Tag Archives: LibraryCity.org

An e-smart family literacy approach for Rockford, Illinois? Back to the future?

Could children be better readers if we went “back to the future,” even in the era of e-books and calls for massive budget calls? I’ll share thoughts. But first let’s hear from Andy Strong, a children’s librarian at the library in Rockford, Illinois, during the 1990s: “When the library cut its hours, it drastically reduced storytime [...]

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Coming: More ideas on mitigating Rockford’s e-book mess and other cities’

Update: The follow-up was Should OverDrive sell itself to America’s public libraries? I’m not done yet. Rockford, Illinois, is a depressing but oh-so-useful example of America’s e-book crisis—and of the risk that it could pit the well-off and the cash-strapped against each other. Later today or tomorrow I’ll offer detailed ideas far beyond yesterday’s. On [...]

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WaPo article on e-book crunch at public libraries is must-read for DPLA Tech Aspects Workstream members and others

Both at LibraryJournal.com and LibraryCity.org, I’ve reminded the Digital Public Library of America that it needs to serve public library users well, not just the academic variety. That’s been my goal since the early 1990s when I first proposed a national digital library system well integrated with local schools and public libraries. Nowadays I actually [...]

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DPLA vs. real public libraries? New camels’ noses under the tent? ‘Concept note’ goes beyond ‘digital’

Part I of Historical Society blog interview with DPLA advocate Robert Darnton The Digital Public Library of America is out with a new "concept note,” and, alas, our DPLA friends still don’t grasp the franchise and branding issues of genuine public libraries—cash-strapped and already having their roles chipped away by Amazon, Google, and others. Perhaps [...]

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Welcome to LibraryCity.org!

We’re about the need for a well-stocked national digital library system for all Americans—not just the elite or those in big cities. This shouldn’t be a partisan issue, given all the benefits for K-12 students and others. None other the late William F. Buckley Jr., the conservative columnist, advocated such a system. And while not [...]

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