Doctorow’s First Law:
Any time someone puts a lock on something that belongs to you and won’t give you the key, that lock isn’t for your benefit.
Doctorow’s Second Law:
Fame won’t make you rich, but you can’t get paid without it.
Doctorow’s Third Law:
Information doesn’t want to be free, people do.
Information Doesn’t Want to Be Free: Laws for the Internet Age by Cory Doctorow. McSweeney’s, 2014.
Interior photo of the Girl’s Industrial School library, Genoa, Nebraska, circa 1900-1920.
This photograph of the Genoa Girl’s Industrial School has generated a lot of interest about the school. Below is a link to an article from Nebraska History published by the Nebraska State Historical Society with more information.
Shaka. The deadline for the Digital Inclusion Survey is Friday, November 21. The Dude has done this survey and if you don’t pitter patter around you can have it finished in 10 minutes (and subsequently your name will be removed from my “list”). It may be worth your while, as there are 3 Kindle Fire HD’s that are up for grabs. Enter your contact information at the conclusion of the survey to be eligible for the drawing. You can’t win if you don’t play. Also, don’t forget to complete the speed test by going to www.speedtest.net from a public access terminal or laptop (using the library Wi-Fi). At the conclusion of the test (after you click on “Begin Test” and it runs through it) write down the download speed, upload speed, and PING. Either enter the numbers into your survey, or e-mail them to me.
To underscore the importance of this survey, please take a look at last year’s results. The Nebraska page offers an interactive map that is searchable by geographic location or library name. It contains a wealth of specific information, including demographics, economics, education, health, and summary from last year’s survey. If you scroll down, you can see how Nebraska compares to the national averages for technology, digital literacy, and library programs. The site also contains the full national report, as well as a talking points handout.
Join us for next week’s NCompass Live: “Books and Water Don’t Mix or How We Survived the Water Disaster”, on Wednesday, November 19, 10:00-11:00 am Central Time.
Are you prepared for a disaster in your library? If you think it can’t happen to you or if you think ‘My library is only a few years old – it’s in good shape’–think again. Denise Lawver at the Wahoo (NE) Public Library will share her experiences after a 3″ water pipe burst in the ceiling of the meeting room–in a library only 7 years old!
Upcoming NCompass Live events:
For more information, to register for NCompass Live, or to listen to recordings of past events, go to the NCompass Live webpage.
NCompass Live is broadcast live every Wednesday from 10am – 11am Central Time. Convert to your time zone on the Official U.S. Time website. The show is presented online using the GoToWebinar online meeting service. Before you attend a session, please see the NLC Online Sessions webpage for detailed information about GoToWebinar, including system requirements, firewall permissions, and equipment requirements for computer speakers and microphones.
National Endowment for the Humanities Museums, Libraries, and Cultural Organizations (MLCO) grants provide support for museums, libraries, historic places, and other organizations that produce public programs in the humanities.
Planning grants support the following formats:
Implementation grants support the following formats:
Closing date for applications: January 14, 2015.
For more information, visit http://www.neh.gov/grants/mlco.
Here’s a quick rundown on the most important things to know about the Health Insurance Marketplace, sometimes known as the health insurance “exchange.” Follow the links for more information on each topic.
Important. 2014 Marketplace Open Enrollment ended March 31. You can still buy a Marketplace health plan only if you qualify for a special enrollment period. You can apply for Medicaid and CHIP any time. Find out if you qualify for a Special Enrollment Period or Medicaid and CHIP. Open Enrollment for 2015 coverage starts November 15, 2014.
The Health Insurance Marketplace helps uninsured people find health coverage. Fill out a Marketplace application and we’ll tell you if you qualify for:
Most people are eligible to use the Marketplace. Learn more about immigration status and eligibility.
Most people must have health coverage or pay a penalty. If you don’t have coverage in 2014, you’ll pay a fee of either 1% of your income, or $95 per adult ($47.50 per child), whichever is higher. You’ll pay the fee on your 2015 income taxes.
Some people qualify for an exemption from the fee, based on income or other factors.
You’re considered covered if you have Medicare, Medicaid, CHIP, any job-based plan, any plan you bought yourself, COBRA, retiree coverage, TRICARE, VA health coverage, or some other kinds of health coverage.
