Pages

11/29/2005

11/16/2005

Deal averts Internet showdown

http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/internet/11/16/internet.summit.ap/index.html

"U.S. Assistant Secretary of Commerce Michael Gallagher said the deal means the United States will leave day-to-day management to the private sector, through a quasi-independent organization called the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, or ICANN."

Use the link and read the whole article. More later, PE

11/14/2005

Mapping the "New" World



There's a great new page for Mecklenburg County GIS (Geospatial Information Services). Check it out. The fifth annual GIS day will be at ImaginOn on Wednesday, November 16, from 9 am -3 pm.


Also take a look at an article from the Baltimore Sun about the new advances that the Internet has made possible in mapping.

Internet maps a new direction

Technology brings geographic, geologic information to all
LARRY WILLIAMS, Baltimore Sun

11/10/2005

So What's in your Wiki?

If you've ever had a plane change at the airport in Honolulu then you might associate the term "wiki" with the airport express shuttle bus (aka the Wiki Wiki Bus). The term 'wiki' is a Hawaiian word that means "quick" or "fast" and in recent years has also taken on new meaning in the tech world to describe collaborative software (or web environment) that allows users to create, edit and share information.

If you're interested in finding out more about wikis, then pop on over the the most recent post on the new PLCMC Core Competency Blog (designed to assist front line staff with technology as they relate to CCs)

Note: The CC blog is still undergoing development, but will be shared with all staff soon.

Changing the way we catalog Short Stories

I would really like to see us change our cataloging of our short stories. I think we are really limiting our circ of this genre by putting them in non-fiction. What are your thoughts?

11/08/2005

Googlism 2015

Love 'em or hate 'em, you can't seem to venture anywhere these days in cyberspace without touching on Google territory. Google catalogs news feeds, searches blogs, provides email alerts, displays detailed statelite images of your home address and can even find your lost car keys (well, not really... but I can't image that it's too far off). So, what's next? What does the future hold for Google, Microsoft and other news media giants?

Take 8 minutes to view this perspective of what the information universe may look like in 2015...

2015 : Musuem of Media History



Does this scare you or excite you?

PS: Thanks Lori Reed for forwarding this link.

New Map - Normative Data Project for Libraries from Sirsi -Cool!

Check out an interactive Google map of Libraries affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita created by former University of South Carolina School of Library and Information Science Professor Bob Molyneux and his colleagues at Sirsi. It uses the Normative Data Project for Libraries from Sirsi and info from the GeoLib project.

Public Libraries Affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita

Take a look at the project as a whole at http://www.libraryndp.info. The goal of the Normative Data Project for Libraries (NDP) is to compile transaction-level data from libraries throughout North America; to link library data with geographic, demographic, and other key types of data; and, thereby, to empower library decision-makers to compare and contrast their institutions with real-world industry norms on circulation, collections, finances, and other parameters.

Do you think this could be a valuable project? Take a look at which libraries are participating so far.

11/07/2005

Back In Business

With the new found interest in exploring uses for blogs, I'm rejuvenating this blog that I started over a year ago with the purpose of exploring and generating thought and discussion about technology changes that may affect libraries. Please jump on board with me with this new approach by either:
  1. posting a reply to an item of intetrest
  2. trying it out and setting up a blog yourself
    (www.blogger.com if free and easy to use)
  3. becoming a regular contributor to this blog (just email me if you're interested).

Actually, my preference is that you will try (and do) all three!!

PS: Thanks Chris for being the very 1st contributor last fall :)

Google? Amazon? New models introduced for electronic access

It was just about a year ago that google introduced it's controversial Print Search (Google Print) service and jumped into the electronic publishing race with Amazon. From this recent article in the NY Times, it looks the competition is growing fiercer...

Want 'War and Peace' Online? How About 20 Pages at a Time?
Edward Wyatt, NY Times, 11.04.05

How do think Libraries might be affected by these developments, especially as more and more books (especially reference) move to digital formats?