Archive for January, 2008
Congratulations to Joan Elmouchi and her staff! Library Journal has named Chelsea District Library (McKune Memorial) the “Best Small Library in America.” It’s great to see a Michigan library win this honor!
The press release notes: “CDL, which serves over 14,000 residents of the Chelsea District, made up of the city of Chelsea, and the Dexter, Lima, Lyndon, and Sylvan townships, was chosen this year for its team-oriented approach that brings in a high number of volunteers and fosters ongoing innovation. Judges also noted the impressive use of its renovated historic facility; creative outreach programs that include book and movie discussions and monthly themed luncheons for seniors; kids and teen oriented programs; and aggressive adoption of technology to both improve the patron experience and increase public access to computers and the Internet.”
Click here to read the complete article in Library Journal.
January 28th, 2008
The class that gives your library staff an overview of all the changes to the MeL Databases will be ending March 31. The changes have been incorporated into all the other free classes.
If you still want to schedule the three-hour What’s New 2007 overview, please contact Suzanne Robinson at MLC as soon as possible! For more information, please go to our MeL class description page.
January 24th, 2008
At the MLC Board meeting on January 18, MLC Board Chair Pamela Grudzien presented a Certificate of Appreciation plaque to out-going Chair, Victor Liu, in recognition of his leadership work on the MLC Board.
January 22nd, 2008
MLC has posted a job opening for an ILS Training & Support Librarian to work on the Michigan Evergreen project. For links to the complete job description and application form, go to:
http://mlcnet.org/cms/sitem.cfm/news__announcements/job_posting/
January 22nd, 2008
Check out the Library of Congress blog:
Great story about the launch of a brand-new pilot project with Flickr, the enormously popular photo-sharing site.
More than 3,000 photos from two of the most popular collections are being made available on a new Flickr page, to include only images for which no copyright restrictions are known to exist.
“We want people to tag, comment and make notes on the images, just like any other Flickr photo, which will benefit not only the community but also the collections themselves.”
January 16th, 2008
Tight Budget? Need to offer your staff quality professional development? Is MeL being used to its fullest potential to serve your patrons?
If you want your staff to be able to better utilize the tremendous resources found in the MeL Databases, we have FREE training available for you.
You need eight library staff members. You need a lab with a computer connected to the Internet for each participant. You need a projector for the trainer’s computer. That’s it.
For more detailed information and class descriptions, please read the information on this page:
http://www.mlcnet.org/cms/sitem.cfm/workshops__conferences/mel_workshops_/
Contact Suzanne Robinson (robinson@mlcnet.org) for more information.
January 14th, 2008
The Missouri Library Network Corporation (MLNC) is offering MLC members discounted registration to the Computers in Libraries conference and Internet@Schools East conference. See below for message from MLNC:
The Computers in Libraries 2008 conference will be held April 7–9, 2008, in Arlington, VA. The Missouri Library Network Corporation (MLNC) is pleased to be able once again to coordinate registrations for MLC members. The Flyer and Registration Form is available on MLNC’s website at: http://www.mlnc.org/cil2008.pdf . Registrations must be received at MLNC no later than Friday, February 29, 2008, with a check for the conference fees made payable to Information Today, Inc., the conference sponsor.
The cost is $219 for the full CIL 2008 conference program. This is more than 50% off the regular price, a savings of up to $250! In addition, discount prices of $99 on the Internet@Schools East conference and $219 for the combo of I@SE/CIL are being offered. [No discount rates are available for single day registrations or pre- or post-conference seminars and workshops.]
We hope you and your members will be excited about this great offer. MLNC looks forward to your participation! Sincerely, Beverly Hawthorne
Beverly Hawthorne (800-969-6562 or314-918-7222,ext. 800)bev@mlnc.org
Missouri Library Network Corporation
8045 Big Bend Blvd., Suite 202
St. Louis, MO 63119-2714
Fax: 314-918-7727
http://www.mlnc.org
Please note that registrations are sent to MLNC (Missouri) – not to MLC. Thanks!
January 14th, 2008
Marshall Breeding’s article, “Perceptions 2007: an International Survey of Automation,” was posted yesterday by Library Technology Guides.
Marshall writes:
“The year 2007 saw considerable upheaval in the library automation industry. To get some sense of the aftermath of the recent rounds of mergers, acquisitions, product consolidations, and to gauge interest in open source automation systems, I created and executed a survey that aims to measure the prevailing perceptions in libraries.
… The survey results indicate major differences in satisfaction in the products and companies from which libraries acquire their automation systems. Dissatisfaction and concern prevail, yet some companies maintain exceptional levels of satisfaction from the libraries that use their products.”
Click here for the complete article. Click here to view the interactive version of the survey’s statistical results.
January 10th, 2008
New York Times
The Well-Wired Use Libraries More
By ALEX MINDLIN
Published: January 7, 2008
Library use is far more prevalent among people who have a broadband Internet connection at home or at work, according to a new study. The finding counters a decade-old assumption that libraries serve as a “bridge†for people who want to use the Internet, but have only dial-up connections, or no access at all.
“People in the low-access population don’t often think, ‘If I only had the Internet, I’d be in a different position,’†said Lee Rainie, director for the Pew Internet & American Life Project, which performed the study in tandem with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
The study also found that people 18 to 30 years old were the age group most likely to have recently used a library. “They are the most recently in school,†said Mr. Rainie, “so they potentially have a better sense of the way that libraries have become more wired and more high-tech.â€
January 7th, 2008
