Re: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?

[Jaap Blom]

nice thread! Always good to see what other people read.

My list for 2014:

- Stoner - John Williams (you described this one well Bill)

- A good man is hard to find - Flannery O'conner (highly recommended! A
number of short stories; very human. It will rattle your cage)

- Hollywood - Charles Bukowski (alcohol-infused; well-written; fun;
Hollywood)

- The legend of Sleepy Hollow and other short stories- Washington Irving
(proudly purchased at the LOC, great great stories. Transports you to his
time.)

- Biography of Benjamin Franklin (very inspiring man, he did amazing stuff
and always worked on improving himself as a person; he even dissected all
world religions to make a list of shared virtues.)

- Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand (still struggling through this one. It's
interesting to find out first hand what her controversial views are all
about. It's definitely worth the read)

- A number of Dutch books: de Zonnewijzer, de Kroongetuige (Maarten 't
Hart); Sneeuw (Bernlef); Eindelijk oorlog (Herman Koch); VSV (Leon de
Winter).

- a Flemish book: De verlossing - Willem Elschot (really funny, about a
feud between the village shop owner and the new priest)

- more stuff, but can't remember right now

Jaap






2014-12-11 2:27 GMT+01:00 William Denton :

> On 9 December 2014, Andromeda Yelton wrote:
>
>  Hey, code4lib! I bet you consume fascinating media. What good books did
>> you
>> read in 2014 that you think your colleagues would like, too?
>>
>
> + Love & Math: The Heart of Hidden Reality, by Edward Frenkel; memoirs of
> a mathematician who grew up and trained in the Soviet Union.  Explains a
> lot about the Langlands program. + The Circle, Dave Eggers.  No
> masterpiece, but an updated 1984, set in the company that succeeds Google
> and Facebook and all the others.
> + Stoner, by John Williams.  Life of an American professor of English.
> Quiet and powerful.
> + Can't We Talk About Something More Please?, by Roz Chast.  Cartoonist
> from the New Yorker; this is a graphic memoir about her parents growing old
> and dying. Very funny in some parts, very sad in others, always good.
> + The Peripheral, William Gibson.  100 pages in I had no clue what was
> going on. 200 pages in things fell into place and it (or I) took off like a
> jet.
> + Hacker, Hoaxer, Whistleblower, Spy: The Many Faces of Anonymous, by
> Gabrille Coleman.  An anthropologist explaining the history and workings of
> Anonymous. Includes the most gripping IRC logs I've ever read.
> + The Little Stranger, by Sarah Waters.  Old country house, post-WWII in
> England, is falling apart, family has no money, local doctor gets involved
> ... and strange things begin to happen. + The Org Manual (
> http://orgmode.org/org.html), where I always learn something new about
> this wonderful tool.
>
> Bill
> --
> William Denton ↔  Toronto, Canada ↔  https://www.miskatonic.org/




-- 
*Jaap Blom*

Projectmedewerker R&D

*T* 035 - 677 1930
*Aanwezig:* ma,di,wo,do,vr
  *Nederlands Instituut voor Beeld en Geluid*
*
Media Parkboulevard 1, 1217 WE  Hilversum | Postbus 1060, 1200 BB  Hilversum | *
*beeldengeluid.nl* 

Re: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?

[William Denton]

On 9 December 2014, Andromeda Yelton wrote:


Hey, code4lib! I bet you consume fascinating media. What good books did you
read in 2014 that you think your colleagues would like, too?


+ Love & Math: The Heart of Hidden Reality, by Edward Frenkel; memoirs of a 
mathematician who grew up and trained in the Soviet Union.  Explains a lot about 
the Langlands program. 
+ The Circle, Dave Eggers.  No masterpiece, but an updated 1984, set in the 
company that succeeds Google and Facebook and all the others.
+ Stoner, by John Williams.  Life of an American professor of English.  Quiet 
and powerful.
+ Can't We Talk About Something More Please?, by Roz Chast.  Cartoonist from the 
New Yorker; this is a graphic memoir about her parents growing old and dying. 
Very funny in some parts, very sad in others, always good.
+ The Peripheral, William Gibson.  100 pages in I had no clue what was going on. 
200 pages in things fell into place and it (or I) took off like a jet.
+ Hacker, Hoaxer, Whistleblower, Spy: The Many Faces of Anonymous, by Gabrille 
Coleman.  An anthropologist explaining the history and workings of Anonymous. 
Includes the most gripping IRC logs I've ever read.
+ The Little Stranger, by Sarah Waters.  Old country house, post-WWII in 
England, is falling apart, family has no money, local doctor gets involved ... 
and strange things begin to happen. 
+ The Org Manual (http://orgmode.org/org.html), where I always learn something 
new about this wonderful tool.


Bill
--
William Denton ↔  Toronto, Canada ↔  https://www.miskatonic.org/

[CODE4LIB] There's Still Time To Get Yourself A Lesbian Herstory Archives Tote Bag!

[DYV]

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[CODE4LIB] Job: Head of Data Management Services at University of Chicago

[jobs]

Head of Data Management Services
University of Chicago
Chicago

The University of Chicago Library invites applications for the position of
Head of Data Management Services.

  
Manages the section of the Technical Services Department responsible for
integrating externally and locally-created metadata into the Kuali OLE library
management system. Provides support for batch record assessment and loading,
automated authorities processing, and iterative data enhancement. Hires,
trains, coordinates and supervises the work of one clerical staff; directs
some data management activities supported by other units in the Collection
Services Division.

