Channel Weekly, Vol. 16, No. 37, July 3, 2014

1. IMLS releases final FY2012 public library data
2. July edition of Wisconsin Youth Services Showcase
3. Updated WISCAT
4. FCC chairman proposes E-Rate modernization to increase access to high-speed Wi-Fi
5. Libraries help extend Internet outside the library
6. BadgerLink Resource of the Week: Science Reference Center
7. Website of the Week: Earth Science Picture of the Day
8. Calendar
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1. IMLS RELEASES FINAL FY2012 PUBLIC LIBRARY DATA

The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) has made final data files and documentation for FY2012 available at http://www.imls.gov/research/pls_data_files.aspx. The Public Libraries Survey (PLS) provides statistics for approximately 9,000 public libraries in the 50 states, District of Columbia, and outlying territories.

Three data files have been generated from the FY2012 PLS. Each is available in SAS, comma-delimited, and ASCII formats.

  • Public Library Data File (pupld12a) of data for 9,294 public libraries: 9,233 public libraries in the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and 61 public libraries in the outlying areas of Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
  • Public Library State Summary/State Characteristics Data File (pusum12a) with one record of data for each state or outlying area (total of 55 records) with state summary data and state characteristics data.
  • Public Library Outlet Data File (puout12a) of identifying information and basic data items for 17,456 public library service outlets (central, branch, bookmobile, and books-by-mail-only outlets). The file includes 17,317 outlets in the 50 states and the District of Columbia and 139 outlets in the outlying areas.

For Wisconsin public libraries, four types of statistics for 1996-2012 are online at http://pld.dpi.wi.gov/pld_dm-lib-stat:

  • State and System Level, including state totals and system-wide statistics
  • County Level
  • Public Library Level
  • Public Library Level by system, county, and municipality, including county and system totals

Preliminary 2013 Wisconsin Public Library service data at the library level was posted in June. Additional preliminary 2013 data will also be posted in mid-July.


2. JULY EDITION OF WISCONSIN YOUTH SERVICES SHOWCASE

Magnetic responses, explosions, and 3D designs are just a few of the features on the July edition of the Wisconsin Youth Services Showcase: http://pld.dpi.wi.gov/pld_showcase. Send in your submission for a future edition of the Showcase, now available with a "Pin it!" button for Pinterest users. Contact Tessa.Schmidt@dpi.wi.gov to submit items for the Showcase.


3. UPDATED WISCAT

As of July 1, WISCAT has transitioned to its vendor’s new HTML5 platform. The new system provides a streamlined look and more up-to-date searching functionality. The ILL workflow remains essentially the same.

Training for library staff began in February 2014 and continued through the end of June. If you missed training or did not receive the documentation that was shared, please visit http://rl3.dpi.wi.gov/wiscat-update.

There are substantial differences in the search methods and browser requirements in this new system. If you are having difficulty, please contact the WISCAT Team at (888) 542-5543 and Press 1, or email dpirllill@dpi.wi.gov

Stay tuned to the WISCATILL listserv and Google+ Resource Sharing Community for updates as the system is fine-tuned in the coming months.


4. FCC CHAIRMAN PROPOSES E-RATE MODERNIZATION TO INCREASE ACCESS TO HIGH-SPEED WI-FI

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler released his E-Rate Modernization proposal to the Commissioners to be voted on at their July 11 meeting. One of the major reforms proposed is that all schools and libraries get access to Priority 2 funding. Other focuses include increasing Wi-Fi connectivity by committing at least $1 billion dollars in 2015 and another $1 billion in 2016, creating more transparency and expedience in the application process, and set the maximum program match at 4 to 1, along with many more items in the proposal. The two-page summary of the proposal is available at http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2014/db0620/DOC-327777A1.pdf


5. LIBRARIES HELP EXTEND INTERNET OUTSIDE THE LIBRARY

Imagine being able to walk into a public library and check out a Wi-Fi hot spot as if it were just another book. Although the scale of services in New York City and Chicago is a bit different than in most Wisconsin cities and towns, this idea is not as futuristic as it may initially seem. Soon, patrons in these two major U.S. cities won't have to imagine it. The public library systems in New York and Chicago won funding from the Knight Foundation to experiment with the idea of hot-spot lending. Both say they hope the move will help them expand Internet access among low-income families. Chicago, like New York, plans to target low-income communities and isfocusing on six neighborhood libraries. Patrons there will be able to rent a hot spot for three weeks at a time. If families lack a computer, Chicago also plans to launch a program to loan those in combination with the hot spots.

For the full article read: http://www.npr.org/blogs/ed/2014/06/26/325882544/move-over-books-libraries-let-patrons-check-out-the-internet


6. BADGERLINK RESOURCE OF THE WEEK

"STEM" summer slide with science experiments in Science Reference Center available on BadgerLink's Science & Technology page: http://badgerlink.net/science-technology!


7. Website of the Week

Earth Science Picture of the Day -- http://epod.usra.edu/ -- The Earth Science Picture of the Day (EPOD) highlights the diverse processes and phenomena which shape our planet and our lives. EPOD will collect and archive photos, imagery, graphics, and artwork with short explanatory captions and links exemplifying features within the Earth system. The community is invited to contribute digital imagery, short captions and relevant links. EPOD is a service of NASA's Earth Science Division and the EOS Project Science Office (at Goddard Space Flight Center), and the Universities Space Research Association. (Website reference courtesy of refdesk.com)


8. CALENDAR

July 11, 2014 – Council on Library and Network Development (COLAND) meeting, Mauston

September 12, 2014 – Council on Library and Network Development (COLAND) meeting, to be confirmed

October 2, 2014 – Annual Youth Services Liaisons Meeting, DeForest

October 3, 2014 – Annual System Continuing Education and Certification Consultants Meeting, DeForest

November 4-7, 2014 – Wisconsin Library Association annual conference, Wisconsin Dells

November 19, 2014 – Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) Advisory Committee Meeting, DeForest

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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

For questions about this information, contact Roslyn Wise (608) 266-6439