nirak.net - Musings of an LIS Student

I have had “learn to program” on my list of stuff to do for years. It’s always “after I do this…”

But! There is a great new resource created by the fabulous William J. Turkel & Alan MacEachern called the Programming Historian which is also great for librarians and any scholar who wants a way to make programs that are actually useful to your work.

You can find it at the Programming Historian Wiki.

I’ll be working through it over the next week or two, and then I hope to move to some of the other programming resources I never seem to get around to.

karin :: May.09.2008 :: Library :: 2 Comments »

I need to write two papers, but I am having trouble even coming up with topics. I have several attempts, but about halfway through I give up - either because the research is already pretty conclusive and I feel silly writing about it or because I’m just not interested in the topic. I wish I consistently tagged my Zotero items so I could see if there was anything I’d collected a lot about, but I never did get into the habit of tagging in Zotero (partially because many systems insert tags for me).

Anyway, the two classes I need to write papers for are Library Information Systems and Information Storage and Retrieval. I have all day Saturday to work on these, and can take all day Sunday if needed, so I’m not too worried… yet.

Other topics that have been on my mind:

Creative Commons

Several people have posted about Creative Commons and the murky space it occupies between public domain and copyright protected. Since I started my Free Artwork project, I have been thinking a lot about why I might choose different licenses and what it means to buy into Creative Commons. I also have been looking into what Creative Commons detractors are saying, and thinking about ways it could be better. I have to admit, the number of licenses one can apply to work is confusing. Besides the Creative Commons standard choices, there are several others on the website, like public domain, BSD, and GNU-GPL.

I’ve been thinking about the content I produce, and why I produce it, and what license I might want to apply to what content. Certain applications make this easier than others. Flickr makes it pretty easy to have fine grained control over my work, and the new video function makes it easy, for the first time, to find video to reuse. However, that video is still wrapped up in Flash, and since Flickr doesn’t allow downloading of video, the CC license is moot (unless you just want to embed on a webpage, which, frankly, Vimeo and Youtube already cover.) I can CC license my blog content, but, to be honest, I have not found much use for CC licensed text, except to use in displays and such. (Wikipedia has proven enormously useful for displays.)

Windows on the XO

Another thing I want to write about is the continuing frazzle on Windows for the OLPC and Negroponete’s statements. I think emotions are running very hot in the whole debate, and I’m afraid the whole project will splinter and fall apart. I really hope development on Sugar continues- though I find the system slow and buggy right now, I still see amazing potential. I love the XO machine, and I love Sugar, and I don’t necessarily believe the two have to go hand in hand- but I think the conceptual aspect of Sugar really needs to fork from the work that needs to be done with power management, speed, etc, on the XO. I installed Xubuntu and it is pretty snappy- as much as I love the IDEA of using Python to create an OS (thereby opening up the possibility to modify on the fly) I just don’t know that it works for a low power machine.

I blogged a little about my thoughts on XP for the OLPC on OS Agnostic before all the recent stuff came up.

Wikis for work

My work has been using an internal wiki (using MediaWiki software) for organization for some time. It’s working pretty well- there are a few people contributing most of the content, but that is true of most wikis. Recently, some professors have started using the wiki for class projects- which is great, but also a little outside the scope of what we set up the wiki to do. So I have been investigating other, lightweight wikis, and have fallen in love with PmWiki. It’s flexible, powerful, and best of all only requires PHP to work. Instead of storing in a database, it stores in flat files. This is good for several reasons- for one, backup is a snap- for another, making a new wiki is as simple as copying a folder and chmoding one folder. I have since started using PmWiki to organize my own life and it has been quite useful. I’m debating moving it to my home server (which, by the way, I have yet to create). I could also run it off my keydrive.

I’ve been investigating other project management solutions for work, and the more I study the intricacies, the more confused I get. I know the folks at the Center for History and New Media use Basecamp for their projects, which I like, but I don’t particularly care for the monthly pay system (it’s difficult to handle through the libraries) and the limit on the number of projects you can set up. $150 a month will get you 50 projects, $49 a month will get you 35 projects. We have been using the open source ActiveCollab, hoping the new version would be bigger and better- but then the new version went closed source. The project forked into a new project, project|pier, but not much has happened with that yet.

Whew! That’s just a little of what has been going on inside my head. The semester ends May 2nd, and May 5th I start on my practicum- which will be implementing a site using Drupal. Plus, THATCamp is coming up in late May, and there’s a lot floating around in my head for that as well.

Off to attempt, again, to come up with a paper topic.

