Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Top 20 things librarians in public libraries wish patrons knew or did (part 1 of 4)

Hats off again to the Annoyed Librarian for alerting me to a series of articles about the Top 20 things librarians in public libraries wish patrons knew or did.

Again the comments at the end of AL's post on this topic are well worth reading.

Personally, on first blush I have two comments (a) I find the list patronising -it's only in light of AL's comments that I post the list at all and (b) why is #1 Use us! last?

Monday, December 22, 2008

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Librarianship - the best career?

Here the Annoyed Librarian (well worth adding to your RSS feeds) gives her/his response to a recent U.S. News and World Report article. There is a link to the original article within AL's post.

P.S. Make sure you read the comments after the Annoyed Librarian's article - some of them are hilarious. I'm wiping the tears from my eyes as I type.

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

999 book Challenge

Book challenge for 2009
My colleague Scarlett and I have decided to take the 999 challenge as seen on Library Thing.We have to read 9 books of your choice in 9 different categories of your choice in 2009.That is a total of 81 books for the year, it certainly will be a challenge.
My categories are: Books Made Into Movies, Short Listed and Man-Booker Prize Winners, Word of Mouth, Chic Lit, Classic Reading, Australian Authors, Biographies, 1001 Must Reads and Crime Fiction.
I have picked my lists for books made into movies,booker prize winners, australian authors and 1001 must reads. I am still to complete the other 5 lists.
Scarlett's lists comprise of Embarassing gaps in my reading, Stagnant bookself books, Orange prize winners, Man-Booker prize winners, Books made into movies, 1001 must reads,Australian authors, Recommended reads and Crime.
There is only one rule and that is you can only have 6 cross over books in your 9 catagories.
Stayed tuned to see how it all pans out.

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Flickr

This is a test post from flickr, a fancy photo sharing thing.

Thursday, December 4, 2008

Library Innovations Seminar

Last Friday Debbie and I attended a Library Innovations seminar at the State Library of NSW. This is where we saw the Shanachie Tour by the boys from the Delft Public Library. The rest of the day was devoted to hearing about innovations from NSW public libraries.

You may like to take a look at the Powerpoint presentations from the pecha kucha sessions. They have been loaded on Slideshare at:

Library Innovations Powerpoint presentations available here

To learn about how a pecha kucha session works go to:

Definition of pecha kucha

Enjoy!

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

I tested Heidi's Website recommendation




Vicki's Dewey Decimal Section:

312 [Unassigned]

Vicki = 29319 = 293+19 = 312


Class:
300 Social Sciences


Contains:
Books on politics, economics, education and the law.



What it says about you:
You are good at understanding people and finding the systems that work for them. You like having established reasoning behind your decisions. You consider it very important for your friends to always have your back.

Find your Dewey Decimal Section at Spacefem.com

More from Helene Blowers, Library 2.0 guru

More fun from Helene. Try this little quiz and have your name converted to a class listed in the Dewey Decimal System. Here's me:




Heidi's Dewey Decimal Section:

908 Kinds of persons treatment

Heidi = 85949 = 859+49 = 908


Class:
900 History & Geography


Contains:
Travel, biographies, ancient history, and histories of continents.



What it says about you:
You're connected to your past and value the things that have happened to you. You've had some conflicted times in your life, but they've brought you to where you are today and you don't ignore it.

Find your Dewey Decimal Section at Spacefem.com

Monday, December 1, 2008

Shanachietour

I attended Library Innovations on Friday at SLNSW and had the chance to hear about 10innovations from libraries around NSW and to meet Erik Boekesteijn and Jaap van de Geer from DOK, Delft Public Library. They were amazing, full of energy and enjoying the public libraries around Australia. Check them out:

The SLNSW has tagged links to the Shanachie Tour photos, blog etc. at

http://delicious.com/tags/PublicLibrary Services Shanachie Tour [look for the tag shanachietour]

And here are some of their videos:

Link to videos here

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Robert Burns anniversary - some ideas?

Next year is the 250th anniversary of the birth of Robert Burns. It sounds like there will be a 10 month festival in Scotland to celebrate this:

Festival Details here

Ellen from SLNSW thought of two reading lists which could be useful:

* Writers of Scotland (sorted by Nancy Pearl's doorways to make it interesting (character, setting, story, language or all of the above)

* Books to read while drinking whisky (Ellen thought eating haggis or porridge did not quite have the same effect) and this could be a great one to talk about with your readers (with some partnership opportunities as well)

Ellen has set up pages on the RA wiki for these:
Themed Lists
please add your ideas to the wiki (you can e-mail them to Ellen as well).

You might get some ideas from here
City of Literature

Latest from SLNSW

Civic surf is a UK project to encourage civic leaders to write blogs about their organisation.
Civic Surf
There are links to some blogs written by councillors as well as one by a CEO.

For those of you interested in digital preservation you may be interested in the discussion of digital continuity strategies - or how to make sure digital information continues to be available
Digital Continuity Strategy

Statistics
A recently released report alos highlights that many people think the information on the internet is more important than information from a range of other sources - have a look a this blog post summary of the report.
What people think of the Internet

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Week 12 - Wrap up: social networks and catch up


How good was this week? I really enjoyed the article on different ways social networking can be used in a business way. I have embedded the table that was in the article.
Good to see that Libraries have a presence on MySpace. Not sure if I want to go there yet....but I was very impressed with the American Library Associations MySpace page - especially the profile that claims the library is a Capricorn and is currently in a relationship (aren't all Libraries in a Relationship?).
I must go and become a "friend" of the British Library on FaceBook. Yep, I have succumbed and joined FaceBook. I am catching up with all my old SOCOG buddies. Plus I have become addicted to a game similar to Scrabble called "Wordscraper" which I am currently playing with 2 of my friends.
I am also on Bebo as this seems to be the preferred social networking site in the UK so am now catching up with my London friends and nieces/nephews there doing the travel thing....
I definitely intend to look more into Second Life (but where to find the time? I barely have enough time to live my own life!).
Make sure you fill out the feedback form and then the separate form to let the State Library know you have finished.
Thanks for coming on this journey with me!

Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist's Personal Journey

Jill has spoken about her journey - amazing....

http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/jill_bolte_taylor_s_powerful_stroke_of_insight.html
about her experiences and insight. [this link takes you to a video of her presentation]

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Top yummy stuff

I fell across a reference to this site, Popacular, in one of the blogs in my blogfeeder - it lists the top bookmarks in delicious by hour, last 8 hours, etc. My sidekick is already tucking in to Podcasts by the University of Oxford (#1 in the last hour) . . . won't get any sense out of her all day now.

Here are a couple of gems I found :

The Eyeballing Game. How's your visual accuracy?

How to tell if your cat is trying to kill you - take the 2 minute quiz

36 Cool Custom Error 404 Pages

Monday, November 17, 2008

Week 12 Wrap me up with my stockwhip and blanket...

Well hasn't it been a great trip! Full marks to the State Library team for putting the course together, and very special thanks to Vicki for encouraging us all with our weekly certificates and sweeties. I'm still discovering the cool stuff our staff have been doing in their blogs and I do hope we all continue with this.

We now have so many more skills and tools in our repertoire and I've used some already: the Remains of the Day kangaroo poster I did on Big Huge Labs Motivator is now going to be used in my pre-schooler Storytime warm up as a reward to the kids for participating in my Squiggles inspired kangaroo dance, there is preview in our Readers in the Mist blog.

The highlight of week 12 for me has been the Rotarua PL on Bebo, it's a really fun library site, especially the Gingerbread-people Haka. Finally I should acknowledge our IT dept for allowing access to what has been considered 'time wasting on the internet', but we know different now!

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Helene Blowers in her blog, LibraryBytes has posted a couple of blog analyzers that purport to give some insights into your blog and writing style.

Helene, and now me, provides these analysers with the caveat that the scientific integrity of any of these tools is not known and they are presented here for your amusement only (except where the results are fantastic - see Readability Test below):

1. Typealyzer – provides a Myers-Briggs type analysis of your blog and shows you the area of the brain that your writing style reflects most.

Results:

Readers in the Mist : The analysis indicates that the author is of the type: ISTP - The Mechanics ~ The independent and problem-solving type. They are especially attuned to the demands of the moment are masters of responding to challenges that arise spontaneously. They generelly prefer to think things out for themselves and often avoid inter-personal conflicts. The Mechanics enjoy working together with other independent and highly skilled people and often like seek fun and action both in their work and personal life. They enjoy adventure and risk such as in driving race cars or working as policemen and firefighters.

Blue Mountains Library Manager : The analysis indicates that the author of http://bmlmanager.blogspot.com/ is of the type: ESTP - The Doers ~ The active and playful type. They are especially attuned to people and things around them and often full of energy, talking, joking and engaging in physical out-door activities. The Doers are happiest with action-filled work which craves their full attention and focus. They might be very impulsive and more keen on starting something new than following it through. They might have a problem with sitting still or remaining inactive for any period of time.



2. Genderanalyzer – determines what sex you write like.

Results

Readers in the Mist : We think http://readersinthemist.blogspot.com/ is written by a woman (74%).

Blue Mountains Library Manager : We have strong indicators that http://bmlmanager.blogspot.com/ is written by a man (94%).

Rubbish - obviously!



3. Readability Test - Determine what grade level your blog is written at.

Results

Readers in the Mist and Blue Mountains Library Manager : blog readability test



Of course!


4. What is your blog worth - Determines your blog worth based upon Technorati ranking and advertising potential.

Results

Readers in the Mist : $1,129.08 (love the .08!)

Blue Mountains Library Manager : $0.00

I think they mean priceless!

Monday, November 10, 2008

Bignoting librarians


"Every book. Every movie. Every album. It's like Borders, Netflix, and iTunes combined -- for free. And it's so easy: You can go online and have the newest stuff sent to your local branch. Why you would leave this complimentary emporium to students and grandmothers is beyond me. Plus, a librarian is like a Google that actually finds what you're looking for and never clutters your screen with porn."

This endorsement of libraries and librarians has come from a very unlikely source.
Here's a nifty mashupy thing, Amaztype - it's an amazon search engine where you can get your search results as book covers, video/DVD covers or CD covers.


Once you've done your search and got your text, you need to do Ctrl+Alt+PrtScrn and save it to a Publisher document to play with.
Thought it might be useful for library posters and stuff.

Thursday, November 6, 2008

Week 11 - Online Applications and Tools

I found this an extremely frustrating week and I have been stuck on it for 2 weeks!!! Yes, I understand the usefulness of google docs and Zoho. Especially if you are using public computers or sharing a document between friends and collaborating on a document and/or presentation. But do you think I could get a slide show to embed into my blog?
Anyway, finally, after converting a Powerpoint presentation that I had done and trying to embed into the blog and this not working I went back to the drawing board and CREATED a slide show from scratch. Please be proud of me - here it is and it is on one of my favourite topics (I can see G rolling her eyes now!!!):




I hope this changes the analysis of the blog!

Latest sites to look at from SLNSW

Library buildings
The green library blog http://thegreenlibraryblog.blogspot.com/ brings together information about green buildings - in this case libraries. You might like to see how other people are thinking about these questions. Designing better libraries blog discusses a broad range of topic relating to public libraries http://dbl.lishost.org/blog/

My maps
Google maps is asking people to contribute their expertise to make specialist maps of their area. The site where you can make maps is here http://www.google.com.au/intl/en_au/help/maps/mymaps-expo/ You can already looks at great surf beaches by Mick Fanning http://maps.google.com.au/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=115605927050847805681.000458dbbe0b5ed2e4d53&ll=-27.76133,134.516602&spn=50.904562,74.53125&z=4, famous grave sites http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=104524381826730108381.000458b7bf4e40fff0810&z=5 or famous gardens in Sydney http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=112439513477015065616.000458c917c2e4b7dd332&z=8 Wouldn't it be great to add your own local specialities to a map.

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

News from SLNSW

Government 2.0

This blog post analyses Australian government web traffic - and web 2.0 use http://egovau.blogspot.com/2008/10/putting-australian-government-web.html
This post (by the same blogger) shows how some recent planning consultation was done in Melbourne using a wiki and other online tools
http://egovau.blogspot.com/2008/10/success-of-future-melbourne-online-wiki.html

Statistics

This blog from the ABS makes exciting reading for lots of different statistical reasons http://abs4libraries.blogspot.com/

Monday, October 27, 2008

Week 11 Online apps

Had a go at the Google Docs presentation:

Friday, October 24, 2008

Week 10 - Mashups


Not another thing to join, another sign-up to remember. Once I got over this hurdle, I found it immensely enjoyable to create my own mashup......
How clever are some of the webistes we visited? I loved the images associated with maps, googlemaps (including streetview - did you check out your house?)...the starry night sky in Star Viewer, London - a life in google maps....
Will we all be creating calendars with our own photos for Christmas now?

