Comments on DLC Remarks by the Superintendent of Documents
Some of the formal remarks made by Superintendent of Documents Judith C. Russell at the Depository Library Council meeting in Albuquerque (April 17, 2004) both help clarify GPO's vision of the role of libraries and raise some questions.
Ms. Russell said that, "We need to continue our joint efforts to redefine the characteristics and roles of depository libraries...." While it is clear to everyone in the depository community that the availability of digital information must change how we do things, it is not clear why some think that we must redefine what libraries do. Ms. Russell makes it explicitly clear that GPO thinks that redefinition is required and that the role of depository libraries will be greatly diminished. She articulated GPO's vision of the role of libraries this way:
...the focus of the FDLP is continuing to shift from managing collections to providing services.
And further, Ms. Russell says that, when a library director asked her why he should remain a depository library, she responded:
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Calling all podcasters
Are you a current or aspiring podcaster? Want to help the FDLP community out? Then read on. ALA Annual Conference is just around the bend, so I thought I'd discuss my experience with audio recording at the Spring Depository Library Conference. Hopefully my experience will encourage others to record the public sessions that they attend at ALA. Recordings of conferences helps out those who are unable to attend and is an excellant way to share information, provide training and extend the participation of the entire community. AND it's just plain fun. The most important part of podcasting is to get good sound (duh!). That means getting as close as possible to the speaker, or sitting close to the sound system if you're in a large conference room. I recorded the plenary session with Bruce James and Mike Wash using the internal microphone on my Mac G4 powerbook. For spoken word, this was just fine. For the GODORT session, I used a USB external microphone (called a MicFlex). This was great for recording the speakers sitting at the table, but didn't pick up the audience questions very well. However, I don't think any microphone would've picked up the discussion in the audience because we were in a large, cavernous room. Obviously, to get perfect recording levels at a conference situation, you'll need to record right off the sound system. This is not at all necessary to record speakers at a conference. I would say my internal mic worked just fine for what I needed. Don't believe me? Just listen to the GODORT session and the Plenary Session w/ Bruce James and Mike Wash. Continue reading
GPO’s Future Digital System has a blog
As previously announced here and on govdoc-l by GPO staff, the Requirements Document and other documents related to the new Future Digital System have been posted to the GPO web site. Checking out where the documents were posted, I was impressed to find a blog linked off the main FDSys page. Good work GPO! At least your new Office of Innovation and New Technology is using communication tools of the 21st Century. Hopefully it will stay updated. I didn't see any content dated later than May 23, 2005. I'm surprised they didn't announce the blog at the time they announced the availability of the FDSys documents. But since they've announced the page that has a link to their blog, I don't feel bad about drawing attention to it. So, if you want to see what GPO has planned for the future, cruise on over to http://fdsys.blogspot.com/ and start reading and commenting! Continue reading
Digital divide has not disappeared
June 3, 2005 / Leave a comment
Digital divide has not disappeared By Paul Lamb, CNET News.com, Jun 03, 2005
Consultant Paul Lamb, who is a fellow with the Community Technology Foundation of California writes that "If you read only the big picture statistics, you might be fooled into believing that the digital divide has indeed been bridged" but "if you read in more detail about Internet and technology use in America, you will find a much different story." He points to new studies and suggests specific approaches to identifying the scope of the "knowledge divide" and identifying solutions.
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