April 2008 Archives

So far I have had two calls from patrons having problems with popup blockers. They followed the instructions for turning off the Internet Explorer popup blocker, but still had a Google toolbar popup blocker on. I have added information about this on the TELL ME MORE page and have created a page showing how to disable popups in the Google toolbar.  Other toolbars also have popup blockers, but Google is probably the most popular one. Please feel free to have patrons call or email me if they need help getting started with the program. So far we have had very few problems reported. Thanks!

> contributed by Evan

Congratulations to the Scandinavia Public Library! Their library expansion project is nearing completion, and they celebrated with an open house on Thursday, April 17, 2008. It's hard to believe how tiny the library used to be and how they fit all those materials in there! The expansion is lovely, light, and open, and their community members seemed very proud of what they had accomplished. Here is a slide show of some pictures of the library and yesterday's events:



Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

> contributed by Beth

We have a couple of trials this month. WILS is featuring some new Gale Historical Collections. While 19th century newspapers are not at the top of our database wish list, I think they did a nice job making it easier to find and view the articles. They claim that 1/3 of the material came from the Wisconsin Historical Society.   The many iterations of the Milwaukee Sentinel and Gazette make up the bulk of Wisconsin material. Access is available all this month through WILS at http://trials.gale.com/wils08/.  This month we also have access to all the Alexander Street Press databases, including some of the music resources we have looked at in the past. Their web site provides details about their many resources.  Links and password information is posted on our database trials page . You will need the extranet login to access this page.

> contributed by Evan

Recently, two articles about public libraries have appeared in Public Management, the journal of the International City Management Association (ICMA).  The articles are part of an ICMA project, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, to explore the role of city and county managers as advocates for libraries and the relationship of libraries to quality of life and community sustainability.  The first article appeared in the March 2008 issue "Libraries: Partners in Sustaining Communities" and can be found at http://icma.org/pm/9002/.  The second article "Welcome to the E-Government Library of the Future -- Today" in the April issue at http://icma.org/pm/9003/.   The third article will appear in the May issue.  Library directors and boards should be familiar with these articles in case a municipal official inquires about them.  Because many local officials may not read ICMA publications libraries should consider sharing these articles with them.

> contributed by Rick

Using grants awarded by the Wisconsin Center for the Book, communities can celebrate and explore the literature of Wisconsin with its authors and illustrators. The Wisconsin Center for the Book will award up to 4 grants of $300 each to qualifying organizations wishing to sponsor a Wisconsin author or illustrator at a public event.  The event must be open to the public and free of charge. The grants are made possible through the cooperation of the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters and generosity of donors.

Wisconsin nonprofit organizations interested in books and reading are eligible to apply. Collaboration among groups is preferred. Such groups may include, but are not limited to, public libraries; public and private elementary, secondary, and post-secondary schools; community organizations; and places of worship. Libraries are encouraged to look beyond their Friends groups for partnerships.

Applications and more information about the grants may be obtained at: www.wisconsinacademy.org.

> contributed by Sarah McGowan, WAIS Chair, Wisconsin Center for the Book.

Last year the Legislative Audit Bureau was charged with conducting a best practices review of public library services in Wisconsin. The final report was issued this week and can be found on the Legislative Audit Bureau website. The full report and a shorter report of the highlights are available. You can also listen to a podcast of the highlights.

> contributed by Rick on News for Directors

The Wisconsin Statewide AskAway publicity committee is sponsoring a YouTube contest for teens.  This is a great opportunity for library youth groups to try something new, get some publicity, and prizes.  The committee is looking for original videos between 30 and 60 seconds long (can be longer) that depict the AskAway service in a positive way; why they use and like it.  A $150 first prize and a $75 second prize will be offered.   Additional details about contest rules and contest forms will be announced soon.

Everyone's help is needed to make this a successful contest.  Please talk to your young adult and/or children's librarians at your library.  If you are the youth services/young adult/children's librarians please consider having your young adult group enter.

The committee is looking for Young Adult librarians to be judges!  No experience necessary.  If you want to be a judge in the contest please contact Renee Ponzio at reneep@eauclaire.lib.wi.us.

Please visit the Wiki site at http://askaway.pbwiki.com/FrontPage where you will find tons of information, posters, and other materials to help your library promote AskAway to your patrons.  For more information about the contest, contact Renee Ponzio, Chairperson, Statewide AskAway Publicity Committee, at (715) 839-1683 or reneep@eauclaire.lib.wi.us.

From Channel Weekly, Vol. 10, No. 27, April 10, 2008

The next OWLS continuing education workshop will take place on Wednesday, April 23rd. The Cooperative Children's Book Center librarians will be at the Appleton Public Library for our annual  session of "Outstanding Books for Children and Young Adults." The day's schedule and a link to register are available on the CE Workshop page. Be sure to sign up for this fun day right away!

