Librarian's Rant

Because you get to hear gems like this one. Caveat: this did not happen to me, but instead happened to our newest reference assistant, Katie, who regaled me with it this morning.

This is roughly paraphrased, but you'll get the flow of the conversation:

Katie: Reference desk, may I help you?
Patron on Phone: I need you to find something for me.
K: Of course, what can I help you with?
P: Can you search for "God-given stretch marks"
(small pause)
K: Is this the name of a book or an article you want to find?
P: No, I just want to see what there is on this.
K: (trying to do a proper reference interview) Do you need medical information on the causes of stretch marks, or information on faith healing?
P: No, I had stretch marks, but then they just disappeared, and it must have been God's work! I want to find out about this.
K: (faithfully doing Google and OPAC searches like mad throughout conversation) I'm not really finding any information specifically on this. Again, we have books and articles on stretch marks and their causes and treatments. We also have items on faith healing or divine healing. Would these interest you?
P: No. Can you go to Google? Try that!
K: Well, I have been...
P: Try "God-given stretch marks" (she's clearly indicating that this is a single phrase)
K: I did try that...
P: Then try "stretch marks Jesus gave me".
K: ...I'm sorry, I don't seem to be finding anything on that specific topic...would you like to come in and do a search yourself?
P: No! Just give me the phone numbers to the Chicago Public Library and the Orange County Library. (why these two, we don't know)
K: (doing lookup) There are a number of branches for both of these library systems. Do you know which you want?
P: I've heard these are good libraries. (a-ha. sure, why not, let them try to find something)
K: I found a general phone tree number for Chicago, but not for Orange County. Do you know which library you want?
P: No, you pick one for me.

It occurred to Katie later that perhaps she should have asked if the stretch marks were in the shape of the Virgin Mary...

James Q. on the LU list sent this around.

Christian group pushing to filter porn from San Jose libraries
By Stephen Baxter
Article Launched: 10/19/2007 09:21:36 AM PDT
San Jose Mercury News, http://www.mercurynews.com/breakingnews/ci_7225171?nclick_check=1

A Christian group led in part by a former San Jose city councilman is pushing for anti-pornography filters on computers at the city's public libraries.

Computers with Internet access at the city's 18 public libraries are divided into areas for adults, teens and children, but there are no Internet filters installed. Library officials say they do not want to block information, and the policy is in line with a 1997 city council decision. The city council can change library policies, but the matter has not yet been placed on its agenda.

Larry Pegram, president and co-founder of the San Jose-based Values Advocacy Council, said the libraries' lack of filters recently came to the attention of the group.

"The city council has the right and the duty to control content on the computers in the public libraries," Pegram said. ...

Um, well, I hope he gets that the "content" isn't actually ON the computers, it's on the Internet and is being viewed via the computers.

Maybe they can tell him they're "filtering the hard drives" and he'll go away. sigh. I get that people are upset, but they need to understand the complexities of what they're trying to censor. And they need to understand that it is censorship, even if they want to call it "values". Call a spade a spade if you're going to use it to bury our freedoms.

I'm also a bit amused that this "recently came to the attention of the group". Where have you been living, a hole? Clearly the library (bless 'em) and the city council were giving consideration to this issue as far back as 1997.

In the spirit of RefGrunt, I give you my day:

