Ramsgate Library
June 26, 2009 at 9:31 pm | In Public libraries | 3 CommentsTags: design, Dewey, Public libraries
Yesterday I took a trip to Ramsgate library with a couple of members of staff to see if it could generate ideas for improving the layout of our library. It was a good opportunity to step outside our normal working environment and see some different approaches to the use of library space. Personally, I think this is a good idea as it encourages you to look at your own space in a different way and re-appraise the areas that you tend to overlook.
Ramsgate library has only recently re-opened following a massive refurbishment due to arson back in 2004. Despite suffering massive damage to the interior, the listed facade remained intact. Due to the damage to the interior, huge changes were made to the layout of the library including the addition of seminar rooms and community spaces. The result is a very impressive interior that feels very spacious and welcoming compared to many ‘traditional’ libraries.
The entrance is particularly spacious, with only a few small front facing display stands lining the view. The displays at the front have been colour co-ordinated so that books of a similar colour are grouped together. This has quite an impact as you walk into the library. I also really liked the guiding that was written on the pillars throughout the library:
Nice, clean, simple and effective.
Upstairs is also very spacious looking (even with a mezzanine) and has an impressive stained glass window down one end that was partly designed by local school children:
The non-fiction section on this floor is actually dubbed ‘Information’ and is shelved in categories rather than in Dewey. The feel is very reminiscent of a bookshop and, although I wasn’t sure about the category shelving, it has proven to be popular with the local people and that is, after all, the most important thing for any public library. Overall, I have to say I was very impressed and hopefully we can generate some ideas from the visit to improve the layout of our library too.
You can see more photos of Ramsgate library here.
A Hard Lesson in Information Storage
June 24, 2009 at 1:50 pm | In Technology | Leave a CommentTags: Assignments, back-up, computers
Just when things were starting to look up…..something comes along and kicks you in the teeth. I sat down at my computer last night to start drafting my assignment, when suddenly it whirred to a halt and the power went. Desperate, I hoped that the old ’switch it off/switch it back on’ routine might work. Sadly, it didn’t. I now have one dead PC with all my files for the course completely inaccessible (not to mention all the other stuff I have stored on there - baby photos, ebooks, music). The stupid thing is, I had been thinking that I really ought to back-up my work soon. I have a portable hard drive that I use for occasional back-ups and for transferring stuff to our laptop (an essential piece of kit if every there was one – provided you use it of course!). Unfortunately, I haven’t backed up my stuff for some time now, so I know there will be a large number of files that are not backed up. Dammit.
Anyway, I am really hoping it will get fixed today as I don’t know what we are going to do if it is completely kaput. With my wife on maternity leave at the moment, a new PC is not exactly something we would want to splash out on (especially after buying a new digital camera). This is not exactly great timing. Although it is truly typical how these things happen at the most inconvenient moment.
I guess one important lesson has been learnt from this though: make a point to back-up all your data on a regular basis. If not, you run the risk of doing what I did last night: moping the sweat from my brow whilst frantically pulling cables, flicking switches, poking around the interior of the base unit and trying to overcome the overwhelming urge to give the computer a good kicking. And we wouldn’t want that, would we?
The Diversions of Life
June 20, 2009 at 12:57 pm | In Studies | 4 CommentsTags: Assignments, Distance Learner, research in the profession, Study
I’ve not been able to post on here quite as frequently as I would have liked for the past few weeks. The birth of my daughter has meant that my time has been squeezed in all manner of ways. Unfortunately, my daughter had to be delivered by caesarian section and, consequently, my wife was made to rest for six weeks whilst she recovered from the operation. Obviously, this meant that I needed to up my share of the daily chores to allow my wife to get the necessary recuperation time.
As well as impacting on my social time (which isn’t really that important in the grand scheme of things), it has hsad a massive impact on my studies. I knew a while back that the baby was due in April, so I should have been well prepared for the impact that would have on my life and studies. Sadly, I underestimated by quite some way. I foolishly believed that I could take a couple of weeks out to spend time with my family, before burrowing my head back in the books and cracking on with my studying. What an idiot.
It is now around eight weeks since the birth of our lovely little girl, and still I am struggling. The first six weeks were obviously a write-off (for the reasons outlined above), but the past couple of weeks have been tricky too. I don’t think it helps that my current module (Research in the Profession) is particularly heavy going. I have been reading core texts, journal articles and the module pack time and time again and, for whatever reason, it is getting very difficult to make the information stick. Every time I feel like I have had a eureka moment, I realise that there was something else I misunderstood. To be honest, it is easy to see why I have been struggling. Let’s face it what would you rather do? Spend some time with your newborn child, or read up on qualitative and quantitative research? Bit of a no-brainer, don’t you think?
