This Week in Best of PubLib 11.08.09

Best of Publib Current Topics and Archives

This week  in  Best of Publib covers the week of November 2nd through November 8th. This week includes questions about collection management,  discussions about language learning systems , library crime,  and the do’s and don’ts of library work. Some of the topics we will be reviewing include:

• Topic   »    Major news regarding Highwood (IL) PL  – Karen Turk brings us news of library board members being dismissed – Does this create a new precedent?
• Topic   »    CDs – Cataloging and displaying – Donald Crews in Union, Kentucky wants to know how you organize your CD collections -
• Topic   »    Help finding a website on library legal issues – Elizabeth Fraser wants to locate a website for library legalities – Diedre Conkling recommends LibraryLaw
• Topic   »    V-ness – In a twist of the discussion on the Oak Brook incident – M. McGrorty in Los Angeles tries to define the nature of vileness – Does gender weigh heavily or is vileness a universal condition?
• Topic   »    Waiver of Responsibility for Displayed Art – Sue Violino in Norwalk, CT is looking for examples of art display waivers – Is public art a public risk?
• Topic   »    A Spoooky Tale of Shameless Self Promotion -  David Wright the Seattle Public Library is telling stories on NPR – Listen !
• Topic   »    Social networking policies – PubLib moderator Karen Schneider is looking for examples – How do you control in-house 2.o use?
• Topic   »    50 things [library staff] should never do – Tom Cooper in Webster Groves, Missouri is creating a list – Are there more do’s than don’ts?
• Topic   »    Language Learning Systems – Natalie Morgan wants to know what you are using – Byki , Mango , PowerSpeak and Tell Me More  get recommended.
• Topic   »    library robberies – The 50 things discussion diverged into library crime – what will they steal next?
• Topic   »    MA Library in trouble – Melissa Mannon gave us the news that the Massachusetts State Library is under the gun – what is the governor thinking?
• Topic   »    Library Jobs – There is a new tool available – maybe it can help you!
• Topic   »    Helping Friends – Marita Squires in Oregon wants to know your policies for staff helping Library Friends - When is helping friends hurting staff?
• Topic   »    Trackball Abductions – are trackballs being abused or is this a false memory? – PubLib members want to know!

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This Week in Best of PubLib 11.01.09

Best of Publib Current Topics and Archives

This week  in  Best of Publib covers the week of October 26th through November 1st. This week includes questions about collection development, thought provoking discussions about intellectual property rights and enemies of libraries , reference librarian development,  and the value of library Ph.d programs. Some of the topics we will be reviewing include:

• Topic   »    Creative display ideas – Robin Shader in Georgia would like your ideas for a display workshop – Abbey Dunlap has many!
• Topic   »     Best book of the year – David Faulkner wants to know – What has been your favorite ___ this year? – Not just for books!
• Topic   »    PLA Room Share wiki for 2010 – Kathleen Hughes and Brenda Dowling want you to ‘get a room’.
• Topic   »    Intellectual property rights – Michael McGrorty points to this Chicago Tribune article - cd ownership – Is ripping from a Library CD ripping off?
• Topic   »    Facebook courses – France Meadows would like to know if you have taught courses on Facebook. 
• Topic   »    Community resource websites – Kim Braun in Chester, PA would like examples of community resource websites.  Looks like a job for Drupal!
• Topic   »    Cat litter redux – Phalbe Henriksen in Taylorsville, NC wants to know - Does cat litter preserve library materials?
• Topic   »    Shelving plan expertise – Pam Kiesner in Bellingham, WA asks for the best method of reshelving – What is most efficient?
• Topic   »    Ph.D. Program in Library Science - Judith Turner questions the real value of the Ph. D – Is the MLS the real terminal degree?
• Topic   »    Career change – A new MLS want to know how to get her foot in the door - In the current economy, how do you start?
• Topic   »    Reference Department Structure – Carrie Herrman in Burlington, KY would like help developing management skills for reference librarians?
• Topic   »    Looking for libraries with gardens - Mary Jordan at Simmons is looking for examples of library gardens - How does your garden grow?
• Topic   »    Oak Brook, the Attorney and the Teamsters – Kathy Berggren offers this story of a library community undermined in Oak Brook, IL  -  How do we respond?