Come in, realize that instead of having backup in the afternoon so I can get some frakking work done, instead I'm alone all day.
Start up patron PC's. Many of them waaaay slow. Oh crap. It was bad on Thursday, too, and I was afraid of this. We have a dying 3Com switch. Perhaps today is death day.
::We open::
Good morning, may I help you?
You have a study room booked? Bless you for booking ahead. Here's the key, may I have your ID? ...Wait, why are you handing the key to that kid and leaving? Oh, the kid is waiting for a tutor to arrive? Okay. Why didn't the tutor book the room in her name? That's SOP. Whatever...I just hope Mom comes back for her ID.
A visitor's pass to use the computers? Sure. (I print out 10, knowing the hordes are about to descend)
Visitor's pass? Sure
Visitor's pass? Sure
"How do I get your wireless access?" We have stupid proxy settings. Let me show you.
"Can I have headphones." Okay, sign here.
Your computer is slow, and won't sign in?
Yours won't sign in at all? Ah. Okay. It is death day. Move to another computer, as the ones on the other switch should work fine.
"Your wireless needs rebooting!" Well, no. Read the signs. We have stupid proxy settings. Let me show you.
Walk around area. Signs are mostly missing. ::sigh:: Print out more for temporary, which entails running up and down stairs to only color printer.
Wait for lull in hordes. Go downstairs to switch room. Switch is cycling off and on every 5 seconds. Death knell. Crap.
"How do I get your wireless access?" We have stupid proxy settings. Let me show you.
Call Head of IT on a Saturday. Thank god he likes me. "Hi, ***. Um, that bad switch? It's dying. Yeah. Is it okay to switch the affected stations onto the VERY few ports we have available on the other 2 switches? Yes? Okay, thanks. Stand in sweltering switch room (the entire library staff area is like 80 degrees F today) for 20 minutes or so with map of patron network in one hand (thank goodness I made that map with port numbers!) and following patch cables with the other. Massive spaghetti mess of cabling. Pull all the ones I'm responsible for, leave others to fend for themselves. Return to Ref Desk.
"Can I have headphones." Okay, sign here.
Circ staff member calls up to say so-and-so regular patron needs pictures of circus animals. Okay, is the patron here? (I'm confused, as I've been back at my desk for 10-15 minutes). Just send the patron up. No, really. Stop making a fuss and send him up. I make list of books and give to patron (who I recognize - long-time patron).
Visitor's pass? Sure
"How do I get your wireless access?" We have stupid proxy settings. Let me show you.
Lunchtime. Every time I want to leave, someone comes up. No lunch for me.
Quiets down...just in time for the Children's person to go to lunch (late), so that I can't. Frak.
Business picks up again. Visitor's pass? You betcha.
Study room? Well...there's like one left. Take it or leave it.
"Can I have headphones." Okay, sign here.
Friend comes in. Talk to her for a few minutes in between helping patrons.
Woman comes in with toddler in tow, plops down at PC. No toys for toddler, just sippy cup, nearly empty. I see danger ahead!
"Wireless, da?" We have stupid proxy settings. Let me show you. I don't speak Russian, but we both speak stupid Microsoft, so it goes fine.
"Java won't work on this machine" Erg. It won't work on any of our patron machines, then. Damn. Okay, come to my desk, we'll do it there. "Really?! You're so nice!" Honey, you just made my day!
Nice Sikh gentleman who was using study room asks what rules are about taking photos in library. I don't know, I just remember we had conversation about this with director and city atty. Get nice gentleman's name and number, and email director.
Visitor's pass? Sure
In between manage to respond to a dozen or more emails, 2 phone messages (including my homeowners assn board prez - I'm the secy - asking what I think about the latest bid from the fountain guy. It's cool. Sign it.)
Woman with toddler is ignoring her child while surfing pics on MySpace. Incredibly cute little girl, getting into potentially dangerous trouble. Gently try to guide little girl away from power cords and photocopier. Yes, by all means, yell at your child for banging the doors of the paper cabinet repeatedly, but don't actually get off your ass and care for your child. Bah!
Smelly guy wants USB extender, as usual. At least he knows the drill. Sign here.
Toddler starts to play with rolling chair. Chair is much bigger than she is, and looks about to tip. Mother notices not at all, until I say "honey, that's not safe, can we put that back?" in my nicest aunt voice. She DRAGS her child back by ONE arm - I thought she was going to dislocate it! I watch, but she doesn't bother to talk to child.
Visitor's pass? Sure
"I can see your wireless. Why can't I get to Net? Do you just hate me?" I couldn't say. We have stupid proxy settings. Let me show you.
Toddler is wailing in despair, cuz mommy won't even look at her while telling her to shut up. I secretly run downstairs, check there are stations to be had in Children's area, run back upstairs. (Had to do that cuz Children's person is STILL at lunch. Bah! I don't even get lunch!) Nonchalantly walk past woman with toddler, pretend to do something at adjacent computer, then say in my perkiest voice "Hey, you know, there are stations downstairs in Children's, if you'd like to work on one while she plays with the toys" Woman gives me nasty, dirty look. Whatever, lady, if I had my druthers you'd be talking to social services. She gathers up her stuff and goes downstairs. I hope to Children's. Or better yet to spend quality time with her really very nice but neglected child.
Children's person finally gets out of lunch. I tell him about toddler lady, and ask him to find appropriate toys for little girl if he can do it quietly - Mom will likely not notice.
Call woman sponsoring the preconference I'm supposed to be doing in (frak!) 11 days. I so have no idea if I'm doing what they want. Go over it with her, shoot the breeze, she tells me it sounds fine, I breathe a bit easier. She then tells me I may or may not have wireless access. Frak! Allright. I'll get out the hand puppets. ::sigh:: Oh, yeah, and would you like to chair the IT forum? um, maybe? First I have to become a member (d'oh!). Shoot off email to appropriate person, who as it turns out is working today, too, poor lamb.
Three people done with rooms all at once, standing in line to turn in keys while I explain EBSCO to a delighted patron (finally, a delighted patron!).
Visitor's pass? Sure
Work on preconference PowerPoint a bit. It's a re-do of a class from January I wasn't entirely happy with, but which went over well. I know it can be better, but I need to figure out how...I think of a few things, which are going to eat up most of my limited free time for the next week. ::sigh::
Ooh! One of our most handsome and pleasant patrons wants a study room. You betcha! (what? I'm only human...and single)
Very sweet blond girl with funny band-aid like stickers on face in school colors asks about wireless. She looks too young to have laptop, but what do I know? I ask her what browser she's using, she says "well, I have an iMac". Ah, Safari? "Yes, that's it". Very nice gal. She takes sheet. She and friend come back few minutes later. Both very sweet. "We can't get it to work, could you help us?" Sure. They almost had it, but had to click one more thing. They are wonderfully grateful. I think it's a new toy. Very nice girls. We could use a bunch more like that here.
Visitor's pass? Sure
Grumpy, belligerent guy comes up, I charm him, he walks away happy and smiling. Ha! Don't mess with the librarian!

