Policies for Library Inclusion of Self-Published Works

 

Burns, C. (2016, February 4). Policies for library inclusion of self-published works. Public Libraries Online. https://publiclibrariesonline.org/2016/02/policies-for-library-inclusion-of-self-published-works/

Whipple, Karen

Spring 2025

Summary:

    This short article poses the question of whether self-published works should be accessible through libraries. The article discussed how these works can easily fit into a library's collection with a few caveats. Specifically, it may be necessary to modify the collection development policy to focus on self-published works, and an agreement must be established with the self-publishing companies. As always, libraries need to consider the value of the book and the space they have available for their collection. Ultimately, the article argues for including self-published works but recognizes the library must be willing to create a firm policy and procedures for these works.

Evaluation:

    This brief article was written almost ten years ago, but it has become even more relevant today. Self-publishing is incredibly easy nowadays with the help of self-publishing opportunities like Kindle Unlimited Direct Publishing (KDP), which allows individuals to electronically publish their works and even receive payment when users access and read their books. Many of these books are available in print, eBook, and eAudiobook formats.

    "Indie" authors are no longer the amateurs they were once considered to be. Some indie authors have built successful careers through this nontraditional form of writing, achieving notable success in both income and readership. These self-published works are reviewed by readers on Amazon, and Goodreads, and some have Kirkus reviews as well.

    The question of whether libraries should include self-published works has been on my mind recently, so I was happy to come across this article. I would have loved to have had more detailed information, but this article was relatively brief and was more of an introduction to the idea rather than a fully fleshed-out how-to guide or review of libraries that are currently using self-published works. It is unsurprising, though, as the article was published in 2016; I imagine the idea was still in its infancy. Still, it was an enjoyable, quick read to pique my curiosity.

A Part of Our Lives: A People’s History of the American Library

Weigand, W. A. (2015). Part of our lives: A people’s history of the american public library. New York, New York: Oxford University Press.

            This short 270-page book about the history of American libraries. After reading this I felt invigorated and proud to be part of the library system. It covers the origins of the library from Benjamin Franklin to Harry Potter. The transformation and evolution of the library system in the United States is impressive and agile. It will fill anyone with hope for the library’s future relevance and perseverance.

            I was taken by surprise to learn about the exclusion of women in libraries and the viewpoints on literature in the early days of the library. Many topics covered professionally and academically are included in this history from icons like Pura Belpre, the first Puerto Rican librarian to the principles of the American Library Association (ALA) like the Library Bill of Rights.

            I recommend this book to all library students and library supporters.

Tags: library, American Library Association, public library, history, Library Bill of Rights

Teaching Old Dogs New eTricks

Evan Washechek

References: https://techboomers.com/

With the vast amount of options for teaching tools online, I thought that I had knowledge of at least most of what the internet had to offer. Recently a coworker of mine did a demonstration on Techboomers.com this website provides ultra-basic tutorials for various websites, apps and online services and software. These range from Facebook, Google Hangouts, Angie’s List to Youtube, Netflix, Hulu, Overdrive, Amazon, Ebay and many more. If you simply go to the page you see that they are constantly updating their selection as new forms of media arise and gain popularity. This is all in addition to their 50+ sites and Internet 101, both services going after their target demographic as mentioned in their name (techboomers) Baby Boomers who aren’t as proficient with technology as they would like to be. These tutorials provide content that isn’t demoralizing or meant for children. While the language isn’t college level, the wordings are age appropriate. In addition, the examples used make adults feel at home using basic software, which is an accomplishment.

There are certainly patrons who avoid anything to do with technology and have to be forced onto the computer for life or death issues (taxes, critical contacts who only email, big ticket purchases from venders who only deal online such as tickets) This program (techboomers) might not best serve those patrons.  If they had support from someone to walk them through step by step, each program and explain why they would want to use these services it might be more relevant.

The target patrons here are those who have a desire to better themselves and think of this service as a MOOC or Massive Online Open Course. A student with that attitude would be able to pick and choose and would also be willing to go through one of the chapter driven sessions simply to find out what a certain program or service has to offer. The courses do have a small description concerning each one, so the patrons will have some idea but the idea of reducing amazon’s services to one or two sentences is certainly shorting some manner of their services. 

