October 2006

Unshelved, the daily library comic strip available at Overdue Media’s Web site , has had such a response to its “pimp my bookcart” series–readers at libraries and schools said they were planning to “customize, augment or otherwise pimp” their bookcarts–that the site is having a “pimp my bookcart” contest for “libraries, schools, businesses and anyone with a bookcart that needs a little something extra.”

Entrants should e-mail pictures of the pimped-out bookcart, including front, back and sides. Unshelved artists Bill Barnes and Gene Ambaum will judge. Prizes galore!

Deadline is January 15.

Search Engines WEB writes “:-)
Download:
http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/

Add-ons:
https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/recommended/“

Kelly writes “Says Bill Maher: `They can’t have very nice lives — librarians. It’s like being a teacher, only without the opportunities for dating, because the only kids you meet are the nerds. So the last thing America’s shsssshing minority needs is the indignity of a urine test. But that’s just what we’re doing. I’m not sure this is the best use of our time. The last time a librarian did something really stupid and reckless on drugs was when Laura married George.’ For more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bill-maher/new-rule- we-dont-need-d_b_32463.html“

While Ontario Public Libraries Week 2006 (OPLW) is now but a memory, the “Telling Our Stories” contest is just getting underway and will run until the end of November.

The province-wide contest highlights the positive impact of Ontario public libraries. Ontario Federation of Public Libraries, the organizer of the contest, invites Ontarians to share their personal stories of how a public library has made a difference to them or their families.

Here’s the press release, and here’s contest information and entry forms.

Small print: The contest is not open to public library or Federation of Ontario Public Libraries staff, library trustees, members of other Ontario library agencies or their families, TVO/TFO staff or members of their families.

Mister Cow Cow writes “Yahoo! News reports, “Like any evolving technology, accessing the Internet has hardly been a smooth ride for the blind. Some sites can be difficult to navigate, particularly if they contain relatively few text links and rely more on graphics and other visual elements that screen-reading software such as Jaws can’t interpret.

That’s why the NFB, an organization that represents blind people, is suing Target Corp., saying that its Web site is inaccessible to blind Internet users.”

The BBC has a report on the sentencing of Norman Buckley, 44, who took more than 455 ancient books, posters and documents while working as an assistant at Manchester’s Central Library. He planned to sell them…on the Internet.

Seth Finkelstein writes “Scott Douglas requests: “In my effort to become the greatest librarian since Casanova, I am enlisting the help of my fellow readers. I’m asking you all to please go to Wikipedia.org, type in “Scott Douglas,” and invent my life. Tell the truth, tell a half-truth, tell what you think might be truth … just make me look good.” (ed note: the Wikipedia admins have caught up with him now, but it’s still a funny request)”

There is an editorial at Palo Alto Online titled “Why do the libraries carry DVDs?”

The editorial opens: Let us assume that stocking DVDs is a proper function of public libraries.

(I strongly disagree with that since supplying popular movies has nothing to do with literacy, education, citizenship, etc., and there are multiple low cost rental possibilities available to anyone. But, for the sake of argument let’s assume that it is proper.)
Editorial continued here.

A piece of modern art in Spain using hundreds of books as the medium of expression. You can see picture here.

Anonymous Patron writes “There are three books discussing the idea of god and god in America in the top 20 bestselling books at Amazon. I didn’t realize this was such a hot topic. I sure there are multiple factors playing into the the popularity of these books currently but would anyone like to speculate on that point?

At #18 — Rediscovering God in America: Reflections on the Role of Faith in Our Nation’s History and Future“