The Library Director

The Hunt for New Ideas, part 2: Revenge of the New Idea

2012-01-25T13:37:00.001-06:00

Library stacks. Library shelving. You can picture in your mind exactly what I'm talking about without me actually going out there and finding an image, right? It hardly seems like something that would be subject to a "new idea" does it? The humble book shelf and book stack has remained largely unchanged in public libraries for 150-odd years. Here's what the stacks look like in the Hutchinson Public Library:

Storage, pure and simple. What's hard to see here is how they are constructed. Each section has a rectangular frame in the middle from which the shelves hang. Like this:

This is not a bad way to do it. It holds the shelves very securely, allows for long rows to be linked together, and is very sturdy. However, one is limited in configuration because most of these systems don't work very well with different height frames hooked together - basically you can put together long lines of, for example, 7' high shelf stacks.

So along comes a company called Paragon with a new way of looking at library shelving. At least it's new to me. And I've been looking. The shelving product is called Intuitive-IC and they allow a library to do one thing differently - mix up and combine shelf heights, work surfaces, and seating within the row of shelving. Here's a picture:

If you look closely, you can see that the cantilever supports that hold up the shelves go from the front and back edges toward the middle of the shelves. This allows all different heights of shelves to be put together in a row. They have a short little YouTube video that shows some of the possibilities.

I think this might be a good choice for our art collection on the second floor since we need to replace the shelving there. We need to be able to stack higher, but want the option of some low tops on which to set heavy books. It is a collection that lends itself to browsing and sometimes it is easier to look through a few right there in the stacks before deciding which ones to check out.

As I go through the stack of papers and brochures I picked up at ALA Midwinter, I continue to find more and more good ideas and nifty new ways of looking at the same old library things!

The Hunt for New Ideas

2012-01-23T16:37:00.002-06:00

Mediasurfer iPad self-check

Laptop self-check

I went to the ALA Midwinter meeting Exhibits Hall in Dallas over the weekend with a long wish list. Big meetings such as that are great for networking and learning new things, but they are also GREAT for finding out about how to meet patron needs through new products and services.

Are there really any new ideas out there? Has everything already been done? Maybe. But some people are taking ideas and running with them in pretty cool ways. Take the idea of checking out laptops or other devices to library patrons. HPL has checked out laptops for 3 years now. They are used in-house only and circulate from the adult circulation desk. But what if you could automate this process? Sort of a Redbox for electronics? Two companies have done just that - Mediasurfer and LaptopsAnytime. The Mediasurfer kiosk dispenses tablets (iPads, specifically) only, while the LaptopsAnytime device can be customized to dispense laptops and netbooks.

Imagine being able to just walk up to the machine, scan your card, and go sit down and start computing with a clean, fully-charged device. When it comes to return time, no waiting in lines, no fuss, just put the device back in whichever empty slot is available.

I'm looking for new ways to serve our patrons as we work to re-imagine the library technology center. Another HUGE time drain we struggle with here at HPL is assigning public computers and dealing with printing. I spent a lot of time looking for solutions there and I think I found at least one good option. Something that will allow us to provide wireless printing, print control and login/registration on public computers. This will help us to free up key staff members who can then share their expertise and help patrons solve their technology problems.

It is somewhat hard to describe, but the kernel at the core of our re-imagining is not to provide new technology, but to help people interface with the library and its resources. As I sift through the information I gathered at ALA, I will share more and continue to write about where we're headed with technology and which new/old ideas we are going to implement.

The Revolution is Here!

2012-01-12T09:59:00.000-06:00

A colleague who happens also to be a board member here at HPL forwarded this article from the journal American Libraries. It is definitely worth a read. Here's why I think it is relevant to us here in lil' ol' Hutchinson: We are looking inward and examining our mission and role in the community right now. The gist of the article is that essentially, the revolution in libraries is not just one of adapting to new digital formats, it is one of challenges to the very core of our (the public library world) identity and mission.

According to the article, major shifts in areas libraries once controlled are taking place. Here are the major challenges: Shifts in collection development - publishers are wresting this away from librarians by refusing to offer econtent to libraries; Access - license agreements dictate length of checkout and even number of checkouts before an item must be "discarded"; Preservation - this is a scary one because no one really "collects" content that isn't in an analog (paper) format because no one "owns" the items in a digital world; and finally, Privacy - librarians have long been the guardians of patron's privacy and in the digital realm that is simply no longer the case.

So what is a poor, meek librarian to do? First off, fight to shed the poor, meek stereotype. I think ALA would do well to hire a Madison Avenue ad agency and change our collective image. Afterall, image is everything and perception is reality.

The article linked earlier finishes up though with a great suggestion: That libraries should embrace the core of a report by Roger Levien written in June 2011 for ALA’s Office for Information Technology Policy Confronting the Future: Strategic Visions for 21^st-Century Public Libraries (PDF file). The core idea is this:

The Six Ps

People. Librarians provide unbiased services and advice based on expertise and professional norms.
Place. Libraries are physical spaces conducive to individual or group contemplative work.
Price. Library services are generally provided at no charge to the user, and access is available regardless of individual ability to pay.
Principles. Library services are provided under the rubric of intellectual freedom, privacy, and trust.
Pride. An excellent library is an indicator of a community with quality public services and high quality of life.
Package. Libraries provide successful integration of information services across disparate functions.

This seems like a great starting place for a library's statement of core principles, don't you think? I still believe that libraries can save for everyone our embattled national ideals. Libraries are unique places offering some of the most cost-effective services a government can fund (hint, hint Kansas Legislature) and librarians, at least here in Hutchinson Kansas, are willing to adapt. But we can't do it alone, we need the support of our elected leaders and the input of our most precious resource - the communities we serve. So how about it Hutchinson - what service would be the most helpful / cool / cost-effective for you?

2012 - Starting off with an end?

2012-01-11T11:12:00.000-06:00

In more ways than one, unfortunately. The less happy "end" is that our coffee bar is once again without a proprietor. Rita's Roast has been forced to close after a series of unfortunate events beset our contractor. We are going to spend some time assessing the value of offering the service to our patrons versus the difficulty in keeping such an operation going. What are your thoughts?

Coffee, tea, or...?

The positive "end" is that the library has launched an entire series of programs aimed at one thing - preparing for the unexpected. The "Are you prepared...?" series has started off with great success. Coming up are a series of weather and driving preparedness lunch-and-learn sessions.

Also, our newest book discussion group will meet for the first time at 7pm on February 2nd. Our first book is One Second After, by William Forstchen. I am really a novice at book discussion groups, but I am excited to be able to help get this one off the ground! Apocalyptic fiction is our focus (at least for the first two books) and we are planning on reading a total of 6 books this year. Will they be the final 6 books I read? I guess we'll have to wait and see if the world really does end at the end of this meso-american long count calendar cycle!

I am looking forward to more positives than negatives in 2012. That may sound like I am setting my sights low, but I'm not, really. The challenges confronting libraries are many and dauntingly complicated in some cases. However, Hutchinson is lucky to have a public library staffed with smart, savvy people and I have every confidence that they will rise to the challenges and find innovative, useful ways to overcome them. Come in and try our programs, ask about our services, and most importantly: Give us feedback about what you would like from your public library!

Are you prepared... for the END?

2012-01-06T08:42:00.000-06:00

The craziness of the holiday season has begun to ebb and the reality of the new year has set in. Our last year if you believe some folks! While I'm more inclined to believe these folks, it hasn't stopped us here at HPL from creating a bunch of fun programs to get you prepared. You know, "just in case". We've already had one successful program, "Are you prepared...for Winter Driving?" put on in collaboration with the nice folks at Midwest Superstore's service department. Coming up are 2 lunch and learn programs:

January 18 - Home fire safety (how to safely heat your home) presenter L.D. Peevyhouse
January 25 - Winter storm preparedness with presenter Bill Guy
February 1 - Gary Warner - Kansas Highway Patrol safe winter driving

All the lunch and learn programs will be from 12:10 to 12:50 to give you time to get back and forth from work! We will have many more programs to follow on a variety of topics. Topics we are working on include: Getting your affairs in order (estate planning); Safe summer travel; and Gardening and preserving.

You can find more details about these programs on the library's calender here.

Used by permission of artist Dan Piraro

Book Sales Abound

2011-12-13T14:46:00.000-06:00

I was reading an article just now about surprisingly strong book sales around the country this holiday season. The NY Times article quotes several book sellers expressing the wish that both print and ebook formats for books could coexist. Personally, I think that they can, but only time will tell at this point.

Here at HPL we have 2 sales in December. One, a Scholastic Book Fair which has just ended netted over $1,000 in credit with Scholastic for books for the Children's Department! A second sale, which continues until December 23, is a special in-store sale in the Freindshop. The Friends have 2 entire walls of their store at half-price. Quite a bargain especially if you have a particularly voracious reader to buy for this year.

Success! Are You Prepared...for winter driving?

2011-12-12T11:55:00.000-06:00

Saturday morning marked our first official "Are You Prepared...?" program with a winter preparedness car check provided by Midwest Superstore's service department. Special thanks go to Clint and his crew from Midwest's service department for providing a pleasant, friendly and FREE experience for the patrons who signed up for the program.

Here's what happened: We registered participants ahead of time for 12 time slots. Patrons arrived in our NW parking area and checked in inside our garage area. The folks from Midwest pulled the cars in by turns and provided the owner with a free visual inspection of the vehicle that included airing up the tires, wiper fluid fill and a check of filters, tire tread, and battery voltage. The Midwest staff then explained their findings to the vehicle owners with recommendations regarding any issues they might want to address before winter arrives full-force.

We will continue our series of "Are You Prepared...for the END? programs after the Christmas/New Year's holidays. The programs are intended to be practical and fun and making light-hearted use of the fact that 2012 marks the end of the Meso-american long count calendar. Look for upcoming programs on winter safety and preparedness, travel, gardening, financial and legal preparedness and more throughout 2012!

Wow! We have a lot of junk in our garage!

Both stalls filled!

Who is that balding guy on the right?


Voltage test

The End of a State-wide Era

2011-12-05T15:17:00.001-06:00

Today marks the end of the State of Kansas contract with the company OverDrive that supplied library patrons state-wide with access to downloadable eAudio and eBooks. This change has only slightly affected us here at HPL since we have continued our own separate relationship with OverDrive (one that has existed since before the state-wide consortium).

The State Library is starting up a new service called Kansas EZ Library. Right now patrons are only able to access eAudio provided by the State's new contractor, Recorded Books and their One-Click Digital service. I hope that HPL patrons will try this new service and give us their thoughts about its value compared to OverDrive. We have looked hard at alternatives to OverDrive and have yet to find one that we felt would serve our patrons best. I am anxious for the State's eBook service to start later this winter. The State will be using 3M's Cloud Library to loan eBooks to Kansas Library Card holders, which includes HPL patrons. Again, once this service starts up, I hope to hear from our patrons regarding what the service is like from their perspective. For our part, we will be evaluating both services. Our process will continue to be driven by what is best for our patrons.

Website change

2011-11-27T14:24:00.000-06:00

I admit that I am an inveterate tinkerer. I have been working on creating a set of links for our patrons to sites that offer free ebooks for download. Further, I have been looking at these sites and trying them out beforehand to see if they are easy to use and offer a good selection. The list will likely grow over time.

In fact, thanks to the work our IT head, we have changed the main menu on our website to create a space for further future expansion into ebooks and more. Here's what we've changed (inside the big red circle):

The heading that used to say "Audiobooks" is now the more general "Digital". We will add links here to new state-wide resources as well as resources unique to the Hutchinson Public Library and it's patrons.

This is where you will find the link to the free ebook resources. Just follow the "eBooks" link and it will lead you to this page:

I have divided the resources into two sometimes-overlapping categories. There are sites that contain mainly public domain books and sites that provide free eBooks. "Public domain" and "free" are not interchangeable terms in that most of the "free" titles found on sites listed on this new page are providing eBooks that are still under copyright, they just aren't charging you any money to download them.

The public domain books are no longer under copyright and so are free in terms of cost AND in terms of copyright limitations.

The list will undoubtedly change and expand as we move forward. The DIGITAL section of the website will expand too as we add more resources, both local and otherwise, to enhance our physical collection.

Science Fiction Book Discussion

2011-11-25T08:53:00.001-06:00

A new part of our programming for 2012 will be attempting to form a science fiction book discussion group. We've had a long-standing mystery group, The Mystery Mavens, and we thought the time was right to expand our repertoire.

In order to fit in with our end-of-the-world "Are You Prepared..." theme for 2012, two of us here with an interest in SF picked the first two titles for consideration:

The first book is Forstchen's One Second After which explores the after effects of an EMP caused by a nuclear weapon. We will meet on Feb Here's Booklist's review:

In a Norman Rockwell town in North Carolina, where residents rarely lock homes, retired army colonel John Matherson teaches college, raises two daughters, and grieves the loss of his wife to cancer. When phones die and cars inexplicably stall, Grandma’s pre-computerized Edsel takes readers to a stunning scene on the car-littered interstate, on which 500 stranded strangers, some with guns, awaken John’s New Jersey street-smart instincts to get the family home and load the shotgun. Next morning, some townspeople realize that an electromagnetic pulse weapon has destroyed America’s power grid, and they proceed to set survival priorities. John’s list includes insulin for his type-one diabetic 12-year-old, candy bars, and sacks of ice. Deaths start with heart attacks and eventually escalate alarmingly. Food becomes scarce, and societal breakdown proceeds with inevitable violence; towns burn, and ex-servicemen recall “Korea in ’51” as military action by unlikely people becomes the norm in Forstchen’s sad, riveting cautionary tale, the premise of which Newt Gingrich’s foreword says is completely possible. --Whitney Scott --This text refers to the hardcover edition.

Our second book is the classic A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter Miller which begins in a post-apocalyptic future 600 years after a nuclear holocaust:

Written at a time when the Fear of the Bomb was at full steam, the Hugo-winning A Canticle for Leibowitz stands head and shoulders above virtually every other post-apocalypse SF novel of its day, and it may be the most important SF novel ever written. It beggars the imagination to think that this was Miller's only novel; though in 1997, the year after Miller's death, a sequel titled Saint Leibowitz and the Wild Horse Woman was finished out by Terry Bisson and released. Contemplative, elegiac, and gut-wrenching in its best moments, the story allows Miller to view the human race through a glass darkly. Will our species ever learn from its mistakes and not repeat them? Miller hopes so, though he doesn't exactly appear to think so. This book is a lament for humanity.

Our plan is to work through 6 books in 2012. We'll start as soon as possible with our first meeting scheduled for February 2nd. After that, we'll meet bi-monthly. We have the first two books ready, but we'll decide as a group the remaining four books to read. Hopefully, we can then carry the group on through subsequent years on more-or-less the same quantity of books...unless the long count calendar cycle that ends in 2012 really IS the end.

Snapshot Day Success!

2011-11-17T16:36:00.001-06:00

We had a great day this past Tuesday finding out the "who, what, when, and how" of the patrons who frequent our library. HPL participated in this project which is sponsored by the Kansas State Library, the Kansas Library Association, and the Kansas Association of School Libraries.

