2019-05-03 SPLAT Curiosity Report: Volume 3, Issue 4

Featured Story

Libraries and the Great Outdoors

As Idahoans, we have access to some of the most beautiful wilderness in the world. As library folk, we can connect people to the information and resources they need to make the most of our beautiful state, and those around us. Libraries can inspire and assist outdoor pursuits through book displays, reading lists, and even backpacks, binoculars, and other outdoor gear to check out. Some libraries in other states even have park passes they loan out, although I don’t think that would work the way the Idaho State Parks Pass is set up through license plates.

The inspiration for this article was Go take a hike: Online hiking resources by April J. Schweikhard and it has many more resources to check out.

– Jessica Martinez, University of Idaho Library

Fail Forward

We’ve all been there. You pour your heart into a program, and no one shows up. You try something new, and you fall on your face. Sound familiar? Fail Forward is the place to share your failures, and give you the opportunity to share what you learned from them. Did you promote your program in a different way after no one showed up? Maybe you took a new approach to the new thing you were excited about? Awesome! Share your story via our online form so others can learn, and realize that failure is often part of the process.

Probleming a Fix

Tinkering with broken technology is always a veritable minefield. You know that at every step of the way, you can fix one mistake to create another. Failure comes in waves! Sometimes, you get so tired of putting in the effort to make it better that you let it sit for way too long. Such is the current story of an old Printrbot Simple Metal 3D printer that I’ve been working with library aides to fix.

The first problem seemed obvious: the fan that keeps the extruder from getting too hot and ruining the materials before it ever starts making a 3D print was not turning on. Thinking that it was a problem with the fan, we ordered a replacement, and saw an opportunity; the library aide who was learning to solder could attach the fan and gain some more practical experience. Everything seemed peachykeen.

But… the fan still wasn’t starting.

We dug deeper. We looked to where the wire was connected to the circuit board, and found it sitting just fine in its place. We were stumped, we let the printer rest, and its maintenance got put on the backburner.

Time went by, and the printer stayed still. Then, a ray of salvation! A library aide who was dead-set on getting this printer working. He would come in every day and rush through his cleaning chores to sit at the printer and troubleshoot. We came to a decision: we would find the problem. We would take the printer apart to do it.

Screws: Removed.
Wire wraps: Opened.
Cords: Followed.
Cords… broken?

Ah ha!

The problem was obvious now. In the middle of a wire wrap, the fan’s cord has born raw and split. We needed to get some new wire, older it all back together, and the printer would work again. So we put it all together, borrowing heat shrink from a computer science teacher to make sure everything was protected and ready to go. We decided to start big and print the infamous 3D printer “torture test”, the adorable tugboat Benchy (https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:763622).

The results were amazing. The smell of melting plastic would once again grace our library. The weird noises would draw in staff and students alike.

Alas, this is a story of yet-unresolved failure, and the printer developed a new fault.

The old extruder has a problem; molten plastic poured out of the sides of the nozzle as it was printing its 3rd successful print after its revival. It finished the print successfully, and I tried to act quickly to peel off the molten plastic that had built up all around the hotend.

It was too late. The plastic solidified faster that I could take it off, and in my haste, I stripped a wire and the printer no longer heats up.

There are paths forward, as always, but tasting sweet, corn-based plastic victory in the air makes those paths hard to recognize. We will overcome and we will fix our printer. In the future, we’ll keep a close eye on it while it prints and have a better process for recognizing faults as they develop.

As it is, the printer gets to sit for just a little while longer as we wait for replacement parts.

– Donovan Kay, Centennial High School & Meridian Library District

Crush Corner

Is there a library you follow on social media who is always doing new and exciting things? How about a blog you follow that inspires you? What about a new idea, book, or resource that you want to share? Library Crush Corner is a place for those working in Idaho libraries to share what inspires them, and who or what they’re crushing on… in a professional sense. Share your story via our online form so we can publish it in a future issue!

The Libraries of the World

I have a new library land crush. It is Public Libraries News, and I am enjoying looking at the innovations in public libraries outside the borders of the United States. Some of these innovations are in our libraries now. These are some of some of my favorites.

I am excited to share my crush! I hope it inspires you and sparks innovation at your library.

– Eric Hovey, Ada Community Libraries

SPLAT explores the ever-evolving library world and supports library folks as they adapt to meet the needs of their communities. Library folk throughout the state of Idaho volunteer to serve on the Special Projects Library Action Team (SPLAT). Learn more about SPLAT at splat.lili.org

SPLAT is brought to you by the Idaho Commission for Libraries and was made possible, in part, by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (LS-00-18-0013-18). The views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily represent those of the Institute of Museum and Library Services.