Frank Webster's blog

What Students Want: A "Recommender" Service in the OPAC

Wed, 04 May 2011 09:49:49 -0400

"Recommender" features built into online catalogs have been a controversial issue in Library Land because they rely on a record of individual borrowing that is perceived by many librarians as a threat to patron privacy.

Columbia University Libraries (CUL) has been a leader in the protection of patron privacy since Director Paula Kaufman rebuffed the FBI's attempt to keep international students' reading habits under surveillance in 1987.

EDUCAT is set up to break the connection between reader and book once the item has been returned and any fines satisfied.

This article in D-LIB Magazine proposes an anonymous recommender that works in conjunction with the catalog:

Adding Value to the Library Catalog by Implementing a Recommendation System

But Is It A Book?

Mon, 02 May 2011 09:51:49 -0400

This article in Bloomberg Businessweek explores new trends in online publishing and higlights two new sites, Byliner and The Atavist, that specialize in content that is longer than the typical magazine article but shorter than what we think of as a book.

What Is A Book?

The article also points out trends in self-publishing by Amanda Hocking, author of nine paranormal romance young-adult novels, and Barry Eisler, author of two bestselling thriller series.

Hocking is now moving from self-publishing to traditional publishing because she is feeling overwhelmed, but Eisler is moving from traditional publishing to self-publishing so he can get more control and more money.

Ed Tech Gets Big Bucks

Thu, 28 Apr 2011 12:48:04 -0400

This article in Bloomberg Businessweek reports renewed interest in online learning companies by venture capitalists to the tune of $177 million:

Educational Tech Gets a Second Look

"Education is having its Internet moment," says Rob Stavis of Bessemer Venture Partners, a prominent venture fund.

An Online Degree At A Fraction Of The Cost: The WGU Model

Mon, 28 Mar 2011 11:47:26 -0400

This article in Bloomberg Businessweek describes the highly-successful Western Governors University (WGU) affordable alternative to state colleges and for-profit online universities geared toward older students.

Online Education, With a Low-Cost Twist

Tuition is one-half to one-third of typical for-profit program.

The average age of students is 36 and rural, first-generation, low-income, and minority students make up the majority of the school's population.

No full time faculty with tenure and benefits.
Mentors by phone and e-mail.
Tuition-driven non-profit pricing model.
No lectures or required class attendance.
Student assessment based on performance on online tests, projects, and assignments.

Ten Usability Tips Based on Research Studies

Thu, 23 Sep 2010 13:32:45 -0400

Ten Usability Tips Based on Research Studies:

How could we use these research-based ideas to improve our web site and other tools?

I was most surprised by Tip 7. Whitespace of Text Affects Readability.

Who knew that margins affected both reading speed and comprehension?

1. Forget the "Three-Click Rule"

2. Enable Content Skimming By Using an F-Shaped Pattern

3. Don’t Make Users Wait: Speed Up Your Website

4. Make Your Content Easily Readable

5. Don’t Worry About "The Fold" and Vertical Scrolling

6. Place Important Content on the Left of a Web Page

7. Whitespace of Text Affects Readability

8. Small Details Make a Huge Difference

9. Don’t Rely on Search as a Crutch to Bad Navigation

10. Your Home Page Isn’t As Important as You Think

Liberated from Six Revisions, a website that publishes practical and useful articles for designers and web developers.

Managed Hosting Comparison Guide

Tue, 21 Sep 2010 11:11:18 -0400

Managed Hosting Comparison Guide

You never know when something useful will show up in the SPAM.

This free guide promises to compare side-by-side 12 of the top vendors, including:

PEER 1
Rackspac
Hostgator.com
Singlehop
NeoSpire

The Bookless Library: Teamwork, Communications and Problem Solving

Thu, 16 Sep 2010 10:49:33 -0400

The University of Texas at San Antonio designed its new, entirely bookless Applied Engineering and Technology (AET) Library to engage students in an online format within a contemporary new space.

The library offers:

425,000 e-books
18,000 e-journal subscriptions.
Skilled science and engineering librarians to help students who need research assistance.
ultra-modern furniture and space age decor
10 desktop computers, a printer, a scanner and five large LCD screens.
group study niches and three group study rooms outfitted with whiteboards.
pre-loaded collections of eBooks on eReader devices such as iPad or Kindle for students to check out and take home.

"As our campus becomes a national research university, it is important that we continue to create communities that engage students," said Krisellen Maloney, UTSA dean of libraries. "In this library, we encourage collaboration. We want to hear our students talking and solving problems together. This is the beginning of their training as professional engineers and scientists."

