September 14th
Riverside Public Library
TFML Representative: Aaron Schmidt
This meeting was well attended. One participant that was very welcome was David Seleb from the MLS. Though it was a Zone 1-4 meeting, he led the discussion for the majority of the time, and it seems that MLS members were happy to discuss things with him.
The first topic discussed was III Millennium and Reference staff’s adoption of using it over the character-based interface. David asked who used what, and if a user guide for Reference staff would be helpful. MLS would like for all of us to be using Millennium because a) there are no new features being added for character-based b) more input can be given to them to improve the product if more people are using it. III has the right to make character-based go away at any time. Many people found this to be scary, citing how much faster it is to use than clicking around with a mouse. III might come to MLS to showcase other modules it has available that we don’t currently have. In the future, it might be the case that individual libraries could purchase these on their own. Did you know that we could get touch screens to use with Millennium? I didn’t know that before.
The second topic was the revision of Reference Standards and Core List. David was curious is people thought it would be a valuable pursuit, even though there is no present mechanism for enforcement. While my reporting may be bland, the discussion wasn’t uneventful. One librarian even dropped the “F-Bomb” in her description of some other libraries. I was surprised.
Additional items:
-The Brookfield Zoo will contribute to distribute reusable free passes to libraries. They are given mainly to libraries with a lower socioeconomic level.
-Late this Fall or early next year, there will be a Zone 1-4 meeting about planning for our 2006 Summer Reading Programs. Idea will be shared.
-SWAN will not, for now, get any additional item reviews or item pictures in the OPAC. Bonnie from Downers asks, “How do we change SWAN” to which David replies, “Good question!”
The next meeting will be at Cicero PL on December 14th.