What do you mean it's only 4:50pm? Better start closing.
10 more minutes, then 15 to close. Then pick up take-out (no WAY I'm cooking tonight) and home to a cool G&T, my cats and my TiFaux (DVR).

Weird thing is, I love my job. What's up with that?

From the NYTimes: Prisons Purging Books on Faith From Libraries

Behind the walls of federal prisons nationwide, chaplains have been quietly carrying out a systematic purge of religious books and materials that were once available to prisoners in chapel libraries.

The chaplains were directed by the Bureau of Prisons to clear the shelves of any books, tapes, CDs and videos that are not on a list of approved resources.

UPDATE: From the NYTimes - Critics Right and Left Protest Book Removals

My buddy Heather H. sent me this, and I couldn't agree more!



The answer is NO, I haven't finished HP7. I like to savor it. People spoiled both 5 and 6 for me for this reason. So far, I've done okay with 7, but if anyone spoils it, I will likely be moved to commit bodily harm!

We're having a weird problem related to our time/print management software (Comprise's SAM, for our sins). Basically when patrons open Internet Explorer, they don't see the address bar and can't pull it up (toolbars locked). Anyhoo... this is freaking out patrons way more than I would ever have expected. Here are some of my favorite freak out lines:

"The Internet is down!" or (a favorite) "The Internet is BROKEN!" This freaks US out until we realize that there are several dozen people happily surfing.

