Q&Q Omni Category: Libraries
The most recent 250 items in this category are below. To find something specific, please use the search box.
The explosion in ebook lending: Public libraries see a growing role for themselves as popularizers of digital content. Now, they just have to convince publishers
Librarians might not be known as a stereotypically combative bunch, but in their dealings with publishers, there’s one area in which they’ve drawn a line... Read the rest »
Nova Scotia library introduces 24-hour checkouts
Residents of Antigonish, Nova Scotia, can now check out items from a regional library branch 24 hours a day. Last week, the Antigonish Town &... Read the rest »
Personnel change: Paul Whitney re-elected to IFLA board
Paul Whitney, former chief librarian of the Vancouver Public Library, has been re-elected to the governing board of the International Federation of Library Associations and... Read the rest »
Rona Arato wins OLA Golden Oak Award
The Ontario Library Association presented its Golden Oak Award to Rona Arato’s Courage and Compassion: Ten Canadians Who Made a Difference (Maple Tree Press). Part... Read the rest »
Libraries, distributors respond to HarperCollins' e-book lending cap
The Canadian library community is reacting negatively to a decision by HarperCollins to alter its licensing terms and conditions for e-book loans. Beginning March... Read the rest »
In the midnight hour: More academic libraries are offering 24-hour service in a bid to meet students' evolving demands
It’s 3:18 a.m. on a weekday at the University of Toronto’s Robarts Library. Of the 18,000 people who passed through here today, only 100 or... Read the rest »
What readers want: How the Toronto Public Library is using BookNet sales data to improve its collections
Booksellers have long relied on consumer sales data to inform everything from ordering decisions to in-store displays to event programming, but until recently, libraries have... Read the rest »
Canadian wholesalers worry libraries turning to the U.S.
The Association of Canadian Book Wholesalers has raised an alarm about Canadian libraries turning to American wholesalers due to the rise of the Canadian dollar.... Read the rest »
The long-distance library: In a wired world, libraries are offering more downloadable content
Imagine a typical Canadian library user – let’s call her Jennifer. Home from a long day at the office, Jennifer wants nothing more than to... Read the rest »
Libraries and the cool factor: Teens are coming to libraries for the Wii – but will they stay for the books?
Once a month, dozens of teenage boys stream through the doors of the Toronto Public Library’s Albion branch, but they haven’t come for the books... Read the rest »
Reviving an inner-city library: How a Regina librarian rejuvenated a neglected branch
A few years ago, armed with a modest provincial grant, the Albert Library branch of the Regina Public Library set about rejuvenating its drab, forbidding... Read the rest »
Money coming for Ontario school libraries
In their $96-billion budget announced earlier this week, the Ontario Liberals made no mention of the $80-million they’d previously promised for the purchase of books... Read the rest »
Preservation 2.0: The fight to archive the explosion of online content
When you’re passionate about a subject that nobody else seems to care about, you can sometimes come across as a little intense. Just ask Patricia... Read the rest »
A book to read, a book to weed: Public libraries struggle to provide popular titles while maintaining quality collections
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows will be a blockbuster in more than just bookstores. Across Canada, libraries have already ordered the final installment of... Read the rest »
The DIY revolution for libraries: Open-source software puts power back into the hands of librarians
There was a time, just a few years ago, when librarians had no choice. When looking for technology to handle tasks like cataloguing and circulation,... Read the rest »
Libraries and the city: Should neighbourhood library branches become urban planning centres?
