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Fast, engaging, educational audiobooks

iMinds, which launched in September of this year, creates unique, short-form, eight-minute MP3 audio books on general knowledge topics, known as “MindTracks”. Each MindTrack is heavily researched and features music and sound effects to keep listeners entertained and engaged while they learn. Additionally, iMinds recently launched iMinds Juniors – five-minute MindTracks for children ages 7 – 14 years old.

Under the distribution agreement, the entire iMinds catalog of more than 180 titles–Including iMinds Junior–will soon be available to thousands of online retailers, libraries and schools. Library inventory managers and online retailers worldwide will be able to select iMinds titles to offer their users for download. As new MindTracks are developed, they’ll be distributed through the OverDrive system. (via ResourceShelf)

You can learn more about iMinds via this FAQ

Here’s imind’s complete catalog.

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This is a library.

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Can take the librarian out of the library, but can't take the library out of the librarian.

Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

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Ebooks gain popularity in libraries

Despite problems, eBook checkouts in libraries increased to more than one million in 2009, up from 600,000 in 2007, according to OverDrive, a company offering both eaudio and ebooks to libraries.

“eBooks are quickly proving an unstoppable force, and opening the floodgates have given libraries the chance to increase readership and cater to a new age of information seekers.  Downloading a book in the comfort of home is no longer just a concept for most.  It’s a daily reality.  For libraries, it is still a relatively new venture, riddled with many obstacles, but even more opportunities,” says Project Gutenberg News.

An "obstacle libraries face is the inability to keep up with new devices now dominating the industry.  Although most libraries offer eBooks that are compatible with computers, Sony Reader and a handful of other digital devices, many of their downloadable offerings cannot be read on Amazon’s Kindle or the Apple’s iphone, both very popular e-readers.” 

The fault here lies not with the libraries, but with many of the makers of ebook readers thinking of their devices as a means to SELL books, not as another way to accommodate the reading public.

We have seen “fear of format” over and over again whether it was a move from tape to CD, videotape to DVD, eaudio, or ebook, downloading or streaming.  I’d like to see businesses understand that new ways of doing the old things are going to happen with technological development.  Figure out what’s going to work for the consumer if you want to thrive, don’t just get in the way.

View the complete post at Elearningservice.

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Historic bill passes in the House: what have we learned about information?

Tonight, a history milestone in the continued politics of divisiveness has passed. In the House of Representatives, the Health Care Reform bill has passed. Next comes the Senate version.

The oponent sector wanted to preserve the status quo. We saw the various ploys used to discredit the proponents of change and reform. Misinformation and disinformation strategies were put in action. One of these ploys was the invocation (as in macabre--false rummor) of "death panels" that, according to the fiction of its proponents, would make decisions as to who would live or die as a result of the realocation of health care resources resulting from the passage of the bill. Another tactic used to discredit reform was the dissemination of propaganda that indicated that the passage of the reform bill would increase taxes and that its cost would be prohibitive as it would increase the national deficit astronomically and beyond recovery and belief.

The oponents of reform worked intensely and invested tons of money to defeat this bill. So, what can we learn from these various months of bitter debate and divisiveness?

I believe that we have learned that the forces with interest in maintaining the status quo are well funded and active, and will fight any attempt by anyone/anywhere to change it and make reforms. A similar situation is going on with the green energy and climate legislature. These forces will use marketing and propaganda, utilizing media to:

- disinform and misrepresent

- revise histoy

- discredit authority

- fabricate negative scenarios

In view of these circumstances, the public must remain well informed about the facts/issues. What are the facts? First, as part of the civic responsibility of a Democratic society, citizens and communities must remain well informed, or at least, maintain a basic interest and concern about the basic issues. We (in America) still have free access to public libraries where research can be conducted and where information professionals can be approached with questions whenever necessary. If the books or periodical/material is not immediately available there is interlibrary loan service to request these materials. We also have access (most libraries provide computer use free of charge, an free wireless access) to the Internet where we can conduct research and get properly informed about the facts. Information and critical analysis is our solemn responsibility.

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Gorgeous photo of my work place!

via photoblog.com

A Cal State Fullerton student Tweeted this beautiful photo she took of Pollak Library, where I work. Beautiful photography!  I think we need to recruit her for publicity photos.

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LINK: As Facebook Ages, Gen Y Turns to Twitter

ReadWriteWeb (@RWW)  has a good article out today analyzing the recent Pew Internet findings and the growing popularity of Twitter among young college students (18-24-year-old, and even some of the 25-34-year-old demographic), as well as the increase in the median age for Facebook users from 26 to 33 over the past year.  @RWW speculates that the increase of older users on Facebook is pushing college students to Twitter.  MySpace is now the only top social networking site with a younger median age demographic than Twitter.

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LINK: Web project management for academic libraries

I just ordered a copy of this new book, written by Jody Condit Fagan and Jennifer A. Keach of James Madison University.  Since I am about to serve as project manager on our library's website redesign, it is a very timely topic for me.  Amazon shows it scheduled for publication October 31st, but still does not have any copies available.  I opted to reserve a copy through our interlibrary loan (will buy my own copy if I find it useful).  Due to our project start date this month, I hope the book published on time -- it may be my Thanksgiving vacation reading.

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A Cushing Academy update

Last summer Cushing Academy, a venerable boarding school in Ashburnham, Massachusetts, began ridding itself of most of its library’s books and replacing them with a digital collection. Headmaster Jim Tracy says he has hired more librarians to help students navigate the electronic stacks and tell “what is valuable information or reliable from what is junk.” -- USA Today

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20 of the World's Most Beautiful Libraries

via oddee.com

I'd like to get lost in some of these libraries and never find my way back out.

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