Archive for the ‘conference’ Category

Tuesday, October 22nd, 2013

The LibraryThing Conference-Pen Olympics

The New England Library Association (NELA) has come to a close. The final event–not publicized in official documents–was the LibraryThing Conference-Pen Olympics, consisting of Tim taking (sometimes stealing) pens from all the exhibitors and taking them back to the LibraryThing office for a test drive. As regular conference-goers know everyone has pens, but not all pens are created equal. NELA was a low-pen-quality event—no Pilot Precise V5 Rolling balls, no “Wavy Clip Pens.” But some were better than others.

The Competitors

The Judging
Judges evaluated feel, stroke and appearance. Syracuse University wrote well, but twists rather than clicking—life is too short for that. The University of South Carolina achieves a satisfying heft but is too fat to hold comfortably. OCLC’s entrant was cheap–flimsy and blunt, with their logo reduced to black and white–and came with a microprinted “usage policy” on the side, claiming ownership of anything you write with it.

Second Runner-Up: Access Engineering
Chosen by Loranne for its heft and grippy-thing. The pen advertises some sort of engineering program available from McGraw-Hill.

First Runner-Up: ProQuest
Chosen by K.J., who opines “I chose my pen because I like to fiddle with pens during meetings, and the metal clip is bendable but likely won’t snap.” I appreciate its pleasing kaleidoscopic interior, reliable-sounding “click,” and sharp writing ball. Advertises ProQuest, a major provider of library content and services. (They’re also sister-company to Bowker, who sell our products to libraries—but that’s not why they won!)

The Winner: Equinox
Chosen by Tim, Abby and Matt. Matt described it as “wholesome.” I’m not sure what he means by that. I like it for its satisfying click, smooth writing and decent weight. Advertises Equinox Software, a (rather good) provider of open source ILS systems. As the winner, Equinox will be the first pen Tim destroys by chewing on it.

Labels: conference

Wednesday, November 4th, 2009

Speaking at Charleston Conference

Abby was slated to give a talk about LibraryThing at the Charleston Conference, tomorrow. Then, she came down with the flu. So, I’m heading to Charleston, SC as I blog now. I’ll be speaking at 12:30.

Anyone who happens to be there, and can lend me an Apple video dongle gets a free teeshirt.

Labels: Charleston, conference

Monday, March 30th, 2009

LibraryThing at Computers In Libraries 2009

LibraryThing, your favorite makers of libraries in computers, will be at Computers in Libraries this week. We’ll be passing out free stuff and showing off our new LibraryThing for Libraries feature so if you’re at CIL, stop by booth 214 and say hi. Unfortunately, we’re rhino-less this time, but we do have T-shirts and laptop stickers (and Tim.)

Our new feature allows our catalog enhancements to run even on items that don’t have an ISBN. Check it out in action on this 1948 edition of Tom Jones, or this 1937 edition of David Copperfield

There’s no ISBN on those items, but our code is still smart enough to load the right tags and recommendations info. It uses a combination of our new What Work API and the LibraryThing Connector (the JavaScript that powers LTFL) to pull title and author information out of the catalog’s HTML and then match it against our system. This new feature should help our academic libraries in particular, since they tend to have a lot of older pre-ISBN books.

Labels: apis, CIL, CIL2009, conference, librarything for libraries, rhinos

Thursday, April 3rd, 2008

LibraryThing for Libraries, at CIL, with a new feature!

LibraryThing will be at the Computers in Libraries conference in Washington, D.C. next week. We’re showing off LibraryThing for Libraries (LTFL) as exhibitors, demoing the enhancements available to libraries to make their online systems more Web 2.0., with a brand new feature.

If you’re in the DC area, and are interested in coming and seeing how LTFL works within OPACs, or witnessing our rhinosaursi upgrade (now with 100% more roars!), you’re in luck. We have free exhibit tickets, which gets you in to the exhibit hall (but not the conference sessions). Email me if you’d like to attend: sonya@librarything.com.

Computers in Libraries conference
Monday, April 7 – Wednesday April 9, 2008
Hyatt Regency Crystal City
2799 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA

Labels: CIL, CIL2008, Computers in Libraries, conference, librarything for libraries, rhinos

Wednesday, March 26th, 2008

LibraryThing doubles its conference budget

Sonya just iPhoned us the LibraryThing for Libraries booth at PLA in Minneapolis, which is starting now.

The rhino has its origin in conference rules that prohibit exhibitors from doing too much of their own setup. At CIL2007 the rule was no more than what one person could carry in one trip, without a hand-truck.

Well, what can one person carry that fills up some of a 10×10 space? An inflatable animal, of course!

There is no meaning; It’s an absurdist joke—a protest against the vacuity of conference selling. Still, it does line up with some of what LibraryThing and LibraryThing for Libraries is all about:

  • We’re not a “vendor.” Vendors bribe you with tchochkes. They erect gorgeous displays, adorned with orthodontically homogenous and racially diverse “patrons” grinning about some irrelevant, overpriced and boring piece of technology.
  • We are cheap. LibraryThing for Libraries costs what it costs. Sonya’s sleeping with friends and she flew cargo, but we spent a few thousand dollars to own a 10×10 booth for three days. The internet alone cost us $1,000. This is rip-job enough, and some library will be paying for it. If we ordered fancy chairs we’d have to charge them another $500. Who wants that?
  • LibraryThing for Libraries “sells itself.” At first I didn’t even want Sonya to make fliers, for fear some people will grab the flier and not see it for real.

Anyway, if you’re at PLA, stop by (booth 1652). If not, but you’re in Portland, ME or Cambridge, MA, send us a note. We might even spring for wine—something we do not skimp on.

PS: Even if you have no interest in LibraryThing for Libraries, help Sonya figure out how to make the rhinos roar. It says they do on the box, and there’s some sort of speaker on the foot, but we can’t figure out how.

Labels: conference, PLA, PLA2008

Tuesday, March 25th, 2008

LibraryThing at PLA


Greetings from sunny Minneapolis!

The LibraryThing for Libraries (LTFL) contingent will be at the Public Libraries Association conference this week, holding court in the exhibit hall. Our booth number is #1652, which you should definitely visit if you’re going to be at this fine affair.

We’re there to spread the word: recommended reads CAN be in your OPAC. Your patrons SHALL experience the exquisite joy that is tag browsing. You WILL be amazed how easy it is to implement.

We’ll be showing off our amazing OPAC enhancement tool, featuring libraries who have implemented LTFL. You can witness firsthand how seamless the enhancements look in WebPac Pro, HIP and others.

You’ll know our booth by the giant rhinos.

Labels: conference, librarything for libraries, PLA