LISNews.org | ProQuest Sells Periodical Microfilm business

Interesting note on LISNews about ProQuest selling off it's periodicals microfilm business. The article referes to this part of PQs business as "sluggish". Is this the beginning of the end of microfilm as a format for periodicals preservation/ retention?

Nice new design on LISNews too. Definitely miss things like that using a news aggregator!

Sony/BMG CD Anti-Piracy Software

A discussion of the problems related to Sony's new anti-piracy software has cropped up on one of my cataloging listservs. Apparently, a class-action lawsuit has already been filed about this in California and one is about to be filed in New York. Here's a summary from AUTOCAT (quoted with permission):

I don't know if anyone has been following this, but for those of you who have collections with CDs, be aware that there is a potentially fatal problem with the new anti-piracy software that comes with new Song/BMG titles. These CDs come bundled with their own player, which has to be installed in order for the CD to run. This program then limits the number of copies that can be made from the CD to three. However, in doing this it also installs a rootkit.

Rootkits, according to Mark Russinovich, who writes a computer blog, are "cloaking technologies that hide files, Registry keys, and other system objects from diagnostic and security software, and they are usually employed by malware attempting to keep their implementation hidden." What this rootkit does is actually rewrite parts of the code on your OS. Trying to delete these files may cripple your system, and may leave it vulnerable to other viruses and worms that capitalize on security weaknesses in the new code. It may also lead to the "Blue Screen of Death" and potential loss of data.

Note that nowhere in the licensing agreement we all click without reading does it say that using the CD will alter your OS or rewrite your computer's code. It is also very hard to get the uninstall program from Sony, and it doesn't seem to work very well if you do get it.

The original problem was noted in Russovich's blog:
Sony, Rootkits and Digital Rights Management Gone Too Far

and its follow-up:
More on Sony: Dangerous Decloaking Patch, EULAs and Phoning Home

It has also been covered by several news outlets and on IT security websites:
Sony Rootkit or Aggressive DRM?

Hackers Raid Sony's Playbook
(this has good links to other ariticles [sic] as well)

Because libraries buy and circulate CD copies to mulitple users, you may want to take a look at the CDs in your collection and avoid these. Apart from the spyware and privacy aspects, this is potentially a huge security problem, and may actually cause Windows PCs to fail. Caveat emptor.

I haven't had time to look into whether or not we have any of these CDs. There is a list that is making the rounds on slashdot and elsewhere. I'm not sure if there is any way to tell if they have this software before ordering them, but it might behoove us to look into it. It won't really be a problem for old fogeys like me who rarely listen to CDs on a computer, but our patrons who do might be understandably irritated by this. Thoughts?

Wikipedia Article

Interesting article from cnn.com about our friend Wikipedia possibly producing print/ cd versions of some content for the developing world.

Bye and thanks

I've enjoyed working with you, thanks for everything, and all my best wishes.

Can't wait to see you at GUGM, COMO, SAMM, ALA . . .

New Librarian @ Decatur

The Decatur Campus Library is pleased to welcome Adrienne Graham on board as our new full time Reference Librarian. Adrienne was formerly a part time librarian at Rockdale, so she is be no means new to the GPC Libraries family. Adrienne will be working with Circulation and Serials as well as the usual reference desk and instruction class duties.

Her contact info is on the staff page is you want to say welcome aboard. We're glad to have her!

Promotional Tools for the Open WorldCat Program

I got an email from OCLC that I thought might be of interest to our public services folks.

Promotional tools for the Open WorldCat program are now available on the OCLC Web site at http://www.oclc.org/worldcat/open/promote/default.htm. Use these tools to increase awareness of Web access to your library’s resources through Open WorldCat and its “Find in a Library” interface.

The materials available are a printable table tent, HTML e-mail, customizable news release, customizable flier, and a presentation slide.

What are you reading right now?

Post a comment, please, and tell us.

I'm reading Cookwise by Shirley Corriher, ISBN 0688102298.

Open WorldCat Just Keeps On Giving

OCLC is bringing us an interesting expansion of the Open WorldCat program that I've previously discussed on this blog. Here's the official word.

