Michael Jackson, 1958-2009

Two things, both related to Michael Jackson:

1. According to the LA Times, Michael Jackson was apparently a bookworm, or at least a regular customer at several Los Angeles bookstores.  In the words of one store owner, “I’ve always wondered if there was a library in Neverland” (via LISNews).

2.  One French librarian’s awesome dance-tribute to the King of Pop (via the Lipstick Librarian).

Ohio libraries in jeopardy

Apparently Ohio is the latest state whose libraries are visibly (and painfully) suffering under the current economic crisis.  The Ohio Library Council reports that the Governor has proposed slashing over $200 million in state funding for public libraries, amounting to almost half of the state’s financial support for libraries.  According to the Council:

The proposal amounts to a 30% cut in funding for Ohio’s public libraries. This cut is in addition to the 20% reduction in funding that libraries are already facing, because their funding comes from 2.22% of the state’s declining General Revenue Fund.  Libraries could close or face significant reductions in operations as a result of the Governor’s proposal. With some 70% of the state’s 251 public libraries relying solely on state funding to fund their operations, the reduction in funding will mean that many will close branches or drastically reduce hours and services.

All things considered, it’s scary.

There’s also a feeling of deja vu with this situation, but that doesn’t make it any easier to stomach.   As the economy continues to slump along (even if there are signs of improvement), state and local budgets will continue to tighten.  The sad irony is what so many other people have been pointing out all along: people continue to turn to public libraries as places where they can have free books, free storytimes, free access to the Internet for conducting job searches — and yet time and again, public librare are among the first public services to really feel the hurt.

What’s awesome, though, is how the Columbus Metropolitan Library is responding.  The entrance of their website has been completely revamped, featuring details on the crisis and its possible ramifications, as well as direct links to contact elected officials, so that concerned citizens can make their voices heard.

I’m hoping that enough people will rally and that the Ohio libraries’ funding will be saved.  If the Florida Library Association can make it happen in Florida, [PDF], maybe Ohio can, too.

As an information professional, I’m already concerned.

But I also know too many people I know in Ohio — people that I consider friends — for me to not care.

Cookie Monster in the library

An oldie but a goodie (and if you’re having the kind of week I am, you could use a laugh). Consider this a predecessor to Elmo and the Bookaneers.

#CNNFail

… and I normally really like CNN.

The New York Times today reported on CNN’s lacking coverage of the post-election riots in Tehran (which I blogged about yesterday, too).

Apparently thousands of Twitter users, along with the social networking blog Mashable, quite vocally criticized CNN for inadequately covering the story.

From the NYT article:

It was a departure for CNN, known for its breaking news coverage, including its celebrated reporting during the Tiananmen Square crackdown 20 years ago. But the Tehran protests were not covered with rolling live coverage for hours at a time.

Untold thousands used the label “CNNfail” on Twitter to vent their frustrations. Steve LaBate, an Atlanta resident, said on Twitter, “Why aren’t you covering this with everything you’ve got?” About the same time, CNN was showing a repeat of Larry King’s interview of the stars of the “American Chopper” show. For a time, new criticisms were being added on Twitter at least once a second.

Discovered via Library Stuff.

Political violence in Tehran

I’d be remiss if I didn’t link to the powerful images of the violence in Tehran posted by BBC News, following the disputed reelection of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

As Betsy Burtner wisely pointed out via Twitter, ”this is why we still need news organizations.”

Flickr user Shahram Sharif has also posted (and licensed under Creative Commons) some amazing pictures, including the one on the left, featuring Iranian citizens lining up for the polls.

Which raises the question for me: how can news organizations and Creative Commons work hand-in-hand?  Wouldn’t Creative Commons naturally help foster the kind of citizen journalism that Web 2.0 was supposed to introduce?  And yet, I had to do far too much digging to find these pictures (and as an information professional, I consider myself pretty patient).

Which raises another point: it’s high time we started discussing Web 2.0 in the past tense.

Anyway, here are some related headlines, for those with inquiring minds:

NPR (USA): “The Nation: Iran’s election tension.” (12 June 2009)

The Guardian (UK): “Riots erupt in Tehran over ’stolen’ election.” (13 June 2009)

The London Times (UK): “Scuffles in Tehran as Ahmadinejad and Mousavi both claim victory” (13 June 2009)

Photo: “iran elections” by Shahram Sharif

SFPL launces “ecocard”

The San Francisco Public Library (which I’ve actually visited before) has launched a new ecocard.  The newer, greener card is made from biodegradeable corn, as opposed to less-environmentally-friendly plastic.