  
As the library community begins work to transition its data infrastructure
from the present MARC environment to one that facilitates the management and
use of library data as linked data (e.g. BIBFRAME, RDF, schema.org) the Head
of Data Management Services will help lead the Library in its efforts to
engage in local, regional and national initiatives to experiment with, test,
and implement these new data applications. S/he is expected to be an innovator
in the field of data and systems management; keep current on developments in
metadata management; evaluate, and as appropriate, promote the use of
innovative tools and services for ongoing enhancement of existing metadata
(e.g. OCLC Metadata Manager; OpenRefine; MarcEdit); understand the Library's
existing data within its historical contexts; employ data management
strategies that facilitate collection management as well as optimize discover
and access; effortlessly shift between micro and macro levels when evaluating
the practices, principles, standards and strategies employed by the Library to
provide access to collections. This position works closely with and advises
the management team on matters pertaining to holdings, item,
descriptive/bibliographic, and authority data, and coordinates special data
enhancement projects with appropriate sections. Represents the department as
appropriate on Library and external committees and work groups, including
those related to the development of Kuali OLE.

  
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

Works closely with other Library managers to standardize activities affecting
data integrity, to prioritize metadata activities, and to promote data
management strategies based primarily on users' needs. May also provide
guidance and support for Library-wide metadata initiatives.

  
Will be a key participant in efforts to ensure that metadata for digital
collections are effectively integrated with traditional library collections
across various discovery tools, and that the tools themselves are
appropriately configured to make best use of available data.

  
Manages the day-to-day operations of the section.

  
Works with other managers to coordinate database maintenance, record
enhancement, authority control, and cataloging activities. Works with the
Integrated Library Systems department on issues of large-scale bibliographic
and authority record loading, authorities processing, and maintenance.
Provides evaluation, preprocessing, and load profile preparation

  
for bibliographic record sets to be added to the Kuali OLE database; monitors,
resolves and responds to reports of database errors from public and staff
users of the catalog.

  
For a complete position description, please visit

http://www.lib.uchicago.edu/e/jobs/hdms14.html

  
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS: Graduate library degree; minimum 3 years experience
managing descriptive and authority data; experience working with MARC records;
familiarity with emerging library linked data standards and applications;
flexibility and creativity in adapting to rapidly changing data management
environments; ability to achieve and maintain a reasonable and consistent
production level that meets Library expectations; ability to meet local and
national standards for quality; excellent analytical and oral and written
communication skills, including the ability to construct clear documentation;
ability to perform complex problem solving and decision-making.

  
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS: Supervisory experience; previous experience in an
academic/research library; experience working with library metadata content
standards, RDA, AACR2, and non-MARC metadata standards; proficiency in XML;
systems migration experience; experience implementing discovery tools; formal
project management training.

  
SALARY AND BENEFITS: Appointment salary based on qualifications and
experience. Benefits include retirement plan, insurance, and paid time off.
There is a tuition benefit plan for college age and younger children.

  
Apply here at:
https://academiccareers.uchicago.edu/applicants/Central?quickFind=53760

  
Please submit a cover letter, CV and reference contact information through the
above site by January 7, 2014. Review of applications will begin upon receipt
and continue until the position is filled.

  
All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employ

[CODE4LIB] Job: Electronic Resources Librarian (Assistant Professor) at College of Staten Island

[jobs]

Electronic Resources Librarian (Assistant Professor)
College of Staten Island
Staten Island

The Department of the Library at the College of Staten Island, City University
of New York, seeks applicants for appointment to a tenure-track faculty
position as Assistant Professor for the position of Electronic Resources
Librarian. This position is anticipated to begin in September 2015. The
successful candidate will primarily be responsible for the procurement,
licensing and management of electronic resources purchased directly by the CSI
Library, and those resources indirectly acquired through collective licensing
via consortia. S/He is expected to provide leadership in
the administration of new and existing licensing for electronic resources;
maintaining a database for tracking electronic resource licenses and licensing
expressions; negotiate and monitor subscriptions in relation to existing
license expirations and renewals; and troubleshoot e-access problems reported
by patrons and other library staff. This position will also
participate in-person and virtual reference services; participate in the
Library Instruction program; participate in the development of electronic
instructional materials (online tutorials, subject web-guides, etc.); and
assist in the assessment activities. The successful candidate will also pursue
an active and productive academic agenda through scholarly publications and
grant writing, and will participate in professional
conferences. The candidate is also expected to participate
and serve on department, college, and university-wide committees.

  
QUALIFICATIONS

  
The ideal candidate will have a Masters in Library Science (MLS), Masters in
Library Information Studies (MLIS), or closely related discipline. A second
graduate degree in addition to the MLS/MLIS from an ALA-accredited library
school is required for a position as Assistant Professor. Preference will be
given to candidates with two or more years of experience in an academic
setting with electronic resource management or acquisitions. Experience in
working with an integrated library system (e.g. Aleph, Ex-Libris) is desired.
Applicants should demonstrate: knowledge of emerging trends in instruction and
information technologies; excellent analytic, organizational, and problem
solving skills; strong communication and interpersonal skills (both verbal and
written); the ability to work collaboratively with faculty; the ability to
adapt to shifting needs and priorities; and a strong commitment to public
service.

  
COMPENSATION

  
Assistant Professor salary range: $42,873 - $74,133, commensurate with
qualifications.

  
CUNY offers faculty a competitive compensation and benefits package covering
health insurance, pension and retirement benefits, paid parental leave, and
savings programs. We also provide mentoring and support for
research, scholarship, and publication as part of our commitment to ongoing
faculty professional development.

  
EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

  
We are committed to enhancing our diverse academic community by actively
encouraging people with disabilities, minorities, veterans, and women to
apply. We take pride in our pluralistic community and
continue to seek excellence through diversity and inclusion. EO/AA Employer.

