eBook ePiracy: Are Libraries Guilty?

Pirates have a magazine!?

Recently, I posted my ramblings about ebooks and whether or not libraries should begin using them. In that article, I expressed concern that publishing companies may be freaking out because, well, when stuff goes digital, people steal it.  Well, here is an awesome article from ZDnet.com's Tech Broiler Violet Blue expounding on the notion of ebook piracy and ebook lending and what it may mean to the industry.

What I find funny is the same "reasons" pirates use for copying and pasting their favorite song, movie, TV show or book are mostly the same reasons that library's give.  Freedom of information.  Help the community grow.  Yadda Yadda.  Now do not hate me for saying that.  Just look at your libraries DVD collection and think about how many times you check out each copy, for free.  The only difference in me torrenting "Best of Elmo's World DVD Collection" and checking it out at the library is that the library is socially acceptable and government funded that I know bought at least one copy of the material.  I am really interested to know what people think about this.  Leave your comments below and fill my ignorant head.

New Stephen King Book a Time Romp

Scott Bakula's dreamy...

Stephen King's newest novel will be about a time traveler stopping the assassination of JFK encouraged by his friend Al.  Yep. I thought I had heard that premise, too.

I am not going to sit here on my sad little donkey and call out Stephen "I could write with my pee in the snow better than you" King.  Hell, I once pitched an idea for a novel that combined the plots of The Tempest and Death of a Salesman.  I do not know what I am talking about.  But com'on.  You better believe I am going to read it and I am almost sure it will be good.  But come the hell on...

I swear this is true and so does Library Journal.  Their swearing sounds classier, though.

Twitter: Celebrity Endorsed #BPLRAMPAGE #WINNING

You said it, not me.

What do the Library of Congress, New York Public Library, Boston Public Library, Harvard Library, and Charlie Sheen all have in common?  Not their amount of Twitter followers, I can tell you that.  In one day, Sheen managed to get to 1.2 million followers, something these library systems have not even a passing shot at (LoC and NYPL are the closest with around 100,000 followers each).

What hurts more?  Sheen is also a verified user, meaning that the social network took the time to claim this is the one and only ranting maniac.  They have not bothered to do that with the Library of Freaking Congress, an organization who is archiving the entire Twitter catalog.

So, does this speak toward our society or simply to the cult of personality?  I have a proposition, the next time the Red Sox win the sporting competition by making more touchdowns (whatever), BPL needs to go freaking ballistic.  Just stark raving nuts.  Give away beer at the Circ desk, keep hookers at the reference desk, have a congressman speak to minors, all of it, just go freaking nuts.  I would read that Twitter feed, and I bet America would too. #BPLRAMPAGE #WINNING

Update: @librarycongress is now verified by twitter, sorry @nypl @BPLBoston and @Harvard_Library, you all might still be spambots

5 Reasons Libraries Should Not Use Ebooks... Yet.

The Devil?

Oh, what a lovely tea party this ebook experience is, am I right?  With prices constantly shifting, publishers competing, and the overall industry flopping over to a new way of reading, who would not get stuck in this mire?  Well, here I come to offer up a little round of thoughts I like to call "Screw'em."  Libraries are a foundation in the community.  For at least 100 years, the library has been a fixture in almost every city and town across America.  The library to the community is a point of civilization, as a bookshelf is to a home.  Think about a home without a bookshelf:  an empty dwelling with one bare, hanging light and from one corner of that dank room, small cries are heard.  You do not want to go into that house.

The library represents the willingness of a community to not only think for itself but also to grow by allowing free representation of ideas and information.  By taking away the danger aspect of "being left behind," libraries should really review the following five reasons they should not use ebooks yet:


1.  Most libraries will not have the tech support to handle every device.
Ebooks are still a relatively new field.  When the Internet gained popularity and libraries with the money began getting computers, sure there were some hang ups.  But I bet you dollars to doughnut-holes all those computers had only one operating system (Windows or Mac) that by week two most of the staff had a handle on enough to teach every yokel that came in how to get an AOL email.  There were even books to teach you, most of them pointedly describing their readers as "dummies" and "idiots."  But look at the landscape of ereaders.  Every version of every device has its own features and whats-a-doodles, and let's not even get into the formats.  To expect every patron with every device to be serviced just as they are with the library website and books is absurd because every ereader is not created equally.