"All I get is a library page. I never got that before! What did you do?!" For the record, they got our home page EVERY TIME they sat at one of our computers for the last 10 years. They just didn't notice it on their way to Yahoo! and Hotmail. Yeah, that makes my hours and hours and hours of work on the website sooooo satisfying!

And my favorite, which just happened today:

"How do I get out to the REAL Internet?" Dude! Our website is on the InterTubes, I promise!

I am so sick of this problem.

I got an email from my friend Laura with a query:

[My 13yo daughter] and I have been trying to find a magazine she feels like reading. She gets the kids' version of National Geographic (for the animals, mostly), but hasn't been able to find anything with actual articles aimed at girls her age. Apparently, girls under the age of 10 are supposed to be encouraged to have brains and to read (and write) and think. Once they turn 10, they are not supposed to read anything else until they hit puberty, at which point they are to read only about boys, sex, hair, clothes, makeup, and pop stars and are not supposed to write or think about anything substantial again until they are well into their late twenties. At that point, intelligent thoughts are permitted to occur as long as they are kept under the guise of boys/men, sex, hair, clothes, makeup, (older) pop stars, children, etc. [emphasis mine]

I couldn't agree more about the sad state of young women's periodicals. We did come up with a few suggestions - New Moon for the younger set, Teen Ink for budding writers - but the field is paltry, especially considering the huge array for adults. My friend Katie and I agree that what they need is Bust for teens. In fact, I plan to get Laura a subscription to Bust in hopes that she'll cut out the teen-appropriate articles (there are some) and give them to her daughter to read. This kid is way too smart and funny and curious to be stuffed in some publishing niche market.

It got me thinking about when I was thirteen. It wasn't that I wasn't interested in boys, it was that I was interested in them as people, not just weird sticky, stinky Ken dolls. It wasn't so much "ooh! boys! tee hee!" as "oh, boys, yeah, they're my friends. And I like to kiss them. Narf!*" And there was literally NO magazine that even came close to talking like that. No books, either, except some Paula Danziger. Clearly that hasn't changed much in the periodical market.

[*I'm not sure I actually used the term "narf", as Pinky and the Brain had not yet arrived, but I did watch Dangermouse, so it's possible I said something like "Crumbs, chief!" But I digress...often.]

From Library Journal online:

Sports Illustrated Withholds Swimsuit Issue from Libraries, Schools

In an unannounced policy change that already has librarians fuming, Sports Illustrated (SI) decided this year to withhold copies of its risque annual swimsuit issue from classrooms and libraries. SI spokesman Rick McCabe acknowledged to LJ that publisher TIME, Inc., neither offered to let libraries opt out of receiving the issue nor announced it beforehand. Though reader mail doesn't indicate that the issue is any racier than before, McCabe gave this explanation: "Over the course of time, we've received feedback from some of those institutions saying it wouldn't be an acceptable thing for them to have or to share with their constituents, and the decision was made that this was one way to hopefully alleviate that issue."

Nor was the publisher able to differentiate among academic libraries, public libraries, and school libraries. "It's done as a block," McCabe said. Those institutions that didn't receive an issue can request it either through a toll-free customer-service number or the web site, he said; already some have done so through their serials vendor. While libraries of all types have suffered from the "Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue disappearance syndrome" and thus kept the issue behind the desk, that doesn't mean librarians wanted SI to stop sending it. Writing on the SERIALST electronic discussion list, Lynne Weaver of Randolph-Macon Woman's College reported that her customer service representative told her that the publisher decided it was inappropriate to send to "institutions." She observed, "It seems to me that if one has a subscription to a title, all issues for that subscription period should be sent. It is up to the recipient to decide what to do with the issue once it is received."

I guess my first question (well, second question, but the first is rude) is: will they be refunding libraries for whatever percent of their subscription cost the swimsuit issue comprises? If not, could they be in violation of the agreement assumed when we purchase a subscription (e.g. we are paying X dollars for X number of issues in X time)?