It’s a storm that just doesn’t seem to abate: for the better part of a decade, real estate speculation and development in Toronto have been... Read the rest »
A public space: How new improvements in library design are connecting urban communities
When the Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec (BANQ) decided to launch an international design competition for a grand new central library in a gritty... Read the rest »
Meet the partnership: Library associations are joining forces to bolster professional development
The Canadian library field has always been inclined to pool efforts; it’s thick with associations at all levels. But right now, the heads of the... Read the rest »
Finding the money: Large libraries have foundations, but smaller ones are raising private-sector cash in their own way
From bake sales to appeals for large capital donations, private-sector fundraising has long been a fact of life for Canadian public libraries. But in February... Read the rest »
When literary papers go public: Authors routinely donate their files to library archives – it’s sorting them out that’s tricky
Last year, Althea Prince made a surprising discovery. The Toronto author and editor was doing a Google search of her maiden name and learned that... Read the rest »
Secrets of the scanners: U of T joins controversial digital book world
Tucked away somewhere on the labyrinthine second floor of the University of Toronto’s John M. Kelly Library is the Scribe. Like its namesake from days... Read the rest »
Measuring up: Libraries find new ways to track performance and connect with patrons
In the popular imagination, librarians are avatars of order; they sit upright behind their desks, totally composed, masters of a calm, unchanging domain. In reality,... Read the rest »
School reading program hits Target: How one librarian built a more boy-friendly campaign
Four years ago, a group of secondary school librarians in Ontario’s Durham Region got together and organized one of the largest, most successful high school... Read the rest »
The great graphic novel rush: Student interest spurs library spending
As public awareness of graphic novels increases, so does the genre’s mainstream popularity. But while media coverage tends to focus on graphic novels for adults,... Read the rest »
The host in the machine: How technology is transforming the library profession
When Art Rhyno got his computer science degree in 1988, his first job was reinventing the wheel. As a systems librarian at Memorial University, he... Read the rest »
Looking for leadership: New report highlights library staffing issues
The crisis of mass retirements in the near future, long a concern for Canadian libraries, may never materialize – at least not in the scope... Read the rest »
One-stop info shop: Canada’s merger of library and archives creates “massive multimedia collection”
The newly merged national Library and Archives Canada (LAC) is hoping its massive pool of resources – books, papers, films, and other materials – will... Read the rest »
Small steps for school libraries: But advocates struggle to reach some provincial ministries
This past February, the Toronto District School Board voted to hire 65 new teacher-librarians, to start next September, at a cost of nearly $5-million. The... Read the rest »
CLA convention finds librarians plagued by self-doubt: The profession is struggling to define a role for itself in the Internet economy
They wanted to assess the big picture – globalization, looming corporate influence, and the state of Canadian library service at the start of a new... Read the rest »
Are libraries destroying our print heritage?: Nicholson Baker thinks so, but some Canadian librarians accuse the U.S. author of “oversimplifying”
Heaving open a massive bound volume of the Kingston Whig-Standard recently, Diane Cook made an unfortunate discovery. The crumbling pages of the newspaper’s 1944 editions... Read the rest »
Nfld library workers sent packing: More than 30 jobs relocated as part of “regionalization” initiative
The Newfoundland library community is reacting with dismay to a provincial government “regionalization initiative” that will relocate more than 30 library positions in June.... Read the rest »
Libraries embrace business model: Branding campaign, cost control dominate OLA agenda
We’re still here. We’re still rich with ideas.” Liz Hoffman’s closing words at the final luncheon of the Ontario Library Association’s February Super Conference... Read the rest »
CNIB seeks alternatives to print: Lobbies feds for funding
Canada is thought to be relatively enlightened when it comes to accommodating disabled people, but unlike countries such as Denmark, Russia, South Africa, and the... Read the rest »
Windsor PL offers online book club
For those too busy to stop by their local library for a leisurely browse, the Windsor Public Library has a solution. Members who join the... Read the rest »
Libraries draw on PR specialists to buff up their image
Putting a positive face on the business, handling controversies and strikes, getting that all-important message out to the public – those are the typical public... Read the rest »
TPL partners with local hospital
The Toronto Public Library has formed a partnership with the Scarborough Hospital to provide public access to the library’s consumer health information service database through... Read the rest »
Libraries target seniors with new programs, services: People over 65 are less likely to use their public library, but several systems are working to change that
When the Greater Victoria Public Library replaced the date-due cards in its books with a computerized receipt system three years ago, chief librarian Sandra Anderson... Read the rest »
