Upcoming at Cultural Research: Library Innovation Blog

Dude, You've Got a Mac!

Wow, this has been a tough year to get going. I feel like I'm having to force my way into the New Year. For example, I received a brand new iMac today but it's still sitting in its box about 12 feet from me. I've got too much work to do until tomorrow later today when I'll get to clean off my desk and kick it into high gear.

But I do have some posts in progress (never trust a blogger when s/he tells you that!) as well as some topics I hope to soon address. Here's what I have planned:

I'm currently reviewing the Proquest Entrepreneurship database with a twist, I'm approaching it as an actual entrepreneur might. That should be done soon after I get some questions answered about pricing and related details.

I've also got some great pics of and thoughts about Black Dog Books, a haunted popup bookstore that I find interesting as a brainstorming device for library marketing.

More about library marketing will follow with a book review of Marketing Today's Academic Library by Brian Mathews. I have to admit, I got sidetracked by Cormac McCarthy's The Road, which is an amazing yet devastating read.

I'm man enough to admit I've gotten teary eyed more than once. What can I say? I'm a sucker for a kid in pain.

Also in the near future, if luck is with me, I will be digging into the concept of disruptive innovation beginning with Clayton M. Christensen's Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns. However, if you want to get going with that on your own, I'd suggest going straight to The Innovator's Dilemma. It's an awesome book and it will help you to see how disruptive innovation raises challenges to established organizations that are often difficult to spot before it's too late.

Disruptive innovation is something that folks in academic settings and those who provide them with services should be seriously getting up to speed on though I fear that many will be playing a rearguard holding action. Sadly, some will disregard Christensen's insight because they come in the form of business books and doubt such volumes could be relevant to their world.

I've also started checking out online book clubs and related social networks. I should have some examples of various widgets and some thoughts on why libraries would benefit from connecting with those companies. I'll also have at least one tale of a local public library whose attempt to provide a simple booklist service for their patrons has been radically undermined by their IT department.

Super Special Bonus Content:
It is high time I started sharing stories from my current experiences at Cleveland Library, a volunteer run community library housed in a thrift shop that is around 70k volumes and still growing. The collection is surprisingly good and has some great books that you won't find in any public library in Raleigh cause they got rid of as many as they could a while back.

But those tales will have to wait until I clear it with the boss man.

Ok, you get the idea. Time for me to follow through!