Tech Assistance @ LME Library

Did you get an ereader, tablet, or other technology for Christmas but don't know how to use it?  Bring it to the library and we will assist you with your new device(s).  We will be having a series of technology classes and drop-ins during January 2014 so be sure to stop by and see us!

In addition, Kate has created this great poster to help our patrons locate some of our local websites.  There's a lot of great information on these pages and all these links are available through the library's website at http://lmelibrary.org 

How Americans Value Public Libraries

New information was released today (12/11/13) on the public's view of the importance of libraries by the Pew Internet & American Life Project.  This survey called “How Americans Value Public Libraries in Their Communities” shows that Americans strongly value the role of public libraries in their communities, both for providing access to materials and resources and for promoting literacy and improving the overall quality of life.

Some of the Projects findings include:

• 95% of Americans ages 16 and older agree that the materials and resources available at public libraries play an important role in giving everyone a chance to succeed;
• 94% say that having a public library improves the quality of life in a community;
• 81% say that public libraries provide many services people would have a hard time finding elsewhere.
• 56% of internet users without home access say public libraries’ basic technological resources (such as computers, internet, and printers) are “very important” to them and their family, compared with 33% of all respondents.
• 49% of unemployed and retired respondents say they librarian assistance in finding information to be “very important,” compared with 41% of employed respondents.
• 47% of job seekers say help finding or applying for a job is “very important” to them and their families.
• 94% said that based on their own experiences, they would say that “public libraries are welcoming, friendly place.”

More information can be found at: http://libraries.pewinternet.org/2013/12/11/libraries-in-communities/

Technology Trends from 2013

Libraries are essential to communities all across the U.S.  We use and lot of technology, and we've seen some definite trends in 2013.  One that we use a lot here at the Lillie M. Evans Library is cloud based computing.  Our library staff uses dropbox to share files, and our circulation system vendor has been integrating cloud based computing in our circulation applications and in RSAcat.

We're also seeing a decline in the usage of our public desktop computers.  We seldom have waiting lines anymore and even though we still had over 4,600 checkouts for these computers, the usage declined 21% in FY13.  However, we are seeing an huge increase in mobile devices like smart phones, ipods, and ereaders.

You can read about more technology trends in 2013 year in review from TechSoup.org.

Lincoln 150th Anniversary & the Princeville Heritage Museum

On November 19, 1863, Lincoln delivered one of his most famous speeches in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.  He had been invited to give a “few appropriate remarks” during the dedication ceremony for a cemetery for Union soldiers killed at the Battle of Gettysburg.  Despite the brevity of the speech and the fact that it earned little attention at the time, the Gettysburg Address has become one of the most celebrated speeches in U.S. history.

As we observe the 150^th anniversary of Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, the Lillie M. Evans Library and the Princeville Heritage Museum would like to publicize the upcoming exhibit, Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War which will be on display at the Museum from April 7, 2014 through May 9, 2014.  Organized thematically, the exhibition explores how Lincoln used the Constitution to confront three intertwined crises of the war—the secession of Southern states, slavery, and wartime civil liberties. Visitors will leave the exhibition with a more complete understanding of Abraham Lincoln as president and the Civil War as the nation’s gravest constitutional crisis.

A short video walkthrough (10:25 min.) with Dr. Steve Frank, Chief Interpretive Officer at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, is available online at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hNVUPM5SOg.  Lincoln: the Constitution and the Civil War, a traveling exhibition for libraries, was organized by the National Constitution Center and the American Library Association Public Programs Office. The traveling exhibition has been made possible by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.  Lincoln: the Constitution and the Civil War is based on an exhibition of the same name developed by the National Constitution Center.

There will be several programs offered during the exhibit including a tea with Mrs. Lincoln, Illinois in the Civil War with Tom Emery, and a discussion of the anti-slavery movement in the mid-19^th century.  If you would like to ensure you are on our mailing list, please email phmdirector@frontier.com with your contact information and we’ll keep you informed about the events.  In addition, watch our websites, http://lmelibrary.org and http://www.princevilleheritagemuseum.com/ for additional information on this exhibit and the upcoming programs.