The newsletter of the Sarasota County Library System

 ~ January 2010 ~ Volume 4, Issue 9

Library Associations Applaud U.S. Statement on Copyright Exceptions at WIPO

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Library Copyright Alliance (LCA) strongly supports the statement made on December 15, 2009, by Justin Hughes, head of the U.S. delegation at the session of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR) in Geneva, Switzerland. Hughes expressed support for library-endorsed international copyright policies during his speech on copyright exceptions and limitations for persons with print disabilities.

Hughes stated that the strength of United States copyright law is in part due to exceptions in the law for education, libraries and the disabled. Hughes said the United States has these exceptions because “access to information, cultural expression, and ideas is essential,” and that governments have a role to play in facilitating access and reducing barriers to information, education and full participation in a democratic society. He continued that the United States is “committed to policies that ensure everyone has a chance to get the information and education they need and to live independently as full citizens in their communities.”

Hughes’ comments were met with thunderous applause at the international assembly.

The Library Copyright Alliance consists of the American Library Association (ALA), the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL), and the Association of Research Libraries (ARL). LCA attends the WIPO sessions as a non-governmental organization, and has been pushing for international treaties and other mechanisms to increase access to information, most recently for the visually impaired around the world who have very limited access to reading materials in accessible formats. A significant part of the problem is the legal uncertainty around cross-border sharing of copies. An international treaty to allow cross border sharing is essential to meet the needs of the visually impaired, 90 percent of whom live in developing countries.

The U.S. delegation also noted that some in the international copyright community “believe that any international consensus on substantive limitations and exceptions to copyright law would weaken international copyright law. The United States does not share that point of view. The United States is committed to both better exceptions in copyright law and better enforcement of copyright law.”

Carrie Russell, Director of the ALA Office for Information Technology Policy’s Program on Public Access to Information, said Hughes’ statement demonstrates that leadership in the White House is maintaining its emphasis on the importance of ensuring access for all.

“President Obama, in his November 16, 2009, speech at the Museum of Science and Technology in Shanghai, declared that access to information is a universal right that should be available to all people. The policy articulated by the U.S. delegation at WIPO flows directly from this declaration.”

The LCA praises the U.S. delegation for its very thoughtful and positive statement in support of an international consensus on cross-border distribution and on specific limitations and exceptions for print disabled persons.

Exceptional Web Sites for Children

The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association, has added more recommended Web sites to Great Web Sites for Kids, its online resource containing hundreds of links to commendable Web sites for children.

Great Web Sites for Kids (GWS) features links to Web sites of interest to children 14 years of age and younger, organized into diverse subject headings from astronomy and space to zoos and aquariums, from games and entertainment to geography and maps. There is also a special section with sites of interest to parents, caregivers and teachers.

Members of the ALSC Great Web Sites for Kids Committee review potential sites for inclusion and vote on the sites to be included. They also regularly check the entire site to ensure currency and re-evaluate sites when necessary.

Here is a sample of some newly added sites:

ABC Fast Phonics
www.abcfastphonics.com

Inside Story Flashcards
insidestoryflashcards.com

Meet Me at the Corner
www.meetmeatthecorner.org

Online Spelling Program
www.spellingcity.com

Online Sunshine for Kids
www.leg.state.fl.us/Kids

WayBack: U.S. History for Kids
pbskids.org/wayback

The complete listing of great sites with annotations and selection criteria can be found at www.ala.org/greatsites.

Afternoon with the Arts

If you enjoy art and music, the Elsie Quirk Library is the place to be on the third Thursday of each month at lunchtime. That's when the library joins forces with the Arts Alliance of Lemon Bay and others in the local art community to provide displays, demonstrations and musical entertainment in the library parking lot on the west side of the building. Pack your lunch, bring a chair and enjoy an Afternoon with the Arts from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the third Thursday of each month through the month of April. In inclement weather, the program moves indoors.

