THIS PAGE IS STILL A WORK IN PROGRESS.
This page contains links to some useful resources for Library and Information folks. It is primarily a UK School Libraries-centric list, but hopefully, there will be enough interesting and useful things here for anyone interested in librarying.
If you have any comments, suggestions or ideas for additions to this list, please do let me know!
The links below are organised by theme or subject. Click on the title of each theme to reveal or hide the links.
A. Professional Bodies and support
CILIP – The professional body of the Library and Information profession.
- The CILIP SLG/SLA Great School Libraries campaign “SLA and SLG are working together on the campaign which will use research and evidence, public campaigning and lobbying to build towards greater national recognition and support for school libraries.”
- CILIP has a number of special interest groups relevant to school libraries, primarily:
- SLG – The School Libraries Group offers “help and support to members and hold a conference every two years which provides a forum for discussion and debate on current issues in school librarianship. We hold regional training courses on a wide range of topics concerned with school librarianship and campaign in support of school libraries, school librarians and Schools Library Services (SLSs). We publish the journal School Libraries in View (SLiV), circulate a monthly e-newsletter to members and produce publications such as CILIP Guidelines for Secondary School Libraries.”
- YLG – “The Youth Libraries Group is the organisation of choice for librarians, information professionals and all those working with or interested in children’s and young people’s books, reading development, the promotion of libraries and reading for pleasure.”
SLA – “The School Library Association is committed to supporting everyone involved with school libraries, promoting high quality reading and learning opportunities for all.”
School Librarian Network (Group.io) A free-to-join members-only discussion group for school library staff. “School Librarians’ Network is a forum where UK school librarians and school library staff can exchange news, views and ideas and give each other mutual support on all professional matters. We welcome members from other parts of the world whose input and perspective we value. We aim to promote the professional standing of the school librarian, and encourage all unqualified school librarians to develop their skills and knowledge through relevant courses and qualifications.” Has archives going back to 1997!
Reading Zone (Library Zone @ Reading Zone: http://www.readingzone.com/index.php?zone=lz
Reading Zone: http://www.readingzone.com/home.php School zone…)
OCLC Librarian’s Toolbox: “We are a worldwide library cooperative, owned, governed and sustained by members since 1967. Our public purpose is a statement of commitment to each other—that we will work together to improve access to the information held in libraries around the globe, and find ways to reduce costs for libraries through collaboration”. This page lists many useful links and tools for librarians.
Information Literacy: The blog of the CILIP Information Literacy Group
Informed: “This blog has been set up with the aim of providing a neutral space for library and information professionals to share their thoughts about wider information issues”.
B. Reference
The Oxford English Dictionary: “The definitive record of the English language”. Your local/university library probably subscribes, so you can access the full glory of the site. They also have useful resources and marketing materials for librarians.
Dictionary.com: Online dictionary, thesaurus, translator, crossword solver…
Reverse dictionary: Know the meaning but not the word? Look it up with the reverse dictionary! “OneLook’s reverse dictionary lets you describe a concept and get back a list of words and phrases related to that concept”.
Wikipedia: It’s Wikipedia. A great starting point for research (but not necessarily a great ending point).
FILresources: Some useful links to Open Access resources, including ebooks, journals and theses.
Access to Research: “The Access to Research service is a new initiative to give free, walk-in access to a wide range of academic articles and research in public libraries across the UK”.
Google Scholar: Search the web for scholarly literature.
WikiHow: “WikiHow is a collaborative effort to create the world’s most helpful how-to guides”.
C. Marketing & Design
Ned Potter: “I write and speak about online and face-to-face communication, multimedia communication, social media, emerging technologies, scholarly comms, digital scholarship, and various types of marketing”. The go-to guy for marketing tips and ideas in the UK library world. Author of The Library Marketing Toolkit. He can often be found on Twitter.
pixlr: Free online picture-editing software – kind of like a free Photoshop package in your browser.
pixabay: “A repository for stunning public domain pictures. Your source for free vectors, free drawings and free photos. You can use any Pixabay image without attribution in digital and printed form, even for commercial applications”.
Pexels: “All photos on Pexels are under the Creative Commons Zero (CC0) license. This means you can copy, modify, distribute and perform the photos. The pictures are free for personal and even for commercial use. All without asking for permission or setting a link to the source. This means attribution is not required. All in all the photos are completely free to be used for any legal purpose”.
Flickr Commons: “The key goal of The Commons is to share hidden treasures from the world’s public photography archives”.
Flickr Creative Commons: “Many Flickr users have chosen to offer their work under a Creative Commons license, and you can browse or search through content under each type of license”. Find out more about Creative Commons licensing.
Creative Commons Search: “Find content you can share, use and remix.
Google Images: Use Google’s search tools to restrict your search to images with appropriate usage rights.
