November 2004

Bob writes “Much of the news out of Michigan lately is doom and gloom, but the Bay City Public Library is receiving the kind of support and recognition other systems would envy:
mlive.com Story
While I don’t think the reporter’s math skills are very good, it looks like the Sage is a hit.”

twistedlibrarian writes “For the first time since 1970, The New York Public Library’s (NYPL) iconic Humanities and Social Sciences Library building on Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street, will open to the public on Sundays, beginning December 5.

Library Journal “

twistedlibrarian writes “Former Wyoming residents Pat Spieles and Carol McMurry of Loveland, Colo., donated $1 million to University of Wyoming libraries.

Caspar Star Tribune “

search-engines-web.com sends this holiday heartwarmer from Illinois about a Christmas tree at the Morris Library that is used to raise moneny for abused, neglected, and abandoned children.

The program asks for monetary donations that will be given to the women’s shelters in the name of each child. This is the third year Morris Library has housed the tree. Last year, the charitable effort raised $5,000 — a goal (Representative Glenn)Poshard wants to see surpassed this season.

“This is something we can not give these children without your help,” Poshard said.

Bob writes “A boarding school of 350 students in Saskatchewan Canada – and if you want to see wheat fields as far as the eye can see visit Saskatchewan – has a collection of manuscripts that most universities can only read about. The founder was told he needed a library, so he got a good one! The whole story here from The Walrus.“

Great Western Dragon writes “

In an update to two stories posted earlier, the City of Selah, WA decided Tuesday to put an annexation issue on a ballot, and decided to drop their lawsuit against the Yakima Valley Regional Library.

The lawsuit was not filed with malice or based on any other inappropriate motive,” the motion to dismiss states. The vote occurs March 8, 2005 and will give both sides time to explain their points of view to the voters.

Full story available here.”

twistedlibrarian writes “Who should run the Internet? A key battle in this drawn-out war for control of the Internet commenced in Geneva today (23 November) with a UN team kicked off the first of several sessions dealing with Internet governance. Meanwhile, in Marrakech, a taste of the issues was raised at a conference on the role of the media in the information society.

allAfrica.com “

An Anonymous Patron sends “this overview of several current pop-up book titles. RH adds a couple extra links to this nifty online exhibition about pop-up books from Rutgers and one from U of North Texas.”

The Senate passed a scaled-back version of a controversial copyright bill Saturday, keeping a provision that imposes severe penalties on people caught with camcorders in movie theaters but scrapping other provisions that copyright-reform activists had criticized.

…But the bill removed several provisions that had upset consumer advocates, like the Pirate Act (SB2237), which would have allowed the attorney general to file civil lawsuits against copyright infringers. Critics argued that this would use taxpayer money to fund the copyright battles of the movie and music industries.

Read all the information on Wired

In Lincoln Nebraska, children in the first and second grade are giving thanks a couple of days early…for the gift of books given to them by The Harvest of Books, an annual tradition since 1996.

Children bounced up and down. Some clapped. Some gasped and squealed with delight. And all of them had trouble waiting for their turn to stop at the book tables and pick out the three books that would soon become their own. Story from the Lincoln Journal Star .