Blog Posts by sue.walker

ICFL "Cool" staff

sue.walker — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 12:33:04 -0600

ICFL staff is prepared to "Beat the Heat" with hats and sunglasses for TBS Awareness Day. 20 public libraries statewide are planning activities during the week of August 17-21. Activities will:

Raise Idaho's citizens awareness about this free, statewide service
Highlight resources available in local libraries for persons unable to read standard print
Provide information on vision loss and how to cope with it

The following public libraries are participating in "Beat the Heat: How to Survive after 45"

Ada community
American Falls
Blackfoot
Boise (Cole and Ustick branch)
Burley
Couer d'Alene
Eastern Owyhee County (Grandview)
Emmett
Jerome
Kootenai Shoshone (Hayden branch)
McCall
Meridian (main and Silver Stone branch)
Mountain Home
Nampa
Payette
Plummer
Portneuf (Pocatello)
Snake River Community (Blackfoot)
Twin Falls

Digital Trailers

sue.walker — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 12:02:14 -0600

At yesterday's SWILA conference, participants in the Digital Trailer session commented how useful it would be to post their trailers and view those created by others. WebJunction (http://id.webjunction.org/) is a great place to share library related ideas, discussion, and all types of media.

Users can join or create a group on a specific topic and then keep up with information pertinent to that topic, or follow a specific discussion thread. A book discussion group already exists (http://www.webjunction.org/743/resources/overview), or one specific to digtal trailers can be created and others invited to join it. View existing groups and how to create new groups at: http://www.webjunction.org/membercenter and check out "New Groups"

Happy Teen Tech Week!

sue.walker — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 11:03:10 -0600

March 8-14 is Teen Tech Week. Sponsored by YALSA, this year's theme is "Press Play @ Your Library". Share how your library is celebrating anytime throughout March with stories, photos, and links to your website.

If you missed this year's event, get a headstart on next year. Check out
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/teentechweek/ttw09/home.cfm for innovative ideas you can tailor to your teens' needs. Get teens involved in selecting the 2010 theme and sharing how they use online video.

If your teens can't wait a year for fantastic programs, plan for Teen Read Week, October 18-24, 2009. Also sponsored by YALSA, the official kick-off for the event is April 16, Support Teen Lit Day. Check www.ala.org/teenread for ideas.

Teen Tech Week 2009: Press Play at the Library

sue.walker — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 14:43:31 -0700

If you're thinking about participating in Teen Tech Week 2009 (March 8-14, 2009)check out the resources available at:

http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/teentechweek/ttw09/home.cfm

Everything from a wiki for sharing ideas, publicity materials, and booklists will make planning and implementing a successful program so much easier.

Involve your local teens by sharing "25 Ways to Celebrate Teen Tech Week" (http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/teentechweek/ttw08/activityideas...) to see what technology excites them.

You can even apply for a mini-grant to offset expenses and wow your supervisor with your grantwriting skills.

Grant highlights:

Applicants must be YALSA members
Grant amount: $450.00 plus Teen Tech pack products valued at $50.00
Deadline for submission: January 19, 2009

Hablas espanol?

sue.walker — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 16:09:00 -0700

If you haven't attended WebJunction's "Latinos and Public Library Perceptions Report - November 2008 Webinar", check it out at: http://www.webjunction.org/slo-webinars/articles/content/30106393

It contains lots of interesting facts about how latinos perceive (and use) their local public libraries. The most intriquing fact to me:

Of all the factors that influence use of the public library, the most important one is how friendly and welcoming the staff is. Staff attitude is more important than having Spanish language materials in the collection or even their ability to speak Spanish. But what's surprising about that? No matter how good the food is in a restaurant, I won't return if I don't feel comfortable.

Isn't it great that excellent customer service can begin with something understandable in all cultures: a smile.

Library outreach

sue.walker — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 11:14:30 -0600

Earlier this week I visited 7 public libraries in Bingham, Bonneville, and Jefferson counties to discuss the Talking Book Service. I enjoyed meeting with library staff and touring their libraries. I was impressed with the variety of resources available to persons unable to read standard print. Materials in large print, audio materials in both cassette and CD-Rom format, music, Playaways, and E-audio books are available in many collections.

Staff enthusiastically accepted outreach materials and information about the Talking Book Service in order to increase user access to materials not available locally. They also accepted TBS players so that TBS users requiring a replacement player can receive one from their local public library and not have to wait for a replacement player to be mailed from Boise. Staff involvement in their communities increases potential user knowledge of the Talking Book Service and gives them the chance to continue reading when physical limitations occur.

Once again I'm proud of the difference Idaho librarians make in their communities and invite all public libraries to share information about the Talking Book Service with their users.

Retrospective TBS titles available

sue.walker — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 16:03:34 -0600

We've just finished selecting the 1500+ titles that will be distributed in digital format when the Talking Book Service transition begins next year. These titles will be available on cartridges and will play on the new digital players. It was a challenge to select 1500 titles from the more than 12,000 currently available in digital format, but we hit the major genres: westerns, romance, suspense, mystery, and bestsellers hard with additional titles from most other genres. With 50-75 new titles added each month, we should have a decent collection to start circulating on cartridges when the players are available in mid 2009.

In addition to the collection of digital cartridges, the complete digital database containing about 20,000 titles will be available to download titles that are not used as frequently as the cartridges.

Reading Alternatives

sue.walker — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 11:30:37 -0600

The transition to the digital format in the Talking Book Service presents a whole new way to read for those requiring reading alternatives. Users can now download books from NLS BARD onto specialized players. The database is available 24/7 and contains a growing collection (more than 11,000 titles at this time) of books from the NLS collection. All titles added to the collection are automatically added to NLS BARD. For more information on accessing NLS BARD and compatible players, contact the Talking Book Service.

Books on Tape Update Spring 2008

sue.walker — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0600

The Spring 2008 Books on Tape Update newsletter, order forms, and podcasts are now available for download.

Podcast Feeds:

New Descriptive Videos Podcast Feed
Books on Tape Update Newsletter Podcast Feed
New Books on Tape Spring 2008 Podcast Feed

Serving the Print Impaired

sue.walker — Thu, 16 Jun 2005 00:00:00 -0600

I'm caught up thinking about the future. Earlier this month I attended 5 focus groups with print impaired users and service providers. In those groups we asked questions about information needs, preferred formats for receiving information, and suggestions for improved access to information. I heard frustrations about current capabilities as well as ideas for future services and resources. Most of all I heard users wanting to participate in their communities and service providers eager to help make that connection. As we continue to gather more information for the print impaired strategic plan, I'm excited to see how it develops.

One thing seems obvious: the Talking Book Service which has been the primary provider of information to visually and physically disabled users for 70 years cannot continue to be the only game in town. The March/April issue of Public Libraries has a series of titles on this topic. The articles range from sharp criticism of the program for changing too slowly to eager anticipation for the digital books and players that will begin distribution in 2008. I agree with portions of what each author says, but realize the discussion must be more than philosophical.

We are an aging population. I recently read that by 2010 1 in 3 Americans will be 50 or older. (I fit right in) With aging comes visual, physical, and mental conditions that limit one’s ability to read standard print. In addition, isolating conditions increase one’s need for community. How will Idaho's libraries respond to these needs? Will we harness new technologies to overcome the inability to physically come to the library? What can we offer in addition to access to information? This is the value added that distinguishes libraries from accessing the Internet. Preparing for Vision 2020 and developing the Print Impaired Strategic Plan is a great opportunity to think outside the box.