| Social Tags Complement the Learning Resource Metadata, a Finnish Researcher Finds Out |
[11 Nov 2009|09:14pm] |
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http://www.resourceshelf.com/2009/11/11/social-tags-complement-the-learning-resource-metadata-a-finnish-researcher-finds-out/ http://www.resourceshelf.com/?p=26733 From the ACM TechNews Summary
Social tagging can help people find educational resources in digital repositories that are filled with millions of learning materials, says Open University of the Netherlands PhD candidate Riina Vuorikari. She says that adding free, non-hierarchical keywords to the digital learning materials would bring self organization, flexibility, and robustness to learning resources portals. The user, item, and tag allow for more cross references between content from heterogeneous repositories, which can enable users to discover more learning resources across language, country, curriculum, repository, and other contexts. Moreover, future applications for learning resources should make better use of social recommendation systems that work in multiple languages, which is especially relevant to Europe, Vuorikari says.
Access the Complete Article
Source: AlphaGalileo
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| Librarian's Struggles in Uganda |
[11 Nov 2009|07:17pm] |
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http://www.lisnews.org/librarians_struggles_uganda Sharing information brings people together – and in this “Beyond the Book” episode, two email correspondents hear each other’s voices for the first time: Dennie Heye of Shell in the Netherlands, and Stephen Kizza, an Assistant Librarian for the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources Resource Center in Kampala, Uganda.
SLA LogoStarting with two shelves and two computers, they and others are working together to supply that remote library with online resources, and to raise funds to bring Kizza to New Orleans for the 2010 SLA conference. “It will be a dream-come-true for Stephen to go to the conference, visit some international libraries and meet with international colleagues,” Heye tells Chris Kenneally.
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| Tweet, Text or Type ... Help Us Write a Book this Month |
[11 Nov 2009|07:08pm] |
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http://www.lisnews.org/tweet_text_or_type_help_us_write_book_month This is National November Write Your Own Book Month and the New Jersey State Library is taking the challenge to write a book with 50,000 words in one month. We need your help to both write and to spread the word to EVERYONE you know – friends, family, customers, co-workers, hairdressers, teachers, students. Everyone has the potential to write something that might positively impact the life of a stranger with this book!
Here is the plan:
The NJ State Library will compile a book with the collective wisdom of people sharing advice with another human being. Words of wisdom for a child, friend, politician, parent, teenager, adult, parent … The catch is, you have to text your advice and it can only be 140 characters or less. We’ll collect your text messages until we have 50,000 words of wisdom. The name of the book will be, H2H (Human to Human) wisdom in 140 characters- unless someone texts us a better title! We’ll even publish it online so you can share it with your friends and families.
How to submit your H2H words of wisdom:
1. Text “H2H” to 51684, hit “space” and type your advice. Standard message charges apply. You’ll receive a message to let you know your submission has been accepted. We will keep you updated about the book but we won’t send more than 1 message per week and you can stop the messages anytime you want by replying “Stop”.
2. Tweet to: @h2hbook
3. Write online: Follow this link
We will include your initials or first name to your quote if you include it. All entries must be submitted no later than November 30.
Guidelines:
No profanity
No personal references
While we would love to use all quotes that are submitted, we will be editing the final product and reserve the right to reject submissions.
Questions? Nancy Dowd: ndowd@njstatelib.org
Nancy Dowd
Director of Marketing and Public Relations
New Jersey State Library
609-278-2640 ext 122
www.njstatelib.org
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| Erik Engstrom Named New CEO of Reed Elsevier |
[11 Nov 2009|04:39pm] |
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http://www.resourceshelf.com/2009/11/11/erik-engstrom-named-new-ceo-of-reed-elsevier/ http://www.resourceshelf.com/?p=26701 From the Story:
Former Random House executive Erik Engstrom has been appointed CEO of Reed Elsevier, succeeding Ian Smith who had been in the position for about eight months. Engstrom had been head of Reed’s Elsevier scientific publishing operation. The departure of Smith was by “mutual agreement,” the company said. Reed chairman Anthony Habgood thanked Smith for his service “during unprecedented turbulent economic times.”
