Hi everyone - thanks for attending our webinar! Slides are attached below. Here are some links that I mentioned or demonstrated during today's session:
Anthony Marx, President of NYPL, speaking at Personal Democracy Forum 2015 about "The Public Library as the Civic Hub in the Digital Age" (9-minute video). Includes quotes like:
In this tutorial, we explore the "Geo Chart" map tool in Google Sheets for creating thematic maps of US states or world nations. Topics include finding open data, the Google Sheets "ImportToHTML" tool, and the Sheets Geo chart type.
In this tutorial, we download public library data from the IMLS data catalog, explore and transform it, and then use it as the starting point for a custom map visualization in Google Maps. Topics explored include open data, CSV, KML, and Google Maps.
Need to import data from Wikipedia or another online source? Use the IMPORTHTML command to import the data directly into your Google Sheets.
The IMLS Public Library Survey is the most comprehensive source of data about US libraries. This video provides an introduction to the result data and associated documentation.
Followers of our blog know that we're big fans of the Institute for Museum and Library Science (IMLS) library survey data releases -- these are the most comprehensive sources of data about public libraries in the United States. So we were very excited this week to see that the FY2017 survey results have been released on the IMLS.gov website!
Not sure how to get started analyzing PLS data? Check out this video where we introduce the data included in the survey and associated documentation.
This presentation was originally presented at the Library 2.019 "Open Data" virtual conference on June 5, 2019.
Direct links to tools:
Planning and Pondering
1) Define it in a fun way for stakeholders!
https://theodi.org/article/what-is-open-data-and-why-should-we-care/
When a disaster strikes, information can be just as valuable as water, power, or critical supplies! Learn more about how your library can provide information and access following a disaster.
Providing Public Internet Access At The Library
One of the most critical requirements after a disaster is the restoration of communications with the outside world, and these days, that means the Internet. While first responders, whether at the local, state, or federal level, may have their own data and communications infrastructure, libraries can still provide access for responders, volunteers, and survivors. Internet access is critical after a disaster for:
Because Internet access is so important during a disaster, it may be necessary to expand opportunities for leveraging the library’s connectivity.
"Peer analysis" is a tool used in finance, management, and even sports -- and you do it unconsciously all the time. We're simply finding the similar items in a large dataset by one or more dimensions, and then seeing how they compare in other dimensions. In other words, if you're the director of a small library in Ruraltown, Nebraska, you don't want to compare your library's collection numbers to those larger library systems in Omaha and Nebraska.
A data librarian is a librarian who specializes in helping people find and use data. While I'm not a librarian myself, I do help librarians find and use data, so when I saw this book mentioned on Twitter, I was quick to hop on our local library's OPAC and request a copy. Quick summary: a fantastic introduction to the strategies and tools used by data librarians!