Skip navigation.

Library Blog Buzz

Read A Post Per Day To Be Tech And Info Savvy

Check The Book of Odds Database, The Investor.gov Site And The New Lists With 100+Links to Audio and Ebooks

Thursday, 19. November 2009, 19:24:45

Resourceshelf and Gary Price and Shirl Kennedy have always been on the top of all the new web sites and resources.

Here is briefly what they found:




* A list of + 100 links with eBooks and Audio Books -


* Info for the new searchable Q & A Database for the U.S. Census ( you can even ask the government Census people a question)

* The new http://investor.gov site, launched by the SEC and determined to educate customers how to invest money wisely.

* The interesting online database called The Book of Odds, devoted to record all the odd and strange probabilities of everyday life. Check the Accidents & Death category to better understand what I mean.


Not all of these resources will be needed in your daily work as a librarian but the lists with eBooks and Audio books are a definite hit.

No comments

Didn’t Make It To Internet Librarian 09, Check Librarian in Black Posts From The Conference

Wednesday, 18. November 2009, 20:38:18

If you didn’t make to this year's Internet Librarian conference in Monterey, California ( Monterey, CA October 26-28, 2009) don’t worry to much.

Fortunately for us Sarah Houghton-Jan from Librarian in Black was there again this year and wrote complete and helpful posts about all the workshops and presentations that she attended.

It seems to me that this year most of the presenters were focused on library website re-design: from SEO ( Search Engine Optimization), basic library web site improvement, advice on simple design makeover; to usability centered design,how to handle information overload and what are the 10 free or low cost online digital services that any library can provide.

For mobile librarians, for the first time Internet Librarian 09 conference was also accessible on mobile phones ( free), just point your mobile browser to http://mos.io/il2009/, courtesy of MOSIO, the famous low cost mobile text messaging service for libraries.

No comments

Yahoo Starts Mobile Site En Español And Looks Into Launching Real Time Search

Thursday, 12. November 2009, 19:38:18

Today Yahoo announced their brand new mobile site in Spanish, called Yahoo! Mobile en Español. The site is optimized to work on 1,900 mobile devices and targets the 46 million Hispanic Americans in the US.


* Discover via results from Yahoo!'s award-winning mobile Search, editor-selected content, and U.S. and global news content presented in Spanish, including the "América Latina" news section, which provides relevant content from the Latin American region.

* Stay connected through access to email and social networking accounts from the most popular Web providers, as well as instant messaging, address book, and calendar functions.

* Stay informed by bringing favorite Web content --sports, news, local information, RSS feeds, weather, stocks, horoscopes, and more -- to a single location.



At the end of last month, Michael Arrington at Tech Crunch made a hint that Yahoo is looking into launching their own real time search engine too.

Bookmark Yahoo's new mobile site and offer it to your Hispanic library customers, I am sure they will use it.

No comments

Does Everything in Public Libraries Always Have To Remain Free?

Tuesday, 10. November 2009, 20:51:23

Today I found an interesting article called "Hayward libraries to borrow Netflix model", which talks about a controversal decision approved by the City council which will allow customers to check out a limited amount of materials without any late fees and fines for a small monthly fee.


For a monthly fee, library users will be able to check out a limited number of materials for an unlimited amount of time. The optional system will eliminate due dates and overdue fees, asking for money upfront in return for no worries later. Pricing would begin at $2.99 a month for up to three items out at a time



I am sure that many will object the Hayward Libraries model because libraries have always offered their services for free and this is a main part of their mission. So the question is does everything in
public libraries always have to remain free?

I don’t think so. And I will tell you why. In a world where Redbox, Netflix, Blockbuster and Barnes & Nobles exist and customers can quickly get a hand on the desired book and DVD, or rent one for a dollar per day, we need to offer more competitive ways to attract customers to our popular materials. We can’t afford to loose customers to any of those commercial establishments, simply because we are not able to buy or deliver on time the most popular books, CDs and DVDs.

One example of such service is the Dallas Public Library (DPL)and its StreetSmart Express program, which charges customers $5 for access to select books, DVDs, and audiobooks. ( I am not sure if the service is still available, since I was not able to find any information on their website).

What do you think? Should libraries charge for services or not?

