The Connected Librarian

Refined assessment of NWHRC

2008-11-23T11:00:00.003-06:00

There has been some very good assessments done so far by our class on the NWHRC health resource, including broad topic coverage pertaining to women's health, the opportunity to receive additional materials (print and online resources), and that the information offered at this website is easy to understand, with several different ways to obtain that information (column writing, A-Z topical index, etc.).

That being said, I'm curious...are there areas in which this CHI resource is lacking, areas that are weak (or non-existent)?

Please share your thoughts (good and bad)-thanks!

Enjoy the rest of the weekend!

Lynne

NWHRC/Publications Available

2008-11-20T21:45:00.002-06:00

I was poking around NWHRC's website a bit tonight, and decided to check out the "Publications and Resources" section. They not only offer a pretty decent cross-section of health topics (although the auto-immune disease pamphlet, while informative, was from 2002), but you can download them, get permission to post the links for the resources, or order the print versions both online or by mail. The publications are free, they charge a small fee for shipping. There is an initial maximum of 500 publications. Depending on space, who helped publish the information (medical staff vs. pharmaceutical companies), and perhaps the type of library, these could be a great informative asset. A wall of pamphlets and flyers allows anonymity, as well as broad informational coverage choices that can be tailored to what patrons might need.

See what you think-this link is specifically for the print order form so you can easily see the choices they offer:

https://www.healthywomen.org/NWHRC_Bulk_Publications_Order_Form.pdf

Take care,
Lynne

Personal Thoughts on the Impact of Libraries/CHI

2008-11-20T21:12:00.007-06:00

Well, it's been an interesting week so far-I am hoping I'm done with medical tests for a while, and we can get to the bottom of why I'm anemic.

In the last 2 weeks alone, I've had 4 outpatient medical tests done, including an tendoscope, colonoscopy, bone marrow biopsy and my first experience in having a CAT scan (well, aside from the endoscope-all were first experience. While most weren't horrible, I'm glad to be able to say I'm done (at least for a while).

I'll find out the results of the last tests after Thanksgiving, but so far, we've been able to rule out what it's not-which isn't such a bad thing.
I am an extraordinarily wimpy person, so if any of you wonder about the doability of the medical tests I mentioned, I can tell you-they're doable (not likable, but doable).

You are probably wondering why I'm sharing all of the intimate personal (medical) details of my life-I assure you, I have a focused purpose.

I have been by turns optimistic, depressed, tired, frustrated, thankful (all of you out there that can draw blood, or put in IV's effortlessly-bless you-I mean it...), and sick and tired of chasing down this medical phenomenon...and I bet we have patrons that come into our libraries that feel that way too. Or family members, trying to find information, not sure where to look, but only know they want to help.

Not only do we need to have good solid resources to offer our patrons, but sometimes simply (and I know I'm preaching to the choir here) taking the extra moment to stop and really "be" when helping that patron. And never, ever underestimate the power of kindness and respect-it allows patrons dignity as well as comfort. When these qualities are shared with patrons, they resonate within, they are empowering.

While I never doubted the important role libraries play in the communities they serve, through my own medical journey this semester, I realize to a much greater degree the impact (positive and negative) we can have on our patrons...and that's not a bad thing.

Take care,
Lynne

Womens' Health Resource of the Week: National Women's Health Resource Center

2008-11-18T07:37:00.010-06:00

This comprehensive health resource offers information on women's health issues in a variety of forms, including publications, blogs, news articles, columnists, and more. NWHRC is a non-profit organization, and has been in existence for 20 years.

While I could not find a mission statement per se, I did find an explanation of what they stand for:

" NWHRC Stands For:

Quality: In collaboration with the nation's leading health professionals, NWHRC ensures that its information is comprehensive, unbiased, thoughtful, engaging, understandable, timely and relevant.

Independence: NWHRC's information, consumer research and programs are independent of influence from external parties, thereby ensuring their credibility.

Leadership: The NWHRC is at the forefront of identifying cutting-edge and emerging women's health concerns and topics. It conducts national surveys of women to identify health needs, attitudes and behaviors. It strives to be the first to disseminate the most up-to-date women's health information.

Respect: NWHRC respects every woman's right to personal health information and privacy.
Diversity: NWHRC strives to develop and distribute information that reflects the diversity of the population and addresses disparities among women.

