Continuing last week's theme of Jason finding extremely exciting, anything that presents typical linear information in a cool, revolving circular format, I present to you: Tag Galaxy
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Friday, May 30
Friday Fun Link - Flickr Tag Galaxy (May 30, 2008)
by
Jason
on Fri 30 May 2008 11:49 PM CST
Thursday, May 29
Google X: A Tribute to OS X
by
Jason
on Thu 29 May 2008 07:05 PM CST
Here's some love for you Mac people out there...
What if Google modeled its interface on the OS-X one? I like it and am thinking of changing my default search to this one. Seriously. Wednesday, May 28
Myers-Briggs and Facebook: Match Made In Heaven?
by
Jason
on Wed 28 May 2008 07:21 PM CST
Okay, maybe not but the Facebook MyType application is the first application I've installed on Facebook in a *long* time.
I'm not sure what I got in high school but I think every time I've taken the test (official or an unofficial variation) since then, I've gotten ENFP. Here's a summary of what that personality type is like: ENFPs are initiators of change who are keenly perceptive of possibilities, and who energize and stimulate through their contagious enthusiasm. They prefer the start-up phase of a project or relationship, and are tireless in the pursuit of new-found interests. ENFPs are able to anticipate the needs of others and to offer them needed help and appreciation. They bring zest, joy, liveliness, and fun to all aspects of their lives. They are at their best in situations that are fluid and changing, and that allow them to express their creativity and use their charisma. You can go to my Facebook profile to see the whole write-up if you're interested. Or why not add the application and try it yourself?Tuesday, May 27
What Not To Do On A First Date...
by
Jason
on Tue 27 May 2008 05:47 PM CST
Reddit (nice redesign by the way!) had a post about the 15th anniversary of "True Romance", a film that bombed in its initial theatrical release but has gone on to be a cult-classic due to a classic Quentin Tarantino script, a star-studded line-up (Brad Pitt does more with a quickie cameo than any actor in history) and perhaps one of the single best dialogue scenes in the history of film:
So that reminded me of a funny story (well, depending on your point of view. It may also be considered embarrassing, sad, pathetic, selfish and/or tragic.) Back in 1993, I was a newly graduated, gainfully under-employed twenty year old. A female friend of mine (let's call her Amy) mentioned that a friend of hers (also female, just to be clear) thought I was funny and wouldn't mind if I called her (let's call the friend Brenda). This was a very rare occurrence so I, of course, froze up and did nothing. Amy proactively arranged a double-date (conveniently with a friend of mine she was interested in - let's dub him "Chris") and Brenda & I. That newly introduced couple spent two hours groping each other while a forgettable movie played on the VCR and they helped the term "love seat" live up to its name. Brenda and I sat on a nearby couch and both wished we were anywhere else in the world. The next day, Amy called. "Brenda really likes you but she's painfully shy. You need to make the first move. Call her and ask her out to a movie." Wait, a second! I'm painfully shy too. How come she doesn't call me? She started this! But I was a realist and that seemed like a rational thing to do. I called. Brenda said yes. Plans were made. A movie! Brilliant. Which one? We left that to be decided, happy to just get through a very brief, very awkward conversation. There was one small wrinkle. I'd recently been introduced to the wunderkid that was Quentin Tarantino by a friend who was at the time and remains to this day, much cooler than I shall ever be. The introduction to Tarantino came in the form of a film called "Reservoir Dogs" which literally took my breath away. I couldn't wait until something else