The goal is to show just how important libraries are to their communities. Sometimes, people take institutions such public libraries for granted, assuming that they will always be there. However, funding for many libraries is being reduced in ways that will threaten their very existence. It might be possible to absorb a reduction in State funding for a year, or one at the local level, or to do without a federal grant for one round. But many of the reductions being made to library budgets will last longer and are combined in ways that will overwhelm already drastically-reduced operating budgets. So, the idea of showing what libraries do for their communities in just one day out of the year, Snapshot Day was born.

Here's HPL's snapshot:

879 people came through the doors
204 questions were answered. Of the questions recorded at the Reference Desk, 54% were 0-4 mins (ready reference-type) and 46% were 5-15+ mins (reference)
1,278 circulation transactions were made
150+ computer lab users came in
272 people filled out the questionnaire

From the questionnaire group, a sampling of answer totals:

136 checked out items,
44 were job hunting,
84 used research tools/services,
27 attended meetings,
26 were here for tutoring/homework,
150 for computer use,
23 for wireless use,
37 for online library resources,
17 to get a library card.

That's a day in the life of a public library. We have some pictures on the library's Facebook page.

All-in-all, I am amazed at all the good things that get done in just one day at a library. The one thing that isn't mentioned here though, or that is hard to see through the numbers, is that all that good is done by a wonderful and hard-working group of people. I am extremely thankful we have such a great staff here at HPL and if you use this library, you should be too! Please give them a "thank you" next time you get the chance!

KGI blog strikes again!

2011-11-10T15:31:00.001-06:00

The great librarians at the Kansas Government Information blog have an excellent post about the changes being proposed in Kansas for Medicaid. It is, as usual, well worth a look. This is a major consideration for the state going into the future. I've said it before and I'll say it again - the KGI blog is an excellent tool. Find out what's happening in State government!

Interesting Rumor...

2011-11-08T13:33:00.000-06:00

...or not.

I heard a new rumor today, that the Hutchinson Public Library is closing. First off, I want to say that this rumor is FALSE! We've been here for 110 years and Melville Dewey willing, we will be here in another 110 years.

Second, I wonder if this has anything to do with our "Are you Prepared...?" program series for 2012? It's going to be fun, and we're taking a light-hearted approach to the impending end of the "Mayan Long Count" calendar. Of course, it never hurts to be prepared and we will have a variety of lunch-n-learn type activities and much more to help you get ready for what comes next.

Amazon library?

2011-11-03T13:51:00.001-05:00

In another "re-invent the wheel for fun and profit" move, Amazon has launched a new initiative lending books to Kindle users. Apparently, Amazon Prime customers can "borrow" one book per month from Amazon's vast sources. There are a couple of catches with this plan though:

The Kindle owner must be an Amazon Prime member.
The Kindle owner must be just that - an owner of a physical Kindle device. The loan service will not work with the Kindle app.

Is this a good deal? I suppose it depends. If you already have a Kindle and you want to shell out the annual $79 for Amazon Prime membership too, then yes. Amazon Prime has all sorts of other advantages with shipping, etc. However, it won't be long before public libraries everywhere have large collections of ebooks for patrons to borrow on practically any device they want, including Kindle and Kindle apps devices for free and at a higher rate than one per month.

The power of public libraries

2011-10-31T08:00:00.000-05:00

BOO!

In a statement to Congress Danielle Milam, who is the Development Director for the LasVegas-Clark County Library District, very clearly articulated the value of public libraries to their communities. Nevada as a whole and the Las Vegas metro area have been among the hardest hit areas after the 2009 recession. Huge unemployment rates and a massive drop in tax revenue (she states a 30% reduction) cause the dual problems of an extremely tight budget and soaring use of the public library.

How did they help? By doing what libraries have done all over the country with perhaps more effectiveness than any other public organization designed to help in an economic crisis - they provided information, entertainment, and that VITAL resource in the digital age, an Internet connection.

The LV-CC Library District's usage statistics are staggering. You can read them in the link to her statement above, but two of her statements really stuck out for me:

Today’s public libraries are models for digital skill diffusion and workforce development. Every day over 300,000 Americans get job-seeking help in public libraries. The number of libraries with free public WiFi outnumbers and augments the access provided by private enterprises, like Starbucks.

We are reducing the digital divide. Our Library District is one of 5,400 libraries nationally that offer free technology classes for those who need to retool quickly with new digital skills.

The Hutchinson Public Library is one of those many public libraries offering the only Internet link many people have. The LV-CC Library District has done an exemplary job in helping its constituents get back to work. Setting a standard that we and many other libraries should strive toward. But this statement is what our legislators, not only in Washington, but in Kansas should be looking at:

Today’s situation is urgent. It is time to consider new workforce development models that are scalable to the high levels of unemployment, that can quickly mobilize resources to those in need, where they are, fueled by their inspirations and inquiries.

The motto of many libraries today is “Start Here. Go Anywhere.” It reflects the free choice way people use library resources in times of transitions. We urge you to include public library roles and resources in the design of strategies to get many people to work, quickly, with relevant and current workforce skills.

Libraries help people. Provide the resources and a public library can do amazing work. Just like Ms. Milam says, public libraries are already built, staffed, and connected, ready to partner with their communities and get their economies growing again

KGI blog finds you a job

2011-10-28T15:51:00.002-05:00

OK, so they didn't actually find you a job, but today's post is chock-full of great places to look for job training, re-training and assistance sources to help you if you are out of work. KGI blog entries are always packed with useful information. I have recommended it before, but I'll risk repeating myself - follow it for a while to give it a try.

[steps up on soapbox]
The KGI blog is another one of those great tools created by librarians. Concise, full of useful information, and worth every penny of the tax dollars expended on it. The old "penny wise, pound foolish" chestnut applies to the situation school, public, and indeed any library finds itself in these days. As political leaders scramble to close enormous gaps in budgets, we librarians have been caught flat-footed at times in justifying our existences. Excellent tools like the KGI blog are exactly the kinds of things librarians can create for you - the taxpayer. We all need to remember to help our political leaders make wise decisions when times are tough. Librarians and libraries are worth the expense.
[steps down from soapbox]

eBook workshops

2011-10-25T16:27:00.001-05:00

I spent the better part of my day yesterday in Derby Kansas at the lovely new Derby Public Library. The reason for this was the semi-annual meeting of our regional library system, SCKLS. Also, because SCKLS provided two great programs following the business meeting.

The first was a presentation by Kevin Honeycutt, a guy as passionate about education as you would want every one of your child's teachers to be. Really great stuff, and I highly recommend his free tools page - there is enough there to run your entire organization on free/shareware!

The afternoon was taken up by demos of ereaders of all sorts presented by SCKLS staff. I think we learned a couple of tricks and answers to at least one key question that had been preventing us from circulating eReaders.

So, COMING SOON - an experiment with ebooks and filling holds for high-demand items!

Kansas and ebooks

2011-10-17T12:06:00.002-05:00

[UPDATE added below]

There was a nice editorial in the Hutchinson News the other day about ebooks in libraries. Specifically, the travails of the State Library of Kansas and their struggle with the digital media vendor OverDrive.

Here is an article that sums up the whole situation quite nicely. That article summarizes the Kansas vs. OverDrive fight in a bit more detail and provides more information about what's coming. Here at HPL, we have had our own separate contract with OverDrive for many, many years. We signed on with them originally to provide downloadable audiobooks and we have amassed quite a "collection". As we look for a more permanent, more elegant, and hopefully more economical method of collecting and distributing ebooks, we will, in the meantime add some ebook titles to our OverDrive collection. Right now, the collection is rather tiny.

I think there will be other solutions, but as the "Librarian in Black" says, (and I paraphrase) the licensing (rather than purchase) of digital material destroys the cultural role of libraries in their communities. With a license model, no longer will libraries preserve the cultural heritage of civilization.

[UPDATE] It would appear that in the planned statewide 3M Cloud Library it will be possible to integrate a local library's catalog with the statewide ebook library. This would mean that patrons would use his/her local library card (rather than the Kansas Library Card) to access the state ebook collection. It looks like it might be a bit pricey, but it would definitely give us some statistical feedback regarding usage of the service by HPL patrons.

Marilyn June Coffey visit a success!

2011-10-14T15:41:00.000-05:00

Thank you to everyone who came to the author visit last evening! There were scores of people in attendance and plenty of good feedback about the program. Ms. Coffey is currently touring in the area in support of her book. Our Friends of the Library group has always been very supportive in helping us to bring authors to Hutchinson.

So, now who would you like to see here in Hutchinson?

Friends of the Library

2011-10-12T11:14:00.001-05:00

HPL has been blessed with a wonderful and strong Friends of the Library group. They have worked tirelessly for many years with one goal in mind - to get books into the hands of people. And they have been incredibly successful! They do this by selling donated books from their shop in the library. Those $0.10 and $0.25 books have amounted to enough money to help us expand our collections, bring authors here from far-away places, make the summer reading program a success for children, and even build spaces such as this in our library:

These are all things that would not have happened without donated books. If you have a stack of paperbacks you've read and no longer want, bring them in. That blockbuster thriller you read once and is now gathering dust - bring it too! Our Friends of the Library will take them and return the fruits to us all in the form of a better library.

Library as "Technology Center"

2011-10-10T14:45:00.000-05:00

I have been preoccupied with ebooks of late as I look back over the postings here. But that isn't all that we are working on here at HPL. As a child of the Cold War era, a regular theme for me when thinking about modern library service is "proliferation". Proliferation of formats, proliferation of technology, and proliferation of confusion and need for training in both areas. Not only do the library staff need constant updates to skills and knowledge, but patrons come in with a huge variety of questions about technology. How are we going to deal with the enormous variety of new "things"? How will we as a public library remain relevant and not only relevant, but maybe even become indispensable?

Right now we do a ... fair job. Our problem is that since the situation arose incrementally, it was addressed incrementally. 'Incremental" in this case means "haphazard". So now we have one department checking out laptops, another dealing with public computers, another dealing with faxes and copies, and everyone dealing in their own fashion with tech gadget questions. The result is that from the patron's side, one gets hit-or-miss service. This is no one's fault, it is just how it has evolved.

I think one way that we can overcome this is that we could become not just an information place, but a technology center. If you Google "library technology center" you get results from library websites talking mostly about public-use computers. The computers you use at the library to check your email, your Facebook, or to play games or even sometimes do some research. But that's not the only function needed. In fact, it's probably not even the most important function needed any more, though it remains essential.

This is what "Technology Center" is to most libraries.

What is needed, I think, is a one-stop place where a patron can come and get any library-oriented tech-related issue addressed. The whole gamut from faxing a document to downloading an ebook; from searching and applying for a job to whiling away an hour or two on a flash game.

The concept is much broader than just a "computer lab". It would be a place in the library where the services and "things" the library offers could be matched with the patron needs or with the "things" owned by the patrons who come here seeking whatever it is they seek.

It would be a place staffed with people expert in the use of electronic library services. Not quite a public "help desk", but close. Not a place to have your equipment repaired, rather a place to get answers for technical questions regarding your favorite technology tools as they relate to what the library offers, be it as simple as WiFi or as in-depth as a specialized research database.

Can it be done? I see no reason why not. Now is the time to plan. We have the tools scattered all about. We have the people and we have the need.

eBook Puzzle

2011-09-29T15:11:00.000-05:00

After listening in on another rah-rah session about 3M's Cloud Library, I'm beginning to wonder if there isn't an even better solution out there. Don't get me wrong - I think 3M has a great plan and idea, I'm just not sure that they aren't going to be a stepping stone to other things in the world of ebooks. I am tired of hearing about it rather than being able to at least see how it works in real life.

As my colleagues pointed out at the webinar I attended, there is not so much a lack of content out there (ebooks) but a lack of platforms to distribute the content. After all, public libraries have been circulating content in the form of paper, tape, vinyl, polycarbonate disks, canvas, cardboard, downloadable files, etc. for over 100 years. In all forms save the last, we've been able to devise systems on our own. With electronic files, librarians are largely held back by lack of computer programming degrees. It's hard to devise a system if you don't have the expertise to develop a robust, flexible tool.

The more I think about it though, something else that was mentioned after the webinar is really puzzling. Why haven't the companies that provide libraries with automated circulation systems jumped into the ebook arena? They have already created highly sophisticated systems that check in and out materials, keep inventory, track users and the material they have out, track purchasing and receiving, and a myriad other tasks. Why can't a library purchase an ebook, store it on a server somewhere, and circulate it through these sophisticated systems? In fact, every third party ebook lending system I've seen uses the library's automation system to authenticate users of the ebook borrowing system.

Why is this thing so hard to grapple with?

There are smart people out there in the library world and in the library automation world. While I've largely given up on my flying-car-that-folds-into-a-briefcase, I want to know: Where is my automated library system that can circulate ALL my library's materials? (I'm looking at you, Polaris.)

Inscrutable Amazon

2011-09-22T14:07:00.000-05:00

OK, maybe they aren't impossible to understand, but they do seem to be sending out a number of contradictory messages these days about Kindle and ebooks. We all know that Amazon has a proprietary format for ebooks, making a Kindle or Kindle reader the only way to access material sold by them. We know that they only allow a very limited sharing of Kindle books between readers.

Then, they struck a deal with OverDrive, a library ematerials lending service to allow Kindle users to download and borrow books through the service. There seems to be, to put it delicately, "a number" of steps to actually get the book loaded on to your Kindle using OverDrive. This article shows the process as seen at the Seattle Public Library which is currently testing the service.

We had been kicking around an idea here that was similar to this way back at the start of the year. We were thinking about simply buying a number of Kindles and building collections of high demand titles on them (as those titles were "demanded") and checking the Kindles out to people. I know this is not what Amazon intended, but maybe they will eventually come up with something similar.

On a final note, the State Library of Kansas has a set up a news page for disseminating information about state-wide initiatives they are working on. It is worth a look and an occasional check-in to see how they are progressing. Ultimately, this may be a service the Hutchinson Public Library participates in assuming it gets going in the near future.

What did you do this summer?

2011-09-21T15:52:00.001-05:00

Here's what we did. Our amazing staff here at the Hutchinson Public Library did the following June through August:

550+ - the number of children hosted at our Summer Celebration party.
109,569 - the number of items checked out (and back in again).
1,333 - the number of children attending summer story times
3,826 - the number of questions answered in our Reference Department
458 - the number of children who turned in their completed reading logs
4,580 - the MINIMUM number of books read by those 458 children!
1 - the number of new reading spaces we opened (come see the new Quiet Reading Room!)
1 - the number of new coffee bar proprietors in the library (visit Rita's Roast!)

What will we do next? I don't know for sure, but we have some plans... (cue ominous music)

Storytime is back!

2011-09-15T11:45:00.000-05:00

Every year our children's department takes a little extremely well-deserved rest after the completion of our Summer Reading Program. This year is no different, but now it is time to get back in the swing of things!

This year the fall story times will have 2 sessions of Toddler Time programs on Tuesday mornings and 3 sessions of Preschool Story Times, 1 on Wednesday morning, 1 on Thursday morning and 1 on Thursday afternoon.

Check out our library's calendar here. The children's programs are color-coded light blue. Hover your mouse over the event for brief information or click on the event for full details.

All toddlers, preschoolers and their parents are welcome! No registration is necessary and the programs are all free. Our goal is to help parents build a good early literacy foundation with their children. Early childhood literacy is perhaps the single most important advantage you can give a child to help her or him achieve and succeed in school. It is a particular interest of mine and one that as a country, I think, we ignore at our peril.

