Librarian by Day Bobbi Newman | I'm not that kind of librarian

About two weeks ago there was an article in the New York Times titled Wasting Time Is New Divide in Digital Era which caused an outcry among librarians, and there has been a whirlwind of online activity. Much of what is in that article was no surprise to me thanks to my interest in digital literacy, my service on the Digital Literacy Task Force and the fact that I've been following the FCC's focus, or lack thereof, on digital literacy since the National Broadband Plan was released in March of 2010. I have also been publicly expressing concern over the FCC's acknowledge (or lack thereof) the Read more [...]

I won't be speaking at ALA instead I'll be spending much of my time in meetings. I thought I would share sessions of note on digital literacy and ebook issues that readers might be interested in. Unfortunately I won't be able to be at all these as they often conflict with my commitments. But if you are interested in ebooks or digital literacy issues take note! :-) Saturday The E-book Elephant in the Room: Determining What’s Relevant and Effective for Your Patrons & Making Effective Decisions for Your Future E-collection 8:00am to 10:00am Anaheim Convention Center 204C Speaker: Anne Read more [...]

Packing list About a year ago I started trying to travel with only a carry on.  I was tired of paying the extra baggage fees, waiting for my bag at the end of the trip and lugging around a heavy bag. So far I have been success for all library conferences.  I don't even have one of those fancy new carry-ons with the spinning wheels and a bagillion pockets that make it expand so much it only fits in the overhead bin by being rammed in. My primary carry on is ten years old (I do have a smaller one for very short trips & a duffle style one when I know I'll need to carry it a lot).  I usually Read more [...]

It is no secret that a lot of my time the couple of last years has been spent reading, writing, talking, and thinking about eBooks. To the point where I'm a little sick of the whole mess. Really. Sometimes I want to never think or talk about eBooks and libraries again. I'm sure some of you feel the same way. I know there are people out there who think it is a waste of time for librarians to be worried about the ebook issues, or rather content in general. They think that libraries are about community and experience and creation and content doesn't matter or at least won't matter in our future. These Read more [...]

A while back I delivered the opening Keynote for the Michigan State Library's Beginners Workshop.  The conference is focused on library staff who do not have a formal library degree and is an introduction to many issues. The topic of my presentation was the role of libraries in bridging the digital divide - I talked about the digital divide and digital literacy and the role that libraries play in both. I included my resources on slide 20 but I have also posted them below with links for your convenience. Libraries Bridging the Digital Divide View more PowerPoint from Bobbi Newman Resources ALA Read more [...]