  
HOW TO APPLY

  
To apply, please go to www.cuny.edu; select "Employment," "Search Job
Listings," "More Options to Search for CUNY Jobs," then enter the Job ID#11796
in the "Job Opening ID" field. In order to be considered for this position,
applicants must submit a letter of application, current curriculum vitae, as
well as the contact

information for three professional references. All items to be uploaded must
be combined in a single PDF document. Complete applications must be received
by January 31, 2015.

  
If you have difficulty with uploading documents to the website, please send
them to the following email address: [librarysea...@csi.cuny.edu](mailto:libra
rysea...@csi.cuny.edu?subject=Electronic%20Resources%20Librarian%20Position)

  
ABOUT THE COLLEGE AND THE LIBRARY

  
The Library's collection along with its high quality reference and
instructional services offer students and faculty access to a wealth of
information and resources that support the college's curriculum. The Library
is located at the center of the south academic quadrangle of the campus, at
the end of the Alumni Walk. For more information on the
Department of the Library, please visit our website at: [http://www.library.cs
i.cuny.edu/about](http://www.library.csi.cuny.edu/about).

  
The College of Staten Island (CSI) is centrally located on a 204-acre, park-
like

campus, the largest in New York City. CSI is one of 11 senior colleges of The
City University of New York (CUNY) and the only public college on Staten
Island. The College offers over 80 undergraduate programs, 24 graduate
programs and participates in a wide range of doctoral programs through the
CUNY Graduate School and University Center. CSI 

[CODE4LIB] Oakland Public Library soliciting proposals for a library web/software project

[Hersh, Daniel]

[cross-posted to WEB4LIB and CODE4LIB]

Please see below.  If you know of any eligible developers who might be
interested in this project, feel free to forward this message to them or
to send me their contact information.  I have already sent this message
to the firms that I know about that offer online summer reading
products.

Oakland Public Library, which is a department of the City of Oakland,
California, is accepting proposals from contractors to develop, host,
maintain and provide support for an online web service that will allow
libraries to track library "programs" where library patrons (aka
customers or users) perform measurable or countable activities and
receive rewards or incentives in return.  This service would include
summer reading functionality but would be broader and more flexible for
the customer than existing summer reading products.  The proposal
submittal deadline is Monday, January 6, 2015.  

To be eligible for consideration, a contractor must have previously
successfully developed, hosted and maintained web-based software
services that have been used by public libraries.  

More information about the project is available at
http://oaklandlibrary.org/sites/default/files/documentlibrary/PlayatYour
LibraryRFPexcerpts.pdf, and the full Request for Proposal is at
http://oaklandlibrary.org/sites/default/files/documentlibrary/PlayatYour
LibraryRFP.pdf .  For questions, please contact me, preferably via
e-mail.  

Thanks,

Daniel Hersh

Supervising Librarian for Support Services 
dhe...@oaklandlibrary.org 
(510) 238-3270 
Oakland Public Library - delight inspire inform

Re: [CODE4LIB] Functional Archival Resource Keys

[John Kunze]

I don't know the precise constraints you're working under, but Henry
Thompson of the W3C TAG (Technical Architecture Group) has advocated for
consideration of the ARK approach to the TAG's meetings.

The terminal '?' is sort of a no-brainer, but clearly it stretches the URI
spec; on the plus side, it's ripe for definition since no one else is using
it.  It was Jonathan Rees (also of the W3C TAG) who pointed out the need
for an additional response header, just in case some service actually was
responding query strings that overlapped with inflections.

Just to be clear, the ARKs don't own the inflections concept (in fact the
ARK scheme is unusual in not "owning" things, such as a resolver).  If you
think inflections are a good/bad idea for ARKs, chances are you'll think
the same for other kinds of identifiers.  As Clifford Lynch once said, the
'?' inflection should work for all URLs.

On Tue, Dec 9, 2014 at 10:09 PM, Andrew Anderson  wrote:

