Pew Research has just published a survey of interest to libraries. Read the full report. Key Findings Email and online news are still more appealing to older users, but social media sites attract many repeat visitors. Social networking use among users 50 and older has nearly doubled over the past year. Percent Usage by Age
◊ Technology ◊
LC-Twitter, another bite at the apple
In The LoC & Twitter: the horror, the horror I expressed discouragement over my industry observations during the weeks following the Library of Congress agreement to archive Twitter. An opportunity arose to revisit the subject in Library Journal and I returned to form with some straight-ahead analysis and thoughts about new information needs in the
The Goodnight, Gutenberg blog
Folks interested in publishing and technology will want to check out Slate.com’s Goodnight, Gutenberg from publishing-exec-turned-author Marion Maneker. A few recent articles may be of particular interest to libraries: The Cloudy Revolution: The iPad will speed the shift from desktop to Web-based computing. The Future of E-Readers Is Brighter Than We Knew Does It Matter
Could this be @ your library?
If I worked for the National Public Library Corporation, I’d include moving visuals like the ones below in my architecture collection. In addition to reference materials, the collection would include resources for library programs that drive community participation, education and enjoyment such as: physical and online references for in-house exhibits project outlines for researching &
The LoC & Twitter: the horror, the horror
This, dear reader, is what I saw while navigating the voluminous digital record of April 14th – 21st, a momentous week in American library history. News of the Library of Congress’s acquisition of Twitter’s archive set me on my course. Announcements trumpeted across the principals’ blogs. Twitter’s dignified, concise and authoritative statement was a masterful
Libraries, help lighten our ecological footprint
Remember libraries … from an ecological point of view, [that's] the virtuous way to go. Daniel Goleman, author of Ecological Intelligence: The Hidden Impacts of What We Buy, during a recent interview with public radio’s Tom Ashbrook. By way of introducing Life Cycle Assessment, a cradle-to-grave methodology for evaluating environmental impact, Goleman refuted the widely
Are public libraries glorified babysitting services?
“My town officials think all we’re running here is a babysitting service” a librarian recently shared in a moment of frustration. She went on to mention studies about the proven impact on cognitive abilities when toddlers are actively engaged in library programs like Lapsit versus passively engaged with toys & videos. This was news to
On Web2.0 and Talking vs Doing
David Crotty’s Scholarly Kitchen post, Science and Web 2.0: Talking About Science vs. Doing Science describes patterns beyond the publishing industry. Check out some of what he says about scientists’ use of Web 2.0 technologies: Discovery, doing research, gathering and interpreting results, that’s the very nature of being a scientist. There are people whose main
ALA/PLA – this is unacceptable (a rant)
I’m generally not given to public rants, but sometimes you just gotta let one rip… Today I came across a PLA announcement for a two-year grant of $750,000 from the Dollar General Literacy Foundation. The ALA/PLA will be awarding mini-grants under a program entitled “The American Dream Starts @ your library”. The announcement directs libraries
iPad is a gamechanger for libraries
I’ve not chimed into the conversation on mobile devices, in part because plenty of people cover that beat and also because smartphones and ebook readers, in my opinion, would not have been all that disruptive to libraries. You see, despite the numerous discrete conveniences delivered by both device types, they don’t significantly change the relationship