You can also buy a plan outside the Marketplace and still be considered covered. If you buy outside the Marketplace, you won’t be eligible for premium tax credits or lower out-of-pocket costs based on your income.
If you’re eligible for job-based insurance, you can consider switching to a Marketplace plan. But you won’t qualify for lower costs based on your income unless the job-based insurance isn’t considered affordable or doesn’t meet minimum requirements.
If you have Medicare, you’re considered covered and don’t have to make any changes. If you have Medicare, you can’t use the Marketplace to buy a supplemental plan or dental plan.
Learn how to apply through the Marketplace—online, by phone, or with a paper application..
Questions? Call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week: 1-800-318-2596 (TTY: 1-855-889-4325)
Exterior photo of the Seward Public Library, Carnegie building, circa 1900-1920
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ATTENTION:
News, Books, Arts & Culture
CONTACT:
Rosemary Vestal
Publicity Manager
402-472-7710
rvestal2@unl.edu
Nebraska Native’s Vietnam memoir chosen for 2015 One Book One Nebraska
LINCOLN, Neb.
(Nov. 10, 2014)— Nebraskans have new required reading material. The 2015 One Book One Nebraska selection is Death Zones and Darling Spies: Seven Years of Vietnam War Reporting (University of Nebraska Press, May 2013) by Beverly Deepe Keever, who was born and raised in Hebron, Neb.
Keever was the longest-serving American correspondent covering the Vietnam War and earned a Pulitzer Prize nomination for reporting.
In Death Zones and Darling Spies, Keever describes what it was like for a farm girl from Nebraska to find herself halfway around the world, trying to make sense of one of the nation’s bloodiest and bitterest wars.
“Keever is an excellent storyteller. . . .
Death Zones & Darling Spies adds a woman’s view to the many retrospectives on the Vietnam War—a war covered and perpetrated mostly by men,” said Carolyn Johnsen in the Lincoln Journal Star.
Keever received her bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and her doctorate from the University of Hawaii, where she is currently professor emerita.
“It was an honor to work with Bev Keever on Death Zones and Darling Spies, and I’m pleased this fine book will reach new audiences around the state,” said Bridget Barry, UNP acquisitions editor. “The University of Nebraska Press is proud of Bev and her accomplishments.”
The One Book One Nebraska program promotes a culture of reading and discussion in Nebraska by bringing the state together around one great book by a Nebraska author. This year marks ten years of the program. It is sponsored by Nebraska Center for the Book, Humanities Nebraska, and Nebraska Library Commission.
Death Zones & Darling Spies: Seven Years of Vietnam War Reporting by Beverly Deepe Keever was the committee’s choice based on Keever’s compelling prose and ability to analyze complex historical/political contexts to provide insight into America’s military and financial involvement in Vietnam,” said Rebecca Faber, chair of the One Book One Nebraska Selection Committee. “Her Nebraska background provided a tie to the response of Americans at home who were trying to comprehend a war like no other in which the United States had been involved.”
Get your copy of Death Zones and Darling Spies from the University of Nebraska Press or wherever books are sold.
For more information about UNP, visit nebraskapress.unl.edu. For more information about One Book One Nebraska, visit onebook.nebraska.gov.
About the University of Nebraska Press:
Founded in 1941, the University of Nebraska Press is a nonprofit scholarly and general interest press that publishes 170 new and reprint titles annually under the Nebraska, Bison Books, and Potomac Books imprints, and in partnership with the Jewish Publication Society, along with 30 journals. As the largest and most diversified university press between Chicago and California, with 3,000 books in print, the University of Nebraska Press is best known for publishing works in Native studies, history, sports, anthropology and geography, American studies and cultural criticism, and creative works. For more information, visit nebraskapress.unl.edu.
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The 2014 Teens’ Top Ten titles were announced!
Take a look at the results of voting by teens for the best titles of 2014. Visit here for both the video of the announcement and, just below it, the list itself. You can also click on a link to the list with descriptions. Nebraskan Rainbow Rowell tops the list this year with Eleanor & Park so teens across the country chose it as their favorite book!
One of many titles on my 2015 Summer Reading Program booklist is How to Catch a Bogle by Catherine Jinks.
