1. Announcing a new resource in BadgerLink
2. Adobe announces Digital Editions 2.0 with accessibility featured
3. SETDA report highlights changes in instructional materials market
4. ALA President Decries E-book Sales Practices by Some Major Publishers
5. Program Ideas for Libraries Participating in International Games Day, November 3
6. ALA offers free webinar series on Makerspaces
7. Common Core Standards and the public library
8. BadgerLink Resource of the Week - Consumer Reports
9. Website of the Week - Purdue University Online Writing Lab
10. Calendar
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1. ANNOUNCING A NEW RESOURCE IN BADGERLINK
BadgerLink now provides access to EBSCO's AP NewsMonitor Collection. This resource provides near real-time access to world-wide news from the Associated Press. This collection includes a rolling 30-day archive of AP Top News, WorldStream, Financial News, AP Online, U.S. Politics and Government, and 50 State Reports.
Start your search today!
- Go to the BadgerLink Homepage at www.badgerlink.net
- In the EBSCO section, click on Database List
- Select AP NewsMonitor Collection
- Type in your search
If you have questions about BadgerLink, please complete the BadgerLink Technical Support Request Form: http://rl3.dpi.wi.gov.
2. ADOBE ANNOUNCES DIGITAL EDITIONS 2.0 WITH ACCESSIBILITY FEATURED
Adobe Systems Inc. announced that its new release of Digital Editions 2.0 software to view and manage eBooks and other digital publications now includes support for accessibility. It has been redesigned to work with Windows and Mac operating system accessibility features, including high contrast, and also works with assistive software such as JAWS, NVDA, or Window-Eyes on Windows and VoiceOver on Mac. For more information see http://blogs.adobe.com/accessibility/category/digital-editions.
Digital Editions is the recommended computer-based reader and eBook management and transfer tool for Overdrive eBook titles offered through Wisconsin's Digital Library, dbooks.wplc.info/, an initiative of Wisconsin's 17 public library systems. Overdrive posted the following review of the software, demonstrating some of the improvements and limitations of the new Digital Editions: http://overdriveblogs.com/library/2012/09/27/kicking-the-tires-on-adobe-digital-editions-2-0/.
3. SETDA REPORT HIGHLIGHTS CHANGES IN INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS MARKET
The State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) this week released Out of Print: Reimagining the K-12 Textbook in a Digital Age. This report highlights the sea change underway in the multi-billion dollar U.S. K-12 instructional materials market enabled by recent technology and intellectual property rights innovations.
With a focus on the ultimate impact on student learning, the report provides examples of lessons learned from recent digital and open content/open educational resources (OER) initiatives by leading states and school districts. It concludes by offering comprehensive recommendations for government, industry, and educators to ensure that the inevitable shift to digital instructional materials improves student achievement and engagement and efficiently uses scarce resources.
You can view the announcement and panel discussion, download the report and view additional resources at http://setda.org/web/guest/outofprint.
4. ALA PRESIDENT DECRIES E-BOOK SALES PRACTICES BY SOME MAJOR PUBLISHERS
American Library Association (ALA) President Maureen Sullivan released an open letter on Tuesday protesting the refusal by some large trade publishers to sell or license e-books for access by U.S. libraries and their users. The letter states that the policies of three publishers, Simon & Schuster, Macmillan, and Penguin, "…have been denying access to their e-books for our nation's 112,000 libraries and roughly 169 million public library users." The letter also states, in part:
"Librarians understand that publishing is not just another industry. It has special and important significance to society. Libraries complement and, in fact, actively support this industry by supporting literacy and seeking to spread an infectious and lifelong love of reading and learning. Library lending encourages patrons to experiment by sampling new authors, topics and genres. This experimentation stimulates the market for books, with the library serving as a de facto discovery, promotion and awareness service for authors and publishers.
"Publishers, libraries, and other entities have worked together for centuries to sustain a healthy reading ecosystem - celebrating our society's access to the complete marketplace of ideas. Given the obvious value of libraries to publishers, it simply does not add up that any publisher would continue to lock out libraries. It doesn't add up for me, it doesn't add up for ALA's 60,000 members, and it definitely doesn't add up for the millions of people who use our libraries every month….