OCLC has begun a pilot program that enables Web users to add content to authoritative WorldCat records they locate through the Open WorldCat program. Available under the Details and Reviews tabs in the Open WorldCat interface, the pilot functionality allows anyone to quickly register and add content such as a table of contents, notes or a review. Open WorldCat users can edit the personal reviews they add to WorldCat records, and may also edit or correct information submitted by others that appears in the tables of contents and notes fields of the records. This pilot will continue into early 2006.

OCLC will first offer this service through the Open WorldCat program and later expand the service to the WorldCat database on the FirstSearch reference service.

Visit http://www.oclc.org/worldcat/open/usercontent/ to learn more about the pilot program.

Initial discussion of this new feature on Web4Lib has been thought-provoking, with such questions being raised as who will own (and can therefore redistribute) the user-contributed data, and can non-member libraries link to the reviews? I haven't had a lot of time to scrutinize the TOS so I don't have any answers to these and other probing questions, but I will say that this sort of social software is very popular and its inclusion in the Open WorldCat program won't hurt library PR in the least.

Here's an example of a newly revamped Open WorldCat record. The new display has several different tabs, Libraries, Details, Editions, and Reviews. I've used Clarkston's zip code as the location qualifier, and the Libraries tab is telling me that the only OCLC-member library near me that holds this title is UGA. The Details tab is pretty self-explanatory, and here you'll notice the ability to add TOCs and notes, one of the newer features. The Editions tab appears to be pulling different editions of the title from the WorldCat database, should you prefer an older edition. This is a very nifty, I think. Finally, in the Review tab you will notice that one user, "Minnie", has already reviewed this title. In the green box at the upper right, you will also notice the Buy It Now link that I've blogged about in the past.

As I said, I haven't had a lot of time to play with this or think about its usefulness for GPC specifically, but I wanted to bring it to your attention and would love to hear your thoughts.

Illiterate Brazilian Man Establishes Community Library

The writer of this article managed to work in the obligatory shushing reference, but the story is inspirational enough to forget all about that. Here's a quote from the gentleman who established the library.

When he asked members of his small bicycling group to help him collect used books, "they all thought I was a little crazy," he said.

But they humored him, and the nameless cycling club got a moniker: "The Madmen of Sao Goncalo." Or so they seemed at first to the neighbors whose doors they knocked on.

"Some people thought, 'You must be joking. Here in this community, people ask for clothes, but to ask for books!' " said Ronaldo Pena, 48, one of the cyclists.

Very incredible story, well worth a read.

LC to Add More Reviews to Bib Records

As of Sept. 1, 2005, the Library of Congress Bibliographic Enrichment Advisory Team (BEAT) expanded its "reviews" project to include E-STREAMS: Electronic Reviews of Science & Technology References Covering Engineering, Agriculture, Medicine and Science. E-STREAMS is a free electronic-only book review journal published by Yankee Book Peddler and edited by H. Robert Malinowsky, Professor and Manager of Collections Development, University of Illinois at Chicago.

As with H-Net Reviews in the Humanities and Social Sciences, links to which you may have already seen in the catalog, LC will be adding links to E-STREAMS reviews where appropriate and redistributing the records for the benefit of other libraries.

Here's an example of a record enriched with a link to its E-STREAMS review. (You will also notice a link to the title's table of content, another helpful little BEAT project). We use a lot of LC records in our database, so we should start seeing a few of these reviews soon.

Rockdale's New Director

It's all go at Rockdale these days! Send your congratulations out to Laura Tartak who has just become Rockdale's new LRC director.

Rockdale's New Full-Time Librarian

Everyone send your congratulations out to Kip Cates, who just became full-time at Rockdale. According to a forwarded email from Laura Tartak, Kip got his MLS from the University of Tennessee, has 19 years of experience in academic and public libraries, and will be a Rockdale committee representative. A lot of us have already met Kip, who has been part-time at Rockdale since October 2004, and we think he's just swell.

Congrats, Kip!

