“This is an unconference. We can do whatever we want.”

–Mark Beatty

So I’ve traveled deep into the belly of the beast (the OCLC conference center in Dublin, OH) for the inaugural LITA unconfrence. Working under the theme of “The Everywhere Library,” we’ve assembled to share what we know and (hopefully) push the state of library technology forward. I’ll be posting my notes here over the next couple of days, with additional bits of context and commentary as events warrant. If you have any questions, or anything you’d like me to ask about, please post a comment here.

You can keep track of #litacamp09 activities on Twitter, and also check out the Camp wiki for more information.

“They think of computers as work machines, whereas I think of the computer as, like, my best friend.”

–Jessamyn West

I’m at the Computers in Libraries conference through Wednesday. I’ll be posting my notes here, along with other assorted commentary.

I love this quote – I’m not at the session, but it just blew up the Twitterverse – and I think it encapsulates a lot about how I feel about how we can use technology to facilitate connections and Connect People to Awesome. Nothing helps to build friends like more friends, right? I’m excited to discover more ways to make this stuff work.

You can also follow the action by tracking the Twitter hash tag #cil2009.

And now’s your chance to get one for yourself. I’ve got a pile of these buttons to give away during my trip to the Computers in Libraries conference next week, and they’re free for the biblioblogger taking. Just track me down at the conference, and one is yours while supplies last. It’s a great little conversation piece if you’re trying to draw more attention to your blog.

Can’t make it to CiL? Drop me an email (theanalogdivide at gmail dot com) and I’ll see what I can do for you.

Of course, now comes the hard part: creating a marketing push, and working to translate visibility into people signing up for the service.

We’ve taken a number of steps, including signs on the library plasma screens:

Highlighting the services in our newsletter:

I’ve also held classes, talking up the service on the Library blogs, and I’ve been training staff on ways to “sell” the service to patrons. Later on, we’ll send out a mailing to all Village residents, make a handout to be given away during checkout, and the services will be promoted on the front of the library website.

But I’m not done yet. My goal is 500 signups by the end of June (the grant reporting period). As I believe the “kids” are saying, I need to keep up my “hustle” in order to “make it rain.” I think. If anyone wants to double-check UrbanDictionary for me, please be my guest.

One of the steps I’m thinking about comes in the form of these sweet Moo cards:

Which begs the question: what should I do with them? When I give these cards out, I want to give out a few, so that each person shares them with others, thus contributing to their viral value. I’ve already tweeted about it, posted to the blogs, and sent out a Facebook update to all our fans.

Now it’s time to approach patrons in person, and actually shove these babies into their hot little hands. But I wonder if there other as-yet-overlooked methods that I haven’t seen.

So tell me: what am I missing? Do you have any suggestions?

I am thrilled and overwhelmed to be part of the 2009 class of Library Journal Movers and Shakers.  To be listed with people like Michael Porter, Sarah Houghton-Jan, Jason Griffey and Karen Coombs, Chad Boenninger, Lori Reed, and Karen Kleckner Keefe is a real honor. Half of me feels like the spring chicken in this group, and the other half wonders why on earth they weren’t made Movers and Shakers already.

I really couldn’t have done it without the support and insights from so many people.

• Many thanks are due to everyone at Skokie Public Library for their trust and enthusiasm. I’d like to thank director Carolyn Anthony and Adult Services supervisor Deborah Grodinsky for hoodwinking the selection committee making such a strong case for me. I should also single out Ruth Sinker for taking the photos that we sent in to LJ. But I owe everyone on staff at SPL a billion thanks.

• I participated in the Illinois State Library’s Synergy program for emerging library leaders in 2007, without which I would not have gained the perspective and confidence to push many of these projects through. I’m so grateful to have been part of such a fantastic cohort, and know the rest of the class is doing some Moving and Shaking of their own.

• I also owe a debt of thanks to my first POW, the Westmont Public Library. Director Christine Kuhn gave me a lot of support in my first job out of library school, and provided a lot of coaching as I found my librarian legs.

• Finally, I’d like to thank my parents, my sister Sarah, and my wife Jordan for putting up with all my librarian blather over the years. Sorry to say it’s not going to stop.

There’s a million other people I should be thanking – everyone from NextRound, for certain – but if I continue, I’m not going to stop, and I’m already gushing enough as it is. I should also address the LSTA grant mentioned in the article. The Shoutbomb text messaging service was initiated by the folks at the Peninsula Public Library, and as I was working to adapt what they had developed for Skokie, I ended up pestering them to no end with questions about their implementation strategy. Thank you for putting up with all of that.

Once again, it’s a real treat to be part of this group. I hope to do all I can to continue living up to the honor.

But my job is not all nose-to-the-grindstone technology work and Virtual Services development. To provide a teensy bit of balance, I’ve been purchasing the teen and adult graphic novels at the library. This has been an experience – on one side, I get to play Kid In A Candy Store and stock on all the trade paperbacks I’ve never quite gotten around to reading. On the other hand, it’s serving as a harsh reminder of how little I know about manga, which of course is the most popular genre of all of them by far.

(And yes, I realize that manga isn’t a genre per se. There’s a huge amount of diversity in the field, from artwork to subject matter to characters to everything in between. But we do have our patrons who simply ask for manga, and end up walking out of the building with an armload of different titles.)

Luckily, I’ve got the new New York Times Graphic Novel Best Seller Lists to fill in some of the gaps:

I’m not sure if this makes the collection job harder or easier. It certainly makes my understanding of Naruto more hilarious.

For half a second I had the faint glimmer of hope that this was a slick new get-the-word-out campaign for libraries, akin to the great ad push that Boston Public is doing. Alas, it was for the gPhone.

I for one welcome our new Android overlords.

LOOKING FOR LIBRARIANS WHO HATE TO READ

We are an independant production company looking to interview librarians specifically those who don’t like to read. We would like to hear your story and see if it would be worthwhile to use you in our upcoming project. If we use your story for the feature you will be compensated. Please reply with your stories.

Those of you harboring this darkest secrets, you know where to go.

So, how was your weekend?

I got into work this morning to find out that MPOW was chosen for a National Medal for Museum and Library Service, as presented by IMLS.

Okay, so I didn’t find it out this morning. But I found out I could finally talk about it! It’s all very exciting, as our director is traveling to D.C. next week to receive the award at the White House.

As you might imagine, we’re all thrilled to receive the award. But we couldn’t have done with without such a supportive group of patrons. If you’re a library regular, we can’t thank you enough.

I just got back from the ILA conference last week, so I’ll hopefully have updates on that soon. In the meantime, celebrate!

(Separated at birth? My cat is the one on the left.)

In living up to his namesake, Sanford the cat is both loquacious and persistent, particularly around feeding time.

Here’s hoping you get back on your feet soon, Sandy. For more information on the incident, or if you’d like to send him a get-well card, please visit Jenna Freedman’s blog.