From the blog EcoSalon:

Check out the new ecocard. It’s a true-blue alternative that might catch on in other cities if it proves to hold up to wear and tear. The card idea isn’t as corny as a baseball field of dreams, but I do believe if libraries bill it as the wave of the future, the rewards will come.

“Just like the issue of plastic water bottles, San Francisco is once again leading the way on alternatives to use of plastic,” explains Mayor Gavin Newsom. “By piloting a program to use biodegradable material for library cards, our Public Library is showing that real alternatives to the use of plastic exist.”

Discovered via Maria at Demeter’s Garden.

Navigation via Pancake

No, that’s not a typo.

If I haven’t made it clear before, I freakin’ love Google Maps.  As if it couldn’t get any better, the street-view interface has been updated with the ability to click-and-drag your way to new destinations, or even new perspectives.  Ovals (for linear distances) and rectangles (for the edifices of buildings) indicate where you want the focus of your street view to land, whether you’re zooming ahead along a street or zooming in for a closeup of a wall.

Google calls these ovals and squares “pancakes” — both silly and scrumptious, but the analogy works.

To preview it, here’s a video demo:

You can also check out the the official and original entry on the Google Blog.

And for the record, I’m jealous of the hypothetical computer user in this demo, who apparently has the time and money to visit Paris, and Florence, and Sydney, and Amsterdam.

Via LifeHacker.

“The Open Work”

File this one under “how am I just now getting around to reading this.”

Rick Stoddart of the blog L1BRAR1AN has written an excellent piece on libraries  (as well as museums and other information institutions) as “open works.”  In other words, libraries (including their services and resources) have set parameters and structures, but what these institutions represent to individuals is a much more subjective matter, open to interpretation.  I’m very much inclined to agree — and I especially love the comparisons to jazz, as well as the idea of “libraries as communication.”

I remember learning about the differences between “collection development” and “collection management,” how the latter implies a state of flux as opposed to the achievement of a terminal goal.  In a way, a good library (like many Web 2.0 applications) is in a constant beta — a “perfect” library is a fundamentally unattainable goal, and attempts to be “perfect” can only end in self-sabotage and / or burnout.  Instead we must judge ourselves by other criteria — including our adaptability and our responsiveness to a constantly change (external and internal) environment.

Thinking about your library in all its various contexts can create a rich picture of what your library means to your patrons, as well as the ways in which you library could be doing better.  In the same way we can prevent back injuries by doing stretches, both libraries and individual librarians would be well-served by reaching (hoping, of couse, to exceed our grasps), at least every once in a while.

Social networking detox

After I graduated and took a few days off from school and work, I ended up accidentally taking a break from social networking — having been a distance student for almost two years, more time in front of a computer was something I didn’t look forward to. So I didn’t tweet for days, I hadn’t done anything with Facebook (except upload a handful of pictures from graduation, most of which I still need to tag), and I hadn’t blogged for a couple weeks.

It’s easy to write this off as negligence, but I think it worked out for the better. I wouldn’t equate social networking with smoking or drinking, but it’s still something of a vice — maybe more like fast food or caffeine. I feel refreshed (at least digitally) now. My most recent tweets have felt more substantive (and I’ve discovered that the “@” feature is way more useful than just talking about myself).  I have fresh ideas to blog about, including some that I’ve just put off so that I could write papers for school.  And in addition to some personal business, I feel like I have more time to do the things I want to do, and I’m even more excited about doing those things.

I’ve even resolved to keep up with my Google Reader better — I plan to share more items, comment on my friends’ shared items, prune my subscription list, and organize the whole thing more efficiently.  Of course, I had to start by marking my 1000+ unread items as “read” — but once again, it’s a necessary fresh start.

Of course, (finally) being done with school helps.  This last semester was especially rough — I had class Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday nights, while working Monday nights and during the day for the rest of the week.

Free time is a wonderful thing; my accidental detox has only helped me realize that.

xkcd - “Outreach”

This post serves two purposes:

1) an ironic illustration of data collection strategies, which caught my attention since I believe that almost all good library decision-making starts with solid market research and a clear understanding of the public you intend to serve, and

2) an apology for my unexpected (but very necessary) hiatus from blogging and social networking in general.

With that in mind, I loved today’s edition of xkcd:

And speaking of scientists, I now officially have a master’s in library science.