Libraries In The Chronicle

The Sept. 30 issue of The Chronicle of Higher Education has a big section of articles on libraries. Scroll down the contents page on the Chronicle website and you'll get to it eventually. Think a username/password is need to access most articles directly online but FT will show up in Academic Search Premier in about a month if you really wanna read it from a computer.

More Wiki!

Had enough wiki talk yet? I didn't think so. Reading some blogs and noticed a post on Library Stuff about the University of Minnesota Libraries using a wiki for their staff home page. Great way to get information out to what I assume is a huge staff.

And now for something completely different: I'm going to switch out a few of the blogs in our blogroll for some variety. So bookmark (or better yet subscribe via RSS) to your faves in case they go away. Also, send me any suggestions you have for new LIS related blogs to feature. I'll probably make the switches next week sometime.

Exalead beta search engine

I'm just now reading the 7/05 issue of LJ. This is from Readers' Delight by Cheryl LaGuardia about a beta search tool:

Exalead (beta.exalead.com/search) is a new search engine built from a unique perspective. "Unlike physical libraries, with volumes on shelves in predictable order, the web is a mess," writes François Bourdoncle, Exalead's founder. "With Exalead, decisions about what should be searched, in what form, or where, needn't be made before the net is cast to gather relevant information. . . . When results are delivered, a tailoring tool appears at screen left, and retrieved information is arranged by Related Terms, Related Categories, Web Site Location, and Document Type. . . . Searchers can fine-tune results before clicking on one link."

Library Instruction Wiki

There was a post on the ILI-L digest today about a new Library Instruction Wiki created by the Oregon Library Association. Looks to be along the same lines as a couple of the previously mentioned LIS wikis but focusing exclusively on library instruction topics and materials. Not a whole lot of stuff there yet, but looks promising.

Sympodium tips?

The library instruction room Sympodium recently was installed at Clarkston. Besides the basic circling, underlining, and highlighting, are any of you using the Sympodium more creatively? Posting annotated pages for students to access later? Drawing hand turkeys?

Katrina's Animal Victims

I know that everyone is as concerned as I am for what is going on on the Gulf Coast. As a Mississippian, I'’ve been deeply touched by the outpouring of tangible aid and emotional support coming from folks all over the country. I just wanted to take this opportunity to remind everyone of the pets and other domestic animals, livestock, and wildlife that are in desperate need of our help as well.

Many people who had to move to shelters, and many people who have been rescued from the rooftops of their flooded homes, were not allowed to bring their pets with them. Now, these beloved pets may be the only things these folks have left in the world and they are frantic to save them. There is some good news trickling in, but much more remains to be done.

The Humane Society of the United States and The American Humane Association are the two animal charities that I have donated to and I hope that you will consider doing the same. They are working diligently (with local animal groups) to rescue and care for the animals now trapped in homes, or homeless, all along the Coast. If you cannot make a donation at this time, please consider contacting these groups and seeing if there is anything else that they need. They managed to coordinate with some local shelters before the storm, to evacuate animals already housed there, and are now trying to find homes for them. If you were thinking of bringing a new animal into your family, this would be a wonderful way to do it.

Petfinder.com is also working on developing a comprehensive database to aid the pets affected by Hurricane Katrina and hopes to have it operational in a few days. (Petfinder is also an excellent way to adopt a new pet.) The ASPCA, Noah's Wish, and many other wonderful organizations are also doing everything they can to help.

Thanks everyone.

SOLINET Joins the Call for Housing

I know that some of you may have seen this already, but I wanted to bring it to everyone's attention.

SOLINET is calling on all who can to provide free shelter to library staff displaced from their homes by Hurricane Katrina. The Lexington (KY) Public Library is creating a database of information and providing it to the library associations in the affected states.

Please forward your offer of free housing to hurricanehelp@lexpublib.org with this information:
* Name, city and state, phone numbers, email address
* Brief description of space available
* Number of people that can be accommodated
* If pets or children are welcome
* Smoking or non-smoking
* Handicapped accessible
* Willingness to help with transportation
* Any other information

More Google!

Saw a story about yet another new Google service yesterday.