Second Life?

Are you interested in research into second life?

The Eduserv Foundation are producing snapshots of use of Second Life focusing on use within the UK Higher and Further Education sector.

You can read about the snapshots here:

http://www.eduserv.org.uk/foundation/studies/slsnapshots and the most recent report is available from here http://www.eduserv.org.uk/foundation/sl/uksnapshot102008

For Caledonia

Week 10 Mashups


Highlites this week have been London a Life, and Voicefreds; I have had the DNA mashup from Bighugelabs on my flickr profile for some time and use it regularly because it gives more detailed info than the standard flickr stats which only pro accounts get anyway. The poster is the motivator from BHL.

Thursday, October 23, 2008

Mashups cont . . .

Having spent a fair time puddling about with web 2.0 and ignoring the trolley of cataloguing at the side of my desk this week, I'd PROMISED myself I would knuckle down and get through said cataloguing . . .

However, my beloved side-kick here has been doing Week 10 and asking me questions and I've got sucked in big time. We've had quite a giggle. She'll hate me telling you this (sotto vocce), but she Warhol-ed herself and ended up with a fabulous beard. All shredded now sadly . . .

Thought I'd let you know about two other mashup things while I remembered.

First up is AutoMotivator. Similar to the Motivator in Big Huge Labs. Helps you create posters. How creative could we get at work? Very I think.

Here's one I prepared earlier:


The second is Wordle. Have I mentioned it before? Take a muckle great wad of text and put it in Wordle and see what happens.

This is how To a Louse came out:

Now, isn't that so much easier to read??

Podcasting how-to

I've got a feed to the Columbus Metropolitan Library (CML) web 2.0 23 things programme, called Learn & Play @ CML. (Don't, whatever else you do, look at the Home page and see what incentives they're getting!)

There there is a couple of links to how-to's for pod-casting. With all due respect to the SLNSW, I feel that's what's lacking in this Library 2.0 course - the how-to's. It's all very well to show us stuff but, I for one, need more meat (or nuts, or lentils, coz I don't eat meat).

Anyway, here at Thing 21 there are some links for how to do your own podcasts.

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

RSS

I have just finished Week 4 - RSS. I found the Powerhouse Museum's picture of the day very good and chose Food as my favourites for Bloglines.

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Search me


Puddling about in other blogs this morning I stumbled upon another widget we can add to our blogs - oh goody!

This one is called lijit and it enables you to put a search box in your blog. This search box will not only search your blog but also, should you want it to, your other web 2.0 stuff - flickr site, delicious site, blog roll and so on.

It's free. It's easy. I've just added it to Readers in the Mist - go and have a look.

Friday, October 17, 2008

Week 9 - Podcasts and Audio

This week was a bit harder for me to get into as I am much more of a visual person than audio - give me a YouTube demonstration any day! However, I did find this Storytelling session on the Orange County Library website:

http://media.libsyn.com/media/oclspodcast/september08kids.mp3

And I added the podcast feed from the British Library to this blog. Have a look down the side....

Thursday, October 16, 2008

Week 9 Podcasting

Cool! I just did the Brain Systems podcast from MIT and am now ready for brain surgery...But seriously folks this stuff is nifty especially for portability. I checked out the British Library program on edison wax cylinder music and loved it. It's a lot easier to access than YouTube clips because there's no download lag time and the picture quality is not an issue. I also noticed there are book readings available which makes it quite relevant to libraries. I downloaded some podcasting software and will take a closer look and keep you posted. Cheers, Jacko

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

10 Tips about 23 Things


Here is a fun article about Library 2.0 stuff....





Helene Blowers is a Library Journal Mover & Shaker and coauthor of Weaving a Library Web: A Guide to Developing Children’s Websites (ALA, 2004). The Director of Digital Strategy at the Columbus (OH) Metropolitan Library, Blowers blogs about libraries and technology at LibraryBytes.com.

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

More Flickr fun

Helene Blowers who started the whole Library 2.0 thing posted about some fun Flickr widgets you can play with. Read her post here.

The post is really wild - instead of just links to other sites she has thingys that Snap! and show a screen shot of the site - how does she do that? That's the downside of this Learning 2.0 thing - we are only being shown how to skim along the surface.

FlickrSlidr allows you to build a Flickr slideshow and embed it in your blog - you can choose the size of the slideshow and preview it before grabbing the code.

With Bubblr you can add thought or speech bubbles to Flickr pictures for a bit of fun. Search by Flickr account name or just by one tag set. Hmmmmm it goes to an archive - I thought it was going to show on my Flickr page.

Flickr Cover Flow gives you the chance to show your slideshows in a really flash way. I had a play with this tonight - it does work but didn't pick up all the pictures in a tag set and it was quite slow to load. Looks cool though.

And lastly, using the Flickr Badge you can put widget in your blog to show off your flickr photos.

New Blogs to check out!

Streaming video
You can watch Art after hours talks from the Art Gallery of New South Wales on YouTube http://au.youtube.com/user/ArtGalleryNSW

Blogs of interest
Read Muslib and you can follow Margaret Whittaker (from City of Sydney Library) as she goes on her reseach tour of public music libraries for her ALIA study grant award http://muslibproject.blogspot.com/

Future proof blog is a place for people to learn more about the NSW Government digital recordkeeping strategy and to share information about their own activities, projects and experiences in regards to digital recordkeeping. It is also a place to ask questions and offer advice to others who may be going through similar experiences. This is provided by State Records. http://futureproof.records.nsw.gov.au/

The Australian National Maritime Museum has a different kind of blog - tracking the voyages of the new Endeavour http://anmm.wordpress.com/

Friday, October 10, 2008

Week 8 - Answer Boards and Social Searching



Answer Boards - what a scary place to go. Have you seen the kinds of questions people ask? I went to Yahoo Answers and trying to find a serious question... Anyway, I answered the question:


"What exactly does the word "Incurred" mean?"


http://au.answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=Ap1My6NC7LncbBEIEttrMowJ5wt.;_ylv=3?qid=20081009200107AAjvuNH


I had loads of fun creating my Yahoo Avatar to accompany my answer and you will know me as Librarian 13...

