Oook?

Over the last 2-3 years, our libraries has exponentially increased our purchasing of ebook titles, both as part of packages and as individual titles.

Our package purchases are done both as consortia - Gale Virtual Reference, for example, which pretty much sucks largely both in content and in format (and remains to this day, one of the most oft-cite examples in which I will I have students BEG me with "can I just look at a paper book instead?" when I try to show it to them) and as not. Many of our packages tend to effect our humanities (and to some degree our social sciences) the most.

These are problematic in their own ways - we often end up buying packages because we want just a small percentage of the titles in them - the rest are either useless or duplicates. But we are stuck with them, and the packages are a cost savings over the individual title purchases, or the only way to those titles. And some of these packages are so big, even mass uploading cataloging records have proven difficult. And some of these package, since they are often historical in scope, have picked interesting technological formats to use.

So how do you like TIFF files, anyway?

****

Over the last few years, for most of our individual titles we have signed contract with the bigger three academic ebook vendors. We buy from a variety of publishers and through a variety of means, but generally, most of our books are licensed through three companies (because most are).

Working with all these help explain the barriers as to why your academic library will probably not be dumping its entire monographic collection anytime soon - even if it tries to move it all too off campus storage to make way for whatever the latest trend in whatever fucking crazy idea your dean comes up with lately.

1. Kindles: Fuck off and die.
Support Adobe Digital Editions already, because I am really tired of having to tell everyone "except if you have Kindle, you uh, can only work with a PDF. Because Kindles suck unless you want to wed yourself to Amazon for the rest of your goddamn life."

And PDFs are crap format for reading a goddamn academic monograph. And academic publishers won't let you download an entire book and permantly save it as PDF through your library because well, you didn't pay for it. Thats not rocket science. So seriously. I hate Kindles.

2. Campus computer services. For the fun of it, go to a site like Springshare.com (it serves as a hosting site for library help guides) search for ebooks. And just take a gander at how many of them start out by explaining that you might be able to download ebooks, but they all require a third party software (usually ADE) - so this means YOU CAN'T DO IT USING CAMPUS MACHINES AS A BRIDGE. Why? Because generally, the campus computer services won't allow the Library to install said software on computers anywhwere.

Really. We can do one better. We own and maintain our own Ipads and can't even get Bluefire installed on them - through our own Systems Department because our Campus Computer Systems has complained it might give the students ideas. You know, like reading books.

3. The vendors being dicks.
We have one vendor who simply won't let us download anything - as in the download button won't show up for *any* title - but they won't tell us why.


I discovered last night we have a second vendor who stopped letting us download a the majority of titles sometimes in the last three weeks. I went through 50 titles last night and found ONE that we could download. Ok, well let me totally honest here -we can download pages in each title as a PDF (limit: 40 pages per person, per title.) But people can not "check out" an entire book except for the one title.

According to our most recent licenses with both vendors, titles bought by our institution, regardless if they are bought by single or multiple user licenses, will allow downloads!

The third vendor is at least somewhat honest and puts it right up front: Downloading rights are determined on a title by title basis. What they don't mention is that those downloading rights can change on a whim and that we do not know, at the time we buy the book, if our patrons will ever be allowed to download it or not.


4. Constantly changing usage agreements (or vendors being dicks part 2).
Vendors will give us the option of buying a book at a single or multiple user option (sometime) -and when this option is available, there is often a significant price difference.

When we first signed our licenses, even vendor had different definitions for what these terms meant (they still do) and some of them had different ideas for if or when usage would push you from the single price into the multiple price point. One vendor would just auto jump you to the next price point and THEN send you a bill.

Very kind of them.

But now they have taken to changing these definitions, changing what moves you from one price point into another, and then uh, sending us bills pretty much now for everything.

Ok, so there was the one vendor who sent out an email telling us that their single price point options were going away effective immediately for academic libraries. Including orders in process. That was fun.