And yet, study I must. I desperately want to complete the course so that I can delete the square brackets from the blog’s title. This means that I have to get some focus and get on with the outstanding assignments. The sooner I can get the modules done, the sooner I can spend quality time with my daughter. It seems so easy when you write it down. Get focus. Complete assignments. Simples (as that irritating meerkat advert might say). Maybe it is that easy. I’ll let you know after the week-end.
Review of Cool-er Ebook Reader by TechCrunch
June 2, 2009 at 5:12 pm | In eBooks | Leave a CommentTags: Cool-er, e-book reader, e-books, review, techcrunch
Digital Book 2009 – Presentations
June 1, 2009 at 4:37 pm | In eBooks | Leave a CommentTags: e-books, IDPF, Kindle, PowerPoint, presentations, Public libraries, publishing, Sony Reader
The International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF) have now published the presentations from the recent Digital Book 2009 conference on their website. The presentations include:
EPUB Update: Best Practices and Case Studies for Publishers and Service Bureaus Utilizing XML Workflows
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Liisa McCloy-Kelley – Random House, VP Director, Content Management Group
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Dave Cramer – TexTech, Inc., XML Architect
Panel: Channels for EPUB eBook Sales and Distribution
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Erica Lazzaro – OverDrive, Inc, General Counsel
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Bob LiVolsi – BooksOnBoard, President & CEO
Panel: Emerging eBook Business Models…and the Role of DRM
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Andrew Savikas- O’Reilly Media, Vice President of Digital Initiatives
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Angela James – Samhain Publishing, Executive Editor
Featured Presentation
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Robert Nell – Director Business Development, Sony Electronics
Confessions of an eReadaholic – What Consumers Really Want
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Michael Santangelo – Brooklyn Public Library, Electronic Resources Specialist
Panel: Update on eReading Devices and Software
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Nick Bogaty – Adobe, Sr. Business Development Manager, Digital Publishing
Ebooks at Borders
May 28, 2009 at 10:55 pm | In eBooks | Leave a CommentTags: Borders, e-book reader, e-books, Waterstone's, WHSmith
Good news for UK ebook readers, Borders has now started selling ebooks bringing some much needed competition. Until now, there have been only two retailers in the UK supplying ebooks: WHSmith and Waterstones (WHSmiths being the cheaper and more accessible option). The introduction of ebooks on the Borders website could be good news indeed.
Ebook page on Borders website
At first sight, the website looks far easier to navigate than the Waterstones website (which I find particularly badly designed). For example, when clicking on one of the categories on the Waterstones website, you are presented with a list of books, but the categories disappear. On the Borders website, however, the categories are permanently fixed in the sidebar, making navigation far easier. So far, so impressed. The deal clincher will, of course, be competitive pricing (something that has been alien to ebooks so far). This is something I am sure to look into a little closer over the coming days, so expect a blog post comparing the three main retailers of ebooks on value for money in the near future.
Libraries as Social Spaces
May 28, 2009 at 6:46 pm | In Public libraries | 7 CommentsYesterday I attended my very first CILIP seminar. As a non-member of CILIP, I was particularly interested to experience a little of what membership brings, as well as meeting members. The seminar itself was very interesting, focusing on how libraries can develop as social spaces. There were a variety of speakers there, including representatives from Kent County Council, Demco Interiors (whose speaker came out with a controversial public library/supermarket comparison) and Angus Brown from Imperial College London whose library has recently been the subject of a major refurbishment.
Each of the presentations gave a particular perspective on how space was utilised to maximum effect. The KCC presentation (see below) used a series of examples of the ongoing modernisation program to demonstrate the difference that can be made to library usage by re-imagining layouts and presentation (alongside other aspects of course). All of the libraries that had been subjected to a process of modernisation had shown immediate results in terms of visitors and issues. One of the interesting things that emerged from this presentation was that when the general public were consulted on what services they would like their local library to provide, they generally desired services that the local library already provided. Which, for me, underlines that there is no great problem with the actual service as such, merely in making the public aware of what a modern public library offers.
The presentation by Angus Brown was also very interesting. The work that was done at Imperial College, although very time consuming (and probably quite stressful), clearly paid off as ’student activity’ in the library increased by a third. Although, as he rightly pointed out, the work isn’t finished when the library is refurbished. It is vital that the process is reviewed for future reference, as well as continually assessing whether the library is continuing to meet the demands if the users. The statistics were certainly interesting though, and they are available via a press release from the Imperial College here.
Overall, it was a very interesting opportunity to hear how different library services are dealing with the challenges that they are having to face and the difference that can be made by viewing the library through the eyes of the end user. I’d be interested to hear how other libraries have successfully modernised their service.