Plus, the Taste Website - have I died and gone to heaven? All these great recipes - and reviews - at my fingertips. Here is my favourite:

http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/16046/lemon+tart

Enjoy!

London School of Economics Library Standards



Have a look at the London School of Economics Library Service Standards.

They have included the relevant statistics.
http://www.lse.ac.uk/library/SLDs/OurServiceStandards.htm

Thoughts to ponder



You might be interested in this blog post from the Guardian about why poets travel on trains http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2008/sep/26/poetry.trains.oriordan
It also explores some ideas around writing poetry.
Are there particular things which lend themselves to being read on shorter train journeys (mainly communting for work) or longer train journeys (for a variety of reasons). Or is reading on the train a thing of the past?
How would a reading list for reading (or listening) on the train be?
What would you include?

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Update from SLNSW re Library 2.0

Streaming video
The Topeka Rotary Club in Kansas does live video streaming of their meetings, and you can catch up with any meetings you missed later on. Have a look here http://www.downtowntopekarotary.org/ Do you have any local organisations doing this?

Jackspeak
Jack speak is the new Royal Navy blog http://jackspeak.royalnavy.mod.uk/ It is unusual in the blog posts it combines (Afghanistan, logistics and leave). You can read the profiles of the bloggers http://jackspeak.royalnavy.mod.uk/profiles/ (including an admiral).

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Week 8 Tasty but...

I signed up to Taste.com.au and commented on a recipe for homous that omitted the tahini - oh horror! I also invoked the spirit of Claudia Roden from whose Book of Middle Eastern Food I first learned to prepare it - with tahini. I checked my feedback and ratings before leaving and there they were. I revisited the site a day later and found my slightly critical comments and just ok rating had disappeared, so I rated it again and checked the rating screen to find my nil rating had turned into 5 stars...Are they fair dinkum one wonders or is the (illusory) feedback merely a way of getting the punters in. Jacko

Week 8 Slammin' the Boards!

Well one board actually and maybe a light tap. I answered this question in Yahoo Answers: "Who was the cammander of American forces in Europe in World War !!?" (sic). Possibly a school project, think they would just "look it up!" in World Book like I did, but I did also quote from a specialised text and include my references. In spite of which I got two thumbs down and none up from anonymous raters - such is life. I did however beef up my profile, revise my avatar and identify as a librarian, as the Answer Board Librarians wiki suggests. Find me if you can! Hint: use the exact spelling of the question. Jacko

Thursday, October 2, 2008

Week 7 - Tagging, Folksonomies, del.icio.us and LibraryThing


I have really enjoyed this week - how much fun was it to set up your profile in Library Thing? I hope you all at least tried. Here is mine:




del.icio.us will be a fantastic resource too! I will try and add some new widgets to this blog - look out for them....


Week 6 - Videos Online

Well haven't we been having fun viewing and watching videos in this learning week! I have just uploaded my Lyre Bird videos onto You Tube. I couldn't believe how easy it was to do - the hardest thing was coming up with a user name for You Tube - all my usual ones had been taken! But I am VME013 for those that want to know and you can search on "Lyrebird in Jamison Valley" and "Lyrebird at Leura Cascades" to view my You Tube Videos. They aren't great as I took the footage with my phone. Here is one of them.....

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Week 7 Tagging at PhM

Here is an interesting link from the Powerhouse Museum, they encourge user generated tags and see them as a way of expanding access.

When I'm tagging their photos in Flickr I like to refer to the Australian Pictorial Thesaurus and will also mention it in discussion groups when members wonder how to properly tag their own images. However a combination of the intuitive and the formal is now emerging, which although anathema to our profession, will I think, and perhaps has already, become the norm out there in userland.

Week 7 Tagging & Folksomonimies

Hey that d.e.l.i.c.i.o.u.s thing is a bit of alright. I actually rediscovered a whole lot of cool old bookmarks I hadn't used for simply ages, just because they are re-presented in a new order. And I can now access my work bookmarks from home, and vice versa, alright!

The Sutherland Library bookmarks were an interesting alternative way of presenting recommended sites.

I added all my faves to Library Thang and can now tell what books I've read, in case I forget, like many borrowers do.

I put a blog on Technorati, it rated 4+ millionth in interest, ah well. It was interesting though, seeing the blogoshpere in action...

And thanks to everyone who viewed and rated my Scenic Railway video on youtube!

NSW Public Libraries Learning 2.0 Update from the State Library Crew

NSW Public Libraries learning 2.0

http://nswpubliclibrarieslearning2.blogspot.com/
If you haven't started the learning 2.0 course there is still time. Start the course today. Ring up if you need some help getting started (or in getting restarted).

New from Commoncraft

Commoncraft have produced a new online video - it covers web search strategies. Even if you are an experienced searcher you might learn something http://www.commoncraft.com/web-search-strategies

Flickr commons

The State Library of New South Wales has joined Flickr commons http://www.flickr.com/commons. Have a look at look at the other participants here as well. As Flickr says The program has two main objectives:
1. To increase access to publicly-held photography collections, and
2. To provide a way for the general public to contribute information and knowledge. (Then watch what happens when they do!)

You can read about some of the images from the State Library on Flickr's blog http://blog.flickr.net/en/2008/09/29/australian-firsts-and-more-mappy-goodness/

Sincerely,

The NSW Public Libraries Learning 2.0 Pit Crew Ellen, Mylee, Leanne, Kathleen A., Oriana, Shauna and Victoria nswpln@gmail.com pls@sl.nsw.gov.au State Library of NSW

Tuesday, September 30, 2008

YouTube



I made this little thing on the weekend, it actually joins quite a nice collection of them on youtube!

Monday, September 29, 2008

Technorati

Technorati has done a recent survey on the State of the blogosphere. It makes interesting reading (or scanning) http://technorati.com/blogging/state-of-the-blogosphere/who-are-the-bloggers
Plus you may want to add your ideas to http://www.project10tothe100.com/

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Update from SLNSW on blogs to watch....

