Outta town ….still. thank you, sister

Needed some sun, headed to my sister’s in Fla.
Be back soon. Shopping for a condo…. oh yeah!! Be nice to me!

Butte Public Back in Bizness

Butte Silver Bow Public Library is open for business after four months of renovations to our building after a pipe broke this winter.  We have new carpet on three floors and lots of new paint. We opened a branch in the local shopping mall to serve the public and now we need to decide if we want to keep it open. It provides service on smaller scale but serves a population that can’t  get to the main library due to location. More great news for us is the BTOP grant award (Broadband Tech. Opportunity project) We have 20 new Dell laptops and 10 new PCs as well as switches and furniture which Stef and I spend our free (LOL) time formatting and constructing (some assembly required) I got 16 chairs assembled on Friday AM. But we are excited about putting all this new hardware in the public’s hands, it will help a lot of folks who don’t have internet at home and give us more equipment to continue the wildly popular Tech Tips classes.

Looking forward to spring and summer, did lots of skiing this winter, but I am ready for warm weather again. Hope all is well in your corner of the world.

It is a political year…time to educate to the public.

The Time for Libraries is NOW!

Slide show with some great statistics, that are  international in impact. Check it!

Nicole Engard of Bywater Solutions lands in Montana

Image by nengard via Flickr

I know you are all jealous! We get Nicole for two and a half days. Training and a Conference Presentation at Broad Valleys Federation Spring Conference. It will be SO great to have Nicole in Butte where we have just reopened after being flooded in November. We plan on showing her the town and taking her for a soak in the Fairmont Hot Springs…. yeah, you’re jealous! I will update here as the week progresses.

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BSB Library to add a Museum to ILS

Image via Wikipedia

I like to think that there is at least one thing I do here in Butte in a month someone might be interested in. This month we submitted an application to IMLS (Institute of Museum and Library Sciences) for grant funding to take our World Museum of Mining‘s sampling of 80 jpeg images that are in comma separated values(CSV) to marc. Then we are gonna add a digital branch to our ILS and let them link to our OPAC from their website.

As it is now they are not discoverable on the internet. We will also batch load the records to OCLC (at our expense) so World Cat will improve searching for the images.

As one of letter’s of support stated:

“This project to create a reusable infrastructure that will result in the cataloging of and creation of multiple access points for a valuable collection of historic photographs is valuable not only for Butte -Silver Bow Public Library and the World Museum of Mining but also for cultural institutions around the state. This project will provide a test for smaller libraries and museums to find a cost-effective way to catalog their unique collections of historic photographs.”

How can we do this on our tiny budget in our small library, you ask? We can do it BECAUSE we are a Koha-Community library and if I can imagine it, chances are it can be done! Many thanks to the Koha-Community for allowing me to reach waaaaay beyond what some say can not be done.

I’ll let you know if we get funded…should be six months or so before we know. (gotta love the government)

Cheers!

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Butte moves to Koha 3.2.1

Image by jessamyn via Flickr

Hello to all my friends in libraryland. I wanted to let you know that we have moved to 3.2.1(just in time for the 3.2.2) upgrade! LOL. Blaine Fleming, who really isn’t a “selfishman” helped in cleaning up our MySql database and installed Ubuntu OS for our new upgrade. We have been moving to Ubuntu on our public PCs and are happy with the security and the user interface. We are still exploring some the new features, most of our time right now is working on the South Branch of the library operating well as we continue to repair and clean up from the water disaster. BTW if you have a water disaster call Belcor they rocked it, in drying us out in less than a week.

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Free software, flooded libraries: The good and the bad…

Image by Getty Images via @daylife

One of the life lessons I have learned these past few months is that “it is all good…” I have seen some pretty amazing things emerge from some grim situations. It seems that in the face of adversity the best of us rise up and champion what is right, true, fair and good.  Those of us who choose to see the glass half full.

First Koha- the good was the conference in Wellington where we all got to look into each others’  eyes, each others’ code and see common ground and renewed commitment.  The bad was the unnecessary wrestling over proprietary ideas, which to most people seems oxymoronic.

Second- my library flooded on Nov. 30th. Five inches of water on three floors-that was profoundly bad. More damage to the building than the collections- that’s good. Drywall and carpet can be replaced, but the community has been without its library now for two weeks…and believe me for some that is an eternity- that’s bad.  So time to do the right thing- serve the people- that’s good. Amazingly one by one the community- my community- the one I serve- stepped up to serve ME! How humbling. First a free space at the mall big enough to offer services, then Walmart came with a crew, materials and went to work making it a bright and happy place- that’s good. The local carpet dealer showed up and is laying 2400 sq ft of NEW carpet, for free- that’s good. We will be open to the public providing the OH SO necessary services of a library, 20 days from our flood- Yea, that is good. I have 2 or 3 months before I can open our main library- that is bad.  The community I serve knows the value of what we do and THEY have made it possible for me to do my job- that is good.

So the glass is half full. It is all about how we feel about our place in the scheme of things…when we realize we are part of a bigger community and what we do means something to others, it MUCH easier to give without reservation knowing our cup will be filled again- that is good.

So as the new year approaches, be happy, be glad, be secure in your place in the bigger picture and see the good that can come from the bad.

KohaCon 10- The Return of the… Librarian

Image via Wikipedia

I wish I could be as organized as Nicole Engard who has boundless energy and lightning speed in disseminating information. Most of you who drop in here already have access to the Koha monthly newsletter so I am going to put a link here just in case you have stumbled in and want to know more about the goings on at KohaCon 10 in Wellington, New Zealand.

I met so many amazing people at the conference that I could not begin to list them all here. Suffice it to say librarians and developers and service providers can work and learn together with little or no conflict, for a common purpose. All questions and requests for more information were met with professionalism and consideration.

As a presenter of the Librarian’s POV of the open source community and a Koha public library, I was pleased that our little video presentation was so well received. We spend SO much time on a keyboard communicating it is fun to see and hear some one tell about their experiences face to face, here is the link to Bywater’s blip TV link of my video.

I think the most memorable experience was our trip in mass to the Marae in Levin, home of the first Koha library (a public library). Meeting the people of the iwi and understanding the true meaning of the word Koha (gift) connected for me the discussion on governance and the importance of Koha remaining true to its origins and purpose. As Francois Marier presented in his talk about open source and access to information, our freedom to know and learn depends on guaranteeing a creative commons.

So, if you were not able to attend KohaCon 10 in Wellington, I think you might get a lot out of looking at the presentations and pics from the event. If nothing else be sure to look at Bob Birchall from Calyx presentation on Governance, it was some of the most relevant information as we move into Koha’s second decade.

Kia Ora

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KohaCon 10 well under way

Image by Galen Charlton via Flickr

The first day of the conference covered a lot of info. especially Bob Birchall presentation regarding the governance of Koha. There will be lots of conversation regarding the topic as we go forward. Getting the definitions and examples out to the community so that all stakeholders are using the same terms and concepts will be of great value in creating understanding/. I suggest anyone interested in Bob’s presentation should check out the links on the right side of this page- most pointedly Nicole Engard’s  “What I have Learned Today”. Her comments are comprehensive and linked to the presentations as they become available.

Day two has a great agenda and the schedule of speakers can be found at KohaCon 10. After lunch Paul Poulain will give “A Brief History of Koha”.

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KohaCon 2010 Countdown

Image by vtveen via Flickr

I am headed to New Zealand to attend Kohacon 10, which really is just an excuse to hang out in the flesh with some of my favorite librarians and developers. I am amazed sometimes why we are all so continuously excited about libraries and the work of libraries. Then I remember the faces of the people our library in Butte serves.  It is about “lifting all boats” and improving the quality of life for everyone.  As I look over at the huge pile of wearables and connectables I have to stuff into two bags, I realize that what I really need to bring is in my heart and what I need to bring back doesn’t require a bag.

The time to get on the plane is rapidly approaching.  Suddenly the “how to” and “what for” doesn’t really matter. I feel incredibly lucky to be attending KohaCon 10 and New Zealand IS a trip of a lifetime, (or so everyone keeps telling me)! 😉

My parting comments to those of the Koha Community who will be watching from a far, are as follows:

First, we are all in this together, so where ever you are, WE are.

Second, the Koha Community lifts all boats, those who are major players, big consortia, vendors, and developers as well as the smallest of small libraries in the most remote corners of the world, the independent developers, and those of us who rely on IRC or a twitter feed to stay in touch with the Koha project.

Here is a link to the Kohacon 10 Connect Live Twitter feed, drop in when you can…

KohaCon 2010.

A state consortia employee once commented that the Koha devotees were “enamored with open source and free stuff” that really isn’t free. Well, that may be true. What else is true is that we belong to a virtual community that grows exponentially every year welcoming all who want to participate. People contribute back to the project because they “get” the idea that “we” is bigger and better than “me”. For all our squabbles and growing pains at the end of the day, the sun is rising on a Koha library somewhere.  See you all soon.

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