After Reference, Take a Dip!

 

Things to do immediately after your library shift (chat reference in my case): Hit the beach!

Current Cites for July 2020 (Final)

 

Current Cites for July 2020 is out! You can find the issue here...

The issue is noteworthy for a couple of reasons: first that well-known library star Roy Tennant was ending his decade-long record as editor. My contribution was the featuring of two articles, one a snapshot of life as librarians in this age of COVID-19 and the other an interesting review of information literacy from the 1970s till now.

In addition, I'll be joining Roy in concluding my decade-long contribution. More and more my interests and activities are in library reference. Less tech and more public service -- that's the ticket! So bye-bye Current Cites! It's been a good -- very good -- run!

Darn! Binny's Closed! ZZZ

Binny's Closed! Now what?

Update (6/3/2020): "Binny’s Pledges to Reopen 11 Damaged Stores" (Sun-Times)

Update (6/11/2020): Yup, got drinks for the weekend!

Today's Hike

Some beautiful shots from today's hike downtown to State & Roosevelt. (Actually the last one was when I got back home -- resting up & munching on a sandwich).

Tough Times for Baby Boomers

I have a confession to make: I'm what you call a 'baby-boomer'. That's what you are if you were born between the end of WWII and 1964. Of course there are different categories -- I personally am what's called a 'late boomer' but apparently assumptions are made for all of us. That said, WP has an interesting (and I would say distressing) piece titled "Millions of Baby Boomers are Getting Caught in the Country’s Broken Retirement System" (link).

Basically it relates problems that -- what I would call 'early' -- boomers are having surviving financially. The 401k accounts haven't worked out. People are losing their jobs and are being forced to cash out on their savings, etc. They’re taking Social Security early resultIng in far lower monthly payments. The key take-away is that things are hardly sugar-coated and if anything, they don't look like they'll be getting any better.

The Value of Library Reference : You Decide

 

It’s 8:30pm on a Tuesday evening. Student contacts Reference Desk saying he/she is looking for 'research' articles on effects of poverty on success in education. Instructor wants list of articles from student by class tomorrow.

Student Worker Solution:

1. Sends link to Research Guide for Education
2. Says 'good evening'.

Reference Librarian Solution:

1. Explains that there are several databases -- some focused on education, some focused on social science
2. Steps through how to access these databases by pointing to library’s home page and link to 'Research Guides' -- where databases are arranged by subject
3. In background does quickie search through standard databases, sizing up the lay of the land and then recommends to student strategies/pathways that appear most promising
4. And oh yeah: Explains how to identify ‘research’ articles through a number of characteristics
5. Says ‘good evening’.

Observation : Both responses did in fact answer the student’s question. So what’s the diff?

Today's Story : Burger on Bench

 
Out on the green with a number from 5 Guys.

Our Current Predicament (Academic Library Edition)

Digitization in an Emergency: Fair Use/Fair Dealing and How Libraries Are Adapting to the Pandemic (Ryan Clough, ARL Blog):

“Like every other major institution operating during the coronavirus pandemic, research libraries are confronting sudden and radical shifts in their daily realities. Foremost among these challenges is the near-total loss of access to paper books and other physical library holdings. As of today, nearly every ARL member in the United States and Canada has closed its brick-and-mortar facilities and discontinued or severely limited access to print collections.... This emergency is truly unprecedented in modern times, even during times of war.”

More here...

Alas No ALA 2020

 

The news came out on Tuesday (3/24/2020): No ALA in Chicago this year :-(

Already for a couple of days, I was wondering if maybe the organizers were taking a chance: you know, maybe things would clear up by June. Apparently not. Below is the official announcement sent to members already registered for the event. There's always next year, I guess.

Important Update for ALA Annual Conference Attendees

The American Library Association has made the difficult decision to cancel the Annual Conference & Exhibition scheduled for June 25-30, 2020, in Chicago.