The incredible shrinking library association: The rise of electronic communications and a demographic shift have created membership headaches for CLA, PNLA
The contrast was striking. In one of the large conference rooms at Kelowna’s Grand Okanagan Resort this spring, some 200 members of the British Columbia... Read the rest »
Richmond PL offering courses over the Net: A public library first in Canada
Self-serve checkouts, e-book readers, and now Library U: Richmond Public Library in Richmond, B.C., is extending its reputation as an early adopter by being the... Read the rest »
Libraries vs. superstores a burning issue at CLA 2000
In sessions like “What’s Next for Public Libraries” and “The Role of Libraries in the Digital Age,” 1,100 library professionals from across Canada debated the... Read the rest »
Donations and volunteers keep Ontario library afloat
The Gallanough Resource Centre in the Toronto suburb of Thornhill is a library by any other name – but legally it can’t be called one,... Read the rest »
Libraries test e-mail reference services: Canada to participate in pilot project for global network
If you have a tough question you can’t find an answer for, you can go to the Richmond Public Library web site. And whether or... Read the rest »
National Library plans major digital boost
Access to Canadian libraries’ digital collections is about to become easier. The National Library of Canada recently announced the establishment of a national digital library,... Read the rest »
Literacy takes centre stage at CLA: Internet issues, future of information will also be discussed at edmonton conference
That very basic of library activities, reading, is the theme of this year’s Canadian Library Association conference, which takes place at Edmonton’s Shaw Conference Centre... Read the rest »
OLA plans a shake-up: Association aims to break down internal divisions
Library conferences encourage librarians to share ideas, but how do you promote a stimulating exchange of opinions the rest of the time? The question has... Read the rest »
Libraries discover the art of the deal: Better bargains through consortia
Iqaluit’s public library, a medium-sized facility serving the capital of Nunavut on the southern part of Baffin Island, recently acquired its first electronic reference tool,... Read the rest »
New Toronto system gets first contract: Negotiators narrowly avoid strike
The Toronto Public Library Board has negotiated a collective agreement with the Toronto Civic Employee’s Union, CUPE Local 416, avoiding a strike that would have... Read the rest »
Newfoundland libraries get $1-million boost: One-time infusion will put much-needed book on bare shelves
Bernice Morgan, a leading Newfoundland writer, rarely visits her local public library. Once an avid library patron, she’s noticed a decline in service during the... Read the rest »
Gates Fdn awards $20-million so far: More Canadian grants still to come
Library associations in seven provinces have begun doling out more than $20-million in grants awarded by the Gates Library Foundation. So far, Ontario has topped... Read the rest »
TPL to get major funding boost: System will spend $7-million this year on capital projects, including a new branch
City politicians have approved a substantial increase in the Toronto Public Library’s capital budget, earmarking more money for renovations and branch reconstruction across the amalgamated... Read the rest »
Study tallies library use: More than one million items in use every day
Recently released figures documenting public, academic, and special library use in 1996 – the latest year to be surveyed by Canada’s National Core Library Statistics... Read the rest »
U of T buys Caribbean author’s manuscripts
Sixty-eight boxes of manuscripts from the Nobel Prize-winning author Derek Walcott are settling into their new home at the University of Toronto. Under an agreement... Read the rest »
Quebec national library to open in 2003
An international jury chaired by architectural guru Phyllis Lambert will select the design for Quebec’s Grande Bibliothèque, which will open its doors in October 2003,... Read the rest »
Avoiding disaster often means planning for one: Libraries face the special problem of protecting material that may be irreplaceable
One morning last December, employees at the National Library of Canada smelled sulphuric fumes emanating from a computer room’s power supply unit. Quickly forming what... Read the rest »
U of C library offers electronic reserve
A digital licensing agreement developed by CanCopy and the University of Calgary is now allowing the university library to offer some of its students a... Read the rest »
The National Library ushers in change: Newly appointed National Librarian Roch Carrier outlines his vision for the future of the NLC in a digital age
When Roch Carrier assumed the role of National Librarian in October, he embarked on a two-week, 12-city tour, from Vancouver to Iqaluit to Charlottetown, asking... Read the rest »
Ontario College of Teachers opens library: New facility serves teachers across the province
When the nascent Ontario College of Teachers asked Chris Ball to serve as its first manager of library and archival services three years ago, he... Read the rest »
Libraries face “skills gap”: 48% of librarians could retire by 2005
Last January the chief executive officer of Ontario’s London Public Library announced his retirement. An accredited librarian traditionally fills that position, so the library board... Read the rest »
Librarians test e-commerce waters: Paying fines online is just the beginning, administrators say
