Index
- Changes coming to SCLS database page on Dec. 30
- Libraries eligible for WiLS cooperative purchasing
- Member/Staff News
- OverDrive announces MP3 audio files, Macintosh console
- WPLC Digital Download Center website offers new features
- Summary of adult literacy needs in Wisconsin
- EBSCOhost 2.0 replaces text only interface in 2009
- Monona offers homework help from Tutor.com
- WPR airs story on ‘Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat…’
- Public Library Innovation Grant from ICMA
- Feb. 1 is deadline for IMLS National Leadership Grants
- ALA announces economy press kit
- New copyright guide helps clarify Fair Use
- Smart Poodle Publishing announces writing contest winners
- Continuing Education Calendar
Changes coming to SCLS database page on Dec. 30
On Dec. 30 a new “Online Resources by Name” page will be posted to the SCLS website to reflect changes in the databases available to all member libraries.
As you already know, beginning Jan. 1, 2009, there will be two databases to which only certain libraries subscribe. That means ReferenceUSA will no longer be available to all libraries, and the new Chilton.com will be available to only those that chose to subscribe. The database list at www.scls.info/resources/name.html will be modified to reflect these changes, but we’re also taking the opportunity and improve the usability of this page.
You’ll still see the databases listed by name, but each title will also include a brief description and a link to another page with more information or technical help. ReferenceUSA and Chilton.com will be listed near the bottom of the page under Additional Resources. These entries will include a list of subscribing libraries.
ReferenceUSA will be available at all libraries (and remotely to patrons) through Dec. 31, but the change to the website is being made on Dec. 30 because of the New Year’s holiday.
For those libraries subscribing to Chilton.com, we’re creating some promotional materials that will be made available at no cost upon request. We’ve developed an 8.5x11 poster, a bookmark, and a 5.5x8.5 informational flier. These can be customized with your library name and address, and if SCLS hosts your library’s website we can create a customized URL that ties Chilton.com to your website. For instance, Stoughton Public Library is subscribing to Chilton.com, and their marketing materials will have the URL www.stoughtonpubliclibrary.org/chilton/. If SCLS does not host your library’s website, then you’d have to give us the URL you’d like used.
The promotional materials for Chilton.com are still in draft form, but you can view them at www.scls.info/pr/chilton/ and give feedback.
Libraries eligible for WiLS cooperative purchasing
Everyone wants to save money whenever possible, and libraries are no different. During increasingly tight budget times, remember that because SCLS is a member of WiLS all of our member libraries can take advantage of the cooperative purchasing available to members.
As a not-for-profit, membership organization, WiLS is able to negotiate with many of the world's largest and most respected information providers on behalf of its members. This enables member libraries to license high quality, content-rich electronic information at discounted rates. In addition, WiLS has negotiated discounts with library-related product and service providers. Participation in this program is open to all members of the WiLS consortium.
For more information about what falls under the terms of the cooperative purchasing agreement, visit www.wils.wisc.edu/coop/. Many of the items are database vendors, but there are also things like labels, supplies, furniture, etc.
If you have questions about the opportunities for cooperative purchasing through WiLS, contact Cheryl Becker, Public Library Administration Consultant.
The 2008 Automation Year-End Schedule has been posted on the Automation Website. Please note that the system will NOT be available from 10:35 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 31, until approximately 2 p.m. on Thursday Jan. 1. Day-end processing and backup on Dec. 31 will be followed by Automation staff completing the year-end rollover on Jan. 1. Library staff members may begin checking in materials from book drops after 2 p.m. on Jan. 1. If you have any questions, contact Lauren Blough at (608) 266-6306.
Madison Public Library recently welcomed four new Page 2 staff members: Maureen Doll and Danielle Green (Sequoya Branch) and Ella Bultman and Raquel Salazar-Foster (Lakeview Branch).
Middleton Public Library recently announced that Amanda Moss Struckmeyer is the new Youth Services Librarian. Currently teaching in the Monona School District, Amanda has experience working with children 6th grade and under. A musician and a blogger, she plans to incorporate both music and technology into her programming. Amanda’s first day of work is Jan. 5, 2009.
The most recent issue of “Jottings and Digressions,” the newsletter of the UW-Madison School of Library and Information Studies (SLIS), is available online.
OverDrive announces MP3 audio files, Macintosh console
OverDrive MP3 audiobooks (the kind that work with iPods) are now available from the WPLC Digital Download Center website. The MP3 audiobook collection includes 81 titles, mainly classics.
