6 years ago - American Memory

Today, in 2001, I was heading to Stillwater for a workshop. It was being sponsored by OLA/GODORT - and featured a presenter from the Library of Congress (whose husband worked at the Pentagon).

The workshop was being held to highlight the American Memory project. American Memory:

...provides free and open access through the Internet to written and spoken words, sound recordings, still and moving images, prints, maps, and sheet music that document the American experience. It is a digital record of American history and creativity. These materials, from the collections of the Library of Congress and other institutions, chronicle historical events, people, places, and ideas that continue to shape America, serving the public as a resource for education and lifelong learning.

On my way to Stillwater my husband called me, on my cellphone, and said something about a plane crash and New York City. I wasn't sure what he was talking about, it was a choppy cell reception, so I continued to listen to the music CDs I had put in my truck that morning. When I got to OSU and found my way to the room, where the class was being presented, I asked the person , who was checking registration, if she had heard anything about the plane that crashed into New York. She said not really.

As the workshop began we heard more details coming in about what was going on that day. Our internet connection to the Library of Congress servers came to a halt. (As well as access to the major news websites) Luckily the presenter had a CD back up of her presentation. Something she mentioned was available to all librarians and teachers should they want to contact the Library of Congress for materials.

The presenter showed some of the amazing collections available American Memory and described to us how people in all disciplines of study could take advantage of the resources available, and all for free -- everything from Advertising to War. A couple if people left early, stating that the stress of not knowing about friends and family on the east coast was too much.

As we broke for lunch that day we made our way over to the OSU Student Union to grab a bite -- the food places had very short lines -- so we paid for our eats. Finding a table near the television was a little harder -- the area around the screen was packed. With some people shushing us librarians so they could hear the TV and others talking about theories of who was responsible. We ate our lunches and hurried back to finish the day's workshop.

It was an amazing workshop and the presenter did a spectacular job. We found out a day or two later that her husband was fine and she was finally able to find transportation (I think a car) to get back home.

If you haven't checked out the American Memory website - be sure to -- it's a great collection that showcases the low and high points of US history and culture.

Blogs | ISSNs & LoC

For those who would like another blog to add to their roll -- might I suggest the Library of Congress blog?

An interesting topic today deals with blogs and ISSNs --

I got an email this morning from a colleague in the Office of Communications, who said that she was speaking to our “guru of ISSN numbers.” Here is the upshot:

Today she told me that after much debate, catalogers had decided that corporate blogs published regularly are in fact serial publications and therefore should have an ISSN number. The Library should be a model for all catalogers, she said. She promised to read and assess your blog and communicate further. Many bloggers have been requesting ISSN numbers. You may already have an ISSN number.

I kind of find it interesting that it's a topic -- I know bloggers around the world have been applying for ISSNs for several years now. Of course some with more success than others. Hmmm wonder if LibraryStories needs an ISSN...

LC Hit By $47 Million Cut in Digital Preservation Funds

Found this via LISnews -- LJ reports:

It sneaked under a lot of people's radar, but the Library of Congress (LC) has lost $47 million in promised federal funds for digital preservation efforts, and it's unclear how many projects and programs will be affected. After the February 15 passage of P.L. 110-5, $47 million "of the unobligated balances available for the National Digital Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program" (NDIIPP) was rescinded. "The Library of Congress is in the early stages of evaluating the impact of this rescission, and no decisions have been made on the future of the program, which continues to operate," LC spokesman Matt Raymond told LJ. "We are hopeful that funds may be restored in fiscal year 2008.

"The issue for us, and what we're working on, is getting that money put in for '08," said Emily Sheketoff, executive director of the American Library Association's Washington Office. She said she'd learned that LC had decided not to fight the decision, since it would've been a losing effort. The practical impact is yet unclear, but NDIIPP derives from a law passed in December 2000 that appropriated $100 million to LC. "Increasingly, digital content embodies much of the nation's intellectual, social, and cultural history," LC said in its announcement of the program, noting that it "will seek to provide a national focus on important policy, standards and technical components necessary to preserve digital content."

Of the initial funding, according to LC's summary, "Congress specified that $5 million of the appropriation may be spent during the initial phase for planning as well as the acquisition and preservation of digital information that may otherwise vanish." Also, the legislation authorized "as much as $75 million of federal funding to be made available as this amount is matched by nonfederal donations, including in-kind contributions." It's yet unconfirmed that the $47 million came from this total. Librarian and blogger Karen Schneider, who wrote with dismay about the cuts last month, commented that she had been to an NDIIPP partners meeting and was impressed by the "many successful projects designed to protect our digital brain trust for many generations ahead."