THE JOY OF COMPUTERS

I found a neat guide to help you with your IT issues. TechSoup has a set of guides called MaintainIT Project Cookbooks. All three would be good for OPLs, but one is designed especially for us: The Joy of Computing: Small & Rural Libraries. Each chapter is called a “Meal Plan” (a cute contrivance—ignore it). They include: Focusing on Your Ingredients for Success, Meat and Potato Patron Computers, Volunteers for the Kitchen, Computer Culinary Academy—Getting the Technology Training You Need, and Future Menus for Library Technology Services. There is also an appendix on tips and tricks and an index.

This is all available as a free download or you can purchase a bound copy for only $8.92.

The other two cookbooks are: Recipes for a 5-Star Library and Planning for Success.

“The MaintainIT Project is an effort of CompuMentor, home to TechSoup, a non-profit serving fellow nonprofits and [US] public libraries with technology information, resources, and project donations.” It is funded by the Gates Foundation.

Another service of TechSoup is the provision of software at discounts up to 90 percent. There are other programs (including computers) available for public libraries that are 501(c)(3) organization.

URLs:
Free download: http://www.maintainitproject.org/files/TheJoyofComputing-061807.pdf
The other Cookbooks: http://www.maintainitproject.org
Purchase: http://www.cafepress.com/maintainit
Software discounts: http://www.techsoup.org/stock/libraries/default.asp