Marilyn June Coffey visits HPL

2011-09-13T09:29:00.001-05:00

Marilyn June Coffey will be at the Hutchinson Public Library on Thursday, October 13th at 7pm. She will be talking about her new book titled, Mail Order Kid, a story of a child's experience with the orphan train movement.

Ms. Coffey will present a program about her book and be available for questions and autographs. She will also have some copies of the book available for purchase.

HPL will provide refreshments for this event - more details on this to come!

Amazon's curious twist

2011-09-04T11:03:00.000-05:00

I have heard the rumors about Amazon's supposed "tablet" device for a long time now. A thing that would compete with the minimum $499 iPad and the around $250 Nook all at once. Apparently, Amazon is about ready to release just this sort of device. An article in TechCrunch sent to me by a friend and colleague seems to provide all the information on what sounds like a beta product that's about ready to leave that status and go to production.

From the author's description it sounds like a mixed bag of hardware and software pluses and minuses, It will only be a 7" screen device, no camera, WiFi only initially, and some other things you can read about. But the reason for the lack of some size and features is that it will be priced to compete with the Nook Color. It will be interesting to see what this device does to the "tablet" market. Will it make a dent in the iPad juggernaut? Will it roll over Barnes & Noble's book-reader-with-bonuses Nook Color? We are so far from seeing a "settling down" of the ebook reader / tablet computer / how-does-this-affect-libraries question it's almost funny. Almost.

HPL website changes

2011-09-01T10:28:00.000-05:00

A few months ago we rolled out a new website for HPL. Since that time, we have received training for a number of our staff members in order to keep it updated. You will begin to see changes to the site and the addition of fresh content with much greater frequency.

The calendar is one of our favorites so far, allowing us to provide easy-to-access information about everything that goes on here. You can find the calendar from the "Find an Event" link at the bottom of the home page or by clicking "Programs & Services" on the navigation bar and then clicking "Calendar of Events".

Events on the calendar are color coded and the legend is located at the bottom. If you only want to see certain types of events, click on the event type in the legend at the bottom and the calendar displays only that type. Also, you can hover your cursor over an event and a small pop-up will give you more information about that event. In the picture below, I was pointing at the first TALK book discussion for this fall.

As you can see from the picture, you can also check to see what non-library sponsored events are going on. If you have a meeting coming up and you don't know when or where it is scheduled, just click "Meeting Rooms" and find all the details.

Another great feature is the search box in the upper right corner. This can be toggled to search the website or to search the library's catalog. You can also log in to your library account from here to check holds lists, or find other information.

As we continue to add more to the website, I will feature the changes here. I am excited by the possibilities afforded us by this new tool and I think it will become a trove of information useful to all.

Sony and the Public Library

2011-08-31T14:53:00.000-05:00

An interesting article came through one of our library mailing lists this morning. It appears that Sony has stepped up their commitment to public library service and ebook borrowing. Sony and OverDrive struck a deal about two years ago that paved the for this new Sony device, the PRS-T1.

The new Sony reader has a dedicated icon for accessing public library ebook services wirelessly. The article here explains in more detail. There's also information here in this article. The idea is to support OverDrive's initiative with public libraries called the "Public Library Service". It's a pretty plain-jane-looking site, but you put in your ZIP code, find the library near you for which you have a valid library card, and check out a book.

What an interesting time for libraries! We may be hurting for money, but the opportunities are there to make some great leaps in service.

Kansas and Libraries

2011-08-30T09:34:00.000-05:00

***WARNING - RANT AHEAD***

I attended a focus group last week, the purpose of which was to help form a list of what is essential in a database package for Kansas. Sound pretty dry, right?

It was. But there was an interesting side to it that really wasn't talked about until the very end. The question on everyone's mind was, "How are we going to pay for this?" And the answer was, "We don't know, the money has all gone."

So how did this happen? Well, first off the economy went in the tank a couple of years ago. So, cost cutting became even more of a mantra in the legislature. And the cutting was done with a sword rather than a scalpel. So far, from a library perspective everything REALLY useful has been cut to the bone. Not only was state aid reduced (direct aid to libraries) for what I think was the 4th year in a row, several statewide programs were massacred. So this year, Kan-Ed had its funding slashed. This is basically because big telecoms don't want the downward price pressure on their services. You see, Kan-Ed provides low- or no-cost T-1 connections to public entities like libraries that can't otherwise afford "high speed" Internet. Now, I take issue with the definition of "high speed" Internet as our providers use it, but that's a rant for another day. Unfortunately, by slashing Kan-Ed's funding, over 50% of the funds for statewide databases - these tools provided here - disappeared. And in the next budget year, they are gone all together - nearly $1 million.

Now, bear in mind that all of the cutting, I was told directly, was to reduce the "government footprint". And, that ,"We're not looking to increase your [the library's] costs or reduce access..."

So, can you guess what happened? EXACTLY. Our direct costs, because we lost the power of purchasing in a state-wide contract, have increased and our ability to provide access to information has already and will continue to be drastically reduced over this year and next.

Lest you think that nothing was done to enlighten our state government as to the results of these actions, librarians and others across the state wrote, emailed, talked directly to, and testified in the state house about these matters. Only, instead of listening to feedback from knowledgeable sources, no provisions were made to transfer funds from Kan-Ed to the State Library to administer state-wide tools and services. Instead, contracts will lapse, work will have to be repeated, and much more struggle for funds will have to be made in order to even BEGIN negotiating new contracts - and worst of all, library service and credibility will be damaged.

You may not know this, but the Kan-Ed funds I have mentioned so often are actually "Kansas Universal Service Fund" (KUSF) monies. They are collected by the Kansas Corporation Commission and WILL CONTINUE to be collected at the same rate as before. The legislature merely choose to not allocate them to Kan-Ed. Taxes (or in this case service fees) are not any lower because of this action.

What can you do? Contact your legislator and ask her or him to allocate to the State Library KUSF funds not given to Kan-Ed to provide for state-wide library services. Kan-Ed funding went from $10 million per year to $6 million. That means there are $4 million available - even a quarter of that amount would allow us to restore lost services and take pressure off the State Library so that they might be able to stave off further cuts to direct aid or other services.

[Wipes spittle from corner of mouth]

An insider's view of ebooks

2011-08-24T17:14:00.002-05:00

The other day, information about a series of interviews conducted on the BBC came out across a library email list I belong to. The bits that caught my attention were from Victoria Barnsley who is the Chief Executive of HarperCollins UK. Here are a few of the things she said:

50% of their fiction to be digital within 2 years,
eBooks will replace paperbacks,
hardbacks will improve in quality to be the books people keep.

Hardbacks will improve in quality! Wait...what? You mean you think there will still be a market for ...(GASP)...paper books? OK, while I might mean to sound a little sarcastic here, I would like to think that the opinion that I and many others have held for a while now, might also be a consideration in the publishing world. Paper will not be going away any time soon. The ebook format lends itself well to replacement of paperbacks and fiction titles. Paper copies will also be wanted and even preferred in some cases, and ebooks for lending will help libraries expand their collections, patrons discover new authors, and ultimately purchase more e- and regular books.

Of course, HarperCollins has also made the controversial decision to make their loanable ebooks to libraries "wear out" after 26 checkouts thereby requiring the library to purchase a "new" copy. While I don't think it is unreasonable for publishers to make these sorts of requirements of libraries, I think 26 circulations is a pretty low number. Apparently HarperCollins needs to improve their hardback quality now if all they think we can expect from their products is essentially a year's worth of checkouts!

Librarian / tech nerd nirvana

2011-08-22T11:22:00.001-05:00

A colleague of mine (who also happens to be something of a tech nerd AND a great guy) sent me a link to this product - Boopsie - today. It's an app for libraries and library users that does a whole bunch of cool things in all-in-one fashion. Feature description from their site:

BookLook - Scan the barcode of that new best seller at the bookstore and instantly know whether your library has the book available.
Publisher Reviews - Integration with book review providers such as Syndetics, Goodreads etc.
Overdrive Access - search, view, download and read Overdrive titles right from mobile device.
BookCheck - Mobile checkout from the palm of your hand! Simply scan, click (check) and go!

They seem to have a reasonable subscription rate for us here in Small Town America! We've talked about having a mobile app developed for us locally, but why reinvent the wheel? These folks seem to have thought about how it might be used by patrons, so we'll give it a serious look to see how it would integrate with our systems and network.

Save the Libraries

2011-08-18T16:06:00.001-05:00

chirp! chirp!

There is a tremendous lack of understanding these day of, well...of many things actually; but within the scope of this blog, the value of libraries. I think the true value of public libraries is that they provide common ground. This is reflected to me in two related ways. I have a quote that I've collected recently from a UK article on libraries that articulates it one way:

"The libraries' most powerful asset is the conversation they provide – between books and readers, between children and parents, between individuals and the collective world. Take them away and those voices turn inwards or vanish. Turns out that libraries have nothing at all to do with silence." - Bella Bathurst, writer for The Observer [newspaper]

Libraries facilitate an intellectual conversation, no matter the format of the conversation or the materials on the shelves, readers, or digital devices. This largely has to do with the training, skill, and actual practice of the job known as "librarianship". The people that work in a library make sure by their very work that the conversations listed in the quote above can flourish.

A second way that this thing called a "library" acts as a societal leveler, is as a place where people from all walks of life can experience a certain level of equality and equitable treatment. The physical space makes it unique in the modern world in that anyone can use it for meeting and exchange of ideas, largely free of any out-of-pocket expense.

Public libraries continue to provide free access to information in the form of books, digital files, Internet access, and government publications, all the while being dismantled bit-by-bit in the name of "lowering taxes" and "trimming the fat". I contend that libraries, especially public and school libraries, give the most bang for the tax dollar that you can get. HPL will be here for a while, I think. We have benefited from the gifts of many fine residents in our town. But Kansas libraries as a whole are being picked apart. From elimination of funding for cheap high-speed Internet connectivity (this has already happened - funding was slashed), to statewide accessible databases of information (this funding has also been eliminated), to school libraries at every level, our State Legislature and Governor seem to be doing their best to demolish educational support of any sort.

Lastly, I am not advocating support of this project - you can make your own decisions about it, but I think it is a great idea. Photographer Robert Dawson is touring 22 states, photographing public libraries as a commons, one of "...the things that we share as a nation - our environment, our infrastructure, our culture - the things that keep our society civil and working."

Here's the link from the comments section below: Karin Slaughter Writes Story to Help Save Libraries

What does a public library look like?

2011-08-16T17:09:00.001-05:00

I was thinking about the future of libraries today while participating in the library board meeting. We were talking about where we go at HPL with downloadable media of all types. It is my current belief that libraries everywhere will be subscribing to more than one online content provider to get the broad scope of what is (and what will be) available for download.

Warehouse?

Center of the City?

Tiny kiosk?

Here's what I think will happen: Despite all the talk about ebooks driving the future of reading / publishing, there is still an important demographic that prefers paper, or can't afford the technology, has no access to high speed Internet, or any number of other contributing factors. The library will have another demographic to cater to - the ebook patron. Just like before them came the downloadable audio patron, the DVD patron, the VHS patron, the tape audiobook patron, the CD music patron, the vinyl / 8-Track / microfilm / microfiche / plain-old-book patrons before them.

Ebook readers don't kill libraries. Lack of good services for lending ebooks does. When the publishers realize that libraries DO promote their authors and DO promote a love of reading and services like OverDrive realize loaning ematerial CAN be easy and seamless (look at 3M Cloud Library, hint, hint), libraries will integrate this new media and move on. Afterall, libraries are so much more than the materials they loan out. Libraries serve a function in their communities no other entity can fulfill - they cause the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States to be injected into the real world. Sound grandiose? It isn't - public libraries provide space to assemble, access (at least for awhile) information to allow the existence of an informed electorate, defend the freedom of speech, and ensure at least some measure of equality to all this across the increasingly disparate ends of the socio-economic spectrum.

TALK books series

2011-08-10T10:45:00.001-05:00

HPL is hosting another of the Kansas Humanities Council's book discussion series. This time the theme is "food". We have some very good discussion leaders lined up for this time, so I hope we have good attendance!

This discussion series is put together by the Kansas Humanities Council and our local library staff to provide a way to hold book discussions on a wide variety of subjects. If you haven't tried one out - give it a shot!

Rita's Roast starts up!

2011-07-28T10:16:00.003-05:00

HPL is excited to have a new coffee vendor open and ready for business! Meredith Hulsey opened Rita's Roast about a week ago with a variety of refreshing beverages and some unbelievably good treats. You may have purchased some of her awesome baked goods at the Reno County Farmers Market and now you can get them at the Library as well (at least some of the time). Rita's Roast also features a great hand-made lunch deal that includes a sandwich and other tasty treats.

The Hutchinson News had a nice write-up about Rita's Roast last Friday or Saturday as well - thank you Hutchinson News!

Be sure to stop in on Monday, August 1st and help celebrate Rita's Roast at their Grand Opening!

eBook update for mid-July

2011-07-20T11:11:00.002-05:00

The ebook landscape continues to change as HPL moves closer to deadlines for decisions regarding what tools to use to provide our patrons with the best reading / usability experience we can. A recent article from Market Watch discussing 3M's new library ebook system shows just how rapidly things can change. For what little it is worth, I can say with confidence that this is a system to watch. OverDrive, the market leader in library-lending ebook systems should take heed. Having seen a demonstration of the 3M system, OverDrive's way of doing things pales in comparison.

It remains to be seen if 3M can add the content, but I have no real doubt that they will.

Today is the Big Day!

2011-07-19T08:49:00.003-05:00

After months of planning, work and now tidying up, the Quiet Reading Room is ready for its Grand Opening! I extend my humble thanks and appreciation for all the hard work that contributed to bringing us to this day.

Thank you to the Friends of the Hutchinson Public Library for funding the project!
Thank you to the Staff and others who worked on the committee to design it: Mary Lou Sunderland, Martha fee, Lisa Dethloff, Julie Magyar, Cheryl Canfield, Lou McConnaghy, Roni Boldt, Austin Smith, Tremaine Fernandez, and Charlene Childs.
Thank you to the Library's Maintenance staff for making the space spic-and-span for today.
Thank you to Annette Smith for the preparations for the Grand Opening celebration.

I hope that the patrons of the library see the space for what it is; a sanctuary to get away from the noises that accompany the modern public library, a little oasis of calm for quiet contemplation and study. It is also a tip-of-the-hat to the history of this building.

From the fiction sorting area


Women's Civic Center information

Lighted study carrel

Mid-summer update

2011-07-13T13:40:00.003-05:00

As we sit here baking in the hot July sun, I am thankful that I am able to sit here in the relative cool of the library. It has been a somewhat tumultuous summer so far and I thought I'd write down all that has been going on. In late May, we found out that the Bru Crue Coffee Bar was going to have to abruptly shut down. I, and many others, were sad to hear about this. However, we will soon have another coffee vendor up and running - Rita's Roast Coffee Co. will be open very soon.

Our new roof has been finished and at least in some parts of the building, the reflective quality of the white vinyl may actually be helping to lower the temperature! I'm not sure that there's any helping the Computer Lab temperature, but other parts of the second floor seem cooler.

On the subject of the public computer lab, we are exploring the cost involved in redoing the HVAC for that part of the building. As we have discussed what to do about the computer lab, we have revisited the arrangement of the whole area north of the mezzanine. Who knows? By the time all is said and done, we may have a whole new look on the 2nd floor!