These audiobooks can be checked out and downloaded to a computer using the same steps as the WMA audiobooks. The main difference is that patrons must also agree to the "Terms of Use for MP3 Titles" as part of the checkout process.
With the latest version of the OverDrive Media Console software (version 3), MP3 audiobooks can be used with both Windows and Macintosh computers. The MP3 format also can be used with most MP3 players, including iPods. Additional information about software requirements is available on the WPLC website. Note that iPods and Zune players cannot be used with LINK computers because of the security problems presented by the additional software these players require.
The WPLC Digital Download Center website has complete information about the MP3 and WMA audiobook formats.
WPLC Digital Download Center website offers new features
With the addition of MP3 Audiobooks, the WPLC Digital Download Center has implemented five new features to make using the website a better experience:
- Patron Wish List -- While browsing the Digital Download Center collection, patrons can now add titles of interest to a 'Wish List' in order to remember them. These titles will remain in the 'Wish List' until the patron removes them, available anytime they log in to their account.
- Edit Email Address on Current Hold -- If a patron changes his/her email address during the waiting time for a title, they will have the option to update it in their Digital Library account. Patrons can edit their email address in My Account/ /My Holds/.
- Displaying 'Also Recommended Titles' -- When a patron is viewing a title details page, they will see a new section labeled 'If you like this title, then you might also like.' The titles chosen for display are those that have Creator(s) and/or Imprint and/or Publisher and/or Keywords in common with the title on the page the user is viewing.
- Search by awards, and display of awards on title details pages -- The Advanced search page now includes the option to search the collection by more than 60 awards. Additionally, if a title has received an award, this is displayed on the title details page. The award is shown as a hyperlink; users can simply click this link to view a list of titles that have received the same award. Some notable awards include Newbery Medal, PEN/Faulkner Award, Audie Awards, Best Books for Young Adults, Edgar Allan Poe Award, and Nebula Award.
- Full Text Searching -- The quick search now supports full text searching. This increases response times, and also allows users to search more metadata fields than before. Full text searching queries the Title, Publisher, Creator, ISBN, Subject, and Publisher-supplied Keyword fields of Content Reserve, as well as some MARC record data (Control Number and Library of Congress subject headings). With full text searching, a user can search on multiple terms, and the search results will be ranked by relevance.
Check out the changes at http://dbooks.wplc.info.
Summary of adult literacy needs in Wisconsin
The Fall 2008 edition of "Literacy Matters," the newsletter for Wisconsin Literacy Inc., includes some interesting data on adult literacy needs in Wisconsin. The article summarizes data submitted by 49 literacy agencies in Wisconsin. Some of the 2007-08 highlights include:
- 24 of the 49 literacy providers have a waiting list of learners waiting for a tutor;
- there are currently 662 learners on the waiting lists;
- there were 3,299 active volunteer tutors, contributing 230,121 hours;
- the literacy providers served 9,910 Adult Basic Literacy learners and 5,363 English as a Second Language learners (for a total of 15,273);
- 1,059 learners advanced at least one level on the National Reporting System standards in reading, writing, speaking, listening or math, and 803 literacy students completed their GED or high school equivalency exams;
- 898 learners were able to keep their current jobs, while 316 students got better jobs because of their improved literacy skills; and
- 43 students went on to post-secondary training or education.
-- From Channel Weekly (Vol. 11, No. 12 -- Dec. 11, 2008)
EBSCOhost 2.0 replaces text only interface in 2009
SCLS has removed its link to EBSCOhost's text-only database interface, which EBSCOhost will discontinue in Spring 2009. The default EBSCOhost interface now provides similar functionality with ADA compliance, handheld device compatibility, and minimal connectivity speed issues.
More information about 508 Accessibility, as well as user reviews, can be found on EBSCO's website.
Monona offers homework help from Tutor.com
The Monona Public Library announced a new after school service for students in Kindergarten to 12th grade and students taking college introductory level courses -- Live Homework Help. It is an exciting online tutoring service that matches students with expert tutors from across the country. Students connect to tutors for one-to-one homework help sessions in an Online Classroom, and the service is free for all Monona students with a library card.
The tutors are certified teachers, university professors, and graduate school students, students at accredited colleges, and professionals who are experts in their fields. Tutoring help is available in the following subjects: Math, Science, Social studies, and English.
Students who reside in Monona can connect to online tutors for free from 2-9 p.m. They simply go to www.mononalibrary.org and click on the Live Homework Help logo to access tutors remotely from their home computer. Anyone with a library card is welcome to come to the Monona Public Library to use Live Homework Help from the library’s public computers. The Monona Public Library had 49 hits to Live Homework Help in the first six weeks it was open.
