30 October 2007

WHAT’S AN MLIS WORTH? STATISTICS FROM LIBRARY JOURNAL

Library Journal (15 October 2007) has published its annual look at placements and salaries for US library school graduates. Here are some of the more interesting statistics.

Only 45 of the 62 library schools, with a total of 1,992 graduates, participated in the survey. Sixty-five percent of the graduates were placed in permanent professional jobs, 8 percent in temporary professional jobs, 9 percent in non-professional jobs, and 9 percent outside of the profession. However, in another table, there was a total of 5355 graduates, 4186 women (78 percent) and 1149 men. Thirty-three percent were employed, 2 percent were unemployed, and less than 1 percent were pursuing further education.

Mean salaries were US$40,566 for women, US$43,194 for men, and US$41,040 overall.

Thirty-three percent were employed in public libraries, 15 percent in schools, 26 percent in academic institutions, 7 percent in special libraries, and 2 percent in government. Three percent of the 1425 listed by job assignment identified themselves as solo librarians, with a mean salary of US$39,550, about 4 percent below the national average. (The salary range was US$18,00-74,000.) The library schools with the largest number of placements in special libraries are Simmons University (22, 17 percent of all SL placements) and San Jose State University (14, 11 percent).

RSS FEEDS FROM HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW

You can now subscribe to feeds from leaders in management from the Harvard Business Review. Some of the luminaries are: Gary Hamel on The Future of Management, Tony Mayo on 21st Century Leadership, Tom Davenport on The Next Big Thing, John Quelch on Marketing KnowHow, and, saving the best for last, Larry Prusak on books that you must read—Now Read This! What a great resource!

URL: http://discussionleader.hbsp.com

22 October 2007

TIPS FOR MOVING FROM ONE SECTOR OF LIBRARIANSHIP TO ANOTHER

Fiona Bradley [University of Technology, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia] has a great post on librariesinteract.info: Blog central for Australian libraries. In How-to: Change Library Sectors, Bradley gives five tips for librarians looking to move between corporate, government, public, law or academic library sectors.”

1. Study your chosen sector

2. Perform a [personal] skills audit

3. Study the skill set [for the sector you want to move to]

4. Create opportunities [for yourself]

5. Participate in associations and networks

While you're there, look at their list of Australian library blogs.


URL: http://librariesinteract.info/2007/10/22/how-to-change-library-sectors/

WHAT WOULD THE WORLD LOOK LIKE IF EVERYONE LIVED LIKE ME?

This is the question asked by Consumer Consequences, from American Public Media. Take the quiz to determine your (or your family’s) impact on the environment. It is interesting, informative, and—at least for me—a bit frightening.

URL: http://sustainability.publicradio.org/consumerconsequences/

INTERVIEW WITH UNSHELVED’S CREATOR

If you are a fan of Unshelved, the great library comic, you must read this interview on Comic Book Resources. If you aren’t a fan, then you must not know about this daily comic based at the Mallville Public Library and starring Dewey, the irreverent young adult librarian. You can enjoy it even if you don’t work in a public library. Follow it either by email or RSS feed.

URLs:
Interview: http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=12150
Unshelved
: http://www.unshelved.com/Default.aspx

LIBRARYLAND BLOGS YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED

Blogging for a Good Book: A suggestion a day from the Williamsburg Regional Library, http://bfgb.wordpress.com/ This is an idea any library could put into practice. The Virginia library posts a few paragraphs on a book every day (you could do it weekly). Many are oldies but goodies, like Riders of the Purple Sage by Zane Grey. They even include videos and a link to the library catalog. A great, easily implemented idea to keep the library in front of its customers.


025.431: The Dewey Blog: Everything you always wanted to know about the Dewey Decimal Classification© system but were afraid to ask, http://ddc.typepad.com/ From Jonathan Furner, assistant editor of the DDC, with contributions from other members of the Dewey editorial team, this blog is exactly what its name says—more than you ever wanted to know about the DDC. Often there is a post taken from the headlines, with the information you need to know to assign the correct Dewey number. This is great if you do your own cataloging.


CaseCheck™, http://www.casecheck.co.uk/ This is “the best way for you to keep up to date with the law and business of law—at least in Scotland. Free registration allows you access to case summaries and articles from Scottish Courts and the EAT (Employment Appeal Tribunal). You can also comment on the summaries, “creating a community based resource where everyone can have the opportunity of demonstrating the knowledge and skill in their [sic] area of law.” Interesting concept—if you use it, let me know how you like it.