"We have met and talked sincerely with many of these publishers. We have sought common ground by exploring new business models and library lending practices. But these conversations only matter if they are followed by action: Simon & Schuster must sell to libraries. Macmillan must implement its proposed pilot. Penguin must accelerate and expand its pilots beyond two urban New York libraries."
The press release with the full content of the open letter can be found at http://www.ala.org/news/pr?id=11508.
5. PROGRAM IDEAS FOR LIBRARIES PARTICIPATING IN INTERNATIONAL GAMES DAY, NOVEMBER 3
The American Library Association is posting one programming idea a day for International Games Day, November 3, on its Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/nationalgamingday.
An example is Idea #21 "Make your own Maze!": a craft program using used CD cases and common craft supplies to create a hand-held roller maze. The page suggests the following link to instructions for the specific project: http://bkids.typepad.com/bookhoucraftprojects/2011/05/project-85-cd-case-labyrinth.html. Librarians can develop other maze creating or solving activities and can add in an educational component by teaching the attendees about the history of labyrinths.
6. ALA OFFERS FREE WEBINAR SERIES ON MAKERSPACES
The American Library Association's TechSource and Library Boing Boing are making available a new series of free webinars, Makerspaces: A New Wave of Library Service. Makerspaces are taking hold in the library world and they are spreading quickly, popping up in libraries of all types and sizes. Makerspaces give people a place to pursue their own interests in building things, using tools (physical or virtual) and connecting with one another. Libraries have expanded on traditional library services to provide DIY/craft/make services, setting up spaces within their buildings and within their communities that allow people to do anything from building model airplanes to 3-D printing to self-publishing novels. Information on how to register for the four 60-minute webinars can be found at http://www.americanlibrariesmagazine.org/news/ala/learn-all-about-makerspaces-free-webinar-series.
7. COMMON CORE STANDARDS AND THE PUBLIC LIBRARY
On the Association of Library Service for Children blog site, author Kiera Parrott writes about the implications of the new Common Core educational standards on public libraries and public librarians. "As it is something primarily affecting school curricula, public librarians may not immediately be taking too much notice of Common Core. But we are all connected-if only through our users-and the implications of the new educational standards may provide interesting opportunities for public and school librarians to collaborate. From collections to online resources, there may be simple ways that public librarians can market their services and help both teachers and students get the most out of what they have to offer." Read more of her comments at http://www.alsc.ala.org/blog/2012/09/common-core-in-the-public-library/ (Source: American Libraries Direct)
8. BADGERLINK RESOURCE OF THE WEEK
The vacuum cleaner just broke! I need access to Consumer Reports! Go to the BadgerLink Homepage (www.BadgerLink.net) and scroll down to Magazines to select Consumer Reports Magazine!
9. WEBSITE OF THE WEEK
Purdue University: Online Writing Lab (OWL)-- http://owl.english.purdue.edu/ -- The Online Writing Lab (OWL) at Purdue University provides writing resources and instructional material as a free service of the university's Writing Lab. The service is available not only to Purdue students and members of the Purdue community, but also to users around the world.
10. CALENDAR
November 7, 2012 - Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) Advisory Committee meeting, DeForest
October 9, 2012 - Wisconsin Library Service/Resources for Libraries and Lifelong Learning Fall ILL Meeting, Madison
October 11, 2012 - Public Library System Youth Services Liaison meeting, DeForest
October 12, 2012 - Public Library System Continuing Education and Certification Consultants meeting, DeForest
October 23-26, 2012 - Wisconsin Library Association (WLA) annual conference, La Crosse
November 9, 2012 - Council on Library and Network Development (COLAND) meeting, Sheboygan
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go to: http//channel.dpi.wi.gov
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Roslyn M. Wise
Editor, Channel Weekly
Department of Public Instruction
Division for Libraries and Technology
PO Box 7841
Madison, WI 53707-7841
Phone: (608) 266-6439
FAX: (608) 267-9207