Library Juice 2:22 - Library Juice is now a book and a blog

Library Juice 2:22 - June 2, 1999 Contents: 1. International Advocates for Health Freedom 2. World News Literacy Now! 3. Journalists' Source List 4. 1998-99 Consumer's Resource Handbook 5. Compilation of e-mail reference sites at 90+ libraries 6. School Library Media Research 7. Reference Services Review 27:1 (1999) - TOC 8. A family hoedown on children's Internet access 9. AOL Search - Kids Only: "Anarchy" 10. Conservativlib URL 11. Correction: NWU not exactly suing Northern Light 12. "What do you wish you knew?" - Answers from New Librarians 13. Moron Dr. Laura 14. UNESCO Observatory on the Information Society 15. Fun Facts about Illiteracy 16. This to That - http://www.thistothat.com/ Quote for the week: "In early days, I tried not to give librarians any trouble, which was where I made my primary mistake. Librarians like to be given trouble; they exist for it, they are geared to it. For the location of a mislaid volume, an uncatalogued item, your good librarian has a ferret's nose. Give her a scent and she jumps the leash, her eye bright with battle." -Catherine Drinker Bowen, _Adventures of a Biographer_ ___________________________________________________________________________ 1. International Advocates for Health Freedom http://www.iahf.com/index1.html This consumer advocacy group's website provides information about corporate attempts to control access to alternative medical and other health information. Thanks to Sister Julian for this. ___________________________________________________________________________ 2. World News Literacy Now! http://sunsite.utk.edu/FINS/World_news_literacy_now/ A compilation of news resources from journalist Vigdor Schreibman's Federal Information News Service (FINS). ___________________________________________________________________________ 3. Journalists' Source List The following hypertext links are intended to assist reporters and researchers to access sites on the Internet that provide readily available data on a wide range of topics. This list is not intended to be definitive for any subject, but rather as an introduction to information sources available. While all sites and URLs were checked on March 24, 1996, we take no responsibility for either the material in the sites accessed from this source, or for changes to URLs or sites after the above date. http://www.mediasource.com/Links.html :-) Message ends, Signature begins (-: When spiders unite, they can tie down a lion... Ethiopian Proverb If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping in a closed room with a mosquito... African Proverb George Lessard in Inuvik (68.3 N, 133.48 W) Northwest Territories, Canada. ICQ # 8501081 MediaMentor List http://www.eGroups.com/list/mediamentor Homepages http://members.tripod.com/~media002 Disclaimers & (c) info http://members.tripod.com/~media002/disclaimer.htm --- >From ResPool - http://members.tripod.com/~rtiess/respool.htm ___________________________________________________________________________ 4. 1998-99 Consumer's Resource Handbook (CRH) [.pdf, 144p.] http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/crh/respref.htm Published by the US Government Consumer Information Center (CIC), the Consumer's Resource Handbook is "144 pages of valuable information that no consumer should be without." The CRH offers tips and advice on a wide swath of topics, including car repair, purchase, and leasing; spotting and avoiding fraud; home financing; consumer privacy; protecting your credit report; and more. The handbook also includes a Consumer Assistance Directory, with a large collection of contact information for consumer organizations, better business bureaus, corporations, trade associations, state and local consumer protection offices, state agencies, and Federal agencies. The Handbook is available in HTML, text, and .pdf formats. [MD] >From the Scout Report http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/scout/report/ ___________________________________________________________________________ 5. Compilation of e-mail reference sites at 90+ libraries (Sent to LIBREF-L) This new resource will be of interest to those of you studying e-mail reference services. I have compiled a list of links to e-mail reference sites at more than 90 individual libraries. While these sites give good examples of how libraries use Web forms to provide remote reference service, many of the sites also outline policies and procedures covering such services. While the bulk of the entries are from the U.S., there are also entries from Canada, Australia, the Netherlands, Singapore and Estonia. The entries were obtained in response to queries posted to a number of library-related discussion