The Natural History Museum is providing a blog so that people can follow the conservation work being done at Scott Base http://www.nhm.ac.uk/nature-online/earth/antarctica/blog/?p=237 As the items being conserved can't leave the Antarctic the conservators have to travel to the items. I am most interested in this one as I worked in their Library in the early 90s!
Future perfect
Jan Chipchase does research for a leading mobile phone company about communication. You can follow his images and thoughts on his blog future perfect http://www.janchipchase.com/ This blog helps encourage different ways of thinking about solutions and of thinking about communication.

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Week 6 Videos

This has been a great week, I was impressed by what libraries have been doing with video online for reader education and staff training, and the oral history and local history stuff was very good. So I had a bit of a go at a video:

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Week 5: Wikis




I really enjoyed this week. Learning about wikis was a lot of fun. I liked seeing how they were being used in Libraries and other workplaces. My favourite wiki was the Wookiepedia:




What did everyone else think?


Thursday, September 11, 2008

Booker Prize Shortlist

Hi everyone,
Just thought I'd let you know that the 2008 Booker Prize Short-list has been announced (I found this out through one of my new feeds!). Here is a link to the Booker Site if you want to check it out - interested people will probably be asking soon, as I think the winner will be announced on 14th October, which is just around the corner... http://www.themanbookerprize.com/.

Friday, September 5, 2008

Library 2.0

I have just completed Week 1 and is my head spinning. I really enjoyed the interview with Stephen Fry.

Thursday, September 4, 2008

Week 4: RSS Feeds

I think you have all realised that I have finished Week 4. I have added a tag to this blog so anyone who subscribes can be notified of new posts or comments (you can choose!). Plus I was so pleased with myself when I added the ABC Top Stories RSS Feed to the blog. You can view it down on the RHS of this page......

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

Week 5 Wiki this!

Hi Bloggers, Flickrenos and Wikipedians, I spent some time on the wikis, loved the Montana History Wiki, especially the pronouncing guide to place names, if I ever go there I'll be able to talk the lingo like a native!

Then I uploaded two Blue Mountains images to Wikimedia, that took some time but I finally got the hang of it: Sylvia Falls and Boars Head Rock, I can't give a proper hot link because it's not working. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:The_Boar


I found it easier than trying to add to Wikipedia and gave me a chance to add something slightly more significant and with a descriptive text, considering the fairly ordinary tourist photos of the Blue Mountains there.

More: I just returned to the Blogging Libraries Wiki and added our RITM and LS blogs, I didn't think they were quite ready for Jackos Shed yet!
http://www.blogwithoutalibrary.net/links/index.php?title=Public_libraries

Cheers, Jacko

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Update from SLNSW re Library 2.0

Here are some websites and blogs the State Library suggest we check out:

You might like to see how some New Zealand libraries are using web 2.0 tools. Have a look at Dunedin Library on Flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/dunedinpubliclibraries/ and on YouTube http://nz.youtube.com/dunedinlibraries

Pew Internet have released two new reports.

Podcast downloading http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/261/report_display.asp shows that more people are listening to podcasts, but it is still a small audience. They have trend data and a demographic breakdown of those who listen.

New E-patient data http://www.pewinternet.org/pdfs/PIP_Health_Aug08.pdf includes an analysis of people who get health information online

Monday, September 1, 2008

Librarian Writes Tell All Book, Gets Fired

Let this be a warning to all of us!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Librarian writes tell-all book, gets fired
'The absolute irony is that the public library is a pillar of free speech'

A librarian who wrote a fictional account of library patrons in a made-up town has been fired from her position at the Mason County, Mich., District Library and is appealing the termination.

"The absolute irony is that the public library is a pillar of free speech and leads me to wonder why the administration is so upset. It's fiction," Sally Stern-Hamilton told the Ludington Daily News.

Over the course of three years, she wrote "The Library Diaries" under the pen name Ann Miketa. According to the newspaper report, the book is written as a series of vignettes about "mostly unsavory" characters in a library in a fictitious "Denialville."

However, the book publisher used a small photograph of the Ludington Library on the cover, and in the book's introduction, "Ann Miketa" said, "After working at a public library in a small, rural Midwestern town (which I will refer to as Denialville, Michigan, thoughout this book) for 15 years, I have encountered strains and variations of crazy I didn't know existed in such significant portions of our population."

She was notified of her dismissal in a letter from District Library Director Robert Dickson, when he referred to a prior "Suspension Pending Investigation" letter he wrote.

In that, he stated, "The cover of your book includes a picture of the Ludington Library. Each chapter is devoted to a specific library patron or patrons. Your book portrays these people in a very unflattering manner. You describe individual patrons as mentally ill, mentally incompetent, unintelligent, and unattractive. You label several as 'perverts.' While you stop short of naming the individuals you targeted in your book, your detailed descriptions of their unique characteristics and mannerisms make them easily identifiable in our small community."

Stern-Hamilton told the newspaper the book draws on her personal experiences but remains fiction.

"Most writers, anyone who writes something, some of it's going to come from, be rooted in, your personal experience. I don't think I could have come up with (the characters) on my own. They're bizarre, idiosyncratic, so they are based on some real experiences, but of course there are embellishments," she told the newspaper.

The library picture was just "a great picture," she said. "It epitomizes the American idea of a library."

She doesn't know how Dickson became aware of the book but said she wrote it because of "what goes on in public libraries everywhere."

She specifically cited instances of known sex offenders using library computers to view pornography – "Sometimes in close proximity to children," the report said.

The publisher, Publish America, is a grassroots group that publishes "people who are unknown, without charging the person thousands of dollars some self publishers charge," Stern-Hamilton said.

On the Ludington Daily News comment page, a reader wrote, "Instead of taking pride in a local author, we are criticizing her work of FICTION? What happened to free speech?"

Friday, August 29, 2008

Week 3 NSW Public Libraries Learning 2.0

How did you go using Flickr? I found it really slow on our network. I did do the adventure and added some photos. Naturally they are photos of my beautiful cat Batu. You can see them if you seach on "Batu on Balcony" and "Batu in safety gear". Plus I uploaded a couple of holiday snaps. There are some absolutely stunning photos of the Blue Mountains.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Handcuffed and charged for failing to return library books


Did you see this news story recently?

A Wisconsin woman has been arrested and booked for failing to pay her library fines. Heidi Dalibor, 20, told the News Graphic in Cedarburg, USA, she ignored the library's calls and letters as well as a notice to appear in court.
Still, she was surprised when officers with a warrant knocked on her door, cuffed her and took her to the police station to be fingerprinted and photographed.
Police Captain Joe Gabrish said officers follow the same procedure with every warrant.
Library director John Hanson said a couple of dozen people are cited each year for failure to return materials or pay fines.
The incident cost Dalibor about $30 for the overdue paperbacks White Oleander and Angels and Demons and her mother nearly $172 to get her out of custody.

Friday, August 22, 2008

Week 4 RSS

1. What do you like about RSS and newsreaders?

I like the way the info comes to you, which is good in theory but needs to be used with care to avoid information overload.

2. What sites did you select for your RSS reader?

Originally I just clicked on a lot of news feeds and the PhM picture of the day. It was eye opening to realise that some people would actually want two rugby league feeds, two rugby union, two soccer, three cricket and four sport feeds - just in case one missed anything, all to one's desk top, like all the time!

3. How do you think you might be able to use this technology in your work?

I think it's another useful tool to know about, it seems to be an essential part of blogs and it's even on my flickr site.

4. How can libraries use RSS or take advantage of this new technology?

We can provide updates from our readers' advice blog.

5. Did you find any good examples of other library blogs?

Yes and I added some to by blogs eg Yarra Plenty Local Studies blog and I admire the Sutherland Library blog with it's page tabs, but the html is proving just a little difficult at this stage!

Week 2 - Blogging

I just wanted to say how much fun I have had reading my blog evryday. I love hearing your comments. Plus, looking at all the new staff blogs has been great. Thank you to those who have sent me their blog link so I have been able to attach it to this blog. I think it will be good for all of us to have a central point to go and look at each others trials and tribulations on this great 2.0 journey!
I have also been very impressed with the calibre of blogs that are out there in Library Land. Lets bring the best bits back and add them to ours!

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Adding your blog toyour blog's blog roll

OK, so I got the last bit wrong. I thought everyone could see the same as me.
Most of you won't be able to add your blog to Vicki's blog roll BUT you can use the instructions to add one to your own blog roll.

All you'll need to do is go into Customize in your blog and click on the Layout tab. In the sidebar click on Add a gadget. You then get a list of the types of gadgets you can add. Look for Blog roll. Select it.

Then you click on Edit in the gadget you've just made. You can change its name and start adding blogs as per the previous instructions.

By the way, you can rearrange the order of the gadgets in your sidebar - just click on one and drag it to where you want it then let go.

Adding your blog to the BM Library blog roll

In week 2 of Learning 2.0 Vicki has asked that we post our newly created blogs in the Blue Mountains Library Manager's Blog - this one. The blog roll is located on the right hand side of the blog, between Staff Tools and Interesting Websites.

Here's some instructions on how to do that.

First you need to be signed in to blogger.

Open the BM Library Manager blog using the Layout tab, or you can click on the crossed spanner and screwdriver icon below the blog roll area (illustrated below). If you go to the layout area, click on the Edit link in the BM Staff Library blogs section.

The following illustration shows you the window that opens. You will be able to see all the other blogs that are in the blog roll. To add a blog, click on Add to List.


Another little window opens. Enter your blog's URL (web address) in the box provided and click on Add. Now click on Save in the Configure Blog List window.

If you've gone in to the Layout area you will need to click on the Save button at the top of the Layout window to save all the changes.
That's all there is to it. Your blog should now be added to the blog roll. You can call me if you get stuck.
Heidi

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Handy info

Can I suggest that you have a look here : http://www.blogger.com/features for some handy info on how to do stuff in Blogger. Starting at the beginning and getting more adventurous.

I've set up ANOTHER blog

It's over there in the blog roll - on the right hand side.

Scientific Proof! Reading fiction really is good for you!

I just thought I would share some fabulous news. New Scientist (28 June 2008 p.42) reports a study that confirms what we all suspected... reading fiction has psychological benefits. The study suggests that fiction acts as a kind of simulation of the complexities of social life, and by reading we gain greater empathy and better "interpersonal perception", and that these effects are immediate. The study doesn't discount that movies and games may also have these benefits.

If you have the time you can go to http://glennrowe.net/baroncohen/faces/eyestest.aspx and undertake the same test that participants in the study used to detemine their ability to read expressions.

Anyway, now we have an excuse for staying up late to read. It is preparing us for the social onslaught of the following day. Or is it just because I am the daughter of a scientist that I needed a study published in a peer reviewed journal before I could justify those late nights??

Library 2.0 weeks1,2, 3 & 4

Hi folks, this is my new library 2.0 blog: http://jackos-shed.blogspot.com/ for week 2; I will be looking for contributions - in character please and on topic...

Week 3 was fairly uneventful as I have had a Flickr site for over a year now, it's here if you want to check it out:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/8822983@N08/

Week 4 and on to RSS fodder, definitely a case of information overload before I revised my feeds from the bulk subscriptions and spent time searching for more relevant stuff. I do appreciate the principle though and would use it if I really needed that much news. I am still deciding whether to add it to The Shed blog.

Cheers, Merryjack

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Flickr

I've done the Flickr activites and love the program. I've opened my own account and am now putting my families photos onto Flickr. I know that they are safe if my computer crashes (which it frequently does because it's getting old) and I have named them and written descriptions. They look good and I'm going to give my children access to them so they can look at them too.
Enjoy

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

To read or not to read....


We all have "rules" as to how far we will go in a book before we give it up as a lost cause. I thought you might enjoy know my rule. I loved the book The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco. Naturally I then devoured the Postscript to the Name of the Rose which is Eco's musings on how and why he wrote the book. In this essay, Eco explains that while the first 100 pages of The Name of the Rose are quite dense and detailed - the rest of the book is your reward. This has always stuck with me and I now read the first 100 pages of any book to see if the rest of the book is my REWARD!

What do others think? There have been some thoughts on this matter posted on the Library's Readers in the Mist blog that you might like to compare:

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Here I go!!!

Well Hello Everyone. This is so very daunting but exciting. Week 1 of Library 2.0 showed how little I know and will know (hopefully) by the end. Thank you to Alba for her help. Blogging soon!

Why I became a Librarian


I think this site sums it up nicely:




Ready to embrace 2.0!