from the same director arrived. I didn't have to wait long. I read a movie preview in the newspaper (remember them?) that said Tarantino had a new film coming out. He didn't direct this one but it was his script. Good enough for me! So I picked up Brenda and instead of suggesting the latest Meg Ryan opus, I mentioned that there was a film called "True Romance" that she might like. I mean, the title was "True Romance". How bad could it be? We went. We held hands. The film was brilliant. It was also pretty much as bad as I never imagined it would be. Vulgar. Violent. Racist. Sexist. It had perhaps the most offensive scene of male on female brutality I'd ever seen until the final rape scene in "Monster" (which had caused one friend to leave a theatre, puke on the sideway and never return, her absence unexplained to all, including her husband sitting beside Shea and I, until the next day!) Brenda was quiet on the drive home. Surprisingly, she invited me into her living room. I couldn't help but notice the complete set of Disney VHS tapes stored neatly beside her TV. Needless to say, we did not extend the evening into an exploration of each others' tonsils. To make a long story short, there wasn't a second date. (Okay, I'm lying for the sake of the story. There actually was if you can believe it!) But unfortunately any hope we had for a relationship was pretty much dashed in the Mexican stand-off of bullets and blood that "True Romance" showered on her Snow White and Cinderella tastes. I have no idea where Brenda is today (hmmm, I wonder if she's on Facebook? [Puts on stalker hat]) but given the choice again, I think I'd have made the same decision. I probably love that film more today than when I first saw it 15 years ago. Oh, and the real funny part? The last time I saw Brenda, she was making out on a dance floor...with my friend Chris. Not shy at all! Monday, May 26
Kiva.org
by
Jason
on Mon 26 May 2008 10:09 PM CST
Kiva is a web site that helps facilitate micro-credit loans to entrepreneurs around the world. (As always, Wikipedia has more information about this organization if you're interested.)
Shea got a Kiva gift certificate as a Mother's Day Gift and is helping two people: Ruth Celenia Santana Morales who sells clothes and jewelery in the Dominican Republic and Umedjon Nurov who raises beef cattle in Tajikistan. One of the coolest things about the site is that once the loan is repaid (the loans have a 99.7% repayment rate) you can either withdraw it or turn around and loan it to someone else. I first heard about Kiva via the Bill Clinton book, Giving: How Each of Us Can Change The World. There are various other organizations out there that are similar to Kiva but which have different approaches and cater to different needs, groups, countries and so on. Heifer International is one I heard about via Cenobyte for example. Sunday, May 25
Saturday, May 24
"I Hate Hate" - Jason's Pick For Song of Summer 2008
by
Jason
on Sat 24 May 2008 10:43 PM CST
If you're a music fan, one of the rules is that there must be one song each year that becomes your Song of Summer.
Criteria for a successful Song of Summer include originality, catchiness and general sense of fun. Ability to play the song about eight zillion times in a row, preferably in a car without a roof or at least with the windows all down is a must. I think I've got my pick for this year... (via PopBitch newsletter which helps me feel like I'm still living in England even though I no longer know about 98% of the people they talk about) Friday, May 23
Friday Fun Link - Spectra Visual Newsreader (and Some Thoughts on Some Other, More World-Changing Future Technologies) (May 23, 2008)
by
Jason
on Fri 23 May 2008 11:39 PM CST
Spectra is a new visual news reader from MSNBC. I haven't played around with it much but it looks cool, mostly because the news spins in a circle instead of the old-fashioned columnar approach. Whoo-hooo!
