Librarians and information professionals who work in special libraries often stick together. This makes sense, of course, as we tend to serve like-minded users, provide similar information services, and face challenges unique to special libraries. Librarians in corporate, non-profit, law and “non-traditional” information centres must rarely (if ever) consider some of the fundamental and everyday decisions of their distant relatives, the public and academic librarians. While public librarians debate the impediments of children’s literacy, or academic librarians struggle to teach undergrads how to find a peer-reviewed journal article, the special library community faces entirely different user-needs and information management concerns. Despite these inherent professional differences, I believe there is much that can be learned from one another. 

The Ontario Library Association’s annual Super Conference takes place each Winter at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. This past January I attended the Super Conference with the hopes of reconnecting and networking with colleagues, liaising with vendors, and most importantly, learning from the experiences of other librarians. 

Traditionally and informally, the OLA Super Conference is more or less a platform for library technicians, academic, school, and public librarians. There seem to be few special librarians in attendance at OLA. This year I pondered if librarians from special libraries could benefit from what the Super Conference has to offer. Coincidentally, the theme of this year’s conference was “The Power of C – Collaboration!” OLA President Mary Ann Mavrinac writes, “Collaboration makes us smarter. The power of collaboration is a catalyst for community engagement, communication, cooperation, connectivity, conversations, crowdsourcing, collectivism and collegiality” and further, “helps us make better choices for communal and collateral benefit” (http://www.accessola.com/superconference2011). I felt energized by this message of teamwork and camaraderie, and think that despite differences in the users we serve, that both groups can take away valuable and transferable lessons from each other’s major conferences. 

When the Super Conference session schedule was released, I read some abstracts out of curiosity for what might be available. To my surprise, more than a handful stood out as innovative, interesting, and helpful in the context of my library’s current projects and workflow. Fully aware that I’m not the ideal audience for this conference, I registered reluctantly but excitedly. 

Below are some sessions from the 2011 Super Conference that I enjoyed: 

“Library Mashups: Exploring new ways to deliver library data” presented by Nicole Engard (Bywater Solutions): Highlighted various examples of how your library can incorporate the API (Application Programming Interface) from your current subscriptions (e.g. The New York Times) and embed that code within your library’s OPAC or website. Hypothetically then, you can present your users with seamless and immediate access to the latest content related to your organization’s focus. Additionally, introduce things like Google maps and other applications to your Library’s web page. 

“Using Open Source Software in a shared integrated library system” presented by A. Rivers-Moore (Hanover PL), S. Leighton, (Grand Valley PL), W. Allen (Grey Highlands PL), and R. Dotten (Shelburne PL): Explored the challenges and successes of implementing the open source ILS, Koha. My library uses a number of open source platforms, Koha in particular. As the only librarian (and one with amateur open source abilities) it was a terrific opportunity to speak to others in the same situation about some of the obstacles and rewards involved in introducing free and open source software. 

“Next generation workflows for next generation libraries” presented by Karen Calhoun (OCLC) and Rick Anderson (University of Utah): This session focused on changing attitudes and practices in service-delivery and collection development. Among many topics, the presenters advocated for acquisition models based on demonstrable need, the eradication of large scale interlibrary loan, document delivery and single-article purchasing in lieu of massive title or publisher-based serials subscriptions. 

Overall, I was thoroughly impressed by the diversity and depth of most sessions, though disappointed by the elementary coverage of some others. I heartedly recommend browsing the list of sessions for the 2012 Super Conference. You may be surprised at what you find! As the leaders of access and information management within our organizations, we should actively keep abreast developments, technologies and projects throughout the wider profession of librarianship in order to anticipate and meet the needs of our users. There is much to be learned from our librarian relatives in the academic, school and public environments, and there is much that we can teach them as well. 

Zachary Osborne is the Research Librarian at The Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) in Waterloo, Ontario. His current research interests include the impact of grey literature, citation analysis tools and trends, data literacy and access. He can be contacted at zosborne@cigionline.org, and his blog can be read at http://zacharyosborne.wordpress.com.

Job-Seekers!  SLA Toronto is pleased to offer a new columnist to the Courier. 

