When librarians party

what a contrast

Today was one of those weird collision course kind of days – jam packed schedule from start to finish, and some things just had to give.

Unfortunately one of those was the first meeting of Library in the Library.  I was literally on my way there when I got a text from Sarah saying that she was on campus and free to work on our presentation.  It was a tough choice but I decided to be responsible.  I still thing LITL will be great for me, as the get-together last Wednesday was extremely productive, but I regret having had to skip it today.  I do think that surrounding myself with people like Meg will be the key to getting me beyond the boundaries of what I’ve imagined for myself.

On the other hand, archives calls to my lesser self.  Seriously.  I was actually contemplating how well my art/framing background would transition into conservation – I’d get to do all the fun stuff and hang out in the basement with the nerds and never have to deal with people!  Archives has always been sort of my secret curiosity.  Had I not come to SU and been locked into the school media track, I might have taken a few electives in archives to try it out.  But the thing is, I came back to school because I felt no sense of meaning in framing (however satisfying the creative side was) and because I felt that I would never be compelled to grow if I stayed in a production/retail environment.  Getting out of my own head is a big part of this process, and as tempting as it is to just drop all the learning styles and motivational profiles and state standards that I’ve been grappling with and go back to Filmoplast and acid-free adhesives, I know that it would defeat the purpose of my being here.

Library in the Library represents where I want to be: a member of a community, and a practitioner of a living profession.  Archives might be fantastically fun, and maybe even a better fit to my innate personality, but I really think it’s just not where I’m supposed to be.

Have I mentioned…

How much I love my classmates/job/parents/classes/apartment/life? 

Life is so weirdly, massively busy right now, but it is undeniably good.  I’m finally getting to take classes in my field, work and class are presenting all sorts of interesting challenges, and when it’s gotten overwhelming my classmates have been insanely supportive.  (Ranging from texting me encouragement, to helping me find resources, to actually coming to my library and volunteering an entire shift.) 

I’m not used to enjoying being so busy, or enjoying being around people so much.  I’m really not even used to enjoying being awake most of the time.

Grad school is neat.

This did not begin as a post about cataloging

Given the size of my to-do list, and the intensity of my current headache, I’m going to keep this week’s post brief.

My favorite part of last week’s class (aside from #daveheart and Nerds [honestly, what were you thinking?  they’re like tiny little maracas!]) was learning a bit more about MARC and cataloging.  I have a soft spot for MARC, as my first ever library job was a 5-month stint as a temp cataloger for the BOCES school library system.  I learned the absolute basics of copy cataloging and spent those 5 months doing my best to wrangle semi-coherent entries out of the mess of information that librarians chose to send me (often no more than a title and author).  I definitely learned that even if you don’t expect to do cataloging as part of your job, you need to understand the basics if only to prevent a cataloger from someday killing you in your sleep. 

That said, I can absolutely see how an inflexible system like MARC is no longer adequate, particularly for virtual objects.  I’m sure that this will be another one of those issues that I find myself obsessing over.  I’m grateful for the experience with MARC, as I do think it’s been helpful in giving me a general picture of how items are currently accessed.  It’s fun to ponder the possibilities though.  On the one hand I could excuse myself from the whole debate and just say that as a school librarian it’ll be out of my hands, but I sort of wonder whether a school library is almost an ideal place to experiment with new ideas.  You have a relatively small collection, limited and tightly controlled interaction with other libraries, and a captive test population…  Could be fun!

My encounter with the Nook

Interestingly, today was staff development day at my library, and our first session focused on (what else) e-books. Specifically, the Nook, which is put out by Barnes and Noble. I also had the opportunity to play with a Sony e-reader.

Within a few minutes of the start of the presentation, I started thinking that maybe I do actually want one. They’re smaller than I imagined, and super cute. The Nook is about half the size of an Ipad, and has a little touchscreen at the bottom that you use to control everything.

I felt like I was pestering this poor woman trying to present to us, but I had a lot of questions. The device has a lot of pretty amazing features:

