Media Examiner, 8/24/11
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
2011 ALAO Conference
37th Annual Conference
Constant Change, Constant Opportunity
Toledo, Ohio @ Hilton Toledo
November 3rd- 4th 2011
ALAO Welcomes Keynote Speaker Steven J. Bell
The ALAO 2011 Conference features an opening keynote from Steven J. Bell, Associate University Librarian at Temple University and ACRL Vice-President/Present-Elect. His presentation,Change + Design = Innovation: Taking a Design Approach to Achieve Innovation From Change, will explore how academic librarians can apply a design approach, a process that designers use to identify problems and develop thoughtful solutions, in their libraries to stimulate ideation, innovation and implementation in times of constant change.
ALAO 2011 Conference lineup includes:
- Presentations, posters, and spotlight sessions, all centered on change in today’s academic libraries
- Vendor spotlights
- Lunch with colleagues
- Plenty of time for networking
- Much, much more!
Thursday, November 3, 2011
The pre-conference includes an opening keynote delivered by Lauren Pressley, Instructional Design Librarian at Wake Forest University, entitled, “Change and Opportunities for Today’s Academic Libraries.” A panel discussion on ACRL’s The Value of Academic Libraries: A Comprehensive Research Review and Report features a panel of Ohio academic library leaders. Lunch and time for networking with colleagues is included in the preconference price.
Registration Now Open!
Save money with early bird registration, available now through September 24, 2011.
Register for the conference only, pre-conference only, or both conferences today. Special discount rates available for students, retirees and early registrants. Visit the conference registration page for more information.
Monday, August 22, 2011
Library Cloud: 5 Years
Today is our five year anniversary! On August 22, 2006 the first official post was a short "Coming Soon" introduction presenting the Library Cloud blogging team. A number of posts later, 466 to be exact, we are still talking about libraries, technology, education, conferences, LibGuides, and those tidbits of information we find interesting.
Blogger Stats (2009-2011): Most Popular Posts
Feedburner Stats (2006-2011): Top Items
Popular Blog Labels (2006-2011)
Labels were not available at first, but soon after we began The New Version of Blogger was introduced along with a Labels Management Tool for Blogger in Beta (what is now Blogger in Draft, I think) that featured an easy way to go back through previous posts and add labels. Not all of the old posts have labels, but here's our top ten frequently used labels (sans 'at lunch').
Blogger Stats (2009-2011): Most Popular Posts
Feedburner Stats (2006-2011): Top Items
Popular Blog Labels (2006-2011)
Labels were not available at first, but soon after we began The New Version of Blogger was introduced along with a Labels Management Tool for Blogger in Beta (what is now Blogger in Draft, I think) that featured an easy way to go back through previous posts and add labels. Not all of the old posts have labels, but here's our top ten frequently used labels (sans 'at lunch').
- ALAO (60)
- Academic Library (49)
- Conferences (36)
- ALAO Conferences (34)
- Workshops (30)
- Weekly Reader (27)
- Technology (26)
- CMCIG (25)
- ALA Annual (23)
- CIL2010 (21)
Friday, August 19, 2011
Weekly Reader
Why Social Media is Like High School
"Well, here we are again. Social (a.k.a. clique) Media! Grown up popularity contests all over again- with the most gigantic popularity clique EVER! Ever get that “nobody likes me” blues from Facebook? Your invitation for friendship “denied!” Ouch! No Re-tweets from your Twitter? Crickets – from Linkedin? Seriously, how does someone get 39,458 friends or followers? All I can say is Welcome Back, Mr. Cotter [Kotter]!"-- Joleen Halloran, Social Media Today, 8/19/11
Is Facebook Mature Enough to be a Portal Solution?
