1st Conference on National Digital Libraries – Santiago de Chile 8th – 9th September

Aquiles Alencar Brayner (BL) and Lucia Shelton (OCLC) at the National Library of Chile

The digital library, as many people have suggested, is everywhere. New technologies allow us to gather a massive number of information in digital format and carry it with us in a myriad of technological devices such as laptops, pen drives, mobile phones and e-readers. Never in history have we had this easy access to information. The problem we all face is how to deal with this new digital situation: which sources to use for the retrieval of pertinent information? What to select and how to archive materials in electronic format for future generations? How to deal with issues of preservation in the digital world? As one might guess, the First Conference on National Digital Libraries held in Santiago (Chile) last week had more questions than answers. We all agreed that ours is an age of ‘infoxication’ and that national and academic libraries have to act quickly in order to find the antidote for the treatment of this new syndrome. Many of the presentations in the conference raised common issues faced by National libraries when dealing with electronic publications, including the lack of depository laws for digital-born material and the development of new tools and standards for managing electronic information. Participants had also the opportunity to learn about international digital initiatives such as the World Digital Library set up by the Library of Congress and other similar projects being developed in Latin America and Spain such as the Biblioteca Digital Pedro de Angelis, a digitisation project led by the national libraries of Argentina and Brazil; and the Biblioteca Digital Iberoamericana, a collaborative project between various Ibero-American national libraries. The message that came across in the conference was straight forward: by creating strategies for effective selection (especially by avoiding duplication of collections and coordinating digitisation programmes), sharing access to digital information and setting up best practices for preservation, libraries will be in a better position to take decisions and lead the discussion on digital information, providing efficient and innovative service for our users.

The Little Foxes

I should either be A) at the interlibrary cooperation meeting OR B) preparing for the Executive Board meeting, but instead I am here in the nerve center of the SALALM 54 conference, juicing up my laptop and blogging. Things have been going quite smoothly so far and I can take absolutely no credit for this. The Berlin local arrangements team runs a tight ship and it seems like they have thought of everything. I think many of us are starting to think they can order up the weather. Today has been much cooler and sunny--perfect weather for sitting in committee meetings!

Following up on Adan's post, we had a good LAMP meeting in the lovely Bolivar room at the IAI. They graciously held a reception for us afterwards (big incentive to finish the meeting). We had a look at the wonderful exhibit they have prepared !Al pueblo argentino de 2010! Culturas en movimiento en el Rio de la Plata. (sorry can't make accents on this computer). And some wine and empanadas, along with German sandwiches.

And enjoy a nice photo of our new members orientation. Yes, I can confirm that the Latin Lover was the drink of choice at our reception.

So where do the foxes come into the picture? On the way back to our hotel each night, I've been seeing little creatures that I now know are foxes. At first I thought they were jet lag induced hallucinations but I have independent confirmation that they are indeed foxes. I've never seen them in an urban setting like this. We are just blocks from Berlin's Tiergarten, which literally means animal garden. It was laid out in the 18th century as a hunting ground so perhaps this all makes sense. Berlin can be a magical place indeed. . . Back to business

Willkommen in Berlin!

Greetings from Berlin! I arrived around midday Wednesday and am probably one of the first overseas attendees to arrive. I had a delayed but uneventful flight, direct from New York. At the baggage claim I discovered that Tina Gross was on my flight, but that was the only Salalmer@ I encountered today.

Here's the entrance to our hotel, in the lovely Kulturforum district. The air is fragrant with some kind of blossom. I spent most of my day settling in and getting organized. I took a walk over to the nearby Potsdamer Platz. There are several shops and restaurants about 10 minutes walk from the hotel. I will be helping our colleagues at the IAI Library with conference preparations tomorrow (although they are so organized they probably do not need my help!). I hope to run into some arriving Salalm members on Thursday and Friday. It's warm here right now, highs near 80 F but it will be a few degrees cooler after Sunday, according to the forecasts.

Hasta pronto, pamela

FINAL Program SALALM 54

Greetings to the blog reading SALALMeros out there.

The final program for SALALM 54 is now available on the conference website. It's hard to believe the rough notes and lists I sketched out with Peter and Ricarda over cold lemonade in New Orleans has turned into this 32 page document. Now I need to clone myself so I can sit in on all the panels.