Included in the Reed Elsevier portfolio of properties are:
+ Publisher’s Weekly (PW)
+ Library Journal (LJ)
+ School Library Journal (SLJ)
In an update on business for the first nine months of 2009, Reed said RBI “continues to face difficult trading conditions particularly in advertising markets.” The update added that the sale of controlled circulation magazines in the U.S. and certain other titles (including PW, LJ, SLJ) “is in progress to reposition the portfolio.”
Source: Publisher’s Weekly
See Also: Reed Elsevier CEO Steps Down (via WSJ)
Ian Smith, chief executive of Reed Elsevier PLC, resigned unexpectedly Wednesday after only eight months in the job, but the Anglo-Dutch publishing group’s chairman said the move doesn’t herald a pending strategic shift.
See Also: Official News Release Naming Engstrom CEO
See Also: Interim Management Statement – Reed Elsevier provides an update on trading and outlook
A review of different Reed Elservier properties and services.
See Also: Publisher’s Weekly, Library Journal and School Library Journal’ For Sale (July 30, 2009) (via Publisher’s Weekly)
Reed Business Information is putting Publishers Weekly and its affiliated publications, Library Journal and School Library Journal, up for sale. The sale of the group is part of RBI’s strategy to divest most of its trade magazines in the U.S.
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| A Special Event in Cambridge, MA: The Library is Dead. Long Live the Library! The Rebirth of Librari |
[11 Nov 2009|04:20pm] |
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http://www.resourceshelf.com/2009/11/11/special-event-the-library-is-dead-long-live-the-library-the-rebirth-of-libraries-in-the-21st-century/ http://www.resourceshelf.com/?p=26697 From time to time we’ll post info about a special event on ResourceShelf and this is one of those times. This sounds like one interesting day of presentations and discussion. We’re working to find out if the the event will be webcast live and/or available as an archived event online.
On Tuesday, December 08, 2009, NEASIS&T (New England Chapter of the American Society for Information Science) is sponsoring and all day program (9:00 AM – 4:00 PM (ET)) about libraries in the 21st Century. The event will take place at the MIT Media Lab – Bartos Theater in Cambridge, MA.
From a Blog Post:
Library closures, slashed budgets, user apathy – everything’s online, right? It’s a story many of us have heard too often or experienced ourselves, especially with the recent downturn in the economy. But many libraries are re-inventing themselves, offering new services and transforming into very different entities while still at heart performing the same role they always have – helping communities connect with information.
Come to this NEASIS&T program to hear:
+ How changes in publishing are driving changes in libraries. How can we radically change an ancient institution that evolved from providing shared print copies into one that effectively provides online content (that we often don’t even own). It’s time to get past the kludges in our processes and organizational structures and embrace our future.
+ What it takes to be a librarian these days. What skills and interests are necessary? In 10 years will we be librarians or technologists?
+ Success stories from libraries that have radically changed their roles and services.
+ How to design your library around user expectations and keep your organization relevant.
Speakers Include:
+ John Palfrey, Vice Dean for Library and Information Resources at Harvard Law School & Co-Director of the Berkman Center for Internet & Society
+ Steven Bell, Associate University Librarian for Research & Instructional Services at Temple University’s Paley Library
+ Shana Kimball, Publications Manger at the Scholarly Publishing Office of the University of Michigan Library
+ Marguerite Avery, Senior Acquisitions Editor at The MIT Press
+ Cyril Oberlander, Associate Director of Milne Library at the SUNY College at Geneseo</strong>
Info about ticket prices and ticket ordering info info is available here. A ticket for the general public costs $75. However, special rates are available for SLA members, NEASIST members, students, and retirees.