No comments

Remime.com. Will Remind You For Special Events And Birthdays

Friday, 6. November 2009, 21:40:00

Here is one application that everyone would like - Remime.com, because it promises to send you an email and remind you for special events and birthdays.


Once you create an account you will be able to input all the birthdays of your friends and family, and the service will email you a notification so you won’t forget them.



Remime.com is in Beta and you have a choice of receiving the birthday reminders one week or two in advance or on the same day or a day before.

Another interesting fact about the site is that two of the co-founders live in two different countries and they had never met. Future plans include adding the ability for users to send electronic greeting cards. Click here to see more details from their blog.

Via: Daily Bits
http://www.dailybits.com/stop-forgetting-those-birthdays/

No comments

Nine eReaders Promise To Entertain The Reader of eBooks

Tuesday, 3. November 2009, 19:08:38

Besides Kindle and Sony eReader ( see our past coverage ) there are new eBook readers on the market now who try to gain popularity among users and promise to entertain the reader of eBooks.

Some of the eBook readers are domestic ( Nook & QUE), others like (Elonex eBook & Fujitsu FLEPia) are foreign born - UK and Japan respectfully.


Nook (released by Barnes & Noble) looks a lot like Amazon’s white plastic e-book reader, only instead of the chiclet-keyboard there is a color multitouch screen, to be used as a keyboard or to browse books, cover-flow style ... The $260 Nook ... is expected to be on sale at the end of November.”



For more details go to Google Blogoscoped.

Another popular reader is the QUE from Plastic Logic, designed for business people. According to the plans QUE will have 8.5×11-inch touchscreen display, 3G connectivity (AT&T) and Wi-Fi. The main feature for QUE wil be the ability for users to edit Microsoft Office documents on the device. The QUE premiere is scheduled for January next year.

If you want to read a brief description of the upcoming eReaders and see how they look like click here.


Via: Time.com
http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1929387,00.html
learn more about book eReaders

No comments

Facebook And Apple Are Fundamentally Changing Ways People Communicate

Friday, 23. October 2009, 19:51:21

This is the first time we are covering this report but I think that for everyone involved in emerging technology it is interesting to know what lies ahead.

At the Web 2.0 Summit, every year Mary Meeker, an analyst from Morgan Stanley conducts a presentation of internet trends. In short she foresees mobile usage to be bigger than most experts calculate and forecasts that regulators can help advance or slow mobile internet evolution.


Improvements in social networking and mobile computing platforms (led by Facebook + Apple ecosystems) are fundamentally changing ways people communicate with each other and ways developers / advertisers / vendors reach consumers.
Mobile devices will evolve as remote controls for ever expanding types of real-time cloud-based services, including emerging category of location-based services, creating opportunities + dislocations, empowering consumers in unprecedented + transformative ways.



Is anyone surprised that mobile is going to rule the future. Blackberries and iPhones are now turning into small computers that can utilize every web application to its fullest potential. To read the full report please click here.

Via: Read/Write/Web
http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/mary_meekers_internet_trends_presentation_2009.php

No comments

I Really Love Writing About Technology

Tuesday, 20. October 2009, 11:01:00

You have probably noticed that I am not posting as frequently as I used to. If I tell you that I am busy, you will probably answer “Who isn’t?", and you are right.

Anyway, I am not trying to find an excuse not to post because I really love chatting about technology. What I am trying to find is time because 10 months ago, I interviewed for the position of Help Desk Manager with my current employer Queens Library and luckily for me and I hope for the library, I got the job.

I also had a little set back when Newsgator decided to drop their free RSS tool for the masses and I had to find a new RSS reader, transfer all my files and give up the convenience of receiving all my RSS feeds as emails on my mobile phone, something I had set up with Newsgator on my own.

To make the long story short, I am now fully geared up with mobile RSS reader to start writing again, so prepare yourself for another round of exciting, enlightening and up to date materials on new and emerging technologies in the small big world of libraries.

No comments

Google Adds Drag and Drop in Gmail, Acquires ReCaptcha, Signs A Deal for Print-On-Demand Titles And Starts Google Sidewiki

Tuesday, 13. October 2009, 20:07:16

The fact that we are not talking about Google doesn’t mean that nothing is happening at the headquarters of the search giant.