Hope to see some of you soon; others can look forward to our ongoing posts and eventual conference reports.

saludos,
pamela

e-SALALM -- Your input needed

Hi all,
This is my first entry into the salalm blogosphere-- and how appropriate that I am writing about SALALM's digital future! I have posted a note to LALA-L describing my idea to form an ad hoc group within SALALM to explore ways to make our organization more electronic. Hopefully saving us some work and time and paper. I am pasting in the proposal below.

I invite you to send your feedback, either directly to my Columbia email (graham@columbia.edu) OR you can use the comments feature of this blog to share your thoughts. We will dedicate some time to this issue in the Town Hall meeting at the end of the SALALM conference, on the afternoon of July 8th. If you post or send a comment, I can bring that to the discussion, if you wish. I'll look forward to receiving your thoughts, in person or in bytes. Thanks! Pamela

Proposal and Charge for the e-SALALM Ad hoc Committee
July 2009
Submitted by Pamela Graham, SALALM President 2008-09

This proposal seeks to set up an Ad hoc committee (to be called the e-SALALM Group) to investigate, research, and recommend measures that could be taken to improve and increase efficiency in several SALALM functions via the use of technology. Over the course of the last few years, the membership and SALALM officers have expressed an interest in moving several key functions online and this theme surfaced in the 2007 PRI Survey. Shifting some of SALALM’s functions online will involve initial and ongoing costs, and will require an examination of available software and tools, and a consideration of several non-technological issues. I propose setting up a working group that can survey and review such options and issues with the goal of providing the Executive Board, the Finance Committee, and other relevant Committees with specific recommendations for pursuing any appropriate changes.

Possible categories of functions and activities to be reviewed: 

• Routine SALALM functions: Initial memberships and membership renewals, Conference Registration, SALALM election balloting 
  
• Publications: Newsletter, Membership Directory, Proceedings and other publications
• Publicity and Outreach: use of blogs, Facebook, podcasts, and other social networking tools to disseminate information and engage existing and potential members 
  
• Intra-SALALM communication: Group workspaces for committees/subcommittees; tools for sharing documents, minutes, and any project documentation etc.
  

Possible tasks for the e-SALALM can include the following: 

• Consult with relevant SALALM committees and with the membership as needed to gather information about priorities, questions, and concerns; determine whether some functions are already carried out online and recommend any needed practices or guidelines 
  
• Review other similar professional organizations’ websites; consult with colleagues to obtain advice and suggestions on software and appropriate technologies 
  
• Review possible tools and software; obtain information about technological requirements and costs 
  
• Consider non-technological issues including access, privacy, and the possible need for any changes in SALALM’s Basic Documents 
• Consider needs for any new institutional support, financial and human, to enact and sustain possible changes
  

Membership: The group will consist of a Chair and approximately 5 members. The group should include a mixture of persons with technological skills and experience, and those with strong familiarity with SALALM’s committees and functions. The committee will be populated by a combination of appointments and an open call for volunteers from the membership to serve.

Timeline for work: The group will carry out most of its work during the 2009-10 academic year. A brief status report should be sent to the Executive Board in January 2010. The group will deliver a report and recommendations to the Executive Board and Finance Committee two weeks before the SALALM LV conference so that these recommendations can be considered at the annual Executive Board and Finance Committee meetings. More complicated issues may require additional time for research and investigation so some of the e-SALALM group may carry over into the following year.

Yelp in Berlin?

You are probably already familiar with the restaurant (and almost everything else) review site - Yelp (http://www.yelp.com/). It's my go-to site for dining decisions. Sadly, it appears that there is no Yelp Berlin, yet. However, you can find great restaurant reviews for Berlin on a number of sites:

• Trip Advisor
  
• New Berlin Magazine
• New York Times Berlin Guide
  

Happy eating!

Berlin Conference Draft Program Available

Check out this sneak peek of the draft conference program for SALALM 2009 in Berlin. There are so many great-sounding panels!

We are still looking for a few more volunteer rapporteurs. If you're able to assist, contact Roberto Delgadillo, UC Davis, for more information.