Source: NEASIS&T
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| The Relationship Between Public Libraries and Google: Too Much Information |
[11 Nov 2009|04:19pm] |
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http://www.lisnews.org/relationship_between_public_libraries_and_google_too_much_information_0 Article in First Monday
Abstract:
This article explores the implications of a shift from public to private provision of information through focusing on the relationship between Google and public libraries. This relationship has sparked controversy, with concerns expressed about the integrity of search results, the Google Book project, and Google the company. In this paper, these concerns are treated as symptoms of a deeper divide, the fundamentally different conceptions of information that underpin the stated aim of Google and libraries to provide access to information. The paper concludes with some principles necessary for the survival of public libraries and their contribution to a robust democracy in a rapidly expanding Googleverse.
Full article here.
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| World’s Largest Thesaurus Published |
[11 Nov 2009|04:10pm] |
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http://www.lisnews.org/world_s_largest_thesaurus_published 
After nearly four and a half decades of work and a host of setbacks, this month Oxford University Press is publishing the world's most comprehensive thesaurus. The two-volume, 4,448-page Historical Thesaurus of the Oxford English Dictionary is not only twice the size of Roget's version, the current standard, but it also lays claim to being the first historical thesaurus compiled for any language, covering almost a million words from Old English to the present.
Full article at Poets&Writers
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| Digitiziation: Making Recordings from Newport Jazz Festivals Available Online |
[11 Nov 2009|08:46am] |
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http://www.resourceshelf.com/2009/11/11/digitizing-and-making-recordings-from-many-newport-jazz-festivals-available-online/ http://www.resourceshelf.com/?p=26689 From the Article:
It’s a complicated story. But if you want to know why the Newport Jazz Festival has been so important to American music, it’s easy: you just have to hear the recorded evidence. Bits and pieces have emerged over the years, in live recordings by Ellington, Coltrane and others. Now Wolfgang’s Vault, the online concert-recording archive, intends to fill in the gaps.
The company, based in San Francisco, bought the archives of the Newport festivals from the Festival Network last year. Bill Sagan, founder and chief executive of Wolfgang’s Vault, says the archives include many, many tapes: 1,000 to 1,200 individual performances, dating at least to 1955, the festival’s second year, and continuing to the end of the century.
Since the purchase, Wolfgang’s Vault has spent almost $5 million, Mr. Sagan said, on making audio transfers and mixes of the tapes. (Neither Mr. Sagan nor Chris Shields of the Festival Network would reveal the amount spent on acquiring the archive itself.) On Wednesday the company will begin posting free streams of a handful of performances from the 1959 Newport Jazz Festival, at wolfgangsvault.com: the first offerings include Count Basie, Dakota Staton and Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers. By next Tuesday, when more are added, there will be 27 sets from that year’s jazz festival, including some by Ahmad Jamal, Joe Williams, Thelonious Monk and Horace Silver.
Newport Jazz Festival Page (via Wolfgang’s Vault)
Access Wolfgangs Vault (It’s home to rock and Jazz performances)
Much More in the Complete Article
Source: The New York Times
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| A New Digital Collection: A Calm Voice in a Strident World: Senator J.W. Fulbright Speaks |
[11 Nov 2009|08:16am] |
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http://www.resourceshelf.com/2009/11/11/a-new-digital-collection-a-calm-voice-in-a-strident-world-senator-j-w-fulbright-speaks/ http://www.resourceshelf.com/?p=26682 This new digital collection comes from the University of Arkansas Libraries.
From the About Page:
For three decades following World War II, J.W. Fulbright represented Arkansas in the Congress of the United States. His single term in the House and four terms in the Senate saw Fulbright rise to become the foremost congressional authority on American foreign policy. From the beginning, Fulbright was a voice of calmness in the halls of congress, counseling international cooperation, the exchange of information, and support for the United Nations.