"It seems like Facebook is everywhere these days. With more than 750 million active users the site is a juggernaut. Facebook is an unstoppable social force that when used for good has been the catalyst for a 7 year social media revolution. Higher education has adopted and adapted Facebook for a variety of reasons including: marketing/communications, course participation, academic advising information, roommate matching, and retention/community building, alumni development, and commencement live-streaming." -- Eric Stoller, Student Affairs and Technology, 8/17/11
How to Combine QR Codes with the Power of Facebook
Designed QR Codes: The Next Level
"Say what you will about QR (Quick Response) codes: they are just a fad, they will be forgotten once augmented reality takes hold or they’re just an extra step in inputting a URL but they are here and people are enjoying using them, so make the most of them! QR codes, if you haven’t heard of them or clicked the link above to see the whole explanation, are scanned via a reader application (usually on your smart phone) that will take you to a video or web page.They have been used in Japan for over a decade (invented by a Toyota subsidiary, Densu Wave), and now the rest of the world is catching up. Why not just have the URL and let people hand key it in on their cell phones? WHAT? And make people actually expend energy? Charlatan!Seriously, you can’t fight technology so make the best of it." -- Speider Schneider, Web Designer Depot, 8/15/11
An Email Experiment Helps a Duke Economist Ponder His Students' Cheating Hearts
"As the fall semester approaches, a word of advice to students: If you’re absolutely determined to cheat, do it in a course taught by a professor who’s obsessed with cheating. Your behavior will depress him, but he’ll at least have the consolation of a deeper understanding of the problem." -- David Glenn, Wired Campus, 8/10/11
Unsinkable? Peer to Peer Review
"It turns out book publishing isn't crashing and burning after all. A new report out from the Association of American Publishers and the Book Industry Study Group finds that over the past three years and during the worst recession since the Great Depression publishers are making money, even growing. This is a surprise considering everything I hear from the published - advances are down, midlist writers are being dropped, writers who have been doing well are getting less marketing support, and aspiring writers are increasingly assuming they'll never be published the traditional way. It also is a surprise considering what we've been hearing from publishers, some of whom won't let libraries loan ebooks until they can figure out how to make more money, even though an ebook already costs a library far more than the same book in print and loaned under the same constraints." -- Barbara Fister, Library Journal, 8/11/11
"Well, here we are again. Social (a.k.a. clique) Media! Grown up popularity contests all over again- with the most gigantic popularity clique EVER! Ever get that “nobody likes me” blues from Facebook? Your invitation for friendship “denied!” Ouch! No Re-tweets from your Twitter? Crickets – from Linkedin? Seriously, how does someone get 39,458 friends or followers? All I can say is Welcome Back, Mr. Cotter [Kotter]!"-- Joleen Halloran, Social Media Today, 8/19/11
Is Facebook Mature Enough to be a Portal Solution?
"It seems like Facebook is everywhere these days. With more than 750 million active users the site is a juggernaut. Facebook is an unstoppable social force that when used for good has been the catalyst for a 7 year social media revolution. Higher education has adopted and adapted Facebook for a variety of reasons including: marketing/communications, course participation, academic advising information, roommate matching, and retention/community building, alumni development, and commencement live-streaming." -- Eric Stoller, Student Affairs and Technology, 8/17/11
How to Combine QR Codes with the Power of Facebook
"Are you looking to leverage the popularity of QR (Quick Response) codes with the wide-spread adoption of Facebook? Over the past several months, QR codes have inserted themselves squarely into digital media conversation (even appearing on late-night TV). In this article, I’ll unpack how to get your QR codes to go viral on Facebook. I’ll start by walking you through the process and an example campaign, and conclude with an analytical discussion examining five need to know factors." -- Kane Russell, Social Media Examiner, 8/18/11
Designed QR Codes: The Next Level
"Say what you will about QR (Quick Response) codes: they are just a fad, they will be forgotten once augmented reality takes hold or they’re just an extra step in inputting a URL but they are here and people are enjoying using them, so make the most of them! QR codes, if you haven’t heard of them or clicked the link above to see the whole explanation, are scanned via a reader application (usually on your smart phone) that will take you to a video or web page.They have been used in Japan for over a decade (invented by a Toyota subsidiary, Densu Wave), and now the rest of the world is catching up. Why not just have the URL and let people hand key it in on their cell phones? WHAT? And make people actually expend energy? Charlatan!Seriously, you can’t fight technology so make the best of it." -- Speider Schneider, Web Designer Depot, 8/15/11
