Free Web-Based Training in January

Here’s a list of some great FREE programs going on this month. After you attend, be sure to send a C.E. Activity Report to Linda Jensen at the Nebraska Library Commission so she can record the C.E. credits earned. Internet in Prison: Pros and Cons (WebJunction Webinar) January 7, 1-2 p.m. CST Internet access is a hot button in prison because of the potential for predatory, white collar criminal, and other dangerous activities. And yet, prison programming is designed to help incarcerated people prepare for success post-release. The internet has the potential to support both harmful and positive goals. Is there a way to balance the priority of safety with reintegration goals? Join Melisa Gilbert of Coyote Ridge Correctional Center (WA) as she presents and facilitates a conversation on the multiple points of view on this controversial issue. The Real Bottom Line: Myths about Using Business Principles in Libraries (SirsiDynix Institute) January 8, 10-11 a.m. CST Return on investment (or equity, or assets). Merchandising. Leveraging capacity. Bottom line strategies. Shareholders. More and more, library management meetings sound like corporate board rooms. The problem: What might work for a multi-million dollar company that produces commodities like toothpaste and canned beans might not work as well with a social institution like a library, no matter how large. However, entrepreneurs tend to run smaller businesses where fiscal responsibility, personalized customer service and innovation are the rule. Their models can help libraries better control costs, increase usage figures and attract political and financial support. WorldCat.org Update (BCR) January 9, 11 a.m.-Noon or 3-4 p.m. CST New features and functionality continue to be added routinely to WorldCat.org. This session will review recent additions to this freely available, online version of WorldCat. WorldCat.org is powerful tool with the ability to push your library’s information to the average user who may not find your materials otherwise. Join us to learn how your library can take advantage of this resource. Using Google Custom Search Engine: Turning an Information Fire Hose into a Precision Instrument (TLT) January 9, 12-1 p.m. CST Join the TLT Group to learn how to better use the Google Custom Search Engine. Shelf Read Your Personal Information: Getting Organized and Staying That Way (WebJunction Webinar) January 14, 1-2 p.m. CST Your books have call numbers to stay organized, what do you have to defeat discord? This session will discuss ways to keep organized, electronically and online: calendars, to-do lists, personal information managers, dealing with the never empty email inbox, and maybe a little paper too. Join guest presenter Derik Badman of Temple University Libraries, MadInkBeard, and 2008 ALA Emerging Leader for a one-hour, free webinar on how to keep organized. Metadata for Digitization, Part 2: PBCore (BCR) January 16, 3-4 p.m. CST This one-hour session is designed to give museum, library, broadcasting and archive staff insight into this relatively new metadata schema, Public Broadcasting Core (PBCore). The PBCore is a “core” because it is a set of elements used to catalog media resources, including oral histories. PBCore captures rich, comprehensive technical and descriptive metadata about audio and moving-images resources. It provides researchers and other users of media resources well-thought-out descriptions that will help them decide whether to review, play or download a media file. A Need for Speed: Measuring and Managing Bandwidth (MaintainIT Cookbook Webinar) January 20, 1-1:30 p.m. CST Does it ever feel like your high-speed connection to the Internet is somehow trapped in the slow lane? Are you experiencing the 3 PM chug? There are tools you can use to monitor your network performance and there are techniques you can use to manage bandwidth. Join this fast-paced and interactive webinar to find out more. Take 30 minutes out of your day to learn from the experiences of others and get something started. This is a part of the MaintainIT Cookbook webinar series where contributors to the Cookbooks share their insights, their secrets, and what you can do to get started with projects like theirs. Virtual Town Hall: Focus on Staff Training (WebJunction Cookbook Webinar) January 28, 1-2 p.m. CST Training budgets are shrinking while patron traffic is increasing in these economic tough times. What new or improved skills do library staff need to meet the demand? How do we think innovatively about our learning strategies? Join your learning professional community in the new “Virtual Town Hall” format. Engage your colleagues in a lively session of questions, brainstorms, stories, and practical strategies. Technology Planning in TechAtlas (TechAtlas Webinar) January 29, 12-1 p.m. CST Discover a free software designed just for libraries that offers an easy, step-by-step process for creating a technology plan from mission and vision to goals and objectives along with budget development using WebJunction’s TechAtlas for Libraries. In challenging economic times, creating a sound technology plan with well documented budgetary needs can assist you in gaining Board approval and funding. Learn how to build a strategically designed set of goals, objectives, and activities that can be assigned to staff with deliverable deadlines and planned funding. Thanks to our friend, Jamie Marcus from the Wyoming State Library for compiling this information.