Happy Monday! It is bright and sunny in the Bay Area and I am feeling very guilty about enjoying the day because it should be raining. Unlike other parts of the country, we really need it to rain here.

But enough about the weather, you are here for the techie and library related goodies! And I have some fun and some disturbing information to relay to you today.

I thought we better get the bad and disturbing information out of the way first: check out this analysis of the new OCLC policy. It sounds like member libraries could be negatively impacted by this new policy. I want to read the entire policy before adding to much to this discussion, but I think everyone should be aware of this coming change.

On to less disturbing news: online reading versus book reading–what is better? There is a lot of debate surrounding this question, especially as more and more of the information and services offered to students and patrons moves online. Check out a summary of research done on this very issue that says that there may be negatives to reading and learning online. I know this is a huge debate and there isn’t nearly enough research to say definitively whether online and print reading are equivalent in terms of cognition and comprehension levels. But I think it is a good idea to keep up on the research and discussion surrounding reading and learning as we spend resources and time on ebooks, online instruction and services.

Online reading works for me in small doses and for short periods of time, but I would never want to read the complete works of Foucault online. What do you think?

Now for the fun: you might have thought we were done with lists because, after all, it is January 12th, but no! Here is a list I just had to pass along: New Year’s Resolutions for Readers. I love this list; I find it inspiring and encouraging and will use it as a reason for my indulgence of reading more this year. So go forth and read; then let me know what books you liked–I’m always interested in what other people are reading.

Lastly, I couldn’t have another post without talking about some technology. Here is Wired’s list of 12 Good Gadgets for Hard Times. It is a thought-provoking list (as shown by the massive amounts of comments on the article, some of which are entertaining and others of which are not very nice). I think it is always interesting to see what someone else thinks are the go to gadgets. I have to say, after living in South America, I’ve got to agree with the hand-crank radio, multi-tool and some kind of water filtration unit. A solar powered or hand-crank laptop would be icing on the cake. Remember, don’t let technology rule your life or your work, make it be a tool that works for you.

Have a great rest of your Monday, see you again later this week!