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This Week in Best of PubLib

Best of Publib Current Topics and Archives

This week  in  Best of Publib covers the week of October 19th through October 25th. This week includes discussions about collection development, thought provoking discussions about Blue-ray vs DVD and overdue fines , unanswerable questions,  and irksome library phrases. Some of the topics we will be reviewing include:

• Topic   » All Star Line-Up for PLA 2010 – Kathleen Hughes reports on the authors coming to Portland, OR  in March 2010.
• Topic   » Jane Austen read alike - Director Mamie Ney in Maine wants your recommendations for her book group.
• Topic   »  Non-resident use - Steve Benson and others continue the discussion on Charging for Internet Access – what is your philosophy?
• Topic   » Uses for catalog cards - Pat Kaufman in New York asks how you use catalog cards – Are you displaying them artistically?
• Topic   » Internet home pages –  Melissa Davidson wants to know your homepage – is your library homepage a local portal?
• Topic   »  Shelving test – How do you test shelvers’ knowledge of classification systems - software? – algorithms? - Sue Kamm and others came up with some simple solutions. 
• Topic   »  H1N1 Plans – Elizabeth Fraser in West Virginia is planning for the worst – What system do you have in place for a large outbreak?
• Topic   »  Blue-ray vs. DVD – Marla in Montana wants to know collection development guidelines for Blue-ray and standard DVD – Who collects what and why?
• Topic   » Pros and cons of charging overdue fines – Do you charge fines?  If you don’t – why not?
• Topic   » Unanswerable questions – Catherine Wiggins in Myrtle Beach, SC is putting together  a list of unanswerable questions - How many are there?
• Topic   » Library Journal released Placements & Salaries Survey 2009 - What are the new career trends for the recession?
• Topic   » Career databases – Ashely Biggs in LA is looking for career databases to serve the needs of high school students – Who has the best articles?
• Topic   » Point of order – Michael McGorty wants to know what is off topic for PubLib – Are intellectual discussions affecting collection development allowed?
• Topic   » Friday rant – Joe Schallan would like to know what library words/phrases should be retired – What phrase irks you the most?

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This Week in Best of Publib

Best of Publib Current Topics and Archives

This week  in  Best of Publib covers the weeks of September 28th through October 18th. These last weeks include discussions about food for fines and collection development, thought provoking discussions about drug testing Friends groups and  cataloging Obama , post mortem niceties,  and the relevance of Teamster librarians. Some of the topics we will be reviewing include:

• Topic -  Children and technology – Should we give them what they want or tell them what they should want?
• Topic -  f32bb3e838340b8318b565ac7e59477d3b5c775d - Do we confirm, deny or neither?
• Topic -  PubLib list moderator Karen Schneider is on the move again - Is Oakland ready for her? – Will Tallahassee ever be the same?
• Topic -  ALA-APA seeks course providers – But writers ask ‘At what cost’?
• Topic -  The cashless library? Is your money is no good here anymore?
• Topic -  Food for fines revisited – How do you balance the budget and still help the less fortunate? 
• Topic -   NYPL staffer Esther Averill’s and her Jenny Linsky books.
• Topic -   - Patrons and back packs - should there be different rules for teens?
• Topic -   – Vacation messages – housekeeping your email settings – Should you use Gmail for Publib?
• Topic -   – Foreign language collection development - What are the best sources?
• Topic -   – Downloadable audiobooks – What resources are available other than Overdrive?
• Topic -   - Selling thumb drive / usb devices – Elizabeth Fraser in Charleston WV explores cost management.
• Topic -   – Sign me up – Does the brand of union affect the outcome of negotiations? Does a Teamster librarian have more clout?
• Topic -   - Is there a nicer name for post mortem ? Phalbe Henriksen from the great State of North Carolina asks for a less morbid descriptor.
• Topic -   – Room use and background / drug tests for Friends groups in New York – Do you ask your Friends to pee in a cup?
• Topic -   – Cataloging  Obama – Pre-Obama presidency and post-election materials cataloging rules investigated – Where do you shelve the President?
• Topic -   - What are libraries charging for non-resident use of the Internet? What are the new economics – how are costs recovered from transient patrons?
• Topic -   – Library Drug policies – Do you have a library Drug Czar or needle sharing programs?  Do you just say ‘know’?
• Topic -   - Our time – Michael McGorty provides a thoughtful  link to this LATimes homeless story   - from the richest country on earth.