18 October 2007

WHAT I’VE BEEN READING RECENTLY

Here are just a few of the articles I’ve found recently that you might want to look at.

Using Our Own Services,
by Wayne Bivens-Tatum [Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, USA], Academic Librarian, 9 October 2007, http://blogs.princeton.edu/librarian/
2007/10/using_our_own_services.html
Excerpt: “Librarians would probably be better librarians if the occasionally used the library as a non-librarian. It’s very easy to become library-centric and to think the library is the most important institution on campus.”

The Future of Reference in Special Libraries is What Information Pros Can Make It, by Stephen Abram [SirsiDynix, Toronto, Ontario, Canada], Information Outlook 11(10):35-36, October 2007. Abram lists 8 possible scenarios for the future: from “Status Quo: A Recipe for Fossilization” to “Extreme Reference: Emergency Librarian.” A must-read for all librarians.

Practicing the Fine Art of Paying Attention, by John Latham [Special Libraries Association, Arlington, Virginia, USA], Information Outlook 11(10):44, October 2007.
Excerpt: “In this age of multitasking we often forget that giving someone your undivided attention is a good habit to acquire. It may be stating the obvious, but listening is still cool.”

Librarians: Too Traditional?
by Francine Fialkoff [Editor-in-Chief], Library Journal 132(6):8, 1 October 2007.
Excerpt: “We still need to convince many younger librarians to stay in the field for the long haul. We have about a decade or so before we’ll start seeing the effects if we don’t. As the pace of technological and social change accelerates, we need those innovators and risk-takers in our libraries. So, if you’re one of those who holds the reins of tradition too tightly, loosen up.”

Great Work, Genuine Problems
, by John N. Berry III [Editor at Large], Library Journal 132(6):26-29, 1 October 2007. This is the first of a three-part report on job satisfaction of librarians. Mostly, we like our jobs, but they could be a lot better if a few things were improved (pay, status, flexibility, managers, for a start). This is also a must-read. (If you aren’t a subscriber, check with your local public library—they probably get it and will loan it to you long enough to photocopy this article.)

Web 2.0 Alphabet: Part I
, by Shirley Duglin Kennedy [MacDill Air Force Base, Tampa, Florida, USA and St. Petersburg Times, St. Petersburg, Florida, USA] , Information Today24(9):17, 19. This is a neat way to learn about Web 2.0 tools.

INNOVATION BLOG

“The Innovation Weblog is a meta-index of the latest innovation trends, news, technology, resources and viewpoints. It covers topics including innovation research and best practices and strategies, innovation management, business use of Weblogs for ideation and collaboration, and much more! This blog is updated frequently, so be sure to check back here often for the latest updates.” It comes from Chuck Frey (“a creative thinker with 20+ years of experience in PR, marketing, business strategy and information services.”) Looks interesting.

URL: http://www.innovationtools.com/weblog/innovation-weblog.asp

INTERNATIONAL DISASTER DATABASE

Since 1988 the WHO Collaborating Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED) has been maintaining an Emergency Events Database—EM-DAT. EM-DAT was created with the initial support of the WHO and the Belgian Government. You can search profiles of countries or disasters, either natural or technological (industrial or transport) or disaster lists (by location, time frame, and disaster). There are also links to a Bibliography database, a Complex emergency database, and the Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters website.

URL: http://www.em-dat.net/


LIBRARY FUNNIES

Stephen Abram [SirsiDynix, Toronto, Ontario, Canada] posted a list of five library-oriented cartoons. If you aren’t getting them, try one or two.

1. Unshelved, http://unshelved.com It is written by a real librarian and, although set in the Mallville Public Library, can be appreciated by all librarians. I really love it.

2. Shelf Check, http://shelfcheck.blogspot.com As Abram says, “edgy and timely.”

3. Turn the Page, http://librarycartoons.blogspot.com Newer, not daily, but “skewed” and great fun.

4. bLaugh, http://blaugh.com For bloggers.--and others.

5. User Friendly, http://www.userfriendly.org/. “Is a daily strip with a great cast of characters from the programming and help desk work of software development.” I haven’t see it yet (but will), but Abram’s recommendation is good enough for me.



