Mentioned in Book

I see I was mentioned in a book (link). The book's title (translated) is "Spirited Resistance from the Outside: Austrians in US Propaganda Units in WWII", written by Florian Traussnig (source). Mention of me comes from a blog post I wrote a few years ago where I discussed my father's role in the allied broadcast program called ABSIE. Interesting. Daddy is mentioned often in write-ups like this; first time however that I ever saw a reference to me.

Google Redefines Email (& Your Rights) :-(

So Google comes out with a number of changes to its Gmail service including "Confidential Mode". As XDA-Developers explains:

"A new Confidential Mode allows you to remove the option for the recipient to forward, copy, download, or print an email. You can also make the email expire after a set period of time."

Huh? Email that someone sends you that self-destructs? Anyone see a problem here? (Ripe for deception & fraud, lack of privacy on the part of the recipient, etc.) Hello, Google, but if someone sends me a message, it's me who decides what to do with it -- not you. 

Interesting Front Page from today's Chicago Sun-Times

 
Interesting front page from today's Chicago Sun-Times. (And yes, I subscribe to their 'digital' edition.) More info here...

[Original Link (no work)]

Opening Day T-minus-1

Waiting for that $10 ticket... (Update: Game delayed a day due to inclement weather.)

50 Years of Information Technology and Libraries (ITAL)

Congrads on 50 yrs to the LITA Journal ITAL (more here)! The 50th anniversary issue includes a short review of tech articles from the 1960s as well as two pieces on (what else?) present-day social media [1], [2].

UPDATE (4/1/2018): I listed the articles as well as the issue on this month's Current Cites.

Current Cites for February 2018

 Current Cites for February 2018 is out! You can find the issue here...

Being involved with Citation management at DPU, I found an interesting study which actually polled faculty as to what system they use. Although the response rate wasn't great, it is a good example -- at least a beginning -- for evaluating reality in these services.

Featured on Good Day DePaul (1/24)

 

A few thoughts on Net Neutrality featured in the student news program 'Good Day DePaul'. My part begins at 8:13:  https://player.vimeo.com/video/252359196#t=493s

1st Saturday of 2018

 #RefDesk: 1st Saturday of 2018! Cold outside so IM was chugging away.

2018 -- So much better than 1918

Some things are just so obvious. 

Current Cites for December 2017

Current Cites for December 2017 is out! You can find the issue here...

It's the end of year update and I was already in holiday mode so naturally I went with an article on (what else?) Twitter. Fun and academic at the same time, you might say.

IFLA Library Map of the World

Neat interactive world map provided by IFLA allowing you to find out how many libraries, librarians, etc. there are in countries ranging from Latvia to Papua New Guinea.

See more here: https://librarymap.ifla.org/map

In Support of Net Neutrality

I used the "Express Comment" form provided by the FCC to file my opinion regarding the proposed move by the FCC Chair to end Net Neutrality (17-108, "Restoring Internet Freedom" [sic]):

"Net Neutrality is the modern equivalent of free speech. Carriers are utilities and cannot decide (or favor) specific communications. I already pay more for streaming content AS streaming content. Giving one source any kind of advantage, be it financial or through faster connectivity, is to deny me my right for equal access to _all_ content." #SaveNetNeutrality 

Thought of the Day

See larger image ...

USA Today Predicts: No Future for Librarians or Communicators; We Predict: No Future for USA Today Predictions

[Update: Opps, after a little consideration, original authors decide "Libraries and Librarians Aren't About to Disappear"]

The library ed group ALISE* sent out a rather indignant response to a recent article in USA Today. The article's title was, "Careers: 8 Jobs That Won’t Exist in 2030" and it listed a number of professions whose days were counted. First on the list was "Librarian". Librarian, you might ask, why librarian? Well, because, according to the article, books are dead, and so are libraries.

But wait a minute, ALISE counters in its response, "librarians do more than simply check out books". Of course anyone who has stepped into a library in the past 10-20 years would know this.

But rather than rush to judgement based on this first point, it might be helpful to have a look at one or two of the other supposed dead-end careers. For example, last on the list is, "8. Social media manager". That's doomed as well? Why of course, the article responds cheerily: "who needs these experts when we’re all becoming experts?"

Okay, wait a second. We're all becoming experts? Nice to know but even if we ignore the technical side of things (and that's being really generous), there's still the social and communication parts. What about them? Has their evolution down through the ages ever given the impression that they'll someday somehow become the equivalent of child's play? Good news if true!

Since that doesn't seem likely, someone should tell the USA Today author that communication will always require skill, that it is too important to leave to just anyone who walks through the door, that it remains a difficult task, no matter what our level of technology, because either people don't know or don't wish to know and in a world with less than perfect agreement, we are about as likely to say bye-bye to our media managers as we are to our librarians. They both continue to perform essential tasks.
_____________
*Association for Library and Information Science Education (ALISE)

Bye-Bye WebDesign-L

Anyone who had anything to do (technically speaking) with the World Wide Web back in the early days would know Steve Champeon and the email list, WebDesign-L. Steve was the 'list-mom' and he managed a true center of communication for web designers and web developers in that period.

Well, Steve announced on the list that he had decided to shut the thing down. In the past few years it may not have been the hive of activity that it once was. People move on; times change; communication methods evolve. Still WebDesign-L played an absolutely crucial role in the development of the web, at least from a technical perspective.

Steve, thanks for all your support! It truly was of historical proportions.

Domain Suggestions from GoDaddy

Houston? Huh?

UPDATE: Needless to say, this post went up more than two weeks ago -- i.e. more than two weeks before the current tragedy. Coincidence, that's all.

90th Anniversary of Germania Broadcast - Thanks to All!

Monday, July 24th was the 90th anniversary of the Germania Broadcast (background). We celebrated this pioneering German-American radio show in typical 21st century fashion : namely through Facebook posts and Twitter feeds. Daddy would have been proud to know that his work spanning more than 40 years was recognized by such worthy groups as the Consulate General of Germany (hence the photo above), the Goethe Institute and the Chicago History Museum. Thank you to all!

90th Anniversary of 1st Foreign Language Radio Show in Chicago/USA

 

Just a reminder: July 24 marks the 90th anniversary of the Germania Broadcast, one of the first foreign language radio shows in the U.S. Starting in 1927, it was produced in Chicago by my father William L. Klein. The program ran for more than 40 years and was an integral part of Chicago cultural life (particularly German-American, naturally). More info here: http://www.germaniabroadcast.net/ 

Leading up to the event, I'll be posting on a number of topics including what kind of music and entertainment they actually played plus a look at all the amazing events they sponsored including concerts, festivals and even trips abroad: [link]

Finally, I'll be publishing the complete brochure which they put out in 1952 to celebrate the 25th Anniversary: [link]

Registration at ALA 2017

 Of course, I registered in advance! First day at the American Library Association's 2017 Conference.

TechWeek Reception at CapitalOne HQ

 Reception at the extremely nice HQ of CapitalOne.