lists. The site is available at: http://www.lis.uiuc.edu/~sloan/e-mail.html Bernie Sloan Senior Library Information Systems Consultant University of Illinois Office for Planning & Budgeting 338 Henry Administration Building 506 S. Wright Street Urbana, IL 61801 Phone: (217) 333-4895 Fax: (217) 333-6355 Email: bernies[at]uillinois.edu ___________________________________________________________________________ 6. School Library Media Research http://ww.ala.org/aasl/SLMR ISSN 1523-4320 The refereed, original research journal of the American Association of School Librarians. Original manuscripts concern managment of school media programs, information literacy, collaborative teaching, and use of technology for instruction and management of information. The journal is published by AASL a division of the American Library Association in Chicago. Contact: Daniel Callison, Editor Email: callison[at]indiana.edu (From NewJour - News of New Electronic Journals) ___________________________________________________________________________ 7. Reference Services Review 27:1 (1999) - TOC As a service to the readership, here is the Table of Contents from the latest issue of RSR: Reference Services Review 27:1 (1999): Starting a Library-Based University Press, by David F. Kohl, pp. 4-12. Right-Wing Opposition to Bill Clinton and His Presidency: An Annotated Bibliography, by Allan Metz, pp. 13-61. A Marketing Approach to the Design of Education Programs for Undergraduates, by Bonnie Cheuk, pp. 62-68. Academic Library User Education in China, by Ping Sun and Hannelore Rader, pp. 69-72. Laser Lights or Dim Bulbs? Evaluating Reference Librarians' Use of Electronic Resources, by Jeanie M. Welch, pp. 73-77. Outsourcing in Academic Libraries: A Selective Bibliography, by Claire-Lise Benaud and Sever Bordeianu, pp. 78-89. A Computerized Final Exam for a Library Skills Course, by Chris Niemeyer, pp. 90-106. Thanks, Ilene Rockman, Editor RSR: Reference Services Review and Deputy Director University Library California State University, Hayward Hayward, CA 94542 irockman[at]csuhayward.edu ___________________________________________________________________________ 8. A family hoedown on children's Internet access http://www.csmonitor.com/durable/1999/06/01/p11s1.htm ...an excerpt of an exchange from GWNN - the Group With No Name - an e-mail conversation group between members of the extended family of patriarch Ed Masten, of Olympia, Wash. This exchange - spanning the political spectrum and the nation - started last week after Marty Masten, a US Postal employee in Marysville, Wash., heard a radio talkshow discussion of children's access to the Internet at public libraries. ___________________________________________________________________________ 9. AOL Search - Kids Only: "Anarchy" Date: Thu, 27 May 1999 16:05:10 -0400 From: Chuck0 <chuck[at]tao.ca> To: ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom List <alaoif[at]ala1.ala.org> Subject: Fwd: AOL Search Kids Only : Anarchy This means that most of the educational resources I've developed at my sites are blocked. Any kid doing a paper on Sacco & Vanzetti is shit out of luck. Chuck0 from the Brave New World AKA America -------- Original Message -------- Subject: [a-act] AOL Search Kids Only : Anarchy Date: Thu, 27 May 1999 12:40:07 -0700 From: "richard petersen" <zpub[at]sirius.com> Reply-To: "richard petersen" <zpub[at]sirius.com> Organization: zpub AOL "Kids Only" Search brings up 4 entries on "anarchy": . The Ottoman Empire--This site contains an account of Greek history during the days of the Ottoman Empire. . LIBERTY: Past, Present, and Future: Politics for the New Millennium--The book previewed on this site, and freely downloadable, reviews the historical development of Liberty, its meaning and status today, and its futu . PEZ--The Darker Side of the Candy . Games--links to online games The first one says "The ineffectual sultans of 16th and 17th centuries hastened the Ottoman Empire's decline, and anarchy and rebellion became endemic." In the second one it says, "A land of liberty is not a land in which we all have absolute freedom to do exactly as we please. That would be a land of anarchy, since everyone would be free to limit, or eliminate the freedom of anyone else." And they say that it is "A search engine that links only to sites that are safe for kids." Nothing about the history of anarchy and anarchists movements. No links to the 1910 Encyclopedia entry for anarchy. No mention of Emma Goldman. I say this is a bunch of crap and provides a good example of what is in store in a world of censored media. Is this the kind of world we want kids to grow up in where they are dumbed down with misinformation. Richard Anarchist Action Network