Utah State Library for the Blind loses Radio Reading Service

Nostalgia washes through me about the Utah State Library for the Blind’s loss of their Radio Reading Service, effective April 2010.
Sure, it may be an outmoded idea, not really a 21st Century Idea.  And sure, the State of Utah has huge budget cuts and we need to keep a balanced budget. And sure, I support . . . → Read More: Utah State Library for the Blind loses Radio Reading Service

Law Library Celebrates National Library Week

In commemoration of National Library Week, the Utah State Law Library will be offering a number of classes and tours at the Matheson Courthouse (April 13-16, 2009).

Introduction to Resources for Self-Represented Parties

The class introduces the resources available for people representing themselves in court, including how to find an attorney, legal clinics, forms, the Online Court . . . → Read More: Law Library Celebrates National Library Week

Federal Recovery Grant Money for Library Broadband

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, Public Law No. 111-5, will be providing $4.7 billion establishing the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program. This program will fund eligible entities to develop and expand broadband services to rural and underserved areas and to improve access to broadband by public safety agencies.

At least $200 million of this . . . → Read More: Federal Recovery Grant Money for Library Broadband

Financial Wellness Programs

Salt Lake County Libraries and the Utah State Law Library have partnered with local experts to present a series of financial wellness programs to the Salt Lake community.

These free classes will be offered in March and April. Feel free to attend any or all of the classes. Registration is not required.

Estate Planning 
East Millcreek Library, . . . → Read More: Financial Wellness Programs

Using Maps to Access Library Resources

The public has a great interest in being able to access information by typing in an address, entering a zip code, selecting a location on a map, or automatically receiving content via GPS detection in their mobile devices. Google Maps mashups are almost expected on every site.

Who represents me in the Utah Capitol?

http://www.scottriding.com/utahlegislators/Utah legislature interactive map
This extremely useful mashup by Scott Riding shows what is possible in combining Google Maps with geographic data from the Automated Geographic Reference Center and legislative directory information from Legislative Research and General Counsel. Just type in your address or select your community from a list to see who is representing you (thank you Phil Windley for the alert).

Mappify

http://lib.byu.edu/cdmmaps
Mappify is another truly wonderful mashup that Scott Eldredge at the BYU Harold B. Lee created and demonstrated to the UALC Digitization Committee on January 12. It uses the user-friendly geo-spatial browsing tool, Mappified to pull some test Savage collection photographs from their CONTENTdm repository. BYU intends on adding the Overlands Trail Collection in the future. Here are some things to try out:

  1. Drill down by Collection browse, by Geography browse, and by Chronology (date) browse. Then try the search feature for the word “canyon”.
  2. Then click “View Timeline” to view images in a Timeline.
  3. “Map Overlay” is one of the coolest features. Click “Go to Map Overlays”, then zoom in and click “High Res”. Use the Opacity slider to compare 1930s maps of the border between Denmark and Germany with the current map in Google satellite view. I can imagine that this application will be of tremendous interest to genealogists interested in comparing old maps with the modern landscape.

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