URL: http://stephenslighthouse.sirsidynix.com/archives/

2007/10/library_humour.html

10 October 2007

KEEP UP WITH COPYRIGHT

The US Copyright Office has three new free email newsletters: What’s New at the Copyright Office, Licensing, and Legislative Developments.

URLs:
Announcement: http://www.copyright.gov/newsnet/2007/323.html
To subscribe: http://service.govdelivery.com/service/multi_subscribe.html?
code=USLOC&origin=http://www.copyright.gov

NEW, USEFUL MEDICAL SEARCH ENGINE

Microsoft has introduced Health Vault, its new consumer health search engine. As usual, I tested it with one my own conditions, “small fiber peripheral neuropathy.” I was amazed at the number and quality of resources found. (I usually get just one or two when I qualify it with “small fiber.”)
Results are from all sorts of sources: Wikipedia, answers.com, Medscape, medical journals, news articles, and more. There are also related books on Amazon, several of which I will get and read. And there are some pretty-well focused ads, too.
PLUS, you can save the search and specific articles in your own “vault,” which is supposedly secure and confidential. A nice touch—better than bookmarking.
I really like this site—let me know if you do, too.

URL: http://health.live.com/

KEEPING UP

Check out Nina Platt's great post on Strategic Librarian. She lists great sources for keeping up with the library world.

URL: http://nlplatt.wordpress.com/2007/10/10/
keeping-up-personal-current-awareness/

GET ORGANIZED! A GUIDE FOR DEALING WITH INFORMATION OVERLOAD

Ellyssa Kroski [Columbia University, New York, New York, USA] has a wonderful post on iLibrarian listing articles on information overload, organization, and productivity. Here are the titles—check out the full post for the links.

Organization/Info Overload: 20 Great Tools to Keep Your Life Organized, Master Your Information Manifesto: 21 Tips to Deal with Info Overload, Eight steps to thriving on information overload, Key to Organization: The Habit of Now, Get your life back: Organise your brain, Get Organized: Keep All Your Information in One Place, Too Much Information: Take back your attention span

Productivity: Cut the Fat to Get to Lean Productivity, Get productive with the best Facebook Apps, 15 iGoogle Gadgets for Web Worker Productivity, 25 To Do Lists to Stay Productive


URL: http://oedb.org/blogs/ilibrarian/2007/get-organized-
a-guide-for-dealing-with-information-overload/

(this one linked...go figure...)



IMPROVE YOUR BLOG

Entrepreneur Raj Dash lists 41 Reasons Why Your Blog Probably Sucks on his blog, Performancing. I don’t agree with all 41, but if you’re serious about blogging you should at least look them over.

URL: http://performancing.com/41-reasons-why-your-blog-probably-sucks-common-blogging-mistakes

(for some reason Blogger isn't linking today--so type away...)



WEB AND BLOG DESIGN TIPS


Vandelay Website Design & Blog Customization [Savannah, Georgia, USA] has a great website, Vandelaydesign (http://www.vandelaydesign.com/blog). Here are some ideas from two of their recent posts. Be sure to read the originals for even more ideas.


13 Ways to Create Unique, Original Blog Content,
http://www.vandelaydesign.com/blog/blogging/13-ways-to-create-
unique-original-blog-content/

1. Be Independent: Sometimes you may be able to put a new spin on an old subject, but your most creative ideas are unlikely to come from other blogs.
2. Get Personal: One of the reasons there is so much repetitive content in the make-money-blogging niche is that a lot of people write about what they read from others, rather than writing from their own experiences.
3. Brainstorm: It’s one of the most effective ways to create your own ideas and stand out.
4. Keep a Journal: An idea journal is ideal because it gives you one place to keep all of your ideas and incomplete thoughts and projects.
5. Keep an Open Mind: Don’t eliminate an idea for a potential blog post if it doesn’t come together right away.
6. Take a Stand: Try writing from a perspective that doesn’t go along with everyone else, and you’re guaranteed to be more unique than the others.
7. Expand: Occasionally go back through your archives and look for posts that could be the staring block for new and separate ideas, or look for those that lend themselves to be updated.
8. Dig Deeper: Write about a little-known aspect of something that is covered a lot.
9. Know Your Subject: Without substantial knowledge, all you will be able to write about is basic information.
10. Solve Problems: Focus on solving the problems of your readers. If you can provide that solution you’ll be the first to do so, and they’ll remember you.
11. Act Quickly: Don’t sit on your best ideas, someone else may beat you to the punch.
12. Plan Ahead: This will give you the time you need to make sure that your content is unique before it is published.
13. Give Yourself Some Freedom: Don’t put yourself in a box as far as what topics you can and can’t write about.


