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Holt's PerspectivesGlen Holt may have retired from active duty running the St. Louis Public Library, but he continues to be a leading thinker and commentator on today’s library world. The LLN Commons is very pleased to be able to pass his perspectives on to our readers in a weekly column to be authored by Glen. We hope you will not only find his viewpoints of interest, but that you will feel free to contribute your thoughts on the topics he raises.May 13, 2008: Too Expensive to Ignore The environment in which we operate is not controllable...nor is it ignorable, as we see in this thoughtful piece from Glen Holt. March 18, 2008: Challenges in the development of library information literacy programs Although not a card carrying member of the LLN Peer Panel, Glen Holt could not resist the urge to respond to this month’s call for thoughts concerning Information Literacy. February 15, 2008: Revaluing the Book in the Hypertext Era Can the “drudgery of the library” be alleviated by hypertext? If this question leaves you either bemused, or confused, you will want to read this thought-provoking piece by Glen Holt. February 3, 2008: Revaluing Words What’s in a word? Well, if you digitize it, nobody knows for sure. Or so says Glen Holt in this thoughtful look at a few current events. January 18, 2007: Digital Preservation’s Impact On Libraries And Librarians The term “Digital Preservation” has certainly become part of everyday library-talk. In this entertaining and (for LLN) scholarly article, Glen Holt discusses the many aspects of “DigPres,” and its implications for the library community. December 3, 2007: Library Economic Issues in the New Media Era As the old media becomes the new media (and a few other changes occur), libraries are not immune from the challenges, and possibly the ravages, brought about by all of this. In this very thoughtful article, Glen Holt makes these challenges abundantly clear and invites library leaders to take action. November 6, 2007: Hiring the Right Associates As a prequel to the November Peer Panel, I asked Glen Holt to set the stage with a few of his thoughts on hiring. I think you will enjoy his comments, as we look forward to the further thinking of the panel. September 5, 2007: Social Networking, Web 2.0 and Library 2.0 It is human nature to nod knowingly when a colleague refers to something that we should be familiar with—but are not. We are told that even library leaders occasionally find themselves so nodding. At ALA Washington this past June, we noticed a lot of this sort of nodding when the terms “Web 2.0” and “Library 2.0” were bandied about. So we are happy to announce that Glen Holt has come to our rescue with an entertaining discussion of these things we should know about—and what their implications are for the library of the 21st century. July 16, 2007: HEARING THE “M WORD” AT DC-ALA? As he wandered the halls and lobbies of ALA in Washington, D.C., Glen Holt heard the "M-word" often. Are we on the verge of a revolution in library automation? Learn more about the "M", and see what you think after reading Glen's insightful report. June 19, 2007: DCPL and SirsiDynix: Waiting and Hoping at ALA As many of us prepare to travel to Washington, Glen Holt provides us with some humorous, and not so humorous, thoughts to have on our way to ALA Annual. May 8, 2007: Learning from Others In this "Perspectives" column, Glen Holt examines several topics that kept his interest during his brief vacation. April 11, 2007: How Newspaper Readers Read The News – In Print And Online There is a lot to learn from a recent study of newspaper readers. It’s not only what they read, but how they read it, and what they see as attractive and interesting. In this very informative article, Glen Holt discusses the study and its implications for library leaders as they seek to provide print and online resources that appeal to their customers. March 1, 2007: Learning from Others Education and experience provide good building blocks for successful library leadership. But, as Glen Holt points out in this enjoyable article, there is nothing quite like using ones eyes and ears in finding ways to improve (and perhaps even transform) the library and its value to your community. February 16, 2007: Awake in Seattle: Observations of a Convention Goer As he traipsed about Seattle and the ALA Midwinter conference, Glen Holt saw a number of things—good and bad—that library leaders can learn from. He shares his observations with you in this enjoyable narrative. January 15, 2007: Questions on my Mind for ALA Midwinter The ALA does a wonderful job of telling us what to see and where to eat while at the Midwinter conference in Seattle. Glen Holt goes a step or two further by suggesting what you might want to be thinking about before, during, and after the conference. December 5, 2006: Publishing, Bookstores, Libraries And The Services Sciences We all understand and can readily see the many changes that are occurring in the world of publishing: Traditional boundaries are being obliterated as authors become publishers, publishers become distributors, and all players in the chain