In the hot summer months Google made the Gmail community happy by adding drag and drop capability for messages.



With the new feature customers will be able to drag messages into labels, and labels onto messages. More details are available from the Official Gmail blog.

Later Google acquired ReCaptcha, a company that provides CAPTCHAs to help protect from spam and fraud bots. Get the details from CNET news.


Google plans to use ReCaptcha's technology both as a security measure within certain Google sites and to make its massive book-scanning project a little smarter, the company said in a blog post. ReCaptcha is an offshoot of Carnegie Mellon University's School of Computer Science, and puts a twist on the traditional captcha: a string of letters in squiggly text meant to confuse spam bots and other nonhuman Web pests.



In September Google and On Demand Books (creator of the Espresso Book Machine)have signed a deal to provide print-on-demand (PoD) access to more than two million public domain books (published before 1923). Click here to see out past coverage of the Espresso Book Machine. Library Journal has more information on the subject.

If you like social networking and leaving comments and ratings on websites, you will like the new Google Sidewiki product.


Google Sidewiki is a new feature being added today to the Google Toolbar that allows anyone to leave comments about pages as they surf the web. Love something you’re reading? Hate it? You can share your views with others who visit the page and who also have Sidewiki enabled.


Sidewiki is available for now only as a feature in Google Toolbar in Internet Explorer and Firefox. Go to Search Engine Land to read more.

In the beginning of October Google improved Search Options, the side panel on the top of the search engine that allows you to filter and refine your search by time, media and results.


Today, we're announcing nine new Search Options tools: past hour, specific date range, more shopping sites, fewer shopping sites, visited pages, not yet visited, books, blogs and news.



Search Engine Land has more information and pictures.

No comments

Houston Public Library Delivers Books To Customers In Their Cars

Wednesday, 7. October 2009, 18:47:29

Houston Public Library announced that they are adding a curbside delivery service to "two branches that are "parking challenged", called "HPL To Go". Houston Chronicle newspaper has more.


Patrons reserve materials online and are notified by email that they are available. Instead of entering the library, patrons notify the staff by phone that they are waiting outside in the car, giving them their library card number and a description of the car. A staffer then gathers the materials and delivers them to the car.

Delivery just takes a few minutes and requests are handled on a first-come, first-served basis, HPL spokesperson Sandra Fernandez told LJ.



If food can be delivered to your car why not books. This is a perfect example of how far some libraries are willing to go to satisfy their customers. I would not be surprised if some libraries in New York City start similar service, considering how difficult it is in some areas to find parking.

Via: Library Journal
http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6695012.html?rssid=191

No comments

SirsiDynix Builds Enterprise 3.0 A Single Search Product For Libraries

Friday, 2. October 2009, 00:13:41

SirsiDynix Enterprise 3.0. is the name of the new single search product available from SirsiDynix, which will allow customers to search all the resources at the library:
electronic catalog, digital collections, web sites and federated search resources. ( click here to see
our coverage on federated search)



* Search Scope: Users searching through a locally defined profile may search everything the library offers or a subset of particular interest

* Look and feel: Libraries can upload their own headers, footers, and navigation panels. They can also upload their own cascading style sheets to control fonts, colors, backgrounds, and layout

* Authentication: Libraries can decide whether or not authentication is required for a given profile and whether to use LDAP or the ILS user repository

* Available content: In consortia, not all members have the same content subscriptions. Profiles allow configuration for individual members.



SirsiDynix Enterprise 3.0 is similar to other multi search products offer by ILS vendors like
Ex Libris Primo, Innovative Interfaces Encore and Summon ( offered by electronic-resource management company Serials Solution, owned by Proquest).

Get more information from SirsiDynix press release.

To me the trend towards which everyone is moving is more than obvious: single search for all the resources in the library: databases, Internet, electronic articles and e-books.

By now most of our customers are very comfortable searching the vast world of Internet from a small Google box, so why not have a single search place for everything the library offers so they can easily find it and bring it home.

No comments

New Food Safety Website And Database Of Broadband Stimulus Bids Introduced

Wednesday, 30. September 2009, 20:42:58

If you read us a lot you already know that we love new websites and databases. Resourceshelf draws attention to two new resources: Food Safety website and NTIA database Of Broadband Stimulus Funding Bids.