http://www.zpub.com/notes/aadl.html ___________________________________________________________________________ 10. Conservativlib URL Date: Tue, 1 Jun 1999 15:37:51 -0700 (PDT) From: "David Burt" <dburt[at]afo.net> To: publib <publib[at]sunsite.berkeley.edu> Subject: New List: Conservativelib There's a brand new list for that species hunted to the brink of extinction, the conservative librarian. Sign up at http://onelist.com/viewarchive.cgi?listname=Conservativelib ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ David Burt, President Filtering Facts www.filteringfacts.org phone/fax 503 635-7048 210 S State Street, Suite 7 Lake Oswego, OR 97034 (Editor's note: this list is "restricted," meaning that the list owner has to approve your subscription. I attempted to subscribe right away, and don't know yet whether I will be allowed to join the list. Good luck to all interested parties! I am hoping to add an interesting source of material...) ___________________________________________________________________________ 11. Correction: NWU not exactly suing Northern Light I received the following letter from someone at Northern Light, correcting my headline from last week, which said the National Writers Union is suing them. NWU is in fact not suing Northern Light, but is "aggressively pursuing [the copyright] infringement." If you are interested in this issue and want the NWU's perspective, see their page, "How to Respond to Northern Light's Disinformation Campaign," at http://www.nwu.org//journ/norlite7.htm I am convinced that it is a fairly complex issue, and think that Northern Light's position might have some merit. My feeling now is to let them duke it out and to use Northern Light's websearch, which I love, and which is now apparently the biggest search engine, indexing upwards of 150 million pages. I'm just not going to use the pay-service until the conflict over writer's interests in resolved. -ed. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. Date: Wed, 26 May 1999 15:05:21 -0400 To: rlitwin[at]earthlink.net From: Cassandra Targett <ctargett[at]northernlight.com> Subject: Northern Light is not being sued by NWU Mime-Version: 1.0 Dear Mr. Litwin, In your most recent Library Juice, 2:21, you mention that the NWU is suing Northern Light for copyright infringement. This is not, in fact, the case. Nor is this rumor new. We do pay royalties, to the parties identified in our licensing agreements as the copyright holders. There are no suits filed against us. We are in active, friendly discussion with the National Writer's Union and the Copyright Clearance Center. We have no intention to be anything but good copyright citizens. We support the rights of authors to continue to negotiate with publishers for resale of rights in the best interest of both parties. Northern Light, like full-text providers librarians have used for years (Lexis/Nexis, Dialog, etc.), licenses data from aggregators and publishers who warrant to us that they have the right to license this material to us. You will notice that our Special Collection documents give the copyright holder (American Banker, etc.) at the bottom of the article. How Northern Light's royalty payment is divided between the publisher and the writer is between that writer and publisher. Why has Northern Light attracted the attention of journalist and free-lancers, where other full-text providers have not? Because our search service puts up no subscription gate to access -- unlike the more expensive full-text services. Writers can, for the first time, see their work delivered in electronic form. Many are realizing only now that their work has been sold this way for decades on the older services. Northern Light has from time to time received material from publishers in error -- i.e., the copyright of a particular article IS owned by the writer. These instances are rare, but they do happen. In these cases, the writer should notify the publisher of the error. The publisher will in turn notify Northern Light to remove the article, and we will do so immediately. The bottom line is this: if you are willing to use Lexis/Nexis, Dow Jones Interactive, or Dialog, you need not hesitate to use Northern Light. We sell material from the same sources, with the same careful attention to copyright compliance... but we're a lot cheaper. I hope this clears up the issue for you, and I hope you will include this in your next issue of Library Juice. It would be unfortunate if your readers abandoned a service they use due to inaccurate information. Thank you for your time. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me, Cassandra Targett, MLS Information Analyst Northern Light Technology http://www.nlsearch.com/ 617-577-2154 ctargett[at]northernlight.com ___________________________________________________________________________ 12. "What do you wish you knew?" - Answers from New Librarians Date: Sat, 22 May 1999 13:02:39 -0500 From: Priscilla Shontz <pshontz[at]falcon.tamucc.edu> To: newlib-l[at]usc.edu Subject: What do you wish you knew? Mime-Version: 1.0 I have a question for you all: If you're working in the library field, what do you wish someone had told you when you graduated from school, or when you began your first library-related job? What have you learned that you wish you knew then? What advice would you pass on to someone who's graduating right now or is taking his/her first job? What's the best piece of advice anyone has given you about your career? If you're still in or just graduating from library school, what do you wonder about? What are the burning issues in your life right now? Priscilla ___________________ Priscilla K. Shontz Librarian Driscoll Children's Hospital Medical Library Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi Phone: 361-694-5467 Fax: 361-694-4249 E-mail: pshontz[at]falcon.tamucc.edu or shontzp[at]driscollchildrens.org Web: http://www.driscollchildrens.org/library/ ALA NMRT Vice-President/President-Elect: http://www.ala.org/nmrt/ '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' Date: Sat, 22 May 1999 14:46:35 -0500 (CDT) From: Angela Hansen <ahansen[at]libby.rbls.lib.il.us> To: Priscilla Shontz <pshontz[at]falcon.tamucc.edu> Cc: newlib-l[at]usc.edu Subject: Re: What do you wish you knew? MIME-Version: 1.0 Dear Priscilla: I rarely reply to posts on mailing lists (I'm a lurker), but your post got me thinking about my own career, and how I got to be where I am today. Since you took the time to ask these questions, let me take a few moments to respond! First off, I am a 25 year old reference librarian at a large, urban, public library. I earned my MLIS degree almost two years ago from Dominican University. Secondly, I might sound bitter sometimes in my responses, but I do sincerely love my job! Please don't take this post as bitterness, but instead, honesty. > If you're working in the library field, what do you wish someone had told > you when you graduated from school, or when you began your first > library-related job? Although I knew that library school was something that I had to do if I wanted to become a "professional" librarian, I did not realize how much of a waste of time (and money) it was until after I started working on the professional level. This is not a slam on Dominican University in any way, shape, or form!!! In fact, Dominican was a very practical school. I think that my education there put me in a much better place when looking for a job because I had *many* hours of hands-on experience, instead of just theory-based instruction. However, once I got into the "real world," it was not hard for me to figure out that most of the knowledge I used on the job was learned at previous paraprofessional library positions and the practical instruction. Theory is nice, but in a public library (at least) patrons could care less if you knew what a Venn Diagram was...they just want their book. I wish someone would have told me how much I wouldn't know when I started. I figured that since I had a Master's degree, I would know a lot about what I was doing, but once I started my job, I felt like I didn't know anything! My supervisors/managers were very kind in telling me that it would take six months to a year to feel *totally* comfortable with reference work, but then why on earth did I go to library school? To learn about a bunch of reference sources that the library I work at can't afford, or doesn't subscribe to? To learn about cutting edge technology, but not get the opportunity to use it in the "real world?" To write million-page papers on why Internet filters shouldn't be used, even though at my current job it wouldn't be my decision to make? I know, I know...someday I might need to know it, right? What have you learned that you wish you knew then? The number one thing I learned *immediately* when starting my first professional reference position was that all instructors lied! :) I remember throughout library school that most textbooks/magazine articles talked about reference burnout. Two hour shifts were recommended. Will somebody *please* tell me where there are two hour shifts, rest awhile with off-desk duties, then another two hour shift...etc.? I, at the least, spend over 30 hours a week working reference alone! not to mention I run a book discussion group, select 000's and 200's, give speeches within the community, weed my sections, etc. I don't know what it would have accomplished if I knew this kind of stress was waiting for me, except I might have been a little more