Ref Tech Rob

In a Columbus Metropolitan Speech given on Monday, May 4, 2009, governor Ted Strickland referred to the need to reform education for the "21st century economy." However, in laying out his plans, Mr. Strickland reverted to an old fashioned way of thinking of the school as "place." As advances in communication have allowed for instant access to some information, education has expanded beyond the classroom. For Ohio's citizens (of all ages) to have a national and competitive advantage, they need access to a breadth of information sources anytime and anyplace. While the internet is an invaluable tool for society, the closest thing we have to a true information infrastructure is our library system. Schools have a certain role in every society, but while we place all of our hopes in one institution, the cultures which outpace our educational system emphasize the value of learning which extends beyond the school walls and into the library . Here are some of governor S...

An open letter to Ted Strickland and Ohio's lawmakers, It has come to my attention that you plan to cut public library funding in Ohio by over 50%. That would be a mistake. To do so would cripple the state's economic recovery. Free public libraries represent society's last chance at educating and empowering our most desperate citizens. They provide free opportunities for families, workers, entrepreneurs, students, and small businesses to move forward and contribute to the community. Families across Ohio are relying on public libraries to get them through these hard times. As budgets tighten, they are able to seek enlightenment and entertainment for free at their public libraries. Boomers who have had steady employment for years find themselves out of work, and are told when they apply for new jobs to apply online. Many of these people have felt no need to own computers or to have internet access. When they tell potential employers of their predicament, they are inevitably ...

I ran across an article this morning on Google's Android project. Android is Google's attempt to create an open source operating system for mobile phone technology. The idea is that Android would serve as an open source operating system and companies would develop hardware around it. Recently, T-Mobile announced that they would be releasing the G1--the first handset designed to operate with Android. In his article, Chris O'Brien points to a number of Google's recent projects, including OpenSocial , which is designed to create an open API standard for social networking sites. O'Brien points to a lack of promotion and development for past initiatives and emphasizes their failure to gain significant market share. If you are just evaluating these initiatives on their individual merit, O'Brien has a point. I'm not certain that I would buy shares in T-Mobile based on the G1, and I wouldn't purchase one of the phones at the moment, either. I think, however,...

I came across letter to the editor in the Cincinnati Enquirer ( The Enquirer - With so much info on phone, why huge library? ) a little over a week ago, and I felt I needed to comment on it, but not without thinking about it a bit more. At first, I was a bit miffed at Aaron Gillum. I thought, "Hey, you have no idea what you're talking about. Data isn't the beginning and the end of information. There's also interpretation, and people want money for that. Who's going to provide that for the people who have no internet skills or access? You? 'Hey, everyone who can't afford a Blackberry with a data service plan go see Aaron--he'll let you use his!'" But then I looked a bit more closely at his argument, and at the library in question, and I did begin to wonder, "Do libraries have an edifice complex?" Now, before you judge me, I do believe that Mr. Gillum is missing part of the point--unless you are ready to digest all of the data required ...

There was an interesting article in the New York Times today about health research and data sharing in the cancer research field ( Cancer Data? Sorry, Can’t Have It - New York Times ). The article discusses the reluctance of many researchers to share valuable data with other researchers. It seems to me that in an age where people collaborate to crack the genetic code, it is irresponsible to withhold data that could be used to help people suffering from cancer. It's this kind of selfish thinking that can contribute to our early extinction.

I read with interest Regina Powers' opinion piece--"A Plea for Respect"--in the August edition of American Libraries. Her plea is a common complaint among librarians today--"the public doesn't know what we do." Usually, it is suggested that we either stay the course or we add more features for the public at our institutions--game nights, in house movies, "coffee and Danishes".... The problem with both lines of thinking is that we need the public's attention to make either work, and we just don't have it. What we need to do is connect the information and resources that we have with the public at its point of need. We need to get out of our buildings physically and electronically and begin to push our resources the way other institutions do. We need to create partnerships with news media, local governments, public institutions, ISPs and others in order to connect the public with the information it needs at its point of need. For example, ou...