Laurie N. Taylor, Librarian

Earlier, I wrote about new newspapers in the Digital Library of the Caribbean (dLOC). With the newspapers loading, I’m now starting work on outreach. This generally starts with: Emailing contacts (and meeting new contacts through email!) from the country of the newspaper, to share that the paper is online and be in communication for supporting any local needs (file copies, promotion planning) Editing Wikipedia entries to link to the newspapers Planning next promotion work, first by learning something about the newspapers In reading about The Dominican, where we only have 1 issue from 1873, the paper, I have found these information pieces: “George Charles Falconer [… ]proprieterRead More →

Thanks to a grant from CLIR, more historical Caribbean newspapers are online in the Digital Library of the Caribbean (dLOC)! The most recent are: Dominica Guardian, 1893-1924 The Dominican, 1 issue, 1873 I am always happy to see new materials load online for the world to share, in general. It is super exciting and incredibly joyous to see rare and difficult to find/access materials like these become available to the world!Read More →

POSITION VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT POSITION:       Curator, Baldwin Library of Historical Children’s Literature RANK:   Assistant University Librarian or Associate University Librarian REPORTS TO:     Chair, Special and Area Studies Collections Department SALARY:         Minimum salary $54,144 at the Assistant University Librarian rank Minimum salary $62,574 at the Associate University Librarian rank Actual salary will reflect selected professional’s experience and credentials REQUISITION #:  68082 DEADLINE DATE:  February 8, 2021 – review of applications will begin on January 18, 2021 JOB SUMMARY The George A. Smathers Libraries at the University of Florida seek a collaborative, curious and knowledgeable colleague to lead the Baldwin Library of Historical Children’s Literature. The Curator ofRead More →

See the full CFP on the sx: archipelagos site, and below for ease. Super duper excited to see every issue of sx: archipelagos, and extra excited for this one! Call for Proposals Issue (6) | Special Issue on the Digital Library of the Caribbean (dLOC) For almost two decades, the Digital Library of the Caribbean (dLOC) has provided scholars, teachers, researchers, and others access to digital materials held in archives, libraries, and private collections. Beginning with collections of Caribbean newspapers, dLOC has expanded to include archives of Caribbean leaders and governments, historic and contemporary maps, oral and popular histories, travel accounts, literature and poetry, musicalRead More →

For anyone who’s been in web technologies for more than a few years, we all have Flash connections, with our own work, projects we steward, or stuff we love (Homestar Runner, perhaps?). In a great end of year present to all of us, Internet Archive is now emulating Flash! See the full announcement and details on their blog!Read More →

See the LibraryPress@UF video to learn a bit about our work in promoting open scholarship and education, while building a sustainable publishing program in collaboration with partners across campus and beyond.Read More →

I hope lots of folks take the time to see Earl Lewis’s opening keynote from the Charleston Conference: “Leading in an Age of Chaos and Change: Building a Community of Grace.” The presentation is excellent, and it parallels so many important conversations, including conversations at UF on compassionate computing.Read More →

As we go into the winter holiday season, many folks will be unable to see family/friends. That is hard.  Solidarity gets us through, allowing us to survive and thrive. I’m thinking about how we all support each other this holiday season. I’ll be talking to others and thinking about this as the holidays get closer.  I’m sharing preliminary thoughts now, in case they might be of use for others. First, Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous sponsor 24 hour rooms. These are fantastic ideas: spaces held open for community for those who need it, to come for solidarity, fellowship, and more (sometimes waffles; I know aRead More →

Thanks to Ed Summers for sharing his presentation for iPres2020! In it, he covers many things, including significant properties in relation to designated communities, preservation through desiccation, and the Principle of Least Power (Rule of Least Power) in relation to minimal computing. For folks working with technologies that need to be sustained, and so need to be maintainable as they grow as with digital libraries and collections, ideas like minimal computing, the Rule of Least Power, and appropriate technology are foundational concepts.Read More →

Thanks to the editors of this important volume for the volume and this webinar series! Today we are at a pivotal moment in history. The Covid-19 crisis has resulted in a paradigm shift on how learners of all ages, worldwide, can access learning. It is therefore more than ever essential that the global community comes together now to foster universal access to information and knowledge through [open educational resources].   — Joint statement, Mrs. Stefania Giannini, UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Education, and Mr. Moez Chakchouk, UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information (http://sli.bnu.edu.cn/uploads/soft/200518/2_1851146971.pdf) It is under this context that the fortuitously-timed release of Open Pedagogy Approaches:Read More →