OverDrive: You can't polish a turd

My branch circ manager asked for my help when she was redoing her circ manual.  She couldn't get a screenshot of the OverDrive online support form on a single page.  I took it upon myself to improve upon the image.  I knew she noticed it when I heard a laugh come from her cubicle; this image is now in the official circ desk manual.

People are trying to build up the excitement over the "new and improved" Overdrive interface which is supposed to arrive at our library soon.  There really isn't much you can say or tell me about it to change my opinion about Overdrive (a complete suck-fest).

My supervisor is mostly worried about the Cloud aspect of it.  I personally think the Cloud has its advantages but also its fair share of disadvantages, like not having your stuff with you at all times.  Overdrive tries to make it seem like it's the greatest thing ever and that it will work perfectly and seamlessly when you're not connected to the internet.  Psshhh... I'll believe it when I see it.  I can't wait to explain to patrons that they cleared their browser cache which is why they can't access their e-books ("What's my cash have to do with my computer?") .

OverDrive is a textbook example of how crappy things can get when there's a monopoly.  Doll it up all you want, try to make it look pretty with more pictures and flashy UI, but underneath all of it, it is still the same old crappy OD we've come to expect.

The Library Comic Episode 2: The Library aka Public Tech Support.

With Christmas, excuse me -- the holidays, around the corner, I am bracing myself for the onslaught of newly acquired e-reader induced questions at the info desk.  Last year, the Kindle won the question competition, it wasn't even a fair fight.  My bet this season, the questions will be more varied among tablet/e-reader manufacturers.

The download process has not changed since last year, but I do know that some of my info coworkers are not the most tech savvy and still struggle when it comes to these reference queries.  They also like to hit my extension and call me out from the backroom to help them out so I have to mentally prepare myself.  If you thought some older librarians were hardcore Luddites, some of these patrons that come in make them look like Steve Wozniak.

There are certain times when fielding particular tech questions from patrons can be difficult.  Patrons have asked me for my personal recommendation on everything from doctors, printers, tablets, cell-phones, and automotive body shops.  Don't worry, I stick to "The Librarian Code" and remain unbiased.  Although some patrons don't get the hint when I tell that even though that "e-reader/tablet" they found at their local pharmacy bargain bin while waiting for their prescription fill, might seem like a great deal.  They'll end up paying more in the long run when their tablet fails in a couple of months.  I always tell them to go to a store and play around with all of the tablets to see which one they like best.

The library system I work at also has a no touching policy, which means hands off the patron's electronics you dirty, dirty minded people.  The system doesn't want to be in any way liable for any damage to patron's stuff.  It can get pretty frustrating when patrons can't quite maneuver their touch-pads and you're standing right next to them telling what to click on in order to log in to the library's WiFi or walk them through the whole e-book download process.  If it is this hard assisting patrons who are physically in the library, imagine what it's like trying to help patrons over the phone.  Remote desktop access must relieve stress in IT departments, they can see and control what the end-user sees instead of running down the script of questions, "Is it turned on? Is it plugged in?  Is the power on?  Did you try turning it off and on?"

I had to become a Librarian to enjoy reading again...

Shawshank Redemption Andy Dufrense - "I had to come to prison to be a crook."

When I was in grade school, I used to love reading.  I was going through Hardy Boys like nobody's business.  It all came to a halt when teachers gave us reading and forced all of the "author's" analogies down our throats.  It completely ruined the enjoyment of reading for me and it became a chore to me.  I think it's also a personal issue with me, I hate when people tell me what I should think and feel without letting me analyze it for myself.  "This is what this story is about," "This is what the author really means," "This is a symbolism for this and this only."  Damn, can't someone think on their own!??  

I'm not going to lie, all through my undergrad and grad school I didn't read any of the material unless it was directly related for a group project and/or grade.  At my last branch, my coworkers always used to call me out on it: "You're going to school to be a librarian but you don't even read!"  But that all changed when I got my first tablet.  As you can see in the sidebar of the main page of this blog, my reading has exponentially gone up.  

Even the few titles that I did read outside of school were school-related.  I was one of those snobby, non-fiction readers, "I only read non-fiction; if I'm going to read, I want to learn something."  I have come across some of the patrons in the library too, always complaining about the collection: "Why are there so many fiction books?  You guys should buy more nonfiction."  The things I did read were all books recommended by my business school professors: The World is Flat, Good to Great, etc.  But that also changed when I got my first tablet.  Now, the vast majority of my reading is fiction, and it's pretty damn good too!

