Library Display Apr. 2010

Just in case anyone needs these photos for their digital portfolio!

PLA Issues and Advocacy

Today’s public libraries are consistently being challenged to do more with less--less money, less staff, and less time. It has never been more important for librarians, staff members, trustees, and others with a vested interest in their public libraries, to convey to their communities the value of the library. Advocacy, the process of acting on behalf of the public library to increase public funds and ensure that it has the resources need to be up to date, is critical to the success of libraries.

BFF

The semester is wrapping up, but thanks to social networking we don't have to say good-bye even though we may not all be best friends forever.

It has been a great pleasure blogging, wiki -ing, bulding exhibits, sharing information and experiencing the (sometimes) pain and exhiliration of trying to produce a new project every week with all of you. We all seem to have unique viewpoints that has enriched the learning process.

I don't know how anyone else thinks or feels, but LT 130 has really altered my perceptions about libraries, what library personnel can do, and expanded my horizons about how technology can be used. Thank you, Linda. Thank you, blog mates.

Your Twitter rant about the wait at Starbucks – now in the Library of Congress!

Even the Library of Congress has recognized the social and historical (if not hysterical) value of all the tweeting that we’ve been doing. It has announced that it will keep a digital archive of every public tweet since Twitter began in 2006. Widely reported and discussed, from the Washington Post to Yahoo! News, this is an action with broad consequences. On the one hand, powerful filtering tools allow access to, and analysis of, a mountain of data on a myriad of topics. As Ben Schneiderman, computer science professor at the University of Maryland, comments in the Post article, “This is a remarkable resource that for the first time . . . allows us to grasp the mood of the culture minute by minute.” On the other hand, those snippy little comments about the person in front of you in line will now be preserved forever. That’s something to think about while you sip your latte.