> RFC and expectation violations make my brain hurt.
>
> Overloading an operator that has a clearly defined role in HTTP URIs (
> https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc7230#section-2.7.1) creates the potential
> for /so/ many unexpected interactions between browsers (
> https://code.google.com/p/chromium/issues/detail?id=108690), HTTP caches,
> URL rewriting servers, etc. that implementations, adopters, and users are
> going to be playing a long game of whack-a-mole working around them.
>
> The proposal is already carving out a URI namespace in the form of “ark:”:
>
>   http://ark.cdlib.org/ark:/13030/tf5p30086k?
>
> So why not take advantage of the fact that any system processing the
> “ark:” namespace is already going to have to be a custom application and
> adopt a RESTful path to communicate the service requested instead?
>
>   http://ark.cdlib.org/ark:metadata/13030/tf5p30086k
>   http://ark.cdlib.org/ark:policy/13030/tf5p30086k
>
> If a web services style implementation is undesired, what about creating
> another reserved character or overload a character that is already used in
> URIs but not part of the HTTP URI specification, “!"?
>
> Or, if a standard approach for HTTP header implementation were proposed
> and adopted, it is not unreasonable to imagine that browsers might adopt
> methods that would allow the average user access to the inflections without
> jumping through hoops once adoption reaches critical mass.
>
> There are many approaches and techniques that could be employed here that
> would not require overloading “?” in HTTP URIs that there really is no
> excuse for trying to do so.
>
> --
> Andrew Anderson, Director of Development, Library and Information
> Resources Network, Inc.
> http://www.lirn.net/ | http://www.twitter.com/LIRNnotes |
> http://www.facebook.com/LIRNnotes
>
> On Dec 9, 2014, at 9:25, Ethan Gruber  wrote:
>
> > I'm using a few applications in Tomcat, so inflections are much more
> > difficult to implement than content negotiation. I can probably tweak the
> > Apache settings to do a proxypass for inflections by modifying the
> examples
> > above.
> >
> > I agree with Conal, though. Inflections are puzzling at best and bad
> > architecture at worst, and the sooner the community puts forward a more
> > standard solution, the better.
> >
> > On Mon, Dec 8, 2014 at 7:21 PM, John Kunze  wrote:
> >
> >> Just as a URL permits an ordinary user with a web browser to get to an
> >> object, inflections permit an ordinary user to see metadata (without
> curl
> >> or code).
> >>
> >> There's nothing to prevent a server from supporting both the HTTP Accept
> >> header (content negotiation) and inflections.  If you can do the one,
> the
> >> other should be pretty easy.
> >>
> >> On Mon, Dec 8, 2014 at 4:01 PM, Conal Tuohy 
> wrote:
> >>
> >>> I am really puzzled by the use of these non-standard "inflexions" as a
> >>> means of qualifying an HTTP request. Why not use the HTTP Accept
> header,
> >>> like everyone else?
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> On 9 December 2014 at 07:59, John A. Kunze  wrote:
> >>>
>  Any Apache server (not Tomcat) can handle the '?' and '??' cases with
> a
>  few rewrite rules to transform them into typical CGI-like query
> >> strings.
> 
>   # Detect ? and ?? inflections and map to typical CGI-style
> >> parameters.
>   # One question mark case:  ?  -> ?show=brief&as=anvl/erc
>   RewriteCond %{THE_REQUEST}  \?
>   RewriteCond %{QUERY_STRING} ^$
>   RewriteRule ^(.*)$ "$1?show=brief&as=anvl/erc"
> 
>   # Two question mark case:  ?? -> ?show=support&as=anvl/erc
>   RewriteCond %{QUERY_STRING} ^\?$
>   RewriteRule ^(.*)$ "$1?show=support&as=anvl/erc"
> 
>  So if your architecture supports query strings of the form
> 
>   ?name1=value1&name2=value2&...
> 
>  it can support ARK inflections.
> 
>  I don't believe that the ARK spec and HTTP URIs are fully compatible
> > ideas.
> >
> 
>  True.  A '?' by itself has no meaning in the URI spec, which means
>

[CODE4LIB] Visual Analytics with D3.js (online class)

[Rory Litwin]

Visual Analytics with D3.js

Instructor: Olga Buchel
Dates: January 5-30, 2015
Credits: 1.5 CEUs
Price: $175

http://libraryjuiceacademy.com/104-visual-analytics.php

Visual analytics is a special form of visualization that implies that visual 
representations (e.g., charts, maps, graphs, tables and so on) should be 
interactive (i.e. users should be able to change them: filter, animate, select 
and perform other manipulations). Interactive visual representations (such as 
time series graphs, time maps, animated charts) are becoming popular additions 
to library websites and catalogs. They are used for showing statistics about 
library usage and telling stories about library services and collections. This 
4-week workshop introduces participants to D3.js (Data-Driven Documents), one 
of the fastest growing JavaScript-based open-source visualization libraries 
that allows web site designers to create interactive visualizations. 
Participants will also learn how to adapt existing open-source representations 
available in D3.js library for their own needs. Some comfort with JavaScript is 
assumed. (Our course titled Introduction to Client-Side Web Scrip!
 ting would be good preparation.)

Olga Buchel holds a PhD in Library and Information Science from the University 
of Western Ontario. Her specialization is in geodigital libraries, having 
worked at the Alexandria Digital Library, one of the first libraries to offer 
geospatial searches. For her dissertation she developed an interactive 
visualization for a book collection. She has taught on geodigital libraries at 
the University of Western Ontario.


Course structure
This is an online class that is taught asynchronously, meaning that 
participants do the work on their own time as their schedules allow. The class 
does not meet together at any particular times, although the instructor may set 
up optional sychronous chat sessions. Instruction includes readings and 
assignments in one-week segments. Class participation is in an online forum 
environment.

Payment info
You can register in this course through the first week of instruction. The 
"Register" button on the website goes to our credit card payment gateway, which 
may be used with personal or institutional credit cards. (Be sure to use the 
appropriate billing address). If your institution wants to pay using a purchase 
order, please contact us to make arrangements.


Library Juice Academy
P.O. Box 188784
Sacramento, CA 95818
Tel. 218-260-6115
Fax 916-415-5446

inquir...@libraryjuiceacademy.com
http://libraryjuiceacademy.com/

Testimonials:
http://libraryjuiceacademy.com/testimonials.php

Twitter:
http://twitter.com/libjuiceacademy

Check out our jingle:
http://libraryjuiceacademy.com/news/?p=139

Re: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?

[Tom Keays]

Thanks for all the good additions to my own reading list. Here are some of
mine.

Fiction Books - I tend to read urban fantasy and sci-fi, with other stuff
thrown in. I tend to graze tech books, so I won't record them.

The Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch - I'm currently reading book #4 in
the series and #5 just came out. I'm reading the UK editions, so I've been
looking up a lot of Britishisms.
Clariel by Garth Nix (book 4 in the Abhorsen series) - Nix is mostly a
young adult fantasy author, but this series is a cut above.
Raising Steam by Terry Pratchett (Discworld #40) - I re-read all of the
previous books in the series this year.
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce - I kept thinking
"what would Forrest Gump have done", but it was actually a pretty good
read.
The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon by Brad Stone - I
finished it in June, just as the fight with Hachette was brewing.