On a much broader scale, I've recently come across a couple lists predicting of technologies that will change the world put together by groups that know a thing or two about cutting-edge technology. IBM has posted their second annual "Five in Five" list and MIT's "Technology Review" journal has posted their list of "10 Emerging Technologies for 2008". What's especially cool about the MIT list is that you can click to past lists going back to 2001 (excepting 2002 when their super-secret crystal ball technology apparently broke down) to see if their predictions have come true yet or not. Here's the 2001 list and I won't be so presumptuous as to pretend I have a clue as to where the world is at with most of these (or even what some of them mean!). Brain-Machine Interface Flexible Transistors Data Mining Digital Rights Management Biometrics Natural Language Processing Microphotonics Untangling Code Robot Design Microfluidics But some, like data mining and DRM are definitely ones people involved in the information world are struggling with now. One final thought...my own bold prediction for the future. At some point in the very near or not so near future, people will begin to wear a small recording device that constantly captures the video and audio of every moment of their lives. This will be stored by some sort of advanced system (think Google on crack - voice recognition, natural language processing, high level artificial intelligence) that allows people to search for pretty much any type of information about their lives instantaneously: "what did I have for lunch in that cafe in Montreal in 2009?", "where did I leave my sunglasses?", "how much have I spent on gas in the last 12 months?" I recently heard about U of T engineering prof Steve Mann during Michael Ridley's presentation at the SLA conference and he's been on this path for, oh, almost thirty years already. I also came across an article (which I didn't bookmark and can't find now but maybe it was in Wired?) about somebody else who was doing something similar - wearing a computer that could OCR things he looked at like his hotel and flight reservation then transfer it into a database for easy retrieval later. I think there was also a web site that performed this function for him or that was trying to do something similar for people mentioned in the article but again, can't remember the name of it. Not keyhole.com but maybe something like that? [Edit: Found it. Twine.com] Oh, and I'll also predict that the natural reluctance people feel towards this privacy-destroying, possibly society-altering device will be no different than the acceptance rate for any other new invention. [2008-06-29 - Edit #2 - I don't think Twine was what I was thinking of. Here's the article from Salon about someone using a technology called Evernote that I think was what I was looking for originally. And while I'm adding stuff, here's a story about how new technologies will eventually allow us to add 1 TB of data on a thumbdrive. Doesn't this sound exactly like I what I'm talking about: ""All the current limitations in portable electronic storage could go away. You could record video of every event in your life and store it."] Thursday, May 22
Where You Sit in A Classroom and What It Says About You
by
Jason
on Thu 22 May 2008 02:38 AM CST
I don't do a lot of posts that earn the "libraryschool" tag anymore but this one seems appropriate. I was both a "back row" and an "against the wall" type student but also tended to sit furthest from the exit which means I'm "too cool for school", sensitive and apparently committed (assuming people who sit nearest the exit are uncommitted.) In reality, where I sat just meant I liked to have a perch that allowed me to view the entire room in case anybody decided to make any sudden moves!  I know this is only a humourous cartoon but I think somebody could get a lot more mileage out of this idea - perhaps as a full blog post. I'll leave that to others to attempt as my memories of what your seat position in a classroom might mean have long faded. (via Reddit whose comments reveal that law schools often have assigned seating. Didn't know that...)  Wednesday, May 21
The Quest for Every Beard Type
by
Jason
on Wed 21 May 2008 11:11 PM CST
As you may have noticed in the Flickr pics from Pace's birthday, my "winter beard" is gone ("winter beard" being a very loose definition - some years it doesn't appear until January as happened this year, some years it sticks around for pretty much 11 months as I think was the case while I was at library school.)
Anyhow, it's always a bit of a minor milestone when the beard either begins or ends and so this site which records one man's quest to attain every beard type struck a chord. Like him, I often take the ritual "shaving of the beard" as an opportunity to try a five-second version of "hey, what would I look like with a fu manchu/goatee/soul patch/mutton chops/etc."? Unlike him, I will not be posting photos of my experiments! (via Reddit) Tuesday, May 20
Monday, May 19
Pace's First Birthday!
by
Jason
on Mon 19 May 2008 11:52 PM CST
After waking to ominous grey skies, we made the call to keep the party at Nickle Lake rather than moving into Grandpa and Grandma Thompson's house in Weyburn for Pace's birthday.