Images: Jeffrey Beall and teemow. (the OLPC illustration is mine)

karin :: Apr.24.2008 :: Uncategorized :: 4 Comments »

I had an interesting exchange with some fellow students this week (in blackboard, so I unfortunately cannot link to it.) The topic posted by the teacher was: How does one gain technical experience required for an system manager job? and second, what are some qualifications for a Systems Manager that might be listed in a job advertisement?

In my initial response as to qualifications, I said:

Can the candidate learn new languages as needed? I think this is more important than knowing any specific languages. … Preferred languages are changing rapidly. … A flexible programmer may be more useful than one that is especially well versed in one language. (Keep in mind that I am not a programmer)”

One of my fellow students responded, saying that she had read that it is not realistic to pick up be proficient in (sorry, had to go back and re-read) more than one or two languages. This surprised me. I certainly don’t think it is easy to pick up a new computer language, but I don’t think it is unreasonable to think a new hire could learn the library’s preferred language. One of my co-workers, Steve Ramsay, tells me “The first language is hard, because it’s your first language. The second language is hard because it’s not like the first language. After that it’s easy.” (except he probably said it much more eloquently.) Steve is a hella smart guy, so I take his proclaiming something as ‘easy’ with a grain of salt. Still, I think it is much more important to find a programmer who likes learning new languages than one who already knows specific languages- unless, of course, you need someone that can start working on a specific project right away. Edit: One person pointed out that a systems manager doesn’t necessarily need to know programming- I will address this in my next post.

So my question for programmers and people that hire them: Am I being unrealistic? Is it better to hire someone who already knows the languages used at your library, or is it OK to hire someone who knows some languages and is willing to learn more? I would really like to know if I am way off base.

If I was hiring a programmer, I would try to find out how willing they are to learn new languages by asking questions like: What is your favorite language? When was the last time you learned a new language? Why did you learn it? If they’ve been out of school 10 years and they only know the languages they learned in school, I might be a little worried.

Photos by: davestfu and Nat W.

karin :: Apr.21.2008 :: Library, School Stuff :: 6 Comments »

I’d like to share a couple of examples of companies communicating with customers on an almost instantaneous basis.

Slideshare.net

Jason posted a blog post about slideshare, and they responded on his blog.

Kayak.com

I posted on twitter about my love of Kayak.com, and they responded in a friendly, humorous manner.

There are many, many more examples. I have heard from lots of companies when I mention their product online, and seen many, many blog posts about bad customer service in which the organization responded quickly and professionally.

Compare this to the SWIFT debacle- when people tried to complain about them, they asked to have the posts removed. Not a good idea. The best thing you can do is to be proactive, listen to users, and don’t get defensive. Try to address concerns- you can’t make everyone happy, but you can at least demonstrate that someone is listening and collecting ideas and implementing what they can.

What are others saying about you?

One thing a lot of businesses fail to realize is that customer service is embedded in every phone call, every email, every IM and every in person transaction. The usability of your website translates directly into customer’s perception of your customer service. But you don’t have to have all the basics covered before you can start branching out.

• Is there an employee who uses twitter who wouldn’t mind watching for tweets about your library/organization?
• Do you have Google alerts and technorati searches set for your library/organization so you can respond to blog posts (positive and negative?)
• Do you check your website for broken links, etc. on an ongoing basis?

If you want to see some examples of good and bad customer service, take a look at this flickr search.

karin :: Apr.17.2008 :: Library :: 1 Comment »

Last week was a crazy one for me- the last (I hope) bit of bad winter weather and serious time constrains made me a bit crazy. I think every once in a while I need a little breakdown to straighten myself out. Better weather means brighter spirits for me, and I started this week with renewed optimism.

As I have hinted at in previous posts, I have been having a good deal of trouble settling on a career trajectory. It’s not that I want the perfect first job, but I want a good first job. I still have my “OMG, did I do the right thing?!?!” moments about withdrawing my name from the position I applied for. I have come to the conclusion that job hunting is a little like gambling- sometimes you have to go with your gut and hope for the best. It doesn’t help that I hate gambling.

I have a few ideas about what I might want to do re: job possibilities.

1. Find a local job, save up money and continue networking like crazy

photo credit: Photocapy

The advantage of finding a local job is that I would not have to waste much time with planning a move, deciding where to live, etc. Lincoln affords a good deal of leisure time, and Omaha is not bad either. If I stay in state, I can put away a lot of money and would have a good amount of free time I can devote to professional development (read: more school, but not the crazy pace I have been maintaining.)

Of course, this option is dependent on a job opening up in the right place at the right time. I have heard of a few possible opportunities opening up, but there’s a LOT of talented new library professionals out there that I would be up against. Staying in state would probably mean settling for less than a dream job, but that doesn’t mean I couldn’t find something that makes me happy.