Lemon Bay Arts Alliance at Afternoon with the Arts

Library customers enjoying their lunches at Afternoon with Arts

Shawn Brown providing musical entertainment during Afternoon with the Arts

Learn to Speak Spanish

Ever wanted to learn Spanish for work or travel? The Elsie Quirk Library offers Basic Conversational Spanish Class on Fridays from 10:30 a.m. to noon. The class is for persons who know little or no Spanish. It starts with basic pronunciation skills and continues through learning everyday phrases, common usage, recognition, reading and elementary grammar.

Mr. Dan Duffy, a winter resident and career educator, is the instructor. The class meets for 16 weeks, from January 8 through April 23.

This is a great opportunity to discover the wonders of a new language. Signor Dan has been offering the course at the Elsie Quirk Library every season for the last three years, and it has proven to be extremely popular.

For more information or to register for this class contact the Sarasota County Call Center at 941-861-5000.

Kill-A-Watt

In tough economic times people are keen to save money on recurring expenses. The Sarasota County Library System offers a new technology for loan that can result in significant savings on electric bills.

Through a partnership with Sustainable Sarasota all eight library locations received a “Kill-A-Watt” kit that monitors the energy efficiency of household appliances. The kit’s large LCD display will calculate energy consumption by the kilowatt-hour, the same as the local utility company. Additional features allow consumers to check the quality of voltage and power line frequency. Instructions are included with kits upon check-out. All you need to check out this device at your library is your Sarasota County Library card.

“We are among a handful of library systems nationwide that provide the kits on free loan to the public,” said Greg Carlson, manager of the Jacaranda Public Library. “This innovation is consistent with Sarasota County’s leadership in environmental and economic sustatinability.”

Drop by your local Sarasota library and borrow this device to see what you could be saving today!

Click here to find Kill-A-Watt kits in SUNCAT, the library catalog.

	"An Irish Country Doctor" by Patrick Taylor
	"Englewood Lives" ed. by Diana Harris
	"The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie" by Alan C. Bradley
	"Small is Possible" by Lyle Estill
	"Harvest for Hope" by Jane Goodall
	"Living with the Genie" ed. by Alan Lightman, Daniel Sarewitz and Christina Desser
	"The Transmigration of Timothy Archer" by Philip K. Dick

ChiltonLibrary.com

If you have a Sarasota County Library card you can now access one of our new databases ChiltonLibrary. This resource offers automotive repair information for DIY (do it yourself) people.

The database provides exclusive photographs, diagnostics designed by instructors, step-by-step repair procedures, Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) maintenance schedules, wiring diagrams and more for automobiles and light trucks in one easy to use web site.

To access this wonderful resource go to sclibs.net and click on “Electronic Information Resources.” Then choose ChiltonLibrary. From your home or work PC you will need to enter your library card number. Enter the year, make and model of the car or truck you are interested in repairing or maintaining. ChiltonLibrary will then let you choose from a number of categories such as Repair, Maintenance or Bulletins. Select the category you are interested in and you are on your way to a world of helpful information for repairing and maintaining your vehicle.

This is an amazing source! It's free of charge to Sarasota County library cardholders and easier to use than those giant Chilton volumes at the library because all the information is always available and never checked out to someone else!

Find more databases on the library website's Electronic Information Resources page: sclibs.net/resources.aspx.

A Sarasota County Library card is required to access subscription databases from computers outside the library.

Your Sarasota County Libraries are on Facebook and Twitter.

Carolyn Johnston

Certified Art Teacher Carolyn Johnston has been volunteering at the Elsie Quirk Library for years! She presents a monthly program called “Art with Carolyn” for children ages 5 and up on the second Saturday of each month. The program teaches children basic art techniques. In the past year kids have created chalk art, animal murals, impressionist works and recycled art. Program participants and their parents love Carolyn’s classes because she makes them a fun way to learn! Class size is limited to 10 and waiting lists are often necessary.

Carolyn brings wonderful artistic programming to the youth of Englewood and the Elsie Quirk Library. Something we wouldn’t be able to offer without her volunteering her time. From the staff and the kids at the Elsie Quirk Library: Thank you, Carolyn!