Send your job hunting queries and quandaries to pattyplacement@gmail.com             

   _________________________________________________________________

Dear Patty Placement,

I’m getting mixed messages about cover letters.  What’s your take?  

Signed,

To Cover, or Not to Cover

Dear To Cover,

Like many things about job hunting what kind of cover letter to write depends a great deal on the sector you are applying to.  Historically, library hiring managers like cover letters because (when well written) they highlight your talents and experiences relative to a specific position.  They can also serve as an example of your written communication skills.  However, in some sectors they are almost completely ignored by hiring managers.  Increasingly in larger company settings your initial cover letter and résumé will be vetted by a computer, not a person, so the key ingredient to your cover letter is matching the terminology used in your writing to that of the job description and company culture.  Some companies are fine with a simple email cover note and a well tailored attached résumé.  So… the bottom line…. do your research, find out as much as you can about that company and sector and when in doubt I would ere on the side of a succinct and tailored cover letter – absolutely no more than one page, but also make sure that your résumé can stand well on it’s own.

Good luck!

Patty

                                   _________________________________________________________________

Dear Patty Placement,

I have been unemployed for over 6 months.  I have stayed engaged with volunteer work and the occasional contract.  What else can I do to keep my skills sharp and improve my chances of finding work?  I’m starting to lose hope!

Surviving on Macaroni

Dear SOM,

There are so many options available to you, I’m not really sure where to start… so I think I’ll give you my own personal opinion.  It’s not the only advice available… but you can find all the other ideas elsewhere.  

Answer these question for yourself – what am I really interested in?  How can I turn this interest into a specialization?  Take my friend Todd for example.  Todd is really interested in model trains and years ago he started writing short blog posts about model trains.  Today he makes a living writing articles for magazines, catalog descriptions for model train manufacturing companies, and sells his own newsletter on the topic.   Or Geneva…. When Geneva was unemployed she starting volunteering with senior citizens and discovered that many of them wanted to learn how to use the Internet.  She learned everything she could about seniors’ learning styles and internet use and training for seniors and started giving workshops.  Before long she was doing private consulting and now she is doing her PhD on the topic and is busy giving lectures and presentations at gerontology and learning conferences.  

Many years ago I wanted to work in the international development sector, so I gave up my boring bank job and took a part-time administrative job with a very small development agency.  They were implementing a new database system that I didn’t know anything about.  I found another similar organization that was already using that system and in my spare time I volunteered there so that I could learn about the database system and more about the sector.  Eventually that organization needed a full-time librarian…. Guess who landed the job?

Essentially, focus your volunteer efforts on an area that you are interested in and in which you can learn new skills.  Even if you don’t end up with a job… at least you’ll be enjoying your efforts and I believe that eventually your efforts will pay off!

Good luck,

Patty

Future-Ready Means Being Present

Dear Colleagues:

As I write this letter, I am 30,000 feet somewhere above the Canadian Prairies, on my way to visit some colleagues and friends at libraries in British Columbia.  I spend approximately 50% of my time on the road, and I absolutely love it. I especially love flying. True, there are parts of it I don’t love, like delays (I’m an ENTJ) and turbulence (I’m a big chicken) and the logic-defying world of airport security (See: ENTJ). But I do love the block of uninterrupted time that air travel affords me. Up in the air, I can live in the moment and turn my attention to planning and thinking.  Although I fly Economy class, the bubble of space between my office and a library visit created by a transcontinental flight is positively luxurious.

Last fall, I used that space to think about our Chapter and our Association. SLA President Cindy Romaine’s theme for 2011 is “Future-Ready” – and by the way, please check out the Future Ready 365 blog. There will be a new post every day; I’ve subscribed to the RSS feed so I don’t miss a single one.

I’d like to take this opportunity to share our Chapter’s future-ready 2011 goals with you:      

• Strengthen existing partner relations and cultivate new relationships to ensure both the financial viability of the Chapter and the delivery of programming that is meaningful and relevant to our members. To this end, I have promoted the position of Partner Relations Chair, which was an Advisory Board role, to the Executive level, giving Partner Relations a seat at the table.  Pam Casey is our 2011 Partner Relations Director. She heads up a committee consisting of two talented Toronto Chapter members, Robert Ambra and Eliana Trinastic.