Action: NWHRC uses resources to further the organization's mission: enhance awareness about women's health issues, address unmet health information needs and develop outreach programs to reach underserved populations."
( http://www.healthywomen.org/aboutnwhrc)

The "About Us" page is pretty impressive-it offers a detailed listing of the NWHRC's Board of Directors, Staff, Content Review Board, and both the Corporate Advisory Council (lots of pharmaceutical companies here, but they're listed in fairly plain view) as well as a Women's Center Advisory council, which shows affiliations with medical centers, hospitals, and health centers.

The website is easy to navigate, and I especially like that there is an "A-Z" index for health topics as well as a "Publications and Resources" tab. The site is neat, clean, and "makes sense" to me-check out the website, and let me know what you think!

Happy Browsing!
Lynne

MLIS 847 Consumer Health Information/Special Population: Women

2008-11-16T20:29:00.000-06:00

Well, here goes...
I'm sure it's apparent that I haven't been back to the blog since last year, but that's ok, the links are still good (though not really CHI related) and I think this is good practice!

Beginning November 18th, we'll be discussing CHI and the special population of women. While having information available for all groups of people is obviously important in library services, I decided to look a bit more into women's issues because:

There's so much more information available now than there was even 10 years ago, sometimes conflicting
Women are great consumers of information, but sometimes don't take the time to take care of themselves as well as they take care of others
Lots of complimentary and alternative medicines (CAM) are highly promoted, including those that may address women's issues, particularly those dealing with hormonal issues
Having a good cross-section of both CAM and traditional medical information focused on women's issues is a vital librarian's resource tool

Until then...
Take care,
Lynne

"Tis the Season (Cookies and Candies, and Drinks Oh My!)

2007-12-19T14:22:00.000-06:00

If you're like me, you may have a few special recipes that you drag out once a year or so, usually for the holiday season. They not only represent good eating, but also are staples of the holiday spirit- the condition of the cookbook or recipe cards tell the tale of how much they're loved.

But what if you don't have those recipes? Or want to try something new? What if it's 10:30 P.M., the stores are closed, and you realize that you don't have buttermilk for the recipe that you need the next day?

Here are a few of my favorite cooking links to check out:

allrecipes.com:

Great comprehensive index of recipes that is easy to navigate and can be narrowed down to specific meals, ingredients, and ease of preparation. User ratings are included, but since many of them start off being impressed with the recipe, then often end up talking about how they "tweaked" it, I don't always use that as a credible showing. They even have a Reference link (under Tips and Advice) that offers conversion tables and substitutions (No buttermilk? Instead try 1 cup yogurt OR 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar plus enough milk to make 1 cup).

http://allrecipes.com/Default.aspx

foodnetwork.com:

If you enjoy watching all of the cooking shows on the Food Network, or just want to know what all of the fuss is about (who is Rachael Ray anyway-she's everywhere LOL?!), this is a great site. You can go directly to recipes, which are also ranked by ease of use-very helpful since some of the recipes are fairly complex. If you want the recipe from a show you've seen recently, you can find it here. You can also access show listings, and much much more. I'm partial to Alton Brown's Good Eats, since each episode is a potential science experiment (and tasty too!).

http://www.foodnetwork.com/

The Recipe Link.com:

I've used this website for years-lots of information. Not only individual recipes and forums, but many many links to commercial websites for more recipes. They also have a cool copycat recipe link-so maybe your favorite ribs recipe is listed there. I will tell you that it's not always the easiest to navigate, but since so much information can be found there, I find myself going back time and time again...

http://www.recipelink.com/

And what about drinks...? This time of year, as with other holidays and celebrations, drinks are focused on as well, both with and without alcohol. Where can you get a recipe for a Mojito? A Tootsie-Roll? Spiked Eggnog (maybe the eggnog's not a problem, but what in the heck to you put in it to "spike" it? How do you make non-alcoholic frozen strawberry daiquiris for a gathering? Well, here's a few resources. Note: These links are great resources and recipes, but some of the drink names are not for the shy...consider yourself forewarned:

DrinkStreet.com:

Good comprehensive site, offers tips on how to make drinks and what kind of equipment might be needed or wanted. Offers non-alcoholic recipes as well as recipes categorized by alcohol, type, and name. Good resource.

http://www.drinkstreet.com/

foodnetwork.com and epicurious.com both offer not only cooking recipes and help, but recipes and ideas for drinks and cocktails as well.

http://search.foodnetwork.com/food/recipe/beverages/search.do?N=4294966520

http://www.epicurious.com/recipesmenus/drinks

There's still time left to get that batch of sugar cookies, toffee, or chocolate covered pretzels done! Cook confidently, knowing you have great resources on hand if you get stuck!