For many libraries, an Internet presence means providing an online catalogue and promotional information. But for B.C.’s Richmond Public Library, the Net is slowly beginning... Read the rest »
Public lending right faces challenging future: International conference raises questions about who should benefit in digital age
Ken Jensen drew laughs when he taped a diagram of a computer over the book that dominates the logo of the Public Lending Right Commission.... Read the rest »
As prices for journals rise, librarians seek alternatives: Canadian National Site Licensing Project one of many projects being touted worldwide
A groundbreaking $50-million plan to provide coast-to-coast electronic access to scientific publications is gearing up for action this fall. The Canadian National Site Licensing Project... Read the rest »
Libraries denied access to gaming money: Proceeds from casinos, bingo off-limits, Ontario government says
Just when Ontario libraries thought the belt couldn’t get any tighter, the provincial government appears to have cinched it in further. In their... Read the rest »
Amalgamation brings major changes to TPL: Gains in some areas, losses in others as board streamlines services throughout the system’s 98 branches
Sometime this November, patrons of Toronto’s public libraries will notice a subtle but profound change to the system’s computer terminals. For the first time, the... Read the rest »
Report outlines future for National Library, National Archives: Study released one day after controversial appointment of Roch Carrier as National Librarian
Author Roch Carrier’s appointment as Canada’s new National Librarian has “shocked and insulted” the library community, says Lorraine McQueen, president of the Canadian Library Association... Read the rest »
Long-standing drug law a bane for libraries: Professor calls ban on illegal drug literature "a dangerous curb on intellectual freedom"
You probably won’t see narcotics police raiding your local library any time soon. But should a patron take offence at discovering a title about illegal... Read the rest »
Internet filtering, library marketing hot topics at CLA conference
Whether or not this year’s Canadian Library Association conference lived up to its title – “Facing the Challenges: A Practical Survival Guide” – delegates who... Read the rest »
TPL appoints advocate for youth services: Ken Setterington to raise funds for Toronto library programs
Ken Setterington doesn’t promise that more children’s librarians will be hired because of his new job, but as Toronto Public Library’s first advocate for children... Read the rest »
Children’s book database going online
Sometime within the next year, computer users will be able to tap into the resources of the Canadian Children’s Book Centre via a comprehensive online... Read the rest »
Library student launches CLA campus chapter
A student at the University of Western Ontario’s library information science program has launched a campus chapter of the Canadian Library Association. Nadaleen Tempelman-Kluit,... Read the rest »
Study examines library buying
A recent study commissioned by the Association of Canadian Publishers to find ways its members can improve sales to libraries concluded there is no way... Read the rest »
The next copyright fight
I think it’s war. The forces of light and of darkness are about to come head to head, again. Each side is... Read the rest »
Patrons are doin’ it for themselves – or are they?: Self-serve checkouts are a tough sell
When B.C.’s Richmond Public Library opened its newest location last December, it set out to offer patrons a wide array of techno-friendly features. The Ironwood... Read the rest »
Festival thanks librarians
Librarians past and present will receive tribute at the third annual Festival of Words in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. The six-day celebration of writing and... Read the rest »
The truly personal computer
Many librarians promote a shift from the bricks-and-mortar library to the electronic library. But as yet, we don’t know how to build a library in... Read the rest »
CNIB partners with U.K. library to trade in Braille
Blind and visually impaired readers who can’t find what they want through CNIB’s Library for the Blind in Toronto can now call for material across... Read the rest »
Priorities for a new decade: Librarians and publishers should resolve technological issues together
Libraries and publishers play an important role in the information continuum. Through our individual and collective efforts, we add significant value to the process of... Read the rest »
A banner year
To celebrate the 50th year of the world-renowned Osborne Collection of Early Children’s Books, children’s author Linda Granfield is creating a quilt incorporating images from... Read the rest »
CLA ‘99 preview
One group sells, the other lends, but booksellers and librarians will discuss their common interest in the fate of books at this year’s combined Canadian... Read the rest »
Homeless patrons pose challenges for libraries: Sensitivity training touted to help staff cope
Every day at the same time, the same man arrives at Toronto’s Lillian Smith Library. He sits down at a stall, takes out all his... Read the rest »
Libraries say no to user fees: Principle of free access gains ground across country
Good news for librarians and library-lovers across Canada: despite attempts in several provinces to “rationalize” library financing by charging user fees, the principle of free... Read the rest »
Alberta plans province-wide library card
A new library card in Alberta will allow users to borrow books from not just a single institution, but from all around the province. The... Read the rest »