(The Nebraska Library Commission receives free copies of children’s and young adult books for review from a number of publishers. After review, the books are distributed free, via the Regional Library Systems, to Nebraska school and public libraries.)
Today is the start of the annual IMLS Public Library Survey. For those of you who are new directors, it might be helpful to familiarize yourself with the survey and instructions. Take a peek at the Bibliostat Collect portion of the data services section of the NLC website, which has instructions, tips, and other tidbits to help you complete the survey. Keep in mind that the survey is required for your library to receive state aid if you are accredited. If you aren’t accredited, you still have an incentive to complete the survey ($200), called Dollar$ for Data. It may not seem like much, but 200 bucks is, well, 200 bucks.
A few things are worth noting in addition to the survey instructions and other tips. For OverDrive circulations, please refer to the instructions about how to find this information. For OverDrive holdings, refer to this summary. For other OverDrive questions, please contact Devra Dragos or Susan Knisley. If your library has a subscription to download services (e.g. 3M, Axis 360, Freading, freegal, Hoopla, Mango, or any of the others) this chart may be helpful to you.
The survey runs until February 13, 2015. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions throughout the process. You can always start the survey, save your submissions, and then resume where you left off at a later date. Thank you in advance for your participation.
For those wanting to add records to their catalogs for Nebraska state documents, the Summer 2014 list of Nebraska E-Docs is now available at http://nlc.nebraska.gov/govDocs/ShippingLists/edocsalerts.aspx.
Join the Nebraska Dewey Group Purchase and save money on the print and web versions of the DDC!
Dewey in Print
The Nebraska Dewey Group includes the print versions of the Abridged Edition 15 (1 volume) and the 23rd edition of the unabridged Dewey Decimal Classification (4 volumes).
OCLC is offering 10% off of the original price on the DDC in print.
If your library is interested in ordering the DDC in print, you will find Pricing information on the online Book Order Form.
For more information about the DDC, please visit Dewey Services.
Dewey on the Web
Now your library can benefit from web-based access to an enhanced version of the Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) database through WebDewey. OCLC is offering a discounted price to users who join the Nebraska Dewey Group.
WebDewey is the web-based, enhanced version of the unabridged and abridged print editions. Regular updates bring you changes implemented by the Dewey editorial team almost as soon as they occur. WebDewey also offers additional functionality not available in the print editions to make your classification work more efficient.
The new WebDewey Group subscription year runs from January 1, 2015 – December 31, 2015.
If your library is interested in subscribing to WebDewey, you will find Pricing information on the online WebDewey Order Form.
To see WebDewey in action, try the WebDewey 2.0: An Overview tutorial.
If you have any questions about these Dewey products or the Nebraska Group, please contact Christa Burns, 402-471-3107, or 800-307-2665.
NOTE: OCLC Membership is NOT required to purchase Dewey products.
New state government publications ranging from Administrative Services to Nebraska Press, received September and October, 2014.
http://nlc.nebraska.gov/publications/archives/WhatsUpDoc/WUDSeptOct2014.pdf
Join us for next week’s NCompass Live: “Cool Tools for You and Your Library”, on Wednesday, November 12, 10:00-11:00 am Central Time.
Did you miss the Cool Tools session at the NLA/NSLA Annual Conference last month? Catch it again this week!
New internet tools, technologies and websites appear every day that you can integrate into your personal and professional life. Librarians can harness the full potential of these tools to provide innovative library services and programming, stay organized, be creative and improve productivity. Christa Burns, from the Nebraska Library Commission, will introduce you to new and emerging online tools that will motivate you to accomplish great things at your library.
Upcoming NCompass Live events:
For more information, to register for NCompass Live, or to listen to recordings of past events, go to the NCompass Live webpage.
NCompass Live is broadcast live every Wednesday from 10am – 11am Central Time. Convert to your time zone on the Official U.S. Time website. The show is presented online using the GoToWebinar online meeting service. Before you attend a session, please see the NLC Online Sessions webpage for detailed information about GoToWebinar, including system requirements, firewall permissions, and equipment requirements for computer speakers and microphones.
