LGAQ Library Weblog

Where has my library gone to now?

lgaqlibrary — Tue, 03 May 2011 06:08:39 +0000

The LGAQ is in a constant state of flux at the moment and so is its Library. You may have noticed recently that there’s someone sitting where the Library used to be. Just when the Library was settling into its new, sleeker and trimmer self, it had to make way for another new staff member.
So, where is everything now? The room formerly known as the Visiting Council Room is now the Library Lite. You’ll find the journal and annual report collections here, as well as the Conference Proceedings collection, Council Leader and other LGAQ publications such as the Customer Satisfaction Surveys, and the newspaper collection. Everything else is downstairs in the carpark storeroom, aka The Dungeon.

The LGAQ Library service remains undiminished despite the recent upheavals. No request is too big, or too small. As the wallpaper on the computer says “Questions answered here – even the silly ones”. In Library world, the only silly question is an unasked one. So, please don’t hesitate to see Lesley the Librarian and find out what she can do to help you in your work.

Taking it to the cloud

lgaqlibrary — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 01:27:56 +0000

There’s a lot of talk around at the moment about cloud computing and its benefits to organisations and individuals. So what is cloud computing and why should you care?
The term ‘cloud’ comes from the wide-spread practice of diagrammatically representing everything outside of a local network (ie the internet) as a cloud.

Basically, cloud computing is internet-based computing using shared resources, software and information that is provided on-demand.

In essence, all software, servers, applications and data storage are hosted by a third-party provider instead of in-house.

If you use Hotmail or Yahoo, Flickr, YouTube or GoogleDocs, you’re already using the cloud! Facebook is in the cloud. So is Twitter. Amazon is also there.

The Benefits of the Cloud:

Accessible anywhere, anytime, from any internet-enabled tool: PC, laptop, phone
Scalable: you can increase or decrease computing capability according to need and only pay for what you use
No hardware or software maintenance required. That’s all carried out by the provider

Issues to consider:

Security: Responsibility for the safety of your data is with a third-party provider, not you. Susceptibility to cyber attack
Availability: Loss of access to your data or applications during bandwidth interruptions
Data Governance: Compliance with data protection regulations of wherever your data is stored. Control over data if the provider goes out of business

The advantages of cloud computing to organisations like the LGAQ are that costs can be substantially reduced. Data storage capacity can be quickly and easily scaled up (or down) without the need to purchase (and maintain) extra servers. IT staff are freed up from managing server and software issues like licencing, updates, compatibility and can focus on innovation instead. Staff can work from anywhere.

Cloud Service Models:

Software As A Service (SaaS): Also known as an Application Cloud. Nothing is hosted on local computers. All the software runs on the provider’s cloud infrastructure and users access it via a web browser. The software vendor makes the software available to users on a subscription basis and charges are based on the product usage. SaaS can save organisations the expense of buying hardware and software and removes the maintenance costs.
Platform As A Service (PaaS): Also known as a Service Cloud. Allows organisations to develop their own applications using programming language and tools supported by the provider, who is responsible for the maintenance and control of the underlying cloud infrastructure.
Infrastructure As A Service (IaaS): Also known as Hardware as a Service. As its name implies, an organisation pays to use the equipment that supports its operations – the servers, hardware, storage and networking components. The provider is responsible for housing, running and maintaining the equipment.

Deployment models:

Public Cloud: what we understand as the cloud. Operated by a thrid-party provider. Open to everyone. Comprises of a mix of users logging into their part of the server. Has maximum scalability but alos increased risks.
Private Cloud: the cloud infrastructure is run exclusively for an organisation. It may be run by the organisation or by a third party. It may be housed on site or off site.
Community Cloud: a cloud shared by several organisations, eg a government cloud, that have shared concerns. Again, it can be run by the organisations, or a third party and be hosted either on or off site.
Hybrid Cloud: Also known as cloudbursting, a hybrid cloud is a composition of any or all of the above cloud models. A hybrid cloud allows an organisation to take advantage of the scalability of the public cloud without compromising its data security.

Still confused about the whole cloud computing thing? Have a look at this video. It gives a very clear explanation of what cloud computing is and how it works

http://youtu.be/QJncFirhjPg

Free stuff on the web – eBooks

lgaqlibrary — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 02:15:13 +0000

eBooks are becoming increasingly popular, so I thought it would be useful to list some sites that offer free or low cost eBooks that you can download.

Project Gutenberg - over 33,000 digitalised books available for free download.
Internet Archive - contains a wide range of fiction, popular books, children’s books, historical texts and academic books.
Scribd - a social publishing site, where tens of millions of people share original writings and documents.
Many Books - 28,000 free eBooks to browse.
Google Books - Google plans to digitalise every book ever published. Here’s what they’ve done so far.

With all these titles at your fingertips, you’ll never run out of something to read again!

Where did my Library go?

lgaqlibrary — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 01:15:50 +0000

You may have noticed that the LGAQ Library seems to have been replaced by new offices! Never fear, whilst the GFC has struck American libraries hard, forcing thousands of closures across the country, that has not been LGAQ Library’s fate. Rather, the Library has fallen victim to the LGAQ’s growth and has had to relinquish real estate to accommodate new staff.

So what has happened to the Library? The journals, annual reports, executive minutes, conference proceedings and newspapers are still held upstairs. The rest of the collection has been moved to the storeroom in the carpark. It doesn’t sound very salubrious, I know, but everything is organised onto shelving in just the same way as it used to be.