Trekking through the wilderness

2011-07-12T10:25:00.001-05:00

From time to time we all take journeys through the wilderness. Sometimes these journeys are figurative, sometimes they are literal and sometimes they are both. This past week I took a little time off and with parts of my family, I took a literal journey through the wilderness:

This is, of course, the Grand Canyon. A place so massive it defies description; in places so remote you could walk off the trail and never be found again. The trail shown in this picture is one of the most popular trails in the canyon, the Bright Angel. Thousands of people use it every year to travel to or from the south rim and the Colorado river. While we were hiking along through 30+ miles of this place, I did some thinking, not really about libraries but about choosing paths. I found out that our trip - south rim to north rim and back again - is a rare occurrence, comparatively speaking. Most people (90% of all visitors) descend and return at the south rim. So, where will the library go on its journey?

What is my point with this entry? The picture above is the sort of place that libraries and library services are negotiating in a figurative way. As media have changed and services shift from the own-and-share to the buy- or pay-as-you-go, relevance for libraries has come into question. The Hutchinson Public Library is on a hike through the wilderness right now and we need all the information we can get. Soon we will begin purchasing ebook content in earnest. The State Library is doing a pilot project with 3M, our contract is up for renewal with OverDrive. The bottom line is that things WILL change here and ahead of that we will ask for your input. Please help us by participating in any upcoming surveys. Your input will influence our decisions. You have the opportunity to hike with us through the wilderness and help keep the Hutchinson Public Library a relevant and USEFUL service in our community for years to come!

eBook News

2011-06-30T11:50:00.001-05:00

EBook? eBook? Should one capitalize the "e" to start a sentence using "ebook"? Maybe I'll just avoid that from now on and start ebook posts with something like, "Yes, yes, ANOTHER post about ebooks."

It seems the competition is finally heating up for OverDrive (thank goodness). Honestly, healthy competition in the marketplace can be a very good thing. Since there has been essentially no competition in ebook lending, OverDrive has felt no pressure to improve their interface or lower their access fees.

However, an unlikely company has jumped whole-hog into the fray - 3M. Yes, good ol' Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing has launched an ebook lending service. I say, "Bravo!"

The product/service was unveiled at the American Library Association annual meeting just a few days ago. It appears to be mostly ready for use with a fairly good variety of publishers and titles. Notably, it does not currently work with Amazon's Kindle as of yet, but does work with popular devices such as Apple's iPad. If, like Recorded Books', they are negotiating with Amazon, however, this could prove to be a great alternative to or addition to an OverDrive account.

Now that I've thought about it, I am going to always use a lower case "e" even if it is at the start of a sentence when writing "ebook". Then I can say I was influenced by Steve Jobs and the ubiquitous "i" used to start the names of all their popular electronic items.

Wow! That is loud!

2011-06-21T10:18:00.003-05:00

We are in the process of having our roof replaced at HPL. This is a much-needed maintenance project as we have been suffering through leak after leak for the past 18-24 months. However, by delaying a re-roof and making do with patches over that time, we were able to set aside enough money to pay for the project out right. I am not a big fan of borrowing money, in my personal finances or at the library.

The point of my mentioning it though is that the new roof is "mechanically fastened". Intellectually, I understood what that meant - hammer-drilling fasteners into the concrete deck to hold down the new backing. In practice though...yikes! It sounds sort of like some one running a jack hammer in a culvert pipe. My apologies if you come in over the next week to ten days hoping for peace and quiet!

However, when we are done, we'll have a ~~PVC~~ [edit: TPO] membrane roof that looks something like this:

This type of roof has some benefits (besides keeping the rain out). It is supposed to reflect heat from the sun to reduce heat radiating into the building. Supposedly we will save some money on our utility bills, which after seeing the last bill for May/early June will be a blessing! There are lots of options for flat-roofed structures, I found out as we went through this process. I hope we picked the right one.

Quiet Reading Room

2011-06-16T14:22:00.042-05:00


Study carrels

We are moving steadily along with the renovation of the old quiet reading room. It is starting to look like what, I think, we were looking for in a nice study space. This project has been funded almost entirely by the Friends of the Hutchinson Public Library! We are planning a grand opening for mid-July - watch for an official announcement. The pics you see here are part of a series that Annette Smith has been collecting. More of them can be seen on Facebook. The wainscot you see in the room was created using oak hardwood paneling salvaged from the Women's Civic Center building.

An early shot

Same wall with wainscot, new door, and trim


Now with floor and some of the new furniture

Irregular ebook update

2011-06-08T08:45:00.049-05:00

There has been a considerable amount of discussion regarding ebooks and libraries in the past year. There has been the usual and perpetual speculation about whether or not libraries (particularly public libraries) will disappear now that books are so easy to buy. And while these are serious issues needing serious discussion, I have yet to hear serious answers that address the fundamental problem at the base of the ebook "revolution".

What is the fundamental problem? It is an old one, one that first arose in a big way with the computer / Internet revolution: The economic divide that continues to grow in this country. In library and electronics age terms, this has always been called "the digital divide" and libraries have acted to this point as the bridge. With the surge in ebooks, the "haves" will continue to be able to acquire the tools (readers) and purchase the access or content and the "have nots" will continue to have to rely on other sources, like public libraries, to help them keep up, even if they do purchase their own reading device.

A news report from Library Journal covering the recent BookExpo America (BEA) sums this issue up nicely. I think that there is common ground and a vested interest for all of us in making sure that information is available to all in this country. I don't know exactly where we will end up, I wish I did (since a little savvy investing could then allow me to retire early!) But I believe there is a role for libraries in the shift toward ebooks, and I believe at least part of that role will still be that of a great equalizer.

Summer Celebration!

2011-06-03T13:51:00.025-05:00

We had our kick-off for the "One World, Many Stories" summer reading program Friday morning from 9-11:30am. While it was hot, it wasn't too windy. I was responsible for the giant tic-tac-toe game and gave away a few over 200 books to players. Quite a fun morning and it feels good to know that those 200+ kids each have at least one book to call their own.

Some people don't like bagpipes, but the pipers we had this morning were awesome! I climb stairs (for exercise) sometimes and often listen to pipe and drum marches. That aside, these gentlemen from McPherson were very enjoyable.

There was a story teller from Lindsburg whose tales were both entertaining and educational. She talked about life as a plains settler. My kids had a tough time coming up with answers to challenges she posed. Those early settlers had to make many hard decisions about the simplest of issues - such as, "If you had to choose just one thing, what would you bring with you in the wagon on the way to your new home?" This was a revelation to our kids who are used to bringing all sorts of toys and books on car trips. They had a hard time coming up with what would be most important to them to bring along.

We now have over 500 young people signed up for the reading program along with more than 70 in the young adult program. If all of those who signed up actually finish the program that would mean nearly 6000 books will be read over the summer!

Preserving the past with today's technology

2011-06-02T09:33:00.001-05:00

A new technology program! HPL is hosting a collaborative program designed and organized by Kristine, our fantastic technology trainer. Kristine has drawn together the expertise of the Reno County Genealogical Society, HPL staff, the Kansas Cosmosphere, a professional writer, and more to create this course. Here's what it is all about:

Four and a half months of programs, classes and help days beginning June 30th and running through November 11th. The program is divided into 3 modules; Researching Family History, Preserving Family History, and Family Food Traditions. Each module will have an introductory lecture, training lab classes, online content, and 1:1 assistance through lab workdays and email support.

The best part about this program is that participants can pick and choose what to attend. One can attend all of the events, some of the events, or do the program completely online.

One of the goals for the project is to provide the opportunity to create a one of a kind family "product". Some ideas include; a self-published family history book, a DVD with family photos and videos, a family blog or website, or a family cookbook with stories and photos.

I said before that the "best part" about the program is that you can pick and choose what to do. Actually, the best part might be that the program is free to participate. All you have to do is sign up at www.preservingthepast.org to attend the kick-off lecture OR email tossieconsulting@gmail.com if you want to participate but can't attend that first session.

Hooray! It's almost here!

2011-05-31T10:16:00.001-05:00

June 3 - THIS FRIDAY - is the HPL Summer Celebration. Our big kick-off for the summer reading program for children. Sign up and get your passport for "One World, Many Stories". For each book completed or for each hour of reading, registered children get a stamp in their passport. Collect 10 stamps and receive a prize. This program allows children to travel around the world or even into another world through reading. There are programs available for all age groups, including adults!

OK, now I'm just angry

2011-05-31T10:06:00.000-05:00

[/rant]

I read a Los Angeles Times article earlier in the week about the treatment of Los Angeles public school librarians and was by turns sad, angry, and ever more firm in my conviction that the United States is so far off the rails, it might just be irreversible. The issue is that the LA school district wants to fire all the librarians because in the district's view they are, in a nutshell, superfluous. To add insult to injury, the librarians were grilled by attorneys in a make-shift courtroom, made to defend their worth because the choice was either lose your job, or prove that you could be transferred into a classroom. Disgraceful. Where were the court appearances for the greedy folks that leveraged us in to this mess?

Our leaders no longer even attempt to look at what they are doing because the pressures from the "no tax could ever be good" folks have blinded them to the point that they can't see what tools are necessary to achieve even their own (the politician's) stated goals! Just looking at the federal level, how do you build a strong STEM education if students don't learn to research a topic? Ask any college instructor today and they will tell you that the multitudes of HS graduates coming to them are ill prepared for advanced study.

I can tell you that my experiences with school libraries all the way back to early elementary grades were the only things that kept me interested in learning. I got the chance to go to this place, once per week, that was filled with new avenues and I could choose which one I took. In fact, there was this person there who, over time, learned what I seemed to like and would suggest other similar books. Sometimes she would suggest things that were just OK, but sometimes she would suggest a book or author that would (as I have found to date) stick with me forever.

Children in Los Angeles, in other states, in Kansas, and potentially even in Hutchinson will miss this guidance because of a glaring ignorance regarding the importance of not the collections of information but the people who know what is there. School librarians are being fired everywhere. They have taken big hits in Kansas as school districts cope with drastic budget cuts. I know, times are tough. They were made tough by rampant greed and you and I and our kids and grandkids are apparently expected to suffer for that greed.

Back to my original point, the political leaders need to make up their minds. They can't have it both ways - funding cuts and no revenue increases. As a parent, I am for any education-related tax increase needed to adequately staff our schools. I am not oblivious to the fact that I am in a minority here. But I want the United States to regain an even keel. I want a nation full of opportunity and competitive spirit. And I know there are 2 things that will get us there - ingenuity and education. I am convinced that librarians play a crucial role in the education and development of children and that cutting them out of schools further cripples an already overburdened educational system.

[/end rant]

2011 Summer Reading at HPL

2011-05-26T11:02:00.000-05:00

Sign-up for our Summer Reading Program begins May 27th! It is hard to believe that we're already on the cusp of another hectic summer season. I am really excited about the programs this year. We have a few interesting twists on the usual read-something-get-a-reward format for these kinds of events. One of those is a weekly trivia contest on we will be conducting on Facebook. Friend HPL and then check in each week starting June 6 for a new question. The winner will receive a tasty treat from the Bru Crue Coffee Bar!

The YA (young adult) summer reading theme is "Greek to me". Sign up for this program also begins on May 27th. All young adults from ages 12-17 are eligible to participate in the YA activities and reading program. There will be prizes and fun throughout June and July!

Of course, the summer would not be complete without a summer reading program designed for children. This year's theme is "One World, Many Stories". Children can sign up for their passport on May 27th with the goal of reading 10 books or for 10 hours. After each book, the child will receive a stamp in her or his passport. When the goal is reached, the child can redeem the passport for a prize.

Finally, don't miss the big kick-off Summer Celebration on June 3rd from 9-11:30am. There will be games, food, and all sorts of fun celebrating our one world and our many stories.

This is the challenge...

2011-05-24T08:51:00.002-05:00

In reference to what "book" sellers want to shoot for, specifically Barnes & Noble's probable new owners, Liberty Media Group:

"You don't want the old-fashioned bookstore customer who goes in and sits and reads a book for two hours. You want people going in there who are hungry for experience," said Richard Hastings, a consumer strategist with Global Hunter Securities.

Given this strategy, what is a library to do? Are we to cater to the "old-fashioned" customer? The article from which that quote came goes on to say that paper books still out-sell ebooks 5-to-1. But the publishing industry is banking on ebooks as the future which leaves libraries in an awkward position. What about the people who want the "experience", whatever that is?

We in libraries are still tied to paper because our users are not just the "1" in the 5-to-1 ratio. We are also saddled with a lack of viable ebook lending systems. OverDrive, a big player in downloadable audio books cut a deal with Amazon to allow Kindle books to be borrowed through libraries. But OverDrive has really expensive "access" fees that they charge libraries simply to get to their collections of ebooks and audio books. Plus Kindle access will not be available until fall of 2011. Likewise, Recorded Books, sort of the "gold standard" company among audio book producers, has been aggressive in attracting libraries by providing an alternative platform to the OverDrive juggernaut. But they too have very small collections of ebooks for loaning through libraries and currently no access to Amazon's proprietary format for Kindle users.

How noisy is it? WHO CARES - we'd be printing our own books!

HPL will continue to purchase paper for the time being, but just as LP, 8 track, and cassette collections fell prey to the evolution of formats and players, so too may the paper book. What does that mean for people who can't afford to buy every book they read, let a lone purchase the reader? As publishers limit their print offerings, it means less variety. Libraries will step in and fill that gap easily though. Libraries can purchase and circulate the readers themselves, if they want. Or libraries can become paper "book ATMs" if you will, by purchasing systems such as the Espresso Book Machine. Then, we could continue to provide items to our patrons who either can't afford or don't want to purchase every single book they read or don't want or have an ebook reader.

An interesting challenge - a potentially dangerous one - but interesting indeed.

Future-proofing libraries?

2011-05-17T11:15:00.000-05:00

I don't think I want my library "future-proofed". I think instead I want my library to join and be a vital part of the future. Yes, I know that's not what they meant. They mean we (library workers) should be working to make libraries adapt. But I think that we do that - adapt, I mean. And I think that we are. What we need is a goal and a better PR campaign. Seth Godin wrote what some call a "controversial" blog post about this topic just yesterday. I think he largely hits the nail on the head. What libraries are about is not the stacks and stacks of paper, but the information and more importantly, THE PEOPLE. The librarians, the library users, and ultimately society as a whole are what libraries are about. The goal should be that libraries create the future - and that future should be primarily focused on the community that each library serves. Libraries should be a place of creation - not warehousing. Libraries should foster and provide the tools, space, and interaction needed to create new businesses and promote the growth and success of new intellectuals. We (librarians) have and can provide tools for this creativity and interaction. We largely lack the PR skills to get the attention...IMHO.

Grab Bag

2011-05-05T20:05:00.001-05:00

Catch-all, whatever you might call it - this is that type of post.

First off, a few building updates. We started off this spring with a flurry of activity aimed at restoring the Quiet Reading Room. This was a space in the original 1950 portion of the building designated for contemplative study away from the hub-bub of the rest of the bustling library. It had been gone for a long time and is sorely needed again. As I said though, we started with a flurry of activity, but have ground to a halt waiting on furniture orders. Never fear though, because we will announce a grand re-opening in the next few weeks.