Information's crucial role: Why organizations need knowledge management to succeed
The telephone, for a consultant like me, is like Forrest Gump’s box of chocolates: You never know what you’re gonna get. My telephone rang on... Read the rest »
To filter or not to filter?: Burlington library seeks legal opinion
As public Internet use has increased in libraries across Canada, so too have debates among boards, staff, and patrons about filtering. Filtering software can... Read the rest »
Internet dominates OLA conference
Anyone who still doubts that Internet issues have come to dominate the library profession must have missed the Ontario Library Association’s fifth annual Super Conference,... Read the rest »
School library design moves into the digital age: OSLA task force updates 20-year-old standards
As at most schools across the country, the noon-hour bell at Dr. Ross Tilley Public School in Bowmanville, Ontario, triggers a typical commotion in the... Read the rest »
Designing librarians
Our high school library has had its share of recent ups and downs. The whole town was excited when the previous NDP government approved the... Read the rest »
New business libraries take the risk out of investment
The success of a special library in Toronto that offers free, non-promotional information about personal finance and investing has led to the creation of a... Read the rest »
Victoria Public Library rights historic wrong
Libraries are in the business of supplying information, not apologies. But at an emotional public ceremony in November, Greater Victoria Public Library (GVPL) owned up... Read the rest »
Gates to offer grants
The Gates Library Foundation has launched a Canadian grant program to provide public libraries in low-income communities with computer hardware, software, Internet hook-ups, and staff... Read the rest »
Electronic chaos: Emergence of library consortiums leads to confusion
I have glimpsed the maelstrom that is electronic publishing, and confusion reigns. For two days in early October I attended the fourth conference of the... Read the rest »
Toronto library boosts Internet presence
Staff at the Toronto Reference Library hope to bring a measure of serenity to the cacophonous World Wide Web by launching a Virtual Reference Library... Read the rest »
The trouble with teens: Libraries are finding ways to meet the needs of this difficult audience
Patrick Jones, a U.S. expert on teens, doesn’t mince words when he describes the problems that can arise when teenagers use libraries. “Libraries are quiet,... Read the rest »
Hamilton’s solution
As a proud but often confused parent of two teenagers, I am well aware of the importance of communication. Having struggled through Remedial Listening 101,... Read the rest »
Infiltrating Miami: This popular Snowbird spot is the perfect market for Canadian children’s books
Living abroad can help put one’s own country and culture in perspective and, for me, Miami has been a good vantage point from which to... Read the rest »
Friends groups take more active role nationally: Val Marshall’s new association hopes to bring far-flung Friends together
Having operated in isolation for years, Friends of the Library groups have arrived officially in the library community with the launch of a new national... Read the rest »
The sincerest form of flattery
Recently there has been much concern expressed about the impact of superstores on smaller, independent booksellers. However I haven’t seen any mention of their possible... Read the rest »
CLA ponders digital utopias: Input sought into the next phase of copyright reform
The closing of corporate libraries, cutbacks in library hours and services, the disappearance of teacher-librarians, and the inadequacy of school library resources were among the... Read the rest »
Library defends free-speech policy
An intellectual freedom crisis erupted during last month’s Canadian Library Association annual conference. As librarians met inside Victoria’s Conference Centre on June 18 –... Read the rest »
Opportunities in information
The library profession used to have a clear and distinct territory: We were librarians working in libraries. We enjoyed intellectually challenging routines in a structured... Read the rest »
Hitting the jackpot: Forget book sales and coffee shops: For library fundraisers, the sky’s the limit
Every year for the last three years, the Friends of the Oakville Public Library in Oakville, Ontario has raised money through two book sales and... Read the rest »
The association that’s difficult to love: It operates at a distance from most librarians, but CLA is still vital to the profession’s success
Seven years of service with the Canadian Library Association gives me the distinction of being the third-longest serving executive director in the 50-year history of... Read the rest »
Mining the Web yields fool’s gold: Hidden high costs make the Internet an info-age white elephant
I recently visited an enormous library where I was hoping to find information on pollutants that mimic hormones and cause reproductive dysfunctions. Ninety-nine per cent... Read the rest »
Managing web access a challenge for librarians: Line-ups, staff training, and filtering controversial content are just a few of the issues confronting librarians
Public Internet access is fast becoming a common feature at library branches across the country. And it’s also becoming a headache for librarians. As... Read the rest »
The pains of progress: All is not rosy in digital library land
Change occurs more slowly than hypesters predict, but its impact is often more profound than expected. This is especially true of libraries in the digital... Read the rest »
