Posts tagged ‘libraries’

June 20th, 2011

So You Want to Work in LAMs or How to Take My Job

You know what makes having a great husband, great house & great friends even better?
A great job.

For those of you that don’t know, I’m a museum curator and registrar. This means lot of things. For example, today I: arranged the donation of artifacts, researched & created exhibit content, loaded some photos onto our Flickr account, learned how to create a small humidity chamber to flatten old photographs, coordinated with a contact on a small photography exhibit, reviewed a policy document I helped write, started preparing a final report for a grant we got 2 years ago, edited a grant proposal for a different project, and read about the Encoded Archival Context: Corporate Bodies, Persons and Families XML schema.

I’m asked fairly often what degree I have, what classes I took and generally how I got to where I am, so I’m putting it all down in one place. Below are my 5 best pieces of advice for those interested in LAMs [libraries, archives & museums].

read more »

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May 4th, 2011

Are you going to share, or should I just take that?

I’ve been thinking a lot about copyright, openly licensed materials and our new web archiving initiative a ton lately.

Bear with me as I do some mental exploring here…

These thoughts are especially prominent lately as I’ve been poking around a lot of photo sites [yay new camera!]. I’ve seen so much about watermarks, putting copyright all over and a general sense of frantically trying to mark your territory [or photos].

A copyright will protect you from PIRATES

Personally, I’m on the other end of the spectrum, I put a BY-NC license on most everything I can [Attribution/Non-commercial] and I’ve installed the Open Attribute extension for Chrome to let me know when I view a page that has openly licensed materials.

What’s the difference between the photographers who [understandably] want to maintain the integrity/ownership of their work and myself who is comfortable letting go & sharing? Really – I think it’s because I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about what users want.

Here are a few things I personally believe to be true about users & their behaviors [in a very broad sense]:
- They want to find things
- They want to find them quickly & easily
- They don’t care if you call it an archival record, a museum object or a library resource
- If it’s not online, it doesn’t exist
- They want to collect things that inspire or interest them [Tumblr/Pintrest/We Heart It/Svpply/Evernote/Pinboard]
- They want to share it [Reddit/Twitter/blogs/videos/a million other ways]

What does that mean personally? Basically, someone is going to find a way to take your stuff whether you like it or not [I totally admit to taking screen shots of any/everything if I can't save it directly].

What does this mean professionally? We need to get our stuff out there, in full view & then let go of it.

OH NO! I HAVE LET GO!
I know that traditionally LAMS [libraries/archives/museums] have played the role of moderator, interpreter, and ultimately the gatekeeper of knowledge. Many organizations are reluctant to relinquish control,  but you can only hold out for so long before the user takes what they want anyway, or they go somewhere else, leaving you to fade into irrelevance. [Is that a bit harsh?]

This really has no direct connection to web archiving, but we’re developing our first two collections at the moment & I’m trying to remain user-centered, open to suggestions and thinking of ways to hand over control or our community. We’re also looking at new software lately & I’m endlessly frustrated by the lack of options that seamlessly integrate our activities into one user-friendly search.

Nothing I’ve said is new & hasn’t been said much more succinctly & eloquently, but these specific issues have been weighing on my mind a lot lately, especially as I begin my first full week at the museum and prepare to delve more deeply into my work.

Three cheers for being finished with school & having the time/initiative/energy to write a Real Blog Post.

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October 24th, 2010

Books & Archives & Things to Share!

As promise, a post full of interesting information-y things!

I love this banned books display from Strode’s College in Surrey. Controversial books were covered in brown paper and the reason they’re banned is written on the front – such as “I am Anti-Catholic” and “I Contain Scenes of Masturbation.”

The Great Book Robbery is a documentary that covers the looting of Palestinian libraries in 1948 – you can watch the trailer online. This ties in with a paper I wrote last year – the targeted distruction of archives & libraries as a form of cultural genocide. Here’s an quote from the film:

60,000 Palestinian books were systematically looted by the newly born State of Israel during the 1948 war. The story of the stolen books is not only at the heart of our project but also the launching pad of a much bigger and wider endeavor: We intend on communicating the scope and depth of the Palestinian tragedy through the destruction of Palestinian culture in 1948.

