An Inundation of Information...

Ready access to info means smarts or stress, Boston Globe
Move Offer Mondrian, It's Miffy's Turn, New York Times
A Chance to Meet the Author Online, New York Times
Project Supplies English Library to Russian Town, Daily Times
Librarian of Congress Adds 25 Titles to Film Registry, Library of Congress
After a Century, A Writer's Library Will Go to America, New York Times
350 Years of What the Kids Heard, New York Times
DIY Paper Bookmarks, Lifehacker

There now, feeling smart or stressed?

More New Search Engines for the New Year...

From Library Director Phil Tramdack:

Inquisitor and Alexa

See also the listing of the top 10 alternative search engines for 2005... could there be life beyond Google?

Recently Read...

Geography Club by Brent Hartinger is a recently banned young adult novel dealing with homosexual teenagers, identity, and the often severe social order of high schools. Russel feels his "secret" isolates him from even his closest friends and is surprised to learn, through various connections (internet and otherwise) that there are several other gay students in his school. These students are initially delighted to be able to talk freely with their peers and form a club, christened the Geography Club in order to sound boring enough to keep others away. I think all high schoolers feel themselves to be alone and misunderstood at times and could relate to the story, which is unflinching in its depictions of friendships, betrayals, young lust, and bullying. For related information, visit the author's blog or read the interview conducted by Cynthia Leitich Smith.

Interlibrary Loan Controversy...

UPDATE: Student confesses story was a hoax...


A University of Dartmouth senior was allegedly contacted by government agents after requesting an interlibrary loan for Mao Tse-tung's Little Red Book for a research project... although the facts of the story are now in question, due to a duplicate story emerging from California. From ACRLog.... See the comments on that blog for a discussion of the issues by various librarians.

Holiday Helpers, pt. IV

Last minute advice from the following helpful Lifehacker internet resources:

How to exchange unwanted gift cards online
Track the gifts you give and receive via Giftbox
Calendar gift suggestions
Last minute printable gift tags
How to wrap any gift

The Science of Christmas, from NewScientist
The perfect holiday gift for college students, from the Kept-up Academic Librarian
Girl writes letter to Santa... please reopen public library, from The Republican
America's story: Christmas Day, from the Library of Congress
How to Keep Your New Year's Resolutions, via Librarian's Internet Index

UPDATE: Fast Facts about the Holidays, from the Census Bureau

Making a List...

The Top Ten Alternative Search Engines, from Lifehacker
The Top Ten Words Looked Up in Merriam-Webster in 2005, from Resource Shelf
2005 Plagiarism Roundup, from Regret the Error
Books of the Year, from the Guardian via LISNews
Google Zeitgeist, a favorite summary of the year's internet searches

and the mother of all lists... LISTS 2005, from Fimoculous... books, films, and much, much more!

UPDATE: Geek to Live: The Best Apps of 2005, from Lifehacker

Library Listings...

Librarian as Firedancer, from Filipino Librarian
The World's Fastest Librarian, from librarian.net
America's First Librarian, from CBS 3
Books as ipod cases, from boing boing

and although the recent Patriot Act rejection is a great holiday gift, you could also consider filling our stockings with any of the Library of Congress loot found here....

Holiday Helpers, Pt. III...

The Festival of Yalda, winter solstice in Iran
Solstice Celebrations A-Z
Norad Tracks Santa, or...
do it yourself, Arrange Your Secret Santa Exchange Online
Credit Card Debt Calculator, which leads to....
Seasonal Depression Awareness Month, December

What's Stirring?

Here are the library hours for the holidays:

• The library is closed December 17 and December 18.
• The library is open from 8:00 am - 4:30 pm from December 19 to December 23.
• The library is closed December 24 to January 2.
• The library is open from 8:00 am - 4:30 pm from January 3 to January 6.
• The library is closed January 7 and January 8.
• The library is open from 8:00 am - 4:30 pm from January 9 to January 13.

CINAHL News...

From Lynn Hoffmann...

We now have access to the full text version of CINAHL (The Cumulated Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature,) which means 330 of the 2500 journals indexed will provide complete, online articles.

And you thought we weren't getting you anything for Christmas!

New Titles from Safari...

From the Reference Desk:
Bailey Library regularly receives updates of the most recent titles added to SafariTech Books Online. This collection of almost 3,500 computer technology ebooks contains the latest publications from publishers such as Cisco, O'Reilly, and Prentice Hall. Keep Safari in mind when you have a computer question!