November LJ Articles: Thoughts Covering Public Libraries and Privacy Issues. Blogging in the Profession, and Assessing Reference Services...

2007-12-18T18:01:00.000-06:00

I just got the November 15th Library Journal late last week, and as usual, I read it cover to cover-I can always find something of interest!
This issue was no exception to the rule-lots of points to think about...

In the LJ News Section; "Do PLs Overvalue Privacy Issues?"

OCLC has released the findings of their international study titled, "Sharing, Privacy, and Trust in Our Networked World" (www.oclc.org/reports/sharing/default.htm).
Noteworthy Quote: "Observed Karen Schneider on her Free Range Librarian blog, “[T]he report stops just short of pointing out what a lot of us muse over privately and publicly...that traditional values about user privacy hold us back from a level of personalized service people increasingly expect.”(Italics mine)

We live in a world where the advances of technology continue to outpace some of the shortcomings or issues that come with it. In the public library arena, there is a fine line between patron confidentiality, freedom of use, and on the other hand, safety nets, such as Internet filtering that can sometimes be too limiting and constrictive Unfortunately, I don't have the magic answer for this impasse, but knowing in concrete terms what OCLC's study results are creates compelling reasons to try to bridge the gap sooner.
http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6497277.html

"Why We Blog" LJ Nov. 15, 2007

Great overall look at blogging, particularly in the library field. What libraries hope to gain by blogging, and the different types of blogs (ex. internal, external-or open to the public) are explored.Gives links to some great academic blogs, too.
Noteworthy Quote:"Terri Bennett, director of the Webster Public Library (WPL), NY, believes blogs have the power to break down the institutional wall between libraries and their community members. “In my view, the more human we look, the more we personalize our services, the more connected we will be to our patrons,” ..." (Italics mine)
http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6497263.html

"The Technology Storm" (The Transparent Library Column)

Discusses the technology issues and roadblocks that can hinder libraries form getting information to their communities. Offers some practical guidelines to keep in mind.
Noteworthy Quote (and link for more information): "OCLC's 2005 report “Perceptions of Libraries and Information Resources” told us a dirty little secret: only one percent of information seekers start with the library web site, preferring easier-to-use web sites, even if the latter don't lead to information of comparable quality." (Italics mine)
http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6497291.html
http://www.oclc.org/reports/2005perceptions.htm

In a comparison spanning over 20 years, there are issues in reference work that still need work, says author David Isaacson in his commentary, "What's Still Wrong with Reference" (From the Backtalk Column)

While progress has been made, Isaacson notes a need for greater interaction with patrons, being more proactive than passive in assisting patrons. Roving reference is one example. He cites several more.
Noteworthy Quote: "We are not dealing with an information illiterate public but one that is more, let's say, information semiliterate than ever. Google and Wikipedia, for example, have conditioned Internet users to getting that quick information fix, so much so that many people don't question the validity, authority, or accuracy of their search results. Responses aren't the same thing as answers." (Italics mine)
http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6497259.html

Let me know what you think, and how your library handles these issues...

White Christmas and Blue Man Group in the Same Day...

2007-12-16T20:47:00.001-06:00

As a group Christmas gift, my husband treated our immediate and extended family (all fourteen of us) to see Blue Man Group at the Briar Street Theater in Chicago. Since quite a bit of our drive was over snow packed (and at times, drifting) roads, courtesy of all that white stuff last night, I figured it must be a color themed kind of day-White Christmas(time) with Blue Man Group-not too shabby!

Blue Man Group was awesome-I won't give the program away, but I can say that all of us had fun, not always easy to do for a group of people ranging in age from eight years old to seventy-ish.

We had breakfast at Fox and Oble's before the theater, then went to Ed Debevic's after (and enjoyed being harassed by the waitstaff)!

Now, you may be bored reading this, or you may be thinking, "Hey Lynne-what does this have to do with libraries?", or you may be thinking "Hmmmm, where are these places that sound like a fun time?" Well, here are a few resourceful links that can be used for both the Chicago area as well as traveling in general. Try to be colorful when using them :-)!

