ALA Marginalia

There’s been a lot of discussion online lately about how to participate in ALA committees as a virtual member (you can find most of the links via the Improve ALA wiki, which was created by ALA members). As a result, we’ve started a new page on the Get Involved wiki for ALA committees with virtual members in order to make it easier to find those pieces of “the work of the Association” that allow for participation without necessarily requiring members to show up in person at two meetings a year. Some may still have physical attendance components, some will be completely virtual, some will be a workable mix of the two. Overall, we hope this helps you find a way to contribute that works for you.

Questions about any of the committees? Leave a comment here or use the discussion space on the wiki page. Know of a committee (or other workgroup) that’s not listed? Help us out and and add it to the wiki!

In the past few days, as I scan e-list messages and blog posts, I’ve noticed numerous reminders about applying for or nominating a colleague for on of ALA’s 211 awards (if I counted correctly). That’s because most deadlines are coming up (many are stated as December 1, or more accurately Monday, December 3, 2007) so that the documentation can be assembled for committee review at the Midwinter Meeting. Alas, some have already passed.

The awards, grants, and scholarships fall into several categories:

Although there is general oversight of the whole process by the ALA Awards Committee, each award has its own procedures for identifying prospective winners, set by the sponsoring committee, office, round table, or division. Newer awards tend to follow the best practices set outlined in the Awards Manual, but like many activities of ALA, there is extensive variation. The best way to find out the procedures? Search the phrase for the award on the ALA site, or contact the sponsoring unit directly.

So, if one of your colleagues deserves one of these awards, now is the time to act!

The ALA Poster Session Review Panel, chaired by Candace Benefiel, is now accepting applications for presenting poster sessions at the 2008 ALA Annual Conference. The 2008 ALA Annual Poster Sessions will be held during the ALA Annual Conference in Anaheim, CA, on Saturday, June 28, Sunday, June 29, and Monday, June 30, 2008.

The application form or both US and international submissions is available on the poster session website. The deadline for submitting an application is January 31, 2008, so don’t wait until the Midwinter Meeting to be inspired! Applicants will be notified by March 31, 2008 whether their submission has been accepted for presentation at the conference.

Poster sessions are static visual presentations, such as a description of an innovative library program, an analysis of a practical problem-solving effort, or a report on research study. They can be the final product of the work … or just the beginning of a larger presentation or publication. The ALA Poster Session site has more information, including pictures of actual posters, and the ALA Professional Tips wiki links to additional several other discussions of poster sessions.

Contact Candace Benefiel with any questions concerning the review process.

After you have presented your poster session, have someone take a picture of you with your poster and add it to the Group photo pool for Posters on Flickr.

Karen

Over a year ago, ALA contracted with a firm, Userworks, to conduct a usability study of the ALA website. On December 18, 2006 about 25 members, ALA leaders, and ALA staff met in Chicago to discuss the implications of the first round of reports. Among the recommendations was one to incorporate permanent mechanisms of usability engineering and testing that would improve website usability into ongoing operations. At the Annual Conference in Washington, D.C., 194 persons visited a kiosk to comment on wireframes, or mock-ups of a proposed site redesign. Following the conference, we presented revised wireframes, incorporating the first round of critique, in a web-based version. Over the next two months, almost 1,500 people viewed the revised version and completed a survey. These results are summarized in a post on the Web Planning for ALA blog, with a link to the report provided.

In addition, there is a new position, that of Senior Usability Officer, for which we are recruiting to carry this work forward.

There will be more opportunity to have input to the future website. Graphic design mockups will be available online and on kiosks in the convention center during the Midwinter Meeting in Philadelphia. In the meantime, watch the Web Planning blog for developments.

Karen