Corporate Social Responsibility Initiatives for Promotion of Public Libraries

Christina Perris
INFO 266
Fall 2015

Corporate Social Responsibility Initiatives for Promotion of Public Libraries

Kumar, P. V. (2013, January). Corporate social responsibility initiatives for promotion of public libraries. DESIDOC: Journal of Library & Information Technology, 33(1), 29-31.

 

This journal article explores the ways in which corporations are becoming involved in the different parts of the world to help establish and promote in freestanding libraries, establishing libraries in government-run schools, the purchase of books and even assisting with the renovation of older or decaying libraries. 

It is clear that this new sense of corporate social responsibility many corporations are now adopting appears to be a potentially mutually beneficial arrangement for libraries, especially for cashed-strapped public libraries.  Where these corporations have money and the time and willingness of their workers to contribute to help out these libraries, the libraries are understaffed and underfunded, in near-constant need of help and resources to keep their doors open to their patrons.

The Nation's First Fully Digital Public Library

Hays, A. (2014, April). The Nation’s First Fully Digital Public Library: How a Texas County Made it Happen. Retrieved from http://publiclibrariesonline.org/2014/05/the-nations-first-fully-digital-public-library-how-a-texas-county-made-it-happen/

Summary:

This article discussed the opening of a completely digital library in San Antonio, Texas. The library is the first of its kind in the United States and it open its doors in September of 2013. This library’s collection is entirely digital. There are IPad, e-readers, laptops, computers, and interactive tables for community members to access their collection. The library also includes community activity rooms, group study rooms, and a cafe. There is Wi-Fi connection available within the library so that library patrons can access the digital collections. There is not one book in the entire library. 

Evaluation:

This new digital library is a first picture of what 21st-century libraries could look like as libraries become more modernized.  Collections have increasingly become digital and this public libraries bold jump to an entirely digital collection demonstrates to other libraries that they can still be relevant in a digital age. This library's collection is a blueprint for libraries of the future to follow. Libraries cannot meet the needs of modern users with the traditional print format. Libraries need to reimagine and reenvisions themselves in the 21st-century. 

Will Books Be Different?

Zatko, Ruzena

Guthrie, K. K. (2012). Will books be different?. Journal of Library Administration, 52(5), 353-

369.

Summary:

This literature provides a lot of coverage on how far we have come with journals for research from the early 1990s up till now. It also covers aspects of books (for leisure) and how the reading patterns changed. The author has extensive background working for JSTOR so he has seen the evolution of trends from the printing of research article trends to now being able to access it from your own home or from anywhere. The paper is broken into two parts: The print-to-electronic transition for journals and the print-to-electronic transition for books. Overall, the focus is on the transition of both mediums and how print and electronic book and journals are looking in the future.

 

Evaluation:

This paper was well written and flowed smoothly. The reason I felt this literature would be important to include is because I wanted to focus on some past history of library trends with research journals and book from then and now. I was very impressed with the insight Gutherie provided that was acquired by his extensive knowledge from his position. What could have be included is a chart demonstrating our reading habits and acquiring of journals, then and now. Also, since Gutherie mentions the demand for articles and that publishers are willing to provide a bundle savings rather than purchasing select titles. However, some libraries lack the funds and cannot bundle. What could have been included is some examples of the size of bundle a well-funded library can buy compared to a low-budget library.

In all, this was informative insight because this was the first mention of the raw, behind-the-scenes of libraries’ eBook acquisitions through publishers and the concerns we often don’t hear about. Overall, libraries are indicating they expect to spend nearly half of their budget on electronic books and changing their model for patron-driven approaches for acquisitions.

Towards Library 2.0: The Adoption of Web 2.0 Technologies in Public Libraries

Curtin, Shane.

