Sharing IT experiences from Kansas | TechSoup for Libraries: "Sharing IT experiences from Kansas
26 May 2010 - 11:03am | Steve Stone
Tags: Emporia Public LibraryIT Tech TalkSteve Stonetap
At the Emporia Public Library where I am the IT guy, we were working on upgrading our HDD protection software. The software we chose, based on price and apparent features, ended up being very problematic. We ended up abandoning it and purchasing a different software.
As my director and I were looking back on the series of events, trying to learn from our mistakes, she asked me a question,
'Why didn't we talk to other libraries in Kansas to see what they used?'"
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Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Monday, May 17, 2010
Cable Children's Program from Denton Public Library
Library Larry Online
Fun program created and produced by Denton Public Library - check it out.
Catch Library Larry on T.V.
•7 a.m. & 4 p.m. daily on DTV, Charter Channel 26, Verizon Channel 38 & Grande Channel 12.
•10 a.m. on Saturdays, 4:30 p.m. Mondays & Thursdays on Charter Channel 25 & Verizon channel 39.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Monday, May 10, 2010
TechNet 2010 - Library Technology Conference
There's still time to register for TechNet 2010 - The 3rd Annual North Texas Conference on Library Technology! Scheduled for Friday May 14 at the Decatur Civic Center in Decatur, TX, the event's intended for all library personnel whose responsibilities involve the use of technology, whether at the most basic or the most expert level.
In keeping with the theme of Ahead of the Curve: Learn, Explore, Engage, the keynote presentation will feature Amigos Continuing Education Librarian Christine Peterson discussing Playing Catch-Up with Technology. Want a sample of that presentation? Visit our webpage at http://www.ntrls.org and click on this month's featured podcast "Technology Trends in Libraries." This month's featured article, "Successful Library Planning for Web 2.0," was written by Texas Christian University Science Reference Librarian Jeff Bond - who happens to be scheduled to present a couple of sessions on Going Mobile: Building Your Library's Presence on Mobile Devices" at that conference.
Besides choosing from 22 different session topics, participants can visit the Technology Petting Zoo to compare an Amazon Kindle to a Sony Reader to a Barnes & Noble Nook, various digial cameras, an electronic magnifier and different handheld illuminated magnifiers, several brands of Large Print keyboards, and more! Technology-related exhibitors will provide group demonstrations and also be on-hand for one-on-one discussions.
Throw in doorprizes, CE/CPE credits and excellent opportunities for networking with your peers, top all that with lunch and refreshments prepared by the facility's on-site chef, and you'll get the big picture.
To put yourself into that picture, register online at http://www.ntrs.org/ce/ . To review the schedule and/or find out more about the sessions and session presenters, visit http://www.librarytechnetwork.com/agenda.html . If you hurry, you too can get AHEAD OF THE CURVE!
In keeping with the theme of Ahead of the Curve: Learn, Explore, Engage, the keynote presentation will feature Amigos Continuing Education Librarian Christine Peterson discussing Playing Catch-Up with Technology. Want a sample of that presentation? Visit our webpage at http://www.ntrls.org and click on this month's featured podcast "Technology Trends in Libraries." This month's featured article, "Successful Library Planning for Web 2.0," was written by Texas Christian University Science Reference Librarian Jeff Bond - who happens to be scheduled to present a couple of sessions on Going Mobile: Building Your Library's Presence on Mobile Devices" at that conference.
Besides choosing from 22 different session topics, participants can visit the Technology Petting Zoo to compare an Amazon Kindle to a Sony Reader to a Barnes & Noble Nook, various digial cameras, an electronic magnifier and different handheld illuminated magnifiers, several brands of Large Print keyboards, and more! Technology-related exhibitors will provide group demonstrations and also be on-hand for one-on-one discussions.
Throw in doorprizes, CE/CPE credits and excellent opportunities for networking with your peers, top all that with lunch and refreshments prepared by the facility's on-site chef, and you'll get the big picture.
To put yourself into that picture, register online at http://www.ntrs.org/ce/ . To review the schedule and/or find out more about the sessions and session presenters, visit http://www.librarytechnetwork.com/agenda.html . If you hurry, you too can get AHEAD OF THE CURVE!
Six Things You Need to Know About Facebook Connections Commentary by Kurt Opsahl
May 4th, 2010
"Connections." It's an innocent-sounding word. But it's at the heart of some of the worst of Facebook's recent changes.
Facebook first announced Connections a few weeks ago, and EFF quickly wrote at length about the problems they created. Basically, Facebook has transformed substantial personal information — including your hometown, education, work history, interests, and activities — into "Connections." This allows far more people than ever before to see this information, regardless of whether you want them to.
Since then, our email inbox has been flooded with confused questions and reports about these changes. We've learned lots more about everyone's concerns and experiences. Drawing from this, here are six things you need to know about Connections:
1.Facebook will not let you share any of this information without using Connections. You cannot opt-out of Connections. If you refuse to play ball, Facebook will remove all unlinked information from your profile.
2.Facebook will not respect your old privacy settings in this transition. For example, if you had previously sought to share your Interests with "Only Friends," Facebook will now ignore this and share your Connections with "Everyone."
3.Facebook has removed your ability to restrict its use of this information. The new privacy controls only affect your information's "Visibility," not whether it is "publicly available."