• Unlike the Kindle, its file format is universal, meaning you can load PDFS and other files onto the Nook, and use Nook files on other devices. This includes image and sound files, including audiobooks. The Nook does not include text-to-voice which I am not happy about (the rep claimed it’s because the technology is just not good enough, which seems like a lame excuse, in terms of accessibility) but can run an audiobook and an e-book simultaneously.
• Font size is completely adjustable, which is probably common to all e-books, but I felt it was a worthy feature in that any book can become a large print book.
• As is frequently mentioned, it can be read in full sunlight. Memory is replaceable, and can be expanded to hold up to 17,000 books. Batteries are replaceable and cost 30 dollars. Because we have a Barnes and Noble locally, devices can be immediately replaced if necessary, and the rep said that it’s a no-fault situation as long as there isn’t “a footprint on the screen”.
• Purchasing a book and downloading it literally takes under a minute. You have to provide a credit card number and name which is stored as part of your account. Up to six e-readers can be registered to one account, meaning that you can share your collection with others, as long as you’re willing to share the payment method. This is handy for people with family overseas, who cannot legally download American published e-books. That particular tariff law was one of the biggest drawbacks I could see to this format. You literally have to be standing on American soil to download many e-books. However, so long as someone in the States can access the account, they can make the purchases and the books will appear on every Nook registered to that account.
• I asked about the extent of materials available in e-book format. She said that certain publishers were dragging their feet, and others do not sponsor their authors to publish in this format unless the author does it on their own, but that Nook has the most extensive library because publishers are mostly likely to go with their universal file format that can be marketed to any e-reader.
• The way the device is designed allows for constant upgrades. All buttons except for the page turns are integrated virtually as part of the color touch pad. If the keyboard needs a new button or a new feature requires redesign of the controls, that can be done without upgrading hardware. I thought that was a really clever way of extending the useful life of the device. The rep said that Barnes and Noble envisions the life of each Nook lasting in the range of 6-7 years.
• We talked a bit about PubIt!, which is Barnes and Noble’s self-publishing tool. It seems like a pretty neat setup. You upload your book, and you are required to sell it for at least a dollar. So Barnes and Noble makes money off of people who even only publish their own book and buy a copy. The author keeps about 40% of the revenue and the rest stays with Barnes and Noble. The rep said that this was a pretty typical split, but frankly I don’t know enough to know if that’s true or not. I could see this being a pretty fun project to do with a high school class though.

So while all of this is going on, two Nooks are being passed around the room. Finally one of them reaches me and I start to play with it. I push a button, and the screen flashes to black then reloads. I push another button, the same thing happens. I start wondering if I’ve broken it. I quietly pass it on.

Turns out that e-ink works kind of like an etch-a-sketch, and that the refresh is necessary to display the next set of text. The Sony e-reader was exactly the same, and I assume the Kindle as well. I ended up asking about it, and the rep said that only about 1 in 5 people notice the flash. Apparently I’m one of the unlucky ones. I found it so distracting that I can’t imagine myself ever sitting and reading comfortably. The screen also did not scroll, it loaded a single page at a time, which I didn’t care for. Those are things that might change in future upgrades, as the rep said that the refresh speed had improved dramatically since the device was first released. Still, I was shocked at what I saw as really shitty functionality on an otherwise beautiful device.

So after my encounter with the Nook, I still find myself debating. I would love to have the ability to load my PDFs for class onto a reader and read in bed instead of trying to relax with my netbook propped up next to me. I’ve used the Ipad and love it, but it’s really too big to be comfortable as an e-reader. Plus the Nook and Sony will be compatible with Onlib’s collection, which would be a nice bonus. But unless the technology improves, I can’t see myself going that route.

As an aside, the rep mentioned that when the Nook was brand new, it was released to tech bloggers to review. The Nook store features a display of the most popular titles, and apparently during the period when only the bloggers had the device, the most popular titles were erotica and Star Wars. Hmm.

Just to be safe…

I’ve already blogged some thoughts about my interview with Jane Tretler, but since that was before I realized that a reflection piece was required, I have a bit to add to it.

First of all, Jane’s description of splitting her time between schools was a bit scary. It’s not that I don’t think I could do it, but that it seems like it must really diminish how well a librarian can perform. She told me that currently each school in the district has a certified librarian, and it’s allowing them to not only focus fully on their own communities, but also to collaborate with each other. The elementary librarians can talk to the middle school librarian and find out where students need extra support. They can arrange projects where the kids communicate between schools. I’m sure that covering multiple schools is rewarding in a “plugging the leaks” kind of way, but in the end I can’t see how it wouldn’t be detrimental to the students and to the librarian.

It was also pretty cool to hear about how she’s evaluated, in terms of creating yearly goals. It seems like exactly the sort of thing I would need to keep myself moving forward and trying new things. It was interesting to hear about the support she receives from BOCES as well. I worked for BOCES through a temp agency when I first moved to Utica, so I enjoyed getting a fuller picture of that relationship.

The main thing that Jane impressed on me is the fact that the job requires you to be a lifelong learner. You can never assume that you know enough to do the job – you have to create knowledge to do the job better. It was great to talk to someone who’s been in the field for so long, and honestly it was cool to go back to where I spent a great deal of my time as an 8 year old and see how it’s adapted. The overall point is that there’s so much potential, but only if you’re constantly seeking and implementing better ideas.

On ebooks (of course)

Am I the only one who doesn’t like the idea of all the “value added” content? Everyone seems so excited about “this will link seamlessly to there! And show you this when you read that!” Not that I’m against new formats, but one thing that I like about print is that it’s linear. I don’t even like sidebars or footnotes! I like being able to go from beginning to end and know that I haven’t missed anything. I found the 601 modules infuriating because each one linked to so much more content. I hear people getting all excited about how much more content can be packed in, and I shudder.

