San Diego’s school libraries will be open at least one day a week next school year. That’s actually the good news.
Some schools’ libraries have been closed for years. Even worse: Many of the libraries sitting empty are gleaming new facilities filled with comfy sofas, rows of computers and shelved full of books.
404 Day: A Day of Action Against Censorship in Libraries
Join EFF on April 4th for 404 Day, a nation-wide day of action to call attention to the long-standing problem of Internet censorship in public libraries and public schools. In collaboration with the MIT Center for Civic Media and the National Coalition Against Censorship, we are hosting a digital teach-in with some of the top researchers and librarians working to analyze and push back against the use of Internet filters on library computers.
For over a decade public libraries and public schools have been censoring the Internet by blocking and blacklisting websites to be in compliance with the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA). The law was passed to encourage public libraries and schools to filter child pornography and obscene or “harmful to minors” images from the library’s Internet connection in exchange for federal funding.
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2014/03/404-day-day-action-against-censorship-libraries-and-schools
Literary City, Bookstore Desert
The rising cost of doing business in Manhattan is driving out many of its remaining bookstores, threatening the city’s sense of self as the center of the literary universe.
“How can Manhattan be a cultural or literary center of the world when the number of bookstores has become so insignificant?” he asked. “You really say, has nobody in city government ever considered this and what can be done about it?”
http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2006/2/2/the-skinny-on-harvards-rare-book/
Langdell’s curator of rare books and manuscripts, David Ferris, says of his library’s man-bound holding: “We are reluctant to have it become an object of fascination.” But the Spanish law book, which dates back to 1605, may become just that.
Accessible in the library’s Elihu Reading Room, the book, entitled “Practicarum quaestionum circa leges regias…,” looks old but otherwise ordinary.
From the Sacramento Bee:
Gov. Jerry Brown announced Tuesday that he has appointed Greg Lucas, a former San Francisco Chronicle political reporter who has, most recently, been a political blogger and host of a television interview show, as the state librarian.
Lucas, son of former state Supreme Court Chief Justice Malcolm Lucas, is also the husband of Donna Lucas, who runs a political public relations firm in Sacramento and is a former adviser to Republican governors.
The new librarian, who will earn $142,968 a year, is a Democrat. He left the Chronicle in 2007 after 19 years with the newspaper and has been an editor for the Capitol Weekly newspaper in recent years. He also hosted an informal political discussion program for the California Channel.
In his new job, Lucas will manage the California State Library, which is located near the Capitol. It houses historical books and documents, provides research to the governor and Legislature and acts as a liaison with local libraries.
Read more here: http://blogs.sacbee.com/capitolalertlatest/2014/03/brown-appoints-former-reporter-lucas-as-state-librarian.html#storylink=cpy
Check out this amazing video from the St. Paul MN Public Library about their Mobile Workplace program. Libraries have a long history of serving their communities by providing access to resources and information. When the St. Paul Public Library saw a growing need for computer and job search skills, it created a new way to bring its community the tools and access they were searching for. The program primarily caters to newcomers of the Somali, Hmong and Karen (Burmese) populations. Hat tip to Stephen Abram Stephen’s Lighthouse.
I hang out at libraries, even when I’m not looking for a book :
“Libraries are information warriors fighting the digital divide that can be caused by age and income. As I travel up and down the province for work I’m always certain to check out the frequently old, frequently brick buildings in many places too small for much else. I have now been to most of them, and they have more in common than what sets them apart—invaluable access to programs and information that can shape the communities they sit in. “
Visitors to the New York Public Library’s website will have a new way to decide what to read next: The library is partnering with New York-based startup Zola Books to offer algorithm-based recommendations to readers. The technology comes from Bookish, the book discovery site that Zola acquired earlier this year.
http://gigaom.com/2014/03/24/new-york-public-library-partners-with-zola-to-offer-algorithmic-book-recommendations/
They are nearly extinct in their natural habitat.
“The card catalog is back,” she said. “It’s a beautiful piece of furniture, and it’s a part of history.”
Internet Users Tap Tech Tools That Protect Them From Prying Eyes
But all of these privacy products come with trade-offs. Blocking social-network posts or contact information from showing up on a Google search might protect people’s privacy, but it could also mean old friends they’d like to hear from might not be able to track them down either. Deleting cookies means people may miss out on some targeted deals or services from companies that rely on the tracking files. Using secret or encrypted messaging services means people are limiting themselves to conversations with other people who use the same services.
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