We wanted you to be among the first to hear the news. We are grateful to you for registering for the conference and know that you share in our disappointment that we will not be meeting this summer.

We will be in touch in the coming days and weeks to discuss your registration and provide information about potential alternative engagement opportunities.
Thank you for your continued support of ALA and we ask that you be patient with us as we work through this unprecedented situation.

Home Rule

We got the notice last week that the university (library included) would shut down. Students had to move out of dorms. Instructors had to reconfigure their classes -- not just for next quarter (Spring 2020) but for finals happening that very week. For the foreseeable future, we'll be handling library questions from home using email and IM (instant message). At the moment it's all about what to do with borrowed materials and when will the library reopen.

Schools across the country (not to mention world) are experiencing the same. I have absolutely the greatest sympathy for both our students and faculty. This is something none of us will ever forget.

Current Cites for Feb. 2020

 

Current Cites for Feb 2020 is out! You can find the issue here...

Wrote about an interesting study that looked at the characteristics of transfer students at the undergrad level. Rang a bell.

Snack time at the RefDesk

 

People at work were kind enough to bring in some munchies.

ALA Annual 2020 in Chicago

 

Yahoo! The ALA Annual Conference is coming back to Chicago! Me? I'm already registered.

Update (3/25/2020): Bummer, ALA Conference for 2020 cancelled! More here...

#SaveDotOrg

 

One way to demolish the Internet is to take over its address names.

Electronic Frontier Foundation:

"This month it was suddenly announced that the nonprofit that owns the .ORG domain registry was planning to sell it to a private equity firm, Ethos Capital. This could impact the millions of individuals and organizations that have a .ORG website, subjecting them to potential censorship and leaving the door open for price increases on domain registration and renewals."

More here and here.

Year-end & Decade-end Achievements

 
I managed to finish off both these guys!

Interview with WGN-TV

Tuesday, Nov. 5th, 2019 was an important day -- or rather important evening. It was when WGN-TV broadcast the interview with me [link here] produced by the excellent reporter, Erik Runge. The actual interview took place a few days earlier at the DePaul Library.

The topic was my experience in West Berlin both before and after the Wall came down. The segment also included other witnesses both here and in Berlin. The fact that the reporter included so many other photos of me -- from my days in Paris to a shot of me in lederhosen at 4 years old holding on to Mayor Daley -- made the whole thing seem so much like a personal biography.

That said, I truly appreciate how the reporter let me have the last word. For so long the east side of Berlin was a symbol of oppression while the west side observed tolerance and liberty. It truly was a triumph of democracy -- something I shall never forget.

Update: Erik Runge and the good people at WGN-TV aired a follow-up segment on Thursday evening. The title was, "Lessons from the Fall of the Berlin Wall Still Ring True, 30 Years Later" [link here]. As the title suggests, the piece looks at the lessons from this period together with what people born afterwards think about it. My own comment which they include was to agree that lessons were drawn but that people can forget them -- if only (one hopes) temporarily.

Current Cites for Sept. 2019

 Current Cites for Sept. 2019 is out! You can find the issue here...

Usability studies on the effectiveness of library research guides are popping up all over the place. The one I recommended appeared in the latest issue of Information Technology and Libraries. Naturally in the meantime another example popped up -- this one in the latest issue of Journal of Web Librarianship. Hot topic!

First Saturday of the New School Year 2019

1st Saturday of the school year with colleague Jim from the West Desk. Note: folder was carrying all the articles I've been going through for a research project.

Thinking About Customer Service

Interesting discussion regarding 'customer service principles' on the ALA Members Listserv. A number of responses include policy guides -- one with the promising title 'Get to Yes'; there are also a few personal lists, as well as this funny video clip.

Current Cites for Aug. 2019

 Current Cites for Aug. 2019 is out! You can find the issue here...

Being the beginning of the academic year, I thought it'd be appropriate to write about an article on the future of academic libraries.