Librariman

Seasons Greetings!

2007-12-06T21:38:00.000-08:00

My Flow Chart

2007-11-18T18:20:00.000-08:00

For class, I had to make a Flowchart! How exciting is that? I made a flow chart of the process of externally booking an internet computer at the Toronto Public Library.

Facebook gets even creepier

2007-11-15T14:13:00.000-08:00

Aaugh! According to this article, Facebook's gonna be watching me everywhere I go! I swear I'm going to close my profile now (after I finish that last game of Scrabulous...)

Beware Facebook's Siren Call

BEST COMIC EVER!

2007-11-07T18:28:00.001-08:00

He's a librarian. He's a superhero. I'm pretty sure I know what I want to do when I grow up...
Click on the cover above to read an online issue of Rex Libris. Or click here to find out more about this AWESOME series...

Software Evaluation Assignment - My conclusions

2007-11-07T11:42:00.000-08:00

Hey all!
My software evaluation wasn't structured in that classic "hamburger" essay format, and so I'm providing a summary of my main points, rather than posting my conclusion.

Like many other people, I looked at Koha, and I created a scenario whereby I was evaluating Koha for the 6 branch Ludditeville Public Library (LPL).

Overall, I felt that Koha would be an excellent product for the LPL to adopt. In my imagined scenario, the LPL was coming up on the end of a contract with SirsiDynix, and so it was an ideal time to examine switching their ILS.

My evaluation of Koha was based on three criteria; Cost, Quality of software & ability to meet the LPL's needs, and Reliability & Availability of support.

1. Cost
I felt that Koha would provide a cheaper alternative to whatever ILS SirsiDynix could provide, based on the fact that there would be no initial purchase fee, nor yearly licensing fees to pay. I acknowledged that implementing Koha would require an initial investment (which could be quite high), to pay for the transfer of database information, the retraining of staff, and the related possible need of hiring an external consultant to get Koha up and running. After this however,
Koha would be much cheaper to run. Finally, on the topic of cost, I pointed out that since Koha was written in OS programming code, the LPL would not be reliant on a proprietary vendor for support, and rather could shop around and find the best and/or cheapest support agency. They could also try to do more of their own support, if they have someone with programming skills on staff.

2. Quality & Applicability of Koha
I felt that Koha was of a quality sufficient for use in the LPL. I quoted some authors who talked about how OS software avoids many of the problems and pitfalls of proprietary software due to the many eyes monitoring it, and the lack of a need to push unfinished software out the door in order to start making $$. I also quoted an author (Marshall Breeding) who in 2002 argued that Koha and other OSS ILS were not of a sufficient quality to be used in libraries, but who reversed his position in a couple of articles in 2007. I felt that this demonstrated how far Koha had come over the last five years.

In terms of applicability, I pointed out all kinds of necessary features that Koha has (MARC records, OPAC, etc etc). I also argued that Koha's flexibility was a huge asset in meeting the LPL's needs. I liked that a lot of its systems could be customized (if the LPL doesn't use Library of Congress Call numbers, you don't need to include them in the catalogue). I also argued that because Libraries are having to deal with major changes due to technology etc., OSS software that could be continuously upgraded in a timely fashion had a huge advantage over proprietary software that generally relies on large scale version upgrades every couple of years and is hence less responsive.

I actually quoted Chad and Miller in this section, as a joke. I hope that Prof. Nickerson and the TA think its funny...

3. Reliability and Support
Again, I felt that Koha measured up well in this category. Liblime, the company that is the de facto manager of the Koha project right now has signed on the division of Katipo Communications that created Koha, as well as Index Data, a company specializing in OSS, and so it'd seem that they are planning on sticking around and running the Koha project for a while. Moreover, they've gotten some pretty high-profile clients (a UN agency, the Guggenheim Museum in New York), which provides an implicit suggestion of Koha's quality. UN agencies hopefully do some research when choosing ILS'!

There were a lot of paid and free support options for libraries like the LPL to choose from. I noted that Liblime, the main Koha company had a lower ratio of support staff to clients than SirsiDynix (1:9 versus 1:8.7), but I argued that this difference in support was shrunk by third party support, the availability of free support options, and the ability of LPL staff to find solutions to problems on their own, due to the open source code (see the "cost" section).

So that's it! I'd love to read your responses!

RFID Tags in libraries. Are they a good thing? YOU DECIDE!

2007-10-31T18:38:00.000-07:00

The Checkout Line -- or the check you-out line? is an interesting article from Salon.com about possible privacy issues with using RFID tags in libraries. Some of the critics seem to be taking a pretty extreme stance, but their concerns are interesting, and who knows how valid they may become, especially as RFID tags get added to more and more products.

Nothing to do with libraries.

2007-10-31T18:34:00.001-07:00

Hahaha... oh wait, that's not funny...