The current social and economic climate is extremely challenging, both for information professionals and for our partners. Rapid change requires us to do more and be more, with fewer essential resources like time, money, and energy at our disposal. I believe that if we work together, we and our partners will be successful in accomplishing our goals. 

• Enhance communication with our membership, prospective members, the Association, and our partners by using the functionality afforded by the refreshed Chapter website.  This doesn’t mean that other communication channels like the Discussion List, The Courier and our social media presence on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter are going away. Au contraire!  Daniel Lee, a Past-President of the Chapter and 2009-2011 SLA Director, together with a dedicated project team including Toronto Chapter members Heather Ritchie, Britta Jessen,  and the 2011 Technology Director Kim Silk, have worked very hard to convert our current website into its soon-to-be-launched, WordPress-powered self. Our new site will bring all of our resources and services together into one easy-to-use, flexible, and – if I have your permission to geek out a little – beautiful online home. In the meantime and afterward, I will continue to employ my well-honed librarian’s skills to facilitate the flow of information between our Chapter, other units in the Association, and what Ulla de Stricker, Cabinet Chair Elect in 2011, affectionately calls “Big SLA”, the Association itself.    
• Continue to deliver programming that meets our members’ professional development and social needs, builds community, and fosters a culture of learning and knowledge-sharing. Our programming is really the heart of our Chapter. Our events create a space for our members to learn, to participate, to network, and also to socialize and have some fun.  The joint holiday social with CASLIS, TALL and FIAA at the Hard Rock Café on November 30^th was a big hit.  Elysia Guzik is the 2011 Programming Director and she has just facilitated our first event of the year, Leveraging Social Media Tools for Knowledge Management, which took place over the lunch hour on January 31^st at the offices of PwC.

Our goals for programming in 2011 includes introducing some new types of events. Watch this space for details! Also in 2011, we have a wonderful opportunity to connect with our colleagues both in Canada and from all over the world: the Toronto Chapter is hosting the Canadian Reception at the 2011 Conference, with our partner CEDROM-SNi.

Because I spend a significant amount of time away from Toronto, I will be unable to attend all of our Chapter events this year. This is a pity, because not only do I always have a wonderful time learning new thing and meeting members of our Chapter, but because it means I am less available to the membership. Last year, the Board had a frank conversation about our own attendance at Chapter events.  We don’t have an office where you can drop in and talk to us. We don’t have office hours. Effectively, the only scheduled time when the membership can interact with us is at a Chapter event. 

My current role with YBP provides me with an excellent opportunity to create my own “office hours”.  True, I am on the road 50% of the time.  But the other 50% of the time, I’m here in Toronto, working from my home.  So, I’m extending an invitation to you: if you have a question or a concern about SLA or if you just want to talk shop for awhile, send me an email at jen.ann.burns@gmail.com.  Let’s make plans to meet over coffee some afternoon.

This is your Chapter: let’s talk.  

Welcome to the first issue of the Courier for 2011.  Thank you to everyone who contributed articles to this issue.

This issue introduces the new executive board for 2011 and chapter president, Jennifer Burns, outlines her goals for this year.  In addition to our regular columns, Katya Pereyaslavska and Stephen Spong describe how they used Zotero to manage a challenging weeding project at the Hart House Library. Amra Porobic provides a summary of the interesting events held last year by the Solos Group and Peter de Jager offers useful insights into a variety of personality traits.

We hope you enjoy this issue.  Submissions to the Courier are always welcome.  Please send comments, ideas or suggestions directly to us.

Bruce Harpham
Bruce.harpham@gmail.com

Sandra Craig
sandracraig@rogers.com

President:  Jennifer Burns
Jennifer is the Collection Development Manager for Western Canada at Baker & Taylor’s YBP Library Services. Prior to joining YBP in September 2009, Jennifer worked as an Information Specialist at BMO Financial Group’s Institute for Learning, providing reference services in support of learning and development at the Bank of Montreal.  She holds a Master’s degree in Information Studies from the University of Toronto, and an Honours BA in English Literature from Concordia University. Jennifer has been a member of the Toronto Chapter since 2004. She has served as a co-editor (with Heather Postill) of The Courier in 2008, the 2009 Membership Chair, and 2010 President-Elect. Jennifer lives in Toronto with her fiancé Philip, and two tabby cats, Harry and Meep.

