Civil War 150 : District of Columbia and Freedom Rising
~ Elisa Babel, MLS
Fort Sumter
This month marks the 150th anniversary of the Civil War–the opening salvo was at Fort Sumter in Charleston harbor in the early morning hours on April 12, 1861.
The war not only changed the nation–it also changed Washington, DC as a capitol and hometown.
Last month I read Ernest Furgurson’s Freedom Rising, a nonfiction book about DC during the Civil War years. Since I work in DC, the 150th anniversary seemed like a great time to discover the city at that time.
Furgurson writes a fascinating and informative story of how the Civil War impacted the city and shaped it to what is today. When President-elect Lincoln arrived for his inauguration in February 1861, there wasn’t much about DC to attract people for a visit. As the book progresses through the war years, Furgurson introduces the reader to the people, events, and places in the city as well as what happened officially.
I enjoyed the descriptions of city life and neighborhoods at the time. The landmarks mentioned are either still standing today or long gone. I recognized some of the people who came to DC for one reason or another while others I didn’t know.
By April 1865, DC is no longer the sleepy town it once been. Black and white maps of the city are included. I enjoyed this book and learned more about DC along the way.
Around the city and in Maryland and Virginia, you can find Civil War heritage sites to discover and enjoy. The Washington Post is featuring a special section online of the 150th anniversary.
On April 15, Emancipation Day will be observed in the District of Columbia. This city holiday commemorates the signing of the DC Emancipation Act signed by President Lincoln in 1862, freeing all slaves in DC.
This Emancipation was enacted nine months before the more famous Emancipation Proclamation in 1863.
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Provocative video suitable for all audiences coming soon
This edition of Best of Publib covers March 15th through March 28th 2010. This PubLib review and analysis includes questions about naming library rooms, thought-provoking discussions about new media archives , library materials security, and our new poll on R-rated movie access. Some of the topics we will be reviewing include:
Topic » Dealing with no-shows ♦ Nann Blaine Hilyard in Zion, Illinois seeks help dealing with library sponsored classes / workshops where people who are signed up fail to attend. What policies can help deal with this?
Topic» SirsiDynix Outreach Module ♦ Nancy Laskowski with the Free Library of Philadelphia would like to know about PubLib readers’ reactions and experiences with the SirsiDynix Outreach Module. How have you implemented the Sirsi product to serve homebound patrons?
Topic » Renovation and Book Storage ♦ Andrea Taylor with the Fullerton Public Library in CA is looking at policies and procedures that help deal with books in storage during renovations. If books are inaccessible, what circulation polices can help?
Topic » Auction Sites? ♦ Kimberly Francisco with Huntsville Public Library TX is pursuing a similar question but wants to know how to auction naming rights. Are there free tools such as E-bay that would lend themselves to online auctioning of library rooms?
Topic » Posting guidelines ♦ Sara Weissman - co-moderator for PubLib-L mailing list - reminds PubLib posters of guidelines for content and avoiding the infamous PubLib spam filter.
Topic » ISBNs ♦ Nann Blaine Hilyard alerts catalogers and searchers to ISBN duplications – Do not assume ISBN is a unique identifier.
Topic » Consultant rates ♦ Linda Dydo in Los Gatos CA is putting together a cost estimate for a Library Consultant. What advice do PubLib readers have to offer? How much should consultants charge?
Topic » YA Patrons and “R” movies ♦ Bob Farwell at Otis Library CT wants to know if libraries offer R – rated movies to Young Adults under 17. Mark Hasskarl with Danbury Library CT reminds us that “movie ratings do not legally apply to libraries, only to movie theaters”. Shannon Hammock tells us the film ratings are voluntary even for theaters and offers This Film is Not Yet Rated as a resource. The ALA Freedom to View Statement supports liberty of circulation. Should R-rated movies circulate to Young Adults under 17?
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This edition of Best of Publib covers the weeks of March 1st through March 14th 2010. This edition includes questions about collection development, thought-provoking discussions about known inaccuracies in ’non-fiction’ works , circulation manager duties , humorous anecdotes regarding blondes , and the impact of closing public school libraries:
Topic» Managing librarians ♦ Leslie Schow from the Herriman Library in UT asks how to guide and successfully manage Youth Services Librarians and their work flow – what are the job parameters for YSL?
Topic » Proctoring Exams ♦ Andrea Taylor would like to know how other libraries handle proctoring exams – Should proctoring be an expected public library service?