prepared to be bombarded all day long! > What advice would you pass on to someone who's graduating right now or is > taking his/her first job? If you are going to work in a public library, get to know the community you work in. In fact, learn anything you possibly can about anything in the world, and somehow try to retain where you heard/learned it. You just never know when somebody might ask you about some small piece of trivia that was printed on the back of a cereal box you were just recently reading. What's the best piece of advice anyone has given > you about your career? > Listen!! Listen to patrons closely so you can figure out exactly what they want. Listen to peers and colleagues because they pass knowledge along to you so you can pass it along to others. Hope this helps. Angela Hansen Reference Librarian Davenport Public Library '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' Date: Sun, 23 May 1999 16:03:41 -0500 (CDT) From: Lucia Farnham-Hudson <luciafh[at]mcallen.lib.tx.us> To: Priscilla Shontz <pshontz[at]falcon.tamucc.edu> Cc: newlib-l[at]usc.edu Subject: Re: What do you wish you knew? MIME-Version: 1.0 Hi Priscilla, et al.-- One of the things that I wish my course of study had done to incorporate computer use more thoroughly into our instruction. I feel out of date, not knowing how to rig a home page - I'm not hopeless, just lack time to learn on my own. The second major thing that I wish was made more clear to me was how necessary it will be to bend to fit a job. My current job is as the original cataloger for the county I live in, but I haven't done a lick of it for three months because now I'm in charge of the implementation of our new database. Even tho my job description doesn't say it, I am in effect the systems librarian. Fortunately, there are those who know more than I do about the hardware ... Third, although it was touched on in class, I wish more attention had been given to how much politics dictate what a library can do. At least in public libraries, the people on the board control an awful lot of what goes on in the library in terms of funding, employment, building or remodeling, collection development, etc. If you don't placate them, you either find yourself out on your kiester, or without funding, or without approval to do vital maitenance or other projects. It can be quite a tightrope, for which I have little patience. So here it goes, advice: 1. Be flexible. 2. Know when to stop pushing an issue. 3. Learn as much as you can in school, because it is very difficult to get the training once you graduate. 4. Don't be afraid to learn whenever you can, and from whoever you can. 5. Don't pre-define yourself. 6. Learn to leave your job at work - at least if you have kids. 7. Be willing to put in more work if you can, but don't beat yourself if you can't. 8. Never ask your staff to do things you refuse to do. 9. When you take a supervisory job, spend the time learning what your staff does, so you don't make the mistake of asking the impossible. 10. Keep learning. Good luck to the new grads out there :) Lucia class of '95, UCLA Lucia L. Farnham-Hudson Catalog Librarian Hidalgo County Library System 4305 N. 10th St., Suite E McAllen, Texas 78504 (956) 682-6397 luciafh[at]mcallen.lib.tx.us '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' Date: Sun, 23 May 1999 22:34:03 -0500 From: Jennifer Friedman To: newlib-l[at]usc.edu Subject: Re: What do you wish you knew? Mime-Version: 1.0 Interesting question! Something I've learned just since I took my present job is that nothing you ever learn is wasted. Here's what I mean: I had a hard time at my first professional job because I had moved a long way, knew no one in town, and had some personality conflicts with my supervisors, etc. There were times I even thought I was no good at what I was doing and that I had chosen the wrong profession. Many weekends I spent crying. My mom's collect phone bills from that time were staggering. ;) But for all the grief that job gave me, it was precisely the skills and lessons I learned there that helped me get and succeed at my present job. Not just the practical cataloging and outreach skills, but also the strategies for dealing with conflicts and for working effectively with others. I learned the hard way, but I learned. Here's some things I learned: 1. Never laugh at or make fun of anyone, ever, unless you are absolutely certain they are trying to be funny--especially if you are halfway across the country from home and may not be able to tell when someone's kidding due to cultural communication differences, etc. 2. Don't let anyone waste your time. If someone is trying to intimidate you by demanding on Friday that you be present at a mysterious meeting on Tuesday to address unnamed problems with your performance, find any way you can to keep them from ruining your weekend. 