Taj Mahal Schools

Mon, 23 Aug 2010 11:45:46 -0400

In a time of bail-outs, cut-backs and lay-offs, the Los Angeles Unified Public School District is now the proud owner of the world's most expensive public school building.

Los Angeles Unveils Costliest School in the Nation

According to MSNBC, the renovation of The Ambassador Hotel, where Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1968, cost $578 million.

Now named Robert F. Kennedy Community Schools, the complex will house 4,200 K-12 students.

Talking Back to Back Talk: Google Places Reviews

Thu, 05 Aug 2010 09:42:14 -0400

According to an article in yesterday's SearchCap, the daily newsletter of Search Engine Land, Google is going to allow businesses the opportunity to respond to reviews on Google Places.

Google Now Lets Businesses Respond To Reviews On Places.

I immediately hightailed it over to the Teachers College, Columbia University Place and found that the single review links to an article in TimeOut New York about free psychological help.

Excuse me?

Anyway... apparently the Gottesman Libraries is just waiting for a place to happen.

SearchCap also linked to an article on buzzmaven that I think is useful for anyone who has to respond publicly or privately to user feedback:

15 Tips for Responding to Google Place Page Reviews:

How The Real Housewives of New Jersey Changed My Life

Mon, 26 Jul 2010 10:27:14 -0400

Who says small business technology reviews have to be geeky and humorless?

How The Real Housewives of New Jersey Changed My Life

She ripped out her rival's hair extensions at a charity event?

And I missed it!

Higher Ed and Bureaucracy Replace Factories in Post-Industiral Economy

Mon, 28 Jun 2010 10:23:03 -0400

The factory town is being replaced by the college town and the bureaucracy town according to this article in USA Today:

College Towns Do OK In Recession

It's Librarianish, It's Geeky, It's code{4}lib Journal

Tue, 22 Jun 2010 10:45:20 -0400

The Code4Lib Journal exists to foster community and share information among those interested in the intersection of libraries, technology, and the future.

In the most recent issue:

Editorial Introduction: The Code4Lib Journal Experiment, Rejection Rates, and Peer Review Edward M. Corrado

Building a Location-aware Mobile Search Application with Z39.50 and HTML5 MJ Suhonos

OpenRoom: Making Room Reservation Easy for Students and Faculty Bradley D. Faust, Arthur W. Hafner, and Robert L. Seaton

Map it @ WSU: Development of a Library Mapping System for Large Academic Libraries Paul Gallagher

Creating a Library Database Search using Drupal Danielle M. Rosenthal & Mario Bernardo

Implementing a Real-Time Suggestion Service in a Library Discovery Layer Benjamin Pennell and Jill Sexton

Creating Filtered, Translated Newsfeeds
James E. Powell, Linn Marks Collins, Mark L. B. Martinez

Not What Other Research Libraries Are...

Thu, 20 May 2010 12:43:12 -0400

I was reading an article by Donald A. Barclay about the futility of trying to maintain large browseable book collections in academic research libraries (The Myth of Browsing: Academic library Space in the Age of Facebook).

Barclay is the deputy university librarian at University of California. Merced.

Merced's library and indeed it's entire campus was born the same year that Gottesman undertook its most recent renovation.

The library's shocking brand was and still is:

Not What Other Research Libraries Are, What They Will Be.

Anything look familiar?

The Digital Information Seeker: Report of the Findings from Selected OCLC, RIN, and JISC User Behaviour Projects

Thu, 13 May 2010 12:10:57 -0400

This report analyzes and synthesizes 12 library user behavior studies conducted in the US and the UK.

The studies were reviewed by two researchers who analyzed the findings, compared their analysis, and identified the overlapping and contradictory findings.

The Executive Summary lists the following implications for libraries which are shared by multiple studies:

• The library serves many constituencies, with different needs and behaviours.

• Library systems must do better at providing seamless access to resources.

• Librarians must increasingly consider a greater variety of digital formats and content.

o More digital resources of all kinds are better.

• Library systems and content must be prepared for changing user behaviors.

• Library systems need to look and function more like search engines, i.e., Google and Yahoo, and
Web services, i.e., Amazon.com, since these are familiar to users who are comfortable and

Happy Birthday, dot.com

Mon, 22 Mar 2010 12:17:44 -0400

This BusinessWeek article looks at the first 25 years of dot.com and speculates on the next 25 years for the Commercial Web.

Another 25 Years of Dot-Com

Can anyone pinpoint the birth of the Social Web?

I wonder what the first dot.edu was?