Check those road conditions in Illinois ("Be Prepared"):

Illinois Department of Transportation

http://www.dot.state.il.us/

What's Happening in Chicago and Cities All Over the Country:

Citysearch.com: You can research restaurants, theater and other events, hotels and lodging, just about everything you need for a great trip-whether a daytrip or longer! This link connects you to what's happening in Chicago, but you can check out any major (and some not so major cities) in the U.S..

http://chicago.citysearch.com/

Fodors.com

http://www.fodors.com/

Frommers.com

http://www.frommers.com/

I love using the Open Directory Project web resource for many information sources-here's the link narrowing the search to travel. Lots to look at...

http://www.dmoz.org/Recreation/Travel/Guides_and_Directories/

Medieval History Online: Not an Oxymoronic Phrase, But an Example of How the World is Indeed Flat (or at Least Getting Flatter)...

2007-12-15T18:57:00.000-06:00

A year or more ago, I read Thomas L. Friedman's book, The World is Flat-I'm sure many of you read it as well. Simply put, the book focuses on technology's impact on the world, and how the increased sharing of information through technological resources literally brings the world closer together.

So what's this got to do with medieval history (or any history for that matter)? Lots-since the Internet became the "Everyman's" resource in the mid to late 90's, I have surfed, bookmarked, (and unfortunately lost those great links when my computer crashed-twice...) and reveled in the increase of credible medieval information. Libraries have become a large part of the technological expansion of information, including that of the medieval landscape as well. Digitization, even with all of its ethical issues, is a great example. Look at The British Library-through assistance from the Arts and Humanities Research Council, and the Getty Foundation they were able to begin digitizing illuminated manuscripts in their collection-notably the Lindisfarne Gospels: http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/sacredtexts/lindisfarne.html

So whether you need great history websites to use for reference, or just to enjoy and learn about the past, here are a few of my favorites that should get you on your way:

The Labyrinth: Resources for Medieval Studies (Georgetown University)
http://labyrinth.georgetown.edu/

Deb's Historical Research Page
This website was recommended to me by a patron writing a novel that involves intricate historical information covering the 1930's to the present, particularly Europe during World War II. I took one look at it and knew I couldn't look further until most of my tasks for the next few weeks were done-while this is an individual's site, there is so much information here to even begin to list-if someone needs any information about English history, it's in here...!
http://home.insightbb.com/~d.lawson/#*Disclaimer

Internet Medieval Sourcebook (Fordham University)
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook.html

Bosworth and Toller: If you ever wanted to know what those Anglo-Saxon words meant (hey, think Beowulf), here's a neat place to check out:
http://www.ling.upenn.edu/~kurisuto/germanic/oe_bosworthtoller_about.html
One of the best sites I've found for castle images-these are all in Wales, and have great historical information to go with them. I guess to some they just look like a pile of stone, but I find them beautiful.
http://www.castlewales.com/home.html#Please%20Select

For those of us who don't necessarily believe the King Richard III of England was a hunchback that killed his late brother King Edward IV's sons, ("the princes in the tower") here's a cool resource:
http://www.richardiii.net/begin.htm

And finally, a great Readers Advisory site that lists historical mysteries according to time period or author name:
http://members.tripod.com/~BrerFox/historicalmystery.html

New Articles for Resourcing and Pondering...

2007-12-15T18:27:00.000-06:00

The past few days, I've been trying to get caught up in my online and journal readings. Even before starting distance ed classes at UW Madison, I have always looked forward to reading the articles in the monthly LibraryJournal. Here's a few links to interesting articles from both LJ and PW (online access) that I felt could be worth a look...see what you think:

PW article on Essence Magazine launching two new programs aimed at encouraging and improving literacy: The Essence Literary Awards and The Save Our Libraries campaign, both happening this winter.
http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6511386.html?nid=2286&source=link&rid=475864040

PW also has an interesting bit about the newly released book, Murdered by Mumia: A Life Sentence of Loss, Pain and Injustice, a book written by the widow of a murdered policeman, Maureen Faulkner. I had read the review earlier regarding the book, and thought it looked interesting. But since its recent release, there has been quite a bit of controversy about the perspective and validity of the facts in this book, including protests at book signings. I plan to read it just to see what all the hoopla is about.

http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6510605.html?nid=2286&source=link&rid=475864040

LibraryJournal.com has already listed their Best Books of 2007 on the web-I think I have plenty of reading to do, because while a few titles were familiar, many were not. Here's the list:

http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6510658.html?nid=2671

The Last Resource today is for a great online newsletter I happened upon while looking at library articles. If you look under Libraries and Librarianship sub category, you'll find a great listing of links focusing on the Freedom of Information Act. On their home page, they have a link for tons of Top Ten Lists from TimeMagazine.com and other sources. Enjoy!