3. When you propose an idea, and others meet it with stony silence, there is probably a good reason why you shouldn't go ahead with it. 4. Remember that if you are in agony at your job: --You are not a bad person. --You are not a bad librarian. --There is probably a reason for how you feel, even if it's simple friction between incompatible employees. --It can probably be solved in some way. At worst, you will have to leave the job. --You will not feel this way all your life at every job. You will probably not feel this way again, at least not to this extent. --You are probably not the only one who has noticed the problems which are bothering you, even though others may be too frightened to speak up. --Don't tempt fate by hanging on longer than you think you should. You may end up getting terminated, or at least having a tainted record. --If you are unhappy, it gets harder and harder to do your job justice, which might become a vicious cycle (someone criticizes you, you feel upset, you aren't able to provide good service because you're upset, someone notices you are not up-to-snuff today, they criticize you, etc., etc.) 5. An organization with bad communication patterns is not just bad for staff morale but for the level of service it can offer its patrons. Work to maintain open and cheerful lines of communication. 6. You must find something/someone you love to keep you sane during times of job trouble. It's not enough to rely on a casual hobby or a professional organization. It has to be something non-job-related about which you are passionate. As for library school being useless, as a previous poster complained, my previous supervisors (the ones I didn't get along with) also used to use library school as an excuse when I was supposed to know something and didn't: esoteric reference sources, how to create corporate headings, why I shouldn't wear walking shorts to work, etc. ("What did they teach you in library school, anyway?") This does not hold water. No library school can teach you everything you need to know to be a librarian; none can even come close. What they can do is give you a sense of the ideals and philosophies of your profession, give you valuable theory that you may never use (but you will understand what you do much better for it), start you off with some (extremely) basic skills, and (if they are any good) get you into an internship of some kind so you have hands-on experience to hang your theory on, otherwise you will forget it. You come out with much, much more to learn in order to do any job, but you have the basic groundwork and the enthusiasm to learn it and to provide good service. Anyone who thinks learning ceases after library school, or that beginning a new job should be an easy and comfortable process, is deluding him/herself. Finally, you might complain that you have never had to know how to do a Venno a Venndiagram since library school. Well, I teach Internet/MEDLINE instruction classes several times a week and I explain search techniques using a Venn diagram. Good thing I knew how to draw one. I have had umpteen people tell me they never got Boolean searching until I did my little Venn song-and-dance! ;) Jennifer Friedman [signature file redacted by request] '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' Date: Tue, 25 May 1999 12:41:50 -0400 From: "Steven M. Bergson" <safran-can[at]geocities.com> To: newlib-l[at]usc.edu Subject: Re: What do you wish you knew? MIME-Version: 1.0 I wish they taught a bit more about "alternative librarianship" : - serving the marginal communities (e.g the poor, youth, gay community, hispanics, women in crisis) better - providing better access through more descriptive subject headings - internal & external library politics (ALA resolutions, defending your library / librarians from the likes of Dr. Laura, outreaching to local social / political organizations) - workplace issues (unions, outsourcing, employee rights, sexual harassment) - networking with other outspoken librarians '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' Date: Tue, 25 May 1999 12:54:42 -0700 (PDT) From: "Caroline M. Bordinaro" <bordinar[at]usc.edu> To: newlib-l[at]usc.edu Subject: Re: What do you wish you knew? MIME-Version: 1.0 I wish they would tell library students to join as many teams and committees within their workplace/organization as possible. It's a great way to meet people, get a feel for the decision making process, and start to formulate your own professional opinions. I wish, as a part of an academic librarianship class, they would go over the whole publishing process, from coming up with ideas to deciding where to send