UPDATE: I gather SI is extending affected subscriptions by one issue, but...all of their advertising says "Purchase Sports Illustrated for one year, including our famous swimsuit issue". My question remains - is this what we paid for?

The fact that over the counter sales of the swimsuit issue basically pay for the rest of the year is irrelevant.

An amusing anecdote: about 5 years ago I had a young woman ask, the day after the swimsuit issue came out, if we had it. Without blinking an eye I said we should be receiving it, yes. She then offered (I didn't ask, I swear!) the information that she wanted it...because she was writing a thesis on the objectification of women, and the swimsuit issue was a focus of her theme. Talk about your legitimate educational uses!

Me? I just like to play the "guess the airbrushed bits" game.

My buddy Laura just sent me this: Cell phones in the library recently showed up in a Miss Manners column. Her answer has the basics right.

http://lifestyle.msn.com/relationships/article.aspx?cp-documentid=3064852

As any of you who work in libraries know, this is a constant battle, though most people don't realize it. We just (finally!) put up signs about "cell phone etiquette". We have gone the extra step to offer patrons one of our quiet rooms (study rooms) if they have a lengthy conversation to complete. Of course NO cell phone user thinks they're having a "lengthy" conversation, and "will be done in just a minute" but we have some regulars who are happy to ask us for a room if they get a call. We bend over backwards for them, because they're being conscious about the noise they're making and we appreciate their maturity.

Our semi-unofficial rule is that if it's just a quick call to check a fact or phone number or something, we don't worry about it. If someone complains (we have one perennial complainer who is, ironically, one of the rudest cell phone users I've ever encountereed), we make a judgement call (or we're supposed to) about whether it's a lengthy and disturbing call (how many patrons are near them? are they being particularly loud or are they making a quick, quiet call?) and then choose whether to say (as Miss Manners suggests) "I'm sorry, but if you need to make a call, we can offer you a quiet room where you won't disturb others". If they've finished the call by the time we get over to them, we don't bother them, but we keep an eye out to see if they make additional calls. We've had very few problems with this, especially since we're offering them an option, which is the key to customer service, IMO.

For what it's worth. I know we all struggle with this. At least Miss Manners is on our side

Actual conversation with a patron Tuesday night (paraphrased):

Patron: I want a quick definition of this Islamic sect, but don't look on Wikipedia.
Me: You've already looked on Wikipedia and you want other sources, or...? (I suspected this was not the answer, but I figured I'd check)
Patron: It's not authoritative, it's just idiots (or words to that effect).
Me: Well...okay. (I agree that it's not authoritative, per se, but it is one among many possible sources. whatever. So I go to the reference stacks and grab a 10 year old encyclopedia of religion which is all I've got that covers this topic in print.)
Well, sir, I have 6 or 7 entries on your subject, let me skim through them. Is there something you're looking for in particular? (I know this patron - he NEVER asks for what he really wants on the first pass, no matter how hard you try to do a ref interview)
Patron: What does it say?
Me: It's like 20-30 pages of information. I could hold it for you and you could come in.
Patron: No! I just want a "quick definition".
Me: (in my head: well, that's what wikipedia is for!) So I give him a couple of key paragraphs on the basic outlines of this sect's beliefs, indicating that this barely scratches the surface. He finally reveals what part of it he wanted to know about (I won't bore you - he's a conspiracy theorist). As it happens, wikipedia has the most concise 'definition' on that aspect, taken from more current sources than the 10yo book in front of me. I cross-check it with both my book and a couple other sources and give it to him, making sure to note that wikipedia WAS one of my sources, but was cross-checked. (What? I was in a snarky mood.)

