In the December, 2004 issue of Information Technology and Libraries Ed: broken link removed 2011, Holly Yu and Margo Young report that web searching is changing our user's expectation of how the OPAC works. Specifically, they report that users typically type two terms in the search box, have an average of two queries per session, don't use complex query syntax and don't want to view more than ten documents in a result list.

From RFID in Libraries, Laura Smart writes:

The California Senate has had the first reading of bill SB 682, the identity Information Protection Act of 2005.

The legislation would make it a misdemeanor to include a ?contactless integrated circuit or other device that can broadcast personal information? on any government issued ID card.

The bill Ed: broken link removed 2011 contains this excerpt:

Well, here's a new one for me: podcasting. According to Wikipedia, podcasting is when you make a radio program available for downloading to portable devices such as iPods. Get it? iPod + webcast = podcast.

I'm a big fan of Steve Krug's book, Don't Make Me Think: A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability. I'm feeling pretty guilty that I just purchased five copies of his book for my co-workers without visting his site first which would have resulted in him getting a hefty kickback from Amazon (via their Associate's program). Oh well.

At the California Library Association's Annual Conference, I moderated a panel of RFID vendors entitled "The Vendors Answer the Tough Questions."

The format was a pointed Q&A by me followed by some questions from the audience. In anticipation of the questions I posed to the panel members, I had sent each panelist the same set of questions and told them that, based on their responses, I would be picking who the respondent for that question would be.

Nice work, Gates Foundation! They finally made their handy "pac installer" available to everyone. The PAC Installer used to be buried on their pacomputing website but they've hauled it out of the back closet and are featuring it on its own prominent web page!

Here's where it's at: http://pacomputing.webjunction.org/do/DisplayContent?id=7593 . [Updated link 12/6/04]

The Kaiser Family Foundation just released a new report entitled "Children, The Digital Divide and Federal Policy."