We were rewarded with a beautiful, sunny (if a bit windy) day with a great turnout for the party, delicious burgers and hot dogs cooked expertly by Grandpa Ray, a visit from some distant cousins Pace hadn't seen for awhile and way more gifts than we wanted (or Pace needed!). We had goody bags for the kids who came *and* the adults too. (One guest said "I've never got a goody bag at a party!"). Pace was very well behaved for most of the day considering all the attention and excitement swirling around him, the sugar entering his body and the lack of naps in the afternoon. Shea's uploaded a bunch of photos of Pace's big day on Flickr if you're interested. Sunday, May 18
If You're Coming to Pace's Birthday Tomorrow, Don't Look At This Post!
by
Jason
on Sun 18 May 2008 10:12 AM CST
  Saturday, May 17
Hmmm...Dice Stacking?
by
Jason
on Sat 17 May 2008 10:21 PM CST
I'm sort of burnt out after a full day of inventory & weeding on Friday (more than a full day - we were at it from 6am until 9pm or so) and then a full day today spent at Nickel Lake, just outside Weyburn, getting ready for the big birthday party coming up on Monday.
So instead of original content or thought, I present "Dice Stacking": Friday, May 16
Friday Fun Link - 13 Rule Breaking Films (May 16, 2008)
by
Jason
on Fri 16 May 2008 11:23 PM CST
"For all the creativity and innovation that goes into making (some)
Hollywood films, there are also a lot of ideas that get recycled time
and time again. I’m not referring to stock characters or the sequalitis
that hits multiplexes every summer. I’m talking about the basic
building blocks of storytelling that are ingrained in the movie-going
experience.
Every once in a while, though, a film comes along that takes an assumption about how American movies are supposed to be made and changes it, sometimes resulting in something truly memorable. Producers who want to make a film that breaks one of the unwritten rules of motion pictures risk a lot – studios might not want to fund the film, theaters might not show it, audiences might not respond to it. The reward for taking the chance, though, is recognition for being a really interesting experiment, or, in some cases, taking your place among the greatest films ever made." GLI Press: Review: 13 Rule-Breaking Films Thursday, May 15
The Four Generations In Your Workplace
by
Jason
on Thu 15 May 2008 10:37 PM CST
As I may have mentioned before, the younger me would probably punch the older me in the mush if he could see how much management theory I'd be reading (and enjoying
 ) at this point in my life. To me, one of the most interesting aspects of management theory today is the interplay between different generations. This article has one of the most succinct set of definitions that I've seen for the defining characteristics for each of the four generations that are currently in the workplace. Wikipedia also has a comprehensive chart listing every American generation going back to 1843 based on the work of Strauss and Howe. Their theory is that there are four generational archetypes that repeat sequentially - Prophets, Nomads, Heroes and Artists. Interesting stuff. Wednesday, May 14
100 Must-Read Books For Men
by
Jason
on Wed 14 May 2008 10:01 PM CST
Whenever one of those "100 Books You Must Read" lists come out, I'm always a bit ashamed that, even as a former English major, I find that I've barely read any of them.
But now, finally, a list where I have read, well, about the same proportion as any other "Top 100 Books" list. 100 Must-Read Books: The Essential Man’s Library The MetaFilter thread links to an earlier thread about the reading choice differences between men and women. (via MetaFilter) Tuesday, May 13
Which Makes Me Think...
by
Jason
on Tue 13 May 2008 11:01 PM CST
I drove nearly four hours round-trip today to do a five minute presentation at a tea in honour of a branch assistant who's been with our region for fifteen years...