It has taken me two months to move everything downstairs, trolley-load by trolley-load, and I still have to label the shelves, but the collection is available for use. The move was an excellent opportunity for me to weed (technical library-speak) the collection of old, out of date and superseded materials and it is now much leaner and meaner!

Once we have all recovered from Annual Conference, I shall organise Library Tours to show you the new arrangements for the Library.

Whilst it seems we have virtually no Library left upstairs, I would like to remind you all of the virtual Library I am building on Worksite. This is a collection of electronic publications that I think staff may find useful. To browse this collection, type ‘lglibrary’ into Worksite search box. This will bring up a full list of resources available to date.

So much information

lgaqlibrary — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 02:12:59 +0000

Governments collect huge amounts of information, which is publicly, if not easily, available. Access to that information has been made simpler through the creation of data portals. The UK Government’s portal gives you access to crime statistics, public library use, road accidents – just about anything imaginable, including a report on the percentage of people who believe people of mixed backgrounds get along well together!

The Australian version is equally fascinating. Browse for a list of public toilets, the number of frogs in South Australia, Economic Stimulus Package project data, or get a list of Australian properties listed on the World Heritage List.

The Guardian has pulled together the public datasets of governments from all around the world, so all that information is at your fingertips in one convenient location. World Government Data allows you to search or browse by country, keyword or year. At present, it only contains datasets from UK, USA, Australia and New Zealand, but promises more in the future.

A feature of these datasets is that they are ‘mashable’ – that is you can combine the information and create new ways for it to be used. For example, creating an application that shows where available parking spaces can be found in your area.

There’s a wealth of information out there just waiting for you to discover it. Use these websites to do a bit of rewarding exploration of your own.

Finding Research Articles

lgaqlibrary — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 01:51:47 +0000

Australian Research Online is a repository of Australian research – theses, journal articles, book chapters, music recordings and pictures – from universities and government departments.

You can search on specific terms, or browse via the tag cloud or via individual universities.

This looks to be yet another valuable resource for finding articles relating to your policy area. Give it a go and see what you find.

All the world’s a-twitter

lgaqlibrary — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 05:24:17 +0000

Twitter is the latest ‘hot’ social networking tool and it seems like the whole world is getting involved. So just what is it and how useful could it be for your work?

Twitter is micro-blogging. You get 140 characters to answer the question ‘What are you doing?’ That message, or tweet, is then sent to all the people who have chosen to follow you. So it’s a great way to keep in touch with friends and family.

As we have seen recently, it’s also a very efficient way of getting information out about events currently unfolding – eg the Iran democracy protests.

By following other people who are tweeting on topics of interest to you, you can keep up with new developments and this is where Twitter can be a useful tool in your work.

Politicians, government departments and other agencies can all use Twitter to disseminate information about policy releases, new reports and developments. Both Kevin Rudd and Anna Bligh have Twitter accounts to promote their governments’ initiatives, as well as including updates on their personal comings and goings.

You can respond directly to someone’s tweets, thus engaging in a conversation with them about the topic they are tweeting on. Again, very useful for communicating directly with policy makers.

So, why not get yourself a Twitter account? The sign-up process is free and very simple and before you know it, you’ll be creating a whole new network to communicate with.

You can find me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/elldeelosang

What did he say? Part 2

lgaqlibrary — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 06:04:20 +0000

Following on from my earlier post, another really good source for speeches is the ABC’s website. You’ll find here all sorts of speeches – from the latest Boyer Lectures to Elizabeth Evatt’s address marking the 60th anniversary of the UN’s Declaration of Human Rights to Malcolm Turnbull’s speech at the National Press Club on the Labor Government’s first year in office

What did he say?

lgaqlibrary — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 00:25:21 +0000

Listening to President Obama’s Inauguration Speech on the ABC web site this morning reminded me of a request the LGAQ Library had yesterday in relation to a speech Prime Minister Rudd made late last year.
At the moment, President Obama’s speech is everywhere on the internet and in the print media. If you didn’t see it live, you can download a video file, an audio file or the full text. But what about in a month’s time, a year’s time? How easy will it be to find that speech?
And how do you go about finding copies of speeches, press conferences and announcement that our own politicians make?
The Queensland Parliament Website provides tools to search Hansard, Committees, Tabled Papers and Members’ Speeches, so you can find, for example, all the speeches Anna Bligh made in 2008.

To find records of speeches by Federal politicians, you need to visit each individual’s website. Links to those websites can be found here. By clicking on a Member’s photo, you’re taken to their contact details. Follow links to their personal pages, or ministerial pages, where you’ll find further links to their speeches.

Another way to access speeches, media releases, transcripts of interviews is via individual government department websites. Federal and Queensland government departments provide links to public statements by their Ministers.

Finally, you could always search YouTube for video footage of speeches made by particular politicians.

Watching Local Government

lgaqlibrary — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 03:58:48 +0000

The LGAQ Library subscribes to the electronic bulletin put out by iDea. It is often a terrific source for publications and resources about Local Government. This week, thanks to the bulletin, I discovered a gem of a site – Local Government Channel - which provides videos of news, projects, conferences and research pertaining to Local Government. Admittedly, the content is UK focussed, but the site offers lots of ideas and strategies that could easily be used here in Australia.