Some Interesting Stories from the New York Times

2007-10-24T18:43:00.000-07:00

These are two interesting stories I found on the New York Times website, procrastinating when I was supposed to be working on my Professional Research Development assignment for Mike McCaffrey. Thought someone out there might be interested. The first talks about Microsoft buying a share in Facebook for a ridiculous amount of money. The second is an article about Libraries putting books online, and how they deal with google. Particularly relevant after the Chad and Miller article...

Microsoft to pay $240 Million for Stake in Facebook

Libraries Shun Deals to Put Books on Web

CULC Conference

2007-10-23T20:12:00.000-07:00

I have long been interested in the roles that libraries play in urban settings, so I was really excited to get an opportunity to attend the Canadian Urban Libraries Council's (CULC) first ever conference, entitled "Increasing Diversity in Canadian Cities: The Public Library Response". The conference offered librarians from across Canada (as well as some notable guests from around the world) the opportunity to discuss some of the projects that their local libraries have created to better serve the rapidly diversifying populations of all Canadian urban centres. The term "diversity" was used primarily to describe new immigrants, and many of the projects that I heard about were really exciting. I was especially interested in some of the things going on in the Lower BC mainland, and the library systems out there- it sounds like they've created some pretty incredible partnerships with a variety of organizations! A real highlight for me was getting to hear a personal hero of mine, Mayor David Miller, totally love up libraries. I've never gotten a chance to see him in person, so that was a bit of a treat...

This use of the term "diversity" to describe only new immigrants was the only real problem I had with the conference. Diversity means so many things in any urban setting (or rural setting, for that matter), and to focus so exclusively on ethnicity and newcomers ability to interact with Canada's social fabric excluded a lot of other, really important things. I'd love to know how many libraries across the countries have actively looked to improving their services to the Mental health community, transgendered communities, etc. A lot of librarians talked about making sure that their boards of directors were ethnically balanced, but I wonder how many transgendered Chief Librarians there are out there, or library employees with Downs syndrome...

Perhaps , given that it was only a one-day conference, I'm asking quite a lot however. Overall, I have to say, I thought the CULC conference was pretty neat. Libraries are a pretty incredible resource, and it was great to hear how they have found ways to continually reassert their relevance. I'm hoping I get to integrate a lot of what I heard about into my degree and my work.

Scott Pilgrim v.4 almost out!

2007-10-18T08:49:00.000-07:00

Right now I'm having a lot of trouble sleeping, due to my anticipation of the imminent release of the fourth volume of Brian Lee O'Malley's totally incredible Scott Pilgrim comic series. Rumors of its release have been circulating for months now, and I've been stopping into my favourite comic shop (the Beguiling) on a regular basis hoping that it had already come out. Apparently I can now pre-order my copy of the 4th volume on Amazon, but I'd prefer to wait until I can buy it from a local retailer (although waiting is kind of killing me).

The Scott Pilgrim series is incredible, for all of you who haven't encountered it yet. The comic chonicles the whacky adventures of Scott Pilgrim, a 23 year old hapless goofball who is trying to win the affections of Ramona Flowers, a roller-blading delivery girl who can travel through subspace. In order to get the girl however, Scott has to fight all seven of Ramona's evil ex-boyfriends. Sound silly? Sure is! Perhaps the best feature of the "Scott Pilgrim" series is that it all takes place in Toronto, and the pages are full of all kinds of fun Toronto landmarks (Lee's Palace, Honest Ed's, Casa Loma, and TWO Toronto Public Library branches!).

I highly recommend this series. One of the best, comics I've read in ages. I don't think I've met anyone, whether a comic geek like me, or actual, functioning, cool individual, who hasn't loved it. Plus, its poised to take off in a BIG way, as the rights to a movie have been optioned to the team that made "Shaun of the Dead" and "Hot Fuzz", so you can beat the crowd by reading them now!

Critical Article Review

2007-10-16T19:48:00.000-07:00

In this post, I'm providing a synopsis of the critical review I wrote on Ken Chad and Paul Miller's piece "Do Libraries Matter?: The Rise of Library 2.0". I'm going to preface this by saying I've spent far too long thinking about Chad and Miller already this week, and I'm sure y'all have too, so I'm going to keep this short. If anyone wants to read the whole of my paper, I'll be happy to send you a copy.

In a nutshell, I thought Chad and Miller's argument had good and bad features. On the good side, I thought that their advocation of moving away from ponderous, vendor provided library ILS and OPAC systems was commendable, as was their (brief) advocation of open source software (on this note - isn't Talis, the company they wrote this "white paper" for, a proprietary library software vendor? That's what Wikipedia says in the article about Integrated Library Systems... I didn't really have time to follow up on this though, so I didn't include it in my essay).

Another other good feature of their argument, in my opinion, was their suggestion that libraries should try to expand outside of their traditional "bricks-and-mortar" structures, and make more of their collections available online, off of library networks. I agree that limiting collections to the actual buildings that house them will in the long run have a detrimental effect on library use, as more and more stuff gets put online.