...which makes me think that rural librarianship has some unique requirements you won't find in any other type of library... ...which makes me think that rural librarianship also has some unique rewards including the joy of homebaked cookies and dainties, a fly on the wall perspective for two hours conversation covering all manner of small town comings and goings plus the inevitable "Saskatchewan One Degree of Separation" moment of finding out that one person attending the tea has a daughter who signed a document for you in her role as a Justice of the Peace in your hometown and the former librarian who is also attending has a son who is married to a friend of yours from University... ...which makes me think that the afternoon tea is the small town female equivalent of the more male dominated "coffee row" which I've also sat in on in a couple different communities while traveling as part of this job... ...which makes me think of how, when we were traveling to a series of meeting in branches near my hometown and after hearing me talk about my experiences growing up in the area, my boss commented "I don't know why you want to work in Regina. You belong in a rural library."... ...which also makes me think about how many people have said (some variation of) "we'll miss you - you understand rural libraries" as my contract begins coming to a close... ...which makes me think that sentiment is properly better captured as "you understand the rural mindset" (trust me - I've barely begun to get a handle on rural libraries!)... ...which makes me think of the fact that we have a special line in our acquisitions budget to buy copies of one book for every branch in our region (rather than the more usual practice of buying one copy that rotates through the region one branch at a time) and how this year, I bought a book called "Our Towns" which features historical information and background about hundreds of towns across Saskatchewan... ...which makes me think about how this book was being discussed on talk radio today and I got the tidbit that "coffee row" is a phrase that originated in Saskatchewan and another tidbit that, at its peak in the late 1800's, my hometown of Indian Head had the most elevators of any community in Saskatchewan (12), a fact I never knew... ...which makes me think that this book was a pretty good pick for a "branch perm" as we call them whereas the books I picked last year on "The History of Patents", "The History of Inventions", "A Child's Guide to the Night Sky" and "A Health Guide for Those Over 50" weren't maybe as good of picks (long story!)... ...which (also) makes me think how those picks led to one of many screw-ups I've had over the past year when I asked that the books be catalogued as "reference" materials when in fact, the proper designation was "branch permanents" which means people could actually, you know, take them out... ...which makes me think that as excited as I am about whatever may come next, I will truly and honestly miss working in a rural library system, with all of its quirks and challenges and small magical moments such as the care taken to design a perfectly arranged tray of goodies...  Monday, May 12
"The End of Copyright" - An Essay
by
Jason
on Mon 12 May 2008 08:15 PM CST
Quite often, I'll do a post on a topic then come across further information at a later date that would expand and improve the post.
Usually, I just go back and add the information to the original post, even though I know the odds of anyone seeing it are slim. But in this case, as a supplement to my recent post about the end of copyright (cleverly disguised as a post about a cheesy 1970's action TV show), here's a good essay about the end of copyright. I think we are witnessing the beginning of the end of a major era in world history. It may take fifty years, it may take a hundred, but the age of copyright is drawing to a close. I don’t know if this is a good thing or a bad thing, but it’s inevitable. And I say this as the author of two books and over 75 columns like this one, all copyrighted. This especially ties into the point that someone recently conveyed me about how people struggle to hold onto something hardest when they know it's already over (paging Hillary Clinton!  )Right now, the music and movie industries are howling and beating their breasts and doing their best to go after anybody who violates their copyrights on a large scale. The fury with which they’re doing it is a measure of their desperation. The Sony rootkit debacle is a perfect example: in an effort to prevent piracy, they secretly installed dangerous spyware into people’s PCs, which itself may have been a criminal act. This was about the dumbest public-relations move since Take-Two lied about the Hot Coffee content, and as with Take-Two, it will cost them vastly more than they could hope to gain from it. Did they really think nobody would find out? Sunday, May 11
Jessamyn West's Endnote Presentation from the SLA-MLA Conference
by
Jason
on Sun 11 May 2008 08:45 PM CST
Jessamyn passed along word that she's got both the speaking notes and the slides from her presentation at the recent Sask Library Association-Manitoba Library Association joint conference online (good thing she has the speaking notes up - she uses that minimalistic "one photo, one caption" style for her presentations so you might not get much out of just the slides.)
