Libraries and information

A rich white man who won’t miss the library

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This weekend there was another “woe is us, libraries are obsolete” post by a rich white man. (Who, if his comment about looking down on the library from his apartment on W. 53rd wasn’t enough of a clue, touts his everyman *cough* status in a comment to Magpie Librarian’s blog post, when he reminds us that he founded a company that was bought by the New York Times Companies.)

Now, I actually thought that he made a good point in his post. That is, if one read it twice and spent a lot of time pondering it, and why did he throw in a comment about book burning, and I’m going to be critical of the critics. In other words, his good point was not at all immediately obvious.

His good point was essentially this: we are getting rid of libraries, and what’s the difference between getting rid of libraries and burning the books that would be inside them?

But I don’t think he meant to make that good point. He hasn’t been to the library in 15 years. He won’t miss the library. Why should anyone go to the library? The Web is free! Google has everything! Why rebuild the public library as a gathering space (note that our rich white man of the hour quotes the architect who designed the to-be-built replacement branch on this point and conveniently ignores the word “just” in the statement that “it’s not really about just being a repository of books”) when there’s a Starbucks on every corner?

Why go to the library?

Because a home Internet connection is not free. Because not everyone lives in a physical setting where they are able to have an Internet connection. Because not everyone has a home. Because computers are not free.

Because Google doesn’t have everything, not by a long shot. Want to read the latest bestseller? Not going to find the full text online. Want to read an article from most scholarly journals? Not going to find the full text through Google. (At least not for free.) Because even what Google does have (and of course, Google doesn’t “have” anything*, it just links to pages) might be hard to find. Because not everyone has the advantage of a Williams College education to be able to craft effective searches. Because it can be hard to evaluate  the quality of a source.

Because the latte I had on Friday morning cost me $4.72 and not everyone can afford that. Because Starbucks** doesn’t offer storytime or arts and crafts or a safe space for teenagers to go after school to do their homework. Because Starbucks doesn’t offer book groups. Because Starbucks doesn’t prepare kids for a college education. Because baristas aren’t librarians.

But you know why else one should go to the library? To see that not everyone looks like you, talks like you, reads like you, or — let’s face it — smells like you.

 

A collection of voices on this topic:

 

*Google has a lot of stuff: metadata and code and money; those aren’t what I’m talking about here.

**Sorry to harp on Starbucks here. My $4.72 latte wasn’t even from Starbucks. I hope it’s obvious that none of this is intended as criticism; Starbucks isn’t supposed to provide the same things as a library!

 

Laws and regs, Libraries and information

Laws and Copyright

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Some time ago, long enough that I don’t remember even a general time frame, I saw a link posted on Twitter about copyright and the D.C. Code. Yesterday I came across this post from Prism Legal on the same subject (note that I don’t know who or what Prism Legal is; this either came over Twitter or, more likely given my day yesterday, I happened upon it while working on a paper for school). And then today my friend G asked what my thoughts were on the D.C. Code being under copyright.

When I saw the first of these references to this issue, which I could have sworn I had saved in my to-follow-up-on list but apparently didn’t because I can’t find the link anywhere, I knew that I wanted to follow up on it. It seems like it should be an easy issue: it’s the law, it’s public information, so it shouldn’t be copyrighted.

But…

That doesn’t make sense. A book that has been published is public but it’s still copyrighted. Does it make a difference that the “author” in the case of the D.C. Code (or any other state’s law) is the government?

So let me say this. I know next to nothing about copyright. But I have a strong interest in public government information and online publication and the (unintentional?) complexities involved, so I want to learn more about this.

And thus I conclude with the immortal words of my former therapist: “to be continued…”

Libraries and information

Hack Library School Day in the Life, Day 5

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Candy Crush Saga status: I’m on level 50.

School status: I remembered yesterday that with spring break being over, I have to read for my classes next week. This is why I’ve never liked spring break; it feels like there is so much time to catch up and then the end comes and you’re further behind than you would be if you’d just had class all week.

Paper status: Yes, I distinguished between school and paper-writing, though the immediate paper is for school. Current paper is going okay; I’m pretty confident (I just typed “condiment” instead) that when I go on Sunday to my usual coffee-carbs-and-coursework location, I’ll be able to focus and push through. I’m less confident about being able to use APA style to cite to my sources. (Not a problem citing my sources. It’s just that the Bluebook would be a better style for the particular sources I’m using.) This one is due on Thursday, along with a pie.

