Linux.com has an article on the Evergreen ILS which is Open Source Linux alternative to the proprietary patron-unfriendly library systems. Evergreen serves Georgia’s statewide library service (GPLS), runs on Linux with Apache, a PostgreSQL database, Jabber messaging (how cool is that?!), and XUL. The catalog looks pretty good and offers awesome functionality especially with spellchecking and suggestions. From a financial standpoint it sounds great too.
[via Slashdot]
On Demand Books is set to release their print-on- demand “totally automatic book machine” at selected libraries and book stores. The “Espresso” can print and bind paperbacks (limited to 550 pages) in a few minutes, according to their website. The machine costs about $50,000 and according to CNN the NYPL is going to get one this February 2007. Since it downloads the available books through public domain sources like the Open Content Alliance and Google, the content is technically free and the only other cost is the machine and supplies. A penny or two per page is probably the highest they could charge. My take: people will probably love it, publisher’s will love it if it guarantees a revenue stream later down the road for new releases, and most libraries will be ambivilent for years to come.
$50K isthe book budget of some smaller libraries and for some that justs covers the cost of processing books for a year.
CNN / Fortune Small Business article
[Via Engadget]
Guitar Hero 2 has seduced my coworkers with its guitar-lite, whammy bar, and star-power love action. 3 out 5 librarians at the library are on the GH2. I even gave it a try and got a lengthy BOOOOO & a hiss! That’s fine. I don’t need to rock at everything. I love the fact that you can play along with Danzig, White Zombie, and the Reverend Horton Heat!
Unfortunately, I’m going to miss our Guitar Hero Teen Program at the library on Friday. The Teen Librarian can handle it;she’s at Level: Freebird!!! We’re also having a Library Video Game night for adults only in January which will include Guitar Hero 2.
Here’s a picture of me sucking at Thunderkiss. What ever happened to Simon Memory Game? Now if only I could play Search and Destroy on Simon. lml
Thanks to DC Librarian for sharing this interesting job opportunity as the Chief Librarian at Guantamo Bay, Cuba; it’s too good to not post. Nice balance of collection development, supervisory, and customer service. I’m not knocking it. I think every community, regardless of whether they are detainees or not, needs a librarian. I have a few questions about what exactly constitutes “appropriate/approved topics”. They probably won’t ask about the Library Bill of Rights in the interview.
Job Title: Chief Librarian
Organization: Torres Advanced Enterprise Solutions
Location: Guantanamo Bay , Cuba ,Description: Are you interested in putting your library science
education and experience to work in one of today’s most challenging,
interesting and rewarding environments? Torres Advanced Enterprise
Solutions is recruiting for a Chief Librarian to manage the Detainee
Library, under the direction of the Joint Task Force-Guantanamo Bay,
Cuba.In managing the Detainee Library, the Chief Librarian is responsible for
providing, maintaining and developing library services and operations
using reading, recreational games and puzzles, music, or electronic
media. The Chief Librarian is responsible for selecting and maintaining
a range of reading and recreational materials to reflect the needs of
the patrons in terms of languages and appropriate/approved topics. (more…)
Today, the Saratoga Library held a 50th anniversary celebration for the incorporation of the city of Saratoga, CA. Their theme was the 1950s (a very stereotyped and sanitized 1950s) and everyone was encouraged to dress accordingly. Kitch Factor 9! We took photos of some of the craft events, hoola-hoop contests, decorations, displays, and library customers, candidates for city council, and library staff in front of a blue 1956 Chevy. I saw a bunch of great librarian friends (Hi Amytha, Vicki, Cindy!) and a few memorable patrons from my time spent in the 1900s as an employee here. The Bookmobile even made an appearance.
I was hired to take photos. Unfortunately our policies currently prohibit our using Flickr or Snapfish or any other photo hosting resource. Bah! As a quick-and-dirty, I created a quick photoalbum using Dreamweaver and left the rest to the library to sort out the formatting. It’s not pretty but it works in a pinch.
Andrew Lloyd Webber announced that he is going to write a musical version of Bulgakov’s novel which also happens to be one of my favorite books. It’s not so far off, considering that Bulgakov actually wrote much of the novel with the stage in mind. I’ll keep an open mind, but the whole thing is bound to be a tremendously complicated undertaking, considering that it is actually three distinctive plots intricately woven together.
It just so happens that the Master and Margarita will be my Library Book Discussion for this Fall. I wanted to do it on Halloween, but I’ll save the oversized black cats and my centurion costume for another day.