So that leads me up to the present, it has been almost a full year since graduating with my MLIS (December 2011) and I have not been able to find a full time librarian job.  I have looked at other non-library related jobs, but damn it, I didn't get this degree to NOT work in a library.  I really enjoy working at my branch, I love the patrons and my coworkers, so I can ride it out for a little bit longer.  Due to all of these factors, I have decided to add "Literacy Council volunteer" to my resume.  

Honestly, I should have signed up to do this when I graduated.  I have not yet started tutoring just yet, I will in a few weeks, but I am excited.  When I filled out the application to become a literacy council volunteer tutor, I realized one of my favorite things about being a public librarian is seeing people get excited about reading.  From little kids to adults, when they see that long-awaited book sitting on the holds shelf for them the excitement is contagious .

Publishers' Most Wanted: The Public Library...

Money Talks, BS Walks... Time to ante up...

First off, <^>(-_-)<^> middle finger salute to all you stingy-ass, stubborn, myopic publishers.  You all are acting like a bunch of jackasses.  What the hell has the public library ever done to you, except give you money and support?

You get all pissy in the digital age just because you think you'll lose millions of dollars in revenue if you sell an ebook to a library.  The publishing world is evolving and you're trying to fight the change.  So print is slowly losing ground to digital format, it's all new to you, but take a note from the music industry.  They've made the physical to digital transition and they haven't gone bust.  I remember when CD's used to sell for over $19.99 and singles used to cost $4.99.  Now single songs cost .99, let's be honest, CD-buyers were screwed over because most of the songs on a full-length CD were crap anyways.

So you think a fair compromise would be to give libraries copies limited to 26 loan periods.  I have seen copies of books that have checked out over 125 times that are in still excellent condition.  The other option is to pay over 100% the physical book price for the ebook one.  Who was the genius who made that decision?

I find it hard to believe that digital editions carry the same manufacturing costs as print.  If they really do, then you're doing something wrong. You know libraries across the country have been battling budget cuts for several years now, but yet you insist on strangling every dollar out of them.  Have you ever considered that libraries would purchase MORE digital copies if prices were reasonable?  And selling more copies at a lower price could help the bottom line better than selling a lot fewer at a hyper-inflated price.

I'm just saying, you can't keep doing this forever.  Something's gotta give and you act like you don't really need or care for libraries' business.  I can't wait til more authors and independent publishers step up.  See what happens when the paradigm shift comes and libraries turn their backs on you.

My Love/Hate Experience with Overdrive and Kindle...

Two weeks ago I had a patron call asking for help getting his library ebook to his Kindle.  I could tell over the phone that he was not tech-savvy at all, so I took my time explaining what to click and all.  After 15 minutes of unsuccessfully getting the ebook to his Kindle, I told him to try Overdrive support or Amazon Kindle online help.  He called back later and talked to a coworker who also tried to help him.  It didn't work, so he gave the patron the number for the closest library that has volunteer one-on-one sessions for e-readers.

Well, our patron here was very determined to get his ebook that same day, he came in the branch and lucky me was on the info desk again.  So I called someone to watch the desk for me as I walked him over to public PC to attempt to download.  I went through the steps with him, but for some reason when we tried to download it from the Amazon site it said it already was, but when I looked at the Manage my Kindle section, the book wasn't listed.... Apparently when you try to get Kindle books through Overdrive, there is the slight chance your ebook might get lost in the ether.  The only way to resolve this is by contacting Amazon support directly, so OverDrive got let off the hook--- this time.

A lady brought in her iPad and wanted to download some ebooks.  She already had the OverDrive app installed, so I showed her the process of finding the library, searching through the collection and we were able to set up an Adobe account for her and download an ebook in 10 minutes flat and the patron left with a smile.  A couple hours later, a dad came up with his 8 year old boy and the young boy's iPad, they wanted me to show them the same thing.  Sure thing, easy-peasy right?  Well, for some reason the OverDrive app would not let us select the library.  If you can't select a library, well, you can't access any of the ebooks.

Last Friday, I had a patron call who was trying to download BossyPants the audio book to her iPod.  I am not an Apple person at all, I have never owned any of their products, but that hasn't stopped me from helping patrons with their Apple devices.  She wasn't able to download the file to her Mac even though the OverDrive site says that it works for iPod.  Oh yeah, one small minor detail they don't tell you upfront, you want that audio book for your iPod huh?  The only available format is WMA, but wait, OverDrive shows that it will work for the iPod!  Oh wait, if you hover the mouse over the iPod image, it says that you can only get it to work if you use a PC.  So you can download and listen to WMA files, a PC format, on your Apple iPod, but only if you transfer it using a PC... Thanks a lot OverDrive.