The new site ( FoodSafety.org ) features information from all the agencies across the federal government that deal with critical food and food safety information, including preventive tips about how to handle food safely, alerts on life-saving food recalls, and the latest news from the key agencies.



Customers going to Food Safety website could also receive email and RSS notifications on recalled and unsafe food and find information from government experts on food safety.

The National Telecommunications & Information Administration received approximately 2,200 bids for the first of the $7.2 million broadband stimulus money.


The cable bids ranged from an operator seeking a combination grant and loan to an upgrade to all-fiber for a system serving an Indian reservation in North Carolina ($2,685,600 grant/$75,000 loan), to a last-mile project to expand service to over 8,000 homes in Pahrump, NV ($5,642,974).


No comments

Librarian In Black With New Site, Finds Out How to Use Twitter In Libraries And Explains The Controversial Google Book Deal

Tuesday, 29. September 2009, 12:00:00

Librarian In Black is back with a newly redesigned page. If you haven’t visited the blog, don’t hesitate it is definitely worth the trip.

Sarah also highlights a post from the Mobile Libraries Blog on the " 100 Ways to Use Twitter In Your Library".

Here are briefly some of the suggestions:



*Try having a question and answer session
*Get feedback on potential policy changes
*Update patrons on new materials
*Link to interesting news stories



For more take look at our old posts on the subject.

And if you want to get clarification on the controversial Google digital book settlement read Sara's brief and informative analysis.

It is clear that at some point Google will be forced to revise the settlement. The position of the American Library Association is clear:

In the absence of competition for the services it will enable, the settlement could compromise fundamental library values such as equity of access to information, patron privacy, intellectual freedom and fair use. Specifically, the libraries are concerned about equal access for all users to the service, monopoly pricing and reader privacy.



Find the rest at ALA's page about "Google Book Settlement".

No comments

The The Fisher-Watkins Library In Boston Throws Out The Books, Goes Digital

Friday, 25. September 2009, 17:16:44

Can you imagine library without books? If you cant, the story that I am going to tell you will help you visualize it.

The Fisher-Watkins Library, part of the Cushing Academy School, an elite peparatory school located near Boston decided to get rid of their books, give them to local libraries and embrace a digital future.

"When I look at books, I see an outdated technology, like scrolls before books,’’ said James Tracy, headmaster of Cushing and chief promoter of the bookless campus ( in front of the Boston Globe newspaper )


Here is briefly what the library plans to do:



* monitors that provide students with real-time interactive data and news feeds from around the world

* state-of-the-art computers with high-definition screens for research and reading

* quiet cyber-carrels

* open classroom space

* faculty lounge

* cyber-café in a convivial setting for formal and informal student and teacher interaction



In addition the school administration is spending $10,000 to buy 18 electronic readers ( Kindle and Sony Reader).

I know of school districts which have given laptops to all of their students, but never heard of libraries without books.

Simply put, we are not there yet. There are still professors and students out there that strongly prefer books, instead of various electronic gadgets and the e-book industry and electronic reader manufacturers are not ready for the digital only world.


Via: Boston Globe
http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2009/09/04/a_library_without_the_books/?page=2

2 comments

New Useful Political Research Tools From The Sunlight Foundation Blog

Tuesday, 22. September 2009, 17:19:20

Politics nowadays is very fashionable and popular and more and more library customers are taking interest in it, so knowing useful political research tools can only help your customers.

The resources were highlighted by Ellen Miller on the Sunlight Foundation blog and discovered by the Resourceshelf blog.


*Party Time

Fundraisers

*Capitol Words

Most frequently spoken word by legislator

* FedSpending
Government contracts. Search by district



For more details read the whole post on Sunlight Foundation. Free research tools on any subject ( politics especially) always come handy.

No comments

Library Blog Buzz Voted One Of The Top 100 Opera Blogs

Thursday, 17. September 2009, 22:42:18

Readers voted for Library Blog Buzz to be one of the top 100 Opera blogs on the web. Take a look at announcment letter sent to me by Angelina Mizaki, Selection Committee President from the The Daily Reviewer.

The Daily Reviewer writes: Hi!Congratulations! Your readers have submitted and voted for your blog at The Daily Reviewer. We compiled an exclusive list of the Top 100 opera Blogs, and we are glad to let you know that your blog was included! You can see it at http://thedailyreviewer.com/top/opera Cheers!