Topic » Classification of fiction DVDs ♦ Jingzhen Xie wants to know how your DVD collection is organized for browsing – If an entire section is checked out, how does that affect the remaining items?
Topic » legal form database ♦ Lisa Gunter requests recommendations for blank legal forms databases – Sue Kamm recommends Nolo and Michaelrecommends Gale
The Publib archives from the Webjunction listserve are available here: ArchivesEditor’s note: HTML is stripped out of archives. Compose in plaintext or richtext.
Posted on January 24, 2010 by Robert Balliot ,MLIS
Best of Publib Current Topics and Archives
Video coming soon
This week in Best of Publib covers January 10th through January 24th 2010. This week includes questions about collection development, library hardware and software solutions, politics, policies, and the ethics of advertising and branding. Some of the topics we will be reviewing include:
Topic » Shelving graphic novels- Phalbe Henriksen in Taylorsville, NC wants to know how many fit on a standard shelf – Graphic novel collections are growing!
Topic » Classics List for Small Public Library- Bridget Krejci in Bloomer, WI wants recommendations for Classics – Kevin O’Kelly recommends the Everyman 100 and Carl Long provides an excellent, concise list.
Topic » Public Library System Organizational Structure: Request for information- Corinne Dickman in Sparks, NV is investigating alternative organizational structures – How is your library configured?
Topic» The future of reference? – This new product from Intel may show the future of reference – Are hololibrarians the next step in automation?
Topic» Recalled books - Justine Shaffner in Aurora, CO forwarded this warning from CPSC of books that may cause a fire – Sometimes the books are on fire, sometimes the books cause them . . .
Topic» library ethics vs local politics - American Libraries reported on this troubling story out of Vermont
Topic » Iphone app- Georgia Bouda in Bloomington, IL discusses the phone applications that digitize patron bar codes and offer them as alternatives to physical library cards - What are the security and service issues? How else can they be used?
Topic» Story time attendance dropping off? - Janet Griffing in Wadsworth, OH reports on diminished participation – Is it demographic changes or flu fears?
Topic» Flying candidates in for face-to-face interviews - Matthew Pierce is looking at the cost - Is it still common to fly in recruits?
Topic» Review - M. McGrorty challenges librarians to post negative reviews of books – Is the trend to only see the good?
Topic» Branding in Libraries- Jane Genzel at the Muskego Public Library is investigating the appropriateness of branded donations – Does branding diminish services?
Topic» Drop In computer labs- Tracey Reed in Clearwater, FL is implementing unstructured classes – Where is this effective?
Topic» Periodicals back issues- Laurenne Teachout in Stephentown, NY has limited space for periodicals – What is ideal retention?
Topic» Overdrive Download Stations? - Nilya Carrato in Washington, DC is configuring dedicated PCs for audio/ebook download – What software works the best?
Topic» libraries and local bookstores/resend- Robin K. Blum is writing on the subject – What collaborative relationships exist between libraries and bookstores?
Topic» Laptop Checkout- Mindy Kittay - in Colorado at the Anythink Libraries is looking for exemplary policies and procedures – How do your laptops circulate?
Topic» experience with outsourcing management of the library- Laurel Goodgion in Wethersfield CT is investigating corporate profiteering on non-profits – When does outsourced management impinge on professional ethics?
Topic» Clipping files- Faith Jones – in New Westminster BC, Canada is looking for best current practices for clipping files – are they still relevant with digitization? Does digitization of clipping files infringe on copyright?
Topic» Giveaways for silent auctions, etc.- John Richmond in Bartonville, IL wants to know what to offer other non-profits – Is there a great combination of that serves the library and external non-profits too?
Topic » Self Check Out- Andrew R. Stehr in Rochester, MN is looking for examples where circulation is 80% or greater automated – What are the benefits?
Topic » Expired Library Cards- Sue Reed in Jefferson City, MO wants to know how long you keep expired patron records before purging – Does your patron policy include privacy considerations?
Topic» Museum type holdings- John C. Sandstrom in El Paso, TX is looking for examples of libraries that still keep art work and realia – What are the collection guidelines?
Topic» Kevin Trudeau books- Becky Tatar in Aurora, IL investigates collection development policies – Do we offer what the public wants or what they should want?
Topic» Friday reference question- Dusty Gres in Vidalia, GA started a new discussion on humorous and troubling reference questions – It looks like we are generating a new list!
