Mrs. Kim's Farewell Party

It was great to see everyone at Mrs. Kim's Farewell party. These are a few of the snaps that I was able to get uploaded.



This is Mrs. Kim with some of her former students.



This is Jitka and Jenifer who usually is the mastermind when it comes to putting these events together.



And this is Krista and Breena.

I spoke with Mrs. Kim and she said that she is looking forward to starting her Watercolor class and exploring her creative side.

More later.

Dr. Loopy on American Idle - Information Resources

Ok, I promise to go outside but I couldn't let this one go. Imagine, if you will a televised competition to find the best resource to help users find information resources.


Will it be Google, Your Uncle or the Librarian?

Watch "Randy", "Paula" and some guy named "Simon" try to figure this out.

KOCE Copyright For Educators Videos

It seems that issues of copyright and fair use keep forcing me to pay attention to how copyright affects libraries, users, bloggers and businesses. So I keep an eye out for any resource that can help explain the rules of the game

I found this KOCE TV series on TeacherTube and you can view them in the Flash video format.

There is a supporting web site Orange County Public Television's page at www.copyrighteducation.org The video on the web site are in the Windows WMV format



The focus of the program is teaching copyright issues to teachers, administrators and board members and other folk that are involved with education. There is solid information in the videos. Content-wise, I have no complaints.

But...well, it is a living example of "Death by PowerPoint." It is extremely static. The host is moving and shifting from side to side but my goodness it is visually dry. The topics are in a bullet lists and there are very few photo or visual examples of what the guy is talking about.

Now the host did say in the introduction video that the program was geared to those in education. But teachers are human too. With all the talent and creativity in the Los Angeles and Orange county areas all teachers get is Voice + PowerPoint?

I tried listening to it and not watching the video. Didn't miss a thing. So stylistically I give it a raspberry. I have to give it another raspberry because I couldn't see where it was captioned or closed captioned. and there is no transcript available on the website.

I'm learning that captions and transcripts are not just for hearing impaired folks. In certain work situations you can see video but don't have speakers. Or you can't view the video in a certain format.

I also recognize that I'm a hypocrite about this topic so I take back my raspberry. Anyway, it is a good information resource and you should check it out.

Pat's Asterisk - A Woman's Life In Library Time

If you ask most people what is in a library the first word is books. That is understandable because yes, libraries tend to have a lot of books. But the books are the physical container of ideas of the people that wrote them.

The people inside of a library are the caretakers of thoughts, information and connections to people around the world. Sometimes we forget about how the books change us.

Pat's Asterisk is a relatively new blog. Pat writes about what happens in her day at the library, how the current flooding in Cedar Rapids is causing her to reflect on just how much she loves "the library" and the elusiveness of common sense at some of the hotels in Washington, D.C.

Pat also writes about what day or week it is. May 24 was National Tiara day. There are days when things don't go so well and other days seem like a blessing to her.

I enjoyed reading her blog and hope that she continues to write her thoughts about how her life and library intertwine.

Joanne Kim's Retirement Party

I'm hitting myself with a wet noodle but most of you know that we are giving Mrs. Kim is having a Retirement party on June 19, 2008 from 5 - 7pm.

Please RSVP if you have not done so, we want to make sure that we have room for all who like to attend. The party will be in the Terrace Room.

This is also a reminder that the tribute blog has been set up for students and staff to post their thoughts and wished at http://mrsjoannekim.blogspot.com

Nampa Public Library Removes Joy of Sex

On Friday June 3, 2008 The Library Board of the Nampa Public Library voted to remove two visual sex dictionaries, The New Joy of Sex and The Joy of Gay Sex of the shelves. As originally reported in the Idaho Statesman they also voted to restrict access to minors any material that has graphic sexual representation.

Patrons 18 years of age or older would have to request the materials which are now located in the Library Director's office.

This is not the first time that the library has had to contend with sexually explicit books. The First Amendment Center has an article from June 2006 where the library decided to physically move 60 books with sexual topics to the highest shelf to prevent youngsters from viewing the content.

Not everyone thinks that this is a bad idea. An editorial in the Idaho Examiner considers the books the equivalent of pornography, supports the mayor who appointed the Library Board members who voted to remove and thinks that there should be restrictions on the type of books that libraries and school personnel can select for public and educational viewing. The conservative online publication World Net Daily also supported the removal of the books.

The American Library Association has quite a bit of information concerning censorship, patron rights, and respecting access to information.

• The Intellectual Freedom and Censorship Q & A is your starting point to understand what is Intellectual freedom, what to do when a challenge comes to your desk and effective responses.
  
• Censorship and Challenges gives you a list of other resources to draw upon when a material is targeted for censorship.
• Intellectual Freedom Issues contains yet another listing of the types of censorship and other methods used to suppress and prevent the flow of information.

Additional JPL Library Technician Position

There is yet another JPL position that Mrs. Kim is passing onto the group mind. Please pay attention to the specific application instructions at the bottom of this post.

Library Clerk Specialist within the Library, Archives, and Records Section responsible for providing efficient interlibrary loan and document delivery service to the JPL community using OCLC and the ILLiad and Ariel automated systems.

• Receive, process, and distribute incoming interlibrary loan materials in both paper and electronic formats.
• Fulfill interlibrary loan requests from other libraries. Report copies received from unsubscribed journals and process royalty payments.
• Produce metrics reports. Additionally, review incoming records storage and retrieval requests and resolve problems.
• Assign retention periods to records. Track records in storage to determine eligibility for destruction, obtain relevant approvals, and maintain supporting documentation. Also serve customers at busy library, archives, and records support desk. Maintain desk procedures.
• Shelve books and periodicals.
  
• Produce weekly report of activities. Record workload statistics and report them monthly. Support Group, Section, and Division team efforts.

Required Skills:

Typically requires an Associate degree or equivalent experience with 3+ years directly related experience in library, archives or records.

• Ability to use automated bibliographic tools and/or online systems.
  
• Ability to maintain complex electronic and manual files.
  
• Ability to use personal computer applications for word processing, web publishing, document scanning, email, calendaring, and spreadsheets.
  
• Ability to organize work to ensure accuracy and completeness.
  
• Ability to unpack large boxes of books and records, sort them, and maneuver loaded book carts.
  
• Excellent communication skills with ability to maintain harmonious relations with customers and coworkers.

Application Procedures:

Interested candidates should apply online at JPL's career site:
http://careerlaunch.jpl.nasa.gov and the requisition number 7672 on their application. You should also email a copy your resume directly to Barbara J. Amango to ensure timely consideration.