NETLS
NEWS
NORTHEAST TEXAS
LIBRARY SYSTEM NEWSLETTER #132
Jul./Aug. 2003
Coordinator’s
Column
It is time
to start a new fiscal year. State
Fiscal Year (SFY) 2004 promises to be challenging in many ways. Budgets everywhere are tight.
However, on the state level there is a great deal of study and
planning happening that is intended to lead to improved library services for
all Texans.
The Himmel
and Wilson study has been presented to and accepted by the Texas State
Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC).
The Texas State Library staff, working with the Texas Library Assn.
(TLA), has established a taskforce to review the findings of the study and
make recommendations about implementation. Ramiro Salazar, Director of DALLAS PUBLIC;
Alice Coleman, Director of TEXARKANA
PUBLIC and Barbara Buehler, Director of ALLEN PUBLIC,
have been appointed to this taskforce.
A number of
recommendations included in the Himmel and Wilson study addressed standards
for public libraries in Texas. In
light of the study, TSLAC and TLA have created another joint taskforce to
make recommendations related to the recently revised public library
standards. Joyce Baumbach,
Director of PLANO PUBLIC,
Becky Sullivan, Director of TERRELL
PUBLIC, and I are serving on this taskforce.
Updates
from these taskforces along with other important information will be
presented at the first Membership Meeting of the year, which is scheduled
for Wed., Oct., 15th in Jacksonville. A
complete packet of information about the meeting will be mailed in mid
September.
TSLAC has
indicated that libraries may use Loan Star Library funds to fulfill their
TexShare Database Assessment. The
insert page included in this Newsletter gives specific guidelines.
System
Members may also use their NETLS Collection Development funds to pay these
fees. In the next week the
NETLS office will be providing instructions on how to revise your collection
development expenditure plans for SFY2004 if you decide to use this method
to pay for your Database
Assessment.
October
Membership Meeting in Jacksonville
The
first Membership Meeting of the SFY2004 will be held on Wed., Oct. 15 at the
Norman Activities Center in Jacksonville.
The Activities Center, which is also the Chamber of Commerce, is
located at 526 E. Commerce, next to the Jacksonville High School football
stadium also known as the “Tomato Bowl”.
Detailed information on the meeting and a map to the location will be posted on the NETLS Web site <http://www.netls.org> and sent to all members in the next few weeks.
TLA District 5
Fall Meeting
The
TLA District 5 meeting will take place at the Robert E. Lee High School in
Tyler on Sept. 20. The theme of
this year’s meeting will be “Hats Off to TLA District 5.”
CONTINUING EDUCATION
NETLS &
Univ. of North Texas Training Partnership
NETLS
and the Univ. of North Texas School of Library and Information Sciences
(SLIS) are partnering to produce seven modules that will be used to provide
to-the-desktop training for public library staff members.
NETLS will assist in determining the training topics and will serve
as a testing laboratory for the online courses.
SLIS will produce and deliver the Web-based courses.
The
partnership will be funded by a grant from the Institute of Museums and
Libraries (IMLS). IMLS is a
federal grant-making agency that promotes leadership, innovation, and a
lifetime of learning by supporting the nation's museums and libraries.
Created by the Museum and Library Services Act of 1996, P.L. 104-208,
IMLS administers the Library Services and Technology Act and the Museum
Services Act.
“This
partnership will provide high-quality low-cost training to libraries when
and where it is needed,” said Phil Turner, dean of SLIS. “A partnership
between a library school and a library system makes good sense. We are grateful to IMLS for supporting this pioneering
effort.”
NETLS
Coordinator Dale Fleeger feels that “even though budgets are tight,
library managers still see on-going training for library staff as a high
priority. This program will
provide another option to fulfill some of those needs. Having access to
“training-on-demand” will provide the flexibility to schedule staff for
training based on local needs, staffing constraints and timetables.”
SLIS
is the largest provider of library and information science education in
Texas and a leader nationally in Web-based education.