President-Elect: Laura Warner
Laura graduated with her MLIS and MPA degrees from Dalhousie in 2007. Soon after that she migrated to Toronto , where she launched her career in the information profession. Since then, she has held positions as a Reference Librarian with the CBC Reference Library, a Business and Economics Librarian with Wilfrid Laurier University Library and currently holds the position of Music Librarian with the CBC Music Library. Laura has also been actively volunteering with the SLA Toronto Chapter since 2008 when she took on the role of New Information Professionals Program Coordinator. In 2010 she took on the responsibility of Technology Director and now holds the position of President-Elect.

Programme Director: Elysia Guzik
Elysia is a recent Master of Information Studies grad (University of Toronto, June 2010), currently working at Egon Zehnder International Inc. as Research Analyst. Prior to Egon Zehnder, Elysia worked part-time as Co-op Student, Records & Information Management Office at OMERS Administration Corporation where she supported the implementation of the Records & Information Management program across OMERS business areas. While at the Faculty of Information, she completed practicum placements at Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP and Our Ontario. This year, Elysia is thrilled to be part of SLA Toronto’s Executive Board in her role as Programming Director. She is excited about planning events that cater to the diverse professional interests of the chapter’s members. In her spare time, Elysia likes to read, practice yoga, explore Toronto’s arts & culture scene, and try out new recipes for delicious vegetarian dishes.

Partner Relations Director: Pam Casey
Pam is the current Partner Relations Director but previously has been in the roles of Membership Chair, President-Elect and President.  Pam has also participated on the 2010 Annual conference committee with SLA.  During the day, Pam, a certified technical trainer, is the President of Information Now, an information consultancy providing Information Management and training solutions.

Pam is a graduate of the Library and Information Technician program of Sheridan College.  She holds a professional CTT⁺ designation from CompTIA.  In addition, she holds a Social Service Worker diploma from Mohawk College.  Pam is an active member in many library and related associations including SLA, Company of Women, and OALT/ABO.  Pam enjoys gardening and golfing in her spare time.

First Five Years Director:  Shannon McMillan
Shannon is a recent graduate of the Master of Information Studies program at the University of Toronto.  In her time at the University of Toronto, Shannon served as the co-chair of the SLA Toronto Student Group and was the 2010 FPinformart Student-to-Conference award recipient.  She also spent time working at the Criminology Information Service and Library at the University of Toronto.  More recently, Shannon has worked at Access Copyright as a research assistant and cataloguing associate.  She is currently on the hunt for her next exciting career opportunity in special librariesMembership Director: Shelley McBride
Shelley has worked as a librarian at Canada Business Ontario, Industry Canada in Toronto since 2002.  A ‘solo’ librarian since 2006, she provides reference / research and collection management services, and is a member of the national Canada Business Information Specialists Committee.

Prior to joining Industry Canada, Shelley was the business librarian at Richmond Hill Public Library.  She is a graduate of the University of Toronto.

Secretary: Emmeline Hobbs
As she enters her second year as part of the SLA Executive Board, Emmeline is excited to be part of this year’s team. Emmeline started her professional life at the Toronto Star Reference Library after graduating from FIS in 2008.  She is now well established in her role as a Business Information Analyst at Deloitte, where she has been for over two years, answering a myriad of reference questions and providing training and support within the firm. Emmeline loves high-end coffee, public radio, and the colour yellow.

Past President: Claire Lysnes

Treasurer: Heather Brunstad
Heather has worked in both academic and public libraries but has found her niche in special libraries and currently holds the position of Manager of Bibliographic and Permissions Services at Access Copyright.  Heather is a solutions-oriented Library and Information Management Specialist with strong leadership experience excelling in the fields of technology, research and information organization.  Heather has been a volunteer with the SLA Toronto Chapter since 2003 in the following positions: Student Rep, Registrar, Programming Director and Treasurer.  Heather Brunstad is a graduate of the MLIS program at the University of Western Ontario.