Today, as I was trying to make my escape to the backroom an elderly patron came up with her Kindle Fire asking me to show her how to download ebooks.  Okay, honestly, she didn't want me to show her anything, she just wanted me to do it for her.  Hey, that's cool, she wasn't rude, she was very polite, so I browsed the catalog with her until we found an available ebook that looked interesting to her.  So I began the checkout/download progress and when I asked her to enter in her Amazon account and password, she was worried she would break the keyboard with her bad luck.  So she gave me her email account and password, I worry about these type of patrons, she's on the same level as those who get excited when those internet pop-ups tell them "They're today's lucky winner!"  And they nonchalantly enter in all their personal information for nothing.  Anyways, so after I download her Jo Nesbo book, she tells me that her 7 year old grand-daughter is visiting her soon and that she would like to download some games as well.  So I show her how to find the free game section and we ended up trying out, "Where's my Water?" (don't hate, I enjoyed the game).  She seemed to follow and remember the steps I showed her and I had her repeat it in front of me, her grand-daughter will be one happy tablet camper.

The public library ebook download experience SHOULD be as easy as the last example, if not easier.  You choose the item you want and "check out," and then you sync your device over Wi-Fi and poof --- there's your item on your device.  These numbskull publishers need to realize that pirates are not using the public library as a base for their "industry ruining" operations.  Oh, and don't get it twisted, I have still don't have any love for OverDrive, I still hate their monopolistic-[un-innovative]-greedy-lazy-antilibrary-broken-search-function-ass.

Google Nexus 7 Tablet: First Impression...

Bibliotecher Tablet Count: #6 & #7...

This morning I was able to find the Nexus 7, N7, available at a local store.  Needless to say, it took me all of 10 seconds before I had two in my cart for in-store pick up.  The hustler in me wanted to buy more but I restrained myself, funny thing, because when I went to the counter to pick mine up, I saw 6 tablets reserved for one person.  With such a high demand, I'm surprised the store didn't have a "1 per customer" limitation.

The packaging is clean and it comes with a quick start guide, a wall charger, and a ridiculously short USB cable.  From tip to top the USB cable measures ~38.5 inches.  That just good enough to plug into the surge protector on my floor and reach my bedside table, unfortunately, it won't extend to where I can use it in bed.  Also, I have a multiport USB charger that has worked with both of my phones, HTC Inspire 4G and Samsung S2, as well 3 different tablets: HTC Flyer, HTC View, HP Touchpad.  For some reason the Nexus will not charge at all.  The multiport charger is rated at 2.1A while the bundled Asus one at 2.0A. I'm going to have to do more research on other multiport USB chargers.

The N7 is a little over 4 grams lighter than my HTC Evo View 4G, it may not sound like much but when it comes to this tablet size, you can feel the difference.  I like the 7" tablet size for bedside reading.  It's thinner than my HTC Evo View, but then again, the HTC has a rear facing camera.  But then again, I only have used it once, same with the front facing camera.

I am a little disappointed that there is not MicroSD card support with the N7.  Seems that everyone is using "the cloud" for their files.  The screen resolution is worlds better than the HTC.  Everything is so much crisper.  Playing videos through the YouTube app is nice and clear, the speaker is decent, it's not going to rock the house but you have to keep your expectations grounded. 

Everything about the N7 is quick and smooth, I cannot wait to use this daily.  I'm really digging it and I am getting ready to transfer all my games and files over from my HTC Evo View to sell it.  It took less than 12 hours to find a buyer and make a transaction for the other N7 I bought.  Maybe I should have bought more, now I just need to get my hands on an Asus Infinity TF700!

The Digital Quicksand, the new Digital Divide...

From the Bibliotecher Dictionary:

Digital Quicksand: the false belief that just because an item (book, journal, article, audio) is available in electronic format, then it must be available instantaneously and free of cost to the user.

If it wasn't bad enough people are trying to close the Digital Divide, there is now a new technology-borne problem on the horizon.  Yeah, it isn't that serious but it still exists.  Unfortunately, in this world of "need it now," people have the tendency to get upset when they cannot get what they what right then and there.

Countless patrons came strolling in after Christmas with their newly unwrapped e-readers wanting to download all those books they wanted to read but never had the time, to only walk away dejected and sometimes pretty upset.  "What do you mean there's a wait list for an ebook??"

Yes, there are holds lists for ebooks.  And yes, the library did not do a good job about letting the public know about how e-book borrowing works.  Well, that might be because libraries, themselves, did not know and still do not since they pathetically take whatever Evil Overdrive gives them, which is just a puppet of publishers.

I try to explain that the library has no real control or say in the matter, well, they do have a say, they could say, "Eff this," and not deal with e-books at all.  But librarians are way to passive-aggressive to do anything about it, so they'd just probably vent about it on their blogs.

Overthrow Overdrive.