Below are some of the most recent additions to the Safari collection.
Cisco IP Routing: Packet Forwarding and Intra-domain Routing Protocols
Apple Pro Training Series: Color Management in Mac OS X: A Practical Approach
Developing Extensions for Macromedia Dreamweaver 8
Adobe® GoLive® CS2 Official JavaScript Reference
Adobe® InDesign® CS2 Official JavaScript Reference: Automate your CS2 workflow
C++ Cookbook
Macromedia® Flash® 8: Training from the Source
Microsoft® Office System Plain & Simple 2003 Edition
Adobe® Photoshop® CS2 Official JavaScript Reference
Photoshop Elements 4 for Windows: Visual QuickStart Guide
Sams Teach Yourself XML in 24 Hours, Third Edition

It's That Special Time of Year....

when the textbook that cost you $150 in September (and you never used it) can now be sold back for $1.98! Happy holidays! Students may find the following articles of interest:

Just What the Professor Ordered, from the New York Times
Let's Talk About Texts, from AlterNet

Study Breaks in the Library...

On Sunday and Monday evenings, take a break from studying for finals and enjoy some snacks! Pizza, cookies, and beverages will be available from 8:00-10:00 pm, courtesy of Bailey Library.

The Latest from Library Land...

• The Most Literate Cities in America (Check out #8)
• Coming Soon... Postage Stamps Based on Children's Books
• Library Goes Nuts over Squirrel...
• Time for Bad Sex Again...

Holiday Helpers, Pt. II....

In the continuing effort to make your holidays jolly:
Christmas Cookie Recipes, from the German Embassy
History of the Advent Calendar, from Librarians Index to the Internet
Free Holiday Cards to Download and Print, from SFGate
Christmas Markets in Germany, from Germany Tourism
Holiday Etiquette, from Emily Post
Safe Holiday Lighting, from Southern California Edison
How to Roast Chestnuts, from the BBC
If You Can't Roast Them..., from the American Chestnut Foundation
History and Astronomy of the Star of Bethlehem, from the Griffith Observatory
The Official Site of the City of Bethlehem
All About Kwanzaa, from the History Channel
Personalized Photo Gifts, from MacWorld
Clever Little Gifts for Less, from the New York Times
Environmentally Responsible Holiday Trees, from Grist Magazine

Get the popcorn ready...

"The Hollywood Librarian: Librarians in Cinema and Society, now in production, will be the first full-length feature to focus on the work and lives of librarians..." The feature will include movie clips of librarians in cinema interwoven with interviews with real librarians, actors who have played librarians, and screen writers and directors who have chosen to include library themes in their movies. Check it out.
http://www.hollywoodlibrarian.com/about.html

Book Notes from the Reading Room....

from Lynn Hoffmann....

Holiday offerings include titles like Skipping Christmas by John Grisham, Silver Bells by Luanne Rice, Washington's Crossing by David Hackett Fischer, The Santaland Diaries by David Sedaris on tape, Idiot Girl's Christmas by Laurie Notaro, How the Republicans Stole Christmas by Bill Press, and many others. Look for the SEASON'S READINGS sign!

The Reading Room thanks Mary Beaver, the Bernardi Family, George Brown, Jace Condravy, Eric Day, Gizella Goyak, Jane Scott, and Jane Smith for their support. If you can donate popular fiction or non-fiction in print or audio formats, please contact Lynn Hoffmann, 724-738-2666, or leave your donations at the Circulation desk.

A Quiet Riot...

In the past two weeks, The Rocket (our student newspaper) has featured letters to the editor that discussed the noise levels in our library. The first letter writer complained of "sorority meetings" that made it difficult for those wishing to study in the library. The second letter writer defended groups' use of the library as one of the few "safe" places where students could gather to "further develop their education." Just for the record:
1) Our library is very active and busy and we welcome this;
2) The third floor is designated as a quiet study area;
3) Even though conversation is permitted on other floors, the library is still a library, with an expected culture of scholarship, civility, and consideration;
4) If you are being disturbed by excess noise, please find a library employee and inform them of the problem.

You can check out the online Rocket here... and you are always welcome to comment on this blog (below.) The statements in this post, by the way, are not intended to represent any official statement by the Library or University and simply reflect my own opinion. Let's hear your's....

It's Time to Play...

Library miscellanea!
Library Police on the Prowl, from Library Link of the Day
Evacuated Librarian Finds Peace, from Baton Rouge Advocate
Live and Work at the Library, from St. Paul Public Library
The Great Library Card Collection, from librarian.net

On a related note, from the New York Times:
10 Best Books of the Year
Beatrix Potter exhibit
R.I.P. Stan Berenstain