Recruiting drive: The CLA's new director is targeting special librarians in a bid to raise membership to 3,000 by 2001
Vicki Whitmell, the new executive director of the Canadian Library I Association, plans to take a cross-country road trip this fall as part of the... Read the rest »
OLA launches Red Maple award
The popularity of the Ontario Library Association's Silver Birch Awards has led to the introduction of a spin-off reading program this year geared toward students... Read the rest »
Etobicoke turns to patrons for feedback
During times of finding cutbacks, 1 libraries often rely on user input to make J tough decisions about what to cut, what not to, and... Read the rest »
Avoiding the crumb police
Like many new parents, I have rediscovered the world of the lending library after a prolonged absence. I am a long-time user of Toronto's excellent... Read the rest »
Into Africa: Canadian librarians Troy Myers and Deb deBruijn found they had a lot to offer - and much to learn - while posted abroad
Colleagues’ heated debates I over the perfect size and colour for book delivery bins never phases Troy Myers, the branch manager at Nova Scotia's Dartmouth... Read the rest »
When the RCMP comes calling: Why librarians need to understand the principles of intellectual freedom
Often fighting intellectual freedom issues involves taking a deep breath and remembering that we are defending a principle as opposed to the specific material that... Read the rest »
Workers nervous as Toronto library merger proceeds: Job losses, service changes expected when seven boards amalgamate on Jan. 1
For public library workers across Toronto the new year represents a transition period fraught with tension and uncertainty. Jan. 1 is the official date for... Read the rest »
Creating a useful “cyberplace”
Like many other organizations, libraries are eagerly establishing World Wide Web home pages, links, and content to establish a place in cyberspace. But the nature... Read the rest »
Volunteer-run library in B.C. may lose funding: Provincial library association objects to use of membership contributions
Residents of B.C.'s Salt Spring Island believe their library- a cost-efficient rural facility that enjoys an unusually high level of participation by book lovers and... Read the rest »
A librarian’s life: Mary Beaty ends a 30-year career in the stacks
I’ve run out of reasons to explain why I'm leaving my job. It's increasingly difficult to explain why I'm exchanging a good salary and the... Read the rest »
The unkindest cut of all
Imagine that your library director has walked into your office and ordered you to dispose of the institution’s special collections. A grim and desperate scenario?... Read the rest »
The new information pros: As public library jobs dry up, librarians are pitching their skills to the private sector, or setting up shop for themselves
Barbara Samson-Willis is a trained librarian, but she’s more likely to be found roaming graveyards for lost ancestors than helping lost souls come to grips... Read the rest »
Looking for work
Information resources consultant Françoise Hébert, who teaches Information Entrepreneurship at the Faculty of Information Studies at the University of Toronto, offers the following guidelines to... Read the rest »
It’s time to revamp library education: More emphasis needed on technological, management, and marketing skills
Those who practice continuous learning are in and those who don’t are out. This is a frequent refrain these days when we talk about changes... Read the rest »
Libraries pool electronic resources: Consortia find savings by sharing databases
As libraries scramble to meet the surge in demand for electronic information – served up via costly high-tech hardware – a growing number of institutions... Read the rest »
Let librarians rule the Net
A recent article in a business magazine complained that it is harder and harder to find anything on the Internet. One solution that holds great... Read the rest »
Cataloguing the Web: Librarians bring order to a chaotic medium
Librarians often describe the Internet as a library with its entire collection filed under “miscellaneous,” where all the books – minus their covers and classification... Read the rest »
Lost opportunity
The closet can make you a less effective librarian. Consider this missed opportunity to offer real help to a patron: An older man... Read the rest »
The changing face of libraries: CLA '97 looks at new ways to challenge old assumptions
It didn’t seem to matter whether they came from a university, a corporation, or a children’s department: Everyone at the 1997 Canadian Library Association conference... Read the rest »
Quebec libraries need more than mots justes
Library advocacy is more desperately needed in Quebec than in any other province. Which is why I have made a lifelong commitment... Read the rest »
Sainte-Agathe suffers flood damage
Last month’s flood in southern Manitoba appears to have caused damages at only one facility – a school and public library sharing quarters in Sainte-Agathe,... Read the rest »
Librarians uneasy with copyright changes
After spending almost 10 years negotiating details, seeking assurances from government, and protesting unexpected amendments, librarians are greeting the recent round of changes to Canada’s... Read the rest »
Start your engines: Locating Web book sources has never been easier
Many librarians tend to think of the Internet as a quick reference source for phone books or news headlines, rather than as a source that... Read the rest »
Stop, thief!: Theft and vandalism cost Canadian libraries millions of dollars annually. Bu some systems are fighting back.