What Makes Good Blog Design?
http://www.vandelaydesign.com/blog/design/what-makes-
good-blog-design/

1. Content Should be the Focus: Simplicity is common for blogs that want to emphasize the content.
2. Ease of Navigation: Readers will come to your blog through search engines, links from other blogs, RSS feeds, social media sites, etc. This makes navigation even more important.
3. Loads Quickly: By keeping your blog clean and free of unnecessary items you can really cut down on the time it takes to load.
4. Content Start High on the Page: More of your visitors will pay attention to your articles if they start higher on the page… they’ll be more prone to scroll down for the rest.
5. Memorable for Visitors: Make it easy for your visitors to remember your blog and standout from all of the free themes by customizing a theme yourself, or by having a blog theme professionally designed.
6. Not Overrun with Ads: Your readers will feel like they are not a priority to you if advertisements take center stage.
7. Compatibility with Multiple Browsers: In order to know that you blog is functioning well you’ll need to test it in multiple browsers.
8. Good Use of Color: The best designs effectively use color to improve the appearance. Check out the resources listed in Find the Perfect Colors for Your Website.
(http://www.vandelaydesign.com/blog/design/find-the-perfect-
colors-for-your-website/
)
9. Easy to Read: Use headlines, white space, lists, and bold text to make it easy for readers.
10. Important Items Should Be in Prominent Positions: The most important links, images, etc. should generally go above the fold so that visitors will see them right away.

"INTERESTING" LAW SCHOOL RANKINGS


Frank Snyder [Texas Wesleyan University Law School, Fort Worth, USA] posts a weekly ranking of law schools on ContractsProf Blog. The rankings in the 9 October 2007 post are:

Last week’s rank in parentheses.

1 (2) LSU (Hebert)

2 (3) Cal-Berkeley (Boalt)

3 (4) Ohio State (Moritz)

4 (6) Boston College

5 (9) Oklahoma

6 (1) Southern California (Gould)

7 (11) West Virginia

8 (12) Oregon

9 (13) South Carolina

10 (15) Missouri-Columbia

11 (17) Arizona State (O’Connor)

12 (8) Florida (Levin)

13 (14) Hawai’i (Richardson)

14 (18) Cincinnati

15 (5) Wisconsin

16 (7) Kentucky

17 (-) Illinois

18 (-) Kansas

19 (-) Florida State

20 (16) Texas

Dropped out of Top 20: Georgia, Nebraska, Miami

At first I didn't understand this at all. Then I read an earlier post which explains it. The rankings are based on the football teams! Cute, eh?


URL: http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/contractsprof_blog/law_schools/index.html

08 October 2007

TRANSLATION TOOLS


The following come from
Barbara Verble [University of Denver, Colorado, USA] on Mary Ellen Bates’ Bates InfoTip, from Bates Information Services (http://www.BatesInfo.com/tip.html).

Omniglot, http://www.omniglot.com, a portal listing language- and translation-related resources, online dictionaries, online translation, some free.
FreeTranslation, http://www.freetranslation.com, from SDL International, desktop translation tool—not free—a good investment if you have an ongoing need for translation.
PROMT, http://www.online-translator.com/text.asp?lang=en, free translation tool for text, web sites and email, from and into English, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese and Russian. (Verble says, “The quality of the translation is comparable to that of FreeTranslation.”)
WorldLingo, http://digbig.com/4tqjr, free translation of up to 150 words for text, Web pages and email, 15 languages, you can direct the tool to use specialized online glossaries.
Freelang.net
, http://www.freelang.net, download or view language dictionaries, also lists translation resources, including tools for hand-held devices and free online translation software, free human translation short amounts of text.