Writing Library Blog Buzz started as an experiment but now I am so addicted to the experience that I could not imagine my daily routine without it. I am grateful to all readers who voted for Library Blog Buzz and guarantee to make every one of your minutes on my blog more challenging, exiting and enjoyable informative.

No comments

Going Crazy On Twitter? No Thanks

Wednesday, 16. September 2009, 19:44:11

Going Crazy On Twitter? No Thanks

I don’t have time for Twitter but I am sure many of our readers do, so I am forwarding to you an interesting post from Daily Bits blog about" 20 Crazy Things We Have Seen on Twitter".

From marriage proposals ( see below), suicide notes, saving life tweets, job offers, to a picture of the U.S. Airways plane in the Hudson river, you shouldn’t be surprised at anything you read on Twitter today.

Picture taken from Daily Bits blog





For something that started out as a microblogging service, Twitter has certainly gone a long way. We could say that it is changing many socio-economic aspects on our society. Do you think I am exaggerating? Then check out the 20 crazy things that already happened on Twitter below.



Do you have to share everything on Twitter? Certainly not. After all Twitter is an official form of communication between you and the rest of the world ( twitter users).

No comments

52 Ways to Use Your Library Card During September's Library Card Month

Thursday, 10. September 2009, 19:14:28

My first post in September is about getting a library card simply because September is library card sign-up month, time to remind the public that getting a library card involves 5 minutes but opens numerous possibilities.


The American Library Association (ALA) and libraries across the country remind parents that a library card is the most important school supply of all.

Libraries play an important role in the education and development of children. Studies show that children who are read to in the home and who use the library perform better in school and are more likely to continue to use the library as a source of lifetime learning.




ALA has prepared a lot of supporting campaign materials for libraries, like press kit, fact sheet, library theme photos and ideas on how to promote library card month.

As a librarian I can think of more than 52 ways to use a library card, but if you cant come up with more than 10 than read the suggestions from the American Library Association.

1 comment

Why Blogging From Canada Hotels Is Close to Impossible

Wednesday, 9. September 2009, 20:29:08

If you haven’t seen a post from me last week and you wondered why, let me explain.

Last week I traveled to Canada with the expectations that I will be able to blog from the two hotels that I booked in Quebec and Montreal.

What was my surprise to discover that Internet connections barely run in Canadian hotels. At the first hotel the Internet was impossibly slow at the second one it was somewhat possible only after 12:30 am at night and I didn’t have enough time to do it, considering the fact that I had to be up early for breakfast.

Anyway, don’t plan to do any computer work in Canada, or at least check with the hotel first before you book.

I can speculate a lot why Internet is the way it is in Canada but let’s first hear the facts from an online article at Canada.com


According to a new OECD (Organization For economic Co-operation and Development”) report, Canada has one of the slowest and most expensive consumer broadband networks in the developed world...

Canada is relatively expensive by OECD standards, ranking 14th for monthly subscription costs at $45.65 U.S. per month...

Not only is the Canadian Internet relatively expensive, it is also comparatively slow, ranking 24th out of the 30 OECD countries



After you read the article, you can make your own conclusions.

Posting will resume as normal on our blog on a daily basis starting today and I apologize again to all my readers who were expecting posts last week.

See you tomorrow.

No comments

Best Sites To Get Free Images On The Web

Friday, 28. August 2009, 00:51:38

We have always look for guides to free images on the Web. This time Stephen Abram found a list of " 12 best places to get free images for your site".

Take a look at Tiltomo and Flickr CompFigh And FlickrStorm to see our previous posts on this subject.


Stock.XCHNG.. has a library of almost 400,000 images.., Openphoto has now built up a solid collection.. neatly arranged into well-chosen categories, ...Stockvault has a small but very high quality collection of stock photos,...Morguefile has excellent search tool.



Read the whole article to find out the rest.

Most of the search engines today offer more sophisticated search: Google allows now image search for by color and image type and a search for licensed images using the Creative Commons database.

If you are interested in Google, you can get more news about the search engine from the Official Google blog.

2 comments

1 2 3 4 5 ... 43 Next »

Showing posts 1 - 20 of 860.