For some reason I have always hated Overdrive.  Probably due to its general clunkiness, awful layout and search algorithm.  Seriously, a blindfolded monkey could throw a dart with more accuracy than a search for anything on Overdrive.  Well, now we know why they have never bothered to update the searching or the downloading process: Ebook Publishers want Library borrowing to be difficult.

One thing libraries and librarians just don't seem to understand or refuse to grasp is the idea that Overdrive is  a FOR PROFIT company.  They will do whatever helps their bottom line, not what helps librarians or patrons.  It is as simple as that.  So enough with the whining, "Why doesn't Overdrive look out for my poor little library? /  Why don't they have our back?"  They never did and never will.  What makes the whole situation worse is that they have a freaking strangle hold on the e-book distribution.  When has a monopoly ever been a good thing?

During my MLIS journey, one was bound to hear, "consortium this, consortium that."  So it is quite obvious that libraries already know how beneficial it is to "run in packs."  How come libraries aren't using their numbers to stop getting screwed over with this ebook business?  Let's cut out the middle-man because let's face it, publishers only care about money as well which is why we're in this mess.  On a related note, you would think the publishing industry would learn a lesson or two from their music and movie industry counterparts when it comes to piracy.  How can ebooks be more expensive or equivalent to producing physical books?  With this ridiculous pricing, you can expect more to seek out "cheaper methods."  One would hope that the one organization that ties all libraries together would do something about it, but apparently the only thing ALA can do is talk publishers away.  Yeah, 3M wants to join the ebook distribution party but do you really think that they will be any better than Overdrive? 

Why doesn't ALA form a committee (yes, another) for ebooks and publisher relations, no wait, hear me out, this committee will actually do something.  ALA has connections to universities.  Universities have the knowledge and resources to create a platform for e-material distribution.  ALA also has connections to publishers.  Do you see how this can play out?  The way I see it, if the MIT Media Lab created a basketball hoop that measures force for the recent NBA Slam Dunk Contest, how hard could it be to find a program that could knock out some 1's and 0's to make this happen?  It is a lot better than bending over and over for Overdrive and pirate-paranoid publishers.

Deal Alert: Kindle Fire $200 - $50 Giftcard at Wal-Mart starting 2/5 to 2/14

Props to MAHESHK @ Slickdeals.net Thread

If selling 1 million Kindles each week last December wasn't enough, the Kindle is already going on sale.  Not sure if Amazon will match this deal, but Wal-mart is the Amazon of the brick and mortars.

Year of the Tablet...

This time last year I had never owned a tablet.  Then it started with HP's firesale and I bought a Touchpad.  Around November the Christmas deals started to roll out and within 2 weeks I ended up buying an HTC Flyer, Nook Color, and a Samsung Tab 7, a week after that I bought an HTC View, and then finally another Touchpad.  So I started out 2012 with 6 tablets.

I originally bought them to practice downloading e-books from the library's OverDrive site.  I wanted to gain enough experience to give a detailed review and comparison but I was hooked on the HTC Flyer because of HTC Sense it felt just like a bigger version of my old phone: the HTC Inspire 4G, great phone with a horrible battery, don't buy it! --- I know have a Samsung Galaxy S2 and it really does live up to the hype.  In the end I kept the HTC View (a 32gb, black version of the Flyer) for my personal use.  I gave the Flyer to my sister and a Touchpad to my dad for Christmas, and sold the rest.

I personally LOVE the HTC Flyer/View.  The 7" form factor is perfect to carry around and has enough screen space to read/browse/email comfortably.  Personally, I couldn't spend that much money on a Kindle Fire or Nook Color when I could have a fully loaded tablet.  It's the same size and weight, why not get one that can take notes via a stylus or has front and rear facing cameras?  Then again not many people shop as diligently as I do for the good deals.

Every report from last week's CES says that 2012 is the "Year of the Ultralight" but I tend to disagree.  2012 is the year of the tablet.  With the amount of Kindle questions I am getting at the desk since Christmas, I am in no way shocked to hear that it is estimated that Amazon sold a million Kindles a week during December (one source).  On a side note, Hey ALA, is it now time to pay attention to Amazon or are we just going to chalk it up again as, "Amazon can't beat the library"?  I've never believed that tablets could/would ever replace laptops or desktops now or anytime in the near future; they are just another "must-have" electronic addiction we add to our ever expanding collection.

Today during our monthly meeting, we were told that e-books and a working knowledge of e-readers are now our top priority.  Circ and Info are now supposed to be able to explain to patrons the basics of downloading from OverDrive.  Just a couple months ago, we were supposed to redirect any e-book related questions to OverDrive.  So the library is not the quickest when it comes to adapting to current trends, hopefully they'll act much quicker to unite and defeat the evil empire that is OverDrive.