WordPress for Library Web Design Highlights

November 22, 2010-Guest speaker Nicole C. Engard, Director of Open Source Education at ByWater Solutions guided participants through the basics of using WordPress as a content management system for an entire library website.

In a hands-on environment, participants learned what WordPress is, what is needed to install it,  how to find and choose from existing templates/designs, how to quickly and easily add and edit website content and much more.

To view the presentation slides, please visit http://www.web2learning.net/wp-content/uploads/2006/06/wordpress-lilrc.pdf or click image below.

PDF Format

Additional Resources:

• WordPress.org
• WordPress.com
• Wp4lib -WordPress for Libraries Wiki

Special thanks to Farmingdale State College, Greenley Library for hosting this event, Nicole Engard, and all who attended.

SAVE THE DATE

LILRC 19th Annual Conference on Libraries & the Future: Imagine the Future

The LILRC Annual Conference Committee would like to extend an invitation to all library and information professionals to participate in the 19th Annual Conference on Libraries and the Future and to join our distinguished panel of speakers as we seek to imagine the future by exploring critical issues facing libraries today and how to stay relevant in a rapidly changing environment.

Join us on Thursday night with guest speaker Raymond McGale, Long Island Regional Manager, Barnes & Noble.

Cocktails: 6:00 p.m. | Dinner: 7:00 p.m.

Then return on Friday morning for a full-day’s programming including:

Peter Hernon, Professor, Simmons College Graduate School of Library and Information Science

Academic Libraries–Fifteen Years from Now
The talk will focus on two possible scenarios that build from current developments. For each scenario there will be a discussion of the components and what might be changed. Discussion then will focus on the the type of workforce that such libraries will need.

George Needham, Vice President, Member Services, OCLC

Futureproofing Your Library
Change is like heaven: everybody wants to go, but nobody wants to go first! This lively and interactive session will focus on the real world changes that are shaping the future of libraries. Most traditional library services were designed when information was relatively scarce and library users had to adapt to the ways of the library if they wanted to get their hands on these resources. Now that information is everywhere, libraries need to ‘futureproof’ themselves by updating their services to match changing community expectations, building on a continuum that links the valuable library services we’ve built and loved to the possibilities offered by an ever-changing environment.

Maureen Sullivan, Maureen Sullivan Associates and Professor of Practice in the Simmons College Graduate School of Library and Information Science Ph.D. Program in Managerial Leadership

Topic: Strategic Planning

REGISTRATION FORM:

For additional information, please contact the LILRC office at 631-675-1570 x 201.

Hightlights from Thingamabobs and Doodads Workshop

Over 50 participants gathered for the LILRC sponsored program, Thingamabobs and Doodads: Why Tech Support IS Reference, on Friday, July 23, 2010 at the Plainview-Old Bethpage Public Library.

Guest speakers Holly Hibner and Mary Kelly provided an insightful and humorous look at the close tie between reference questions and technology support.  Our exploration included a number of examples of different situations that both presenters and participants have experienced with regards to technology support questions and some ways to approach them.  Core competencies, making time for technology, and how to communicate with patrons and tech support were also discussed.

Please be sure to view the following slides for useful links to additional resources:

Special thanks to the Plainview-Old Bethpage Public Library for hosting this event.

PubMed Training

March 26th-Medical and public librarians gathered for PubMed Training at Farmingdale State College, with our guest Database Trainers Sharon Brown, Joey Nicholson, and Molly.

Here are some PubMed quick facts:

• PubMed is the interface used to search Medline
• 30% PubMed searches are done by the public
• Approx. half of the citations in PubMed are full-text.
• 25% percent of articles are indexed within 30 days of submission by publishers.

Our class covered PubMed which includes MEDLINE citations, and also included a discussion on the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) and its importance as a tool to both searchers and indexers.

The last task for the day was to cover My NCBI, a powerful tool that allows users to save information, including History, and customize display and preferences. It allows you to save searches, select display formats and filtering options, and set up automatic searches that are sent by e-mail. Plus you can create as many accounts as you want!

Useful links:

• PubMed: www.pubmed.gov
• For a video introduction to MeSH, see Branching Out: The MeSH Vocabulary at: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/disted/video/
• NLM Technical Bulletin: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/pubs/techbull/tb.html

Special thanks to the Greenley Library at Farmingdale State College for hosting the event and to Sharon, Joey, and Molly for providing the training.

LILRC CE Kick-Off Event Highlights

January 28, 2010–over 30 attendees gathered to join LILRC staff in kicking off its 2010 Continuing Education Program at the Plainview Old-Bethpage Public Library.  A terrific mix of academic, public, school, and special librarians gathered for the event and had the opportunity to network prior to the program over light refreshments.

Afterward, Susanne Markgren, Digital Services Librarian at Purchase College Library, SUNY, presented, Create an Online Portfolio: Improve Your Skills of Self Promotion, which included an overview of what to include on your online portfolio, the various services available to post your portfolio (free and paid services), and she provided samples of her own portfolio using PBWorks and Google Sites.