2. Try to get as many fellowships/internships as possible

The wanderlust part of me loves this idea. Basically, I would try to find some kind of flexible employment that would allow me to leave for a few months at a time to do internships here and there. Better yet would be to get some fellowships to pay my way. I was kind of hoping I might be able to use the new NEH Digital Humanities Fellowship as a springboard (that would, of course, be contingent on finding a center to sponsor me), but unfortunately, I won’t meet the eligibility requirements because I’ll still be in school. I have not started to search in earnest for other fellowship possibilities- the library field isn’t known for tons of fellowships, but there are a few.

I like this idea because it would allow me to try out some different locations and jobs and hopefully find something that fits. The downside, of course, is that it would be less stable and would probably mean being away from my husband for extended periods of time. It would also mean not saving as much.

3. Be patient, wait for the perfect job

Instead of taking something less than ideal because it is close, I could just wait and apply to the dream jobs I’m sure will pop up after I graduate. I like my job and wouldn’t mind staying on for a bit, but the pay isn’t great.

The problem with this plan is I have no idea where I want to live. Lincoln is OK, and I’d love to live in California again but I can’t imagine being able to afford it. (I have a few other dream locals, like Portland Oregon.) I started a google map where I plotted places I might like to live and recommendations based on a quick Twitter poll. I would love to live somewhere I could walk to work or take public transportation, somewhere with a moderate climate, and somewhere with lots of natural beauty. Of course a low cost of living is helpful too. I’m not too picky. Suggestions are welcome.

The problem with the above approach is I don’t really know yet what the perfect job is.

Of course, I am oversimplifying my options - as William Turkel pointed out recently, career trajectories are never a linear or predictable as we would like.  For now, I’m taking a step back and keep watching, listening, and waiting. I’m looking at what others in my position are doing - a big crop of enormously talented Library school students are graduating this May. I’m keeping tabs on job descriptions and trying to figure out what would be right for me.

A big part of this is trying to figure out what kind of person I am- I have become quite the homebody in the last few years (that may just be a result of marriage, or maybe just a lack of money) but I’m starting to come out of that a bit. How adventurous do I want to be? How much risk am I willing to take? These are questions I ask over and over but I can only answer myself.

karin :: Apr.15.2008 :: House and Home, School Stuff :: 3 Comments »

School and work (I would say “life” but I have not had one of those for a while) have kept me away from blogging for a while. I feel, lately, like I am being pulled in different directions- which I suppose I am. I am starting to feel pressure to decide what I will devote myself to, and I *can’t* decide. I like my job now, so I think I might like to stay in the digital humanities. However, what drew me to librarianship is the ability to work with lots of people, which I would get from a public services library job. There are other considerations too- techie vs non-techie, reference vs support. I just don’t know- and I likely won’t know until I actually work in a few different positions, which is scary.

It’s not like I need to decide on a career path RIGHT NOW, but I am getting a lot more questions to the effect of “what are you going to do once you are out of library school?” and I don’t know how to answer. I feel like a bit of a failure not having a definite area of librarianship I want to go into. For the record, I know that’s so NOT true, but it’s just a feeling, gnawing away at me.

Add to that stuff school work and work work and committee work and school paperwork BS on TOP of the regular school work and you have an exhausted to the point of collapse Karin.

Which brings me to the real point of this post. I remember reading a while back about saying yes (was it on Kathryn’s Blog? Maybe…) and I sort of unconsciously took this advice to heart. I have been saying yes a LOT more than I would have a couple of years ago, when I protected my time rather zealously. The results have been good and bad. In addition to full time work and grad school, I have been to 5 conferences, presented several times, written some articles, I serve on the display committee at work, I’m secretary for the Nebraska Library Association NMRT, and I attend pretty much any professional development thing I can. I have also networked my butt off, and in the process made a lot of really cool acquaintances. I never feel like I am doing enough, though, because librarians are overachievers (at least a lot of them are) and plenty of them do tons more than I do. (For example: danah boyd posted recently about work/life balance.)

So I feel a little down when I realize I can’t do it all. Why not? What’s wrong with me? Where has all my energy gone? I kept expecting to get over this funk, to perk back up to the energy level I was at even last semester, but it is just not happening.

Saying yes all the time has led to some really great experiences though, and I wouldn’t trade any of it. All the conferences I have gone to have been a blast. I’ve met several people I now consider to be friends. I’ve been able to travel more in the last two years than in the 5 years previous to that. Best of all, I continually feel like I am doing something with meaning. I’m not just wandering around- I may be interested in too much, but it is all interesting to me. I’m not bored, just tired.