Second, I read an article from the Guardian (UK) newspaper about the "secret" life of libraries. I wouldn't call this an article so much as a reminiscence. However, it ended with a couple of passages which I'd like to quote here because they hit home with me regarding what libraries are worth to a society:

"The pace of life is different now, and people expect art to happen to them. Music and film do that, a CD will do that, but you have to make a book happen to you. It's between you and it. People can be changed by books, and that's scary. When I was working in the school library, I'd sometimes put a book in a kid's hands and I'd feel excited for them, because I knew that it might be the book that changed their life. And once in a while, you'd see that happen, you'd see a kind of light come on behind their eyes. Even if it's something like 0.4% of the population that that ever happens to, it's got to be worth it, hasn't it?"

The libraries' most powerful asset is the conversation they provide – between books and readers, between children and parents, between individuals and the collective world. Take them away and those voices turn inwards or vanish. Turns out that libraries have nothing at all to do with silence.

Third, I'd like to point out ANOTHER awesome collection of information posted on the Kansas Government Information (KGI) blog. It's about one of my favorite political figures from the recent past, Senator Bob Dole. Browse through a trove of Dole-related links here.

So there you have it. A grab bag befitting my little collection of odd bits and extraneous information that I have posted here over the past 2-ish years!

Read to Rover - Get a Reward!

2011-05-02T16:03:00.000-05:00

We're trying something new to go along with our long-standing monthly Read to Rover program. Starting this month, we will hand out punch cards to children who participate. If a child brings the card to 3 sessions of Read to Rover, he or she will receive a FREE book!

Read to Rover is held on the 2nd Thursday of each month. So the next session will be May 12th. We start at 6 pm, so that there is plenty of time to read.

A little background for those of you who might not be familiar with this concept: "Reading With Rover" or "Read to Rover" is a program that has been used in schools and libraries all across the country to help foster literacy skill and reading confidence in children. The dogs used in the programs are the perfect audience for children who may have difficulty reading or who find it intimidating to read to people. Therapy dogs are patient and very good at listening and seem to get as much out of being read to as the children. No matter the child's skill level though, it's fun to read a story and spend some quality time with a new furry friend. Here are some sites for programs around the nation - links here and here.

If you have children who would like to participate - please come and join us!

Dave McKane at HPL

2011-04-27T11:17:00.000-05:00

Our friend Dave McKane opened his exhibit of photographs last night in the HPL auditorium. We had a nice crowd and it was a great evening! Mr. McKane is quite an engaging speaker and the background information he shared surrounding the "Ghost Houses of the Prairies" lent great depth to the photos now on display.

I urge you to stop by the library auditorium and take a look. Much patience and care was taken to capture the essence of these forgotten homes. Mr. McKane's exhibit will be here through May and then it will move on to the west - heading to Dodge City, I believe. Catch it while it is here.

Mr. McKane's Institute of Photography in Dublin, Ireland.

A New Kindle Twist

2011-04-20T11:13:00.000-05:00

Here we go with yet another twist in the continuing evolution of ebooks, ereaders, and libraries. Apparently, Amazon is launching a "Kindle Library" service that will allow loans of Kindle books through a library that subscribes. You can read the Amazon press release here. The down side I see here is that they are working with OverDrive to provide this service. My feelings about OverDrive are ambivalent at best. This is a "library service" company that rarely seems to have library service in mind. The talk a big game about how they create virtual library services for libraries to use, but they do not seem to make a tremendous effort to make the process of actually using the services easy for library patrons. Amazon, on the other hand has made a great success of easy downloads of not only books, but music too.

"The Cloud" - Will it free us?

2011-04-19T08:32:00.000-05:00

This is what I have been fretting over for quite some time now - the death of content ownership. I will reiterate this: I love technology and gadgetry. I do. I get "gadget-envy" every time I see someone walking about using the latest [fill in the blank]. But like the author of that article, I am unconvinced that a subscription service is the best model for the intellectual accumulation of our race. Perhaps you think that is a bit overwrought. Maybe it is. True, I am becoming more of a curmudgeon.

A counter to this twist in intellectual property control is presented in the Chronicle of Higher Education. Thank you Sandra for the link to this editorial piece by Harvard professor and librarian Robert Darnton. This is a much better presentation of the idea I talk about a lot with patrons: That the proliferation of formats and "forms of communication" simply divides a library's resources and makes the librarian's job more difficult but it doesn't mean that libraries are outmoded. In fact, Professor Darnton is surely correct in saying that:

Librarians are responding to the needs of their patrons in many new ways, notably by guiding them through the wilderness of cyberspace to relevant and reliable digital material. Libraries never were warehouses of books. While continuing to provide books in the future, they will function as nerve centers for communicating digitized information at the neighborhood level as well as on college campuses.

Perhaps I'll relax a bit about content ownership and worry more about how we (library workers) will keep up. It is our job, after all, to help people navigate the vastness of the information universe now available to anyone at the local public library.

Continuing Education

2011-04-15T13:11:00.003-05:00

I've just returned from attending the annual conference of the Kansas Library Association. This is an opportunity to get some new ideas and keep abreast of what is happening in the profession. Perhaps the most valuable part of the experience is the opportunity to meet face-to-face with colleagues to trade stories and advice. In fact, I know this is the most important part part of the experience.

One of the most interesting sessions was the keynote address by Jamie LaRue, the head of the Douglas County (CO) Libraries. He has developed an advocacy program aimed at changing mid-sets. The impetus for the creation of this program was a pair of defeats for library bond issues. Despite thorough and successful awareness and use campaigns for the Douglas County Libraries, Mr. LaRue found that library use DOES NOT equal library support. In fact, a study by OCLC and the Gates Foundation showed the same thing. Based on this study, Mr. LaRue's approach was to create a script and recruit passionate library supporters who were NOT library staff or board members to deliver the speech to groups each of those people are involved with. The main goal is to change the mindset from "tax burden requires tax relief" to value of services for money spent. Show the value of libraries with real-world stories. It's really great and I'm already thinking about who I might approach to try this in Hutchinson.

Why libraries? This...

2011-04-14T09:31:00.000-05:00

This editorial from the Houston Chronicle pretty much sums up what libraries are good for (should anyone ask you). These are words of wisdom here:

Librarians make it possible to navigate [the infoverse] wilderness. They do the brute-force work of organization: bar-coding new acquisitions; putting books back on the right shelves; scanning and digitizing paper holdings; entering items into databases, where a search can reveal them. Handed a difficult question, a good librarian happily hacks through the data jungle, sorting the good info from the bad, and procuring exactly the answer you wanted. But great librarians do something even better: They help you ask a sharper question, then find the answer you didn't know you needed.

Sadly, these days there are fewer and fewer people considering library work. Like teaching, it is a graying profession afforded less respect than it deserves. I tend often toward skepticism with a bent toward pessimism. Occasionally people around me have to warn me when I stray too far across the line into cynicism. This is probably one of those areas. As a society, we have become too detached from what made us great and what allowed us to build a great nation. Plain and simple education and access to the accumulated wisdom of billions of people who came before us. [Grump, grump, grouse, stomps back to troll cave.]

Dave McKane at HPL

2011-04-06T14:53:00.000-05:00

In a couple of weeks, Dave McKane will be here for the opening of an exhibit of his photography! His new collection "Ghost Houses of the Prairies" will open with a reception April 26 at 5:30pm in the Hutchinson Public Library auditorium. Mr. McKane is a great photographer and a kind soul who has given generously of his time. He has provided several introductory digital photography programs here over the past couple of years. These programs have had great attendance and wonderful reviews. I hope that as many people as possible will be here to support Mr. McKane's show. I think this one is my favorite.

Clare Vanderpool at the 2011 Prairie Book Festival!

2011-03-30T08:52:00.000-05:00

GREAT NEWS! I just found out that Wichita native and 2011 Newbery Award winner Clare Vanderpool will present a program at the 2011 Prairie Book Festival here at the library! So, put September 24th down on your calendars - it is not often that one gets to meet a Newbery Award-winning author.

Ms. Vanderpool's book, Moon Over Manifest has been highly regarded in the review sources (not surprisingly). I'm embarrassed to say that I haven't read it yet, but I will definitely have it done soon.

The original intent behind the Prairie Book Festival was this very thing - to showcase the literary talent right here among us. True, there are many great authors in the world but right down the road from Hutchinson lives an author who won the highest honor for children's book writers - the Newbery. I wonder if there is another award-winner coming up around here too?

Ms. Vanderpool has also graciously agreed to give talks to 4-6th graders at 2 of our local grade schools, which I think is wonderful. We will finalize arrangements for which two schools that will be very shortly.

Of course we cannot forget the group that has made this (and so many other things at HPL) possible - our generous and wonderful Friends of the Hutchinson Public Library. Without their hard work raising funds, many of the great things HPL has to offer would not be possible - chief among them the high caliber guest authors we have from time to time. Thank you Friends!

Early Literacy Stations are in!

2011-03-28T14:35:00.001-05:00

These are the new computers in the children's computer area. The name may not be flashy, but the computers themselves are pretty cool. They have touchscreens for easy use by younger computer users and are loaded with a huge number of children's software titles that are BOTH fun and educational. There are several categories for the programs - science, math, reading, etc. The full title list is here.

Please come in and let your child give them a try!

Here are a couple of pictures:

Colorful, if nothing else!

11 Science Titles

New computers, spaces, and other cool stuff

2011-03-24T10:57:00.000-05:00

I am starting to get more excited about the Quiet Reading Room - it is nearly done! In fact, the space itself is ready for the new furniture. If you go in there right now and look around a bit, you will see two SAMPLE chairs. Each is customizable size- and softness-wise. Please sit down in one and tell me what you think. They are samples of these:

Bear in mind that we can get the"Reflect" (the chair with arms) with a wider seat, a softer cushion, a higher back and a tablet arm. Also, we can get the "Cavetto" (the chair on the right) with a firmer seat.

I am of two minds about these chairs. I liked the Cavetto more than I thought I would when I actually sat in it, but I like the wood-capped arms of the Reflect chair. For me, I would sit in the Reflect longer. The Cavetto is nice with the swiveling tablet arm though, and I like the really tall back. I am a little afraid of dirt and grime accumulating on the fabric though. No matter the style choice, we will order them with this cool fabric that will not absorb stains or spills and can be cleaned with fairly harsh cleaners.

We are finally getting moving again on a project started in November to rejuvenate the children's computer area. Three AWE workstations have just arrived and are being prepared for use. Though more expensive up front than a normal computer that we would add software to, the AWE stations more than make up for their higher price in convenience and lower upkeep. You see, they have all the software fully installed on the computer's hard drive so there is no need to swap disks to use them. Also, there is no need to install software after the fact, repair or replace scratched game disks, deal with compatibility issues, update to latest versions, etc. Their website has a little pop-up video overview you can see here. Also, you can see the .pdf list of software these computers include here.

These computers will be a nice addition to the department and ease a tremendous burden on our IT staff. If they are successful, we may purchase more in succeeding years.

Also, we are very grateful to our Friends of the Library for purchasing (among many other things) two of these carts to hold our gaming systems we use for game days! We will be able to just roll the carts out, plug in the power, and hand the controllers to the first kids in line.

Preventing Identity Theft

2011-03-17T16:09:00.000-05:00

I just love the KGI (Kansas Government Information) Blog. The blog is a product of the State Library's reference staff, and they do a really great job. In fact, I think their style is exactly what a blog created by a reference department should be (in my extremely humble opinion). Their posts are always well organized and always packed with useful links about the topic they have chosen. Perfect starting points for patrons asking about where to start researching a topic. I have a link to it over there in the sidebar. The entry this week is a collection of links to all sorts of great information for protecting yourself online from identity theft. I highly recommend adding the KGI blog it to your list of sites you regularly visit.

Man, this soap box is getting rickety!

2011-03-17T13:24:00.000-05:00

Here I am again, stepping up on my virtual soap box. I've been having a lot of difficulty lately reconciling all the budget slashing affecting not only the library world, but public services in general with the total lack of accountability for those folks who ran the financial ship on to the rocks. So, now the public services that help people get back on their feet are being threatened with gutted budgets at the very time the "regular folks", i.e. you and me, are using them most. Maybe I'm off base. But I don't think so.

[Steps off soap box]

Here's something MUCH cheerier: The paint is dry, the wainscot up, and the floor is in our new Quiet Reading Room. Right now there are two sample lounge chairs in there, available for testing. If you are local, go and have a sit and let us know what you think. Bear in mind that each chair is customizable regarding seat width, back height, firmness of cushions, etc.

Another good development is that the design process for our new library website is rolling along. I think we are moving in the right direction and I think that the patrons will like the awesome new features. Among them will be a calendar that will allow direct registration for library events, straight-forward jargon-free language, and a vastly simpler navigation. We're expecting a mid- to late-spring launch.

Civic Duty...

2011-03-09T12:23:00.000-06:00

Important, but really, really disruptive. Having just spent a week and a day with a dozen of my peers sitting on a jury, I have a renewed appreciation for our justice system. It is truly a fascinating process. Sometimes tedious, sometimes baffling, but orderly, fair, and based utterly (from a juror's perspective) on weighing facts presented against the law as explained by the judge. However fascinating though, it put me behind at work to a degree that will take me weeks to pull back even.

Back in the library world though, one of my fears for ebooks seems to be coming true. The publisher HarperCollins has decided that they want to pretend that ebooks are the same as paper books - but only in very specific ways. These specific ways are tied directly to their financial bottom line to the harm of us all. Am I being melodramatic? Possibly. But I think that my fear that publishers were trying to steer the written word toward the licensing model used for software is coming true.

You see, HarperCollins has just discovered a key fundamental difference between paper books and ebooks and realized that , "Woah, this could hit us in the wallet!", though I have doubts about the wallet part. HarperCollins has realized that ebooks have the potential to last forever. Therefore, they have changed their DRM scheme so that ebooks purchased by libraries "wear out" after 26 checkouts.

In practice, that means a service like OverDrive, a service to which we subscribe, will charge us every time we have a 27th borrower wanting to download an ebook. That means every time a patron downloads a book but decides it's not for them and deletes it from their reader, the library has lost 1/26th of the use of that book, even though it was never read. What if a patron downloads it and never even transfers it to their reader? Still a lost 1/26th of the book for the library.

Consider the number of times you have been to a library, checked out a number of books and returned a few because after browsing them or attempting to read them, for one reason or another you decided it wasn't the book for you. Is it reasonable to assume that those unread or partly read books have had 1/26th of their useful life consumed? I don't think so. In fact, I think that the majority of our paper books, even with the crummy bindings that pass for "library binding" these days last longer than 26 circulations. I looked up a random copy of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and looked at its use statistics. It was added to the collection in 2005 and has since circulated 46 times. Under HarperCollins new model we would be looking at purchasing a third copy in the very near future if it were an ebook.

In my opinion, this is the final step in turning the "book" into purely a commodity where previously it was a medium to store the accumulated wisdom of civilization as a whole. Still too melodramatic? Perhaps.

Kindle book lending site!

2011-02-22T08:40:00.000-06:00

I find this fascinating - someone has set up a website to borrow and lend Kindle books. The site is called Lendle and you can read about how it works here. The site's FAQ makes it pretty clear that what they are doing is taking advantage of the fact that Amazon allows you to share books with friends. That sharing is pretty restrictive, but if you were to scale it up, as Lendle is trying to do, you could create a borrowing library of some substance. In the end, however, the problem remains with this statement from the FAQ:

How many times can I lend my book?

