LISNews: Librarian News

Did you know that filters can do cool things like speed up your network, block cookies, and stop those annoying ads? This article from Forbes outlines these points.

Web-filtering software has been available for nearly five years, but much of it has been either too consumer-oriented--designed simply to screen pornography, for example--or too technical for even moderately savvy PC users.

That\'s starting to change, and several new offerings could be useful to small businesses looking to boost productivity.

While there are some much debated privacy issues surrounding Web filters, a practical reason for using them is they accelerate the speed at which information is downloaded by blocking advertisements, animation, pop-up screens and background music. The less time computers take to sort through this kind of material, the more work employees can accomplish. -- Read More

Oklahoman.com has a nice story on the legal troubles filtering has
brought to libraries across the U.S.

What can libraries legally do to protect children and
adults against objectionable Web sites without infringing on
the constitutional rights of others?
Before the Internet, librarians were always able to separate
\"age appropriate\" materials, said Mary Haney, director of
the Hennessey Public Library.
\"With the Internet, you don\'t have that luxury,\" she said.
\"It\'s created a really difficult ethical issue for -- Read More

This Story from NJ.

The Township Council and the Library Board are at odds over installing software that would block sexually explicit Web sites on computers in public libraries.
\"If a person decides to walk into the library and expose themselves, they would be arrested, and we have [minors] accessing\" adult sites, said Orson.

Other council members were more hard-lined.

\"I never thought I would see libraries become porn shops,\" said Councilman Joseph DiDonato. \"We have the power of the purse strings. We could cut off their funds if we want.\"

\"The [library] board should consider the use of our technology in light of what\'s going on there now,\"

The Citizen Times has a story on how filtering is become as issue in NC.

At issue is whether government-funded public library systems should install Internet \"filters\" designed to stop computer users from visiting sites deemed obscene or offensive, and if so, whether such filters unconstitutionally censor material.

For some library users, such as Art Joseph of Asheville, the question has a clear-cut answer. \"You need some type of filter. You can access anything on the Internet and I don\'t think the library is the place for that.\" -- Read More