the paper, to some legal details and dealing with an editorial board. I also wish they'd run down a list of professional organizations, and give pro's and con's for joining and becoming active. There are some groups that just aren't worth your time and money (no names, please). Caroline M. Bordinaro Business Information Resources Specialist University of Southern California Crocker Business Library e-mail: bordinar[at]usc.edu tel: (213) 740-9167 fax: (213) 740-6253 "Historians have recently discovered that the Dark Ages were caused by the Y1K problem." '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' Date: Tue, 25 May 1999 16:57:51 -0700 From: John Mead <Johnm[at]ohs.org> To: newlib-l[at]usc.edu Subject: Re: What do you wish you knew? Mime-Version: 1.0 Michelle, Angela, et ali: Yes, and yes. Yes, the MLS in *many* ways is a waste of time and money, especially when I hear of MLS programs no longer requiring that you take cataloging and reference courses, which are the courses I have found the *most* useful in my ten years and ten months as a "professional" librarian [but who's counting!] And yes, if you want to move up in the structure, be given more responsibility and the opportunity to *really* sink your teeth into library work, you have to have the MLS; the MLS is your walking papers, your union card. And in theory, they're right. Ideally, the MLS program will provide you with a thorough overview of library operations, including a wholistic appreciation of how the various segments inter-relate, so that you can then understand how your section of library operations ties into the big picture, and potentially have a clue if you ever end up running the show. The reality, unfortunately, seems to fall far short of the ideal. And, unfortunately, you will find that some of those making hiring decisions will act like all pre-MLS experience has no relevance and need not be taken into account when determining if you can Do The Job, which is garbage; I've done as well as I have in this field *because* of my previous experience! What *I* wished I'd known? That I should take coursework on photocopier/printer maintenance. That I should make sure I knew how to do "clerical" work because many libraries don't *have* clerical assistance. What I *did* know, and was correct about: That I would love being a librarian, and love helping people find the information they were looking for. Yours, John Mead Director, Reference & Research Collections Oregon Historical Society Library Portland, OR ___________________________________________________________________________ 13. Moron Dr. Laura Salon Magazine article http://www.salonmagazine.com/tech/feature/1999/05/27/dr_laura/index.html .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. Date: Sun, 30 May 1999 20:19:23 -0700 (PDT) From: "Gordon Riley" <gdriley[at]hotmail.com> To: publib <publib[at]sunsite.berkeley.edu> Subject: Dr. Laura on A&E Biography Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.10.9905302019190.15179-100000[at]sunsite.berkeley.edu> For those who did not or could not watch the A&E program on Dr. L yesterday, two relevent issues were illuminated by segments of the show. In one segment she was shown giving a speech where she reaffirmed her position that "there is only black and white, there are no grey areas." When questioned about this by an interviewer, she insisted that this was her philosophy. Since the Internet is like another dimension composed entirely of grey areas, it is obvious why she is forced to cling to simple b&w solutions. The second segment regarded the authenticity of the nude pictures of her on the Net, which unquestionably are so. Besides the fact that the ALA filtering software attack is likely to be motivated primarily by personal embarassment (I'm my kid's mom, and his friends can see naked pictures of me in the library) - what is interesting is the raging argument on Usenet as to whether the pictures are genuine. It tangibly demonstrates that many of Dr. L's most feverent supporters are completely unswayed by hard facts. Gordon Riley, Technical Services Librarian Mercersburg Academy, Mercersburg PA The opinions expressed are my own! ******* "It's all about sincerity. Once you can fake that, you've got it made." Former NFL Head Coach Monte Clark ___________________________________________________________________________ 14. UNESCO Observatory on the Information Society http://www.unesco.org/webworld/observatory/index.html US Mirror: http://mirror-us.unesco.org/webworld/observatory/index.html The Observatory on the Information Society, an extensive Website developed by UNESCO, aims "to raise awareness on the ethical, legal, and societal challenges brought about by new [information and