Technology Director: Kimberly Silk
Kimberly Silk has over fifteen years of digital media experience and is actively engaged in the interactive media, library and education industries. She is currently the Data Librarian at the Martin Prosperity Institute, a think-tank at the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management. In addition to her passion for digital collections and online communities, Kim believes in giving back to the profession. She is actively involved in several professional associations; she is President of the Faculty of Information Alumni Association for 2009-2011, and is Technology Director and an Alignment Ambassador for the Toronto chapter of SLA. Kim’s research interests include municipal Open Data projects, and social media principles to knowledge management.  She is also keenly interested in pushing the boundaries of what it means to be a librarian in the 21^st century. Kim earned her M.L.S. (Library Science) from the University of Toronto, and a B.A. in English Literature from the University of Waterloo.

The Need to Know Forum: Make the Connection
What do you know about the Need to Know Forum? If the answer is “not much,” then don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.

Planned as part of the SLA 2011 Annual Conference & INFO-EXPO, the Need to Know Forum (N2K) is a first-time event. It’s a unique outreach to non-SLA members and offers the opportunity to learn about the value of access to authoritative information.

Through a series of eight sessions and a networking lunch we’ll discuss how best-in-class information solutions help organizations be more competitive, avoid lawsuits, improve internal collaboration and increase innovation. Read More

Holding Our Future in their Hands
Will smartphones–or, more precisely, the applications (apps) designed for them–make librarians extinct? That outcome may seem far-fetched, but information professionals may need to re-think what they do if they want to thrive in a mobile world.

That’s the message from Tom Boone, a reference librarian, professor, and blogger, writing in the January/February issue of Information Outlook. His article, “Ensuring the Visibility of Librarians,” minces no words about the threat posed by mobile applications:

Within the typical smartphone ecosystem, a rise in the number of mobile apps will result in a decrease in the visibility of librarians. Once a vendor develops a mobile app, library patrons will download the app onto their phones. Having done this, they will now only need to select an icon on their phone’s desktop to access the database. This will effectively eliminate any library branding from the user experience. Read More

Announcing New Web Hosting for Units
SLA’s newest unit service announced at Leadership Summit, code-named Operation Vitality, will cost units $40/year. It will be deducted from the annual dues allotment. In this first year, the early adopters who are operational at allotment disbursement will have the amount deducted from the allotments issued this year. All others will be invoiced at start-up. Read More

Submit Your Post To SLA Future Ready 365
What is Future Ready? It’s an attitude of being more adaptable,  flexible, and confident in utilizing the skills of the information & knowledge professional.

It’s a strategic shift toward being more effective at aligning with emerging and robust opportunities in the information industry and beyond.

It’s a focus on preparing ourselves for emerging opportunities in the information industry through:

1. Collaboration to accelerate the availability of useful information
2. An adaptable skill set that anticipates and responds to the evolving marketplace 
3. Alignment with the language and values of the community you serve 
4. Building a community that connects stakeholders in mutually beneficial relationships

Read More

Please join me in welcoming the following new members who joined our Chapter from November 2010 through January 2011.

Jeannie An, Oakville
Victoria Baranow, Toronto
Jackie Beaudrie, Toronto       
KeJo Buchanan, Brampton
Louise Donnelly, Mississauga   
Krista Godfrey, Hamilton
Gabriella Goldberg, Toronto
Lori Hallahan, Barrie  
Yasmin Hartung, Toronto
Roxana Henriquez, Toronto
Adrian Ho, London      
Helena Klimchuk, Toronto
Suzanne LeBlanc, Toronto
Jennifer Lee, Toronto
Karen Lee, Toronto
Coralee Leroux, Toronto
Marilyn Nazar, Toronto
Stacey Nordlund, Toronto
Katherine Pancuska, Toronto
Dawn Pearcey, Toronto
Jana Purmalis, Toronto
Stephanie Quail, Toronto
Bernadette Roca, Thornhill
Erica Smith, Toronto
Lynette Terrill, Toronto
Howard Wong, Toronto

I look forward to meeting each of you at an upcoming SLA Toronto event!

A new year, and lots of new starts!