I have to say it's been interesting to ask people what they thought of her presentation over the last couple weeks. I'm a bit naive but every time I ask, I expect the person to be similarly enamoured and, like me, think "yeah. Yeah! That's it. That's what it's all about. Whoo-hooo!" (or something along those lines anyhew.  )Instead, I've heard from a few people who were underwhelmed or even disappointed by the presentation. I hate to generalize but so far, this division has broken down completely along generational lines - older librarians I ask who weren't very impressed found the presentation meandering, off-point, etc. etc. Younger and/or newer librarians found the presentation engaging, exciting and inspirational. This isn't just about a conference closing presentation though. Instead, it embodies a generational divide that is causing a lot of tension within our profession in general. On one side, you (tend to) have younger, technology-focused, cutting-edge, "just do it" new librarians. On the other, you have more hierarchy-based, old-school, cautious "voice of experience" librarians. (I hasten to add that there are older boomer librarians updating their Facebook profiles from their Blackberries and their are curmudgeonly new, young librarians who think Web 2.0 was the sub-title of the second Spiderman movie. I also admit to having had more than one sleepness night in the past year wondering if I'll acquire some or all of the traits I currently find so frustrating as I move forward in my library career? And whether this is necessarily such a bad thing?) Anyhow, in my mind, Jessamyn's presentation did not suck ("was not sub-optimal" to use her suggested terminology substitution for the word that we X'ers do tend to over-use way too often!) but it apparently did not always reach the people that it should have either. Saturday, May 10
Emergency! (TV Show, not a call for help)
by
Jason
on Sat 10 May 2008 10:19 PM CST
Sometimes it's the stupidest things that make you realise how amazing and cool and awesome the Internet truly is.
Yesterday, we saw a fire truck leaving its station while we were out and about and, for the first time in about, oh, twenty-five years, I thought about a TV show I loved as a kid - Emergency! I went on YouTube and of course, the opening credits for the show were there as well as a few related clips and scenes. I can't wait for that inevitable day when ALL creative content like this, including full programs, is out there, ready for us to access. As someone told me recently, when you're at the end of an era, that's when the people who will suffer most from the change hold on the tightest. Translation: goodbye current copyright laws, hello future! Friday, May 9
Friday Fun Link - TimeTube: YouTube Timelines Mashup (May 9, 2008)
by
Jason
on Fri 09 May 2008 09:46 PM CST
TimeTube is a site that creates a timeline of YouTube videos based on any keyword you enter and sorted based on the date they were added. You can also
view the results in a couple other modes - "list view", "flipbook" and
"map view" for videos that have been tagged with a location.
They have some samples of how this works best - things like major news stories that develop over time. For example, you can see a timeline of Barack Obama videos from when he first came to national prominence on through the Democratic primary right up until his most recent speech. It's not just for news stories - trying pretty much any keyword can provide interesting results. I've tried "Saskatchewan" and "Library 2.0" so far although, for these types of searches, it's probably just as easy to look at YouTube's "Sort by Date Added" feature. One other major shortcoming of the site, evidenced by the lack of links for my sample timelines above - you can't link directly to a TimeTube that you've created. Still, a very cool mash-up that has a lot of potential, especially as YouTube continues to gain content about all manner of subjects over time. (via Reddit) [2008-05-11 - TechCrunch has a good summary of the site's good and bad points as well.] Thursday, May 8
Wikipedia Goes To...Print?
by
Jason
on Thu 08 May 2008 10:23 PM CST
Seems counter-intuitive but apparently a Slice of the German Wikipedia is to Be Captured on
Paper.
(via Sandra M.) Wednesday, May 7
Canada Is Today's Frontier Upon Which The War of File-Sharing Legality Is Being Waged
by
Jason
on Wed 07 May 2008 07:11 AM CST
I have to admit that I've been cheating on MetaFilter. Once a site that I had to spend quality time with on a daily basis, it had slipped and been replaced in my affection by Reddit, a sexy little site which has a lot more technology news, a lot more politics, a lot more humour, all in a "what will it have today?" format that makes for quick and easy browsing. (Put another way: MetaFilter = The New Yorker, Reddit = People).