Paper 2 status: I’ve got another paper to write that exactly mimics the first one in style/direction, except focused on different course goals. I haven’t been following the Dale Askey/Edwin Mellen Press drama but have been looking for a way to justify the reading. This paper will be it. I did some very very very preliminary searching last night and discovered that there is a book written about another EMP libel suit. There are three copies in DC but none anywhere that I have regular reason to be, and it isn’t available through our consortium. Not sure why. But it’s okay! My office has a new intern who just started today, and lo and behold, he goes to school with one of the copies of the book! I’ve given him the call number and other pertinent information, and he is going to get it for me when he is next on campus. (Sadly for me, he is on spring break NEXT week, so it will be a while until I get it.)

Paper 3 status: Research paper due at the end of the semester. The proposal is due on Tuesday, but I sent it two weeks ago with the express purpose of then working on the paper during spring break. Hasn’t happened. The plan here is to write about Library of Congress Subject Headings and their evolution with advances in social consciousness.

Paper 4 status: Another research paper due at the end of the semester. This one I’ve done serious research for already (sorry, trees) but not so much writing. This one is about FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) and the problem with the use of the word “information” in its name. My thesis is that FOIA isn’t about information at all. This paper has to be good because I want it to be publishable.

Paper 5: not for school! Another thing I want to write and have published about electronic publishing of legal materials. That’s what the immediate paper is on, as well, but that one is focused on the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act, and what I want to write for paper 5 will have a very different focus. That’s all I’m saying because I don’t want any of you to steal my idea! This one won’t happen until the summer, but hopefully it WILL happen during the summer.

The scary thing is that there is also a paper 6 in my head (and on my to-do list), as well as a tutorial series (which has been in dry erase pen on my bathroom mirror for the last three months). Not sure where I think I’ll be finding time for all of these!

Finally, my last reflections on this last day of HLSDITL. For the moment, I’ve changed my mind about working in an academic law library. Again I’m being close-mouthed about the actual vision I have, but I’ve swung back to my local government love in my thinking. Good thing I have time to change my mind again!

Libraries and information

Hack Library School Day in the Life, Day 3. aka Oops.

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Snow day, snow day! But without any actual snow. There was a fair amount of griping from parents stuck at home with bored kids and no snow, but in my mind, this was the best type of snow day. A whole day off from work but the commute tomorrow will be no worse than the commute yesterday.

Meanwhile, my big plan to take advantage of the snow day to bang out this paper was a huge fail. All because of Candy Crush Saga on Facebook. I had been doing VERY VERY WELL at not playing these stupid computer games but slipped the other day and now have an intense need to clear all the jellies from level 37. (Yes, this means that I’ve completed levels 1-36 in the few days since I started playing.) Also I took a nap and watched quite a bit of West Wing; it turns out that neither of those activities are conducive to getting lots done.

Tonight is #libchat on twitter. I generally learn a lot from other students and especially from folks who are already out in the world of librarian-ing, but I think I’ll skip it tonight. After all, despite my struggle to be productive, I did just write almost a single-spaced page this hour. Maybe I can keep it up?

 

This post is part of the Hack Library School Day in the Life (#HLSDITL) project.

 

Libraries and information

Hack Library School Day in the Life, Day 2

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First Tuesday of the month means DC Council legislative meeting, also known as try-not-to-say-something-on-twitter-that-gets-me-fired day. This of course has nothing to do with library school, but it is very related to a day in my life.

Also in my day today, the last bits of inauguration are gone from in front of the White House. Hopefully this means that my walk to work in the morning will only be interrupted by foreign leaders staying in the Blair House, instead of the occasional construction blocking the whole of Pennsylvania Avenue.

And cookies. The impulse-buy cookie section of Trader Joe’s was completely picked over. Thank goodness, people don’t seem to like the oatmeal cookies as much as the peanut butter chocolate chip cookies, though I don’t know why because they are AH-mazing, so I was able to satisfy my immediate hunger without breaking into the vegetables.

Hoping for a snow day tomorrow. Is there anything better than getting to stay in your jammies all day? Plus, of course, there’s the paper I whined about yesterday.

I think I have a plan for it, though, so off I go!

 

This post is part of the Hack Library School Day in the Life (#HLSDITL) project.