5. Publishers hitting us with on-going fees.
When you have a paper book, you own a paper book. You buy it, you process it, you stick it on the shelf. Yes, we can argue that there are "hidden" fees with keeping the book on the shelf (cost of shelf space, cost of people to reshelf the book, etc..) but lets be honest - those "costs" are part of the operational cost of maintaining a library.

E-books have an operational cost too, as anyone who has ever working in cataloging and database maintenance can tell you - much less in these days of ERM systems. It turns out e-books have a whole new ongoing cost too - publishers are now hitting us with "yearly maintenance fees" (per title) and "platform fees" (this is my favorite - because they will get us with this even when they are charging us the YMF AND we have other titles on the platform).

Oh, I had one reference title that the purchase cost was $2500 for (so much for ebooks being cheaper) - and the yearly additional fees are $500 PER YEAR. And yes, we just started getting a bill for those. It is legal that if we don't pay them, they can take away the content we paid that $2500 a year for even though they didn't mention the fee. And no, we don't get content updates.

And yes, it would have in fact, been cheaper if I bought the paper edition.

6. The ability of the book to go poof!
Unlike some fiction publishers (way to go Random House!) there is no indication that academic publishers are willing to take the stance that if an academic library "buys" a book in e-edition, an academic library owns it. Academic libraries have been fighting about the issues of ownership vs. access in the area of electronic journal content with publishers for years - with publishers winning, I might add. Right now, there is nothing to stop an academic publisher or vendor from taking their content away, either title or title, or whole stock, from many libraries that have paid into it - maybe not quietly, but still.

7. Publishers that insist on treating ebooks as the "other"
We still see major academic publishers - huge huge names - that think its an online monograph, it a very Odd Thing, Indeed. And Online Things can only contain text.

Which means their books are missing valuable graphs, images, charts, etc. Just BIG EXPANSES OF SPACE where those should be - either because they didn't want to put the effort in to getting them in, or because they didn't secure copyright for them.

...either way its baffling. Especially when some of these publishers produce very well known online journal titles that benefit heavily from visuals.

8. The non-synced, "synced" publishing times.
Keep in mind that academic libraries are very interested in not purchasing the same title more then once, and are also interested in purchasing things quickly, since in the academic field things go "out of print" in the matter of months.

Medium and larger size libraries will often use approval plans (set up a criteria, books or book slips get sent to library and either sorted through for acceptance or auto accepted) to help with some (or in some cases all) or their selection.

With all this in mind, telling an library that "well, we publish the paper book, and then if publish the ebook within 6 months to a year afterwards, we consider that a "duplicate" publication" poses a problem. Because what you have just said to us is "if want the book in e-form, you can wait for up to a year to see if feel like putting out. By that point, the paper version may be out of print."

They have also just said "if you want an auto-profile to include both print and ebooks, you still have a chance of us sending you duplicate ebook/print titles for an overlapping period of up to one year."

If you want to sell your product, please don't give us more work to do.


8. They are still limited use only model.
Many ebook titles are limited to the "one user at a time" model which sort of takes away a great advantage of having an item online. Even if a title is available for a multi-user license, there is often a low-level limit - such as three users at a time. Which is great for casual users, but if the book is a required reading, it will probably max out pretty quickly.

Not to mention that most licenses still try to build plenty of restrictions concerning InterLibrary Loan uses and even off campus use. Most electronic journals got over ILL concerns some time ago and just sort of adjusted to the idea that if people wanted to share the paper copies through up and above systems, they were going to do so with e-copies. They need to do that with books. We are one of the biggest *lenders* for materials in our entire state. We are not going to purchase a collection of materials that we can not share with other libraries, because our inability to share our collection means we can not *borrow* materials from other libraries as well.

9. Getting them to understand that they are, still in fact, books. And used as books.
And we have already gotten into a few pissing matches with publishers that did not want to run their ebooks through our proxy server - meaning that our users off campus could not use them - and conversely, from one ebook vendor - that wanted *all* users to log in, all the time, so that they could "track what users are using what resources and how they are searching for them."