Veterans Day is an official United States holiday that honors people who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces. It is a federal holiday (originally known as Armistice Day) that is observed on November 11 ; that date being chosen because major hostilities of World War I were formally ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, when the Armistice went into effect. In 1945, World War II veteran Raymond Weeks from Birmingham, Alabama, had the idea to expand Armistice Day to celebrate all veterans, not just those who died in World War I. Congress officially changed Armistice Day to Veterans Day on June 1, 1954.
In honor of our Nebraska veterans, I would like to mention a few of the photographs that can be found in Nebraska Memories. The picture above is of the Veteran’s Memorial in Bruno, Nebraska. The picture to the right is of Orin W. Boston, of David City, Nebraska, wearing his father’s Union Civil War uniform. The picture below is of Clyde Zeilinger, who first served on the Mexican border, then was a medic and a prisoner of war during World War I.
The next photograph is of Evelyn Powell of David City, Nebraska, who served in the US Naval Reserve (Women’s Reserve) during World War II.
Visit Nebraska Memories to search for or browse through many more historical images digitized from photographs, negatives, postcards, maps, lantern slides, books and other materials.
Nebraska Memories is a cooperative project to digitize Nebraska-related historical and cultural heritage materials and make them available to researchers of all ages via the Internet. Nebraska Memories is brought to you by the Nebraska Library Commission. If your institution is interested in participating in Nebraska Memories, see http://nlc.nebraska.gov/nebraskamemories/participation.aspx for more information, or contact Beth Goble, Historical Projects Librarian, or Devra Dragos, Technology & Access Services Director.
If we talk about books and reading books, at some point writing books is going to come up. National Novel Writing Month is a challenge and a community and a place to support writing and reading. If you or any of your library users have ever thought about writing a novel, November is a great time to start. And maybe we’ll be reading some of the novels by Nebraska authors that are posted on the site at the end of the month.
On Tuesday, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced that the agency will continue to deliver 1040 EZ forms to public libraries that are participating in the Tax Forms Outlet Program (TFOP). TFOP offers tax products to the American public primarily through participating libraries and post offices. The IRS will distribute new order forms to participating libraries in the next two to three weeks.
The IRS released the following statement on November 4, 2014:
Based on the concerns expressed by many of our TFOP partners, we are now adding the Form 1040 EZ, Income Tax Return for Single and Joint Filers with No Dependents, to the list of forms that can be ordered. We will send a supplemental order form to you in two to three weeks. We strongly recommend you keep your orders to a manageable level primarily due to the growing decline in demand for the form and our print budget. Taxpayers will be able to file Form 1040 EZ and report that they had health insurance coverage, claim an exemption from coverage or make a shared responsibility payment. However, those who purchased health coverage from the Health Insurance Marketplace must use the Form 1040 or 1040A.Your help communicating this to your patrons within your normal work parameters would be greatly appreciated.
We also heard and understood your concerns of our decision to limit the number of Publication 17 we plan to distribute. Because of the growing cost to produce and distribute Pub 17, we are mailing to each of our TFOP partners, including branches, one copy for use as a reference. We believe that the majority of local demand for a copy of or information from Publication 17 can be met with a visit to our website at www.irs.gov/formspubs or by ordering it through the Government Printing Office. We value and appreciate the important work you do providing IRS tax products to the public and apologize for any inconvenience this service change may cause.
Public library leaders will have the opportunity to discuss the management and effectiveness of the Tax Forms Outlet Program with leaders from the IRS during the 2015 American Library Association Midwinter Meeting session “Tell the IRS: Tax Forms in the Library.” The session takes place on Sunday, February 1, 2015.
Reprinted from District Dispatch, November 4, 2014.
Interior photo of the Oxford Public Library, circa 1900
For this week, the Data Dude takes a look at some innovative library services being offered and focuses on the planning aspects of potentially giving them a try in your library. In particular, this is in response to the Montgomery (Alabama) City-County Public Library cutting back on library hours at physical locations (I’m sure there are many Nebraska examples as well). All is not doom and gloom, though, as the Alabama library appears to be expanding its digital and online services to meet the needs of the community. Now, the data collected for video holdings in Nebraska libraries is, I’ll admit, pretty much of a bore (see the graph), and may not support the conclusion that a shift has occurred. But, the Dude thinks a potential shift may be eminent, and that is the purpose for writing about this today, right now. For many Nebraska librarians, these things are not new; to others, these ideas may be entirely foreign.