Small Library
Management Training Program
The
Library Development Division of the Texas State Library and Archives
Commission (TSLAC) has announced the dates and locations for the third
session of the Small Library Management (SLM) Training Program.
The topic for Spring 2004 is Collection Development.
TSLAC will announce session dates and locations at a later time.
Enrollment,
formerly limited to directors of small public libraries, is now open to all
non-MLS library staff members who work at libraries that serve a population
of 25,000 or less. A maximum of
two staff members per library are allowed in the program at this time.
Library staff members with MLS or equivalent degrees are not
eligible.
To
request additional information, go to <http://www.tsl.state.tx.us/ld/projects/slmtp/index.html>
or contact Marilyn Johnson,
Interim Manager, Continuing Education & Consulting; TSLAC; POB
12927; Austin 78711-2927; 512.63.6624; fax 512.463.8800; <mjohnson@tsl.state.tx.us>
.
Health
Information Teleconference
Library
staff members who would like to learn more about health information literacy
are invited to take part in a satellite teleconference produced by the
Medical Library Assn. and sponsored by the Texas State Library and Archives
Commission (TSLAC). Reading
Between the Lines: Focusing on Health Information Literacy will be
broadcast from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Sept. 10.
The
goal of the program is “to enhance the knowledge of information
professionals about the concepts of health information literacy and to
highlight opportunities for using these principles in the provision of
quality consumer health and patient education information services”.
Ten locations in the state have been selected by TSLAC as host sites.
Advance
registration is not required to attend the broadcast, but attendees are
requested to notify the site coordinator at the location they will be
attending at least 24 hours
prior to the teleconference. TSLAC
has announced that two hours of continuing education credit will be awarded
to attendees.
Locations and contact information for host sites
in the NETLS-area libraries are:
Dallas County Community College District
LeCroy
Educational Telecommunications Center
9569 Walnut St.
Dallas
972.669.6404
Susan Hackett <shackett@dcccd.edu>
Univ.
of North Texas
Information
Science Building (ISB), Room
201
School
of Library & Information Sciences
Denton
940.565.3565
Morgan O’Donnell <odonnel@unt.edu>
LIBRARY TECHNOLOGY
Microsoft’s
New Software Assurance Program
Library
staff members responsible for technology should know that Microsoft has
changed the way it controls licensing of its products.
Librarians
planning a change in the operating systems of the library network will
discover a new process that requires registration of the product and the
registration is tied to that machine. This
allows Microsoft to prevent software piracy, a serious problem in the past.
Although many customers may be worried about this change, Microsoft wants
people to know that the basic licensing agreement remains unchanged but also
provides a greater benefit than in the past. Customers that register new Window products may soon be able
to participate in their Software Assurance Program. The new Software Assurance (SA) Program, available in
September 2003, includes four components: Productivity Enhancements,
Support, Tools and Training.
The
Productivity Enhancements allow access to the latest version of the product
as well as the ability to spread payments out over time, which may help
libraries avoid spikes in upgrade costs.
Also included is a “home use program” which lets employees who
use Microsoft Office products at work install the same Microsoft Office
products on a home computer.
The Support component includes: Technet Online Concierge Chat, Technet
Plus, Problem Resolution Support and Extended Lifecycle Hotfix Support.
The previous 3 support components are for servers only.
A quick look at the Lifecycle website <http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid
=fh;en-us;LifeWin>
reveals the benefit of the Extended Lifecycle Hotfix Support service.
The
Tools components are mostly of benefit for very large organizations.
Benefits include Corporate Error Reporting useful for very large
libraries to monitor and track error information as well as to plan large
deployments of hot fixes. Also
included are the Enterprise Source Licensing Program and the Microsoft
Windows Pre-installation Environment. These last two services are largely irrelevant for all but
the largest of library systems.
The
Training component includes eLearning and Training Vouchers. The eLearning program features audio and video software
demonstrations, hands-on exercises and interactive modules and tutorials.
Customers can also receive training vouchers for select courses from
Microsoft Certified Technical Education Centers although there are
restrictions that would prevent most smaller libraries from obtaining
training vouchers.
