There is joy among those who have the funds to go to Chicago for the American Library Association (ALA) annual conference, July 9-15. Every librarian knows there is nothing better than a Chicago gathering, with the city's wonderful haunts, museums, restaurants, and fine memories of past conferences. The conference program covers nearly every…

This article presents an insider's guide to navigating the American Library Association's (ALA) annual conference in Chicago on July 9-15. As for the extracurricular activities, Chicago has a lot to offer. This article provides tips from the arts and entertainment bible "Time Out Chicago" on where to go and what to do (on a limited…

Even as libraries face the economic downturn, a record-setting number of people attended the American Library Association (ALA) annual conference in Chicago, July 9-15. The tough economy, however, was felt in the number of exhibitors, which declined from the previous record set in 2007 in Washington, DC, and in anecdotal evidence that suggested…

"Research Library Issues" ("RLI") is a bimonthly report from ARL (Association of Research Libraries), CNI (Coalition of Networked Information), and SPARC (Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition). This issue includes the following articles: (1) ARL Encourages Members to Refrain from Signing Nondisclosure or…

"ARL" is the bimonthly report on research library issues and actions from ARL (Association of Research Libraries), CNI (Coalition of Networked Information), and SPARC (Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition). "ARL" reports on current issues of interest to academic and research library administrators, staff, and…

This article describes how librarians stepped up to the plate to rescue materials and meet the needs of thousands of uprooted evacuees from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, employing their unique skills and resources to put forth a humane and herculean effort. In Houston and Austin, Texas; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Memphis; Fayetteville, Arkansas; and…

The data used in this report to present three statistical pictures of Illinois public libraries during the fiscal year 1987-1988 comes primarily from the 1987-88 Illinois public library annual report forms. Section One presents the individual view of public library operations in which facts about use, resources, and finances are provided. Tables…

Ideas are presented on current practices in the continuing education of library personnel in the midwestern United States, with some emphasis on the role of state libraries and library associations. Allan B. Knox, Director of the Office of Continuing Education and Public Services, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, contributes the lead…

To study the strengths and weaknesses of Illinois school library collections in science and to quantify the need for increased funding for collection development, a survey was completed by over 400 members of the Illinois School Library Media Association. Topics of interest were astronomy, space, the solar system, general biology, ecology, human…

Brief summaries are provided of 17 library projects being conducted in Illinois during 1974. These deal with the following matters: 1) the development of the Illinois State Library; 2) library manpower training; 3) library research; 4) the Illinois State Library Materials Processing Center; 5) the professional development of library personnel; 6)…