tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-168041352011-06-08T01:45:42.052-05:00ludewighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09603993697973122135noreply@blogger.comBlogger131100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16804135.post-1132764964126717032005-11-23T10:46:00.000-06:002005-11-23T10:56:04.150-06:00

My still silent co-poster Divine sent me a copy of a 1977 article by H. William Axford on faculty status for librarians. Sorry, can't link to it since it's not in an open access journal, but here's the full citation:Axford, H. William. "The Three Faces of Eve: or The Identity of Academic Librarianship, A Symposium." Journal of Academic Librarianship 2.6 (1977): 276-278.In my professional career,

ludewighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09603993697973122135noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16804135.post-1132344194079455972005-11-18T13:45:00.000-06:002005-11-18T14:11:49.050-06:00

Anyone not living under a rock has probably already heard that Google Print is now known as Google Book Search. So, in one deft sleight of hand maneuver, Google backs away from its grandiose claims that this would create a massive digital library and now says it will help people find books so that they can "buy or borrow them." In some ways, that is all they ever claimed, but in the meantime a

ludewighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09603993697973122135noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16804135.post-1132328251401178012005-11-18T09:37:00.000-06:002005-11-18T09:44:10.406-06:00

OK, time for me to confess that I voted for Michael Gorman. Serves me right for failing to engage my brain before filling out my ALA ballot in, oh, five seconds. I saw his name, thought "gee, I heard him give a decent lecture eight or so years ago," and dutifully checked his name. Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa.Now that I've gotten that off of my chest, I'll point out that many librarians

ludewighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09603993697973122135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16804135.post-1132287705978993402005-11-17T22:03:00.000-06:002005-11-17T22:21:45.986-06:00

In recent years, there has been a relatively steady stream of articles and reports in the library literature bemoaning the lack of jobs for new LIS graduates. That makes for some interesting reading for those of us who have seen many searches close in recent years for lack of qualified applicants.What creates the gap between the new graduates and the jobs that require subject or technical

ludewighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09603993697973122135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16804135.post-1131942089071921992005-11-13T21:56:00.000-06:002005-11-13T22:21:29.083-06:00

So much hype continues to float around Google Print, despite the fact that the flaws seem rather obvious to the critical observer. A few bold voices are pointing out its weaknesses, but the fact that most newspapers and magazines just regurgitate Google's press releases is rather disappointing. Makes one realize how little most people understand the concepts behind storing and providing access to

ludewighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09603993697973122135noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16804135.post-1128523862687789332005-10-05T09:43:00.000-05:002005-10-05T09:51:02.696-05:00

Although one cannot know what is truly going on since all partners are mum on the technology, standards, and methods being used, it is generally assumed that the scanning machine in use for Google Print is the Kirtas book scanner. Having witnessed a full Kirtas demo in May, I can attest to two things. First, it is indeed an amazing machine with a lot of potential, although it has some very

ludewighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09603993697973122135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16804135.post-1128440272994405072005-10-04T10:25:00.000-05:002005-10-04T14:23:44.210-05:00

Speaking of Mr. Hilton, all of those wayward PhDs (generally in humanities fields) who couldn't find a job through the grind of the AHA, MLA, etc. jobseeking mill come to mind. I feel for them, I really do, not least because I'm married to someone who actually survived that and landed a decent tenure-track job. But my sympathy has its limits.If you can't find a job as an academic, don't come

ludewighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09603993697973122135noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16804135.post-1128351511678456772005-10-03T09:27:00.000-05:002005-10-03T09:58:31.683-05:00

It's worth pointing out the background of James Hilton. Although he is currently "associate provost and interim librarian," he is, in fact, not a librarian but one of those faculty members named to high-ranking positions who then deigns to assume that since faculty use libraries they know all there is to know about libraries and their users. I'm sure Dr. Hilton is an excellent scholar--in his

ludewighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09603993697973122135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16804135.post-1128349515901728552005-10-03T09:15:00.000-05:002005-10-04T21:51:07.546-05:00

There's always been more than a hint of megalomaniacal aspirations present in the libraries and librarians that have decided to go to bed with Google. Much is claimed about how this project will transform the world; it remains to be seen if that is true, or if it will just drive Google's bottom line (and that of firms such as Amazon), but the project will certainly transform the CV and careers of

ludewighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09603993697973122135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16804135.post-1128143884936959022005-10-01T00:09:00.000-05:002005-10-01T00:18:04.936-05:00

OK, I freely admit that I must be lame since I just discovered Sigur Rós here in late 2005. Why didn't some far more hipster friend of mine spare me this embarrassment? I don't watch much television, nor listen to much radio (even NPR, which has featured these Icelandic chaps on at least two occasions), nor read anything about music. I prefer to stumble onto things as friends point me in

ludewighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09603993697973122135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16804135.post-1128143331466073942005-09-30T23:58:00.000-05:002005-10-01T00:08:51.466-05:00

So, I've worked in academic libraries where the librarians have faculty rank and can earn tenure as well as in libraries where librarians have rank, but no tenure per se.Tenure systems encourage librarians to engage in the profession beyond their library and institution, whether by publishing, presenting, serving on national committees, or just getting out to conferences and expanding their

ludewighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09603993697973122135noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16804135.post-1127331605098335032005-09-21T14:28:00.000-05:002005-09-21T14:40:05.103-05:00

A while back, UT Austin posted a curatorial position for British and American Literature in the Harry Ransom Center. That posting carried a salary of $50,000, but the search evidently went nowhere, since the position was recently reposted. Generally, after a failed search, you'll see the job creep back out on the market with a higher salary figure, but this reposted position actually lists

ludewighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09603993697973122135noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16804135.post-1126883789360795582005-09-16T10:00:00.000-05:002005-09-16T10:16:29.366-05:00

Marion is the archetypical librarian: meek, subservient, willing to take what is offered in terms of respect and remuneration, modest in her tastes. You get the gist. If one is, however, actually a librarian in a decade other than the 1950s, this stereotype wears a little thin after a while.How pervasive is the societal view? Watch the Jimmie Stewart movie "It's a Wonderful Life" and note what

ludewighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09603993697973122135noreply@blogger.com0