Graphic Novels/Comics - I've been reading more of them this year than I
have for a long time. Guilty pleasure? I guess so. Image Comics is a nice
alternative to Marvel and DC in that the authors retain copyright and
artistic control.

Alex + Ada - about the relationship between artificial intelligence and
humans in a world where androids exist and have the potential to become
sentient. Covers some of the same ground as the movie Her, but with the
luxury of diving deeper as the series goes on.
The Walking Dead - how have I never read these? I binged on borrowed copies
over the long Labor Day weekend and have been buying new issues since.
Still haven't seen the TV series.
Fables - I'm just getting started with this series (and its spin-offs), but
I agree with Paula that this is better than Once Upon A Time.
Velvet - a British spy thriller.


On Wed, Dec 10, 2014 at 11:13 AM, Sarah Walden  wrote:

> My library hold list has already doubled in size - thanks for all the
> great recommendations!
>
> I will second the plug for _The Martian_ by Andy Weir. Very gripping, and
> the science felt believable and realistic. John Scalzi's latest, _Lock In_,
> was also a blast to read, and raises some really thought-provoking
> questions about disability, race, and gender, all wrapped up in a
> near-future SF murder mystery.
>
> ---
> Sarah Walden
> Digital Projects Librarian
> Robert Frost Library
> Amherst College
> PO Box 2256
> Amherst, MA 01002-5000
> Tel: (413) 542-2960
> Fax: (413) 542-2662
> E-mail: swal...@amherst.edu
>
>
>
> -Original Message-
> From: Code for Libraries [mailto:CODE4LIB@LISTSERV.ND.EDU] On Behalf Of
> Andromeda Yelton
> Sent: Tuesday, December 09, 2014 9:47 AM
> To: CODE4LIB@LISTSERV.ND.EDU
> Subject: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?
>
> Hey, code4lib! I bet you consume fascinating media. What good books did
> you read in 2014 that you think your colleagues would like, too?  (And hey,
> we're all digital, so feel free to include movies and video games and so
> forth.)
>
> Mine:
> http://www.obeythetestinggoat.com/ (O'Reilly book, plus read free online)
> - a book on testing from a Django-centric, front end perspective. *Finally*
> I get how testing works. This book rewrote my brain.
>
> _The Warmth of Other Suns_ - finally got around to reading this magnum
> opus history of the Great Migration, am halfway through, it's amazing. If
> you're looking for some historical context on how we got to Ferguson,
> Isabel Wilkerson has you covered.
>
> _Her_ - Imma let you finish, Citzenfour and Big Hero 6 and LEGO movie and
> Guardians of the Galaxy - you were all good - but I walked out of the
> theater and literally couldn't speak after this one. Plus, funniest
> throwaway scene ever. Almost fell out of my chair.
>
> _Tim's Vermeer_ - wait, no, watch that one too. Weird tinkering genius who
> can't paint obsesses over recreating a Vermeer with startling,
> physics-driven results. Also, Penn Jillette.
>
> --
> Andromeda Yelton
> Board of Directors, Library & Information Technology Association:
> http://www.lita.org
> Advisor, Ada Initiative: http://adainitiative.org
> http://andromedayelton.com @ThatAndromeda <
> http://twitter.com/ThatAndromeda>
>

Re: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?

[Erin White]

Loving this list, y'all. Thanks Andromeda for starting this thread.

My two big hits this year have been:

It's Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens - danah boyd. Still
working on this one, but it's an eye-opener re: privacy, social media,
teens and adults. The author is offering the digital version for free
download: http://www.danah.org/itscomplicated/

No Straight Lines: Four Decades of Queer Comics - anthology edited by
Justin Hall. Nice collection, many styles and voices represented.

--
Erin White
Web Systems Librarian, VCU Libraries
(804) 827-3552 | erwh...@vcu.edu | www.library.vcu.edu

On Wed, Dec 10, 2014 at 11:13 AM, Sarah Walden  wrote:

> My library hold list has already doubled in size - thanks for all the
> great recommendations!
>
> I will second the plug for _The Martian_ by Andy Weir. Very gripping, and
> the science felt believable and realistic. John Scalzi's latest, _Lock In_,
> was also a blast to read, and raises some really thought-provoking
> questions about disability, race, and gender, all wrapped up in a
> near-future SF murder mystery.
>
> ---
> Sarah Walden
> Digital Projects Librarian
> Robert Frost Library
> Amherst College
> PO Box 2256
> Amherst, MA 01002-5000
> Tel: (413) 542-2960
> Fax: (413) 542-2662
> E-mail: swal...@amherst.edu
>
>
>
> -Original Message-
> From: Code for Libraries [mailto:CODE4LIB@LISTSERV.ND.EDU] On Behalf Of
> Andromeda Yelton
> Sent: Tuesday, December 09, 2014 9:47 AM
> To: CODE4LIB@LISTSERV.ND.EDU
> Subject: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?
>
> Hey, code4lib! I bet you consume fascinating media. What good books did
> you read in 2014 that you think your colleagues would like, too?  (And hey,
> we're all digital, so feel free to include movies and video games and so
> forth.)
>
> Mine:
> http://www.obeythetestinggoat.com/ (O'Reilly book, plus read free online)
> - a book on testing from a Django-centric, front end perspective. *Finally*
> I get how testing works. This book rewrote my brain.
>
> _The Warmth of Other Suns_ - finally got around to reading this magnum
> opus history of the Great Migration, am halfway through, it's amazing. If
> you're looking for some historical context on how we got to Ferguson,
> Isabel Wilkerson has you covered.
>
> _Her_ - Imma let you finish, Citzenfour and Big Hero 6 and LEGO movie and
> Guardians of the Galaxy - you were all good - but I walked out of the
> theater and literally couldn't speak after this one. Plus, funniest
> throwaway scene ever. Almost fell out of my chair.
>
> _Tim's Vermeer_ - wait, no, watch that one too. Weird tinkering genius who
> can't paint obsesses over recreating a Vermeer with startling,
> physics-driven results. Also, Penn Jillette.
>
> --
> Andromeda Yelton
> Board of Directors, Library & Information Technology Association:
> http://www.lita.org
> Advisor, Ada Initiative: http://adainitiative.org
> http://andromedayelton.com @ThatAndromeda <
> http://twitter.com/ThatAndromeda>
>