D. Web Tools & Bookmarking
codecademy: Free online tutorials to teach yourself web coding.
w3schools: “Learn how to create a website on your own computer. Learn the basics of web building in less than a day. Learn how to add a database to your website”. Teach yourself to code! Web design tutorials and reference materials for HTML, CSS, javascript, and more.
webmonkey: Tutorials and cheat sheets to help you with your web design.
Notes and Organisation
Evernote
Workflowy
RSS: Feedly,
StumbleUpon: http://www.stumbleupon.com/
Delicious
Digg
start.me
Search
DuckDuckGo, Google
Social Networking
Twitter, Tumblr, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, LinkedIn
Presentations
Slideshare
Prezzi
E. Job Hunting
F. Professional Development
CILIP: The Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals – “CILIP is the leading body representing the information professions [in the UK]. We believe in a literate, knowledgeable and connected society. We build the professionalism of our members by supporting the development of skills, knowledge and excellence. We provide unity through shared values and advocate on behalf of the information professions”.
23Things: 23Things is a “free online course which introduces library staff to social networking, online tools and mobile technology”. This iteration of 23Things is specific to UK public libraries – [search engine of choice] can help you find other versions relevant to your interests.
Libraries and Web2.0: “This wiki aims to: create a record of Web 2.0 usage by libraries around the United Kingdom; build a useful resource for librarians around the South East/country interested in Web 2.0; provide evidence on the usefulness of Web 2.0 and set it in context; and develop a more up-to-date version of “23 things” as a training tool for staff”. Does not seem to be currently updated.
G. Literature & Reader Advisory
Book searches:
BDSLive: BDSLive is a fully featured Library Catalogue, which you can use to search for the complete range of Books, DVDs, Games and Music discs currently available in the UK.
copac: Copac supports researchers and information professionals by enabling them to search the catalogues of over 80 UK and Irish libraries at once, including the UK national libraries, University libraries, and specialist libraries.
WorldCat: “WorldCat is the world’s largest network of library content and services. WorldCat libraries are dedicated to providing access to their resources on the Web, where most people start their search for information. WorldCat.org lets you search the collections of libraries in your community and thousands more around the world. WorldCat grows every day thanks to the efforts of librarians and other information professionals”.
FABLibraies: WorldCat, but specifically for UK libraries. Almost like having a national library catalogue for the UK!
BookRiot: News from the book world
The Bookseller: Website of the UK Book Industry magazine, chock full of bookish news.
GoodReads: A social network for readers, but you don’t need to join to search. It is excellent for finding books in series.
Fantastic Fiction: “Bibliographies for over 30,000 authors. Information on over 350,000 books”. Lots of information on lots of books by lots of authors. A fantastic resource.
LibraryThing: A social cataloguing site and an excellent book search tool. “LibraryThing is an online service to help people catalog their books easily. You can access your catalog from anywhere—even on your mobile phone. Because everyone catalogs together, LibraryThing also connects people with the same books, comes up with suggestions for what to read next, and so forth”.
Google Books: Search the full text of books. Google’s controversial digitisation programme. Find out about their Library Project, too.
ReaderAdvisory
Whichbook: http://www.openingthebook.com/whichbook/
Who Next?: http://www.whonextguide.com/
Who Else Writes Like…?: http://www.whoelsewriteslike.com/
Book and Literature Awards
Best Book Awards: https://www.bestbookawards.org.uk/
H. Literacy
The Reading Agency: “A charity whose mission is to give everyone an equal chance in life by helping people become confident and enthusiastic readers. Because everything changes when we read”. They organise loads of great reading events, including the Summer Reading Challenge, and have
DRM and e-books
http://www.defectivebydesign.org/guide/ebooks
I. Kids
NANOWRIMO – Young Writers’ Programme: http://ywp.nanowrimo.org/
Wood of words: http://www.woodofwords.org/
Library Zone @ Reading Zone: http://www.readingzone.com/index.php?zone=lz
Reading Zone: http://www.readingzone.com/home.php
Activities for kids: http://activitiesforkids.com/
Woodlands Resources: http://resources.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/
J. Advocacy
Bookmark Your Library: Provided by The Combined Regions, The Arts Council England, WorldCat.org from OCLC, The Society of Chief Librarians, and The Reading Agency, Bookmark Your Library aims to help promote the services of libraries around the country.
Library Campaign: “An independent national organisation set up in 1984 to support Friends of Library groups and to campaign for improved services in publicly funded libraries”. Lots of great information and resources about campaigning and advocacy for libraries.
Voices For The Library: “Advocating for public libraries and library staff”. Lots of useful stuff to help promote the work done by public libraries. “Voices for the Library aims to provide the facts about the public library service in the UK, the role of professional librarians and provide a space for library users to share their stories about the difference public libraries have made to their lives… We also aim to support and provide a platform for the many public library campaigns that have sprung up across the country in defence of the public library service… Above all, this is a place to celebrate the importance of public libraries and what they bring to our communities “.
K. Fun & Other Distractions
Podcasts
SS Librarianship
Welcome To Nightvale
The Bookish Web
Reel Librarian