As of June 30, 2009, the Network Education Exchange, which made it possible for members of regional networks such as Nylink, SOLINET, NELINET, and AMIGOS to take distance ed classes at other networks at member rates, will no longer be available. Thanks to all the networks who have participated in this large-scale cooperative effort!

I received a message from a colleague that indicates CoOL will be moving to AIC.  Apparently Stanford has agreed to turn over the content and control of CoOL and the Conservation DistList to AIC.  The transfer should be taking place very soon.  Updates are to come over the DistList so stay tuned.

News came over the Museum-L listserv late last week that Stanford University will no longer be hosting CoOL (Conservation Online) and the Conservation Distlist.  Both of these resources are used by many folks as places to find out the latest information on conservation and preservation related issues.

Below is more information:

ate: 10 Jun 2009
From: Catherine Tierney <ctierney [at] stanford__edu>
Subject: CoOL and the Conservation DistList

Dear Colleagues,

This is a difficult posting to write.  For twenty two years, it has been Stanford University Libraries’ great pleasure to serve and support the conservation community by hosting Conservation OnLine.
Sadly, Stanford—like so many other institutions—has been hurt by the economy.  As a result, we have had to make difficult choices. It is with deep regret that I inform you that we are no longer able to support CoOL.  We feel it is important to alert you to this change as we are aware that so many of you rely on the distribution list as a medium of communication; there are still a number of things to be worked out.

<URL:http://news.stanford.edu/news/2009/june17/layoffs-061709.html>

Catherine Tierney
Associate University Librarian for Technical Services Stanford University Libraries and Academic Information Resources

——————————

Date: 10 Jun 2009
From: Walter Henry <request [at] cool__stanford__edu>
Subject: CoOL and the Conservation DistList

It has been a great pleasure and privilege to work with this community and I look forward to finding ways to continue to do so.
I’ve always held that conservation professionals were, as a class, unusually committed to the cause they serve; we really do care deeply about the cultural materials we are lucky enough to work with, and that care takes form in a remarkable dedication to the profession, to the ethical foundations upon which it is built, and to the community of practitioners from whatever discipline or specialty.

So, at the beginning of what would have been the DistList’s twenty third year it is with great sadness, but also with some sense of pride, that I finally give up this enterprise and that of Conservation OnLine as a whole.  I don’t know exactly what will happen to the resources here but I have every faith that their fate will be in good hands.

I would like to thank, with all sincerity, Stanford University Libraries and Academic Information Resources, my own department, the systems and IT staff, and most of all the directorate, who have been unfalteringly supportive of my work all these years, and I know would continue to be so were the world in just a little better shape than it is now.

As DistList tradition demands, I leave you a final accounting:  As of this day, the Conservation DistList comprises 9696 people from at least 91 countries. Conservation OnLine contains, at a very rough guess, 120,000 documents, possibly quite a few more.  I hope they have been useful to you all, and I hope to be of service to you as we move into the future.

onward,
walter

In July, OCLC will add metasearch functionality to WorldCat Local.

WorldCat Local metasearch will enable users to search your library’s collections, library resources in WorldCat, electronic resources from OCLC and other content providers from a single search with integrated search results. In addition, relevancy ranking will feature your library’s resources in results lists.

Learn more about the upcoming addition to WorldCat Local at a webinar on Thursday, June 25 at 1:00 – 2:00 PM Eastern. This program will include a sneak preview of the metasearch functionality planned for July along with overview of OCLC’s plans for future development of the service.

Register here to attend the WorldCat Local metasearch webinar:  https://www3.oclc.org/app/request/bin/request.asp?specialCode=WorldCat%20Local%20metasearch

Springer eBook Collections comprise the world’s most comprehensive digitized scientific, technical and medical (STM) book collection. The Springer Protocols Collection of peer-reviewed life sciences protocols, based on tried and tested resources, includes more than 18,000 protocols with an additional 2,000 added each year. Nylink now offers great discounts on both to its members and affiliates. For more information about how Nylink and Springer working together means discounts for you, please contact services@nylink.org, or call us at 518-443-5444 or 800-342-3353.