To these I can add:
Babelfish
, http://babelfish.altavista.com/, from AltaVista, 12 languages, does a pretty fair job
Google Translation
, http://www.google.com/translate_t, new from Google, simple translation in 10 languages (not so hot), but also can translate a search query into another language and find the results and then translate them back into the language of your choice (in 12 languages), and dictionaries in 6 languages, much of this is in Beta version
Windows Live Translator Beta
, http://translator.live.com/, translate text or web site to and from 10 languages, based on Babelfish

07 October 2007

SEARCHABLE CHARITABLE DONATIONS DATABASE (USA)

The founders of NOZA [Santa Barbara, California] were professional nonprofit fundraisers They have built a searchable database containing more than 26 million charitable donation records (growing by 1,000,000 records monthly). Their mission? “To help nonprofits raise more money, and spend less money doing it.”

You can search for free—you can only search the over 825,000 foundation records and are limited to 1000 records per search. For US$25 and up, you also have access to records of donations from people and companies, with a limit of 2000 results per search. You only pay for the full records you view at prices from 5 to 12 cents per record, depending on the package you buy.

The database includes over 2800 cities in all 50 states. It is comprised of detailed charitable gift information that has been collected from publicly available sources, such as Internet-based annual reports, newsletters, campaign honor rolls, press releases, event sponsor lists, etc. Full donation records contain: donor name, dollar range of donation, category, year, recipient organization name and location (including website), recipient organization program scope and activity, and hyperlink to internet location where data was found.

They also have a free tutorial—Prospect Research 101—and downloadable prospect research workbook and profile template.


URL:
https://www.nozasearch.com/

BEST BLAWGS

The anonymous blogger at Blawg Review listed the “top ten law blogs he thinks are simply the best.

Above the Law (USA), “a legal tabloid”—behind the scenes, http://www.abovethelaw.com/

Adam Smith, Esq.(
USA), an inquiry into the economics of law firms,”
http://www.bmacewen.com/blog/
Balkanization (USA), http://balkin.blogspot.com/
Concurring Opinions (USA), http://www.concurringopinions.com/
Deliberations (USA), juries and jury trials, http://jurylaw.typepad.com/
f/k/a/ (USA), ethics and politics, http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/ethicalesq/
May It Please the Court (USA), http://www.mayitpleasethecourt.com/journal.asp?
QuizLaw (USA), http://www.quizlaw.com/
Sentencing Law and Policy (USA), part of the Law Professors Network,
http://sentencing.typepad.com/
The Volokh Conspiracy (USA), http://www.volokh.com/

He also challenged other blawgers to choose their own “best.” Here is the list from the (again) anonymous blogger at lo-fi librarian:
Slaw (
Canada), http://www.slaw.ca/
Enquiring Minds Want to Know (UK), http://enquiring-minds.net/
LI Issues (UK), legal publishing, http://ligissues.blogspot.com/
Jennie Law (Scotland), http://jennielaw.blogspot.com/
Information Overlord (UK), law firm librarian Scott Vine,
http://www.informationoverlord.co.uk/index.htm
Connie Crosby (Canada), http://conniecrosby.blogspot.com/
Library etc. (USA), Web 2.0 libraries, http://neilstewart.wordpress.com/
Vancouver Law Librarian (Canada), http://vancouverlawlib.blogspot.com/

and two non-librarians he enjoys:
Binary Law (UK), Nick Holmes, the original blogger, http://www.binarylaw.co.uk/
Charon Q.C. (UK), http://charonqc.wordpress.com/

URLs:
Blawg Review’s top ten: http://blawgreview.blogspot.com/2007/10/simply-best.html
lo-fi librarian: http://www.lo-fi-librarian.co.uk/?p=720

06 October 2007

GOOD STUFF FOR ALL TYPES OF LIBRARIANS


Library Stream: Watching the flow of the social networking library, by Steve Campion [Pierce County (Washington) Library, Tacoma, USA]. New, but looks interesting.
URL: http://librarystream.wordpress.com/

QueryCAT
This is a database of over 4 million questions and answers from FAQs (frequently asked question lists).
URL: http://www.querycat.com/


The Stupid-Questions Answer People
Nina Platt [Platt Consulting, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA] has some good observations on how librarians are experts at answering “stupid” questions. Yes, we all know that there are no “stupid” questions—but some boggle the mind. She refers to a great article by the Snark, humor columnist for the Fulton County [Atlanta, Georgia, USA] Daily Report on what new summer law associates need to know. While you’re there, read some of Platt’s other musings—she’s good reading.
URLs:
Platt’s post
: http://nlplatt.wordpress.com/2007/10/04/the-stupid-questions-
answer-people/

The Snark’s article, Survival Tips for Summer Associates Entering the real World of Law Firms, http://www.law.com/jsp/law/careercenter/law
ArticleCareerCenter.jsp?id=1191402190934&rss=newswire

OTHER “NEW” SITES I’VE FOUND RECENTLY


China Financial Markets, a blog from Michael Pettis [Peking University, China]. Good for current information and analysis.