Topic» Book (etc.?) Awards - Diedre Conkling in Newport, OR provided a link to ALA’s Book Award list in Cognotes. The discussion truncated into contemplation of the effect of marketing and advertising on professional library literature. What do you think?
Posted on January 19, 2010 by Robert Balliot ,MLIS
Best of PubLib at the ALA Midwinter Meeting Exhibit Hall Review
This week, Best of Publib covered the ALA Exhibit Hall at the Boston Convention Center. The HD video below includes hundreds of vendor displays. We hope it will help you imagine the experience if you were not able to attend, or help refresh and reinforce what you learned.
Boston Convention and Exhibition Center
The Boston Convention Center was an excellent venue for ALA. The train brought us to South Station - just a few minutes away from the hotels and convention amenities. There are many local publishers and library suppliers within a short distance, so start-ups and unique product suppliers could present affordably. And, Boston rocks! The Freedom Trail, Duck Tours , along with world-class museums and libraries are within short distances of the convention center.
The organizational effort by ALA and attention to detail by the library vendors was outstanding. It was easy to lose track of time on the exhibit hall floor amidst the panorama and noise. It took on a casino / carnival atmosphere with prizes to win and vendors pitching their games. High above, you could use the Food Court sign as a directional beacon.
Of all the hundreds of vendors represented, we chose to review five.
The first is :I-Concepts which defines itself as Innovative Concepts for Nonprofit Organizations. We could imagine many libraries outside of Boston benefiting from this service, along with fostering a general appreciation of local history archives. If you are looking for a way to both encourage collection use and raise funds - i-concepts may be the answer. The Amelia Earhart print was fascinating.
LibraryThing.com/forLibraries
The second is :LibraryThing. Tim Spalding along with his gregarious black-shirted horde truly represented the best of Open Source, Library 2.0 and viral marketing. They were eager to engage and highly entertaining.
The third vendor is :LE@D-Lifelong Education @ Desktop from the University of North Texas This group was absolutely charming and demonstrated infectious enthusiasm for their services. They dressed in some of the most colorful attire at the exhibit. Le@D provides highly affording library training. According to Director - Kevin Haney (in the middle with the green shirt) – costs are as low as $15 for a course! Enthusiastic library training - Deep in the heart of Texas!
New York Times
The fourth vendor is:The New York Times offering 50% off Home Delivery Service Marketing was conducted by On the Avenue Marketing Group with this excellent salesperson hawking half-price subscriptions. She may have been the hardest working individual in the exhibit hall. Yet, it was somehow troubling that this was the limit of representation of the New York Times publishing empire.
III
The fifth vendor is: III – Innovative Interfaces Incorporated. III is one of the heavy hitters in the Library industry. Many libraries are dependent on their products and they have a loyal base. I worked on two transitions to III – the first at Brown University from CLSI and the second at CLAN libraries from Horizon. I have used III for over twenty years and find it offers outstanding service. However, what I observed in the exhibit hall was troubling.
The III booth was very well-appointed and designed with several interactive product displays. It supported a large group of associates to answer questions. Yet, few were actually engaged in discussions with anyone but their co-workers. A librarian approached two of the representatives to thank III for providing a pass to the exhibit hall. One of the representatives took a look at the librarian’s badge and said something to the effect of :
”Well ______ must have been giving away those passes all along the east coast, we had another librarian from ____ stop by earlier “.
Then the rep rattled off a few names of people they considered important from that same institution and basically dismissed the librarian. There was no sales pitch. No offer to demo. Merely, a dismissal.
Library Service, especially in the public library sector, ideally levels the playing field. Service is equal. In contrast, some vendor representatives have obviously been instructed to find out the station of the exhibit hall attendee, determine if they were of the buyer / influencer class and dismiss the others. Yet, the nature of libraries and librarians as technology consumers requires generating interest throughout an organization and getting everyone to buy in. If you have six vendor representatives at an exhibit and you don’t have a crowd around your people, then you should generate interest by engaging everyone. All of the library vendors were start-ups at one point.
The exhibit hall may be the most effective way to get hands on experience with some of the newest and most exciting products in the library world. The meager twenty-five dollar entrance fee – or having an inside vendor representative hook you up for free makes the experience well worth the visit.
I enjoyed the descriptions of city life and neighborhoods at the time. The landmarks mentioned are either still standing today or long gone. I recognized some of the people who came to DC for one reason or another while others I didn’t know. 
Around the city and in Maryland and Virginia, you can find Civil War heritage sites to discover and enjoy. The Washington Post is featuring a special section online of the 150th anniversary.