Unfortunately, Amazon only allows each owner of a book to lend it once.

The scale will have to be quite large, in terms of copies of each title, in order to make the service work for very long. I think the time is coming to hash out what will become of the "printed" word. The idea the Lendle represents is what most of us recognize as at least an interlibrary loan (ILL) system, something libraries everywhere already do with paper material.

The issue seems to be whether or not people will pirate all the ebooks if the publishers relax their rules just a tad. Will that happen? Maybe. Certainly, to some degree there will always be copyright violations - there always have been. But libraries buy a lot of books. Libraries will continue to buy a lot of books in paper format for the foreseeable future. We want to continue to make the published word available to everyone, including those people who won't buy an ereader or will not be able to afford to buy one and the books to read on it.

There's always print-on-demand too. How cool would that be? Patron checks catalog...oops! The Library doesn't own that one. "No problem!" says the librarian, "Have a cup of coffee and I'll bring you your copy in a few minutes!"

Libraries on life-support

2011-02-16T12:16:00.000-06:00

I know that librarians do a poor job of explaining their worth to just about everyone. I know that I am equally culpable in not making a better effort to advocate, extol, and generally proselytize the virtues of what is often viewed as a prim-and-proper relic of the past - the public library. I promise to do better. I am going to increase my campaigning, awareness-raising, interest-garnering activities this year, and I am starting here.

I also know that I have been ranting with increasing frequency these days at the lack of thought and foresight employed by our nation's leadership. So part of my righteous indignation (intelligible or not) will be directed at some of the dangerously short-sighted foolishness our leaders are proposing as "prudent".

Three different articles and/or calls to action came to my attention just this morning. The first is a great opinion piece by the author Scott Turow published on that bastion of "lefty"-ness, the Huffington Post. Don't, however, discount the power of the article simply because of the medium. Read it - Mr. Turow hits the nail on the head regarding the attitudes of today that are quite literally destroying the egalitarian basis of our nation.

The next article is a blog post presenting 10 "misperceptions" about public libraries. The post is a somewhat humorous look at ways we librarians are perceived. I think most of them are fairly commonly held and I think the list could be expanded quite easily.

The third thing that I read this morning was a call to action on a piece of federal legislation - the FY2011 Continuing Resolution. It would seem that a Representative, Mr. Scott Garrett - R-NJ, would like to eliminate all funding for the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) including Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA). Not only would this be disastrous for libraries, it is monumentally, colossally stupid. Money from LSTA funds lots of library related things. In Kansas, some federal funds provide access to databases. Databases offered at public libraries like "Learning Express" provide practice tests for all sorts of degrees and certifications. People who have lost their jobs often come to public libraries to get help finding new jobs. Yet we want to cut the funding for these tools?

So, do people really still use libraries? The answer is "yes". My post about Kansas' State Librarian testifying before the legislature shows that. The really sad thing is that in the grand scheme of things, libraries are cheap. The root of all this funding nonsense gets back to the idea that librarians are terrible at letting everyone else know how many people they serve for how little. Two rants in one week - I'd better go check my blood pressure.

State Librarian Testifies

2011-02-11T09:47:00.001-06:00

Earlier this week, the State Librarian of Kansas testified before the Kansas House of Representatives' Education Budget Committee regarding funding for Kansas libraries. Here is a .pdf of her remarks. A good illustration of something reaching a "tipping point" is the withered budget for the "State Aid grant program".

First a little background: The "State Aid" grant program is money distributed directly to libraries in Kansas and is intended to supplement local budgets and help raise the level of library service across the state. We in Hutchinson have been fortunate over the years and haven't been in desperate need for these funds, but they do help and we use them for their intended purpose - to raise the level of service we provide.

To return to the tipping point idea; the budget for State Aid has dropped from $2.7 million in 2002 to $1.7 million in 2011. The money is distributed based on population served, so it was never much for smaller communities anyway, but that small amount has shrunk by about 36% in less than a decade. The Legislature and the Governor have arrived at the moment where they need to decide if libraries are worth anything to Kansas.

Here's what a snapshot of library service means to Kansans on a daily basis. In one day:

39,037 people visited their local library (roughly 10.1 MILLION visits per year!)
75,827 items were checked out (roughly 19.6 MILLION loans per year!)
4,411 questions were answered
10, 859 people used the Internet (roughly 40% of those have no other Internet access)
1,945 people found help searching for a job (that is over 500,000 job searches per year!)

I suppose my point is, how else could you provide that amount of service for such a paltry sum? Granted, all of those libraries services are primarily supported by local tax dollars. Many small libraries rely on State Aid grants to provide that "extra" that helps some of those 500,000 job searches turn into job offers for the patrons they serve. The prime example of this is the statewide database subscriptions. Only the largest and strongest of our State's libraries could afford these on their own. Learning Express Library is one that many job seekers and students would sorely miss if the State Library couldn't fund it. It provides scores of practice tests for academic and occupational certifications.

If the State Library "tips"; if our State leaders cut more; they might as well cut the whole thing. There is a point at which a service becomes non-functional and the State Aid program is nearly there. When funds or manpower or delivery methods become so curtailed as to be a waste of the remaining money spent on it, a decision must be made. I would argue that in the tight budget they are looking at, the State should dump a few million EXTRA into the State Aid grant program and the state-wide database system. Many people are, quite clearly, using their libraries for help during our economic recovery. How better to lend a hand to people who are seeking out solutions to their problems? These are the motivated ones - give them a leg up instead of tripping them up. Libraries, especially public libraries can and will help them succeed.

So that's my rant-for-the-week. Thanks for indulging me.

Kansas Sesquicentennial Information

2011-01-26T13:36:00.000-06:00

One of the most interesting (to me at least) blog posts about Kansas' big birthday party coming up in less than a week now is this article from the Kansas State Library. The article lists all sorts of things that were happening in 1861 including links to articles on literature, music, and fashion of the day.

Kansas 150 program guide

The Hutchinson Public Library is celebrating Kansas' 150th with a series of "Adult Storytimes" designed to allow you to bring your brown-bag lunch and be read to (and discuss as well) while you have lunch. Here is a link to the upcoming dates and another to information about the upcoming TALK book discussion series "Kansas Literary Heritage" which features books about Kansas.

Click on the image to see what's coming up. We hope you will find a date that works in your schedule and you will join us for a different kind of storytime!

E-books and the library

2011-01-23T14:19:00.000-06:00

As the discussion around the concept of "e-books" develops and as e-books and e-book readers continue to evolve, articles like this one from CNET are beginning to appear. Here at HPL, we have been thinking about and testing e-book readers quite a bit in the past 2 months. The CNET article points out that one of the many things a person purchasing an e-reader must consider - will I want to borrow e-books from a library? Not all readers allow this, Amazon's Kindle being the most notable instance. Many others do, such as the Sony devices and the B&N Nook.

An e-book response

2011-01-21T10:01:00.000-06:00

In Thursday's (1/20/11) Hutchinson News, there was an article by AP writer Peter Svensson regarding libraries and e-books. I felt the need to respond because there appeared to me to be a need for some clarification.

The article starts with a comment about how libraries have been lending e-books longer than there has been a Kindle. That's a definite understatement! In fact, there's even an article in the August 1, 2000 Hutchinson News about Random House (the publisher) starting an e-only imprint. More to the point though, Mr. Svensson's article might have been a non-starter if he hadn't used so many modifiers and adjectives to make the tone SOOOOO dramatic. Numerous statements include phrases like, "...I'm sad to report..." or "Once you've figured out the system and are lucky enough to find a book..." He makes a big deal about how many onerous-sounding steps there are (3) to borrow an e-book from the library vs. buying one. In fact, step #1 is that to borrow an e-book from the library, you need (cue drum roll) - a library card!

However, while I might poke fun at the histrionics, I agree with Mr. Svensson more than I disagree regarding the actual borrowing process. His "step #2" (which should really be #1 - you already have a library card, right? :-) ) is a pet peeve of mine. Step #2 involves interacting with a service called OverDrive, to which the Hutchinson Public Library and the State Library both subscribe. This service, along with e-book publishers have created what I think is an overly-difficult borrowing process. You have to download their software and then get an Adobe ID (Mr. Svensson's step #3). These two steps can be daunting and the instructions are somewhat lengthy, albeit step-by-step. And if you have an Apple product such as an iPhone or an iPad, you have to add in the process of getting OverDrive to work with iTunes. In OverDrive's defense, once those steps are done, you never have to do it again and can borrow books at your leisure.

Mr. Svensson laments having to wait on a "hold" list for popular titles, but anyone who has ever used a library knows that that can happen - it's not news. And of course you have always been able to buy your own copy, no matter the format, if you just can't wait until your turn to borrow comes up. My last criticism is simply that I think Mr. Svensson expects library collections to have morphed into digital formats over night. Another of his laments is the relatively small selection of titles most libraries have. This is true - mostly because as formats have changed once again, libraries can shift only so many $$$ toward that format per year. Considering the real (most recent) blossoming of e-books has come in the last year to 18 months, it is not surprising that most libraries have relatively few e-books - so far.

I wanted to point out something Mr. Svensson doesn't discuss and that I think is far more significant: Libraries pay an "access fee" (in our case quarterly) to get to their own collections. I understand that a company has to make a profit. But the dirty little secret is, in my opinion, should we ever decide to cease our association with OverDrive, we lose access to the entire collection. In other words, OverDrive has figured out a way to turn audiobook and e-book "purchases" into "licenses". This to me is the most serious issue that needs to be addressed regarding e-books and libraries. The first issue makes a minor gripe of the fact that OverDrive also doesn't make it easy to expand your collection quickly. We often pay what is essentially the "paper" price for a title, not the $9.95 or $12.95 one pays for Kindle-format, non-lend-able e-books.

The best way to address that problem is for the users of the service to make their voices heard. Libraries have long been bastions of many things, among them; freedom of speech, access to information for all, and responsible treatment of intellectual property. Most importantly, libraries are often the first place an author finds exposure and a wider audience (read: more sales).

Ah, the sweet sounds of construction!

2011-01-19T16:11:00.000-06:00

Our little remodeling project is underway. Nothing major, just returning what was the "Rayl Reading Room" back to its original use. In the original 1949 plans, this space was set aside to be the place where you could go with your newspaper, magazine, or book, and read in relative peace and quiet. Apparently, you could also smoke in there as well!

Over the years as the library expanded, the space was used for many other things. For some time it was the microfilm room and most recently it was a staff workroom. Now though, we need a place that is quiet. So we have come full-circle and will return the space to a "quiet" reading room.

Today, we saw some samples for lounge chairs. These are the ones we are currently considering:

Sauder "Reflect"


Sauder "Cavetto"

Sauder "Planar"

What do you think? I didn't think I'd like a chair without arms, but the "Cavetto" chair was actually quite comfortable, and we saw the model that comes with a movable tablet arm attached, which was pretty cool. No matter which chair we pick, we'll hopefully be able to add more of them around the library as well. We'll also add a couple of these study carrels to the Quiet Room:

All in all, a good day for the library today, I think. Of course, I'll probably be singing a different tune when I start back in on the annual report tomorrow!

But there's always Friday, when we'll be meeting with a web designer to start talking about redesigning the HPL website!

A look back at 2010

2011-01-14T09:28:00.002-06:00

At the start of every year, we in Kansas libraries are required to fill out a report to the State Library of Kansas enumerating our various transactions for the year. The reporting process has improved tremendously over the past few years, becoming an easily-navigated online exercise in "filling in the blanks". I have begun to gather information about the past year and some interesting tidbits, not necessarily asked for in the state report, popped out. While there are lots of number below - I think they are worth a look as they reflect some of the hard work our staff does here.

First, our Children's Outreach program. run single-handedly by one of our GREAT Children's Department staff members had its best year ever. The original idea for the program was to reach children is preschools and daycare environments who might not otherwise get to the library. All I can say is that there has been a HUGE demand for the service. Amy went on 316 storytime trips outside the library with 6,967 attendees! WOW!

Out of our total collection of DVDs, 1,889 of them were checked out at least once. In fact, those 1,889 DVDs went out on average nearly 8 times each (14,340 circs).

Using our "Purchase vs. ILL" process we purchased instead of borrowed 665 items requested by our patrons. To put that in perspective, we process about 14,000 items per year to add to the collection. So about 5% of those new "things" were added as a direct result of our patrons simply asking.

So how much did we end up borrowing from other libriares on behalf of our patrons? 3,179 items came to us through Inter-Library Loan (ILL). We loaned other libraries 5,017 items throughout 2010. The courier service we now use carried 2,790 of the ILL items back to other libraries.

I know that was a long slog, but I think those are interesting numbers. There are many more for me to look at as I complete the State Report - coffee...must get coffee.

More work for librarians

2011-01-06T09:06:00.000-06:00

This is one of those personal not-quite-a-rant posts where I just have to get something out of my head so I can stop thinking about it for a bit. Feel free to stop reading after following this link to an excellent list of state resources regarding bullying and how to deal with it.

[rant]

If only there really were "rant" tags - maybe they would create bolded, all-caps text with too many exclamation points?

Librarians in general need (and perhaps are already receiving) a swift kick in the pants about their role in the world. Sometimes I feel like the world's information-sharing mechanisms have reverted to a digital version of the Dark Ages. Important information, collections, etc. are buried or isolated and simply cannot be found. In the Dark Ages this occurred because of, well, the collapse of western civilization causing the dissemination of knowledge to slow to a trickle. In the digital age this has occurred because the dissemination, at least, has become so simple there is a flood of knowledge overwhelming us.

A new idea? No. But we have to come to grips with it. Who is the "we"? Librarians. Our very purpose as "professionals" is to organize the collected knowledge of humankind and make it available. There are fantastic tools out there for this purpose. The ones designed for libraries are, with extremely few exceptions, either clunky, over-simplified, or over-complicated and hard to use. Why can't we get this right? From highly involved online catalogs that are intended to simply direct people to the best information in a building to federated search tools supposedly aggregating all the library's resources into one search box; library sites and products are only a few among many options and often not the best choices.

I think that a simple-to-use tool is needed that is backed by the expertise of librarians. Easy enough to say. Patently obvious, right? So, why doesn't it exist? Or if it does, why hasn't it supplanted the currently dominant tools out there? Sometimes I wish I were a Jeff Bezos-type. I thought at one time I was a visionary. Maybe I am to some extent, but I lack that whatever it is to make the "thing" happen. Often I feel like I spend too much time looking back to see what's coming and maybe that's the library world's problem.

[/rant]

Back to compiling statistics for the State Library annual report. Let's see how we did last year...HEY, wait a minute!

Year-end Lull

2010-12-29T14:46:00.000-06:00

Well, not really. There are lots of things in the works right now. For one, we are finishing up getting quotes for remodeling the reading room. I think it will be nice to restore what was the Rayl Reading Room to its original use. One of our staff members had a great idea for some wall coverings, the paneling from the old Civic Center building will look nice, and the furnishings chosen by the team are both sturdy and attractive.

Right now the Bru Crue coffee bar is closed for a much-deserved break (and year-end paperwork) but will open up again the first week of January to celebrate 1 year in business! Changes will be coming once again to our library food and drink policy in conjunction with some new possibilities for the coffee bar.

Oh, and then there is the little matter of re-aligning our people-power to be more in line with our long range goals of greater outreach, becoming more of a community meeting place, and greater continuing education.

