News &; Views, December 2010 (mp3 file; 5.2 MB; 5:32 min.)eReaders; SLP School Visits; Snowy Day storytime Kit
‘Tis the season for giving eReaders, it would seem. I’ve been getting lots of questions about ereaders, both in relation to WILBOR, and outside that context. More eReader devices are popping up in the market every day, and we know you’re getting questions from your patrons. You don’t necessarily want to be recommending any particular device, because it is very much a personal choice, but you will want to be prepared to provide them with information to help them choose--or even to just know the questions they need to be asking as they’re looking at devices.
One of my favorite sources for helping people to choose is a post on the Dear Reader blog, which asks the question, “What eReader should I buy?” While the post pre-dates some of the eReaders that are now on the market, I think its approach to looking at eReaders is a good one: what do you want to do with it, what things are going to be most important to you. If you want to do be able to do this, take a look at these eReaders....It helps people to think about what they need to asking about, and looking for in various eReaders.
I also have a wiki on which I’ve posted some information about the ereaders that I own; for each I’ve included some specs about the device, such as weight, size, special features. I’ve also included some purely subjective observations about what I like and what I don’t like. They’re often personal things--something I find important may not matter to another person, and what I find annoying may not bother the next person.
So, providing information about eReader devices is just like providing any other consumer information--we can help them form the questions and find information so they can make choices.
And, don’t forget that I’ll bring the Gadget Zoo to your library (or county meeting) to give you some hands-on experience with various devices. Just give me a call or drop me an e-mail and we’ll set up a date in the New Year!
Links from today's podcast:
- eReaders, eTc wiki
- Dear Jane:: Which Reader Should I Buy? (Dear Author blog post)
- Katie's Delicious bookmarks about eReaders
- E-reader Reviews.com For a list of some of the ereaders on the market
- Books to help plan SLP school visits for "One World, Many Stories:"
Shake-it-up tales, by Margaret Read mcDonald
Len Cabral's storytelling book
More ready-to-read tales from around the world - Early Childhood Literacy storytime kits page