So anyhow, my recent visit with Jessamyn inspired me to try to make at least a little bit of time to get back to checking MetaFilter on a more regular basis. My decision was quickly rewarded when I came across the following post which I've copied verbatim from MetaFilter. "With the possible exception of Sweden, Canada is today's frontier upon which the war of file-sharing legality is waged, with the greatest number of file-sharers per capita, and a steady increase in the number of persons who partake (according to the OECD). Historically, the CRIA's own piracy campaign (2004) was given birth only one year after the RIAA began suing individuals (2003) for participating in peer-to-peer file distribution. Unlike the RIAA, the CRIA was shot down by the courts, establishing a sort of precedent in favour of the end-user which has been upheld ever since, and indeed even reinforced. However, we may be seeing the beginning of the end as QuebecTorrent now fights the good fight to prevent a legal precedent outlawing Canadian BitTorrent trackers." (via MetaFilter) Tuesday, May 6
Obama vs. McCain - It Begins...Again
by
Jason
on Tue 06 May 2008 08:31 PM CST
Tonight's primaries aren't completely settled and as I write this, Indiana still has to be called. But barring a major backroom deal with both committed and uncommitted super-delegates, Michigan and Florida recounts or incriminating photos of Barack Obama with Osama Bin Laden come to light, the Democratic party nomination has been Obama's for the last two months or so.
So with the Presidential race looking like it will be John McCain versus Barack Obama in the fall, it's interesting to note that this isn't the first time the two men have squared off. The following exchange provides a glimpse behind the power politics of Washington and the character of each man: Sen. Obama and Sen. McCain Exchange Letters on Ethics Reform | U.S. Senator Barack Obama Monday, May 5
I'm So Proud - My First Official Copyright Violation Notice (a single tear rolls down my cheek)
by
Jason
on Mon 05 May 2008 07:49 PM CST
The funniest part is that I've got nothing but positive comments about my Pace montage on YouTube and I probably encouraged one or two people to seek out (and maybe even buy!) this old country tune. Dear YouTube Member:
Well, I can't complain too much - Universal Music Group is progressive enough that they let the video stay up at least. Of course, if ads start showing up on something that is at least 50% my content, I think I might have to upload another video named "Tippy Toeing by Loreta Lyn" with a whole other set of photos behind it. --- UMG has claimed some or all audio content in your video Pace Owen in "Tippy Toeing" by Loretta Lynn. This claim was made as part of the YouTube Content Identification program. Your video is still live because UMG has authorized the use of this content on YouTube. As long as UMG has a claim on your video, they will receive public statistics about your video, such as number of views. Viewers may also see advertising on your video's page. Claim Details:
UMG claimed this content as a part of the YouTube Content Identification program. YouTube allows partners to review YouTube videos for content to which they own the rights. Partners may use our automated video / audio matching system to identify their content, or they may manually review videos. Sincerely, Copyright © 2008 YouTube, Inc. Sunday, May 4
"[We] discussed who had learned to drive on a tractor [answer: almost everyone, including me]"
by
Jason
on Sun 04 May 2008 08:39 PM CST
Well, the conference is over for another year! We finished off the joint SLA-MLA conference with a great social event at the Cathedral Village Free House where I was finally able to meet Jessamyn West.