The Dude, like a number of other library users, loves the fact that he can obtain premium video content from the local public library, including original content from HBO, Showtime, and independent film sources. The Dude doesn’t have cable TV (but he does like to watch things occasionally), so he’s all about getting access to stuff and saving a few bucks. But the Dude is also sometimes frustrated by the current DVD format to deliver this content. Don’t get me wrong, my overall experience with DVD’s from my local library is almost 90% positive, but in 10% of those instances, it ends in despair. One of the major irritations lies in the DVD media format itself, and its inability to sometimes play correctly, either because it is worn, damaged, or otherwise messed up. Kid’s content is especially problematic. While there is something to be said for the convenience of checking out digital things (e.g. books, movies, music, etc.), it really isn’t burdensome to stop at the local library to pick something up and likewise return it. Some may be bothered by that, however, and that fact is worth noting. The library management may also be grieved by physical items coming up stolen or damaged, and that is also worth noting. Furthermore, there may be a significant portion of the library budget that is consumed by purchasing items that have already been purchased, in order to replace these lost, damaged, or stolen items.
The point is that a digital solution has the potential to stretch library budgets, more efficiently allocate services, and increase the overall availability of content to the library users. Take, for example, any particular DVD in the library collection. That DVD has to be selected, ordered, processed by technical services, labeled, and then eventually finds its way to the shelf, where if it is lucky it will take a trip to someone’s home (and back to the library in the same condition), or if it is unlucky, will take up valuable shelf space. It may get mis-shelved, or Benderized (reference to John Bender’s reorganization of the card catalogue in the Breakfast Club). If it does make it to the right spot, staff then hopes that some larcenist doesn’t swipe it outright, or that the first person (or the third, fourth, or fifth) to check it out doesn’t scratch it all to hell and render it useless. Even if the library staff catches this stratchtasticness, how easy is it to hold someone responsible? Hey, it was like that when I got it, man.
A digital solution to these dilemmas should not be overlooked. It holds much promise for the future of libraries, and should be considered in planning for future services and collection development. There are a few different digital alternatives worth noting, including but not limited to OverDrive, Hoopla, Indieflix, and Films on Demand. Keep in mind that this post seeks to describe the basic services, not necessarily to endorse one or another (none of them have bribed or even talked to me). Some of these services offer transactional pricing and content is delivered a la carte (e.g. Hoopla – currently being offered at the Hastings Public Library). In these cases, the library subscribes to the service and sets limits on what can, cannot, and how many items can be borrowed (either downloaded or streamed) by the virtual library visitor. For instance, the library can say each card holder can only have 3 audio and 3 video checkouts/downloads per month. The library can also say that once its budget disappears, everyone is shut off until the beginning of the next month. The library pays a fee per downloaded item (e.g. movies are between 99₵ and $2.99 on Hoopla), items are automatically returned after the lending period, and an unlimited number of users can access the content at the same time (no waiting for someone else to “return” the item). Hoopla is unique in that the library does not have any part in the selection of the content; that part is all done by the user. IndieFlix is a bit different, as libraries pay a negotiated rate for users to access the content. Again, no waiting for others to “return” the digital copies. The monthly membership for individuals is $5/month; I’m not sure what the rates are for libraries (it most likely depends on the service population). OverDrive streaming functions much like OverDrive eBooks, as the digital items are selected, rented, and need to be returned before someone else can check out the digital copy.
The obvious question or concern with streaming services is, of course, the ability to stream content purchased by the library in the home by many library users. In response to this concern, Fox Van Allen notes that approximately 17% of homes now rely on streaming media players for content, and by 2016, this number is expected to expand to 39% or more homes. So the trend is that appropriate devices will become more and more prevalent. It is also worth noting that with some services, there is an option is to download the video for later use (as opposed to streaming it), thus making it possible for someone to download the content while in a Wi-Fi hotspot (such as a library), and then watch it later. Also, in most cases the streaming needs to occur from a laptop computer or other device. So, if you want to watch these things on the big bad 70” LED in the basement, you’ll need to find a way to get the content over there. Shaka.