http://www.resourceshelf.com/

Sharing the Wealth...of a Few Fine (and thought-provoking) Articles

2007-12-01T19:52:00.000-06:00

I don't know about you, but I love the world of libraries. From challenges and advances of technology and reference resources, to being proactive for the communities that libraries serve-good and bad, I love it all. Some days I find it all quite mind-boggling-on those days I'm quite "crispy" by the end of the day. But the next morning I'm ready to begin the process of absorbing, implementing, and understanding that ever changing life world of libraries again.
I've been going through my email, looking over all of the library-oriented information I've saved for "later". Later became today. And I found several that are worthy of thought if not downright exploration. See what you think, and feel free to share your input.

Challenges to books on the rise, author says
But attempts at censorship usually backfire.
(from cbc.ca)
Favorite quote: "The problem is, even a bad idea needs to be confronted in order for it to be dismissed and never gained a foothold,"
http://www.cbc.ca/arts/books/story/2007/11/26/book-censorship.html

Walking the Library System
By Stuart Hamilton--Library Journal, 11/1/2007
A great article sharing one man's observations of American libraries one library at a time...

http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6495173.html

Resources, Resources, Resources!

Here are a few great articles that share links for maps, a new digitized collection from UW, an online visual dictionary, and for those like me, who don't know enough about the science fiction/fantasy genres but want to test pilot one, Nancy Pearl's gor a few titles to share!

Casselman Archive of Islamic and Mudejar Architecture in Spain http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/Arts.CasselmanImage

http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/Arts/subcollections/CasselmanImageAbout.shtml

Festival of Maps
ilovelibraries.org
Fun maps, game maps, reference maps-here's a great reference and programming resource!
http://www.ilovelibraries.org/news/topstories/maps.cfm

Merriam-Webster's Visual Dictionary-now online. Very cool, and has the benefit of being printable as opposed to the print visual dictionary that could have pages copied, but not as easy.

http://visual.merriam-webster.com/index.php

Sci-Fi/Fantasy Recommendations a la Nancy Pearl...
(courtesy of the NPR)

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=16159971

Put On Your Shopping Armor...

2007-11-26T19:39:00.000-06:00

Remember my previous posting on how quickly my son was able to move into his new home? Well, my husband and I decided to give our son our living room tv set, and I can tell you I found that the resource links below came in pretty handy considering I had less than a day to research large screen tv's. After all, plasma, HD, LCD, rear projection, etc.-to me the list was mind boggling. But the sites above not only explained what all of the terms meant, they assessed the pros and cons of different manufacturers and models. Even though I lost a part of my downstairs library, I have to admit, the tv looks darn good. Seeing and hearing White Christmas the other night-awesome!

CNET.com

This is a great website not only for downloads (I used their site to download free of charge anti-spyware such as Lavasoft's Ad-Aware and Spybot products), but they have great reviews of electronics. If you want to know what they thought of a product as well as what others thought, this is a great resource. CNET also has articles and tips and I find it to be pretty comsumer-comprehensive.

http://www.cnet.com/?tag=hdrgif

ConsumrReports.org

While this is known primarily as a subscription website, there are many areas that are also open to the "general public". Since they do not sell any of the products they assess, they are noted for being objective (although it must be said that we all have personal preferences that may skew objectivity a bit). Of course, not only could you access this online, but you may very well be able to check out the most current copy of the print resource at no charge at you friendly local library :-)!

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/index.htm

Consumer World (Everthing Consumer) is a website I have subscribed to free of charge for many years. Each week they post a listing of what I would call "consumer current events". Usually there are at least a few articles that catch my eye, like the notation about a month ago on how Target was being threatened by potential lawsuits by people claiming that their website did not comply with ADA standards. See one of the articles noted iat Consumer World here:

http://storefrontbacktalk.com/story/100307target.php

http://www.section508.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=Content&ID=3

Consumer World not only keeps the average consumer in mind by posting watch-dog type articles, they also post genuine bargains, and have many useable resource links for further information needs.

http://www.consumerworld.org/

How Fast Can You Buy a House? I Was Amazed...