Homework is key to every student’s success, and the benefit of a service that provides instant professional help the moment kids need it, right at their own computer, cannot be emphasized enough.
Live Homework Help was featured in the Wisconsin State Journal on Dec. 17.
-- from Karen Wendt, Monona Public Library Youth Services Coordinator
WPR airs story on ‘Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat…’
On Thursday, Dec. 11, Wisconsin Public Radio’s Kathleen Dunn interviewed Vicki Myron, the former director of the Spencer Iowa Public Library, who wrote the book “Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World.”
You can listed to the program (#081211E) at Kathleen Dunn’s program archive.
Public Library Innovation Grant from ICMA
Local governments can now apply for an International City and County Management Association (ICMA) Public Library Innovation Grant. With the support of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, ICMA will provide $500,000 in grants to cities, towns, and counties that are committed to using their public library as a vital tool in addressing community priorities and issues in a unique, nontraditional manner. Individual grants will range from $20,000 to $60,000 and be 18 months in length.
All Innovation Grants will be anchored by a partnership between the office of the chief administrative officer (city, county, and town manager) and the public library. A series of leadership workshops and project coaching will support grant recipients in solidifying the manager/librarian partnership, ensuring the short-term success of the project, and developing the capacity to support the long-term use of libraries to meet community goals.
Details and application materials are available online.
Feb. 1 is deadline for IMLS National Leadership Grants
The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) National Leadership Grants (NLG) support projects that have the potential to elevate museum and library practice. The Institute seeks to advance the ability of museums and libraries to preserve culture, heritage, and knowledge while enhancing learning. Successful proposals will have national impact and generate results -- new tools, research, models, services, practices, or alliances—that can be widely adapted or replicated to extend the benefit of federal investment. The Institute seeks to fund projects that have the characteristics of strategic Impact, innovation, and/or collaboration.
Applications may be submitted in the following categories: Advancing Digital Resources, Research, Demonstration, and Library and Museum Collaboration Grants. Collaborative Planning Grants are also available in any of the four categories to enable project teams from more than one institution to work together to plan a project for a National Leadership Grant.
Grants may range from $50,000–$1,000,000 ($100,000 for planning grants), with matching requirements. Further information and application can be found on the IMLS website.
-- From Channel Weekly (Vol. 11, No. 12 -- Dec. 11, 2008)
ALA announces economy press kit
National and international economies are grabbing headlines around the world, and a common theme running through news stories is the significant upswing in library usage. One high-profile news report that ran recently was on NBC Nightly News.
To help libraries get the word out about the important role they are playing in these difficult economic times, the ALA has created an economy press kit that is available at www.ala.org/economynews.
New copyright guide helps clarify Fair Use
A new copyright guide on Fair Use should help librarians come to a greater understanding of copyright law as it relates to Fair Use.
“The Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy Education" makes clear what practices are legal under fair use, which is defined as the right to use copyrighted materials without permission or payment when the benefit to society outweighs the cost to the copyright owner.
The guide was developed by the National Association for Media Literacy Education, the Action Coalition for Media Education, the National Council of Teachers of English, the Visual Communication Studies Division of the International Communication Association, and the Media Education Foundation. Development also was supported by experts at American University in Washington, DC, and Temple University in Philadelphia.
At the link above, the Center for Social Media also has an online video that tells teachers and students how they can use copyrighted materials.
-- from Library Hotline, Nov. 24, 2008
Smart Poodle Publishing announces writing contest winners
Smart Poodle Publishing sponsored an essay contest for librarians entitled "What I Wish Everyone Knew About Librarians." This was a chance for entrants to dispel stereotypes of "typical" librarians.
Forty-four entries from 23 states were received from a variety of libraries, including public, private, corporate, law, music, theological, medical, university, college, middle school and even a prison library. These range from rural libraries with one employee to mega libraries with 90,000+ books checked out every month. From helping a patron research her child's life-threatening illness, to handling a hilarious incident in a library bathroom, these librarians shared details about their jobs outsiders would be fascinated to know.
The grand prize winner was Lisbeth Boutang, a children’s librarian at Cloquet Public Library in Cloquet, MN. You can read about her and other winners in the Smart Poodle Blog. Lisbeth will receive $500, an award certificate, and an autographed copy of “Travel Adventures of Lilly P. Badilly: Costa Rica.”