Postcards from the Cracker Coast

FLA Un-conference

Carol Dement — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 18:24:28 +0000

On Friday, August 20, the Florida Library Association, in conjunction with PLAN presented an un-conference in Niceville, FL. What’s an un-conference? Shorter, less expensive, and closer to home than a conference! Linda McCarthy (FLA Director for Northwest Florida) and Gloria Colvin (FLA Vice-President/President-Elect) moderated a day of presentations, discussions, and networking for the library staff of Northwest Florida.

The presentation on Zines by staff from the Jacksonville Public Library created quite a buzz, especially among the Young Adult librarians. Chad Mairn, St. Petersburg College, presented via Skype on how various libraries integrate technologies to construct a learning environment conducive to information discovery, sharing, and lifelong learning. While there were a few glitches with the technology, Chad’s presentation was well received.

After lunch, Stephanie Race, State Library of Florida, provided instruction on the use of WebJunction Florida. This program provides training opportunities for all library staff in Florida.

A facilitated discussion allowed library staff to exchange ideas, and discuss current developments and issues. Of course, everyone loved this networking opportunity!

Lucy Harrison, CCLA, discussed the use of e-media in libraries. She discussed how libraries are adapting their services to make use of these tools and make them discoverable by their users.

Thanks FLA for bringing this mini-conference to the Florida Panhandle. It provided a great continuing education experience for library staff unable to travel to FLA’s annual conference.

What to read

Carol Dement — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 19:32:02 +0000

Here’s another option for your Reader’s Advisory services. At Literature map the user enters an author’s name. The resulting screen of authors are placed in groups. The closer two authors names are together the more likely someone will like them.

Open Source for Education

Carol Dement — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 15:18:05 +0000

I recently read a post about open sources options for education resources. 50 Open Source Tools That Replace Popular Education Apps has a list of resources in various categories, not just for K12 folks, but for home-schoolers and academics too.

What do you Recommend?

Carol Dement — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 19:21:24 +0000

I’ve been catching up on my blog reading and learned about 2 great recommendation tools.

Sarah Houghton-Jan wrote a post about Hunch. Answer a few questions and get recommendations on a variety of topics.

David Booker wrote about The Book Seer on his blog. Enter a book title and author name and you receive a list of similar books from Amazon and Library Thing.

Thank you Paul

Carol Dement — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 21:04:54 +0000

Every librarian and library user in Florida owes Paul Clark a thank you. He was there to remind legislators why libraries are important. Let him know you appreciate his efforts.

Carol Dement — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 18:16:58 +0000

Sarah Houghton-Jan has written a post listing tips and tools for saving money on technology. In these times of economic uncertainty, I’m sure everyone could find at least one helpful item in this list. Check out the comments for additional ideas.

What is a Book?

Carol Dement — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 19:42:25 +0000

I have just read two interesting items about e-books/e-publishing. “Going Out of Print” from Technology Review discusses how the e-book is transforming the publishing industry. There is the potential for technology to change how people consume information. In “What’s a Real Book” on David Lee King’s blog, he urges librarians to get past the container and focus on content. After all, adapting to new technologies and providing our patrons with options in how they consume information should be our priority.

Is Your Library User Friendly?

Carol Dement — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 19:27:04 +0000

Does your library help people accomplish their tasks or does it put up roadblocks? Check out The Usable Library and see how your library stacks up.

Farewell Helen

Carol Dement — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 13:02:59 +0000

Helen Moeller, Director of the LeRoy Collins Leon County Public Library, announced this week that she would be retiring at the end of the month. PLAN is once more losing one its founding members. Helen served on the first Board of Directors as Vice-President from 1991-1993. She also served on the Board in 1996-1997 and 2003-2004.

We wish Helen wonderful experiences in her retirement. We know whatever she chooses to do, she will bring her good humor and willing spirit.

National Library Week April 11-17

Alicia Hedgecock — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 20:00:27 +0000

National Library Week is just around the corner. Bay County Public Library has a week full of activities planned. Be sure to check out their website for the entire list of National Library Week Activies.

Also be sure to check out award winning Kathy L. Patrick, author of The Pulpwood Queens’ Tiara-Wearing, Book-Sharing Guide to Life. She will be at the Bay County Public Library on Tuesday April 13 7:30.

All activities are open to the public and free of charge.

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