Like many other children of the 70s, I still have a few hundred vinyl LPs, and a few dozen cassette tapes. I have in some cases replaced them with CDs, but there hasn’t been a compelling reason to dispose of the albums to which I have a sentimental attachment. Holding on to media that has outlasted its equipment is a more serious challenge for libraries, which have so many demands on their floor space, and may need to devote more time to current and upcoming media formats.

University at Buffalo libraries currently feature a thoughtful exhibit entitled Retro Media: Memory (and Memories) Lost: The physical exhibit at the UB libraries is complemented by a video tour and a concise, well-constructed website.

The theme of the exhibit: “The past 120 years saw some of the most rapid changes in how we record, collect, and use audio, visual, and now digital information. The pace creates in its wake, a long list of obsolete technologies, some of which, still exist, but for which equipment and storage technologies are not always available. This exhibit reflects this light-speed, developing technology world with a selection of media formats”. Retro Media also highlights the role of libraries in preserving, storing, and using outdated media. To see the exhibit online, visit http://library.buffalo.edu/asl/exhibits/technology/retro-media.html

Or enjoy a video tour of the exhibit: http://theory.isthereason.com/?p=2612

If you’re a WilsonWeb user, and a MP3 player aficionado (and who isn’t these days?), check out WilsonWeb’s new ReadSpeaker functionality.  This new, free, tool converts HTML files from nearly 20 popular Wilson databases into audio files to either take along with you, or to use as read-along supplements, great for learning or visually challenged users.  To learn more, visit Wilson’s online demo.

Save the date!  The Library Assistants’ Day is on Tuesday, November 3, in Syracuse.  This is the third year of the popular conference.  Registration information is coming soon.
Here are some of the sessions:

Customer Service: FISH

How to Develop and Market Library Exhibits and Displays

Genealogy

Effective Communication and Time Management

Microsoft Applications Update

And more…

This just came over Nyline and might be of interest to folks who are interested in developing poetry programming at the library.  Plus you get the chance to check out Poets House new digs…

The Poetry in The Branches National Institute returns!  Join us this year in the spectacular new quarters of Poets House, opening this fall at 10 River Terrace in lower Manhattan.

Want to enrich the poetry resources and programming in your library? Join the staff of Poets House and guests, Keynote Speaker Mark Doty, winner of the 2008 National Book Award for Poetry, and brilliant, engaging faculty poets Dave Johnson and Tina Chang, for a weekend that has been described as “… very human, very open, very expanding and inspiring.”

Beginning at 1 pm on Friday, November 6, and continuing through Saturday afternoon, you will be immersed in the rich world of poetry. Here at Poets House you will learn how to reach out to and empower your patrons through poetry. Explore our 50,000 volume poetry library and find resources for developing your library’s poetry collection. Connect personally with our guest poets. Leave the weekend with a practical poetry plan for your library and lots of nuts-and-bolts information to help make that plan a reality. Take in our new view: the Hudson River all the way down to the Statue of Liberty. At night, eat and drink with your colleagues and experience the wealth of cultural events that New York City has to offer.

You will go home refreshed and inspired!

In the words of a former participant, “I really enjoyed the clear information (nuts & bolts) combined with the vision of the larger purpose of why we are here. You fed and nourished us with poetry–what better way to inspire us to share this type of experience with those we serve?”

Questions? Contact Marsha Howard, Poetry in the Branches Coordinator, at 212-431-7920 x 2213 or marsha@poetshouse.org

Full information including fees will be posted soon on our web site, www.poetshouse.org, where you can also learn much more about amazing resource that is Poets House!

Humanities Collections and Reference Resources Grant
The Division of Preservation and Access of the National Endowment for the Humanities will be  accepting applications for grants in its Humanities Collections and Reference Resources program.  These grants support projects to preserve and create intellectual access to such collections as books, journals, manuscript and archival materials, maps, still and moving images, sound recordings, art, and objects of material culture.  Awards also support the creation of reference materials, online resources, and research tools of major importance to the humanities.  Maximum awards are $350,000 for up to three years. The new guidelines, which include sample proposal narratives, can be found at:  http://www.neh.gov/grants/guidelines/HCRR.html .The application receipt deadline of July 15, 2009 is for projects beginning May 2010. All applications to NEH must be submitted electronically through Grants.gov .