Return of the Self-Check

It seems like it has been forever, but it has only been a bit more than 12 weeks since the self-check machines nearly simultaneously gave up the ghost. When you are looking for a tool that costs anywhere from $10-18,000 per unit, you want to take your time. The main thing we wanted to do when it came to replacing them was to find reliable machines for a good price. I know that we have done the latter, since we are getting two machines for the price of one of many other brands. However, for the time being we will have to wait and see on the former. All indications point to a good solid machine with good support and repair turn-around time. Here's a drawing of what they'll look like:

They are much smaller than the old self-checks, and use a touchscreen for input. They will have a small printer attached for receipts, but beyond that they are barely larger than a 19" LCD monitor. One of the best features is that they connect directly to our new Polaris catalog system so that you can access your patron account directly from the self-check.

We will have the machines set up in the next few weeks, in time for the upcoming summer reading programs.

Visit by Nancy Pickard

Wow! We had a great turnout for the programs put on by mystery author Nancy Pickard this past weekend. Her writer's workshop was attended by 18 local authors. Monday night's author talk was attended by about 28 people. It is heartening to me that Hutchinson is such a supportive place for the arts. We have a fantastic Art Center, the Fox Theater, and many music and live performance options. I would like to continue to build the reputation of HPL as the place to go to learn about the writers and the written word - it seems like a natural fit!

I know that the Friends of the Hutchinson Public Library, who sponsored Ms. Pickard's visit, like to bring authors to Hutchinson. I hope the Friends will continue to do so. Are there any authors you would like to hear? Perhaps a Kansas-based author or someone with ties to Kansas? Maybe an author of children's books, or westerns, or science fiction for a change of pace? Please leave a comment below if you have an idea or opinion. No matter what, we will continue to cultivate relationoships with authors we meet and try to have as many as we can afford visit Hutchinson to share their perspectives.

Friends Book Sale - Bargains Galore!

Once again the Friends of the Hutchinson Public Library will be holding a big book sale in the library basement. This semi-annual event offers some great bargains to book lovers from all around, April 2-4.

If you purchase a membership in the Friends organization, you can come for the special "Friends Night" and be among the first to have a crack at the items for sale the evening of April 2nd, 5:30-8pm. Friday, April 3rd the sale is open to the general public 9am-5pm. The final day of the sale is Saturday, April 4th from 9am-4pm. This last day is traditionally "sack day" where each sack you fill costs only $1!

There are few opportunities that I know of where you can get such bargains on books as you will find at this sale. Please come by and browse, I am positive you will not be disappointed!

Coffee, Tea, or Milk?

The library is set once again for a period of change. Last October we ventured into new territory by offering beverages and snacks in the library. We did a lot of research and talked to other libraries offering this service, but you never really know about something until you try it for yourself. This was new territory for our contractor too and, unfortunately for us, she has decided that the coffee business might not be for her.

I have to say that I am disappointed, especially since we are moving the kiosk to a new, more prominent spot in the library. But we have advertised for a new contractor and I am hopeful that we will have a coffee bar in the Library on a permanent basis.

One of the difficulties we have run into is knowing when to have refreshments available and what type of refreshments those should be. So, what do you think? If you are a user of the library, tell us what you would like. If you aren't a user of the library, tell us what you treat yourself to at the bookstore. Maybe we can offer something similar and save you some money on books too!

Do you like a good mystery?

HPL is participating in the state-wide reading project for 2009, "Kansas Reads: The Virgin of Small Plains" by Nancy Pickard [read about the project here]. The Friends of the Hutchinson Public Library have graciously agreed to sponsor a visit by the author here at the library on March 22nd and 23rd. Ms. Pickard is the author of sixteen popular novels, many critically acclaimed. You can read more about her here.

Ms. Pickard will lend her expertise from 2pm to 4pm on the 22nd in a writer's workshop. If you are a writer, published or not, and wish to participate, call Annette at (620)663-5441 ext. 132 to reserve a spot for this great opportunity.

The 7pm March 23rd event is a more traditional "author talk" where Ms. Pickard will discuss her books and interact with the audience. Both the writer's workshop and the author talk will take place in the library's auditorium on the 2nd floor.

I hope you will take advantage of this visit, whether you are an author or a fan of mysteries or simply enjoy reading and want to meet someone who makes that possible.

Polaris - A Guiding Star?

The Hutchinson Public Library is in the midst of quite a big transition. You wouldn't know it necessarily, unless you tried to put a book on hold in the past few days, or tried to renew an item on line.

What we are doing is changing what has become the very foundation for every modern library, our "automation system" or from the user's perspective I suppose, the "computer catalog". This is the computerized system that allows us to do everything from keeping track of our new book orders to cataloging, finding, and checking them out to you, our users.

Our trusty old system called "Horizon" had fallen prey to the same situation as Microsoft's Windows XP - it was no longer slated for improvement, rather it was slated for replacement. The new system we have chosen is called Polaris. Polaris offers many searching improvements and a strong staff-use component and is backed by a company committed to serving public libraries specifically.

We hope that you will like the new Polaris system. I hope you will bear with us while we switch over. After March 5th, please ask any of our staff members for a "tour" of the new system or just give it a try, Polaris is quite user friendly!

Libraries in The News

A very good article about library use in hard economic times appeared in the Hutchinson News on Monday. Kathy Hanks spoke to several librarians, myself included, about what they were seeing on the “front lines”. While HPL was only briefly mentioned, we are seeing some of the same effects here in Hutchinson.

Instead of dwelling on the bad times and worrying about the future in this post, I am going to share some of the current goings-on at HPL. These are things that we do all the time.

Kids can come to the library and “Read to Rover” once a month. (March 12 from 6-7 will be the next opportunity). Your child can select a favorite book and share it with a canine friend from the Hutchinson Kennel Club’s group of therapy dogs.

Teens and young adults can game in the library, everything from board games to Wii and PS3, at our next gaming day on March 7 from 12-4 pm.

Right now, the Hutchinson Public Library is at the start of its spring adult reading program, details here. This is something we do every year to promote reading, good economy or bad!

We also participate in a cool program put on by the Kansas Humanities Council. With the TALK About Literature in Kansas program, participating libraries pick a genre and then hold book discussions led by Kansans with some expertise either in the genre or the particular title for which they lead the book talk. This spring we have “The Best of the West”. The details are on our website.

One of our favorite things to do at HPL is to have authors visit and talk about writing, getting published, or simply tell us about what their latest project might be. In March – the 22nd and 23rd – the author Nancy Pickard will be at HPL to give both a writer’s workshop AND an author talk.

If you are trying to save money or simply looking for something relaxing and different to do, stop by, get a cup of tea or coffee at our coffee bar, “The Reader’s Cup”, and browse the stacks, view the art on display in the auditorium, or attend one of our many programs. Find info about everything I’ve mentioned on our website, or give us a call.

Maybe I am biased, but public libraries are great uses of public money. And librarians, because they often have to work with tight budgets, try to make that money really work for you.