URL:
http://piaohaoreport.sampasite.com/default.htm


National Museum of African American History and Culture
Check out the Museum’s new website. It looks nice, There are sections on Milestones and Benchmarks, Exhibitions and Programs, Collections, Education, Collaboration, and more.

URL:
http://nmaahc.si.edu/


Philosophy Research Base
From Erratic Impact, there is the history of philosophy, various philosophical topics, philosophers by name, philosophy departments, philosopher home pages, philosophy journals and organizations. You can search for new and used books (on Amazon or Powell’s Books). Featured websites include: American philosophy, analytic philosophy, ecological philosophy, queer theory, angst/dread/phobia, feminist philosophy and ecofeminism, music theory and ethnomusicology [which is usually part of anthropology], philosophy by time period (ancient, medieval, modern, 19th century, 20th century), and political theory. Interesting and somewhat unique site.

URL: http://www.erraticimpact.com/


Tufts University Courses for Free
Tufts [Medford Massachusetts, USA] OpenCourseware is part of a new educational movement initiated by MIT that provides free access to course content for everyone online.” Currently, the only courses available are in the areas of Histology, Human-Animal Relationships, Law and Veterinary Medicine, Population Health, Veterinary Respiratory Pathophysiology, and Zoological Medicine—but they promise more in the future. This is a very interesting concept.

URL:
http://ocw.tufts.edu/


Five-Part Series of Web Resources for Students

From Scholatici (a project of Gideon Addington—student at the University of Oklahoma, Norman, USA), this is a series in honor of Student Productivity Week. You may find something new here for your customers. Thanks to Librarian in Black for the information.

The five parts are: (go to the Student Help Forum section)
  1. Beyond Wikipedia: 20 References You Can’t Do Without
  2. Books on the Web (e-books)
  3. The Full System: Note Taking, Scheduling, and Studying
  4. The 10 Best Facebook Apps for Students and 3 to Avoid
  5. 6 Facebook Apps for Students and everyone else

URL: http://www.studenthelpforum.com/

NEWS FOR HEALTH SCIENCES LIBRARIANS

OutOfPocket
This new—and still largely unpopulated—site aims “to take the secrecy out of health care pricing” by publishing cost of various procedures in different areas of the USA. Right now there is data only from a couple of places in the USA and New York. Categories of data are dental, diagnostic tests, emergency room visits, office visits, outpatient procedures and treatments, and eye care. Sample data: emergency room visit in Illinois: $500; in New York: $1185. They include “list price” and “true price”—the latter is a “negotiated” price. This is probably something like the cost of my recent foot surgery. The hospital’s bill started at about $4500; then there was a $2000 discount (negotiated by Kaiser Permanente, my health plan); then the amount paid (by Kaiser); finally, the bottom line—the amount I had to pay: $10.00. Not bad.

When (if?) they get more data, this could be a really good site for comparison shopping. I like the idea a lot. You can contribute data to it—do you want to help?

URL:
http://www.outofpocket.com/OOP/

What MLA Members Told Us About Social Networking

There is a nice summary of a recent survey of members of the Medical Library Association (USA) on the blog of the Task Force on Social Networking Software. You can also download the entire survey results—in the form of 19 pages of charts.

Some of the findings:
More respondents (73 percent) thought blogs were important for MLA and its subgroups than use them in their professional life (52 percent). Similar results were found for wikis, media sharing, RSS, Web-based office tools, and social networking services. However, the percentages for IM (instant messaging) were about equal.
Nearly 20 percent of the respondents are solos.
One of the best comments: “Make sure the interest in these tools is sustainable and not just a fad, because I do believe Web 2.0 tools can improve the MLA experience for members.”
Others were concerned about the need to match need and technology and not let technology be the driving force.