Re: [CODE4LIB] CFP: LITA Top Tech Trends Program Panelists for ALA Midwinter (Due by 12/10)

[Emily Morton-Owens]

And now, apologies for bumping in addition to cross-posting... but this is
the last day to nominate yourself. Please consider it if you'll be at the
Midwinter meeting.

What technology are you watching on the horizon? The LITA Top Tech
Trends Committee
is trying a new process this year and issuing a call for panelists. Answer
this short questionnaire by 12/10 for consideration.

Fresh voices and diverse panelists are especially encouraged to respond.

Past Top Tech Trends programs can be viewed at http://www.ala.org/lita/ttt.

CFP form is located at:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1JH6qJItEAtQS_ChCcFKpS9xqPsFEUz52wQxwieBMC9w/viewform

On Fri, Nov 21, 2014 at 2:16 PM, Kim, Bohyun 
wrote:

> *Apologies for cross-posting*
>
> What technology are you watching on the horizon? The LITA Top Tech Trends
> Committee is trying a new process this year and issuing a call for
> panelists. Answer this short questionnaire by 12/10 for consideration.
>
> Fresh faces and diverse panelists are especially encouraged to respond.
>
> Past Top Tech Trends programs can be viewed at http://www.ala.org/lita/ttt
> .
>
> CFP form is located at:
>
>
> https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1JH6qJItEAtQS_ChCcFKpS9xqPsFEUz52wQxwieBMC9w/viewform
>

Re: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?

[Sarah Walden]

My library hold list has already doubled in size - thanks for all the great 
recommendations!

I will second the plug for _The Martian_ by Andy Weir. Very gripping, and the 
science felt believable and realistic. John Scalzi's latest, _Lock In_, was 
also a blast to read, and raises some really thought-provoking questions about 
disability, race, and gender, all wrapped up in a near-future SF murder 
mystery. 

---
Sarah Walden
Digital Projects Librarian
Robert Frost Library
Amherst College
PO Box 2256
Amherst, MA 01002-5000
Tel: (413) 542-2960
Fax: (413) 542-2662
E-mail: swal...@amherst.edu



-Original Message-
From: Code for Libraries [mailto:CODE4LIB@LISTSERV.ND.EDU] On Behalf Of 
Andromeda Yelton
Sent: Tuesday, December 09, 2014 9:47 AM
To: CODE4LIB@LISTSERV.ND.EDU
Subject: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?

Hey, code4lib! I bet you consume fascinating media. What good books did you 
read in 2014 that you think your colleagues would like, too?  (And hey, we're 
all digital, so feel free to include movies and video games and so
forth.)

Mine:
http://www.obeythetestinggoat.com/ (O'Reilly book, plus read free online) - a 
book on testing from a Django-centric, front end perspective. *Finally* I get 
how testing works. This book rewrote my brain.

_The Warmth of Other Suns_ - finally got around to reading this magnum opus 
history of the Great Migration, am halfway through, it's amazing. If you're 
looking for some historical context on how we got to Ferguson, Isabel Wilkerson 
has you covered.

_Her_ - Imma let you finish, Citzenfour and Big Hero 6 and LEGO movie and 
Guardians of the Galaxy - you were all good - but I walked out of the theater 
and literally couldn't speak after this one. Plus, funniest throwaway scene 
ever. Almost fell out of my chair.

_Tim's Vermeer_ - wait, no, watch that one too. Weird tinkering genius who 
can't paint obsesses over recreating a Vermeer with startling, physics-driven 
results. Also, Penn Jillette.

--
Andromeda Yelton
Board of Directors, Library & Information Technology Association:
http://www.lita.org
Advisor, Ada Initiative: http://adainitiative.org http://andromedayelton.com 
@ThatAndromeda 

Re: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?

[Jeffrey Sabol]

I agree that Adventure Time is supremely awesome.

As far as books, my two favorite reads this year were The Goldfinch by
Donna Tartt (it won the Pulitzer for fiction this year) and the other book
was a collection of short stories by Ben Loory named Stories for Nighttime
and Some for the Day (This American Life featured him reading the story
Death and Fruits of the Tree on episode #527: 180 Degrees) which blew my
mind so i had to read the entire collection.