Maybe I should take tomorrow off...

Quiet Room - FINALLY!

2010-12-20T15:19:00.000-06:00

As we near the end of 2010, we also near the end of the 2010 budget. The 2011 budget is slightly better and more importantly, the Friends of the Hutchinson Public Library have made a significant donation toward finally realizing the dream of a "quiet" reading space. For the past few days, I have been ushering through a series of our fine local builders describing the project. I am confident that we will have a new reading room early next year.

This room will occupy space that was originally (circa 1950) the "Rayl Reading Room". We'll have some comfortable chairs, some study tables and some peace and quiet for those who come here seeking a place to study undisturbed.

Holiday Cheer!

2010-12-15T11:03:00.000-06:00

As we roll along through the hectic Christmas season, with shopping, cooking and preparing for visiting family and friends, it is important to remember to occasionally pause and recharge. Regardless of religious alignment or political persuasion, it is easy to find some cheer and joy this time of year. For example, I spent part of Monday evening walking around the neighborhood with a baker's dozen of cub scouts and their adult partners looking at Christmas decorations and generally having a good (but cold) time. This activity cost nothing, was relaxing, and helped clear the mental clutter of the day. Plus a simple mug of cocoa afterward erased the chill.

Likewise, Monday I received several books I had placed on hold here at the library. Wowbrary, my favorite "what's new" tool rarely fails me. It's a weekly email newsletter that provides links to the library's catalog for all the new acquisitions from the previous week. It's like an insider's guide to all the cool new stuff HPL has added. If you participate, you can get your name near the head of the line and read / listen / watch the new stuff first!

My point though, was that I took those books home and as a break from holiday preparations, spent an hour reading. Cost me nothing (go public libraries!), I enjoyed the relaxation and learning, and helped me reset my priorities and slow down.

Which brings me to my final thought. If you are still working on holiday buying, the public library can even help you with that. We have been studying ebook readers here quite intensively and I can safely say that if you have the cash, the Sony Touch is a good choice. I haven't played with the Nook Color yet, but if it is like the B&W Nook, it would be a good one as well with the bonus that color allows for children's books and illustration-heavy (like graphic novels) books. If you are not in the financial position to buy just yet, or you haven't studied it thoroughly enough, come by and our staff can provide you with guidance. The bottom line for me is that I want people to read. I don't care the format, I don't care about the content. I firmly believe that reading only expands our experience and knowledge and increases our collective curiosity, creativity and ultimately our productivity.

EBook Update

2010-12-08T14:56:00.001-06:00

Here is some interesting news about getting borrowed (OverDrive) ebooks on to your Apple device. I think this sort of work-around style solution will be the norm until some level of standard acceptance comes about for ebooks. Here is an article providing some food for thought if you are in the market for a reader currently. The which-do-I-buy article deals with only a small number of the readers available, leaving out for example, interesting new color readers like the Pandigital Novel.

Another good resource page about ereaders produced by the North East Kansas Library System, a regional library support organization.

EBook Survey Done

2010-12-07T10:27:00.001-06:00

[EDIT: 4:00PM] 5 responses fell - literally - through the cracks and have now been added to the responses bringing to 116 the total number of surveys filled out.

The results are in from the month-long survey. Granted, the survey reached only people who already use the library. There were both paper and electronic versions collected, 116 responses in all. Here are the results:

28% of HPL patrons already own an ebook reader of some type.
62% of patrons responding "No" (do not own a reader) plan to purchase one in the near future.
81% of respondents indicated they would borrow ebooks from HPL if a collection were available.
85% of respondents stated that they would read high-demand titles in ebook format if that was what they received.

This gives me an indication, at least, that our two new initiatives deserve further exploration and action. First we will move forward testing the idea of using library-owned ebook readers to circulate extra copies of high-demand books. We would continue to purchase 1 or 2 paper copies and then fill demand with electronic copies loaded by staff on to the library's ebook readers.

Second, we will explore the options (which are surprisingly few) for download / borrowing services for ebooks so that patrons who already own readers can start borrowing their books from us. Frankly, the decision has been made for us at HPL, at least for the moment. Our service for downloadable audiobooks, OverDrive, seems to have their hooks in us. They offer (according to their website) about 100k audiobook, music, video and ebook titles. We can begin purchasing ebook titles immediately from them.

We may also look into Netlibrary which offers (again, according to their website) 146k PDF format downloadable books in a variety of genres.

Bad decisions

2010-12-03T08:26:00.000-06:00

There are bad decisions, and then there are bad decisions. And then...there are decisions that make you stop and scratch your head. Here's one of the latter: Stealing from the public library.

I realize that we are experiencing hard times in our country and in our community. And these are exactly the times when the public library's considerable collection of information and entertainment are most needed. What I can't understand is why, when we are set up expressly to let people - for free - take our stuff home with them, would they choose to try and steal it instead.

Unfortunately, this is a real problem. Occasionally, as was the case today, we catch the person in the act and are able to recover our materials. As it turns out, the person trying to steal was a patron whose record was blocked due to non-payment of a fairly large number of fines. As I told the police officer, I think what people don't know is that we are really friendly, empathetic people who will do everything we can to help a person pay off their fines and get back to using the library.

The bottom line for us is (as is almost always the case) a financial one. We will have to continue to invest more in security and technology in order to keep the materials we have available for our citizens to use. We will continue to beef up our monitoring of certain collections and areas of the library instead of simply buying more materials to loan. A real shame. The poor decisions of a few always end up punishing the rest of us.

Ebook survey preliminary responses

2010-12-01T08:15:00.004-06:00

So far, there have been over 100 responses to our survey about the possibilities for ebooks at the Hutchinson Public Library. As far as surveys go, that's quite a large number for us without even working to drum up responses.

Here's a summary of the responses so far:

29% of the respondents already own an ebook reader of some sort, while 71% do not.
55% of respondents indicated they will be buying a reader this year or next, while 27% indicated they had no plans to buy one.
83% of respondents indicating they already owned or would be buying an ebook reader stated that they would borrow ebooks from HPL were they available.
86% of respondents indicated they didn't care what format they received (paper or ebook) as long as it helped shorten holds lists.
6% of respondents did not want to use an ebook reader at all.

What does this information mean for us? The raw numbers indicate that the opinion of the HPL users is we should move forward with the experiment. However, I am worried about some of the comments in the "tell us your opinion about ebooks" area at the end of the survey. Not because they are negative. On the contrary, the comments are quite positive. But there is a lot of misunderstanding about how ebook checkout will work here. Chief among these is that it is clear people do not understand that buying a Kindle ties them to purchase books from Amazon. There is nothing inherently wrong with this, but people will be disappointed when they are unable to checkout ebooks from the library because of the reader they have chosen.

Here is a quick comparison of "major" name ebook readers and their abilities (detailed comparison here):

Sony Pocket Edition - .epub, .html, .pdf, .txt files, plus compatible with the Library's OverDrive service.
B&N nook - .epub, .pdb, .pdf, .mp3, plus compatible with the Library's OverDrive service.
Pandigital Novel - .epub support, plus compatible with the Library's OverDrive service.
Amazon Kindle - .azw support NOT compatible with the Library's OverDrive service.
Apple iPad - .... .epub, .pdf support NOT compatible with the Library's OverDrive service.

Interesting to note, the Pandigital and Apple devices have color screens which would be ideally suited to viewing things like children's picture books. With the variety of formats, proprietary systems battles, and the enormous number of devices just on the horizon, this roiling sea of choices is what we must navigate.

State-wide talks

2010-11-19T06:51:00.003-06:00

I suppose you could accuse me of being old-fashioned. Although I have Skype, access to multiple online conferencing services, chat, email, etc. I still think there is value in a face-to-face meeting. Even when that meeting requires a several-hours drive as is almost always the case in our state, there is value. On Monday the State Librarian, Jo Budler, held a second meeting for the directors of the "larger" public libraries - those that serve populations of 20k-100k - here at HPL.

We covered a number of topics including updates to discussions from our first meeting back in August at the Topeka Shawnee County Library. The discussions could be held, of course, through a variety of the aforementioned media and they often are. In fact, we heard a presentation from an OCLC (library cooperative) representative about a state-wide library marketing campaign using Webex and Skype.

The thing you do not get from distance-meeting tools though is the opportunity to see the (in this case) other libraries, staff, and towns. It makes a difference. It helps put things in context and at least for me, brings better understanding.

And finally, it was interesting to discover that Hays Public Library is contemplating a change similar to what we are thinking about here. EBooks are not ubiquitous yet, but they will be at some point soon. Rather than fearing the changes they may bring to public libraries, we need to grab them up and use them for the advantages they can provide.

Public Service

2010-11-15T12:06:00.005-06:00

Here it is, another Saturday afternoon at the Information Desk at HPL. Every third weekend rolls around quickly. Right now it seems fairly quiet, but it is noon and we have National Gaming Day activities starting at 2pm. Lots of people, my wife included, think that my helping cover at the desks on weekends is crazy. Afterall, I am the director and "I don't have to if I don't want to", right? Actually, I think that is exactly wrong. If there were more hours in the week, I'd actually work more public service time at places other than just the Information Desk. It's the best way to find out what our patrons are concerned about, what our staff is challenged with, and generally, how well we are doing our job.

What is working well? I, for one, am using the Reference Dept. iPad all the time. What a time-saver to be standing out in our far-flung stacks checking availability or similar titles, or completely different topics without having to traipse back to a catalog terminal.

What isn't working well? Our roof, for one. The rain from late Thursday through Friday found a couple of new weaknesses. So it is probably "out to bid" for us on that. Electrical plugs and seating are another area we could really work to improve.

As I look over the top of the monitor, I see a patron looking puzzled so no more time for idle blogging - off to help.

More Prairie Book Festival Press

2010-11-13T08:29:00.003-06:00

The goodwill shown to the library for hosting the Prairie Book Festival back in September has really been fantastic. A State Library News post featured articles about the PBF, the book festivals in Iola and Osborne, and a nice bit on the Lisa Dale Norton memoir workshop (also held here at the Hutchinson Public Library). If nothing else, all the planning and effort that went into the Festival has come back to us in the form of awareness-raising publicity. "Stuff" actually does go on in that enormous beige brick building on Main Street!

I am looking forward to next year with a mix of excitement and dread. Excitement around the idea that we might produce an improved festival for Hutchinson; dread regarding how much work it is to pull off! It is worth it though. It really was a lot of fun and I think a worthy project for the Library. We are, after all, dedicated to reading. I think you can build enthusiasm for reading and education by providing opportunities to get "up close" and hear from those talented folks who write. Lots of fun - thanks again to everyone who helped make it a success and we hope to see you next year!

What to do about "those few"

2010-11-10T15:20:00.001-06:00

I have always held that rules for public places (like libraries) punish the honest users rather than deter the few folks the rules are meant to control. In libraries, none is more basic than trying to hold patrons accountable for items they have checked out and never returned. I am not talking about the person with $3 in overdue fines, but the few patrons at the other end of the spectrum. At HPL we have an elaborate system of warnings, notices, and finally a collection agency to try and retrieve our materials from a relatively small number of folks who, for whatever reason, feel like they can check things out of the library and never return them.

Having been a public librarian for quite some time now, I have heard a tremendous variety of excuses from library users who just can't seem to get things back and checked in. The excuses run the gamut from denying ever having "that book" in the first place to having returned items in the drop box, "so they are here somewhere", trying to make it the libraries fault. These situations usually involve one or two items and rarely amount to any significant money. But what really gets me are that small (but expensive) group who decide at some point to deliberately check out a large quantity of items, usually in a narrow subject range, with no intention of ever bringing them back.

What to do about this group then? They don't respond to collection agency coercion. They don't seem to acknowledge any sort of correspondence at all, polite, threatening, or otherwise. Small claims court is an option in Kansas since library materials are included in a state statute covering property crime, I would assume specifically for this type of problem.

This seems like a reasonable solution since there appears to be no other effective method of trying to "get our stuff back". Though, it brings with it a whole array of publicity issues that would have to be considered. It doesn't look quite right when the library starts hauling people in to court over some missing books. But the patrons I am thinking of have hundreds of dollars worth of our materials. I suppose it comes down to what would be considered acting as a "good steward" of tax dollars. After all, people who steal from the public library are really stealing from from all of us.

E-books and e-book readers for lending bestsellers

2010-11-03T08:00:00.007-05:00

Recently, one of my colleagues here at HPL made a good case for e-books and e-readers as circulating items at our library. The general idea: Why not purchase any extra copies of upcoming bestsellers in e-format and load them on circulating e-readers? We already have a terrible overcrowding problem in our adult fiction collection especially. Many times, we are forced to move extra copies into our basement storage area. This practice means extra steps (literally) for staff to retrieve books and extra wait time for patrons. The purchase of a number of readers - maybe Nooks or Sonys could solve this (I don't think Amazon's Kindle would cut it for this purpose, although I could be wrong).

Certainly, the devices are individually more pricey than a hardback book. But it wouldn't take many copies of bestselling titles to get up into the $149-$199 range. The readers could hold a large number of titles and take up a minuscule amount of space. We could begin to thin out our "overflow" storage and beef up our ability to meet immediate demand. Sure, we take a risk that the readers might be damaged or never return, but we take that risk with books, DVDs, and CDs hundreds of thousands of times per year. Hmm...sounds like a new project.

What is it about shelf reading?

2010-10-30T10:00:00.001-05:00

For over a year, the most popular post I have written has been this one. It is a bit of my waxing poetic about shelf reading, of all things. This is one of the few posts that draws in random readers from all over the place. (Not very many readers, but readers nonetheless!) But why do people look at that post? It's not like there is a dearth of information about "shelf reading".

So, since I needed to think about this, I got up from my desk and went out to get my thinking in order...shelf reading. The more I think about this, the more I wonder if people really are just wondering from what sort of insanity I must be suffering.

Looking at some of the Google results for "shelf reading" like this guide to stack management, there is a lot of information out there pertaining to shelf reading. While most of the info I found is far more informative than my info, none of it makes it sound like more than a necessary evil. I suppose for that reason, I'm proud of my two cents on the subject, regardless of why others might look at it. I still believe shelf reading is interesting and fun besides being one of the most useful tasks to undertake in a library.

By the way - I know that people have bad days. I know too that times are hard, nerves frayed and confidence sapped. But why the spate of people being rude to our public service staff? We try hard to please. We don't ask much of you. Simple things really: Be respectful of others using the library. That includes being patient with the staff and our contracting partners. We are thinly spread and as a group, not the most highly-compensated. For the most part we all do what we do because we like the idea of the library, not because we're getting rich. So by all means, let us know where we need to improve but please be civil.

E-book changes...sort of

2010-10-26T15:05:00.001-05:00

[EDIT: 10/27]
I read this weekend that Amazon is allowing the lending of Kindle e-books. My first thought was, "Really? Because they have been really tight-fisted about content control to date." So, as I read a bit further into the CNET article I had stumbled across and found the "gotcha". Mainly what they are allowing, for some but not all e-books, is the opportunity to share a book once, as in "only once...ever".

Honestly, I find this whole new wave of the e-book to be quite frustrating. It isn't that I'm secretly shedding tears at the impending death of paper books (if that even happens). It is mostly that I can't stand the fact that just like software, if we aren't careful, we will no longer "own" the books we buy. We will license a copy. That's really what Amazon et.al. are doing - they are selling licenses to "intellectual property" produced by writers. Regardless of the fate of libraries or even used book shops, the idea that a book MUST be purchased each time in order to be shared is not healthy for for authors, readers, or I think even publishers, (though it might help a small percentage of bottom lines).

