Unexpected hiatus

I know that I haven’t been posting here for very long, and I’m grateful for the handful of people that have read this and / or posted comments — but I’ll be taking an unexpected break from the Fifth Law for a little while.  I figure it’s better to write this kind of post at the outset, rather that write that stereotypical “so sorry I haven’t posted” post later.

I shouldn’t be gone long — a couple weeks, maybe three.  I’ve got some personal and not-so-personal things that I need to deal with, and the blog will be taking a back seat for the time being.

Please keep checking back, and please keep in touch.  I’ll be back — I promise.

Zombies at the ACPL!

In case you need a laugh, check out this video of zombies at the Allen County Public Library — it’s like 28 Days Later meets, well, your local library.

Discovered via Tame the Web.

Random bits do not a library make

Library Journal features a an insightful and (dare I say) hopeful piece by Roy Tennant, “Of Real and Digital Libraries.” My favorite paragraph is about the reality that books (and, in my mind, the people who read them) need librarians:

People who believe a random pile of digital bits is a sufficiently robust library have never been served by a librarian—either physically or virtually. Individuals who believe you can inspire a child to read by showing him or her a web site have not seen a child first make acquaintance with a book by teething on it.

While you’re reading the rest, check out the recently redesigned Library Journal website. Good job, LJ!

Discovered via the Library Link of the Day.

iThis, iThat, iRack

I do my best to keep this blog as politically neutral as possible (sometimes against my better judgment) — and this could be the start of a great rant about how every gesture that we make is somehow politically motivated, but I’ll save that for another time and place.

Anyway, my friend Brandon on Facebook shared this clip from MadTV, and it’s really just too funny not to share.

Ladies and gentlemen, for your viewing pleasure, I give you The Apple iRack.

My Confession

Thank you, Emily of Library Revolution, for saying what needs to be said.

And I’ll go ahead and confess — I’m a bad library patron, too.

Five Why Nots

In keeping with a meme that’s been going around (see Troy Tallent, Helene Blowers, Sarah Houghton-Jan, and Joy the Student Libriaran), here are my five “why nots” for the betterment of Library Land.

Why not…

1) actively provide outreach to area schools, promoting both library resources and librarianship as a career?

2) add interactive elements to your library web site — like a blog that allows comments –, especially whichever part of it is dedicated to teens?

3) use a wiki to supplement staff training and professional development?

4) incorporate “staff picks” into your library marketing — allow your staff to suggest books and resources that your customers might find interesting or helpful?

5) celebrate the fact that your library can be a social space (beyond the meeting room, if you have one)?

So, what are your five?

All I really needed to know I learned from Publix

Most of the people who know me are aware that Publix is my grocery story of choice.  My current apartment is located almost immediately behind one, so an evening sneak-out to the store is never out of the way for me.

Anyway, my fiancee shared a post from Rob at Businesspundit about Publix edging out competitors (including Wal-Mart).  The post cites an article from The Economist, featuring some of the stats of Publix’s success (emphasis mine):

Publix is America’s largest privately owned grocery chain, with revenues in 2006 of $21.7 billion, up 5% from 2005, and net profits of $1.1 billion, up 11%. Publix has a market share of more than 40% in Florida, its home state, and it is taking business from Wal-Mart and others as it expands into Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and South Carolina. It has a competitive edge over Wal-Mart because it is strong in precisely the areas where Wal-Mart is vulnerable.

At the risk of sounding too competitive, I do wonder how public libraries can make themselves strong in areas where our competition is weak.  And I’m not using the word “competition” loosely, considering that libraries face competition from any number of angles : bookstores marketing all the latest bestsellers, coffeeshops serving up caffeine and free wireless, malls providing social spaces for teens. 

Other than the fact that library services are “free,” I’m having difficulty thinking of ways that our public libraries can get an edge over the competition.  It’s very enigmatic for me – I know that libraries are “better” in lots of ways, but I can’t quite put my finger on them.

Any ideas?

(Incidentally, the book Piece of the Pie : The Story of Customer Service at Publix is now available at my local Publix, and I plan on adding it to my summer reading.)

“With Books Falling From the Sky”

ChangeThis features an excellent manifesto by Roxanne Coady (founder of R. J. Julia Booksellers in Connecticut) entitled “With Books Falling from the Sky : A Discourse on Literacy” (PDF 200K).  Within the manifesto, Roxanne points out a lot of the frightening correlations between illiteracy, poverty, and imprisonment.  She also describes the profound impact that books can have on readers of any age:

[Putting] the right book in the right hand can mean the world. I know this from my own experience, and I know it because I’ve seen the faces of children who have discovered the magic of reading, I’ve seen the faces of teenagers who have found comfort in a character or a story; I’ve seen the faces of adults who have learned to understand others in a different and enlightened way. 

To say the least, reading Roxanne’s manifesto is a good way to remind yourself about the social and political relevance of storytime or reader’s advisory.

How’s that for a feel-good moment of the day?

Geeks versus Nerds

Rory at Library Juice has finally prompted me to create a new tag for my posts: “required reading.” 

With that said, go check out “Geeks and Nerds Battle for the Soul of Librarianship“:

The thing is, perhaps it isn’t a battle, or even a contest. Perhaps it is, or has the potential of being, a rational discussion about the future and fate of the profession and its role in society. In rational discourse, I believe (and I recognize that most geeks, treating everything as a computational question, would disagree) nerds have the advantage. Therefore, the hope of the nerds in librarianship, who represent its traditional values, lies in true rational, professional discourse, rather than in technological pressures backed by finances and fear.

It’s from over a year ago, but it’s still a timely issue.  And I’m not necessarily a fan of categorizing people, but the nerd / geek distinction is one that often goes ignored, both in libraries and in life.  As with most distinctions, though, I do think there’s a lot of gray, especially considering that I’m a big nerd (who reads Faulkner and Derrida) and a big geek (who is currently working hard to finish Final Fantasy XII).

But the metaphorical battle continues to take place  — and it adds an interesting (if not necessary) dimension to the tug-of-wars in Library Land.

Thanks to Maria for sending this my way.

Superize my library concept

I’ve been a fan of Brian Matthews for a while now, even way back when he was blogging at alt ref.

I went to school across the state from Georgia Tech, so my point of reference is a bit off, but I really like the ideas that he’s been pushing there.  Brian has some great ideas worth stealing adapting, but what I respect about him is his ability to fuse innovation with self-reflection.  It’s one thing to develop good ideas; it’s another to be able to share these ideas and to talk about how these ideas change the way things work for your coworkers, your customers, and yourself.

Brian discusses the metaphor of libraries as restaurants, with the book-based collection as the library’s core, but with dozens of additional features and resources as side dishes and appetizers.

And here’s the self-reflection:

It’s cool that people here are starting to buy into the library as product mindset. On a personal note, I’ve also recognized a change in myself. I used to want to control my ideas from conception, through development, and into implementation. But now I am much more satisfied to give ideas away to others. Maybe its maturity or just being too far stretched, but it’s nice to be someplace where I don’t always have to be the one to push the crazy ideas. Our Circ Staff has really gained a sense of ownership, and it’s cool to see them experiment.

There’s some really, really good stuff here – although I’m still hungry from the menu metaphor….