On Wed, Dec 10, 2014 at 8:01 AM, Chad Nelson  wrote:

> The best novel I read this year was _Americanah_ by Chimamanda Ngozi
> Adichie -  http://chimamanda.com/books/americanah/ . It is a tender and
> personal but exquisitely sharp examination of race, identity, and
> immigration.
>
> The best comic I read this year was _Daytripper_ by Fábio Moon and Gabriel
> Bá.  http://www.vertigocomics.com/graphic-novels/daytripper . It's a few
> years old but it was new to me and absolutely blew me away. I'd call it a
> "quiet existential roller coaster", if pressed for a quote.
>
> Chad
>
>
>
> On Tue, Dec 9, 2014 at 9:47 AM, Andromeda Yelton <
> andromeda.yel...@gmail.com
> > wrote:
>
> > Hey, code4lib! I bet you consume fascinating media. What good books did
> you
> > read in 2014 that you think your colleagues would like, too?  (And hey,
> > we're all digital, so feel free to include movies and video games and so
> > forth.)
> >
> > Mine:
> > http://www.obeythetestinggoat.com/ (O'Reilly book, plus read free
> online)
> > -
> > a book on testing from a Django-centric, front end perspective.
> *Finally* I
> > get how testing works. This book rewrote my brain.
> >
> > _The Warmth of Other Suns_ - finally got around to reading this magnum
> opus
> > history of the Great Migration, am halfway through, it's amazing. If
> you're
> > looking for some historical context on how we got to Ferguson, Isabel
> > Wilkerson has you covered.
> >
> > _Her_ - Imma let you finish, Citzenfour and Big Hero 6 and LEGO movie and
> > Guardians of the Galaxy - you were all good - but I walked out of the
> > theater and literally couldn't speak after this one. Plus, funniest
> > throwaway scene ever. Almost fell out of my chair.
> >
> > _Tim's Vermeer_ - wait, no, watch that one too. Weird tinkering genius
> who
> > can't paint obsesses over recreating a Vermeer with startling,
> > physics-driven results. Also, Penn Jillette.
> >
> > --
> > Andromeda Yelton
> > Board of Directors, Library & Information Technology Association:
> > http://www.lita.org
> > Advisor, Ada Initiative: http://adainitiative.org
> > http://andromedayelton.com
> > @ThatAndromeda 
> >
>

Re: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?

[Chad Nelson]

The best novel I read this year was _Americanah_ by Chimamanda Ngozi
Adichie -  http://chimamanda.com/books/americanah/ . It is a tender and
personal but exquisitely sharp examination of race, identity, and
immigration.

The best comic I read this year was _Daytripper_ by Fábio Moon and Gabriel
Bá.  http://www.vertigocomics.com/graphic-novels/daytripper . It's a few
years old but it was new to me and absolutely blew me away. I'd call it a
"quiet existential roller coaster", if pressed for a quote.

Chad



On Tue, Dec 9, 2014 at 9:47 AM, Andromeda Yelton  wrote:

> Hey, code4lib! I bet you consume fascinating media. What good books did you
> read in 2014 that you think your colleagues would like, too?  (And hey,
> we're all digital, so feel free to include movies and video games and so
> forth.)
>
> Mine:
> http://www.obeythetestinggoat.com/ (O'Reilly book, plus read free online)
> -
> a book on testing from a Django-centric, front end perspective. *Finally* I
> get how testing works. This book rewrote my brain.
>
> _The Warmth of Other Suns_ - finally got around to reading this magnum opus
> history of the Great Migration, am halfway through, it's amazing. If you're
> looking for some historical context on how we got to Ferguson, Isabel
> Wilkerson has you covered.
>
> _Her_ - Imma let you finish, Citzenfour and Big Hero 6 and LEGO movie and
> Guardians of the Galaxy - you were all good - but I walked out of the
> theater and literally couldn't speak after this one. Plus, funniest
> throwaway scene ever. Almost fell out of my chair.
>
> _Tim's Vermeer_ - wait, no, watch that one too. Weird tinkering genius who
> can't paint obsesses over recreating a Vermeer with startling,
> physics-driven results. Also, Penn Jillette.
>
> --
> Andromeda Yelton
> Board of Directors, Library & Information Technology Association:
> http://www.lita.org
> Advisor, Ada Initiative: http://adainitiative.org
> http://andromedayelton.com
> @ThatAndromeda 
>

Re: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?

[Jimmy Ghaphery]

Digging this list for sure.

One that hasn't been mentioned I read this year was the Last Policeman
Trilogy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Last_Policeman). The final book
came out this summer, dark with a sense of hope amidst apocalypse. The
other that really took me away was The Buddha in the Attic (
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Buddha_in_the_Attic), such a strong sense
of liberating unheard voices.

--Jimmy


On Wed, Dec 10, 2014 at 10:33 AM, Paula Gray-Overtoom <
pgray...@monroe.lib.in.us> wrote:

> Fables by Bill Willingham is my very favorite graphic novel series.  It's
> an entirely new take on all your favorite storybook characters.  If you
> watch Once Upon a Time, note that Fables is better.  Fables helped me find
> my way the The Unwritten series by Mike Carey.  There's a Fables/Unwritten
> crossover comic that just came out this year.  In the Unwritten, characters
> from books spill out into the real world and people from the real world get
> sucked into books.
>
> In a completely other place for graphic novels, check out American Vampire
> by Scott Snyder.  These vampires most definitely do not sparkle in the sun.
>
> I have also truly enjoyed reading the Library Wars manga series by Kiiro
> Yumi.  I couldn't resist a series about military librarians protecting
> libraries and books from government forces.
>
> Finally, one TV recommend, Adventure Time.  This cartoon has a lot of
> grown-up humor and themes (Lady Rainicorn was pregnant and had
> puppies/unicorn-rainbowish babies with Jake the dog a season or so ago) and
> BMO, the cute, talking computer/game is irresistible.
>
> I am really enjoying reading everyone else's posts.  I probably already
> have enough reading, watching and gaming options to last the next couple of
> years.
>
> ~ Paula
>



-- 
Jimmy Ghaphery
Head, Digital Technologies
VCU Libraries
804-827-3551

Re: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?