Now playing: New Order – Temptation on XM Streaming Online
I received a call on my cell from Samuel L. Jackson today, urging me to see Snakes on a Plane this weekend. He pitched it by telling me, by name, that I should stop wasting my time working for a low paying government paycheck (how did he know?) and playing with my “hair don’t” (aww, I don’t spend that much time in front of the mirror) and just go see, Snakes on a Plane!
It was funny and bizarre enough that I visited the website, and sent it to a few friends, trying to fit as many true to life personal details as the website would allow. It’s unsettling on the phone, however I think it loses a little through email, and especially if Samuel won’t pronouce your name, your life doesn’t quite fit predicatable life profile, or you just don’t know enough personal details to make it funny. As a viral marketing tool, it worked, I felt compelled to send a few people by phone and a few by email.
The library needs a viral marketing tool along the same lines, something that’s just whacked enough for people to want to send to their friends and while shamelessly plugging the library, something like an audio mad-lib.
Currently watching: The Late Show with David Letterman with guests, renowned sock puppeteer, Jack Fisette, Whoopi Goldberg, and Fatboy Slim who just so happens to have an interpretive tennis-ball juggler.
From Slate: Bush reads Camus’ The Stranger on summer vacation. I can see it, sun, heat, the beach. Personally, for themes of futility and authenticity, I’d recommend The Fall or even better, The Zombie Survival Guide (not Camus, but, hey, it’s got illustrations!).
AOL’s recent release of search histories on tens of thousands of customers, really made the earth quake, the posion arrows fall from the sky and the pillars of corporate offices shake. An article in the New York Times,
How to Digitally Hide (Somewhat) in Plain Sight by J. D. Biersdorfer (August 12, 2006) [ Link through Google News ] points out that there are resources to help your web searching and surfing be a little more private.
The truth is that most people don’t realize that their searching is easily trackable. Seach engines track searches by IP address, by cookies and by session. The cool thing about libraries is that there is an aggregate anonymizing effect as a result of the volume of searches through a network that may share one IP address. This doesn’t help the poor soul who logs into AOL or MSN and then starts searching using the conveniently located search box. Overall, I think searching at the library is a bit more anonymous than searching from home.
The article points out that Clusty.com (a.k.a. Vivisimo) and IXQuick.com claim to not track user searches. In addition, there are a number of anonymizing web sites that hide your IP Address including BeHidden.com (http://behidden.com) and The Cloak (www.the-cloak.com). Unfortunately, general web surfing using anonymizers can be pretty inconvenient. This only really keeps site owners from seeing where you are coming from not what you’re doing. So, searching for your SSN will show up in their logs and if they ever get released or hacked.
NPR recently ran a story on the Identity Angel / Carnegie Mellon Data Privacy Project that mines the web and online resources for private information on individuals like SSN, Drivers License number, mother’s maiden name, etc…. . If it discovers enough information on you, it sends an email letting you know that a thief could steal your identity and what to do about it.
Satisfy your morbid curiosity or craving for a little dark humor. Here is the promised splattering of grim books, morbid music and movies .
I’d love suggestions if anyone has any.
Books
Stiff : the curious lives of human cadavers / by Mary Roach
Mütter Museum of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia / edited by Gretchen Worden
R.I.P. : the complete book of death and dying / Constance Jones.
The dead beat : lost souls, lucky stiffs, and the perverse pleasures of obituaries / by Marilyn Johnson
Assassination vacation / by Sarah Vowell
Goth Bible: A compendium for the darkly inclined / by
Book of bunny suicides / by Andy Riley
Travel
Where are they buried? : how did they die? / Tod Benoit
San Francisco bizarro : a guide to notorious sights, lusty pursuits, and downright freakiness in the City by the Bay / by Jack Boulware
L.A. bizzaro! : the insider’s guide to the obscure, the absurd, and the perverse in Los Angeles / by Anthony R. Lovett, Matt Marania
Haunted houses of California : a ghostly guide to haunted houses & wandering spirits / by Antoinette May
Fiction
Crash / by J.G. Ballard
A dirty job / by Christopher Moore
A Series of Unfortunate Events / by Lemony Snicket (not just for kids)
Cautionary tales for children / by Hillaire Belloc and Edward Gorey
Music
Murder ballads / Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds
Assassins, the original cast recording / music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim ; book by John Weidman
Colma : the musical, original motion picture soundtrack / music and lyrics by H.P. Mendoza
Movies & TV Shows
Better off Dead
Curdled
Delicatessen
Natural Born Killers
Murder by Death
Six feet under
Dead like me
By the way, if you haven’t heard the Nick Cave / Enya version of Don’t Fear the Reaper listen here