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This Week in Best of PubLib

Best of Publib Current Topics and Archives

This week  in  Best of Publib covers the week of September 20th through September 27th. The last week includes fanciful discussions about library ecology, thought provoking discussions about FLSA and short story collection development, continuing discussions about cell phones,  and even a song about Quiet Libraries. Some of the topics we will be reviewing include:

• Topic - Quiet place and other strange ideas about libraries – Are modern libraries really quiet work places or is that another myth?
• Topic - Fair labor standards - Sharon Foster offered an employment survey testing FLSA exempt status – Should you be getting overtime?
• Topic - Banned books week is upon us -  Please see Elisa Babel’s excellent article in BoP.
• Topic - Cell phones create demand for a modern cone of silence – Should we Get Smart and install these?
• Topic - Asking library users to leave if they have H1N1  - And,  should libraries stock supplies such as masks to inhibit infections?
• Topic - What about a Skype phonebooth? Can we offer more with less? How would this affect patron use of phone booths? Would there be a resurgence of heros?
• Topic - Pseudo children, the Shoe Syndrome and library card replacement – they could be twins but might they also be clones? 
• Topic - Short stories – who reads them, who wants them, and where should they go?
• Topic -  ‘Patriot’ Act news from Diedre Conkling – parts of the act are due to sunset – should they?
• Topic -   Darla Wegener offered a humorous parody of Bjork’s song  It’s, Oh, So Quiet  set to the modern public library ecology.

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“Sign This Permission Slip”

With Banned Books Week at the end of this month, I’m reminded of a little permission slip from my sophomore honors English class.

In late summer 1998 my dad and I went to a new/transfer student orientation night at my new public high school.  (Over the summer we had moved to Maryland because of my dad’s job transfer) While speaking with my sophomore honors English teacher, she told us about the novels that we’d be reading during the semester. (We were on a block schedule) One of them was Arthur Miller’s The Crucible.  She added that a permission slip would be required to read it because the play was on a list of titles containing objectionable material; this list was maintained by the county board of education. 

“What’s this? A Huck Finn deal?” my dad asked.  He had read the play for an English class at his Connecticut public high school in the early 1960s. This was a first for me too. The only objection about reading material that I’d heard was why I was reading novels beyond my grade level at my parochial K-8 grade school in South Carolina.  My teacher explained that several years earlier, a mother had been convinced there was witchcraft in the play and complained to the county board of education.  What a contrast over time.

            The late Arthur Miller wrote his third play The Crucible in 1953 against the backdrop of McCarthyism in the US.  (In 1956 he was called to testify before the Committee of Un-American Activities and refused to testify against his friends)  The play is set in 1692 Salem, MA and is based on the accounts of the infamous witch trials.  Several Salem girls accuse some of the town’s citizens of witchcraft to cover up for some mischief.  The accusations eventually spread to include prominent citizens. (Just like the McCarthyism period, there were plenty of accusations and hysteria)  Bearing false witness against thy neighbor indeed!   John Proctor, one of the townsmen, is confronted about an earlier adulterous affair with one of the girls—leading to a moment of high tension towards the end of the play.  As for historical accuracy, Miller took several dramatic liberties as he explains in the preface to the play.  He later wrote the screenplay for the 1996 movie of the same name, starring Daniel Day-Lewis and Winona Ryder.

            Later that semester I brought home the play and the required permission slip.  Dad looked at it and signed, commenting on the absurdity of it.  As my class read the play, I failed to see what was with the complaint of witchcraft.  I thought the play had a few important lessons for today’s society.  After we read the play, we saw the 1996 movie which follows the play well.

Later in college, I went with a few friends  on an organized evening trip to historic Salem, MA during Halloween weekend.  As we walked about the town, we saw the building where the witch trials had occurred.  Seeing the Salem Witch Museum helped me better visualize the setting.

            At one time or another, we’ve read something that we have not liked or disagreed with the content.  We should be able to read what we like, not have others tell us what we can or cannot.  Like my dad, I thought the permission slip was a pointless exercise.

Elisa

 

The Arthur Miller Society has information about the late playwright, The Crucible, and his other works.

For those planning to visit Salem, MA, there’s plenty to see beyond the Salem Witch Museum.

This Week in Best of Publib

Best of Publib Current Topics and Archives

This week  in  Best of Publib covers two weeks - September 7th to September 19th. PubLib was being upgraded by OCLC/Webjunction on September 13th. The last two weeks include fanciful discussions about library ecology, thought provoking discussions regarding LSSI,  evaluation of Better World Books , staff cell phones,  and how to effectively weed old librarians. Some of the topics we will be reviewing include:

• Topic - Florida Librarians Fight Back Against LSSI -  Obviously, someone thinks libraries are profit centers. Why else would they sue?
• Topic - Needing Librarians – What role should Librarians have in national debates? Can we still help facilitate critical thinking or is reasoning a thing of the past?
• Topic - Pulling the Plug -  Should a bill be enacted to eliminate old librarians?
• Topic - Funny Names for Patrons -  Learn the stories of Old Smeller, Peter Pan,  Generals Hershey Bar and Wastemoreland. Did they have nicknames for us too?
• Topic - Safelink -  Are there ’free’ cell phones and airtime sponsored by the government?   Apparently, libraries are supposed to help with this.  IRS and FCC outlets?
• Topic - Philadelphia Free Libraries -  This venerable institution initiated by Dr. Pepper was in danger of closing.   Supporters came though and the library was saved.
• Topic - The World is Flat -  Local government  functions are being downsized and outsourced. What is next for Librarians?
• Topic - Staff Cell Phones -  Do staff members need cell phones to function or is it a  myth  of marketing ?  Should you hear me now?
• Topic - The 62-Cent Solution from the Reminiscences of Joe Schallan, MLS  -  How does one cope with the priviledged patron?
• Topic - Current Events  -  The national political discussion spills over to Publib. Should Librarians participate in those discussion?  