An Email Experiment Helps a Duke Economist Ponder His Students' Cheating Hearts
"As the fall semester approaches, a word of advice to students: If you’re absolutely determined to cheat, do it in a course taught by a professor who’s obsessed with cheating. Your behavior will depress him, but he’ll at least have the consolation of a deeper understanding of the problem." -- David Glenn, Wired Campus, 8/10/11
Unsinkable? Peer to Peer Review
"It turns out book publishing isn't crashing and burning after all. A new report out from the Association of American Publishers and the Book Industry Study Group finds that over the past three years and during the worst recession since the Great Depression publishers are making money, even growing. This is a surprise considering everything I hear from the published - advances are down, midlist writers are being dropped, writers who have been doing well are getting less marketing support, and aspiring writers are increasingly assuming they'll never be published the traditional way. It also is a surprise considering what we've been hearing from publishers, some of whom won't let libraries loan ebooks until they can figure out how to make more money, even though an ebook already costs a library far more than the same book in print and loaned under the same constraints." -- Barbara Fister, Library Journal, 8/11/11
Thursday, August 18, 2011
In Pictures
As a classroom teacher, empty bulletin boards and learning centers generally signified the end of a successful year - or a fresh start to a new year filled with anticipation. The same can be said about bulletin boards in the IRC; while updated periodically throughout a term with new books and resources, completely empty boards are a rarity.It is a 'no brainer' to remove faded and dated materials from the bulletin boards in the IRC. Crafting new information can be an intriguing conundrum, should they be refreshed with updated images and paper or should they have new topics? Boards in the IRC are instructional and informational in nature, they provide directions for laminating and Ellison machines, covers for new books, reviews for books added to the collection, and general price lists for services. Naturally location matters, laminating and Ellison directions are placed above the machines and the price list adjacent to the register.
After mapping out a plan of attack for the empty boards (tables and graphs were detailed!) and waiting for an order placed for fade-resistant paper, seven new bulletin boards are in place for incoming and returning students using the IRC. Two of three pictured here feature directions for using the desk top and roll top laminators; the third provides extended information on QR Codes (use and available apps for phones). One week before the students return, I'm wondering if there is space for another board or two.
Friday, August 12, 2011
Weekly Reader
Six Ways to Motivate Employees To Be On-Board with Social Media
"So you have committed to incorporating social media into your marketing objectives. You may have even hired a social media agency to help manage and jumpstart your Twitter and Facebook marketing efforts. Your platforms have been setup, integrated, customized with graphics that fit with your brand and strategies are in place to grow your presence. However, one obvious puzzle piece seems to be missing. Your employees don’t seem to have an active role in your social media initiative. Why is this? Because you haven’t empowered, motivated, educated or inspired them to do so!" -- Krysty Petrucci, Social Media Today, 8/10/11
Lessons from Bossypants: Women and Leadership
"When I was elected chair of my department this past semester, I did two things immediately. First, I sent out a tweet asking for resources, suggestions, and advice. Second, I bought Tina Fey's Bossypants -- on audiobook, of course, so I could listen to her reading it." -- Janine Utel, University of Venus, 8/9/11
The Definitive Source for Information About IT Issues Effecting Higher Education
"Several weeks ago, it was my sincere pleasure to attend a dinner hosted Casey Green, the man behind the Campus Computing Project. For those who may not be familiar with this 20+ year old effort, it is an exemplary data collection, analysis, and reporting project focused on the use of IT in Higher Ed." -- K. Walsh, Emerging Ed Tech, 8/10/11
Video Forum: Students Assess Their Professors Technology Skills
"The classroom technology that professors enthusiastically attempt doesn’t always get a warm welcome from the students out in the lecture hall, especially when gadgets feel gimmicky or class time is wasted as instructors fumble with gear. To get a sense of just what students think of their professors’ classroom technology use, The Chronicle invited four tech-savvy students to weigh in on the best—and worst— moments in classroom technology they have seen. The discussion was held last week in an online video chat using Google Plus, and recorded using a screen-capture program. Check out highlights from the discussion in the embedded video." -- Jeff Young, Wired Campus, 8/8/11
Google, Mozilla Team Up To Create a Smarter, Action Based Web
"Google has announced a new set of APIs for its Chrome web browser, which are designed to connect applications and sites across the web. Web Intents, as Google is calling its new meta-website API, allows websites to pass data between each other — for example, to edit a photograph or share a URL with friends. Developers at Mozilla have been working on a similar framework for Firefox, and now Google says it will work with Mozilla to develop a single API that works in both web browsers." -- Scott Gilbertson, WebMonkey, 8/8/11