As of January 2011, Brenda Taylor is working 3 days per week as Librarian, Knowledge Management Lord Cultural Resources a consulting company that helps plan and implement cultural places, programs, and resources around the world.  Brenda also continues to volunteer at the Textile Museum of Canada’s H. N. Pullar Library.  She can be reached at: btaylor@lord.ca or via LinkedIn: http://ca.linkedin.com/pub/brenda-taylor/0/8b1/3a6.

Elysia Guzik started at Egon Zehnder International in April 2010 as Records Management Analyst, and has recently (January 2011) moved into her new role as Research Analyst. As Research Analyst, she conducts business research and analysis for business development projects and executive search assignments. She also maintains responsibility for records management.  Prior to Egon Zehnder, Elysia was a full-time Master of Information Studies student (graduated in June 2010) and worked part-time as Co-op Student, Records & Information Management Office at OMERS Administration Corporation where she supported the implementation of the Records & Information management program across OMERS business areas. While at the Faculty of Information, she completed practicum placements at Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP and Our Ontario.  She can be reached at: elysia.guzik@ezi.net.

In January 2011, Maile Reeves started work as a Research Officer in the Division of University Advancement at the University of Toronto. Past jobs include Corporate Librarian at Southam Inc., Manager of Collections Development at the Peterborough Public Library, and Legal Research & Information Specialist at SOCAN. She comes to UofT from a hospital foundation, where she worked as a Researcher.

After founding the company 20 years ago, Jane Cooney has sold Books for Business and has left the company though she remains on as a director.  The business will stay in its current location on Adelaide Street West under the leadership of the new owner, Sean Neville. She is now “retired” and looking forward to having more time to do the things that she enjoys like staying fit, improving her French, learning to play the piano, reading all the great novels, skiing, skating, golfing, spending more time with her 96 year old mother, and traveling! Also, she plans to fit in cleaning out closets and re-doing her garden somewhere in there.

 People on the Move will be a regular column highlighting the achievements of our members and help keep us all in touch.  Please share your career changes, retirements, life changes, volunteer work.

Submit your news to Frances Wong at FWong@blgcanada.com.

Flying solos in 2010
Toronto Chapter Solos Group had three events in 2010*. Each session covered a special theme and included a presentation prepared by the chair. We refer to those events as “meetings” but they are actually “workshops” – this format seems to be the best way to attract chronically busy solos.

The overall participation was 17 people per event (in 2009 it was 14), with the record attendance set at the Spring session (22). The “success” factors were:

• Workshop format (informative and well prepared presentation)
• Teleconferencing option (thanks to the Insurance Bureau of Canada)
• The dates are carefully planned to meet the needs of the majority
• Timely promotion of events on SLA-Tor listserv, Chapter Events page, LinkedIn Solo Group, Facebook and Toronto solos email distribution list.

The Winter ’10 event (February 4, 2010) featured the topic of Preserving organizational memory. Solos often influence the specific content organization within their institutions in one way or another. They sometimes play a big role in ECM/KM initiatives. Several models for preserving organizational memory were discussed: content management solutions (such as OpenText Livelink, Interwoven, Records Manager Express, Document One, InMagic Presto, products by Abby, Autonomy, Oracle, IBM, Hyland Mimosa); institutional repositories (often include special collections, involve digitization projects); experts databases (who knows what, questions answered); communities of practice; storytelling (applicable to cultural knowledge, includes social media); and mentorships. Most of the discussion was around some concrete examples from solos’ experience.

Advanced Web Search Strategies (May 4, 2010) was the theme of our Spring workshop. The presentation was based on a SLA Click U webinar (Google & Friends / Greg Notess, 2009), and updated with the relevant content from Gwen Harris’ Web Search Guide (WSG). The purpose of this workshop was to help solos learn a few new things about web searching and to encourage them to explore free webinars available under Click U on sla.org. However, most of this content becomes very quickly out of date, so it’s essential to keep up with the changes – Gwen’s WSG is a great tool just for that. The presentation lasted 55 minutes and was very well received.

Lastly, the Fall workshop (Marketing Library / Information Centre Services) offered an overview of current trends in this area: why we need to market, challenges, platforms used, what works, what does not, and interpersonal tactics. Solos often keep a “low profile” and neglect this aspect of their professional work. In economically challenging times, they need to practice good marketing skills more than ever. The discussion was full of tips and techniques from a solo perspective. The presentation, along with the selective bibliography on marketing (all prepared by Amra) was shared on Solos’ wiki, LinkedIn and by email.

