Latest Information Industry News and Resources
Tennessee: Memphis Public Library and Information Center Seeking $2.9 Million in Funding
From the AP: The public library system in Memphis is hoping to secure $2.9 million to add employees and increase its collection. The Memphis Daily News reports the Memphis Public Library & Information Center cites the figures as part of its strategic plan. A study by the Friends of the … [Read More...]
Hervé Déry Named Interim Librarian and Archivist of Canada
From Canadian Heritage: The Honourable James Moore, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages, today announced that Hervé Déry will be the interim Librarian and Archivist of Canada until an appointment is made. “I am pleased that Mr. Déry has agreed to act as Librarian and … [Read More...]
Research Paper: “Investigating Deletion in Wikipedia”
The following full text research paper was made available today via the arXiv database. It was first published in January, 2013. Title Investigating Deletion in Wikipedia Author Bluma Gelly Polytechnic Institute of NYU Source arXiv Abstract Several hundred Wikipedia articles are deleted … [Read More...]
Hip, Creative, Cool! “NYC Librarian Uses ‘Tilda Swinton In A Box’ Method To Raise Awareness”
UPDATED May 25: Added Audio Report (Link Below) We love this! Kudos Kristy! From Gothamist: A librarian at the New York Public Library's Webster Library branch on the Upper East Side is taking the Tilda approach to raise awareness about NYPL budget cuts. She has placed herself on … [Read More...]
BBC Kills $148 Million Digital Archive Project
From the Press Association (via Yahoo News UK): The BBC has scrapped a multimillion-pound attempt to create an internal digital archive after director-general Tony Hall said the scheme had "wasted a huge amount of licence fee payers' money". The Digital Media Initiative (DMI) has cost the … [Read More...]
New White Paper: “Linking Structured Data”
The following white paper was posted today on the Microsoft Research publications database. Title Linking Structured Data Authors Michael Hausenblas, DERI Michael Kerrin, DERI Michael Pizzo, Microsoft Evelyne Viegas, Microsoft Research Neil Wilson, The British Library Source via Microsoft … [Read More...]
Library of Congress Publishes FY 2012 Annual Report and LC Fast Facts
The document is formally titled, Annual Report of the Librarian of Congress FY 2012. Direct to Document (92 pages; PDF) or Full Text Embedded Below FY 2012 LC Fast Facts Responded to more than 700,000 congressional reference requests and delivered to Congress more than 1 million research … [Read More...]
Library in a Shopping Mall: Learn About The Mall Library Connection in Vancouver, Washington
Vancouver, WA is a suburb of Portland, OR. From The Oregonian: Judging from the rate of circulation since the library reopened in March, other visitors like it, too. Patrons checked out a total of 18,484 items in April, compared to 23,715 in April of 2012, a sign that the small branch is quickly … [Read More...]
New Report: U.S. Broadband Availability June 2010 – June 2012
Here's a recently released "Broadband Brief" from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. From a Summary Blog Post: Since June 2010, broadband availability at all speed levels has increased and basic broadband service is nearly universal in urban areas. While there is … [Read More...]
Canadian Association of Research Libraries Sends Open Letter to Prime Minister Re: Librarian and Archivist of Canada
The open letter from the CARL (Canadian Association of Research Libraries) to Prime Minister Steven Harper asks that the government consult with the library and archival community when selecting a successor to Daniel Caron who resigned as the leader of Library and Archives Canada last week. From … [Read More...]
Reference: Data.gov Launches New Catalog and APIs
From the Data.gov Blog: Data.gov is launching two innovations today to mark both the anniversary of the Digital Government Strategy and the fourth anniversary of Data.gov. First is a comprehensive listing of the application programming interfaces (APIs) that were released from across the … [Read More...]
“EPUB for Archival Preservation: An Update”
The update appears in a new post by Johan van der Knijff (National Library of the Netherlands) on the Open Planets Foundation blog. From the Introduction: Last year (2012) the KB released a report on the suitability of the EPUB format for archival preservation. A substantial number … [Read More...]
UK Organization Publishes Research Into Public Library of the Future
The research comes from the Arts Council of England and is found in a report titled, The Library of the Future. From an Arts Council Summary: This research has found that public libraries are trusted spaces, open to all, in which people continue to explore and share the joys of reading, … [Read More...]
Reference: Fast Facts: NCES Releases The Condition of Education 2013
From the National Center for Education Statistics: The 42 indicators presented in The Condition of Education 2013 provide a progress report on education in America and include findings on the demographics of American schools, U.S. resources for schooling, and outcomes associated with … [Read More...]
Texas A&M And University Of Texas Systems To Open Joint Library Storage Facility Tomorrow
From Texas A&M University: The Texas A&M University System and The University of Texas System will celebrate the opening Friday (May 24) of their Joint Library Facility at Texas A&M University’s Riverside Campus. The 18,000-square-foot library facility represents an unprecedented collaboration … [Read More...]
Open Access Legislation Passes Illinois Senate and House, Awaits Governors Signature
The "Open Access to Research Articles Act" (SB 1900) recently passed both houses of the Illinois General Assembly. From an Illinois Senate Democrats News Release: Legislation State Senator Daniel Biss (D-Evanston) [where Northwestern U. is located] sponsored to work toward making state … [Read More...]
U.S. Department of State Historian Releases API for Online Ebook Catalog
Since March, 2012, the Office of the Historian at the U.S. Dept. of State has been releasing digitized volumes of the Foreign Relations of the United States series and making them available online. 103 volumes are currently online (free) and available in Mobi and EPUB formats. More volumes will … [Read More...]
FTRF (Freedom to Read Foundation) Announces Seven Recipients of 2013 Banned Books Week Event Grants
From the Freedom To Read Foundation: The Freedom to Read Foundation (FTRF), via its Judith F.Krug Memorial Fund, has announced seven $1,000 grants to libraries, schools and community organizations in support of Banned Books Week events. Banned Books Week, which will take place Sept. 22–30, 2013, … [Read More...]
Scholarly Publishing: Computers & Graphics Journal Includes First Executable Papers Published Online on Science Direct
From Elsevier: Computers & Graphics for the first time has published executable papers in its special issue on 3D Object Retrieval within the online article framework on ScienceDirect. An executable paper combines the narrative of a traditional scholarly paper with embedded data sets and … [Read More...]
Reference: UK’s Culture Grid Search Now Also Provides Access to Europeana Material
From Collections Link: As part of Collection Trust’s mission to give everyone greater access to culture, arts and heritage from across the globe, whilst promoting UK collections internationally, over 30 million items from 1000’s of UK and European museums, galleries, libraries and archives can … [Read More...]
