Author Archive for Jim

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About Jim

A government bureaucrat? No, I'm a librarian. See my LinkedIn profile... http://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesmduncan


Email: duncan_j@cde.state.co.us

Website: http://www.coloradostatelibrary.org/


All of Jim's Stuff

A revolution in Rangeview: Anythink

You may have missed the September 12 official unveiling of the Rangeview Library District’s latest (some would call radical) movement away from its traditional library brand into a new style.

AnythinkAnythink(tm) “celebrates imagination, play and interactivity.” In the official Anythink announcement, you’ll note a decidedly strategic absence of the tried-and-tired verbiage and emphasis typical of library press releases. Included is a YouTube-hosted “Anythink Branimation.” Pop on over to the site; this is an innovative and bold direction for Rangeview Library District, well worth watching.

Libraries awarded grants for key projects

The dust has settled on the 2009-10 LSTA grants to libraries process. With the economy in the state wobbly and libraries doing all they can to scrape by, it’s not surprising that $792,285 worth of grant proposals were submitted, competing for the $400,000 allocated to Colorado through the Library Services and Technology Act.

Teams of grant reviewers, composed of librarians of all types from throughout Colorado, scrutinized every word within each proposal. For a library or library service organization to prepare a top-notch proposal is no small feat, and reviewers took their task just as seriously.

The breadth of proposals, both in terms of content and reach in Colorado, was impressive.  All grants awarded addressed the long-range goal “that Colorado’s residents will be able to access resources and services electronically through libraries to meet their information and learning needs.”

A list of 10 grants awarded for 2009-10 follows below. For more information about the LSTA grant submission and review process, your questions are welcomed by Jean Marie Heilig, LSTA Grant Coordinator (heilig_j@cde.state.co.us)

Continue reading ‘Libraries awarded grants for key projects’

Plinkit Wins National Award

The Plinkit Collaborative, a national cooperative organization behind the Plinkit web site hosting system, has received an achievement award from the Center for Digital Government, a national research and advisory institute on information technology policies and best practices in state and local government. The Colorado State Library is one of four founding members of the Plinkit Collaborative. Continue reading ‘Plinkit Wins National Award’

Spanish Peaks Photo Tour

Spanish Peaks Library DistrictSouthEast Area public Library Directors (SEADs) periodically meet. Where? In the southeast! On Wednesday this week the gang met at the new Spanish Peaks Library in Walsenburg. In addition to talking shop, attendees were treated to a comprehensive tour of this eco-friendly library. Check out our Flickr site for more photos, including rare behind-the-scenes shots of the 2nd and 3rd floors to get a sense of how the 1st floor looked before it was renovated!

On NPR: Spanish Peaks Library District

An uplifting and celebratory radio spot on NPR’s All Things Considered was broadcast last Saturday, focused on the opening of Walsenburg’s new public library. Give it a listen at: npr.org (scroll down and look for the story “High-Tech Library Gleams in Colorado Town”).  If you can’t access the audio, read the transcript.

The story features interviews with Library Director Monica Birrer, former Library Research Service Director Keith Curry Lance, and Douglas County Library District Director Jamie LaRue.

The best part of the story, in my opinion, are the comments of a nine-year-old patron of the library!

Author Fest of the Rockies

As always, Margaret Morris and the Friends of the Manitou Springs Public Library have been hard at work creating interesting ways to support the library and connect with the community.

Author Fest of the Rockies is another terrific example!

The event features education and training workshops, contests, keynote presentations and much more. Be sure to check out the schedule; the diversity of topics is excellent!

Proceeds for two-day event, featuring more than “50 published authors, editors, coaches, Internet marketing experts, illustrators, poets and publishers from throughout the state of Colorado” will benefit the Manitou Springs Public Library and contribute to its plans for expansion. Check it out at: http://www.authorfestoftherockies.org/

To the Moon!

“It is quite likely that this Professor Goddard couldn’t hit a barn door with a charge from a shotgun at a distance of fifty yards, yet he presumes to hit the moon with a rocket sent from the earth.”
- “Audacity of Ignorance,” Carbonate Chronicle, October 24, 1921

“Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.”
- Neil Armstrong, July 20, 1969

Each month, the Colorado Historic Newspapers Collection brings you a Featured Topic, a collection of articles culled from the over 500,000 pages in the Collection. This July marks the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon Landing… Continue reading ‘To the Moon!’

Boring. Historical. CHNC.

History is dull. Dry. Boring as all get-out.

Saturday, June 30, 1894. Buena Vista Herald.

The Western Region. A Dastardly Outrage.
Adjutant General Tarsney Tarred and Feathered at Colorado Springs.

“…kidnapped from the Alamo hotel a few minutes after midnight Saturday morning, by masked men, taken to the suburbs in a hack, and there tarred and feathered. General Tarsney had been in the city for several days attending the examination of the arrested Bull Hill miners…” Continue reading ‘Boring. Historical. CHNC.’

AskColorado wins over Westword writer

Recently Cory Casciato, a writer for Denver’s alternative newspaper Westword, stepped into the world of AskColorado. What this writer received through the 24/7 virtual reference service was the kind of top-notch service that many of AskColorado’s unsung librarians offer on a daily basis.

The librarian tested by Casciato in this particular online interaction was Martha Durgy, a.k.a. “Marty,” from Pitkin County Public Library. And boy did Martha do AskColorado librarians proud!

Read the Westword story/blog post about this encounter at: AskColorado has the answers

Continue reading ‘AskColorado wins over Westword writer’

Statewide Database Package Unveiled (AIRS)

Posted on behalf of Michelle Jeske…

Subscription information for the 2009/2010 Colorado Statewide Database Package is now available.

All current subscribers will soon receive a packet from BCR that includes:

  • Invoice for your library for 2009/2010
  • List of the databases included in the 2009/2010 package and
    subscriber pricing
  • Contact and additional information

New subscribers can find information about the package, pricing, and a link to the online order form on the AIRS website
Continue reading ‘Statewide Database Package Unveiled (AIRS)’