Vinnie

2.  Most libraries will not have the tech to support the service.

Does your library have a website?  Good.  Does your library host your website?  Host.  It means you have a big computer that your website lives in.  Ah, you pay for that from somebody else?  Well, that's what you are going to have to do with ebooks then.  Not all but a lot of libraries do not have full time tech support and often pay proprietary companies to handle all that for them.  We handle the search coding, link it to your in-house system, bada-bing-bada-boom you got yourself a library website.  Not so with ebooks.  You will almost certainly have to pay someone else, like Overdrive, to hold on to all those little files that will be accessed by your patrons.  That leads us to the next point:

3.  The ebook industry is constantly changing.

I taught them all they know.

I know, I know, it will always be changing, publishing took decades to get to a stable place, I got a paper cut.    Yeah, I know all that.  But ebooks just became really profitable.  What Harper Collins has just taught us is that the industry wants a piece of that sweet, sweet action and they do not want folks to give it away for free. Think about it, once they sold you a pbook (paper book, trademark Banned Library productions) you could give it to a friend, throw it away, hell, use it to light a Thanksgiving parade mascot on fire, they already had your money.  But what they learned from Napster over a decade ago is that digital content can be a huge money maker as long as you tighten the reins* to the breaking point and never, never let the college kids get a hold on it.

4.  The patrons that use ereaders the most use the library the least.
Think of all your swanky non-library friends and their fancy ereaders.  Try to recall the last time you saw them in a library beyond the odd function or two.  There may be an exception that proves the rule, but not by a long shot.  People who can afford ereaders and are knowledgeable enough to use them have no use for the library once they are out of college.  They do not use library services out of spite or anything, not most of them anyway, they just have no need because their home Internet connection and ability to spend a few bucks on an instant download override a trip to the library, either for information or entertainment.

5. Skynet, man.

What?  You think I would go an entire article with legitimate points?

*Update, edit:  I updated #3 from "reigns" to "reins" so as not to confuse future readers who thought I was confusing saddle's with royalty.  This note is to put into context "Anonymous"'s comments below.  Oh, auto-correct, you are my bane. I hope that the original mistake did not distract anyone else from forming a coherent comment on a post which has the last point being a political poster with "Red Dawn" fighting "The Terminator." 

How to Get Banned From a Library

Becoming banned is somewhat of an interesting notion.  Every day you read about video game accounts or blog commenters being banned for inappropriate usage or content.  Hell, Twitter even has a "block" button to just shut someone right the hell out of your online life.  But just as in every other area of life, the "real" world is harder to manage than the virtual.  Here are some ways you can be ejected from a library, based on real world examples.  Hint:  Disrupt library service to other patrons.

1.  Be all stinky.

Last year, Stuart Penman was banned from his local library after several complaints from patrons and staff about his odor.  Unlike others on this list, he will allowed back if his hygiene improved, but I could not find a follow-up, although I imagine the title of the article could be "Man Takes a Bath, Allowed to Stalk Ex on Facebook Again."  

2.  Show some dirty pics and (allegedly) punch a cop

Lawrence Delaney is a Selectman candidate banned from entering a library where a debate was being held. Why?  Because he showed staff dirty photos and created a disturbance at an earlier time.  He was known for his inappropriate behavior, at one point in an unrelated incident away from the library allegedly hitting a police officer.  Remember folks, you get a bad reputation after allegedly assaulting a police officer, even if you are 82 (did I not mention that?).  With that type of reputation, you may be misunderstood even if that Playmate is your granddaughter (it wasn't?).

