On Fri 15 Aug, the Guardian featured an article on the “noisy row” between librarians on either side of the overdue fines debate. The article provides an overview of the issues surrounding fines within a UK wide context and also points to some interesting alternatives. According to the report, a New Zealand library [...]

The link between economic decline and increased public library use has been discussed by US commentators for many years. Some sources date the first reference to this linkage as a statement in the 1880 Annual Report of the Chicago Public Library (Lynch, M. J. (2001)). More recently, the American Library Association (ALA) has [...]

In our previous post on this topic we noted that video games were already well established in American public libraries. The American Library Association (ALA) is now seeking to develop this further through a $1 million study into the impact of gaming on literacy skills. As part of the Gaming for Learning project, which [...]

Recently I added my blog to the UK Library Bloggers Wiki, or at least it was added by Jennie, its creator. This prompted me to subscribe to a few other library blogs, not least that of Jennie herself, and this recent post caught my eye: http://jennielaw.blogspot.com/2008/05/to-join-or-not-to-join.html. As a wannabe librarian whose interests have ...

I'm just catching up with my (probably far too many) blogs -reminded of a David Weinberger post from 2005, ''No, I'm not keeping up with your blog'' (if he thought that then...) - but I have just read - nearly missed it - a posting on Kindle News: Why not Rent-A-Book for Kindle, and it struck me that libraries (public, university, whatever) ...

The government is keen on increasing community involvement in public services. Some libararians are too. How could this work in practice? Friends groups could be broadened. New community library committee/boards could be formed. These could be constructed on the lines of SACREs, the community bodies responsible for RE syllabi. Essentially this ...

A letter about the Hillingdon plans highlights the proposed closure of an enquiry desk. The issue of the loss of professional staff- euphemistically called ‘redeployment’by the council- is also discussed in local papers. A simplistic more books and nice coffee model is being offered to people. Of course more books is good; but not at ...

So, why do some librarians seem to value their job, qualifications etc so little? I think with some it is a genuine desire to be equal and fair handed. Remove barriers. No more professional/paraprofessional. That said, what message does that send? It is a message often given without any well thought out alternative for training and development. ...

The press release is here. No mention of Tim Coates’ role; maybe he’s shy. Starbucks are a ‘partner’ it seems. Cosy word. What if they decide the partnership isn’t worth it? Or start making demands? And staff resources will be ‘reorganised’ to extend opening hours it seems. “Reorganised” is an ...

There are still questions over this. The role of Starbucks for one. Tim Coates  ’should not and could not’ answer questions on the development of a public library service, beyond the council announcement. Update: Tim has contacted me and explained why he cannot comment, and I accept he has a good reason. He cannot comment as yet. There ...