Explaining what "publicly available" means, Facebook writes:
"Such information may, for example, be accessed by everyone on the Internet (including people not logged into Facebook), be indexed by third party search engines, and be imported, exported, distributed, and redistributed by us and others without privacy limitations."
4.Facebook will continue to store and use your Connections even after you delete them. Just because you can't see them doesn't mean they're not there. Even after you "delete" profile information, Facebook will remember it. We've also received reports that Facebook continues to use deleted profile information to help people find you through Facebook's search engine.
5.Facebook sometimes creates a Connection when you "Like" something. That "Like" button you see all over Facebook, and now all over the web? It too can sometimes add a Connection to your profile, without you even knowing it.
6.Your posts may show up on a Connection page even if you do not opt in to the Connection. If you use the name of a Connection in a post on your wall, it may show up on the Connection page, without you even knowing it. (For example, if you use the word "FBI" in a post).
You can send Facebook your comments on the new Connections here.
"Connections." It's an innocent-sounding word. But it's at the heart of some of the worst of Facebook's recent changes.
Facebook first announced Connections a few weeks ago, and EFF quickly wrote at length about the problems they created. Basically, Facebook has transformed substantial personal information — including your hometown, education, work history, interests, and activities — into "Connections." This allows far more people than ever before to see this information, regardless of whether you want them to.
Since then, our email inbox has been flooded with confused questions and reports about these changes. We've learned lots more about everyone's concerns and experiences. Drawing from this, here are six things you need to know about Connections:
1.Facebook will not let you share any of this information without using Connections. You cannot opt-out of Connections. If you refuse to play ball, Facebook will remove all unlinked information from your profile.
2.Facebook will not respect your old privacy settings in this transition. For example, if you had previously sought to share your Interests with "Only Friends," Facebook will now ignore this and share your Connections with "Everyone."
3.Facebook has removed your ability to restrict its use of this information. The new privacy controls only affect your information's "Visibility," not whether it is "publicly available."
Explaining what "publicly available" means, Facebook writes:
"Such information may, for example, be accessed by everyone on the Internet (including people not logged into Facebook), be indexed by third party search engines, and be imported, exported, distributed, and redistributed by us and others without privacy limitations."
4.Facebook will continue to store and use your Connections even after you delete them. Just because you can't see them doesn't mean they're not there. Even after you "delete" profile information, Facebook will remember it. We've also received reports that Facebook continues to use deleted profile information to help people find you through Facebook's search engine.
5.Facebook sometimes creates a Connection when you "Like" something. That "Like" button you see all over Facebook, and now all over the web? It too can sometimes add a Connection to your profile, without you even knowing it.
6.Your posts may show up on a Connection page even if you do not opt in to the Connection. If you use the name of a Connection in a post on your wall, it may show up on the Connection page, without you even knowing it. (For example, if you use the word "FBI" in a post).
You can send Facebook your comments on the new Connections here.
Thursday, May 06, 2010
10 Technology Ideas Your Library Can Implement Next Week
Read the entire article from the March 2010 American Libraries for great ideas!
10 Technology Ideas Your Library Can Implement Next Week
Even non-techies can offer cutting-edge services right away
By Ellyssa Kroski
Here are 10 ideas you can use to start creating, collaborating, connecting, and communicating through cutting-edge tools and techniques. All of them are culled from the 10 books in the Tech Set series.
New social media websites such as Facebook and Twitter enable librarians to converse, communicate, and collaborate with patrons as never before, because they are increasingly a part of people's everyday lives. A brochure that describes your library with a few pictures is great, but a video tour that people can watch on your website or blog is immeasurably better. Enabling patrons to save their catalog searches is important, but offering the ability to notify patrons via email and text messaging when new acquisitions arrive presents a fresh way to connect with users.
Librarians who are still becoming comfortable with the Web are often reticent to begin using new technologies in their day-to-day work because the learning curve often takes more time than they have at hand. When I begin teaching people about Web 2.0, mobile, and emerging technologies, I try to answer three questions:
• What is it?
• Why is it important?
• How can it help me better serve my users tomorrow?
Here are 10 ideas you can use to start creating, collaborating, connecting, and communicating through cutting-edge tools and techniques. All of them are culled from the 10 books in the Tech Set series, to be published by Neal-Schuman in March.
10 Technology Ideas Your Library Can Implement Next Week
Even non-techies can offer cutting-edge services right away
By Ellyssa Kroski
Here are 10 ideas you can use to start creating, collaborating, connecting, and communicating through cutting-edge tools and techniques. All of them are culled from the 10 books in the Tech Set series.
New social media websites such as Facebook and Twitter enable librarians to converse, communicate, and collaborate with patrons as never before, because they are increasingly a part of people's everyday lives. A brochure that describes your library with a few pictures is great, but a video tour that people can watch on your website or blog is immeasurably better. Enabling patrons to save their catalog searches is important, but offering the ability to notify patrons via email and text messaging when new acquisitions arrive presents a fresh way to connect with users.
Librarians who are still becoming comfortable with the Web are often reticent to begin using new technologies in their day-to-day work because the learning curve often takes more time than they have at hand. When I begin teaching people about Web 2.0, mobile, and emerging technologies, I try to answer three questions:
• What is it?
• Why is it important?
• How can it help me better serve my users tomorrow?
Here are 10 ideas you can use to start creating, collaborating, connecting, and communicating through cutting-edge tools and techniques. All of them are culled from the 10 books in the Tech Set series, to be published by Neal-Schuman in March.
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