And a quote from the website:

For decades Zionist and Israeli propaganda described the Palestinians as “people without culture.” Thus, the victorious Israeli state took upon itself to civilise the Palestinians who remained within its borders at the end of the 1948 war: They were forbidden to study their own culture or to remember their immediate past; their memory was seen as a dangerous weapon that had to be suppressed and controlled.

Check out this second grade exam from 1870. I wonder how many 2nd graders in this era would be prepared to answer questions such as “What is true politeness? and give several rules for good manners” or “Describe the different between an Absolute Monarchy, and a Republic” or “Mention two types of plants used for manufacturers, two used for beverages, and two used for medicinal purposes.” Also, check out number 18 – yikes!

I starred this one a few months ago, but it’s still very useful & relevant – a collection of links on copyright, fair use and blogging.

Lastly, I decided to get some reading glasses tonight. I’ve been having some really intense headaches while doing homework this semester & it’s really affecting my productivity. I can’t afford a real eye exam, but the non-prescription glasses from the drugstore are good enough for my needs. Although I felt a little silly trying them on tonight, I can already tell a difference.

Here’s a gratuitious & awkward photo of Gwen & my four-eyed self:

Now it’s back to reading about metadata before [attempting] to go to bed early. Hopefully some pre-bedtime yoga will help ward off my insomnia.

Have a great week!!

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June 1st, 2010

Libaries & archives = awesome & fun

Today has been full of fun & inspriational things from libraries & archives.

First is the “Librarians Do Gaga” video.
A clever take on Lady Gaga’s “Pokerface”, some students at the University of Washington iSchool created a parody called “Catalog.”

Secondly, I was listening to an episode of Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me on the bus ride home today [it's amazing how those familiar NPR voices can make me feel better] & their Bluff the Listener section was about libraries. For those of you unfamiliar with the show, each of the three panelists tells a story relating to the topic, but only is true & a contestant who has called in has to guess the right answer.

This is the introduction to the March 15 show: “These are tough times for libraries, what with the e-readers, the video games and our brains turning to soft, gray pudding. But some libraries are not going to go quietly. This week, we read about a library that decided to do what it must do to stick around.”

You can listen to the episode or read the transcript here – see if you can guess the true story [I did!].

Lastly, Rebecca, over at Derangement & Description, has sent out the call for a response. She already has lyrics for an archivist  ‘Pokerface’ and is looking for volunteers to create the video. She’s already created a wonderful parody of “Gangster’s Paradise” called “Archives Paradise.” Check out the clever lyrics & the wonderful rapping at her blog.

So many reasons to be excited about the profession I’m going into!!

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March 27th, 2010

Russian plays, Bulgarian bracelets & a lack of motivation

I started writing this post on Thursday & it’s already Saturday! This has been a long & busy week!

The best day of this week was Wednesday, minus the part where I took our cat back to the vet & she’s still not better. We have another check up in three weeks. It’s a little frightening how expensive the vet can be…. But after that! Joel & I went out for dinner at Beezy’s Cafe – an amazing cafe right downtown Ypsilanti that has some of the simplest & best food I’ve ever had. After that we headed into Ann Arbor, picked up some espresso at Comet Coffee & went to the Power Center on campus. We watched an absolutely amazing performance of Checkov’s Uncle Vanya, performed by the Malay Drama Theater of St. Petersburg. It’s playing all weekend & I recommend going if you can.

Earlier this week we got a package from a good friend in Bulgaria. He sent us a bunch of martenitsi (мартеници) to celebrate & encourage the coming of spring. Traditionally, these red & white bracelets are exchanged on March 1st, the holiday of Baba Marta (баба марта). The bracelets are worn until a blooming tree or stork is seen & then usually tied to the branch of a fruit tree to bring good luck and health.

Photo used under a Creative Commons license from Klearchos Kapoutsis.

Right now I’m at the main branch of the Ypsilanti District Library – I needed to get out of the house, concentrate & do some work. A library & some Debussy always seem to get me motivated. Additionally, the second floor is open, full of natural light & has a beautiful view of the woods:

I’d love to be exploring those woods right now instead of doing homework!

Here’s a gratuitous photo of myself hugging my dog this morning. [He's the best!]

My passport came today!!! Only 33 days!

Sorry for the infrequent & substance-less posts  lately. In about 4 weeks time, the semester will the over & I’ll be in Egypt where I’ll have lots of interesting things to say & pictures to show. Until then, I apologize for the decrease in quality posts. [I still love you all].

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