Saturday, August 30, 2014
Daily Thoughts 08/30/2014
Daily Thoughts 08/30/2014
I am on vacation right now. I am in Seattle taking care of some personal things. I spent eight hours on an airplane on Thursday. I finished a book, The Circle by Dave Eggers which was an interesting warning about what could happen if social media got completely out of hand.
I also read another novel, The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin. It was a novel about a bookseller before the age of the internet and e-books. A.J. Fikry is the classic slightly grumpy old fashioned bookseller. He adopts a baby which is left in his store. There are many very literary references throughout the book. Each chapter begins with a summary of a classic work. It was very enjoyable reading this novel.
I bought a book in the airport bookstore when I was in Atlanta on a stopover. It is an action spy novel by Mark Sullivan called Outlaw. The story is a fairly pure piece of fantasy. Mark Sullivan cowrote a few books with James Patterson.
I have not been doing a lot of reading.
Wednesday, August 27, 2014
Daily Thoughts 08/27/2014
Daily Thoughts 08/27/2014
I checked the Facebook and Twitter pages for the library.
I am reading more of The Circle by Dave Eggers. I rather like some of the slogans in the book, Secrets are Lies, Sharing is Caring, and Privacy is Theft. The last statement is a reminder to me that your personal information is valuable to corporations and hiding it from public view is a way to protect a private asset. There is also a bit on the idea of the slogan Information Wants to Be Free in this book. This is a famous quite from the open source software movement. This is a Wikipedia article on the statement. In this case Wikipedia in some embodies the statement.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Information_wants_to_be_free
Tuesday, August 26, 2014
Daily Thoughts 08/26/2014
Daily Thoughts 08/26/2014
I checked the library Twitter and Facebook this morning.
I read some more of The Circle by Dave Eggers. It is about an imaginary social media company that tries to encompass everything, remove transparency, and collect all information they can on everything. Mae Holland, the main character in the book is a member of the customer experience team that joins the company. She soon finds she has not just joined but has to become a complete member of the community with little outside life.
This book is fascinating. It draws on ideas like the social graph which is total graph of everyones connections on the internet. So What the Heck is the 'Social Graph' Facebook Keeps talking about. http://www.businessinsider.com/explainer-what-exactly-is-the-social-graph-2012-3
The book also touches on the concept of the transparent society where there is no privacy which many people consider a social good. It is a very uncomfortable idea. The Transparent Society by David Brin http://archive.wired.com/wired/archive/4.12/fftransparent_pr.html
I was at the library today. I went in for a meeting to discuss the library survey.
Web Bits
The Guardian View on the Loss of Public Libraries
Libraries Remain In Demand
http://cumberlink.com/news/local/libraries-remain-in-demand/article_9bd03f5e-2afe-11e4-b8db-001a4bcf887a.html
These Scorpions Are Probably Hiding In Your Book Case
http://sploid.gizmodo.com/these-scorpions-are-probably-hiding-in-your-bookcase-1603071952
These Scorpions Are Probably Hiding In Your Book Case
http://sploid.gizmodo.com/these-scorpions-are-probably-hiding-in-your-bookcase-1603071952
Monday, August 25, 2014
Daily Thoughts 08/25/2014
Daily Thoughts 08/25/2014
I read a little bit more of Dave Eggers, The Circle Today.
I also checked the library Twitter and Facebook pages.
Web Bits
Hard Books for Hard Times Literary
Experimentation Gains Popularity
How Streaming Media Could Threaten
the Mission of Libraries
Sunday, August 24, 2014
Daily Thoughts 08/24/2014
Daily Thoughts 08/24/2014
I checked the Twitter and Facebook for the library.
I also finished reading No Place to Hide Edward Snowden and the U.S. Surveillance State by Glenn Greenwald. The last part of the book writes about what happens when journalists step outside the boundary of traditional journalism into grey areas like state surveillance, espionage, and direct challenges to government. It describes how Glenn Greenwald became a target for smear campaigns and questions about his ethics.
There were some things that bothered me about this book. It came across as polemical and purposefully partisan as well as aimed at creating a point. There was not the slightest attempt at appearing to be unbiased. There were parts of the book that I felt were questionable. I especially did not like that Glenn Greenwald put the index for the book and the notes on a separate website http://www.glenngreenwald.net This made it appear less authoritative. I do not want to have to download content.
I started reading Dave Eggers, The Circle. One of our patrons checked out Dave Egger's autobiography which had a great title, A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius which sounded interesting.