3.  Go all Jesus on the place.

Caleb Hanson was banned from his library system for telling others about Jesus.  The sixteen year old would approach people as they entered the library and begin going all missionary on their asses.  While most libraries in general do not have a problem with religion and the speaking thereof, they do have a problem with blocking traffic and bothering people.  When Caleb was asked to stop bothering other patrons, he just kept on, so the library banned him for six months from checking out materials.  

4. Be all Jesus on the place

Photo supplied by Lord Jesus Christ via masslive.com
S/He's on the left.

 “I’m black, I’m transsexual and my name is Lord Jesus Christ."  'Nuff said. 

Actually, his name is Lord Jesus Christ III and he was banned for disruptive behavior from the Clapp Memorial Library.  I have no comment, sometimes this stuff just writes itself.  

Harper Collins Make Librarian SMASH!

More like "Treasury of Lies!" Ptoo!

Harper Collins Publishing announced this week that it will limit lending of its ebooks in libraries and other venues to only 26 times.  Man, librarian's got pissed, says Techeye.  I really am upset by this, but as of right now my library is a member of the Waitansee tribe as far as ebooks go, so it does not directly affect me.  However, I can place myself in the shoes of others due to my over-active imagination and wit (or lack ther of).  Let's see how Brenda from Reference and Dave from Tech Serv discuss this problem:

Brenda

Hey, Dave.  Look, I have some bad news about all those Harper Collins ebooks you just bought for the library on that grant you have been working on for weeks.

Dave

What kind of bad news?  I mean, it can not be that bad.  I mean, we used all that government money that I worked so hard to get to help out our patrons who are also in dire financial conditions.  We even used the cash to buy ereaders to check out so our patrons can carry an armload of books in just one tiny bit of plastic, helping them out even more.  What could be wrong with all that help and goodness?  Isn't life grand?

Brenda

Oh, Dave, this is going to upset you.

Dave

It is okay, Brenda.  Just let me know what you are thinking on this lovely sunny day.  Can you hear the birds?

Brenda

But I don't want to spoil your mood.

Dave

Well, you are almost doing that right now.  You are making me angry.  You wouldn't like it when I am angry.

Brenda

That's... that's kinda messed up.  Maybe we should have some other people around.

Dave

I was just kidding, what did you want to tell me?

Brenda

Harper Collins has limited the amount their ebooks can be lended to 26 times.

Dave

DAVE ANGRY!! DAVE SMASH!

Brenda

Dave, calm down!  They'll see reason, its okay.

Dave

DAVE NO CALM!! DAVE BREAK LITTLE EBOOK READER!!! HARPER COLLINS BAD!!!!

Brenda

Oh, God, he's loose!  Someone call the police!  Dave... Dave is on a rampage.  Oh, it will take months to reshelve all those!

Fin

Novel "Push" Pushed from from School Library

The novel "Push" by Sapphire (which was the basis of the movie Precious: based on the novel "Push" by Sapphire) has been removed from the Horry County School's libraries.  The book was not the only item removed from the libraries, simply cited as an example of an item removed because its content was deemed "inappropriate" by the school board, WCBD TV reports.

I do not think any material should be banned from a library.  Restricting knowledge must not be the point of any library, or school for that matter.  I did not sign up as a librarian to be a parent and hold your hand, you have a momma or daddy or aunt or whatever for that.  If you do not have a parental figure, then you already know some pretty harsh lessons and a book is not going to shock and awe you.

Schools and teachers in general are getting the short end of a very long stick in more ways than one, however.  AR reading lists and other backwards ways of thinking are hurting more than helping as they hinder not only what a child reads but how they read it.  A school librarian now-a-days has the horrid task of almost anti-readers advisory.  The choices are what the kid wants to read (if at all), what the kid has to read, and what the bureaucracy has allowed.

Coming from a kid who had read everything Stephen King had written before 7th grade, I applaud the librarian/teacher that even put this book in a middle school library.  Quality stories, themes and topics should be in the library, every library.  If you are afraid of talking with your kids about what they are reading or topics that you may find disturbing, keep them home and in their rooms and hopefully they will grow up well adjusted enough to have honest conversations with their inbred sister/daughters and brother/sons.