The title of this post says it all…

News

  • Amazon makes UK publishers pay 20% VAT on ebook sales – Guardian.  Amazon use Luxembourg base, perfectly legally, to pay just 3% VAT but demand publishers discount/pay 20%.
  • Amazon wipes customer’s Kindle and deletes account with no explanation – Guardian.  “If the retailer, in this case Amazon, thinks you’re a crook, they will throw you out and take away everything that you bought. And if you disagree, you’re totally outlawed. With DRM, you don’t buy and own books, you merely rent them for as long as the retailer finds it convenient.” … “”the policy violation that Linn stands accused of is using a friend’s UK address to buy Amazon UK English Kindle books from Norway”. Under Amazon’s rules, this type of action is barred, as the publisher seeks to control what content is read in which territory of the world.”
  • Libraries and their importance to society – Public Administration.
  • Libraries own their ebooks and nothing improves – Library Journal (USA).  “Let’s face it, the library ebook experience thus far is a bad one, more from the patron’s perspective than from ours. Lots of holds even on items that wouldn’t be popular except for ebook scarcity, months waiting for a book, then two weeks to finish it at the arbitrary time it’s available. So while it is a landmark that a publisher admits libraries own the ebooks they pay for, the obstacles to creating a pleasant library ebook experience are as great as ever. That doesn’t mean that they always will be, and there are libraries working to overcome them.”
  • Library nurses look after those in need – Arizona Daily Star (USA). “Daniel Lopez is not a librarian, but one of the nation’s first library nurses. He checks the feet of diabetics, takes blood pressure, gives out condoms and intervenes in medical emergencies. Lopez is Pima County’s novel answer to a common issue in public libraries across the country – a growing number of patrons living without shelter, health insurance, medical care or computer access. They come to the library looking not only for resources, but also for safety and protection from the elements. The shaky economy and high unemployment have further fueled the need.”

“There’s no general demographic profile of those who need services, downtown librarian Prechtel said. The commonality is that all are facing some sort of individual hardship, and all come to the library because it’s a safe place where they know they can get information, she said.”

  • Perceptions of a very small public – Hack Library School (USA).  “Use of the library has dropped significantly since Internet access installed in the dorms about 2 years ago. In the last months, the 2 Computer Rooms are still used for Internet access but mostly for printing; the Lounge area is a popular spot for hanging out between classes; but the stacks — full of Art, History, and Italian Culture books (and even a set of 1909 Encyclopedia) as well as a small fiction and literature section — are mostly untouched. Students, if they enter the “book room” at all, primarily use the tables to study because “it is so quiet.” … “Is “library” a misnomer now?”.
  • Why I’d still choose paper books over digital books – Morton Report.  Beauty of waiting, pleasure of sharing, desire for fragrance are the reasons put forward.

Local News

  • Northamptonshire – Village networks: coming to a library near you – About My Area.  “Village Networks, a Lottery-funded project managed by the South Northants Volunteer Bureau (SNVB), offers free, independent advice and support from experts to residents in South Northamptonshire. The project has teamed up with our five local Libraries to hold informal drop-in sessions on Saturdays in November and December. “
  • Nottinghamshire – Future face of town’s library – This is Nottingham. Latest artist impression of new £5.3m library “Michelle Dunstan, principal librarian at the county council, said: “The new West Bridgford Library aims to make a real contribution to community life in the area, providing an inspiring central focus in the community. “We hope it can become a key venue for West Bridgford, providing a place where community life can flourish and helping to deliver the proven benefits libraries can bring to their communities.”

“The MA student at the University of Nottingham, said: “I’m a big fan of libraries and like the look of the new library and I’m excited for it to open. “However, I would rather the £5.3 million was spent on social service provision to help alleviate central government cuts, but any money spent on educating young people is a good thing.””

  • Get along to Nottinghamshire Reader’s day – Reading Groups for Everyone.  “Organised by Nottingham City and Nottinghamshire libraries, readers will be able to enjoy a choice of parallel sessions covering all aspects of books and reading such as: a discussion on film adaptions and whether movies are as good as the book; the joy and perils of choosing books as gifts; the loves of a ghost story and the fascination with autobiographies, as well as getting to hear from guest speakers: “
  • Sefton – Lib Dem bid to halt Sefton library closures – Southport Visiter.  “the Liberal Democrats have used the council’s “call in” procedure in an effort to force the authority to think again over the proposals. They say the Labour-led council has “rushed ahead” with the closure of seven of the borough’s 13 libraries including those in Ainsdale, Birkdale and Churchtown. Cllr Iain Brodie Browne, leader of the 20-strong Lib Dem group on Sefton council, said: “Local residents are quite rightly appalled at this decision.”