Well, that's not quite true - I've "met" her before but this was the first time meeting her in person. Since long before I became a librarian, I've been reading Jessamyn's posts on MetaFilter and librarian.net. I first made official contact with her while in library school (I tried to bring her in as a "Lunch Bucket" speaker but wasn't able to pull it off...one of my great regrets of my time at FIMS) and have occasionally been in contact since then. Jessamyn wrote a bit about her time in Regina on her personal blog (which is where the title of this post comes from) and highlighted the presentation given by Sabina about the BC Evergreen initiative on librarian.net. Very cool! Saskatchewan public libraries had a massive project underway during the past year to create a similar province-wide library system but didn't receive funding in the most recent provincial budget. The project is still moving forward but in a modified form. I don't know if we'll use an open ILS like BC has but I hope so. Perhaps the lack of government funding may turn out to be a blessing in disguise if it encourages the participants to more seriously consider the open source route. I'd seen a presentation by Sabina's boss on the BC experience during a meeting of the Saskatchewan Single Integrated Library System project late last year so decided to skip her presentation for one on "open" libraries by Patricia Moore from U of S (who happens to be in the background of the photo below.) (And as an aside, my preference is conferences where similarly themed presentations don't overlap so you can hit all the "technology" ones in a row or all the "management" ones or whatever without being forced to choose between two similar ones.) One really good point by Pat was that we have to shift the perception of open source software and technology as somehow inferior to its commercial counterparts. "Open source is essentially peer-reviewed software and if that's the gold standard for the journals we supply in our libraries, it should be the gold standard for the technology that we utilize too." What else? Jessamyn's presentation on "Towards Open Libraries" was excellent - full of humour and insight into the current trends in librarianship and seemed to be very well received by the crowd. She usually puts slides and notes from her presentations on librarian.net - the Saskatchewan one isn't up as of this writing but I assume it will be eventually. I think Pace enjoyed meeting Jessamyn too!  [Edit: I see that Jessamyn added some of her own photos from her Regina visit to Flickr. Shea's quote upon seeing the following photo: "You don't even look that drunk." Me: "It was early..."]  Saturday, May 3
Friday Fun Link - What Happens When George Clooney Googles "George Clooney" (May 3, 2008)
by
Jason
on Sat 03 May 2008 07:42 AM CST
If you're like me, you spend all your time wondering "What's it like to be a celebrity in today's day and age with your name splashed all over, not just TV, print and other traditional media, but on literally millions of sites across the Internet, large and small?" Also, "what does George Clooney think of 2Girls1Cup?"
Esquire magazine asked George Clooney these exact questions. (Warning: the second last link is to Wikipedia which has nothing but a brief description of the video's contents. It may still give you nightmares.) Friday, May 2
Five Really Crazy Ideas for Public Libraries
by
Jason
on Fri 02 May 2008 04:22 PM CST
I'm at the SLA conference right now and, inspired by all the great sessions, here's a list of some ideas for wild, outside-the-box ideas that public libraries could do to draw more people and attention in their communities. Some of these are ideas that I came up with, some I found online and some are things I heard about at sessions at the conference:
1. Lend People Instead of Books The human “books” on offer vary from event to event but always include a healthy cross-section of stereotypes. Last weekend, the small but richly diverse list included Police Officer, Vegan, Male Nanny and Lifelong Activist as well as Person with Mental Health Difficulties and Young Person Excluded from School. 2. Have a Drive-Thru Window For Returns ...and check-outs? ("Yes, I'd like a Grisham paperback, a recent copy of Time magazine and a literary western, please.") 3. Loan Video Games "In the midst of updating their state-mandated strategic plan last fall, Oti and her staff decided to offer video games for loan after going to a regional workshop promoting the idea and surveying younger patrons. Three weeks ago, the staff put up signs announcing a new 50-title collection comprising games based on sports and animated movies. Within two hours, all the titles were checked-out, and most now have long waiting lists." Many libraries are off-setting declining book circulation by buying more non-traditional library materials such as DVD's, CD's, graphic novels, and comic books. Video games haven't seen the same adoption rate but likely will increasingly be found in libraries as a way to reach a younger, more visually-orientated audience. (There's actually a "games room" at the conference with a Wii and various other games and platforms available - subliminal message for the assembled librarians?) 4. Stay Open 24-7 This is very common in academic libraries, if only around exam time but public libraries haven't tried this as far as I know. But if grocery stores, coffee shops, drug stores and other retailers can offer round-the-clock hours as a service to their clientele, why not libraries? 5. Don't Charge Overdue Fines "It takes an incredible amount of staff time to collect 50 cents, to monitor it, and send out notices. We weighed the actual costs of collecting fines against the revenue brought in and decided it was kind of a wash." Thursday, May 1
Orson Scott Card Rips JK Rowling A New One
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