During these sessions, we also kept members informed about the ongoing events at the association level (Leadership Summit, SLA Alignment project, pre-conference planning, chapter events, etc.).

Other topics of discussion sometimes included “Solo asks” question and the report on the LinkedIn activity.

LinkedIn Toronto Solos Group was initiated in summer 2010 and currently has 35 members. It is used to inform members about the issues relevant to the meetings and to conduct surveys. Unfortunately, many institutions forbid the use of social media and many solos do not have a personal LinkedIn profile. This is why the activity level is still very low and discussions posted by the administrator (me again) get very limited attention.

Solos’ wiki (requires SLA wiki login) is still the official page of our Group where all the material can be located and progress of activities tracked (maintained by chair). This is where minutes from the meetings, presentations and handouts can be found. I welcome any suggestions about potential content and format improvements of these pages.

I hope to make our 2011 events more interactive and fun.

*2010 is Amra’s 2^nd full year in serving the role of the Solo Group Coordinator.

By Katya Pereyaslavska (Library Curator) and Stephen Spong (Special Projects)

Hart House Library, nestled away in a quiet corner of the University of Toronto’s Hart House, is a unique and very special collection. Established in 1919 by the Massey family, the library has served a diverse community over the past ninety-two years, reflecting the changing faces of Hart House. Currently, the library, which would fit right in at Hogwarts, holds some 5,000 volumes on its intricately carved and stained-wood shelves; however, it is only now that a proper weeding project has been initiated with the help of twenty student volunteers.

The most difficult aspect of this project is to actually get started on it or, perhaps more accurately, deciding how it should be initiated and how to implement it most effectively. What is to be done with all the past donations comprising of outdated textbooks and poorly-maintained cheap editions of Huckleberry Finn? Should they be assessed or should we just create a “sale truck” where volumes in question can be sold off to raise funds for the library? Are they worth anything? Should they be donated instead? Where do we even start?! These questions and more make laying the groundwork a delicate operation.

While attempting to come to terms with this conundrum, we came upon Zotero, which offered the solution we were looking for. Available as a small, free download, Zotero – a plug-in for Firefox, rather than a stand-alone program – allows one to extract and edit library records from any catalogue record viewed in the browser – from WorldCat, public and academic libraries and even Library Thing where the Hart House Library recently uploaded its catalogue.

Having offered several training sessions and sent out links to online tutorials, the next step was dividing volunteers into teams responsible for specific sections of the library. From there, we have created subject-specific folders corresponding with the appropriate section of the library, and then each one has subfolders named “replace”, “deaccession” and “not found.” This allows for a simple, methodical approach.

The “replace” folder is intended to include classics and must-haves for our library that are currently in poor condition or outdated. Due to the increasingly high cost of book repairs and our modest budget, the library cannot afford to replace all books which are in poor condition. Our aim is to be able to buy newer and more attractive hardcover volumes to replace shabby and overused paperbacks, instead of spending a fortune on repairs. However, before any volumes from this folder are replaced, we shall run the list by a rare book specialist to advise us as to whether it might contain any valuable items in which case we might decide to splurge on repairs or donate these volumes to the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library at the University of Toronto.

The “deaccession” folder will contain books that are obviously in need of weeding because they are old textbooks or items that do not fit well into the overall character of the collection. The drafting of newly updated Collection Development and Mission Statement documents that were subsequently distributed to the volunteers provides a clear framework within which to work. More often than not assigning sections based on individual background and expertise allows for a more critical approach to weeding as well as encouraging students to actively participate in compiling lists of contributions for acquisitions.

The Hart House Library is currently in the process of working through the sections and waiting for the folders to be filled with lists of books. The wonderful thing about Zotero is that it actually allows for the exporting of content to spreadsheets as well as for the editing of imported records to change publishing information and add notes on anything (which is especially useful for condition reports). This will prove to be quite useful when studying this part of our collection and making joint decisions with administration. Although the library is small, this makes the project all the more manageable, as well as a fantastic training ground for our volunteer-based staff of library students.