A Good Day
May 21, 2009 at 9:50 pm | In eBooks | Leave a CommentTags: e-book reader, e-books, fame, pdf, Sony Reader, The Guardian, Twitter
Thought it was about time I wrote a blog post (even if it is a short one). I have to say I have had a rather good day today, something of a rarity since the arrival of my daughter and the stress that comes with it. Sad though it is, I was quite pleased to see my name in The Guardian this morning in relation to a tip about reading PDF files on the Sony Reader. In last week’s Ask Jack column, the following query was sent in:
Reading PDF ebooks
I have a load of books in PDF format. Can you recommend any portable gadget with a USB port that would be suitable for a reader?
Joe Donegan
Jack replied:
Many ebook readers will read Adobe PDF books, according to the grid at mobileread.com. From those, the Sony Reader would seem to be your best bet: it can read PDF files, has a USB port, and is available from Sony UK for £199. However, PDF is a horrible format for books, and your PDF files may not be formatted for the Sony’s 6in screen, or any portable ebook screen. Reading full pages at a percentage of the original size will make the type smaller.
Foxit is about to launch its own reader called eSlick, which is now on pre-order for $259.99 (£170), plus $29 for shipping to the UK. The site says: “View all your PDF files as well as convert any printable document to PDF, which can be viewed on the eSlick. Foxit’s eSlick comes with free software: Foxit Reader Pro Pack and Foxit PDF Creator.” As an alternative, some portable media players will read PDF files, such as the Archos models, and Sony’s PlayStation Portable (PSP) loaded with Bookr, a free PDF reader. However, these have smaller screens than the Sony Reader, so reading PDFs is likely to be even more inconvenient.
If the books are plain text, and not copy protected, try converting them to a more flexible type of file such as Rich Text Format (RTF). Otherwise, the cost of an ebook reader is not much different from the cost of a basic netbook such as the Acer Aspire One or Asus Eee PC, though you could pay more for an Eee PC 1000H or 1000HE, Samsung NC10 etc, with a bigger 10in screen. A netbook would be bigger and heavier, but you’d get a much more powerful and versatile device for the money. If you have found a better solution, please let us know.
Fortunately, thanks to the joys of Twitter, I had come across a solution that might address the problem of reading PDFs on Sony Readers. A little while back, @carolineroche had pointed out a handy little website that can help address this problem. Lib2Go enables you to uploads a PDF file and convert it into a format that is more easily readable by the Sony Reader. However, it only really seems to work with single column PDFs. Anything divided into two or more columns still causes problems, and if the PDF has a header or footer it will appear in the middle of the text, but the overall flow is not disrupted to the same extent as files that are not converted. Anyway, it is a very worthwhile tool and I have found it very useful with converting journal articles which saves wasting loads of paper.
Anyway, I sent Jack the information about this website via email and, much to my eternal pleasure, my little tip was published in the paper. So sad that I get such pleasure from these things, but given that my debut in The Guardian was just over a month ago when a silly letter of mine was published, I am pleased to get something more serious in print. Now, if only I had an M&S cupcake to celebrate my 15mins…….
International Digital Publishing Forum – Digital Book 2009 Event
May 12, 2009 at 9:48 pm | In eBooks | 3 CommentsTags: Amazon, conference, digital book 2009, e-book reader, e-books, EPUB, IDPF, International Digital Publishing Forum, Kindle, Public libraries, Sony Reader, Twitter
For the past two days, the IDPF have been holding a conference entitled ‘Digital Book 2009′ in New York. As you would expect, the event has been accompanied by some live tweeting from the conference itself….and some interesting tweets they were too. Amongst some of the more interesting tweets is news that Sony are working on a wireless reading device. This could be a very interesting development, particularly considering the delay in the release of the Kindle over here (we haven’t even got v1.0 and the US media is already talking about v3.0!!). Should Sony get this out quick, it will pretty much own a sizeable chunk of the UK market and make it very difficult for Amazon’s Kindle to compete.
Another interesting revelation was the impact that ebooks have had in public libraries. A representative from Brooklyn public library has revealed that ebooks have overtaken audio books in terms of issues. This underlines that despite the common view that ebooks are a threat and not an opportunity, ebooks in libraries have proved to be a popular alternative to other formats. It certainly doesn’t appear to suggest that ebooks will be the library killer that some people would lead you to believe.
There have been many other interesting developments (like Acrobat export from PDF to the EPUB format) and there are sure to be more to come. Meanwhile, you can follow the event itself via the Twitter hashtag #idpf09 either on Twitter itself or on the quite wonderful Twitterfall.
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