There was also this recent article. Dave Eggers: Don't Write Off Publishing Yet http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/books/dave-eggers-dont-write-off-publishing-yet-20140822-1068fw.html
Friday, August 22, 2014
Daily Thoughts 08/22/2014
Daily Thoughts 08/22/2014
On the way to work, I read some more of No Place to Hide. The author is on the left and is very much a privacy advocate. The details in the account describe near total surveillance in the United States of the major telephone carriers and internet companies. Glenn Greenwald also describes how surveillance of international internet companies like Facebook, Google, and Twitter extend surveillance to outside the United States. Glenn Greenwald includes many images of Edward Snowden's documents. This book has a lot of controversial content in it.
I checked the Twitter and Facebook for the library this morning. I also checked the gifts and displays. I spent a little time working on schedules and programming. There is a lot of potentially interesting author programming. Larry Spruill and Donna Jackson have written a new book coming out on September 15, 2014 called Mount Vernon Revisited.
I have Gmail training today in the computer lab from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. I spent some time organizing my email and contacts.
I spent a little more time working with the books on Africa. I also started working on a presentation for the board on my department.
A letter in support of Carolyn Karwoski in the Mount Vernon Inquirer
http://www.mvinquirer.com/all-of-mt-vernon-should-applaud-carolyn-karwoski.html
Web Bits
23 People With the Most Autobiographies in the World
http://visual.ly/which-celebrities-have-most-autobiographies
This Librarian is not Impressed With Your Digital No Books Library-- Adam Feldman
http://nextcity.org/daily/entry/computers-libraries-no-book-libraries-ebooks
Thursday, August 21, 2014
Daily Thoughts 08/21/2014
Daily Thoughts 08/21/2014
I read some more of No Place to Hide. I learned that Edward Snowden basically turned himself into a martyr by purposefully not hiding who he was and how he got the documents from the NSA. This makes the account even more interesting.
I checked the library Twitter and Facebook page. I checked the displays and the gift books this morning.
I also checked on the computer lab and placed holds on the book, The Warmth of Other Suns: the Epic Story of America's Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson which will be the book for the next book club meeting.
I put together an order for Learning Express LLC books. They are offering a special discount of 55% for libraries.
We got a nice donation of African American nonfiction books. They look to be in excellent condition.
Tonight is the Cookie Thomas event. There is going to be a raffle, music, and food. It is the final celebration for Adult Summer Reading from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m..
Web Bits
What Will Become of the Library? How They’ll Evolve for the Digital Age
Wednesday, August 20, 2014
Daily Thoughts 08/20/2014
Daily Thoughts 08/20/2014
This morning, I checked the library Twitter and Facebook. I checked the displays and the gift books. I am putting a display for Banned Books Week focusing on graphic novels.
I spent some time working on the staffing report for my department. I am getting ready for the end of summer reading tomorrow. There is going to be a jazz band, Cookie Thomas, playing between 6:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. tomorrow as part of the end summer reading celebration.
I read a copy of Library Journal and Publishers Weekly today. I put the book, The Organized Mind: Thinking Straight in the Age of Information Overload by Daniel J. Levitin on hold.
On the way home, I started reading No Place to Hide, Edward Snowden The NSA and the U.S. Surveillance State by Glenn Greenwald. Glenn Greenwald is Edward Snowden's first journalistic contact according to this book. The book is about surveillance and how every person is basically under surveillance in the United States using various monitoring devices for the internet, phone, and computer. I found some of the ideas in the book a bit naive, that PGP pretty good privacy will protect your email and you can have a safe laptop if it is not connected to the internet. I have always been taught since I was small that there is no such thing as a secure electronic device.
Web Bits
Celebrate the Freedom to Read with CBLDF's New Banned Book Week Handbook
http://www.bannedbooksweek.org/node/3236
ALA Trends Report Policy Revolution
http://www.districtdispatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/ALA_Trends_Report_Policy_Revolution_Aug19_2014.pdf
Ferguson Library A Refuge for Adults and Children Amid Strife
http://abcnews.go.com/US/ferguson-library-refuge-adults-children-amid-strife/story?id=25050930#.U_USOLxQGak.gmail
Tuesday, August 19, 2014
Daily Thoughts 08/19/2014
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Daily Thoughts 08/19/2014
I checked the library Twitter and Facebook this morning. I also checked the displays and the gift books.
The nonfiction book club meets today from 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the Trustees room. We are discussing I Forgot to Remember A Memoir of Amnesia by Su Meck and Cod by Mark Kurlansky.