Although
some benefits may not extend to many small or medium sized libraries, there
appears to be some value in this program.
At the very least, it is apparent that Microsoft is making a real
effort to reconnect to their customers by providing better support in many
ways. Certainly, Microsoft’s
Software Assurance Program is a marked improvement from their previous
attempts to offer support.
More
details of the Software Assurance Program may be obtained at <http://www.microsoft.com/licensing/programs/sa/>.
For questions regarding this article or other technologies used in public libraries, contact Jerry McCulley, Library Technology Consultant at <jmcculley@netls.org> or call 972.205.2569.
From NETLS
Consultant Roy Lewis:
Backups and
Updates
Recently, several incidents have caused me to realize why the NETLS
Consultants should heed their own warnings.
There has been a national flood of virus attacks to networks.
At NETLS, we have found evidence that our firewall box has been
successfully blocking them. When the City of Garland’s Management Information Services
Dept. sends out a notice that a computer virus is going around, we are
usually confident that the NETLS systems are protected and our software is
up to date.
The NETLS Technology Consultants have been putting in a concentrated
effort to insure that all of the backup software has been running complete
backups properly. This effort
was rewarded last week when, during a database repair and compression, a
considerable amount of data was lost. A
complete backup the previous evening allowed us to go into the system and
restore the lost files using the backup copies. The restoration procedure took all of 5 minutes; this process
restored a database that had taken many hours of labor to create and made
the support staff very happy.
THE MORAL: Often it seems
like the daily job of creating backups when nothing ever seems to go wrong,
and updating software that is running just fine, can be useless work.
Actually, it can be the most important part of the day’s work.
NOTEWORTHY
Names in the News
Barbara
Blake has
resigned as director of ROWLETT PUBLIC to accept the position of director at
Weatherford Public.
Kay
Bieber has
resigned as director of DELTA COUNTY PUBLIC.
Carrie
Custer is
the new director of LINDALE.
Mel
Davenport has
joined the staff of COCKRELL HILL Public as head librarian.
Tina
Hager has
left her position at CARROLLTON PUBLIC to accept a position as director of
Little Elm Public.
Sara
Harvey has
retired from DALLAS PUBLIC after 14 years of service.
Ann
Mills has
resigned as director of NOONDAY COMMUNITY LIBRARY.
Beth
Scudder, director
of MCKINNEY PUBLIC, is the proud new mother of Katherine Anne Scudder, born
July 15.
Ted
Wanner is
joining the staff of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission as
Continuing Education Consultant. Wanner
was formerly Manager of Customer Service and Training at DALLAS PUBLIC.
Mae
Wylie is
the new director of NOONDAY COMMUNITY LIBRARY.
Sylvia
Wood is now
the interim director of DELTA COUNTY PUBLIC.
Happenings at Area
Libraries
ZULA B WYLIE
LIBRARY
(Cedar Hill)
Pat
Bonds, director; 972.291.7323
LANCASTER
VETERANS MEMORIAL
Cami
Loucks, director; 972.227.1080
LANCASTER
VETERANS MEMORIAL
and ZULA B. WYLIE
LIBRARY
(Cedar Hill) each celebrated the merger of their respective online catalogs
and other services on Aug. 7. Library
staff and supporters at each facility held a ribbon cutting ceremony and
served refreshments.
The
merger has allowed both libraries to offer a new online catalog that allows
visual display of book jackets, a wireless network, a new Web site, digital
microfilm reader-printers, upgraded teaching equipment, Internet self-training
software and some new Internet workstations for the public.
The
new services and equipment were made available from federal and state grants.
POTTSBORO AREA
PUBLIC
Pam
Straus, director; 903.786.8274
Library staff members, city leaders, Friends of the Library and citizens celebrated the grand opening of the new home of POTTSBORO AREA PUBLIC in August. The new facility has allowed the library to expand from 1,850 square feet of space into 3,600 square feet.
Texas Book
Festival 2003
The
eighth annual Texas Book Festival will be held Nov. 8-9 on the grounds of the
Capitol and the Capitol Extension; Colorado Street between 11th and
13th streets in Austin.