seek to stake out ways to add value. As players in the dissemination of information, librarians also need to understand the future of publishing and how they can provide a relevant service offering to their future customers. All of these changes and challenges are explored and explained in this important contribution from Glen Holt. November 7, 2006: Gannett, Libraries And Frogs: Getting And Keeping Core Users While Moving To The Web In this very interesting article, Glen Holt reminds us that as library leaders seek ways to effect much-needed change, there are some excellent models--outside of the library landscape--from which they can benefit. October 9, 2006: Electronic services and database security: Real issues for the issues for the library of the present In this increasingly "flat world," I have gotten into the habit of asking customer reps (at the other end of the phone line) where they are based. The answers I receive are eye-opening and not as predictable as one might think. Apparently, Glen Holt shares this habit, and his recent experience got him thinking about libraries, service and security. September 14, 2006: Content, Convenience and Cost in Research Source Use While many are locked in combat about the importance of "content" verses "service", glen Holt suggests that we take a broader point of view - that our customers- to effectively deal with the very real competition facing today's libraries. August 22, 2006: Is DC Public Ready for Its Renaissance? Part 4 Glen Holt concludes his series on the District of Columbia Public Library by recounting recent dramatic events and discussing the success factors and players involved in the hoped-for renaissance. August 8, 2006: Is DC Public Ready for Its Renaissance? Part 3 In Part 3 of his essay on the Washington, D.C. Public Library, Glen Holt discussed the BluePrint authored by the mayor's taskforce. The devil is in the details, of course, and Glen is fast to point out the many challenges new director Ginnie Cooper and her staff face as they make the Blueprint into a living, breathing, and hopefully succesful, library. August 1, 2006: Is DC Public Ready for Its Renaissance? Part 2 We continue with the saga of the Washington D.C. Public Library. In Part 2 (of 4), Glen Holt makes it clear that it takes a lot more than money to create a great library system. The funds are flowing in our nation’s capital, but many managerial challenges await new director Ginnie Cooper. June 10, 2006: Is DC Public Ready for Its Renaissance? Part 1 The late banker Walter Wriston would often (off the record) refer to Washington D.C. as "Disney World North." Indeed, everything that happens "inside the beltway" is magnified beyond proportion-often grotesquely-by a combination of politicians, power, money and a media on steriods. And the effort to bring about a "renaissance" of the D.C Public Library System is not immune from this phenomenon. In this first of a series, Glen Holt explores the background of this renaissance: the people and the politics involved with this most visible institution. Subsequent installments will deal with the varying views concerning the desired outcomes of this renaissance and explore the critical question: “Will the residents of DC get the great library system they need and deserve?" While Washington D.C. is certainly a "special" environment, we think you will find a number of parallels with the issues faced by all library leaders, regardless of library type and size. May 11, 2006: Envisioning a Smart Library Glen Holt returns from a brief furlough full of thoughts about so-called "smart" libraries. Enjoy and please feel free to comment! March 9, 2006: We're Number One! We're Number One! We're Number One! In this Perspective, Glen Holt takes some issue with the various rankings that make waves in the library community. He thoroughly dissects the methods behind them and reminds us of what truly matters as we look at the role our libraries play--both now and in the future. February 23, 2006: In the News Hogs and Libraries Retired, but far from shy, Glen Holt has his own view of recent announcements from our nation's capital. February 15, 2006: An Invitation to Join the Digital Universe Glen Holt, ever looking forward, has found the Digital Universe. Read about it and why it is important to us here. February 6, 2006: Comments from ALA Armed with a pen and notepad, our roving reporter had some interesting and provocative conversations at ALA Midwinter. Here is the recounting of these conversations, and some "back home" reflections. January 13, 2006: How Libraries Save Time Part II of the series January 5, 2006: The Value of Time In this, the first of a two part series, Glen Holt discusses how people value the time they spend seeking information. Part II will deal with how libraries can be time savers rather than merely a "last resort". December 12, 2005: New OCLC Report: A Big Dog with the Bark Off Glen Holt comments on the OCLC Perceptions of Libraries and Information Resources, a follow-up to The OCLC Environmental SCAN published in 2003. December 8, 2005: Library Reference and Automobiles  Evolving cooperative is a continuing theme in library development. |