2007-11-18T20:43:00.000-06:00

My 23 year old son has wanted to move out of our house for a while. So when he came back from an overseas trip this summer, he started looking at homes to purchase, and quickly found out that "beginner" homes were still pretty pricey. We discussed the basics with him, down payments, escrow, title insurance, and the other expenses many of us forgot about in the excitement of finding something to call our own. Little things like insurance (how much of that does one need anyway?), electricity, phone-you get the picture.
Then on the last Sunday of October, he thought he had found "the one". I heard of "the one" the following Thursday, when he let me know he had started the paperwork for it, and might be closing that Saturday. SATURDAY! Well, as it turned out, that was a little premature, he ended up closing in early November. The whole process took less than 2 weeks, beginning to end (including many conversations with his parents and other significant relations). How is this possible?! Not sure, but thankfully, everything looks to be in order, and I'm here to tell you that not only can it be done, but I lost only a few zillion non-replaceable brain cells in the process!
So what resources do new home buyers have available to make sure they are looking at all angles of such a major decision? Well, here are a few online ones I have over time come to know, and mostly trust. I say mostly, because some of the commercial sites do have advertising, and therefore at first glance, some links may at first appear to have greater credibility. Just keep in mind-the "good stuff" is mostly in the articles:

http://www.bankrate.com/

Bankrate.com is a good resource covering not only mortgage infomation, but also investment information and much more. The listing of current rates is really helpful, and there are great articles covering everything from the basics to more complex tax and investment questions.

http://www.fool.com/

Motley Fool.com: While Bankrate.com covers useful infomation, it also provides you with commercial links-many of them. and while there may not be anything wrong with this (after all, the site itself focuses on what benefits the consumer), Motley Fool goes in another direction-more article coverage, less links. I love their motto-"To Educate, Amuse, and Enrich"™. This site wants to help people be well-informed. No strings. I have used this site for many years, and have found decent, credible information. They have articles, investment and general money tips, and several forums where others share what did (and didn't) work for them. Very useful.

http://www.nolo.com/index.cfm

NOLO: Does NOLO offer its many products for sale? Yes-but they have quite a bit more to offer consumers than just a bookstore. NOLO covers legal information-lots of it. My favorite-the NOLO glossary (you can access this by using the dropdown box and the search box on the home page). So for those unpronounceable, non-understandable jargon-y things in contracts-now a weapon is at hand.

I'm sure there are others-but these give a good foundation to both our patrons questions as well as our own (realizing that to get the most current mortgage rates for your bank of choice probably necessitates a phone call to that particular lender, etc.).

Now, on to other things, like this week going through my holiday decorations to give to our son (before someone else beats me to it, like the dishes, mugs, blankets...)!

Perhaps the (Dis)Connected Librarian is more like it...

2007-11-18T20:30:00.000-06:00

Well, after more than a month, I'm finally back-my apologies for the delay. Although during my time away, I learned something I think could be very valuable.
Initally, I wanted this blog to cover cutting edge issues that impacted library science, and wanted to (I guess) be "a professional". Here's what I've learned-real people have real information needs all of the time, and in order for us as librarians to do our job properly, we need to meet them where they are.
Over the last month, I had information needs for myself and members of my family that were vitally important-that needed to be met "yesterday". So after failing time and time again to post my "cutting edge" and impactive material, the revelation I had was to simply share the resources I've gleaned over the past month with you.
After all, I can't be the only one out there that needed this stuff, right? So here goes, a few weeks in my life, and what I found out (not to be confused with the classic, "What I Did on My Summer Vacation")...

"The Connected Librarian"...Who's that?

2007-10-14T15:29:00.000-05:00

Good question...it may mean different things to different people, but to me it means anyone in the library field that is committed to being aware of the changing information needs of people, and how those needs can be met. This is essential in many areas of library science, but in the reference department, it's critical.

Think about it...a patron has an information need. they try to find the answer on their own. If unsuccessful, they may try friends or family, broadening their search. By the time they take a deep breath and come to the reference desk, they may feel uncomfortable, but the information they need is important enough to ask a "professional". At the very least, the person at that desk needs to create a connection between themselves (really meaning the library) and the patron. In other words, the patron needs to know that the reference staff cares.

And if that staff member has been committed to being aware of changing technology, resources, as well as the community the library serves, there's a pretty decent chance the patron's needs will get met.

Sounds pretty simple, right? Well, on the other side of the fence, the reference side, it's not always so simple. Where in heaven's name should one go to find out about all of this cool relevant information? How much time do we all have to stay on top of emerging resources, let alone assess their worth?

It's my hope that by sharing ideas and resources with each other we can all help each other stay connected. Like one of my favorite commercials (this one' from the Dow Chemical Corp.)-it's all about the Human Element.