Unfortunately, there’s no break in sight for me- My semester ends May 2nd, and the following Monday I start my practicum. 90 house does not seem like a lot, but crammed into three months in which I’m traveling a lot (and still working another job), it will be a pretty large chunk of time. I’m also taking a class this summer and attending two conferences. I do, thankfully, have a vacation in there before the ALA conference in Anaheim, but travel for me is about packing in as much as possible into a trip, not so much relaxing. I will have about 3 weeks in August where I will only have full time work.

This turned into a rather long post to say this: I’m gonna blog more, I promise.

karin :: Apr.10.2008 :: Library, Rant, School Stuff, Work :: No Comments »

I am very excited to announce (here, at least- already announced on Twitter) that I will be attending the Center for History and New Media’s unconference THAT Camp. Here’s the quick blurb, from the website:

Short for “The Humanities and Technology Camp”, THATCamp is a BarCamp-style, user-generated “unconference” on digital humanities. THATCamp is organized and hosted by the Center for History and New Media at George Mason University, Digital Campus, and THATPodcast.

I have been listening to Digital Campus for a while (since the 2nd episode, I think) and am, of course, a big fan of Zotero, so I’m thrilled to go to George Mason and hang with a bunch of super smart people. I’m hoping the smart will rub off a little on me.

I’m full of ideas for the unconference, but nothing concrete is forming in my brain yet. Luckily, THAT Camp will be after I have finished my spring semester but before I start my summer semester, so I will have some time to collect my thoughts, do a little research, and maybe make some more research LOL cats, just for fun.

This will be the first conference/event I have gone to that is directly related to digital humanities (I have been to library conferences), and I am looking forward to talking about DH things with people outside of work.

I am also excited to be heading back to Washington D.C., though the only time I have to visit museums will be Friday after my plane gets in at 11ish. I’ll be running over to the National Gallery of Art as soon as the plane lands. Last time I did my whirlwind tour of the national mall museums, I didn’t get to spend much time in the NGA. Though I won’t be able to make it this trip (I tried to fly out later Monday night, but it didn’t work out) I WILL see the National Building Museum someday. (Jenny Levine has recommended this to me at least twice, so I must see it!)

On another note, if anyone knows of a cheap place to stay in/near Fairfax or has a couch I can crash on for the nights of May 30, May 31, and June 1, let me know. Alternately, if anyone else is going and wants to share a room, let me know. I can get a hotel, but I’m trying to save money where possible.

karin :: Mar.26.2008 :: Conferences :: 2 Comments »

I have been pretty quiet here lately. The truth is, there has been a LOT on my mind- stuff about my future career, where I want to live, what concessions I am willing to make (including how much time I am willing to spend away from my husband) and what exactly I want to do. So much is unsure, and I suppose I feel a little uncomfortable talking about things that I am unsure about- though I think for other library school students, this is exactly the kind of thing that is very useful to read about.

The other reason I have not posted about these feelings and thoughts is because it is hard to do so without naming names. Much of what I want in a job depends on where that job is, and that has to do with family, friends, and of course, my husband who is both my family and my best friend. (OK, trying not to sound too mushy, but he really is.) Also, the library community is small. It’s not hard to determine who I am talking about, even if I don’t name names. This has mede me super careful about what I post, especially lately.

So please forgive me if my posts come off sounding a little awkward and vague- it’s where my brain is right now.

I recently withdrew my name from a job that I really, really wanted. I think I had a good chance at getting the position, but it was just too far from home, in a place my husband would have had a hard time relocating. I knew this when I applied, of course. The plan was that I would spend the week in this other place and then come home on the weekends. It sounds OK on paper, and in planning, but when we actually sat down to figure out costs and logistics, it sort of fell apart. There were a lot of little things that, if taken alone, would have been fine, but all together would make the job unmanageable.

Then there was the fact that I am, after all, still in school- still carrying a full coarse load while working full time. Travel would mean cutting 5-6 hours out of my week when I have little time to spare. I can’t help but feel I should have considered all these aspects of the job before I applied, and I feel bad for not doing so. On the other hand, sometimes it takes a face to face confrontation with a possibility before it feels real. I am very grateful to the search committee of the school I applied to. It sounds like they are doing wonderful things and I am disappointed I will not be a part of it. They asked really great questions that really showed they are thinking about many of the same things I am, and it will be hard to come by a job that would allow me the opportunities this one would have.

The whole experience has made me cautious about job applications. For a while now I have been adding more and more to my to do pile- applying for a job seemed like the logical next step. I realize now that I need to take a step back and reassess. Full time work and school is hard- when I add to that presenting and writing and conferences and serving as secretary for the NMRT of the NLA, I’m pretty much filled up to capacity.

