Progress on Digital Public Library of America

A podcast I listen to, Digital Campus, recently talked about another meeting of a group working on the idea of the Digital Public Library of America. It sounds like some version of this is going to be moving into development possibly in 2011. Potential game changer? Pipe Dream? What do you think?

Here is some more information:
Interview with Robert Darnton on the Digital Public Library of America, pt 1



"The Berkman Center will convene a large and diverse group of stakeholders to define the scope, architecture, costs and administration for a proposed Digital Public Library of America. This initiative was launched in December 2010 with generous support from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation."

What Scholars Want from the Digital Public Library of America

• "If we want to think about the Digital Public Library of America from the scholar’s point of view, we must think about how to replicate those signals while taking advantage of the technology. In short: the best of the single search box with the trust and feel of the bookshelf."

Questions from and for the Digital Public Library of America workshop

• "I came out of it invigorated and depressed at the same time. Invigorated: An amazing set of people, very significant national institutions ready to pitch in, an alignment on the value of access to the works of knowledge and culture. Depressed: The !@#$%-ing copyright laws are so draconian and, well, stupid, that it is hard to see how to take advantage of the new ways of connecting to ideas and to one another."

Interview with Robert Darnton on the Digital Public Library of America, pt 1

• "A little over a week ago I sat down with Darnton—award-winning historian, Carl H. Pforzheimer University Professor at Harvard, and director of the Harvard University Library—to discuss plans underway for a Digital Public Library of America (DPLA). Sitting in Darnton's office right next to Harvard Square we discussed the nettlesome issues surrounding the DPLA, what the massive on-line collection might offer, and how such a virtual repository could serve the public."

Gadgets You Should Get Rid Of (or Not)

I liked what this article had to say about books and the fact that is mentioned books as a gadget:

Some spring cleaning the article suggests....

DESKTOP COMPUTER Lose it.

HIGH-SPEED INTERNET AT HOME Keep it.

CABLE TV Depends.

POINT-AND-SHOOT CAMERA Lose it.

CAMCORDER Lose it.

USB THUMB DRIVE Lose it.

DIGITAL MUSIC PLAYER Lose it (probably).

ALARM CLOCK Keep it.

GPS UNIT Lose it.

BOOKS Keep them (with one exception). Yes, e-readers are amazing, and yes, they will probably become a more dominant reading platform over time, but consider this about a book: It has a terrific, high-resolution display. It is pretty durable; you could get it a little wet and all would not be lost. It has tremendous battery life. It is often inexpensive enough that, if you misplaced it, you would not be too upset. You can even borrow them free at sites called libraries.

But there is one area where printed matter is going to give way to digital content: cookbooks.

Court ruling on Google book deal

This 3 minute audio clip was broadcast today on NPR's All Things Considered:

Judge Rejects Google Books Deal | Minnesota Public Radio News

Transliteracy, you say?

We've been a-talkin' and a'readin' about transliteracy, what the term means, and how it affects the library world. There was a good interview of Ned Potter recently on the blog Libraries and Transliteracy. My favorite excerpt is below.

• Question: How do we become transliterate? (Jane's note: The question isn't really answered, but I like the comment he made.)
  "For the normal person on the street, becoming transliterate involves becoming educated in all the literacies relevant to them. Not everyone needs to know about all types of literacy – ‘trans’ doesn’t mean ‘all’, it means ‘across’. [...]
  But for the Information Professional, the challenge is greater. We really do need, insofar as is possible, to become expert in all forms of literacy, in order to lead the way for others to follow. That means investigating new trends, becoming early adopters of new technologies and platforms, and not burning any bridges with more traditional information literacy either. Building on sound pedagogical principles is important, particularly in the academic community, but so is being flexible and able to move with change and encompass new developments."
  

Ned Potter goes on to suggest you become transliteral as you "Read, write, listen, watch, and interact." THIS is the responsibility and the burden of the Library Futurists, methinks. Staying on (or creating?) the cutting edge, embracing open-mindedness, and nurturing your intrinsic desire to keep learning.

Are we at the mercy of our vendors?

EBooks are not the only thing vendors have control of in our library systems. As part of the team that implemented a new ILS I find myself defending our decisions (to patrons and staff) quite often to the tune of “well we had to make this switch because the vendor was stopping supporting the old software” or “we are working with the vendor to correct that.” At times I felt powerless to fix integral parts of our system while waiting in hope that our vendor would be able to fix it.

The migration from the old system to the new one did not feel like an optional switch. Our vendor had announced plans to suspend support and development on our old system and all focus would be on their flagship product – the product that we moved to. At the same time, the library needed to upgrade system hardware, which was at the end of its life expectancy. Adding to that, the cost of upkeep and maintenance for the new system is much lower than the old. With this in mind, the decision the decision didn’t seem like a tough one or really a decision at all.

Could we have done things differently? Could we have left our vendor behind? Could we have gone open source and completely customized the ILS to our (and our borrowers) liking? King County Library System did drop their vendor and go with an open source ILS. I’m not sure their experience was much better than mine, but they are no longer at the mercy of their vendor.

Children and their Internet Usage

There's a study that just came out regarding how children are using different media sources. It showed that almost 80% of children under the age of 5 use the internet at least once a week! This figure surprised the heck out of me, but as I looked further I realized it's because I was thinking inside the box. These kids aren't using the internet the same way I do. I use the internet for Facebook, e-mail, research, etc. but children are mainly watching videos. The internet for them is almost like an extension of the television.

If kids are using the internet at such an early age, imagine all the possible things they could do. They're not stuck learning Spanish from Sesame Street - they can play "intellectually stimulating" games that teach them language, math, working out puzzles, anything really!

The thing that ended up surprising me most was that these kids apparently still love physical books: "It is important to mention that even in an era of widespread electronic-screen exposure, print remains a constant in children’s media diets, although it varies dramatically by age. About 90% of kids 5-to-9-years-old read books most days of the week, and they spend about an hour per day doing so, either reading by themselves or being read to by an adult." Do you think this is by choice or is this something parents are pushing on their children?

E-books in libraries may expire after 26 uses

The New York Times had an interesting article today regarding library e-books and HarperCollins Publishers. Last week the publisher "began enforcing new restrictions on its e-books, requiring that books be checked out only 26 times before they expire." At that point, the library would have to purchase the e-book again, at least if it's a HarperCollins title. While an argument can be made that libraries routinely replace well-loved books due to excessive coffee stains and covers that are barely hanging on, it really depends on the book, and I'm sure most of the titles in the collection that would do well as e-books can hold up to being borrowed 26 times.

The article goes on to say that some libraries are boycotting those titles, but if other publishers choose to follow suit, that will severely limit the titles that libraries will be able to make to their patrons. However, it could hurt the publishers, too. According to the article, "Sales to libraries can account for 7 to 9 percent of a publisher’s overall revenue, two major publishers said."

It seems like this is yet another reason that libraries and e-book publishers should work together, rather than having to react to what one or the other may do.