URLs:
Summary: http://sns.mlanet.org/blog/2007/09/24/what-mla-members-
told-us-about-social-networking/

Download charts: http://www.mlanet.org/survey/snssurvey_public_charts.pdf


ENGAGE

This site bills itself as “the interactive research resource for bioscience [undergraduate] students.” Sections include: Getting Started in Science, Reviewing Literature, Planning Your Research, Step-by-Step Statistics, Writing Scientifically, Presenting Science, Going Professional, and How Do I…? Available are worked examples, exercises with answers, help sheets, and quick quizzes. It is from the Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning in Applied Undergraduate Research Skills, University of Reading, UK, so some resources may be available only in the UK. However, the most value of the site might be to the bioscience librarian, to augment or help improve local resources.

URL: http://www.engageinresearch.ac.uk/


Bye, Bye, HealthWeb
Effective 31 October, the HealthWeb portal will be deactivated. It was created 13 years ago by 20 health sciences libraries in the Greater Midwest Region of the (US) National Network of Libraries of Medicine and the National Library of Medicine.

Why is it ceasing operations? “Users want deep linking capabilities (a la Google) and are navigating away form list oriented sites such as HealthWeb.” “…most contributors did not fee they could devote sufficient time to keep the project viable.” Although it was designed for health care professionals, most questions were consumer health related and other resources suit these questions better.

Suggested alternatives:
Hardin MD: http://www.lib.uiowa.edu/hardin/md
MedlinePlus
: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/
Google Health Co-op: http://www.google.com/coop/topics/Health

HAPPY…. OCTOBER CELEBRATIONS IN LIBRARYLAND

October is Health Literacy Month in the USA.
October is Medical Librarians Month in the USA
15-21 October is Library Week in New Zealand
October is Canadian Library Month.
19 October is Canadian Library Support Staff Day
25 October is Special Librarian’s Day

05 October 2007

THE IMPORTANCE OF ERESOURCE STATISTICS


Sarah Houghton-Jan [San Mateo County (California, USA) Library] made a good point in this post on Librarian in Black.

“Please examine your online resource statistics. When you’re shelling out thousands a pop, it wouldn’t be too much of a burden to make sure those resources are actually being used. Right? You might be surprised that the resources your staff tell you they use all the time are actually the lowest-used in your collection...or what you think might be used, based on instinct, just isn’t. At that point, you have to ask yourself why, and make adjustments in PR, staff training, staff promotion of the resources to the public, and look at the barriers to access on your website or the vendor’s site. See if the numbers rise after making some changes, but give it at least 6 months; it will take time.”

URL: http://librarianinblack.typepad.com/librarianinblack/2007/10/emusic-says-no-.html

NICK HOLMES’S TOP TEN LAW BLOGS

Holmes [Infolaw, London, England] listed the following on his blawg, Binary Law.


Information Overlord (UK), http://www.informationoverlord.co.uk/

LI Issues (UK), http://ligissues.blogspot.com/

lo-fi Librarian (UK), http://www.lo-fi-librarian.co.uk/

Slaw (Canada), http://www.slaw.ca/

Lexblog (USA), http://kevin.lexblog.com/

Stem Legal (Canada), http://www.stemlegal.com/strategyblog/

Family Lore (UK), http://www.familylore.co.uk/

Geeklawyer (UK), http://blog.geeklawyer.org/

Nearly Legal (UK), http://www.nearlylegal.co.uk/blog/

Corporate Blawg UK (UK), http://corporatelawuk.typepad.com/


URL: http://www.binarylaw.co.uk/index.php/2007/10/05/simply-the-best/

CONGRATULATIONS WALT--AND PALINET (corrected)

Walt Crawford, late of OCLC/RLG, has found a new home as Director and Managing Editor of PALINET's Leadership Network. The PALINET [Philadelphia (Pennsylvania, USA) Area Library and Information Network] Leadership Network is an innovative online member service for library leaders designed to create a community of practice by sharing informative articles, forums on current issues, and collaborative discussions on cutting-edge topics. Designed as a wiki platform, the PALINET Leadership Network provides the latest innovations and most current leadership information in the library arena and beyond. Developed in partnership with the Library Leadership Network (LLN), it is an ideal vehicle for staying current with literature, blogs, and other leadership conversations, as well as a critical tool for mentoring staff.