In addition to the CCBC workshop, there are some excellent online classes coming up offered by SirsiDynix Institute and OPAL, including:

• A Casual Conversation with Jenny Levine
• Maximizing the Power of the Web: Pew Internet & American Life Project's 2007 Findings
• Online Marketing for Libraries
• Technology Training and Competencies for Libraries

Details about these online classes with registration information is available on the Online Classes page on OWLSweb.

All library support staff in Wisconsin are also invited to "Initiate & Innovate 2008," a one-day conference sponsored by the Wisconsin Library Association Support Staff Section and Waukesha County Technical College Library on Wednesday, May 21st at the Waukesha County Technical College in Pewaukee, Wisconsin. The conference brochure states:

"Become an innovator in your workplace and be inspired to introduce your creative ideas. Join us for a day of professional development. You'll learn valuable skills, network with other Wisconsin support staff, and explore how you can initiate and innovate in your library."

For additional information, go to the conference web site. (The brochure I have actually has more information about the conference in it than is available on the web site. If you'd like a copy sent to you, please contact me, and I'll get one to you ASAP.)

> contributed by Beth

Don’t miss the new ALA study on serving non-English speakers in the library. Here are some surprising facts:

• The majority of libraries serving non-English speakers are in communities with fewer than 100,000 residents.
• Spanish is, by far, the most supported non-English language in public libraries. Seventy-eight percent of libraries reported Spanish as the priority #1 language to which they develop services and programs.
• Libraries reported the most successful library programs and services developed for non-English speakers were: English as a Second Language (ESL), language-specific materials and collections, computer use and computer classes, story time and special programs.

The full report includes library use statistics, building detail and findings by language.

> contributed by Holly

On March 18, 2008, Appleton Library Adult Programming hosted a gaming event using the Wii system available from OWLS.  Many people might assume that video gaming appeals primarily to teens and younger library patrons, but this event proved that gaming can easily cross generational and cultural boundaries – it was a bowling event for a group of Hmong elders.  19 people attended and, once they got the hang of the equipment, the elders seemed to really enjoy playing with the system.  In fact, as they were learning how to manage the controls, they began to coach each other.  After everyone had an opportunity to learn the system, the group broke into teams for a bowling tournament. 

(Photos by Michael Kenney, APL)




It was a definite success, and proves that thinking outside the box when it comes to programs can definitely pay off!  Many thanks to OWLS for providing the gaming system.

> contributed by Amy Stanwood, Adult Programming Assistant, Appleton Public Library

Get ready to celebrate the first annual Fox Cities Book Festival, April 16th-20th! The Festival will feature many national, state and local authors. Among the national writers coming to the Fox Cities: Billy Collins, Naomi Shihab Nye, Charles Baxter, Mark Nepo, Alice Hoffman, Alex Flinn, Michael Perry, and Minnesota Crime Wave.

On April 19th from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., there will be a Book Fair at the City Center Plaza in downtown Appleton. Check out the full list of events for other great sessions available throughout the 5 days of the Festival.

You can find more information about the Fox Cities Book Festival at http://www.foxcitiesbookfestival.org. Don't miss the wonderful opportunities available - show your support and help make this event a huge success!

> contributed by Beth

Thanks to a charmed and serendipitous life, I stumbled across an interesting, curious piece of information this week! Language searching in InfoSoup can be limited by seven languages using the advanced search screen:

There are other languages represented in the catalog not included in the limits but how can you search to find out what is available? There are two cool options! The first is to search the catalog for the type of material using a subject search. For example:

Hmong language materials
Russian language materials
Spanish language materials

The second search is to perform a keyword search for the language using lang (for language) and the three letter MARC code for languages. Before you roll your eyes, let me say it is simple and even intuitive! Examples:

Langara (language=Arabic)
Langswa (language=Swahili)
Langswe (language=Swedish)

Try these searches in InfoSoup, please! Did you know there are 15 titles in Swahili?

> contributed by Holly

April is National Poetry Month!

Want to know more about it? Take a look at the Poets.org FAQ for some quick answers. They also have other cool info on their homepage that you might want to take a look at. You can find poetry events by state - here is Wisconsin's page. And there's a service called Poem a Day, which will email you a new poem every day during the month of April. Today's poem is Assault to Abjury by Raymond McDaniel.

Have any poetic events planned at your library?  Who is your favorite poet? Post yours in the comments.

> contributed by Beth

If you are planning to celebrate El Día de los Niños at your library there are complimentary bilingual brochures available to help you celebrate this special day. The brochure features an updated recommended reading list and tips for parents in English and Spanish for reading to and with children. The April 30 celebration is devoted to emphasizing the importance of advocating literacy for children of all linguistic and cultural backgrounds.

For more information about Dia, and to register your Dia event to receive complimentary brochures, please go to the Dia Web site.  You may request up to 200 brochures while supplies last.

If you have any questions, you may contact ALA at dia@ala.org.

> contributed by Holly