Anttiroiko, A., & Savolainen, R. (2011). Towards Library 2.0: The Adoption of Web 2.0 Technologies in Public Libraries. Libri: International Journal of Libraries and Information Services, (61)2, 87-99. DOI: 10.1515/libr.2011.008

This article explores libraries' attempts to reinvent their services through the implementation of Web 2.0 tools such as RSS feeds, live chat, blogs, and book rating and user tagging systems. The article makes a distinction between social media and Web 2.0, claiming that the former is just a subset of the latter. To address the "terminological ambiguity" the authors divide Web 2.0 tools into categories including social networking, special interest networks, media communities and content based SNSs. blogs, short messaging/feeding, sharing news/opinions/views, reference works, and collective intelligence (with examples of sites of each type and their utilization in libraries).  The article also discusses the purpose and potential of the tools public libraries have adopted, the ensuing formation of the concept of "Library 2.0" and its role in bringing about social changes such as "Government 2.0". The authors found that public libraries use Web 2.0 tools for four main purposes: communication, content sharing, social networking, and crowdsourcing. In many libraries, the reference department offers instant messaging for patron questions. Other oft-used tools include blogs, Twitter, Facebook, user enabled tagging for library catalogs (taking advantage of the "wisdom of crowds") and collaborative tagging via programs like Delicious. Many librarians surveyed in the authors'  research complained that maintaining Web 2.0 services increases workload, but also that their patrons report greater ease of use and satisfaction with library services. The authors call on libraries to move from an "evolutionary to a revolutionary" and integrate Web 2.0 fully into their identities.

Evaluation:

This article raised interesting questions, but provided no answers. It was effectively and overview of the ways in which select American libraries used Web 2.0 tools. I suspect that in 2011, when it was published, it seemed more original. I was quite interested in the larger implications of social media in libraries, but the article spent little time on these. It did emphasize that the library can use it's position in the community to become a launchpad for Web 2.0 understanding, and thus aid in the empowerment of individuals who learn how to effectively use these tools. "Government 2.0" as mentioned in the article, is a concept I have been hearing a little about lately- a scenario in which people use Web 2.0 to become more active participants in their government. In the years since this article was written, Twitter has become the main vehicle for Government 2.0. Certainly libraries have a role in the Web 2.0 revolution (given our operational tenants of free expression and freedom of access), but I think Web 2.0 is something that is moving forward  independently of us. Our responsibility is merely to keep up with it, and make sure we provide our users with the kinds of tools to which they are accustomed.

The Future of Libraries Has Little to Do with Books

Brandes-Miesner, Marta

Spinks, R. (2015, January 4). The future of libraries has little to do with books. Good: A magazine for the global citizen. Retrieved from http://magazine.good.is/articles/public-libraries-reimagined

Summary:

 In this article, the author talks about how libraries are reinventing themselves by becoming vibrant and attractive community “hubs”. The article emphasizes the need to develop libraries into places where patrons can become not only digitally literate, but digitally fluent. The future of libraries according to this article is encompassed by its free services, by being a community gathering space, and by fulfilling patrons’ needs for connectivity. The first “Bookless Library” has been built in San Antonio, Texas. The author described it as a “digital hub”. This library is all digital, cloud-based, and has over 10,000 eBooks and eReaders for the public. The author states though that with its plethora of auditoriums and creative spaces to relax, work and meet in, library materials seem like an afterthought. Nonetheless, the sentiment of this article is that reimagining and recreating the library as a place for people to gather works well for the future of libraries.

Evaluation:

This article is interesting in its ability to present images of future libraries, and those that have already been moving in this direction. Imagining that this is one of many directions future libraries will take is obviously plausible. However, the idea that libraries will become more community spaces to meet rather than to go to for the purposes of gaining something is not as plausible. There are so many existing places to meet, study, gather, etc. People go to libraries to “acquire” something-knowledge, information, Internet access, assistance, leisure materials, peace & quiet, solitude to study, etc. not only for the space itself. So while the author presents a vision of the future that is sleek and stylish and seemingly new, the article neglects to include the very reason libraries exist in the first place. They exist to impart information or knowledge (regardless of its format) and to act as a point of entry for equitable access to that information and knowledge. Without these two factors, these “gathering spaces” are just that.