::sigh::

Sen. Ted Stevens of Alaska is at it again. The ignorant Luddite. Now he wants to "ban" Wikipedia from schools, along with a host of other sites. Yeah, cuz simply keeping students from information is going to make them more information literate. Idiots! You have to teach them HOW to read information, to weigh it carefully and...oh, what am I saying? This is the man who thinks the Internet is a series of TUBES!

Article at Computer WorldU.S. senator: It's time to ban Wikipedia in schools, libraries

From American Libraries online:

Manatee County Pulls the Plug on MySpace

Patrons of the Manatee County (Fla.) Library System no longer have access to the social networking website MySpace.com, effective December 11. Manager of Library Services John Van Berkel told American Libraries that the decision was made by county administrators rather than the library. “But it’s not a new policy,� he added. “It’s an enforcement of our current policy,� which prohibits chat-room access, e-mail, and recreational uses. (emphasis mine)

This sort of decision makes me crazy mad with libraries. Now, to be fair, I basically understand giving priority to "educational" pursuits in an effort to manage use of resources (especially computers), but to prohibit recreational uses entirely? I mean, first of all, how do you determine "recreational" use? I find reading the NY Times to be recreational, in the sense that it is far more relaxing (quite often) than reading my email. And if you look at the proportion of print materials that would be considered recreational vs. those that would be purely educational (again, I defy you to make a clear line here), I think you'd find for those resources, "recreational" use is far and away the predominant use in your average public library.

One other question: they block myspace.com, but what other specific sites do they block under this policy? Flickr? eBay? (technically eBay is networking, and you have to have access to email to use it) Do they block web-based e-mail? Does that mean they block the whole of Yahoo.com, for instance, or just the mail.yahoo.com domain? AOL's email site isn't so handy to block. Nor MSN. How in the world do they keep track of all that they'd have to block to maintain such a policy?

This sort of old-fashioned, purely punitive policy is crazy making! For patrons and staff. Imagine being the staff member who has to tell someone they can't go see their favorite artist's myspace page to check out their artwork or send an email to see about getting a job. What DO people do on their computers?

I guess my ultimate question is what is this policy intended to solve? If it's a question of equitable time limits on public computers, there are other solutions. Is it that they don't want anyone to enjoy themselves while on the computers? That's a great way to get people to hate your library system. This seems ridiculously self-defeating, and ultimately difficult to enforce.

From ALA online:Conservative Group Sues Libraries for Blocking Its Website

The Post-Dispatch reported that Maplewood and University City libraries provide internet access through the University of Missouri at Columbia’s Morenet service. Morenet provides the Bess filtering system, which classifies the Council of Conservative Citizens site as “hate speech.�

You saw my post the other day about the Librarian's Internet Index (lii.org) being in peril. Now Karen Schneider, the director, is asking you to take a survey to help them come up with funding ideas. Here's her post to Web4Lib:

Dear Web4Libbers,

As a long-time web4libber, I'd like to ask you to take this survey and disseminate it widely (we already published it in this morning's email/RSS
newsletter):

http://tinyurl.com/nd33u

The project I manage, Librarians' Internet Index, is facing a 50% cut in our primary funding as of July 1. We are soliciting ideas for surviving this cut (as well as getting our annual feedback on the services we provide).

The survey takes three to five minutes to complete (one person told me it took less than a minute). The survey will be available until 11:59 p.m.
Thursday, March 16, 2006.

We have many good ideas pouring in. I know you folks, you have GREAT ideas, you often have the tech/geek angle other survey participants don't, and I'd really like you to share your thoughts with us.

If you would like more background about the budget cut, we've prepared this
document:

http://lii.org/pub/htdocs/budget_cut_facts.htm

We'll post results before April. Thanks so much!

Karen G. Schneider
Director, Librarians' Internet Index
http://lii.org kgs@lii.org
Websites you can trust!

This is important. The Librarian's Internet Index, one of the best informational sites on the Web, hands down, is facing a major funding cut in July. Michael McGrorty at Library Dust explains the situation and poses the question: what can we as a community do to save LII?