This digital collection contains fifty speeches Fulbright made during his congressional career. While the speeches deal with many topics, the emphasis is given to foreign affairs.
In order to put the speeches into their historical context, a variety of resources are included—including a detailed time line, a bibliography on the senator, and a selection of photographs.
Readers are reminded that these 50 speeches and related materials included on this site represent only a tiny fraction of the J.W. Fulbright Papers, comprised of over 1400 linear feet, held by the University of Arkansas Libraries. Serious students of Senator Fulbright and his era are urged to consult the full collection at the University. The collection, and a partial guide to the collection, may be accessed
[here].
Access: A Calm Voice in a Strident World:Senator J.W. Fulbright Speaks
See Also: More Digital Collections from the University of Arkansas
More in this News Release from the U. of Arkansas
Source: U. of Arkansas Libraries
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| 12 Charged After Library Books Worth $87K Stolen |
[11 Nov 2009|08:53am] |
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http://www.resourceshelf.com/2009/11/11/12-charged-after-library-books-worth-87k-stolen/ http://www.resourceshelf.com/?p=26680 From the Article:
Authorities threw the book at 12 people Tuesday, accusing them of checking out pricey textbooks from a public library system outside Washington to sell for quick cash.
The Prince George’s County Memorial Library System in Maryland lost $87,000 worth of material from thefts between November 2008 and July 2009, county prosecutors said.
Textbooks and other works were quickly sold to used book stores at a fraction of their original value, investigators said.
Prince George’s County authorities said the suspects, at least some of whom were related, withdrew close to the limit of 75 books from 12 of the library system’s 18 locations. Each is charged with theft over $500 and faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison.
Authorities said all 12 charged Tuesday are Maryland residents. They range in age from 20 to 51.
Access the Complete Article
It includes a quote from ALA’s Immediate Past President, Jim Rettig.
Source: AP (via Newsday)
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| New Resource: Discovery Networks Launches News Site |
[11 Nov 2009|08:55am] |
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http://www.resourceshelf.com/2009/11/11/new-resource-discovery-networks-launches-news-site/ http://www.resourceshelf.com/?p=26678 Direct to Discovery News
Top level news categories include: earth; space; tech; animals, dinosaurs; archeology; history; and human. A collection of nearly 400 videos is also a part of the site.
Discovery News also have a href=”http://twitter.com/Discovery_News”>Twitter feed</a> and Facebook page. One RSS feed is also available. Search results pages include links to stories, relevant video clips, and shopping results, and in some cases material from other Discovery networks. We did notice that for some searches (perhaps because they don’t have enough content) there are a lot of ads on search results pages like this one for noise pollution.
From the Washington Post:
“We’re on a mission to make people smarter about the world around them,” said Miguel Monteverde, the site’s general manager. He has been with Discovery for two years; earlier in his career, he oversaw development of video content for AOL’s Web network.
As mainstream news publications trim their budgets and cut back on coverage of science and technology news, Monteverde said, the new Discovery site will seek to fill that gap. The site’s reporting will also be the central attraction of a new iPhone application launched by the company; priced at 99 cents, the Discovery News software became available at the iTunes store on Monday.
Direct to Discovery News
Source: Washington Post
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| New York Public Library: A New Look for the Public Library’s Lion Logo |
[11 Nov 2009|07:01am] |
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http://www.resourceshelf.com/2009/11/11/new-york-public-library-a-new-look-for-the-public-library%e2%80%99s-lion-logo/ http://www.resourceshelf.com/?p=26653 From the Article:
The library lion has shed its shaggy mane for the digital age.
For the first time in at least a quarter century, the New York Public Library has unveiled a new logo, this one designed to work both online and in print. Consisting of a profile of a lion inside a circle, it sheds the fussy detail of the old one. Instead, it uses bold, simple lines that evoke the style of stained-glass windows, woodcuts, or old printers’ marks.