I am quite excited (and more than just a little nervous) at the thought of what lies ahead in the world of 2.0. As Stephen Fry pointed out, the Web has become more interactive, with individuals able to become an active part in an enormous, international information conglomeration (you don't even have to be particularly clever or knowledgeable - that's the scary part. Reader, beware!). Still, I am ready to do the Learning 2.0 course, and am eager to embrace the new ideas and technologies available to me. Who knows? I may even become addicted to blogging?!?!?!?!

Monday, August 11, 2008

New Postings


I am very happy for anyone to add postings or comment on each others postings. Don't forget to let me know when you finish week 1 so I can send you an incentive to keep going!!!

Library 2.0 the deja vu version

Here I go again. Is this what you wanted us to do Vicki, do our own posts, or comment only?
I had a go at the Library 2.0 thing Helene Blowers started. As many of you know, I've gotten in to the bloggy thing but some of the other stuff eluded me/scared me so I intend to spend a bit more time on them. Ho hem, we'll see - do we play safe or do we go wild?
Anyway, I am excited that everyone will be doing this - I am looking forward to more company on Readers in the Mist.

Heidi

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Top 10s

The Guardian has published a list of 'top ten' books (etc) selected by authors http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/series/toptens

You might like to check out Simon Critchley's top 10 philosophers deaths, Tim Harfords top 10 undercover economics books, Lara Feigel's top 10 smelly books or Kit Whitfield's top 10 genre defying novels. There are lots more and they may be great to use for displays or a discussion for a reading group.

Have a look at the State Library of NSW readers advisory wiki
http://readersadvisory.wetpaint.com/

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Library 2.0

I've just started the Library 2.0 training program and had to create a blog for myself. It's not hard to create a blog - they even provide nice templates. My biggest problem is thinking of what to write! Deb

Friday, March 28, 2008

Living Library


Blue Mountains City Council celebrated Harmony Day on the 20th March with a unique event called the Living Library.

Mayor Jim Angel said when launching the Harmony Day concert, “Harmony Day is about celebrating diversity and fostering respect and appreciation of that diversity. Our local Blue Mountains community has a diverse range of people from a variety of cultures, religions and races. Indigenous people, environmentalists, homeless people, refugees, people of diverse sexuality, retirees, performers and artists are all living here together. The Living Library provides the community with an amazing opportunity to borrow a person instead of a book and have a chat for about 30 minutes. What better way to learn about our cultural diversity than to hear the extraordinary stories of local people’s lives”.

The Living Library event was attended by over one hundred and fifty people including students from local schools. The idea of the Living Library is to promote acceptance and understanding of cultural difference by giving members of the public (Readers) the opportunity to talk to a Living Book and learn about their different experiences and lifestyles.

Twenty six Living Books from the local community participated in the event. They included members of the indigenous and migrant communities, a Holocaust survivor, Vietnam Veterans, people with disabilities and a Sufi. Many readers commented that hearing people’s stories face to face was an emotional experience. “Much more powerful than reading about them”, one said.

One young reader learnt about “the huge impacts alcohol and drugs can have on your life, family and work”. Another learnt of indigenous elder Carol Cooper’s childhood experience of racism. “Talking to Carol was very profound and moving”, she said.

For some of the Living Books the experience was equally moving. Olwen Leask spent much of her childhood living in institutions. One Reader told her: “Talking to you has changed my life”.

State MP Phil Koperberg, who launched the Living Library, talked about his own experience as a child living in many countries around the world. He applauded the initiative observing, “I’ve never quite understood why living together in harmony should be so difficult.” He volunteered to be a book in future Living Library events.

Phil Voysey from Cultural Connexions, one of the organisers of the event in partnership with Blue Mountains Council, hopes to make the Living Library an ongoing feature of life in the Blue Mountains. “There are lots of people in the community with interesting stories to share. Sharing stories is a powerful way to build community,” he said.

Blue Mountains City Council would like to acknowledge the invaluable help of Lismore Library in helping to make this event run smoothly. Lismore Library staff generously shared their experiences and operational knowledge of their own monthly Living Library.

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Library 2.0

Did you know the NSW Public Libraries Learning 2.0 program will kick off next week.
I have attached below the expanded Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) in case you need further information.

How does this online learning program work?
This is a self-discovery program that allows participants to take control of their own learning. Participants are encouraged to work together with others in their libraries and regions and to share their insights and discoveries with others through their blogs and in person. NSW Public Libraries Learning 2.0 is web-based and not tied to any particular computer. You can work on this program in your library or at home.

Is there any tech support?
We can assist you with the course, but not your computer or Internet connection. Check if your place of work blocks multimedia or other sites. If you have any difficulties in accessing the sites please talk to your IT department. Where they have difficulties some library services are accessing the program on their public network, giving their IT department the relevant web addresses, encouraging their IT staff to participate in the course or using a laptop on their library’s wireless network.

Do any of the activities require downloads?
Most of the activities use Web-based applications that do not require additional downloads or plug-ins to work.

My council blocks some websites – what sites do we need to ensure we can access to complete the program?
YouTube http://www.youtube.com/
Gmail http://www.gmail.com/
Blogger http://www.blogger.com/
Flickr http://www.flickr.com/
Slideshare http://www.slideshare.net/
del.icio.us http://del.icio.us/
Bloglines http://www.bloglines.com/
Google video http://video.google.com.au/

Who can participate?
This program is open to all staff in any New South Wales public library staff. The website will go live on 18 February and it will be publicised via the NSW email lists.

Does it cost anything to participate?
Only your staff time.

How many staff can participate?
There isn’t a limit on the number of staff from each library that can participate. You may determine that the amount of staff time required means not all of your staff can participate in the first rollout but that is a local decision.

Some staff work part time is it necessary for them to be present each day to complete 15 minutes, or can they double-up on sessions they have missed?
The program is built on a website so staff can do their "15 minutes" any time that suits. They can do it all in a blitz for an hour or so one day a week if that suits rostering requirements better.

Do I need to register our library service or do staff sign up individually?
Staff work will register individually as part of the course.

How will you measure my progress?
You will work through the exercises individually at your own pace tracking your progress through a blog you will set up in week 2 as part of this learning process. Please use your blog to write your reactions to the lessons and add any ideas you may have on how to use Web 2.0 tools for yourself and your library. This is your time to experiment, have fun, and learn at you own pace.