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This Week in Best of Publib

Best of Publib Current Topics and Archives

This week  in  Best of Publib includes some elegant and thoughtful discussions on filtering products, the future of Libraries as presented by CNN, tracking problem patrons, and the ever-popular sewage in libraries – some of the topics we will be reviewing include:

• Topic - Discontinuing Fax Service – How has this service evolved or devolved? What is the future of this technology? Just the fax ma’am.
• Topic - CNN on Libraries - The future of libraries is being ‘investigated’ by CNN – but is this really investigative journalism or biased pandering?
• Topic - Cataloging Advance Reader Copy ARC – How should uncorrected advanced reader copies be cataloged? Should they?
• Topic - Barracuda Filters and Others -  Blocking patron access and blocking spam – how well do the filters work? Filters ?- we don’t need no stinkin’ filters!
• Topic - Circulation on Multiple Floors -  What efficiency is lost or gained from providing circulation services on multiple floors?  Taking checkout to a higher level.
• Topic - Have Advanced Reader Copies been Hit by the Economy?  Are advanced reader copies being replaced by electronic versions? What does this mean to reviewers?
• Topic - Tracking Problem Patrons -  How do we balance the privacy issues of patrons against the need to maintain order?  What methods work the best?
• Topic – Children’s library on the second floor – How well does this design work for children, their parents, and the library? Is it a good design? Hazards?
• Topic - Sewage back-ups – Should libraries remain open while raw sewage creeps through the building? 

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Please note – there was an absence of Friday Humor by Joe Schallan this week, or maybe it just did not go through.  To offset, liberal use of Joe Friday references were made in this update.

This Week in Best of Publib

Best of Publib Current Topics and Archives

This week  in  Best of Publib includes some elegant and thoughtful discussions on collection development, the value of GSLIS programs and the future of public libraries – some of the topics we will be reviewing include:

• Topic - Displaying Reserved Items – practical information including self-serve holds and self-check out methods.
• Topic - Guilt – Jobs and People – Library filth – Joe Schallan’s musings on the meaning of GSLIS  and the ‘microbial ecology’ of the public library.
• Topic - Proper conduct by retired librarians - Joe Schallan’s introspective look at the career endgame – do old librarians just check out or is there more, much more?
• Topic – Library-based IT troubleshooting services –  should we help patrons fix those computer things or CTRL ALT DEL the request for help?
• Topic - Carpet alternatives -  flooring alternatives for busy community rooms – hypoallergenic and stain resistant alternatives?
• Topic - IRS forms – the forms have attracted patrons in droves – but what problems are happening with the 1099?
• Topic - Fear of Facebook –  the Web 2.0 is now becoming 3.0 and many librarians concerned with the implications of social networks  - how to cope with the changes?
• Topic - Part-time employment – Wal-Mart — the future – Wal-Mart is making changes – some which parallel library trends – should we be concerned ?

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Please note that the list moderator has notified the readership that you are not allowed to discuss Wal-Mart any more.   You know who you are.

This Week in Best of Publib

Best of Publib Current Topics and Archives

This week  in  Best of Publib includes some elegant and thoughtful discussions on collection development, the value of GSLIS programs and the future of public libraries – some of the topics we will be reviewing include:

• Topic - Cataloging 9/11 ‘conspiracy’ materials - do conspiracy ‘theories’ belong with the official truth, or in their own section?
• Topic - H1N1 sanitation redux – handwashing and inhaling in the swine flu era – librarians behind the mask.
• Topic - Jobs and People- including many permutations – Favorite Books, Library Education, Library Organizational Structure, Library Job Descriptions and Ethics.
• Topic – Missing the Boat – future  of librarianship/ technology skills and the ups and downs of the MLS/MLIS – do we know enough?
• Topic – Nuke the Books – will the California  book microwaving trend catch on across the US,  is it just an isolated fad or a recipe for disaster?
• Topic - Is this thing on? – some libraries are allowing print reference to go out – what does this mean to circulation and collection provenance?

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Please note that the list moderator has notified the readership that some postings are not that funny.   You know who you are.