Here, let us introduce you to the ALA Bill of Rights. If you want to track what our users do, I will introduce you to Amazon.

So, Adobe Digital Editions updated itself.

And now I can't find my books *anywhere* locally.

Seriously. This is where it gets weird. I access ADE on my computer. I can find it on my control panel and choose to uninstall it. But when I try to find it - by browsing - its simply not there. Not under Program Files or anywhere.

And Calibre - which I had set up to download my epubs from my ADE folder - can't find it either.

I am not a fan of having all my ebooks out there in the cloud without any local control. This is...really pissing me off.

Any ideas?

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In summary: we are going to load you down with more work then what can be handled in a full time load; but give you a PT job. Oh, and by the way? No newbies, please. (Even though there is no real reason why this can't be a starter position!)

I realize what I never posted about was the trip to the Steampunk Worlds Fair in NJ the other weekend, where Hubris was supposed to do a series of fire shows.

Note the wording. It did not go as planned.

It was not our fault, by any means - we had all our paperwork in. The fault was with the hotel who failed to get permits for just about everything (outdoor performances in general, fire performances; and vending in the hotel rooms - which was apparently discovered after a number of vendors had set up). Not that I don't think some of the blame was with the production company, who dropped the ball checking to make sure all the ducks were in a row...The whole affair was a bit of a mess. The hotel was clearly both understaffed and underprepared for an event of this size - it showed in all sorts of ways - complaints about getting hotel rooms cleaned/serviced, the restaurant was unbearably slow and understaffed; vending machines ran dry, and their one cafe had huge lines and was sold out of everything on Saturday (and every time you went in, their policies changed - different minimums on credit card use for example and one time they refused to serve me anything out of their counter cooler insisting another cooler was colder - even though the other cooler was out of stock!)

Hobbit and Hellion did a magnificent job trying to sort out what was going on and arranging non-fire shows in literally a catch as catch can manner - the lack of outdoor venues meant everyone was scrambling for space. Certainly, the highlight of the weekend was the rogue performance that three troupe members did with Professor Elemental to Cup of Brown Joy - flaming teapots and all.

I found the whole event a good chance to hang with friends. On the other hand, it was...to bloody crowded - especially for the venue; and I spent much of it exhausted and with blisters on my feet.

I know! Whine! Whine!

People watching was, as one can imagine, fairly amazing. There was strangely, often less Steampunk-y type outfits (I think of them as a good blend of tech and Victorian) there then I imagined, but many outlandish victorian over the top type outfits; outfits that represented every type of fantasy you can imagine (not really star wars or star trek, I think. People seemed to draw the line there); and plenty of cross-dressing as well (if you are going to indulge...).

I didn't take many photos at all. I did get one of a great Snape. I mean, the outfit itself is pretty simple. But he had the Look. And I tried to get one of Jesus (very well done) - who did show up to dance with us when we did a non-fire show to The End of The World (as you know it). on May 21st (of course).

Later that night Santa showed up. Considering Death was already there, we just needed Hogfather. That would have been a great group photo.

Last night I was driving down the highway and I passed a bright violet blue PT cruiser.

In the side windows, in bright pink HUGE letters there was:

ITS SO FUZZY

I'M GONNA DIE

And I had two thoughts go through my head at once.

CAN I TAKE A PICTURE WHILE WE ARE BOTH DOING 65MPH WITHOUT IT BEING BLURRY?

and...

OMG! WHY IS C. NOT HERE WITH ME?

I stayed home from work today, since I slept for all of about..2 hours last night. I figured that I would be beyond worthless, so it was worth the sick the day.

On the other hand, I re-read much of Feast of Crows while unable to sleep. Watching Game of Thrones made me realize that there was a substantial number of details I keep forgetting, and I have read FoC less often then the others.

I have a class to teach on Saturday on providing reference services that I need to prepare for still - that is sort of my Thing To Do this week.