The Best Online Presentation Tools: Top Picks
"A few months back, I featured some nifty screen capture tools for making video tutorials, or screencasts, to share with students and teachers. While screencasts are great, sometimes you need to be on hand to offer live help to people who can’t meet with you in person. In those cases, a live, online presentation is the way to go. The following tools enable you to offer assistance in real-time on the Web. All are free or offer basic versions of the service at no cost." -- Richard Byrne, School Library Journal, 8/1/11
Librarians at University of Minnesota Make an Impact with Data Management Program
"Librarians at the University of Minnesota have stepped up to help researchers manage their digital data and, in the process, have highlighted the value of the University Libraries within the larger institution. Under the direction of Lisa Johnston, a research services librarian at the University Libraries and a codirector of the University Digital Conservancy (UDC), the library has created a program called Managing Your Data, which guides researchers in the creation of data management plans (DMP)." -- Michael Kelley, Library Journal, 8/8/11
"So you have committed to incorporating social media into your marketing objectives. You may have even hired a social media agency to help manage and jumpstart your Twitter and Facebook marketing efforts. Your platforms have been setup, integrated, customized with graphics that fit with your brand and strategies are in place to grow your presence. However, one obvious puzzle piece seems to be missing. Your employees don’t seem to have an active role in your social media initiative. Why is this? Because you haven’t empowered, motivated, educated or inspired them to do so!" -- Krysty Petrucci, Social Media Today, 8/10/11
Lessons from Bossypants: Women and Leadership
"When I was elected chair of my department this past semester, I did two things immediately. First, I sent out a tweet asking for resources, suggestions, and advice. Second, I bought Tina Fey's Bossypants -- on audiobook, of course, so I could listen to her reading it." -- Janine Utel, University of Venus, 8/9/11
The Definitive Source for Information About IT Issues Effecting Higher Education
"Several weeks ago, it was my sincere pleasure to attend a dinner hosted Casey Green, the man behind the Campus Computing Project. For those who may not be familiar with this 20+ year old effort, it is an exemplary data collection, analysis, and reporting project focused on the use of IT in Higher Ed." -- K. Walsh, Emerging Ed Tech, 8/10/11
Video Forum: Students Assess Their Professors Technology Skills
"The classroom technology that professors enthusiastically attempt doesn’t always get a warm welcome from the students out in the lecture hall, especially when gadgets feel gimmicky or class time is wasted as instructors fumble with gear. To get a sense of just what students think of their professors’ classroom technology use, The Chronicle invited four tech-savvy students to weigh in on the best—and worst— moments in classroom technology they have seen. The discussion was held last week in an online video chat using Google Plus, and recorded using a screen-capture program. Check out highlights from the discussion in the embedded video." -- Jeff Young, Wired Campus, 8/8/11
Google, Mozilla Team Up To Create a Smarter, Action Based Web
"Google has announced a new set of APIs for its Chrome web browser, which are designed to connect applications and sites across the web. Web Intents, as Google is calling its new meta-website API, allows websites to pass data between each other — for example, to edit a photograph or share a URL with friends. Developers at Mozilla have been working on a similar framework for Firefox, and now Google says it will work with Mozilla to develop a single API that works in both web browsers." -- Scott Gilbertson, WebMonkey, 8/8/11
The Best Online Presentation Tools: Top Picks
"A few months back, I featured some nifty screen capture tools for making video tutorials, or screencasts, to share with students and teachers. While screencasts are great, sometimes you need to be on hand to offer live help to people who can’t meet with you in person. In those cases, a live, online presentation is the way to go. The following tools enable you to offer assistance in real-time on the Web. All are free or offer basic versions of the service at no cost." -- Richard Byrne, School Library Journal, 8/1/11
Librarians at University of Minnesota Make an Impact with Data Management Program
"Librarians at the University of Minnesota have stepped up to help researchers manage their digital data and, in the process, have highlighted the value of the University Libraries within the larger institution. Under the direction of Lisa Johnston, a research services librarian at the University Libraries and a codirector of the University Digital Conservancy (UDC), the library has created a program called Managing Your Data, which guides researchers in the creation of data management plans (DMP)." -- Michael Kelley, Library Journal, 8/8/11
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