Our computer classes are very successful right now. They are starting to overflow the lab. It is something to think about.
I spent some extra time changing some of displays. September is National Library Card Month and the featured spokesperson is Stan Lee. Also, the focus on Banned Books Week from September 21 through 27 is graphic novels. It should be interesting.
I have been working on job descriptions and staffing needs for my department.
Web Bits
How Graphic Are These Novels?
This September Get Your Whole Family A Library Card
Monday, August 18, 2014
Daily Thoughts 08/18/2014
Daily Thoughts 08/18/2014
I checked the library Twitter and Facebook this morning.
Web Bits
Amazon's Russell Grandinetti: Kindle champ takes on the book trade
http://www.theguardian.com/theobserver/2014/aug/17/russell-grandinetti-amazon-kindle-hachette-book-war-profile#
What the Death of the Library means for the Future of Books?
http://theweek.com/article/index/265775/what-the-death-of-the-library-means-for-the-future-of-books?utm_source=Publishers+Weekly&utm_campaign=6b8f27e45f-UA-15906914-1&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_0bb2959cbb-6b8f27e45f-304516557
Sunday, August 17, 2014
Daily Thoughts 08/17/2014
Daily Thoughts 08/17/2014
I checked the library Twitter and Facebook this morning.
I finished reading Trial by Fire by Charles E. Gannon. I enjoyed it. It appears to be the second book in a series. The first was Fire With Fire. It is military science fiction which includes a lot of strategy and diplomacy. The characters plan their actions and look before they leap.
Web Bits
Weedsport Public Library: Why You Should Sign Up for a
Library Card
The Women Who Went to the Library and Read Every Book on the
Shelf
In My Library: Lorenzo Carcaterra
Saturday, August 16, 2014
Daily Thoughts 08/16/2014
Daily Thoughts 08/16/2014
I checked the Twitter and Facebook for the library this morning.
Last night, I finished reading Wired For Story The Writer's Guide to Using Brain Science to Hook Readers from the Very First Sentence. The last section is on rewriting. Lisa Cron reminds the writer that first the writer rewrites to get published, then when a publisher gets the manuscript, they rewrite for the editor.
Last night, I started reading Trial By Fire by Charles E. Gannon. It is an e-book.
Web Bits
Conversations With the Dead
Friday, August 15, 2014
Daily Thoughts 08/15/2014
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Daily Thoughts 08/15/2014
Last night, I finished reading Marina A Gothic Tale by Carlos Ruiz Zafon. This was a strangely intriguing story. It combined elements of gothic horror and weird tales set in Barcelona Spain. The main character was a young man who lived in a boarding school. The story has a mad doctor who works with artificial limbs and puppets which adds a nice twist. There is also a bit of meditation on sickness and death when the young girl, Marina, in the story slowly dies from cancer. I found bits of it hard to categorize.
On the way to work, I read some more of Wired for Story. The author reminds us that the main character needs to take continuously larger risks, lie to make things interesting, and make all or nothing decisions to keep the story interesting.
I checked the library Facebook and Twitter. There is a visit by llamas to the children's room at 2:00 p.m. for the end of Children's Summer Reading today. People like the idea.
Web Bits
These Whimsical GIFS from Smithsonian Libraries Bring Old
Books to Life
A bit of silliness.
Thursday, August 14, 2014
Daily Thoughts 08/14/2014
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Daily Thoughts 08/14/2014
This morning, I read some more of Wired for Story. I am reading about inner conflict and how the main character should be between a rock and a hard place both internally in their own mind and externally.
I read the comic book version of Falling Skies which is a prequel to the television show. It gave some back story to how the aliens invaded. It also described how the resistance was formed against the alien invaders. I find reading science fiction relaxing.
I checked the library Twitter and Facebook this morning. I also checked the displays and the gift books. In addition, I am continuing to work on the section of books on Africa.
I did an orientation for an on call librarian today. I have one more person to interview for the part-time computer clerk position.
We are going to have a poetry series Starting in September with a local poet who is going to teach 12 two hour workshops. Registration is required.
The library showed the film, Murder on the Orient Express starring David Suchet in the community room.
There is a computer class tonight from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Microsoft Excel in the Computer Lab.
I spent a little time working on the survey. I also spent some more time on the Adult Summer Reading program. The finale is on August 21, 2014 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.. Cookie Thomas will be playing jazz.
Web Bits
MacMillan’s Full Catalog of Ebooks Now Available to Public
Libraries
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