When metro Toronto library systems went public with news of a “$1-million robbery” taking place annually in their buildings, they deliberately exposed what one librarian... Read the rest »
Information’s new age: Can libraries reinvent themselves for the future?
Libraries and librarians need to reinvent themselves for the years ahead – or risk becoming irrelevant in a “disintermediated” world where library patrons are finding... Read the rest »
With a little help from our friends: CLA to hold first national meeting of library supporters
Two divisions of CLA – the Canadian Library Trustees Association and the Canadian Association of Public Libraries – are co-sponsoring a day devoted exclusively to... Read the rest »
A new theory of evolution
I’ve never paid very close attention to what Bill Gates has to say about this or that, but I confess I like what the Microsoft... Read the rest »
Library CEO replaced by part-time manager: Peterborough, Ont. precedent could mark trend away from professional staffing, librarians fear
In a controversial effort to cut costs, Peterborough Public Library Board has eliminated the library’s chief executive officer position, laid off the incumbent CEO, and... Read the rest »
Preserving public information
In an information society, you’d think that governments would pay serious attention to information policy. You’d think that they would develop an overarching information policy... Read the rest »
More readings, please
We’ve all seen them: the authors sitting bolt upright behind the little table, a neat stack of books piled alongside them waiting to be signed.... Read the rest »
Future shock: Robots, drive-thrus herald library of tomorrow
In decades to come, will libraries just be a stop in cyberspace? Does the future mean virtual collections of digitized books and papers, and few... Read the rest »
Ontario proposes overhaul of Libraries Act: Draft legislation would allow boards to set user fees on all but a few services
Ontario libraries will be able to introduce user fees on a wide range of services and municipalities will be free to choose the make-up of... Read the rest »
Layoffs at Metro Reference
Thirty-seven people have been laid off from their jobs at Metropolitan Toronto Reference Library. A one-week closure has also been announced as a further cost-cutting... Read the rest »
To the barricades!: It’s time for the literati to defend free libraries
I had just finished posting on our web site the provincial government’s bill to strip the Ontario Public Library Act of funding, free access, and... Read the rest »
Librarian, activist
Why are so few people of African descent drawn to Canadian librarianship? That’s a question I ask myself every once in a while. Some of... Read the rest »
Symposium to address danger of school library “collapse”
Disappointing, inconsistent, critical. These words describe the situation of this country’s 14,000-plus school libraries, says a group prominent in teacher-librarianship that’s planning a national... Read the rest »
Library boards, Metro Ref may merge
Ontario’s plan to amalgamate the local governments in the Toronto area may bring substantial changes to the bureaucratic structure of the city’s public library system,... Read the rest »
Exploding copyright myths
In preparing this short statement on copyright, I should start with my biases. I confess to the following: I’m a librarian concerned with equitable access... Read the rest »
Libraries spend big on books, magazines
The library action committee of the Book and Periodical Council is now finalizing a paper showing that public libraries make significant contributions to cultural, financial,... Read the rest »
Libraries enlist grassroots to stave off funding crisis: CLA hopes to train one million library advocates by the end of the decade
In the midst of an unending funding crunch, library groups and grassroots activists are stepping up their efforts to demonstrate the value of libraries... Read the rest »
Wholesalers gaining clout as libraries cut costs: The outsourcing of book-buying decisions is raising concerns among librarians that collection quality may suffer
As public libraries look for new ways to cut costs and free up staff time for front-line service, a growing number are using wholesalers to... Read the rest »
A tale of two cities: Toronto might look to Singapore as it ponders library cuts
I expected Singapore to be different from Toronto when I arrived for a six-month fellowship at Nanyang Technological University. It would be hot and humid.... Read the rest »
High-tech equipment expands library services for the visually impaired
In a multimedia, networked age, where do people who are blind or visually impaired find themselves? In the thick of things. Digital communication,... Read the rest »
Bright lights, big computer
Doctors have beepers, electrical engineers can find the fuse box, but no one ever asks, “Is there a librarian in the house?” Until now. Overnight,... Read the rest »
