Today we commemorate the men and women who have given their lives in service to our country. I believe the fallen and those who currently serve do so with a strong desire to preserve democratic ideals many of us hold dear. It is fitting that we set aside a day to honor them. I believe
◊ Advocacy ◊
Public libraries and single-payer healthcare
Coalition building was a topic at the Massachusetts Library Association’s annual conference earlier this month. Speaker Margie Schuster encouraged attendees to take one more step—in addition to lobbying and message development—and create a coalition to expand into a broader sphere. Good advice. Given the magnitude of the library funding crisis, I’d urge state and national library
Being BTF: findability & patronage
Findability: … a work has no value unless it is seen; unfound masterpieces are worthless. When there are millions of books, millions of songs, millions of films, millions of applications, millions of everything requesting our attention—and most of it free—being found is valuable. Patronage: Fans like to reward artists, musicians, authors and the like with
Being BTF: accessibility & embodiment
Accessibility: ownership often [stinks]. You have to keep your things tidy, up-to-date, and in the case of digital material, backed up. Many people, me included, will be happy to have others tend our “possessions”. Embodiment: The music is free—the bodily performance expensive. From Better than Free by Kevin Kelly. This week I’ve used the work
Being BTF: interpretation & authenticity
Interpretation: The copy of code, being mere bits, is free—and becomes valuable to you only through the support and guidance. Authenticity: You might be able to grab a key software application for free, but even if you don’t need a manual, you might like to be sure it is bug free, reliable, and warranted. From
Being BTF: immediacy & personalization
As a sellable quality, immediacy has many levels. [It] has to fit with the product and the audience. Personalization requires an ongoing conversation between the creator and consumer, artist and fan, producer and user. It is deeply generative because it is iterative and time consuming. You can’t copy the personalization that a relationship represents. From
Being BTF (better than free): intro
The role of libraries in an increasingly digitized culture is a hot topic among librarians, educational institutions and industry groups. A mention in LibraryBytes piqued my interest about a ChangeThis manifesto by Kevin Kelly. Better Than Free describes 8 hidden values for companies to bring forward in a digital marketplace filled with free products. Kelly
The internet, literacy & access to knowledge
A reader sent a link to the video below with a flattering note: “I’ve seen this YouTube video a couple of times and thought you might be interested in cogitating on the implications…” Me, cogitate? Why, make me blush… The popular video by Fisch, McLeod and Brenman serves up statistics on the information age in
23 Things – another view?
While writing yesterday’s article, I wondered what 23 Things might look like through the eyes of many public library directors in this area. Might they say something like… “I’d love to learn more about web 2.0 – but I struggle every day to get my job done. We’ve got more patrons then ever coming through
Spotlight on 23 Things
23 Things introduced me to the work of Helene Blowers. I saw a reference to it on another library blog and curiosity about the name prompted a web search. 23 Things is an online self-discovery program that encourages the exploration of web 2.0 tools and new technologies. The project launched in August 2006 with 352
