John Miedema reviews Library Juice Concentrate
John Miedema, of the Slow Reading blog and upcoming book, has reviewed my Library Juice Concentrate…. Thanks, John.
The 2008 Falsies Awards
If you’re like me, you’re a librarian in part because you have a passion for the right to information, and by information I mean truth rather than lies. One of the books that originally kindled that passion for me in terms of its social meaning was Toxic Sludge is Good for You: Lies, Damn Lies, … Read more The 2008 Falsies Awards
Shiraz Durrani anthology – Information and Liberation
Just published: Information and Liberation: Writings on the Politics of Information and Librarianship Author: Shiraz Durrani Price: $45.00 (or £22.00) ISBN: 978-0-9802004-0-9 7″ by 10″ 385 Pages Printed on acid-free paper. Information and Liberation is a retrospective collection of Shiraz Durrani’s articles and conference papers on the politics of information. The book documents the struggle … Read more Shiraz Durrani anthology – Information and Liberation
Barbara Fister on Google and OA
ALA’s Office for Information Technology Policy had its annual retreat this month. Barbara Fister, frequent poster to the ACRL blog and a librarian at Gustavus Adolphus College in Minnesota, presented a talk there called “Open Access and Books in a Digital World – What Role Should Libraries Play?” Her talk is an interesting exploration of … Read more Barbara Fister on Google and OA
LJP Series on Gender and Sexuality in Librarianship
Series on Gender and Sexuality in Librarianship Emily Drabinski, Series Editor Library Juice Press seeks book proposals and manuscripts for a new series, Gender and Sexuality in Librarianship, edited by Emily Drabinski. This series will publish works from both practical and theoretical perspectives that critically engage issues in the LIS field related to gender and … Read more LJP Series on Gender and Sexuality in Librarianship
David Wahl of the Wix Library (Special Libraries)
Here is a link to the March, 1959 issue of Special Libraries, which is Volume 50, Number 3. I’m posting the link because there’s an article in it by my maternal grandpa’s cousin, David R. Wahl, about the then-new Wix Library at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, of which he was the founding … Read more David Wahl of the Wix Library (Special Libraries)
Against the machine (book review)
Just noting a book review in First Monday, of Lee Siegel’s Against the machine: Being human in the age of electronic media. According to the review, this book is a little deeper and more interesting than most books about how the internet is changing us for the worse…
Obama’s letter on the EPA
President-elect Obama’s letter declaring intentions regarding the EPA, including EPA libraries: October 20, 2008 John Gage National President American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO 80 F Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 Dear President Gage, I am writing to share my views with you regarding the importance of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in an Obama … Read more Obama’s letter on the EPA
Add a little magic to your holidays…
What’s that under the tree?? It’s a little magic, from Litwin Books and Library Juice Press… … Read more Add a little magic to your holidays…
Forthcoming Books
Coming in the next six of months from Library Juice Press: Information and Liberation: Writings on the Politics of Information and Librarianship, by Shiraz Durrani Speaking of Information: The Library Juice Quotation Book, compiled by Rory Litwin and edited by Martin Wallace So You Want To Be a Librarian, by Lauren Pressley Coming in the … Read more Forthcoming Books
OCLC Powergrab?
I have not been following this, but apparently OCLC has issued proposed new policy guidelines that would allow it to claim ownership of its catalog records, with serious consequences for libraries and other organizations that use information about books. Aaron Swartz (of Open Library) puts it in context on his blog in a post from … Read more OCLC Powergrab?
Talk about government transparency and sunshine
It’s a new dawn in more ways than one. One of the things I hated most about the Bush administration, from a librarian’s point of view, was their ever increasing secrecy. Every year it seemed that more and more government information, information that people needed in order for democracy to function, was being hidden in … Read more Talk about government transparency and sunshine
There goes a failure in life
A friend of mine reported a Rodney Dangerfield moment to me yesterday, and it was something that I think I can relate to. This friend is a middle aged male reference librarian at an academic library, like me, and, like me, he stayed up late Tuesday night at an election party. Joe the librarian (not … Read more There goes a failure in life
The Ethics of Information Organization – Conference Announcement and Call for Papers
The Ethics of Information Organization – Conference Announcement and Call for Papers May 22-23, 2009 University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Information organization (IO), like other major functions of the information profession, faces many ethical challenges. In the IO literature, ethical concerns have been raised with regard to, for example, the role of national and international IO standards, … Read more The Ethics of Information Organization – Conference Announcement and Call for Papers
Archives of Dissent – video of conference
From Lincoln Cushing to the PLG list: The “Archives of Dissent” panel held at U.C. Berkeley 9/18/2008 can now be seen on YouTube: It includes presentations by: • Julie Herrada, Labadie Collection Librarian, University of Michigan, and curator of a “1968” special exhibit. The Labadie Collection is an internationally renowned archive of social protest materials. … Read more Archives of Dissent – video of conference
Call for papers: Media in Transition 6: stone and papyrus, storage and transmission
Media in Transition 6: stone and papyrus, storage and transmission International Conference April 24-26, 2009 Massachusetts Institute of Technology CALL FOR PAPERS (MIT site) In his seminal essay “The Bias of Communication” Harold Innis distinguishes between time-based and space-based media. Time-based media such as stone or clay, Innis agues, can be seen as durable, while … Read more Call for papers: Media in Transition 6: stone and papyrus, storage and transmission
French Digital Library Portal
Gavin Baker posted yesterday on the Open Access News blog an item on the new portal of the Réseau francophone des bibliothèques nationales numériques [Francophone Network of National Digital Libraries]. “[At the portal], Web users will thus have the opportunity to consult newspapers, journals, books, and maps, as well as digitized archives from the collections … Read more French Digital Library Portal
The Minerva Controversy (Saad Eskander, Iraq National Library)
Minerva Research Initiative: Searching for the Truth or Denying the Iraqis the Rights to Know the Truth? by Saad Eskander, Iraq National Library and Archives “What has prompted me to write this paper is the continuing refusal of the U.S. to pay serious attention to Iraqi calls for the repatriation of the Iraqi records illegally … Read more The Minerva Controversy (Saad Eskander, Iraq National Library)
LJP at ALA in Chicago next July
Make a note to yourself to mark your 2009 calendar when you buy one: Library Juice Press and Litwin Books will be having a reception during the ALA Annual Conference in Chicago in 2009, at Quimby’s Bookstore, on Saturday, July 11th, 7pm. Quimby’s is a little off the beaten path, but it’s a very cool … Read more LJP at ALA in Chicago next July