My personal experience with reading (especially fiction), new authors, and book-buying has been one that, with very few exceptions, has gone like this: Someone directs me to a title or an author they have read. I borrow that persons copy or go to the library and check it out. If I like the author, I look for more and often buy and also recommend to others. Very rarely will I go out and buy a book on recommendation. Perhaps I'm cheap. Perhaps I've read too much so-so writing. Perhaps I "just don't get it". I am not sure. I am sure that I still don't think the ebook concept is fully fleshed out.

UPDATE: I read this interesting article in Consumerist this morning, posted on a library email list. Basically, another problem with using your e-reader for anything other than viewing "licensed" material. Again, it sounds like I am anti-ebook when I am not. But there are some major issues to be aware of along with some fundamental questions that need to be answered before I feel comfortable with e-books becoming a major medium.

Book Review - Peter Watts' Blindsight

2010-10-12T15:13:00.000-05:00

A friend of mine, Jake, who has read more than just about anyone I know, recommended this book. It is a fascinating tale of first alien contact where a little way in, one gets a foreboding sense that the main characters have already lost the game before their journey to the meet-up even began. Watts is definitely in the Stephen Hawking camp when it comes to alien contact.

The main characters are interesting folks - humans carved up, reshaped, and reworked as sort-of super humans plus one vampire. Despite my being thoroughly tired of the much-abused vampire as a character, I thought Blindsight was a great book with a great vampire. Peter Watts (not, as Wikipedia takes pains to point out, the Peter Watts of Mott the Hoople fame) writes hard science fiction that includes a great yarn and many good turns of phrase allowing someone like me the luxury of not worrying too much about failing to understand all the deep science-y stuff. After all, I am just a humble librarian. Even the appendix on the "origin" of vampires was so heavily cited with actual studies that it seems like a reasonable idea that we'd send one on a space voyage to meet aliens.

Blindsight came out in 2006, so I feel a little behind the curve. Now I'm going to go back and try out Starfish, Watts' first novel from 2000. Anyway, I would recommend Blindsight if you like a good hard science sci-fi tale. Plus there's this to look forward too.

Prairie Book Festival

2010-09-28T09:11:00.001-05:00

Nearly an entire month without a post - shame on me! I use this blog to get crazy ideas out of my head, mull, blather on, etc. Lately though, it seems like I haven't even had time to type for 15 minutes. My excuse is that we have had a tremendous amount of projects going at the Hutchinson Public Library, the main one for me being the Prairie Book Festival which happened this past Saturday. This was the inaugural PBF and we hope there will be more to come. The Hutchinson News had a nice write-up for us on Sunday.

We had a good crowd for a first-time event, despite this:

A nice line of windy, hail-making storms!

The storms arrived around 2:45-3pm and closed down our vendor area a little early, but we moved the remaining authors inside, relocated the storyteller to the storytime room, moved the music into the circulation area and carried right on to the end.

I truly appreciate all of our hard-working staff, volunteers, our great Friends of the Library group, and especially our Prairie Book Festival steering committee - many members of which fall in more than one of the groups mentioned! They did a fantastic job and produced something great upon which we can build.

Here are a few of the photos taken throughout the day:

Author Carol Murray

Author Jim Hoy

Under the Author Tent


The Anthony Panek Group playing jazz

Book Festival, Reviews and ... Other

2010-09-01T08:33:00.000-05:00

Less than one month to go! The Prairie Book Festival has been getting a lot of great press - thank you Hutchinson News!

I just finished up the Dalai Lama's, Toward a True Kinship of Faiths subtitled How the World's Religions Can Come Together. It was a fairly fast read and the points made are, in my opinion, spot on. The similarities in the world's major religions on which the Dalai Lama focuses revolve around compassion for fellow man. He goes on to show how it is possible to recognize other faiths as valid while remaining true to one's own faith.

Not quite a week ago, I (along with several other library directors) met with the new State Librarian of Kansas, Jo Budler, to discuss several issues of importance to libraries. Among our discussion points were the state's downloadable audio books program, the state-wide database selection, and the possibilities for future collaboration in other areas. Mainly, I was glad to see an interest in consensus building at the state level - something that has been sorely lacking in my opinion the few years I have been here. It seems that there might be some interest among the directors of similar-sized libraries to continue meeting on a regular basis, either in person or through electronic means. This too was welcome news to me as, again, I know that I can benefit as a director from collaboration and sharing of information.

"The Web" and "The Internet" aren't the same?

2010-08-18T10:57:00.000-05:00

Nope. They aren't. The Internet has been around much longer than the World Wide Web, of "www" fame. The Internet can be thought of as the nuts and bolts - the hardware - that makes the Web possible. The web is a protocol, a way of transferring information using the Internet. While the Web dominated for a while, it was never the only means of transferring information on the Internet and now its dominance is clearly on the wane.

I usually avoid Wired articles, but this one is a good summary of what has happened in the past few years. The world of the web browser is waning ( I love alliteration!) As the wired article points out, we use the Internet - the wires, routers, servers and other hardware - more than ever. But we use them with specialized tools for specific purposes. This is an interesting development for libraries, I think.

It lends a sense of urgency, in my opinion, to the library discussions about how to serve the mobile users in our service areas. Tools like Seattle Public Library's catalog app will be a "must have" for local libraries. I think we'll have to come up with something for HPL soon!

The other area of concern I see; one that will hit libraries in the pocketbook, is dealing with online published content. This article talks about the issues much more succinctly than I can and probably more clearly. Basically, the Web equals wide-open anything-goes forum and the tailored app-based model equals controlled revenue generation, which is the obvious choice for media outlets.

I guess the real question is not, "What happens to the Web?" but looking ahead, "How do we deal with an apps-based online world and what's going to come after that?"

Reading is alive in Hutchinson

2010-08-16T13:57:00.000-05:00

While we haven't quite reached the deadline for turning in completed reading logs for the children's program, all the programs this summer were among the best for us in the last 5 years. We had 1,339 children signed up and 507 of them have turned in completed logs with 2 weeks remaining in the program. The requirement for completion is 10 books, so that means over 5,000 books were read in June and July!

When you add in the YA (young adult) and adult reading programs, with 550 and 600+ books recorded respectively, HPL readers were reading (in a verifiable way) at a rate of 102.5 books per day during the reading programs.

I know there were many thousands more books checked out during those months, but I am heartened that reading remains such a strong pastime. Quite a body of research, such as this 3-year study, suggest that simply giving books to children (and allowing them to choose topics that interested them) is less expensive and potentially more effective than summer school.

Imagine all the students who could be helped by combining the forces of the public school systems and the well-established, strong summer programs offered for free at public libraries. After all, our summer storytimes (there were 32 of them) averaged 55 children per session.

Pirates!

2010-08-09T17:11:00.000-05:00

I just finished reading Scurvy Goonda by Chris McCoy. This is a good middle school-level fantasy yarn about imaginary friends, real friends, bacon, a pirate (the title character), and the role of imagination in the lives of children. I am not a reader of YA fiction by choice, but being married to a children's librarian I am exposed to a lot of it. This one is pretty good. Of course, I am quite partial to pirates and who doesn't love bacon? Anyway, I would recommend this book.

I think this book came to my wife's attention via Wowbrary. If you haven't tried this service, it is free and sends you a weekly round-up via email of all the new things the library has acquired the previous week. There are links directly to the library's catalog so that you can place holds on the new items right away. If you want to sign up and try it out, just click the link above and enter 67501 in the zip code box.

The Budget (cue ominous background music)

2010-07-27T13:52:00.000-05:00

Summer, a season filled with vacations, outdoor activity, fun, and sadly for me, budgeting. However, for the first time in 2 years, I don't feel like we'll be cutting. Instead, I think the benefit of the cuts and economizing we have made over the past 2 1/2 years are finally serving us well. Currently, it looks like our mill levy will stay flat. But for the first time in two budget cycles we won't be cutting. Plus, the three critical issues facing us will be addressed; building maintenance, the library's collection, and staff compensation.

We have held steady and made do with what we had in a way that public libraries have perfected over the years. While that honed sense of thrift might be worn like a badge of honor, it is no pleasant achievement. With our building showing its age, some "must do" repairs can be put off no longer. Rather than borrow money though, we have been socking away capital improvement funds and will do more of that in the 2011 budget. This strategy saves us from having to borrow for, and pay interest on, big expenses. We will tackle re-roofing the building and potentially replacing some older air conditioning units. We hope to be able to restore some of the funding that was reduced for library materials. And hopefully - hopefully - look at some better lighting in some of our stack areas.

The library's fiscal year is the calendar year, so we still have 6 months of scrimping to go, but when things look dark, stories like this always seem to pop up in my reading. These two interesting articles have shown up in the news lately and I'd like to share them. This first article is a rebuttal to a Fox Chicago news story about public libraries. The Chicago Library Commissioner's response is the most polite dressing-down I've read in some time - bravo! The second article poses an interesting question - could public libraries be poised to be the next big pop-culture wave? Maybe. Public libraries are as "local" as you can get and librarians do "know stuff" as the article says. Who knows. I like the idea of a TV show because that article writer is correct - there would be no lack of comical, head-scratching, "what the...?"-type material.

Storytimes and other stuff

2010-07-15T11:38:00.000-05:00

I was just downstairs checking in on this morning's storytime and got this picture:

The room was filled! Yesterday for craft day we had 134 children participating! I didn't really know what to expect for storytime today, but it looks like another successful program from our wonderful Children's Department staff. The summer programs this year have been really well-attended through the middle of July. I think that we will find at the end that this was one of the best years of the decade. I think that this is due in part to the effect of our outreach program to day care centers, but I also think that we get many return "customers" because of the fun programs our staff members create. Bravo to all of our Children's Department staff members!

We have so many things going on right now, I feel a bit like a side-show act. You know, the guy who is juggling a chainsaw, a bowling ball, a tennis ball, and an egg? That's what I feel like! I am NOT complaining, though. It is good that we have the opportunity to try new things and to make some needed changes.

Besides putting together the budget for 2011, we have been working on the Prairie Book Festival, the new quiet reading room, our roving reference experiment, and getting ourselves organized for participation in the Kansas Library Express courier.

If you are a fan of HPL on Facebook, you may also have noticed a nifty little post from Wowbrary this week. Wowbrary is an email newsletter service that sends out to subscribers a list of every new item HPL has added in the previous week. Now, if you are a fan on Facebook, you'll see a FB post every Wednesday linking to that list of new stuff. You can be the first to put new things on hold since Wowbrary provides convenient links directly to the items on our catalog system!

Craft Days Begin!

2010-07-07T13:21:00.003-05:00

We have a fun little activity going on this month. Every Wednesday our Children's Department does a come-and-go craft time. We've spent the better part of a month collecting all sorts of paper towel tubes, shoe boxes and a variety of other stuff. It's always a fun and chaotic time. Here are a few pictures from this morning's event after the big rush of kids:


Hard at work making rain sticks and sand art


The colored sand isn't all muddled together yet!


Rain sticks

Waterless fish tanks

Since we love to count things here in library world, this sort of activity is great because we will be able to count up how many of the craft kits were used and get an idea of how many children participated today ( apparently, we had 108 children who made rain sticks)!

In the coming weeks, we'll have lots of other programs and crafts to boast about. However, the biggest boast we have right now is the enormous number of children signed up for the most important part of this whole undertaking - the summer reading program. We are up to 1,134 children signed up to read 10 books or to read for 10 hours! Once the totals are in from the day care centers that are signed up, I think we'll have close to a record year. Why is that a big deal? Early childhood literacy is key to further success in school as the child grows.

Share what you are reading

2010-07-02T13:36:00.000-05:00

In this world of social networking, many people and organizations use all sorts of tools, like Facebook, twitter and many others to share information. The world of reading has a number of similar "niche" sites where readers can create an account and share with one another their reading, opinions about books, reviews, etc.

One such site, goodreads, is featured in the HPL 2010 Project. I like goodreads well enough, but the owner of the Bru Crue sent me an invite to Shelfari, which I have found to be easier to use, in my opinion. While I have not had the time to add in all of my favorite books, much less add reviews to them, I have been using it to keep track of my current reading. I like the slightly gimmick-y "bookshelf" display of the book covers in my Shelfari collection. I also like the nice step-through process for adding reviews, comments and tags to books I have read or am currently reading. Combined with Wowbrary weekly newsletters, a nice little service provided through the generosity of the Friends of the Hutchinson Public Library, I'm reading a lot more lately and actually having fun sharing my thoughts!

This reminds me - a colleague of mine and I were talking about forming a science fiction book club. I am inclined to do so if we find enough interest. I think a survey might be in order!

Happy Independence Day! Please be safe and have fun this weekend!

Kansas Library Express - Coming This Week!

2010-06-28T17:00:00.000-05:00

On July 1, HPL will become a stop on the Kansas Library Express (KLE) courier system. I know, "What the heck does that mean?" is surely what you are thinking. The KLE is a system set up to rapidly exchange library materials between Kansas libraries. A sort of turbo-charged inter-library loan (ILL) system. There are about 240 of the 600+ Kansas libraries on the fledgling system so far. HPL will be able to send and receive books and other material from those libraries with a much faster turn around than by using USPS book rate delivery.

What does that mean for the patrons of the library? It means that if we can borrow something from a participating library, once ordered through the ILL system, that "something" will arrive within a day or two. For staff, it means (hopefully) an easier way to ship library material back and forth. From my point of view, I hope both of those things happen plus I hope HPL saves a little money on postage. Time will tell for all those things, so please bear with us as we test out the new system.

Sun-baked brain

2010-06-18T16:29:00.002-05:00

I have recently returned from a vacation - a much needed vacation. In fact, since I did not really start to unwind until a couple of days into the vacation, I would have gladly taken another 2 days off at the end. Alas, duty called and I returned to work instead. One of the onerous modern-day chores of "getting back to work" is going through all the figuratively piled up email, Google Reader feeds, etc. As I did this, I came across an interesting blog post at In the Library with the Lead Pipe. Basically, it is a musing about what librarians really are these days. The best point made, I think, is that we seem to know more what we aren't rather than what we are. This is quite true, in my opinion. Librarians have worked feverishly to shed the stereotype of the uptight, bun-wearing, bespectacled keeper of quiet. But we have yet to come up with an distinct new identity. And in the meantime, though we are still masters of navigating what is now a torrent of information, we seem to have lost the acknowledgment of that authority and skill by the general public.

Somewhat related to that article, but not entirely: Right now we are making transformations on many fronts at HPL. Most of them are not showy. A few of them will be visible, but not in the "Hey look at that shiny new ______ that wasn't there before!" Many of them have to do with the changing role of the library and the job of "librarian". One of the visible ones is the changing "Information Desk" area. Over the next weeks and months, this area and the function of the librarians staffing it will be changing. We are focusing more on assisting patrons where they are, rather than making them come to a desk and feel as if they are interrupting our "work". In fact, our work at the Information Desk has always been to be the spot to get a quick answer. We have had varying degrees of success with that, so we are trying something different.

What's a summer time post without pictures from Summer Reading programs? Nothing, I say! Here's a picture of me reading Roger, the Jolly Pirate as part of this week's pirate-themed story time: