Events Calendar for July 30-August 4, 2007

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Monday, July 30

• Library Design Review Committee (Main Library)
• Bookmobile - Westview Senior Center (Bookmobile)
• Pre-School Storytime (Howe Branch)
• Bookmobile - Avila Retirement Community (Bookmobile)
• Bookmobile - Daughters of Sarah (Bookmobile)
• Dance, Dance, Revolution (Howe Branch)
• Skateboarding Program (Pine Hills Branch)

Tuesday, July 31

• Bookmobile - St. Catherine of Siena Summer Camp (Bookmobile)
• Toddler Storytime (Pine Hills Branch)
• Bookmobile - New Scotland Neighborhood (Bookmobile)
• Open Computer Lab (Howe Branch)
• Open Computer Lab (Howe Branch)
• The Flute and the Clarinet (Main Library)
• Paper Airplane Fun (North Albany Branch)
• Summer Craft Time (Main Library)
• Delaware Dogs (Delaware Branch)

Wednesday, August 1

• Pre-School Storytime (North Albany Branch)
• Pre-School Storytime (Howe Branch)
• Pre-School Storytime (Howe Branch)
• Pre-School Storytime (Delaware Branch)
• Toddler Storytime (Pine Hills Branch)
• Intro. to Internet (North Albany Branch)
• Dance, Dance, Revolution (Pine Hills Branch)

Thursday, August 2

• Get a Clue about Beekeeping (Delaware Branch)
• 4th Annual Monopoly Tournament (Pine Hills Branch)

Friday, August 3

• Bookmobile - First Lutheran Literacy Camp (Bookmobile)
• Open Computer Lab (Pine Hills Branch)
• Bookmobile - New Scotland Neighborhood (Bookmobile)
• Connecting with America (Pine Hills Branch)

Saturday, August 4

• Bookmobile - African American Family Day (Bookmobile)
• Board Games (Main Library)

Podcasts from SLA 2007

Here are podcasts of a few sessions from the SLA 2007 Annual Conference. Speakers and facilitators volunteered to have their remarks recorded. While questions were not included in the recording, you will hear the answers to queries from the audience.

Please note that the sound quality varies from one recording to another. In some cases, sound quality varies within a recording.

Print presentations have been included if provided.

Win a SPARKY Award and $1000!

Contest details.

"The Internet gives new meaning to the notion that, by sharing ideas, we build a better understanding of the world around us. If you use YouTube or Wikipedia, exchange gaming tips on the Internet, or have a blog, you probably well understand the value of sharing information, ideas, and knowledge.

Sharing can also be a vital tool in helping to address complex problems that challenge society - like disease, hunger, global warming, and economic disparity. The sharing of ideas gives us ways to discover, collaborate, and create in unprecedented ways.

The SPARC Discovery Awards challenges you to illustrate in a short video presentation what you see as the value of sharing information. Use your imagination to suggest what good comes from bringing down barriers to the free exchange of information."


Spread the Word!

If Public Libraries Didn't Exist, Could You Start One Today?

An interesting article from Freakonomics.

Events Calendar for July 23-29, 2007

Monday, July 23

• Bookmobile - Atria Shaker (Bookmobile)
• Pre-School Storytime (Howe Branch)
• Bookmobile - Atria Crossgates (Bookmobile)
• Bookmobile - Harriman Campus (Bookmobile)
• Skateboarding Program (Pine Hills Branch)
• Free Jewelry Program (Delaware Branch)

Tuesday, July 24

• Bookmobile - St. Catherine of Siena Summer Camp (Bookmobile)
• Toddler Storytime (Pine Hills Branch)
• Bookmobile - New Scotland Neighborhood (Bookmobile)
• Open Computer Lab (Howe Branch)
• Make a Wood and Wire Sculpture (North Albany Branch)
• Summer Craft Time (Main Library)
• Delaware Dogs (Delaware Branch)

Wednesday, July 25

• Bookmobile - New Covenant C.S. Music Camp (Bookmobile)
• Pre-School Storytime (North Albany Branch)
• Open Computer Lab (North Albany Branch)
• Pre-School Storytime (Howe Branch)
• Toddler Storytime (Pine Hills Branch)
• Pre-School Storytime (Main Library)
• Bookmobile - Crestwood Plaza (Bookmobile)
• Intro. to E-mail (Main Library)
• Dance, Dance, Revolution (Pine Hills Branch)

Thursday, July 26

• Teen Night (Main Library)

Friday, July 27

• Bookmobile - Ida Yarborough (Bookmobile)
• Bookmobile - South Mall Towers (Bookmobile)
• Bookmobile - New Scotland Neighborhood (Bookmobile)
• Connecting with America (Pine Hills Branch)
• Tehuti Films Presents : Love Jones (Howe Branch)

Saturday, July 28

• Board Games (Main Library)

Be prepared

"What would happen in your neighborhood if there were a prolonged power outage, or some similar disaster or disruption of services? Are we prepared to deal with food or water shortages, or make sure our elderly and vulnerable neighbors are looked after?

A workshop entitled 'Extreme Events, Community Conversation on Preparedness: What About You?' will be held Monday, August 6, from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the SUNY School of Public Health, One University Place in Rensselaer. The event is free of charge, but advance registration is required at www.ualbanycphp.org, or by calling (518) 402-0336.

Keynote speaker is Geroges Benjamin, MD, executive director of the American Public Health Association. There will be workshops on Disaster Mental Health Preparedness, the Role of Faith-Based Communities, and Outreach to Vulnerable Communities. "This seminar will discuss the importance of having a strong local community-based preparedness system. The goal is to assist leaders to determine the degree of preparedness within their communities."

Garage Bands in the Garage

At the Main branch, 161 Washington Ave., Albany. Friday, July 20, 6 pm with Guiltless Cult and Scientific Maps.

Catalog Those Books in Your Home Library

What is LibraryThing?

"You can enter what you're reading or your whole library—it's an easy, library-quality catalog. LibraryThing also connects you with people who read the same things."

I use it myself, so far at the free level. You can enter 200 books for free, or as many as you like for $10 (year) or $25 (life).

Librarians 'suffer most stress'

"Fighting fires may sound taxing, chasing criminals demanding, but a new study says that working in a library is the most stressful job of all. This is a British study suggesting that their jobs are "unchallenging, repetitive". As a librarian myself, albeit in the United States, I thought the more likely cause of librarian stress would have been a constantly changing technological environment.

Events Calendar for July 16-22, 2007

Monday, July 16

• Computer Camp (Main Library)
• Bookmobile - Westview Senior Center (Bookmobile)
• Bookmobile - Avila Retirement Community (Bookmobile)
• Family Music Performance (Main Library)
• Bookmobile - Daughters of Sarah (Bookmobile)
• Skateboarding Program (Pine Hills Branch)

Tuesday, July 17

• Bookmobile - St. Catherine of Siena Summer Camp (Bookmobile)
• Computer Camp (Main Library)
• Toddler Storytime (Pine Hills Branch)
• Bookmobile - New Scotland Neighborhood (Bookmobile)
• Book Review: Tin Horns and Calico (Main Library)
• Storyteller Special (Main Library)
• Science Investigations. (North Albany Branch)
• Summer Craft Time (Main Library)
• Delaware Dogs (Delaware Branch)

Wednesday, July 18

• Computer Camp (Main Library)
• Pre-School Storytime (North Albany Branch)
• Open Computer Lab (North Albany Branch)
• Pre School Story Time: With the Honest Wieght Co Op (Delaware Branch)
• Toddler Storytime (Pine Hills Branch)
• Pre-School Storytime (Main Library)
• Dance, Dance, Revolution (Pine Hills Branch)
• It's Magic! (Main Library)

Thursday, July 19

• Computer Camp (Main Library)
• Bookmobile - Center for Disability Services (Bookmobile)
• Writers Group (Main Library)
• Lapsit Storytime (Main Library)
• Dance, Dance, Revolution (North Albany Branch)
• Get a Clue (Pine Hills Branch)
• Masks of Another Culture with the Tang Museum (Delaware Branch)

Friday, July 20

• Computer Camp (Main Library)
• Bookmobile - First Lutheran Literacy Camp (Bookmobile)
• Open Computer Lab (Delaware Branch)
• Bookmobile - New Scotland Neighborhood (Bookmobile)
• Garage Bands in the Garage (Main Library)
• Harry Potter Release Party (Pine Hills Branch)

Saturday, July 21

• Monopoly Tournament (Main Library)

Cool Williamsburgh Librarians

For New-Look Librarians, Head to Brooklyn. New York Sun, July 5, 2007.

Internet Safety: NetSafe

I came across a set of three bookmarks designed to remind people to be safe on the Internet- Dealing with Cyberbullies: Tips for Kids; Safe Blogging: Tips for Teens; and Social Networking: Tips for Parents. The bookmarks are sponsored by the Illinois Library Association, MySpace, and the American Library Association. One can either download them or - for $8 per 100 sets, plus postage - order them here.

There are also helpful articles and links to other pages.

A Hipper Crowd of Shushers

A new type of librarian is emerging: think Dewey Decimal meets Generation X from the New York Times, July 8, 2007.

Events Calendar for July 9-15, 2007

Monday, July 9

• Bookmobile - Atria Shaker (Bookmobile)
• Pre-School Storytime (Howe Branch)
• Bookmobile - Atria Crossgates (Bookmobile)
• Bookmobile - Harriman Campus (Bookmobile)
• Dance, Dance, Revolution (Howe Branch)
• Skateboarding Program (Pine Hills Branch)

Tuesday, July 10

• Bookmobile - St. Catherine of Siena Summer Camp (Bookmobile)
• Toddler Storytime (Pine Hills Branch)
• Bookmobile - New Scotland Neighborhood (Bookmobile)
• Open Computer Lab (Howe Branch)
• Oil and Climate Change (Main Library)
• Book Review: Infidel (Main Library)
• Fingerprint Art (North Albany Branch)
• Summer Craft Time (Main Library)
• Delaware Dogs (Delaware Branch)
• Albany Public Library Board of Trustees (Main Library)

Wednesday, July 11

• Bookmobile - New Covenant C.S. Music Camp (Bookmobile)
• Pre-School Storytime (North Albany Branch)
• Pre School Story Time: With the Honest Wieght Co Op (Delaware Branch)
• Pre-School Storytime (Howe Branch)
• Toddler Storytime (Pine Hills Branch)
• Bookmobile - Crestwood Plaza (Bookmobile)
• Intro. to Publisher (North Albany Branch)
• Intro. to Internet (Main Library)
• Dance, Dance, Revolution (Pine Hills Branch)
• Western Wednesday Movies (Main Library)

Thursday, July 12

• Lapsit Storytime (Main Library)
• NEW! Westerns for Women (Main Library)
• Masters of Disaster (Pine Hills Branch)
• Muggle Movie Marathon (Main Library)

Friday, July 13

• Bookmobile - Ida Yarborough (Bookmobile)
• Bookmobile - South Mall Towers (Bookmobile)
• Bookmobile - New Scotland Neighborhood (Bookmobile)
• Connecting with America (Pine Hills Branch)

Saturday, July 14

• Board Games (Main Library)

The library fix by Garrison Keillor

When politics gets mean and dumb, you can cheer yourself up by walking into a public library.
From Salon.com, June 27, 2007

In nation's capital, librarians on a mission storm the streets

Their message: We're still vital in the digital age

By Angela Haupt, USA TODAY, June 27, 2007, page 6D

Events Calendar for July 2-8, 2007

Monday, July 2

• Bookmobile - Westview Senior Center (Bookmobile)
• Pre-School Storytime (Howe Branch)
• Bookmobile - Avila Retirement Community (Bookmobile)
• Bookmobile - Daughters of Sarah (Bookmobile)
• Skateboarding Program (Pine Hills Branch)

Tuesday, July 3

• Bookmobile - Doane Stuart Summer Camp (Bookmobile)
• Toddler Storytime (Pine Hills Branch)
• Bookmobile - New Scotland Neighborhood (Bookmobile)
• Open Computer Lab (Howe Branch)
• Delaware Dogs (Delaware Branch)

Wednesday, July 4

• All locations closed for Independence Day (0)
• Pre-School Storytime (Howe Branch)

Thursday, July 5

• Writers Group (Main Library)
• Muggle Movie Marathon (Main Library)

Friday, July 6

• Open Computer Lab (Delaware Branch)
• Bookmobile - New Scotland Neighborhood (Bookmobile)