International collaboration identifies challenges for libraries
Chances are those who have never heard the name Bertelsmann have borrowed something from their public library, be it a book, magazine, or CD, that... Read the rest »
UWO library school in merger
The Graduate School of Library and Information Science (SLIS) at the University of Western Ontario has become part of a new Faculty of Communication and... Read the rest »
Ontario libraries fight to save boards
Is a public library at risk if it’s run directly by city hall rather than a library board? That’s a question that surfaces periodically –... Read the rest »
Through the blender
Don't worry, be happy – that’s the message public libraries in Nova Scotia are getting from politicos about the upcoming blended GST/PST (or BST) on... Read the rest »
CLA ‘96: Libraries ponder doing more with less
The breezy “sail into our future” slogan fit the Halifax setting of the 51st annual Canadian Library Association (CLA) conference, the warm Maritime hospitality that... Read the rest »
A lighthearted case for conventions
Technology is making it possible to be electronically – rather than physically – present at conferences. So, why not just telecommute to library events? One... Read the rest »
Virtual U: Ontario student Brenda Shestowsky didn’t want to attend classes to get a master's degree in library science. So she earned one through the Internet.
U.S. universities are turning to the world’s biggest blackboard – the Internet – to teach. And because their counterparts on this side of the border... Read the rest »
The tomes they are a changin’
Each new medium that has come along in the last century – film, radio, television, and computers – has been hailed as both a boon... Read the rest »
CLA marks 50th: History, high-tech to take centre stage at Halifax convention
The Canadian Library Association (CLA) will celebrate the past with an eye to the future at its 51st annual conference, being held June 5-9 at... Read the rest »
Slow burn: Cutbacks, changing technology aggravating librarians' stress
Believe Carol, a Toronto library assistant, when she tells you libraries are not quiet. Given the stresses she’s faced on the job, it’s surprising she... Read the rest »
Seeking sanctuary: For some, libraries are much more than a place to read
We call them “The Regulars.” They huddle outside the library entrance while the staff boot the terminals, stick the morning newspapers on rods, and share... Read the rest »
Creating order from anarchy: The National Library of Canada ponders how to preserve Internet
As guardian of the collective memory, a national library prides itself on gathering together a country’s complete published record. But what should it do about... Read the rest »
Close encounters of the reference kind
Imagine: Your library has recently launched a reference service via electronic mail. It’s an attempt to be responsive to a community increasingly networked and aware... Read the rest »
Saving grades: Budget cutters see teacher-librarians as expendable, but many say education would suffer greatly without them
Michelle Larose-Kuzenko, a Winnipeg teacher-librarian, knows her profession is often misunderstood. Some people believe a computer can do her work, presuming the virtual library has... Read the rest »
Deja Vu: Cuts to public libraries threaten a return to
Public libraries are under siege, attacked by deficit-slashing politicians from both the left – as in (traditionally) Quebec – and the right – as in... Read the rest »
Censuring the censors
Hope for library grads - if you’re flexible
Open roads
Taking care of business: Public libraries turn to fundraising
Special case: Special librarians are critical to the future
Double jeopardy: Native libraries face complex mandate
There’s the issue that’s been raised by some of the chiefs,” says Jim Bruce, library and informational services director at the Saskatchewan Indian Cultural Centre,... Read the rest »
Rethinking Western’s civilization
The University of Western Ontario’s Graduate School of Library and Information Science (SLIS) will be merged into a faculty of communication if an idea now... Read the rest »
Tradition vs. technology: Reorganization of children’s services
Conflict of values has come to a head at Toronto Public Library (TPL) over a recent “reorganization” of children’s services. The reorganization plan, overseen by... Read the rest »
Should the scholarly journal go electronic? A publisher says: let's not let a love affair with technology go to our heads
I once read an article on the myth of rational decision-making in higher education. The thrust of the article was not that we make bad... Read the rest »
Should the scholarly journal go electronic? A librarian says: here's a solution to the vicious cycle in scholarly publishing
There is a crisis in scholarly publishing: the sharply rising cost of journals is making it increasingly difficult for libraries, hamstrung by shrinking budgets, to... Read the rest »
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