Presentation Slides:

To view current workshop offerings from LILRC, visit our Continuing Education Calendar online at: http://www.lilrc.org/calendars/cont_edcalendar.php.

Thanks to all who attended and to the Plainview Old-Bethpage Public Library for hosting the event.

January-June 2010 CE Brochure Now Available Online

The January-June 2010 LILRC sponsored continuing education programs are now available in an electronic version of the brochure here (in PDF format).  Please look for the printed version, which will be mailed very soon.

Guest speakers include:

• Rebekkah Smith Aldrich, MLS, is the Coordinator for Library Growth & Sustainability at the Mid-Hudson Library System where she has assisted 66 member libraries in the areas of governance, management, funding and facilities since 1998. Rebekkah is a certified Sustainable Building Advisor (SBA) and Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design Accredited Professional (LEED AP). Rebekkah is also the 2010 President of the Library Administration & Management Section (LAMS) of the New York Library Association.

• Toby Greenwalt is Virtual Services Coordinator for Skokie (IL) Public Library. At the library, he is charged with developing new online tools for building a stronger connection with the public. We was named a “Mover and Shaker” by Library Journal in 2009. He occasionally blogs at www.theanalogdivide.com, and tweets all too frequently as @theanalogdivide.

• Jonathan M. Smith (l1br4r14n on Twitter) is Electronic Services Librarian at The Catholic University of America, where he has a range of technology and public services duties. He is also an adjunct faculty member of the School of Library and Information Science at CUA. Jonathan’s interests include web services, digital librarianship, open source software and the application of emerging technologies in libraries.

Please note that you may use the included registration form to register for multiple training sessions at one time.

Global Trends Affecting Libraries

June 11th–Miriam Pollack, Consultant, Miariam Pollack + Associates joined LILRC for a presentation on Global Trends Affecting Libraries.  Attendees explored paradigms in the field and looked at environmental scanning, the life cycle of trends, and strategies for tracking and applying trends.

There are a number of sources that you can refer to for the scanning of trends including newspapers, books, magazines, wikis, blogs, and much more.  Some examples include:

• Now and Next (http://nowandnext.com)
• Trendwatching (http://www.trendwatching.com)
• Wired News (http://www.wired.com)

“Look for the outliers and don’t be afraid of the weird and the whacky.  Remember that what seems unreasonable today, may well not be viewed that way in the future.”

Miriam also shared the  Did You Know? video on the progression of information technology, researched by Karl Fisch, Scott McLeod, and Jeff Brenman:

Special thanks to the Brentwood Public Library for hosting this event.

LILRC to Sponsor MLA Educational Webcast

Finding Work-Life Balance|Strategies for You and Your Institution

Date: March 25, 2009
Time: 2:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m.
Location: Farmingdale State College, Greenley Library

Cost (Save $100 off the regular price for individual views)
$25 – LILRC Member
$50 – Non-member

The goal of this program is to identify ways to enhance the balance between work and life, provide an overview of the institutional, professional, and personal benefits of encouraging balance, and outline considerations for implementing successful changes (2 MLA contact hours).

Objectives:

* describe the types of programs and changes that enhance work-life balance.
* assess the potential benefits of promoting work-life balance for the individual, the institution, the profession, and society.
* outline the challenges and companion strategies for implementing successful change.
* recognize responsibilities of the institution and the individual to enhance work-life balance.

Potential issues to be addressed include:

Part I: Introduction: Defining Work-Life Balance: Flexible work arrangements – flex time, job sharing, condensed work week; Remote work-site arrangements, telecommuting; Wellness programs and support for stress reduction; Time management techniques, etc.; Support for commuting, etc.

Part II: Benefits of Work-Life Balance: Research about work life balance; Work-life balance opportunities as a recruitment and retention tool; needs of different generations; benefits and challenges to achieving work life balance

Part III: Challenges/Strategies: administrators’ and individual’s shared responsibility for ensuring accountability; continuity of service and uninterrupted collaboration among colleagues; proposing a new work arrangement; ensuring equal access to work life balance; parity and legal issues

IV: Wrap Up: recommendations for encouraging work-life balance in your library; professional resources

All participants will be awarded a MLA CEU certificate for 2 contact hours at no additional charge.

Use the registration form (PDF) to sign up for this program.

Additonal CE Workshop Added

Due to popular demand, LILRC is running another session of:

Introduction to Google Applications

March 27, 2009
9:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m.
Farmingdale State College, Greenley Library

Directions online at: http://www.farmingdale.edu/quicklinks/IFS_Contact_Us.html
Registration Deadline: March 20, 2009
Contact: Min Liu, minliu@lilrc.org

Google Apps is a collection of web-based programs that are free to use and require no installation. The applications include communication tools, such as Gmail, Google Talk, and Google Calendar and productivity tools, such as Google Docs (text files, spreadsheets, and presentations). Customizing your start page is also available via iGoogle.

In this hands-on class, you will learn all the basics about Google Calendar, Gmail, and office suite web applications. We will cover creating an account, calendar functions, applications available and more (time permitting). Bring your questions.

Presented by: Sharper Training Solution, Inc.

Visit the LILRC Continuing Education Calendar for additional information, including the registration form.