Among the authors to be featured in 2003 are Mitch Albom, Dave Barry,
Sandra Brown, Bobbi Salinas, Elmer Kelton, Dan Rather, Ann Richards, Amy Tan,
Scott Turow and Adrienne Yorinks.
The Rock Bottom Remainders, a group of best-selling
authors-turned-rock stars, will perform this year at the Authors Party. The
group features Dave Barry, Roy Blount Jr., Ridley Pearson, Amy Tan, Scott
Turow, and more. As musicians, they're pretty good writers.
Bruce Springsteen, who once jammed with the group, observed, "Your
band's not too bad. It's not too good either. Don't let it get any better or
you'll ruin the whole thing." Proceeds benefit the Texas Book Festival
and America Scores
<http://www.americascores.org>,
a program that uses soccer to energize public school children with their
lessons.
The
2002 Festival awarded $81,000 in grants to 33 Texas public libraries.
This brings the seven-year total of library awards to $1.43 million to
474 libraries.
To
receive additional information, contact Festival Chairman Mary Margaret
Farabee; 512.477.4055; <bookfest@att.net>; or go online at <http://www.texasbookfestival.org>.
Texas
Reading Club Materials
The
evaluation form for the 2003 Texas Reading Club is now online at <http://
www.tsl.state.tx.us/ld/projects/trc/forms/eval.html>.
The
theme for the 2004 Texas Reading Club is Color Your World…Read.
The artist is Diane Greenseid who illustrated When Aunt Lena Did the
Rumba by Eileen Kurtis-Kleinman and many other titles.
Jeanette Larson of Austin Public is writing the 2004 TRC Manual with
Rose Trevino of Houston Public writing the bilingual chapter.
A
list of the materials available for the 2004 Texas Reading Club and an order
form for supplies is available at <http://www.tsl.state.tx.us/ld/projects/trc/forms/index/html>
. Library staff members are
encouraged to place their orders as soon as possible.
To
request additional information on the Texas Reading Club, contact Youth
Services Consultant Christine McNew; TSLAC; 512.463.6623; <cmsnew@tsl.state.tx.us>
.
Lawyers for
Libraries Regional Training Institute
Lawyers
for Libraries, an ongoing project of the American Library Assn. (ALA) Office
for Intellectual Freedom, is designed to create a network of attorneys around
the country involved in, or committed to becoming involved in, the defense of
the First Amendment freedom to read and the application of constitutional law
to library policies, principles, and problems.
The
fourth Lawyers for Libraries Regional Training Institute will take place Feb.
12-13 at the Fairmont Hotel in Dallas. The
sessions will provide up-to-date information on public forum analysis,
protecting library user privacy, minimizing library liability and good policy
development. Instructors will pay
special attention to the recent Supreme Court decision on the Children’s
Internet Protection Act (CIPA) as well as ongoing issues surrounding the USA
Patriot Act.
The
cost of the Lawyers for Libraries Institute is $500 per person.
The institutes are for attorneys and library trustees; library staff
members who are not attorneys are welcome and encouraged to attend, provided
they are accompanied by a lawyer.
For more information about the institute or to register, contact the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom at 800.545.2433 ext.4426 or visit the ALA Web site <http://www.ala.org> and click on the “Lawyers for Libraries” link.
HWA Librarian of
the Year Award
The
Horror Writers Association (HWA) has recently established the Librarian of the
Year Award. The award recognizes
the “important part librarians play in the lives of every horror writer and
every horror reader. Librarians
have inculcated the love of reading in many of us since childhood and their
influence on our reading choices cannot be overstated.
Librarians are the greatest friends any writer has, and we want to show
our gratitude.”
The
award will be presented annually to a librarian who has done an outstanding
job of bringing horror and dark fiction to the attention of the reading
public. Candidates must have
worked at either a public or school library during the year prior to the
award’s presentation.
The
winner will be announced and honored at the Bram Stoker Awards banquet, held
at the HWA annual conference in Spring 2004.