Can I blog anonymously?
Yes. Since you control all the information that you share on your blog, you can choose to use a screen name to keep yourself anonymous. We find this encourages people to try out new things without worrying about professional reputations. Your blog will be posted on this blog, but your "real identity" will not be listed.

Will I be able to see other people’s blogs?
Yes, all participants’ blogs will be linked to the website but you will all be anonymous.

How do I register my blog?
Setting up and registering your blog are two of the activities you will accomplish in week 2. Note that you will not receive a confirmation of registration. We will add your blog to the main blog by name of blog--check the Particpant’s blog list on the sidebar for your blog. This may take a few days, since we must add them manually. We will not list your name; only your blog's name. If your blog has not appeared within 3 business days, email nswpln@gmail.com with your name, the blog name, and URL.

How long do I have to complete the program?
Participants who wish to receive a certificate of completion and enter the prize draw must register their blogs by 29 February and complete all the activities (and blog about each one) by 23 May. Registration begins 18 February, 2008.

What if staff take leave and can’t complete the program in the timeframe?
The program will remain on the website for 2008 – but staff won’t be eligible for the prize draw unless they complete the activities in the specified timeframe.

Are there prizes?
Participants who complete the entire course will receive a certificate of completion and be entered in the draw for one of three mp3 players and three USB drives. Only New South Wales public library participants are eligible for prizes.

How will you know I have completed the course?
The course coordinators will be reading and tracking participants’ blogs.

How much do I have to write in my blog posts?
Each blog post must describe which activity you have completed, what your experience was learning about it--easy, hard, impossible--ideas how you can use this in your library and other comments on the process. While we don't expect a chapter on every week, we do expect thoughtful reflection and active participation that is clear in the post. Single line posts or those that show perfunctory participation will not be counted.

Will there be any training classes offered on how to do this?
No, however, staff are encouraged to work together with others in their libraries or region and share with each other their discoveries, techniques and "how to" both in person and through their blogs. You are encouraged to be resourceful and find a co-worker or another staff member who can help. Be sure to share your knowledge and expertise too!We will provide helpful hints, encouraging words, and post comments on your blogs from time to time.

The NSW Public Libraries Learning 2.0 team will be available by e-mail to answer your questions.

Why do the NSW Public Libraries Learning 2.0 program?
This is a great chance to spend time on your personal and professional development. All library staff need to be up-to-date with the latest trends and technology tools that Web 2.0 is bringing us everyday. We need to take time to learn how the tools can be utilized in or with our libraries. And we will know what our library users, especially younger users, are talking about!I noticed some of the activities have a section headed Adventure.

What is this and do I have to do it?
The Adventure are there for those participants who are already familiar with that particular activity and want to learn more and/or for those who are intrigued by what they have learned doing the first parts of the activity. The Adventures are all optional; you do not have to do those parts to have completed the activity. If you do one or more of the Adventures, be sure to blog about it!

Who are members of the NSW Public Libraries Learning 2.0 Team?
The team is based in Public Library Services at the State Library of New South Wales. The team leaders are Ellen and Mylee. The team includes Kathleen A, Leanne, Oriana, Shauna and Victoria.
You can reach them at http://www.blogger.com/nswpln@gmail.com or at their regular e-mail addresses.

Friday, January 25, 2008

Public Libraries Metropolitan - West South West Meeting

I have just returned from this meeting at Castle Hill Library and thought I would bring you up to date on some of the happenings in other libraries in our Zone.
Blacktown Library
Are getting a new branch library at Stanhope Gardens in April 2009. They are currently implementing RFID with Civica.
Baulkham Hills
Are doing a Trial Living Library for the next 6 months in partnership with Community Aid Information. They obtained money from CDSE. I will find out more so that we could go and have a look! Rouse Hill Library opening 6 March (1300 sq. m)
Auburn Library
Also doing a Living Library as a one off event with Western Area Health Service.
Bankstown Library
Huge Summer Reading Program. 500 children turn up to the Summer Reading Program presentation night.
Penrith Library
Penrith Library undergoing refurbishments. Strategic Plan being worked on. History of Penrith from 1850 onwards being written over the next 2 years.
Fairfield Library
Using special purpose grant for History of Fairfield to be written. Just gone through a restructure. Library Manager has reduced direct reports from 13 to 6. Whitlam Library is being refurbished and quotes have been sought from Brewster Hjorth and CK Design. Carolyn Bourke attended an IFLA conference in Pretoria, South Africa. Plans are underway to host a satellite conference of IFLA when it is hosted in Brisbane in 2010, in Sydney for multicultural librarians.
The next meeting is scheduled in late March at the new Rouse Hill Library!

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Wednesday, January 9, 2008

Welcome to Two Thousand and Great

Yes, no excuse, I have not updated this since returning from annual leave. For those of you who didn't know, I went to Peru for nearly 3 weeks and have not got over it! I did a blog while I was away:
http://gapadventures.mytripjournal.com/paulvickiperu
Again, I will try and update this blog from week to week.
News for 2008
The State Library of NSW staff will be undergoing Library 2.0 training which is then hoped to roll out to the public libraries. I hope that something will be announced in the second half of this year. I will make this opportunity available to as many people as possible.
How are you going with the Mental Health CD ROM Worksheet? Council HR are now reviewing this and considering rolling this program out to the rest of BMCC.
The Library is hosting some wonderful events in the first quarter of 2008.
On the Run is a State Library exhibition. On The Run will be at: Katoomba Library December 19, until January 19, and Springwood Library from January 21until February 7 2008. An official launch will be held at Springwood Library on Monday January 21, 2008 at 11.00am. The exhibition is free and open during normal library hours.
http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/events/exhibitions/2006/ontherun/index.html
Library Lovers Day is February 14 - Valentines Day. We will be giving out bookmarks and encouraging people to put them in books they love. Blind Dates with books will also be arranged. I am looking for people to write the Lonely Hearts ads for the books...get your pens to work!
http://www.librarylovers.org.au/
Harmony Day will be held on March 20 this year. The Library will be running a Living Library at the Katoomba Civic Centre. Have a look at Lismore Library's website to learn more about the Living Library concept: http://rtrl.nsw.gov.au/site/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=71&Itemid=130
Plus there are loads of School Holiday Activities coming up...