LTLS - Quick Connections

Weekly Poll

Be sure to check out our new survey below, or on our home page.

You can also view results from previous weekly polls.

2009 Carol Anne Robbins Scholarships

This year, the Helen M. Plum Memorial Library located in Lombard Illinois is pleased to be able to award two $1,500 scholarships for any students enrolled in graduate library science programs and one $500 scholarship for those attending undergraduate library science programs. Download the regulations and  Application form to apply.

Using Social Media to Promote Digital Photos

Alliance Library System(ALS) and LearningTimes are pleased to announce an online conference to debut ATLAS, a new set of social media tools to promote history and digital photographs. The conference will be held online using Adobe Connect on Monday June 29 from 9:00 A.M. - 11:00 A.M. There is no charge for this exciting conference. Register online at: http://www.learningtimes.net/atlas#register

WolframAlpha - Numerical Search Engine

Wolfram Research, a company based in Champaign that is best known for its Mathematica software, has launched WolframAlpha, a new computational search engine.  It is a discovery tool for anything numerical, and very different from Google.  Want to compare the GDP of the US and Mexico?  Just visit the website and enter "GDP US Mexico".  Want to know the weather in Champaign on January 1, 1973?  Enter "January 1, 1973 weather champaign il".  It was cloudy and windy, high of 32 degrees.  Going on vacation to Europe? Enter "convert 100 us dollars to euros". The per capita income of Coles County?  Enter "Coles County, Illinois income per capita".  Of course, you can enter any math formula, too.  For more inspiration, see the gallery of examples of more things WolframAlpha can do.  It should come in handy for those hard-to-find reference stumpers at the library.

Public Library Per Capita - Additional Resources

Several additional helpful resources have been added to the Per Capita Grant resource list compiled by Rolling Prairie Library System.  Newly added are worksheets for the Building Maintenance Plan and the Envorionmental Plan.

Skokie TeenNet Videos Promote Library

Skokie Public Library's TeenNet teen volunteers have produced 2 videos, one promoting the library's Teen Corner and one an interview with a local restaurant.  The videos earned first and second place respectively in the Skokie Village Cable Commission's Video Contest.  Great PR for the library, and a great way to involve teens in the library.  The teen video productions are mentored by librarian Frances Roehm.  Check them out on YouTube.  First Place: "The Teen Corner at the Skokie Library" 
Second Place "Sweety Pies: An Interview"

AASL archived L4L webinars available for purchase

Get one Webinar free before July 1

The American Association of School Librarians is announcing that its popular L4L webinars are now available for purchase in archived format. The webinars, offered in April during School Library Media Month, are part of Learning4Life (L4L), AASL’s national initiative to implement “Standards for the 21st-Century Learner” and “Empowering Learners: Guidelines for School Library Media Programs.” The archives will be available on the AASL Web site at www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/aasl/conferencesandevents/l4lwebinars/l4lwebinararchive.cfm.

Baseball diversity shines in Step Up to the Plate @ your library®

Baseball is a melting pot, with a history spanning more than 150 years and players from places as varied as the Netherlands, Afghanistan and Japan. This year, libraries help remind fans what makes baseball the American pastime with Step Up to the Plate @ your library.

Licensing digital content

ALA Editions, the publishing imprint of the American Library Association just released “Licensing Digital Content: A Practical Guide for Librarians, 2nd Edition” by Lesley Ellen Harris. The revised edition updates the basics of digital licensing for librarians in a plain-language approach that demystifies the process.

25 acclaimed poets and authors LIVE! at ALA Annual Conference

The American Library Association (ALA) Public Programs Office will present 25 critically-acclaimed and best-selling authors on the LIVE! @ your library Reading Stage, from noon to 4 p.m., July 11-13 in the exhibits hall at the upcoming ALA Annual Conference in Chicago. Attendees are welcome to take a break from their busy conference schedules and listen to some of their favorite authors and poets read from and autograph their recent works.  Located in the back of the 3,200 aisle in the exhibits hall, the Live! @ your library Reading Stage is free for all conference attendees.