[Snip]
The library started considering a redesign more than a year ago, in large part because it wanted to convey a more modern and digital-friendly image. The process also included adoption of a new color palette and a new typeface. Instead of going to an outside agency, the task fell to the library’s own staff. “This is an in-house product,” said Paul LeClerc, president of the library.
[Snip]
One enduring mystery: the origins of the old logo and its age. Mr. Blaustein said his search had turned up little about its history. “No one knows who designed it,” he said. Libraries excel at preserving history, but not always, it seems, their own
Read the Complete Article
Source: NY Times
See Also: Video: A New Lion Logo for NYPL (via YouTube)
Watch the evolution of the Lion Logo
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| Special Libraries Association (SLA): Alignment & Name Change Research: Who Was Surveyed and How |
[11 Nov 2009|08:49am] |
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http://www.resourceshelf.com/2009/11/11/special-libraries-association-sla-alignment-name-change-research-who-was-surveyed-and-how/ http://www.resourceshelf.com/?p=26654 In a new post on the SLA Blog, SLA member and Alignment Ambassador, Jill Strand, provides a number of stats and facts about who was surveyed and by what method, during the alignment process.
The blog post opens with this paragraph:
Would you do your job without trying to understand the views of your clients, students, faculty, engineers, patrons or information end-users? Of course not and neither would SLA. In trying to learn how best to position information professionals, the Association and the profession, SLA sought to understand the needs and perceptions of both info pros (us) and our clients / patrons.
Sections of the post include:
+ What the Alignment Project Set out to Learn
+ Key Finding: Corporate executives acknowledge the value and importance of good information.
+ Phase I – Define (Reviewing Existing Literature)
+ An International Online Survey Designed by Outsell and Fleishman-Hillard in collaboration with SLA
Statistics are given about the make-up of those who answered the survey
+ Phase II – Translate:
This included international language analysis and international dial testing
+ You’ll also see the geography and function of the people participating in testing sessions and study groups.
Finally, you’ll read the perspective of a person in academia, David Shumaker from Catholic University in Washington, DC.
Source: SLA Blog
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| Problem Solved: Producing Direct Links to Specific Locations with Bing Maps |
[11 Nov 2009|06:00am] |
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http://www.resourceshelf.com/2009/11/11/problem-solved-producing-direct-links-to-specific-locations-with-bing-maps/ http://www.resourceshelf.com/?p=26672 During the past few days we mentioned Bing Maps a couple of times and more specifically Bing’s Bird’s Eye imagery that is very cool and useful. Comparing “Bird’s Eye to Street View from Google is really unfair. Both offer different perspectives and depending on your information need. One might be better for your research on Monday but on Wednesday the other database helps you get the job done.
Yesterday, Bing Maps got a makeover and added some new features. The problem was we were unable to find the location where you could create a direct link to a specific location on a map and either place it on a web page, share it by e-mail, tweet it, etc.
However, we now have the answer. It’s quite easy.
1) Find the location you need by using the large search box at the top of the page.
2) Now that you’ve found the location you can zoom-in or zoom-out and view the aerial and “Bird’s Eye” imagey by pulling down on the “aerial arrow” at the top of the page. Now you can select the type of imagery you want and it’s easy to move from one to the other. It’s interesting to compare the aerial imagery with the Bird’s Eye content. Of course, it’s also easy to move back to the map view. Btw, the Bird’s Eye view is available for many locations around the world but it’s still not available in some areas. If it’s not available, the “Bird’s Eye” box will not be active.
3) You’ve found the map and now you have the imagery you need. Now, how do you share it?
4) At the bottom of the page look for an envelope icon, Click it. You should see a box that contains a URL to that precise location. In many cases, once your looking at a Bird’s Eye image you can zoom-in one more level.
Have fun! Here are a few examples:
+ O’Hare Airport, Chicago
+ The London Eye
+ Fenway Park, Boston
+ Colosseum, Rome
+ CN Tower
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