I am currently reading A whole new mind : why right-brainers will rule the future. It is a very interesting concept that he argues in this book. The world has seen different phases. The agricultural age, the Industrial revolution, and the Information age that we are now in the ends of. As the ages and technologies progressed, Left brained or Critical thinking skills were the main needs and where right brained or creativity thinking once nonexistant has slowly been accepted or become a key player.
Now as the technology and information age wanes. Left brain Thinking such as engineering accounting, banking and virtually all industry can be done on computers and the Internet by anybody anywhere in the world on any computer. The new emerging phase needs and will demand right brain or crative thinking.
Putting this all in the perspective of the libraries and WEB 2.0 or future versions I have to ask. If all the library services are pushed more and more online. If all the reference and information services and resources and databases can be outsourced from India or China or be completely accessed online. Outside of becoming a subscription portal, what will the library become especially as print materials become more expensive or phased out for electronic versions. Web 2.0 only enhances this movement of the information to a global service.
When I started in the library over 20 years ago the theme was "Books and a whole lot more."
I think this still stand true and perhaps even more so now. It is the creative or right brain thinking that is needed to figure out or design what this really implies in the libraries emerging role as more and more of its traditional left Brain roles can now be performed or accessed by anyone, anywhere in the world.
May 27, 2008
May 23, 2008
My take on all the Global Warming issues
It does not really matter to me if Global warming is scientifically or factually proven or disproved.
We, as the residents of this only world we have need to take care of and preserve what we have. And if it turns out by doing so we are also protecting the climate all the better.
Even if human interaction is proven to not have any impact on our climate it is not saying it is OK to continue polluting and raping our planet.
So quite bickering about if Global Warming is real or not and do what you can to preserve what we have and clean up our messes we have created.
If we continue to treat it like it is of no consequence who are we to blame if air quality everywhere ends up as it is in Bejing. What will that do to the climate and what will it take to fix if it gets to that point.
We, as the residents of this only world we have need to take care of and preserve what we have. And if it turns out by doing so we are also protecting the climate all the better.
Even if human interaction is proven to not have any impact on our climate it is not saying it is OK to continue polluting and raping our planet.
So quite bickering about if Global Warming is real or not and do what you can to preserve what we have and clean up our messes we have created.
If we continue to treat it like it is of no consequence who are we to blame if air quality everywhere ends up as it is in Bejing. What will that do to the climate and what will it take to fix if it gets to that point.
Gas Prices
$3.85 a gallon gas. Come on already, what is the deal anyway.
Prices go up because of hurricanes or reports there might be one. It goes up because it might get cold. It might get warm, Because people might drive or might not.
The Inventories or supplies might be going down or disrupted.
What ever they can speculate they do but they say it's not the speculators that are driving it up.
Refineries and production have not been increased in 30 years but its not the oill companies fault the prices are going up. Hell! they have had to buy back stocks instead of investinng or expanding in their production. They have to pay all the CEOs millions in salaries and keep the stockholders happy. OOPS That’s right, I forgot they are buying up all their own stock. Sure they have been trying to drill in Alaska and other areas and the Government has blocked that. How hard have they tried to get the OK to expand refineries. Oh I forgot they are only running at 80% to 85% capacity anyway and they were even able to cut back to increase profit margines recently so they must not need more refinery capacity to keep up supply.
Thank god its not the Oil Companies or the Governments fault the prices keep going up.
Stockpile levels seem to keep going down but the reserves are not supppsed to be tapped and until recently have been continuously added to. The reserves should be increasing or at least staying level since they are not supposed to be getting tapped. Maybe I am getting stockpiles and reserves mixed up or am I.
But I am sure this has nothing to do with the prices going up.
Just a thought and I am probably wrong, but could this all have anything to with rampant GREED everywhere?
Nah!That would be too far fetched of a conclusion.
Prices go up because of hurricanes or reports there might be one. It goes up because it might get cold. It might get warm, Because people might drive or might not.
The Inventories or supplies might be going down or disrupted.
What ever they can speculate they do but they say it's not the speculators that are driving it up.
Refineries and production have not been increased in 30 years but its not the oill companies fault the prices are going up. Hell! they have had to buy back stocks instead of investinng or expanding in their production. They have to pay all the CEOs millions in salaries and keep the stockholders happy. OOPS That’s right, I forgot they are buying up all their own stock. Sure they have been trying to drill in Alaska and other areas and the Government has blocked that. How hard have they tried to get the OK to expand refineries. Oh I forgot they are only running at 80% to 85% capacity anyway and they were even able to cut back to increase profit margines recently so they must not need more refinery capacity to keep up supply.
Thank god its not the Oil Companies or the Governments fault the prices keep going up.
Stockpile levels seem to keep going down but the reserves are not supppsed to be tapped and until recently have been continuously added to. The reserves should be increasing or at least staying level since they are not supposed to be getting tapped. Maybe I am getting stockpiles and reserves mixed up or am I.
But I am sure this has nothing to do with the prices going up.
Just a thought and I am probably wrong, but could this all have anything to with rampant GREED everywhere?
Nah!That would be too far fetched of a conclusion.
May 17, 2008
Library Experiences
Because of a temporary loss of my home Internet access, My fiancee and I have become customers at our local library for our internet needs. My fiancee has also been using the library and Internet for school research and online testing for her college classes.
The library we use is the main library in a different system than the one I work for.