At the same time all this was happening, or maybe because of it, I have found myself drifting back to art as a pastime. I sort of stopped making art after I finished my Bachelors in Fine Art. The preparation for the final show and my final classes were overwhelming (I was working near full time then, too). I was constantly making art, and that art was constantly evaluated and critiqued, and it got exhausting. I not only had to create, but I had to think very carefully and pointedly about what I was creating, how to explain it, how to defend it, and how to present it. The thought of making a living at as an artist started to take on an ominous tone- a life full of creating for someone else, and to base my living off that… well, let’s just say I’m glad I found librarianship as another option.

So I’ve been painting again, and it feels good. It’s been a while since I’ve had a hobby completely outside of library stuff. Even the “fun” books I read last summer almost all had to do with some aspect of libraries- technology, management, etc. To get my artwork out there I’ve started a “free artwork” photoset in Flickr- I will occasionally put up small paintings there for free (and I usually announce on Twitter). There is something immensely gratifying about giving things away for free.

I realize that when I push myself too hard, I end up wanting to turn away from the things I am most passionate about, so I am on a quest to regain some balance in my life. I was so sparky last semester- my thoughts seemed to mesh up with what I was learning in class and the blogosphere supported it all. Now my feed reader constantly taunts me with the little “1000+” unread posts signal. I’ve taken a laissez faire approach to that- not gonna weed or do anything, just read when I can. I feel like I’m constantly running to catch up, not sprinting ahead of the pack. I hope that this spring break I can emerge with new enthusiasm and vigor, and more purpose about what I want to do and how I can accomplish it.

Photos: splorp BugMan50 capturingJenn (last one mine)

karin :: Mar.25.2008 :: Conferences, Library, Rant, School Stuff, Work :: 7 Comments »

The last few weeks have been very, very weird for me, and have shaken up both my outlook and my expectations.

Here’s the short version: On several people’s recommendation, I have applied for a job as a librarian here in Nebraska. I wasn’t planning on applying for jobs so soon (I don’t graduate until December) but the job description sounds really, really great so I went for it. While that was going on, I got an email that led to a conversation that just blew my mind and really opened up my eyes to different career trajectories I could take. I spent a few days sort of frozen with the fear that I would take the wrong path and end up in a job I dislike or end up with no money (a not so secret fear of mine).

Then I snapped out of it. I realized that there’s no mistake that’s irreversible, and what I want right now is experience more than anything. It’s still hard making a decision when I don’t know what lies ahead, but that’s always the case, right? And I don’t have to make a decision right this second, anyway. Whatever I end up doing will tell me more about what I really enjoy, and hopefully I’ll figure out the perfect job for me (and a way to secure it) in time.

The funny thing is, I already really like where I am and much of what I do. I am just a lowly assistant - I schedule meetings, I take minutes, and I generally try to make my boss’s life easier, but as time goes on I get more varied and interesting things to do. For example: maintaining the internal wiki we use to track the progress of projects, designing project sites, maintaining the website for the Center, helping with podcasts, and being a general design-y person. I think I could be quite happy staying here, but there’s just no money in the budget for me (that is, me as a professional after I graduate). In the end, that may be for the best- I think perhaps I need an impetus to try something new.

I decided to go to library school because of the huge variety of things I can do with the degree. Now that I am getting to the job hunting phase of my education, this range of options is both a good and a bad thing. Good, because I can see almost limitless opportunities ahead of me. Bad, because there is so much I want to experience that there is no way one job could satisfy all I want to do.

All in all, I couldn’t be happier with the way things are going. I’m excited about so many things, and I think I could be of help in so many areas, that there are lots of possible job opportunities- enough that I can, perhaps, be a little choosy. I am meeting amazing people along the way and having incredible conversations.

Now if I can just adjust to the change in time and get my sleeping patterns back to normal, I’ll be all set.

karin :: Mar.19.2008 :: School Stuff, Work :: 3 Comments »

I’m writing an evaluation of Quintura.com search engine for my Information Storage and Retrieval class. I’m having a lot of fun playing with it - it’s kind of like boolean searching for dummies. It uses Yahoo for search results, and gives a cloud of terms one can use to broaden or narrow the search. I’m not always a big fan of tag clouds, but in this case, it can work really well to show an overview of a subject. Plus, they have embeddable widgets-

All in all, a nice alternative engine. I much prefer it to similar engines like Clusty, KartOO and Grokker.

karin :: Feb.27.2008 :: School Stuff, Sites and Stories :: 2 Comments »