Those two positive features of their argument aside, I had some pretty serious criticisms as well. First, I thought that their suggestion that libraries were heading towards oblivion, was based on looking at far too narrow a view of the types of services libraries provide. I particularly liked a point Wade Crawford made in "Library 2.o & "Library 2.0", that

I believe “information” overstates the capabilities of public libraries even as it impoverishes the libraries roles as a place, a collection of narrative (stories, if you will), as builder of local history, as the place kids learn to associate reading with fun… and so many other library successes (2006, p. 2).

There are all kinds of other things going on in libraries, like workshops, providing internet access, creating creative spaces, generating community commons, etc. that are reaffirming their relevance on a daily basis. Chad and Miller totally overlook this, and focus exclusively on information provision; how many books go out the door, so to speak.

The other criticism I had of Chad and Miller was that I felt that their advocation of integrating library services with private sector information providers like Amazon and Google was pretty poorly thought out. I have a hard time imagining that companies like Amazon would be all that eager to partner with libraries unless they saw a buck to be made, presumably at the cost of library circulation. I also felt that if libraries genuinely have something unique to offer, then their resources should be kept separate from the likes of Google. In my opinion, making library resources available through Google searches would pretty much guarantee the obsolescence of libraries, rather than saving them.

Below I've included my final conclusion.

Libraries exist in a changing world as Ken Chad and Paul Miller suggest in their article, and their survival depends on their ability to adapt to the developments around them. This change needs to be careful and considered however, and it is essential that libraries, in a vain attempt to appear to be up to date, do not throw out the baby with the bathwater, through losing sight of the services they do an excellent job of providing already, when updating those that have become outmoded. As Walt Crawford suggests, libraries need to seek solutions that are “evolutionary, not revolutionary” (2006, p. 3). Adopting new technologies which allow them to be more responsive to patron needs and desires, and expanding past the physical limitations of the bricks-and-mortar library buildings that they currently exist in, are examples of such evolutions, and Chad and Miller deserve credit for suggesting them. Creating partnerships with private enterprises is a dangerous proposition however, and a revolutionary gamble that libraries should be very cautious about making. Rather than competing with corporations that have already proven themselves very adept at controlling the marketplace of current information distribution (Crawford, 2006, p. 2), it is more prudent for libraries to examine what services they already provide well, and find ways to provide them better.

So that's it! Like I said, this is only a very brief summation of my essay (with the exception of my conclusion, which I've included verbatim). Actually, maybe not all that brief after I've seen what other people put up. I'd love to know what you think! Sorry for talking so much even when I didn't mean to!

Another awesome day at work

2007-10-10T11:21:00.000-07:00

WOTS 2007 was made awesome by another appearance of Dewey, the giant pink space-robot. He is one fine dancer, if I may say so myself!
Seriously, there are days when I absolutely love my job. Not many days, but definitely days.

As a bit of a backgrounder, Dewey is part of an attempt to create a branded image for the TPL, and particularly its kid's programs. Dewey's latest appearance suggested that the branding seems to be working- a lot of children recognized Dewey by name when they saw him (her... it...?) at WOTS.

Libraries around the world

2007-10-04T07:35:00.000-07:00

One of my favourite things to do when I go to a new city is to go visit a library or two. Its always really cool to see what's the same as at the TPL where I work, and what's different.

Over the last few years, I've ended up out on the West coast a lot, primarily to visit friends who have gone to school out there, and I love going to the Central Library in Seattle when I'm out. Its an incredible building just to look at; designed by Rem Koolhaus, and filled with all kinds of treasures. Among other things, the stacks (all six floors of them) are on a ramp, so you never actually "go up" a floor. There are also all kinds of great art exhibits throughout the library, and a lot of it is built using environmentally friendly activities.

Another Library I love is the Central Library in New York, famous for the huge stone lions that flank its front door. Its an incredible old building, with beautiful reading rooms, murals, marble staircases, etc. It also felt a little bit like a maze when we were there, and we kept finding strange little rooms when we were there.

The last library I've visited outside of Toronto, was the Children's library in Ueno, Tokyo. This has to be one of the most beautiful buildings to house a library I've ever seen. Unfortunately I wasn't able to take pictures inside while I was there, but I did check out a fantastic display of children's books about space, and had a plate of sphagetti in the library's cafeteria.

My best day of work ever

2007-09-21T07:59:00.001-07:00

Welcome to my blog

2007-09-20T12:00:00.001-07:00

Hello! My name is Thomas Krzyzanowski. I have created this blog as a course requirement for FIS 1311 - Information Technology Applications, a course offered in the University of Toronto's Faculty of Information Studies. I will be using this blog to post assignments, comment on course related material, and interact with my colleagues in the course.

A little bit about myself. I've come to FIS after having worked at the Toronto Public Library since high school. For a long time I've been very resistant to working in a library, until I started to meet a lot of people who were doing really incredible things at the TPL- the kinds of things I had always thought I'd have to leave the organization to do. I did an undergraduate in Political science, and did some coursework on municipal politics and issues which is informing my interest in Public Library work a great deal (right now).

I like comic books. Especially Brian Lee O'Malley's Scott Pilgrim series.

I play the cello.