The restrictions regarding time usage and guest passes as well as general policies are much more relaxed in the system I work for. I often get exasperated that the children, teens and many adults would rather get a guest pass instead of remembering their card or getting one. At least they are coming in and using the libray.
The library I have been using will not give a guest pass without an ID showing you are out of area otherwise you must use a library card. No exceptions. I have no idea what they do with new residents or those that refuse to or can't have a card. I guess they just can't use the library.
They use Cybrarian which is the same system we used at one time for computer reservations. Because of an hour long timed test was to be taken by my fiancee, she asked the reference staff if she can have her time extended a short amount to allow her to finish. She was told no. I don't know if this function has been disabled or if the staff just were unwilling to accomadate but Cybrarian does have this function available . Because of the hour Limits in place she was not able to take her exam.
I returned some books and was going to renew the remaining items. I was unable to renew my fiancee's materials. I had the library card number but missing a number on the pin so I was not able to log on. Staff at the desk refused to renew or verify numbers unless I had her actual card or books in hand. Yes I am aware of privacy Issues, But they wouldn't even go into her record and let me tell them what titles to renew.
My first visit was very exasperating. I finally had to ask a librarian why all the web addresses I typed in did not work and I had to find them using Google. No Instructions were posted at stations. It turns out that you have to type in the address leaving out all the http://www/ otherwise it delivers an invalid address. And every few minutes a box pops up asking me if I was still there and if I wish to continue. Arrrgh, Every time those come up I was in the middle of typing something or inputing something into a form.
Obviously it can't detect I am on and using the computer.
The reference desk? Where is it? Hidden way in back out of the way , not front and center. It's Like a service counter at a department store off in the back area of the building. I did not notice much in the way of phone calls or the Librarians out and about much helping customers. But then again the place was almost always pretty empty the times I visited. Did I say this was the main area library?
Another obsevation I noticed right off on my first visit was the reserve pick-up area while getting a card. It had perhaps 100 items being held. I swear on any given day we have close to 10000 items waiting to be picked up. We had to give up the manned check out station years ago because the library was just to busy to dedicate staff to sit at the check out station, its nice to see they still can afford this service.
I really dislike using that library and I dislike saying it even more. I am sure what I felt is also felt many of my neighbors who have to use that library system. I am sure that is why it is always empty and underused.
So even though customers take advantage or abuse our more relaxed or accomadating policies where I work I would much prefer them to the restrictive ones I have encountered.
I am sure that also has a lot to do with why we are always busy and often a noisy and sometimes chaotic place to be in, we are not an empty echo chamber.
It is a customer friendly, family friendly library and we encourage the use and accomadate the customers needs. I much prefer the hustle and bustle of a place everyone wants to use and a place where staff, facilities and policies accomadate that use.
The library we use is the main library in a different system than the one I work for.
The restrictions regarding time usage and guest passes as well as general policies are much more relaxed in the system I work for. I often get exasperated that the children, teens and many adults would rather get a guest pass instead of remembering their card or getting one. At least they are coming in and using the libray.
The library I have been using will not give a guest pass without an ID showing you are out of area otherwise you must use a library card. No exceptions. I have no idea what they do with new residents or those that refuse to or can't have a card. I guess they just can't use the library.
They use Cybrarian which is the same system we used at one time for computer reservations. Because of an hour long timed test was to be taken by my fiancee, she asked the reference staff if she can have her time extended a short amount to allow her to finish. She was told no. I don't know if this function has been disabled or if the staff just were unwilling to accomadate but Cybrarian does have this function available . Because of the hour Limits in place she was not able to take her exam.
I returned some books and was going to renew the remaining items. I was unable to renew my fiancee's materials. I had the library card number but missing a number on the pin so I was not able to log on. Staff at the desk refused to renew or verify numbers unless I had her actual card or books in hand. Yes I am aware of privacy Issues, But they wouldn't even go into her record and let me tell them what titles to renew.
My first visit was very exasperating. I finally had to ask a librarian why all the web addresses I typed in did not work and I had to find them using Google. No Instructions were posted at stations. It turns out that you have to type in the address leaving out all the http://www/ otherwise it delivers an invalid address. And every few minutes a box pops up asking me if I was still there and if I wish to continue. Arrrgh, Every time those come up I was in the middle of typing something or inputing something into a form.
Obviously it can't detect I am on and using the computer.
The reference desk? Where is it? Hidden way in back out of the way , not front and center. It's Like a service counter at a department store off in the back area of the building. I did not notice much in the way of phone calls or the Librarians out and about much helping customers. But then again the place was almost always pretty empty the times I visited. Did I say this was the main area library?
Another obsevation I noticed right off on my first visit was the reserve pick-up area while getting a card. It had perhaps 100 items being held. I swear on any given day we have close to 10000 items waiting to be picked up. We had to give up the manned check out station years ago because the library was just to busy to dedicate staff to sit at the check out station, its nice to see they still can afford this service.
I really dislike using that library and I dislike saying it even more. I am sure what I felt is also felt many of my neighbors who have to use that library system. I am sure that is why it is always empty and underused.
So even though customers take advantage or abuse our more relaxed or accomadating policies where I work I would much prefer them to the restrictive ones I have encountered.
I am sure that also has a lot to do with why we are always busy and often a noisy and sometimes chaotic place to be in, we are not an empty echo chamber.
It is a customer friendly, family friendly library and we encourage the use and accomadate the customers needs. I much prefer the hustle and bustle of a place everyone wants to use and a place where staff, facilities and policies accomadate that use.
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