Went to community Beltane this week and helped with the fire gate. I made up two sets of hand torches from the torch build made up by other Hubris members - gravmyr got hold of some shoe leather for them, which worked great. The original palm torches I had actually got too hot to use from repeated uses - when I inspected them the next day, I realized the leather over the palms had actually scorched from too many uses. *ouch*

Been reading here, but not feeling very communicative. When I do, I might go back and do a mass back commenting, so be warned!

Recently Watched

Thor: This was a pretty (oh my Chris Helmsworth is The Yum) shiny movie. A Pretty, Shiny movie indeed.

Even for a comic book movie, it had about the same level of plot as the lint I pull from my dryer. To say it was fluff is giving it credit.

I think I have to agree with a review I read elsewhere (Pajiba, perhaps) - one of the most annoying things about the movie; and what takes the possible depth away is how fast he goes from being "Asgard fish out of water/sort of a dick" to "all around nice guy" who fits in really really well.

And oh my, lets not even talk about what they did to Norse mythology. That was just painful.

I am not advocating, however, that people don't see Thor, but really, don't go in expecting it to hold up to some of the rather great comic book-based movies that have been coming out the last few years. And Chris Helmsworth, I think, did a great job with what he had been given to work with - and he does do a great job er, lightning up the screen. (Sadly, Natalie Portman just sort of fades off into the background. Once in awhile its just sort of like..."oh, thats her, isn't it? Huh.")

Wow - for Terry Pratchett fans, it has been an awesome few days:
* a tv mini series of Good Omens (with collaboration with NG, of course) was announced.
* another CityWatch novel is at the copyeditors.
* efforts to bring a CityWatch tv series to the screen is underway.

Now, of course, the question is to those of us in the US is availability - since Prime Focus is the producer of both tv series.

But still, may I have a big HUZZAH?! I thought so.

27. - 29. Soulless, Changeless and Blameless books 1-3 of Alexis Tarabotti/Parasol Protectorate series. I have no regrets buying these books twice (one in paper twice - the first copy which went out on a happy journey around the metro DC area; the second two in ebook; then all three in paper) because they were just as enjoyable in a second reading. And I suspect, will be whenever I go to read them again - as I am sure I will. Gail Carriger crafts a highly enjoyable group of characters and breaks what could be just another bland supernatural fantasy novel by blending them in the moral.. dangers of Victorian society; with just enough steampunk elements to keep it interesting.

30. For All the Tea in China: How England Stole the World's Favorite Drink from China and Changed World History by Sarah Rose

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A very well-written an interesting narrative that explores the surprising role that tea had in international commerce and international relations - particularly its ties with the East India Company, and the British Empire.


While it is difficult for anyone with even a passing knowledge of history to NOT know that tea played an defining role in the British Empire, this book explores how complex tea helped fuel the Opium roles, create some of the fastest clipper ships to ever sail, and ultimately, help finance - and eventually help cause the downfall - of the largest and most powerful corporation in the Western world. And how one extraordinary gardener led one of the most world-changing acts of industrial espionage known - and reshaping tea cultural as we known by transplanting out of the control of China and into India, directly into the control of the British Empire.

Fascinating story - and I have been looking at the all my loose leafs teas a bit differently now. (Ah-ha Assam! You are quite not what you seem, are you?)



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16. Jim Butcher's The Dresden Files: Storm Front vol 2 Maelstrom HC by Jim Butcher

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


It is difficult to take a novel and translate it into graphics well - they did an admirable job here, managing to catch the crux of the story and the dialogue and keep the action moving nicely. Mostly, the illustrations serve to keep the story moving along nicely and support it well, as opposed to distracting any reader who might be familiar with the characters already.

17. Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think by Brian Wansink

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Some of what is in here might be a revelation; some of it might just be confirming what was already suspected. But either way, this is a very enlightening book how the food industry - including restaurants and advertising - have changed our eating habits for the worse. Not only what we put on our plate, but just as importantly, how much.
Wansink shares in a very readable - and at a times - humorous - way the findings of his food lab (and others across the nation) - that study why people choose to eat (and not to eat). His point is clear - our waistlines expand because we often eat without thinking. Once we are aware of this behavior, we can use to our advantage and start eating thoughtfully as well.

18. 666 Park Avenue by Gabriella Pierce

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Jane appears to be on the verge of starting a great new life - after a chance meeting in Paris, a fabulously wealthy american sweeps her off her feet in a whirlwind romance and takes her back the US to live with his family in the ancestral home.

Some difficulties are to expected, surely. After all, even though Jane, even though being as US citizen, hasn't lived in the US since she was a baby. And living with your inlaws is likely to have some tensions. She underestimated the tensions when she realized she was marrying into the family that is being watched by every social page in higher society.

And her mother in law seems to want to control everything she does - and is determined to keep her as isolated as possible from anyone not in the family. Included bizarrely, her husband to be.

Complicating things is the recently revelation that Jane seems..to have a knack for having all sorts of things go haywire when she gets upset. Being told that she is a witch doesn't really help things.

Good writing and strong characters save this from being a book easily lost on the shelf. Recommended as a good winter pick me up or to place in TBA as a beach read.

19. Burn Notice: The Fix by Tod Goldberg

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


A surprisingly well done tv adaption - it captured the feel and the characters of the show very well. Some of the internal dialogue provided a bit more insight into Michael Weston as well, which is good touch.



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7. Divine Misfortune by A. Lee Martinez

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This book did have Martinezs' trademark humor laced throughout, but there was something fundamentally disturbing about the basic premise - that gods (all gods) have basically went corporate and commercial; and all relationships between gods and humans are policed by the Divine Affairs Agency.

Phil and Terry, a typical suburban couple, get fed up at what they missing out on without a god to back them so after hours of going through the god dating site they pick a god.

Who moves in with them. And neglects to them that he is in a centuries old war with an off-the-book god of death and chaos, putting them right in the cross-fire.

On one hand, it is great humorous book; and on the other hand, the book makes you think a bit about our relationships with religion.

8. In the Bleak Midwinter by Julia Spencer-Fleming

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Claire Fergunson, a newly ordained minister, takes her post an hour north of Albany - and less then a month on the job, she is confronted with a newborn infant left at her church steps.

Her problems that she was dealing with - trying to serve a closed and conservative community - are quickly compounded as she is faced with a wall secrets as she tries to determine who the child belonged to and what connection they had to her church.

Personally, she struggles with a growing attraction to the towns' married police chief; and struggles with trying to acclimate to the harsh winter - and the sometimes less then friendly locals.

What makes this story; even more then crimes involved is the details that Fleming places in creating her environment and characters. It adds texture and and depth to this story that elevates it to a fantastic read.


9. Body Work by Sara Paretsky

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


I was...disappointed, which surprised me, because I normally really enjoy the V.I. novels. It failed on three points:

* The plot was simply implausible. There ended up with three distinct storylines that came together on one central character; and it was simply a stretch.

* There was way too much moaning and groaning about her aging. I appreciate it when an author acknowledges that a character is aging; it adds a nice touch of realism to a long-running series. But this was just boarding on morbid. Think the latter Lethal Weapon movies.

* There was a fair number of misspellings/grammer/factual and continuity errors that showed both that author and editors were simply sloppy. Inexcusable. I don't care how strong of an author Paretsky is; you don't let stuff like that slide. It annoys readers.

Oh, and Paretsky? On NCIS: Timothy McGee would be the one going through the paperwork and financial, not Abby. Geesh.




10. Burton and Swinburne in the Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack by Mark Hodder

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Hodder does a great job in twisting historical characters into something different in this alternative-universe, time travel, historical fantasy. It is full of adventure, and certainly full of nice steampunk elements.

But frankly, the writing and overall plot was just sort of messy, and there wasn't enough there to keep the readers attention.



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