communication] technologies." The site collects and disseminates current information for UNESCO's 186 Member States, focusing on four themes: Privacy and Confidentiality, Content Regulation, Multilingualism, and Access to Public Domain Information. The Privacy and Confidentiality section encompasses issues such as the protection of personal data, cryptography, and digital signatures. The Content Regulation section covers topics including the freedom of expression, violence in cyberspace, and child protection. The Multilingualism section offers resources on linguistic rights, diversity promotion, and language technologies. The Access to Public Domain Information section contains documents related to the public information policies adopted by various nations. The site also includes Action Plans, Strategies and Policies, a section that provides resources on the information infrastructures of international organizations and countries worldwide. [AO] >From the Scout Report http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/scout/report/ ___________________________________________________________________________ 15. Fun Facts about Illiteracy United Nations: Nearly a billion people - a sixth of humanity - will enter the new millennium unable to read a book or even sign their names, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) said on 8 December 1998. In its annual survey, 'State of the World's Children 1999', released here, UNICEF said the growing number of functional illiterates - two-thirds of them women - in the world will not only lack the basic knowledge to operate a computer but also be unable to understand a simple application form. For tens of millions of children, education is beyond reach also because they are full-time workers, many toiling in hazardous and exploitative forms of child labour. For others, there may simply be no school for them to attend, or if there is, it fails to ensure their right to education. There may be too few qualified teachers, or a child's family may not be able to afford the fees. The school may be too far from home. Or it may lack books and supplies. Pointing out the economics of the problem, UNICEF said that the world's poorest nations carry a $2.2-trillion external debt, making it extremely difficult for them to invest in education.Of these, the worst hit are the world's 48 least developed countries (LDCs), the poorest of the poor, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa. UNICEF said that to achieve education for all children, the world would need to spend an additional $7 billion per year over the next 10 years. 'This is less than is annually spent on cosmetics in the United States or on ice-cream in Europe. It is less than a tenth of the world's annual military spending,' it added. The crisis of basic education, UNICEF said, comes at a time when technology has triggered a quantum leap in the accessibility of information, making ideas and knowledge available to more people than ever before. 'The tragedy is that these same technological advances have further deepened the gulf between rich and poor - between those sufficiently affluent and educated to benefit from the new learning technology, and those disqualified by poverty and illiteracy,' UNICEF said. - Third World Network Features/IPS By Thalif Deen __________________________ ARTISTS AND WORKERS OF THE WORLD UNITE... YOU HAVE NOTHING TO LOSE BUT BAD TASTE! Email: lamp[at]igc.apc.org - Website: http://www.igc.apc.org/laborart LaBOR aRT & MuRAL PRoJECT Spanning the Globe to: ORGANIZE - AGITATE - EDUCATE - INSPIRE Mike Alewitz, Artistic Director ___________________________________________________________________________ 16. This to That - http://www.thistothat.com/ This site gives its raison d'etre with the subtitle: Because people have a need to glue things to other things. It features a drop down list where you choose which two materials you'd like to join and it recommends the product(s) for doing so. In addition, you're also given each glue's toxicity, availability, and "waiting to adhere" time. And there's more, a fascinating trivia page, glue philosophy, related links, and a glue of the month selection. - cl Subjects: glues and adhesives from LII Week ___________________________________________________________________________ L I B R A R Y J U I C E | http://libr.org/Juice/ | | Except where noted, items appearing in Library Juice | are copyright-free, so feel free to share them with | colleagues and friends. Library Juice is a free weekly | publication edited by Rory Litwin. Original senders | are credited wherever possible; opinions are theirs. | Your comments and suggestions are welcome. | mailto:Juice[at]libr.org This page was created by SimpleText2Html 1.0.3 on 1-Jun-99.