On the one hand, sure, it’s cool that you’re breaking down the barriers between “this is what this book says” and “here’s the community of knowledge that exists on the topic”, but at the same time it makes the reading experience harder to ever “finish”. Maybe that’s the point. Maybe I just fall at a weird point in this debate, and as kids start growing up with hyperlinked text they’ll adapt more seamlessly. I figure it’ll be especially important for me as a school librarian to embrace anything that promotes an integration of literacies. I’ve only recently started reading graphic novels, and even that is a challenge for me, but I can see how kids benefit from being able to interpret that format.

Maybe a better way of looking at this is, forgetting about books and cds and photographs, what is the best way to integrate and present human knowledge in a useable package? I don’t think the result will look like e-books, but it’s something to contemplate. And honestly, who better to compile such a thing – an authoritative package of “what you need to know” on any given topic? Why not librarians? Actually, why anyone else? Well, profit, I guess. But I’d feel much better knowing that the way we receive information in the future could be shaped by librarians rather than corporations.

Anyway, now I’m late for work.

Four words -> Blog post!

I love how once in a while, a little bit of perfect language acts like a lens and beams clarity right into my brain. I’m sitting here reviewing Standards for the 21st Century Learner in Action, and I just ran across this fantastic description:

“The school library media center serves as a laboratory of active learning where students may develop their skills, hone their attitudes, practice their responsibilities independently, and regulate their own learning.”

I freaking love this. It meshes wonderfully with everything else I’ve been pondering. It takes the focus off of the books and puts it onto the learners. Looking at a library as a kind of lab makes so much more sense. It’s the one place in a school where students can work independent of a curriculum, with as many resources as possible, including a librarian. Looking at it that way not only opens up possibilities for the inclusion of a variety of non-traditional resources, but also affirms the importance of the library as place. Sure, lots of stuff is available online, but the school library should be a safe, welcoming place for exploration; it’s within the school but outside rigid class requirements.

Love love love. Yay perspective!

Taking the hint

Sometimes I believe that nothing matters and everything is random, and sometimes I can believe that everything has consequences and that crazy shit is interconnected.  Like dinosaurs.  And librarianship.

So I think the universe is trying to tell me something.

I’ve been saying for a couple of years that if librarianship didn’t work out, my backup career was velociraptor.  It was a fun little joke, and provided some entertainment during slow shifts when I would practice my claws.

But it just keeps coming up!  Dinosaurs and librarians.  Librarians as dinosaurs.  And it’s making me realize: I don’t have to choose.  I just have to shift my thinking a little bit.

When I did my interview for this class, Jane referred to herself as a dinosaur for still preferring print books.  It’s something you hear a lot – unless we modernize, we’ll go extinct.

But why is dinosaur our go-to synonym for old, outdated, slow or irrelevant?  Judging by the number of children’s books about them, dinosaurs are still alive and well in the human imagination.  Even better – they are an extension of the human imagination.  We’ve taken their bare bones and constructed an epic story from them.  And we’ve imagined dinosaurs as badass. 

So I ask, why do I have to choose between being a librarian and a dinosaur?  Why can’t I be both? 
Why can’t I reimagine my role as a librarian and throw in a little extra toughness and cleverness and claw?  Maybe some roar, on special occasions?

It’s not a safe career anymore.  There are constant challenges (asteroids if you will.  fuck yes metaphor) that threaten to take us out.  We can view “going the way of the dinosaurs” as an ending, or as an impetus to reinvent ourselves as something completely amazing. 

Let’s continue testing fences. 🙂

http://media.entertonement.com/embed/OpenEntPlayer.swf

same place twice? sound bite  Jurassic Park Official sound bites

Annoying whiny post

Is grad school kicking anyone else’s ass?

It seems like everyone is way ahead of me on work.  I understood that trying to balance three classes and a job would be a challenge, and I was excited about it.  And in most ways I think it’s been good for me – it’s pushing my boundaries and forcing me to be tough.  I’m becoming more outgoing and on average happier more of the time than I was before.  And I’m getting more real library experience and opportunities to take on real, meaningful projects.

But I do feel like I’m falling behind on schoolwork, and given that I’ve already cut out things like cooking, cleaning and sleep I worry about catching up.  I worry about not having good enough ideas to be valuable to my employer.  I worry about being so frazzled that I can’t take good care of my turtles.  I worry about my landlord freaking out at the dishes in the sink. 

I want this to be an immersive, enriching experience in all things libraries, but I’m struggling to balance doing “enough” on that front and doing the bare minimum to keep the rest of my life running.

I guess maybe this would be better suited to the Scared/nervous/anxious board, but it’s how I’m feeling and I don’t feel the need to be anonymous.  Anyone else feel this way?  Any suggestions?