[Paula Gray-Overtoom]

Fables by Bill Willingham is my very favorite graphic novel series.  It's an 
entirely new take on all your favorite storybook characters.  If you watch Once 
Upon a Time, note that Fables is better.  Fables helped me find my way the The 
Unwritten series by Mike Carey.  There's a Fables/Unwritten crossover comic 
that just came out this year.  In the Unwritten, characters from books spill 
out into the real world and people from the real world get sucked into books.   

In a completely other place for graphic novels, check out American Vampire by 
Scott Snyder.  These vampires most definitely do not sparkle in the sun.

I have also truly enjoyed reading the Library Wars manga series by Kiiro Yumi.  
I couldn't resist a series about military librarians protecting libraries and 
books from government forces.

Finally, one TV recommend, Adventure Time.  This cartoon has a lot of grown-up 
humor and themes (Lady Rainicorn was pregnant and had 
puppies/unicorn-rainbowish babies with Jake the dog a season or so ago) and 
BMO, the cute, talking computer/game is irresistible.  

I am really enjoying reading everyone else's posts.  I probably already have 
enough reading, watching and gaming options to last the next couple of years.

~ Paula 

Re: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?

[Coral Sheldon-Hess]

*Books*

It seems like most of you read more nonfiction and actual literature than I
do. And maybe fewer audiobooks. :D

I had a long drive this year (4600 miles or so), so I finally listened to The
Name of the Wind,
 at a
friend's urging. It was horrifically sexist and had more than a little
Gary-Stu  going
on, but it was funny enough and had an interesting enough plot that I
picked up the second book at the library, once I got where I was going. (I
wasn't willing to *pay* to read it, but I was willing to read it. :)) That
one was *even more* ridiculous, but I'll probably read the third when it
comes out, if for no other reason than I can't see how this story gets
wrapped up quickly enough to stick to the original three-book plan.

I also listened Octavia Butler's Xenogenesis
 trilogy, which I
really liked. It should probably come with a trigger warning, to be fair,
but it was well-written and thought-provoking. (I'm still not 100% sure
whose side Ms. Butler was on and how she defines "human.")

In terms of pure popcorn, Kim Harrison's The Hollows
 books are an urban
fantasy series set in a near-future Cincinnati, where genetic engineering
of tomatoes (why is it always tomatoes? wasn't there a thing about that at
the beginning of Jurassic Park, too?) killed off a large portion of the
human population and forced vampires, witches, werewolves, etc. to come out
of hiding. I've been listening to them for the last three years or so, and
they're pretty good, give or take a lull somewhere in the middle of the
series. The last one came out this year, so I can finally recommend it to
people without guilt. :) (I don't know about you, but I *hate* starting a
series and then realizing it isn't all written yet.)

*Boardgames/Card games*

I might technically have learned this game last year, but I'll list it
anyway: Hanabi . It's sort
of like playing cooperative Solitaire with a group of people, only you
can't see your own cards, just everyone else's, and you have to play
everything in order with only other players' hints to go on. It's possible
to win, but it's hard.

:)

- Coral

Re: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?

[Sean Hannan]

This thread reminded me that there exists a code4lib Goodreads group:
https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/72219-code4lib

-Sean

On 12/10/14, 9:10 AM, "Foster, Meredith"  wrote:

>Interesting post and responses.
>
>Books:
>Started the year by finishing up the Dresden Files (Jim Butcher) series.
>Also picked up Skin Game the day it was released.
>
>A local used bookstore opened up, so I ended up picking up a lot of
>classic sci-fi and fantasy.  A small selection...
>Ursula K. Le Guin - Left Hand of Darkness, Lathe of Heaven
>Isaac Asimov - Prelude to Foundation
>Marion Zimmer Bradley - Mists of Avalon
>Anne McCaffrey - Doona series, No One Noticed the Cat
>William Gibson - continued reading the "Sprawl" trilogy.
>Neal Stephenson - Snow Crash
>Mercades Lackey - Arrows trilogy
>Neil Gaiman - Anansi Boys, American Gods, Good Omens (with Terry
>Pratchett).
>
>Also reread Daniel Suarez's Daemon and Freedom(tm).
>
>For non-fiction, I haven't read Redefining Realness yet.  Janet Mock
>spoke at the university where I work.
>
>Video Games:
>Continuing Guild Wars 2.  Picked up Guild Wars 1 to play through all the
>original lore and get the linked rewards.  Quantum Conundrum (by Kim
>Swift, original designer of Portal).  Picked up Never Alone and Alice:
>Madness Returns but haven't had a chance to play them yet.
>
>Board/Tabletop Games:
>Played the aforementioned Lords of Waterdeep, which was quite enjoyable.
>Finished a two year Pathfinder campaign.  Pathfinder Card Game, but I
>didn't enjoy it as much as I hoped.  I no longer go to the local game
>store's board game night, so I doubt I will do much with board games any
>more.

Re: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?

[Foster, Meredith]

Interesting post and responses.

Books:
Started the year by finishing up the Dresden Files (Jim Butcher) series.  Also 
picked up Skin Game the day it was released.

A local used bookstore opened up, so I ended up picking up a lot of classic 
sci-fi and fantasy.  A small selection...
Ursula K. Le Guin - Left Hand of Darkness, Lathe of Heaven
Isaac Asimov - Prelude to Foundation
Marion Zimmer Bradley - Mists of Avalon
Anne McCaffrey - Doona series, No One Noticed the Cat
William Gibson - continued reading the "Sprawl" trilogy.
Neal Stephenson - Snow Crash
Mercades Lackey - Arrows trilogy
Neil Gaiman - Anansi Boys, American Gods, Good Omens (with Terry Pratchett).

Also reread Daniel Suarez's Daemon and Freedom(tm).

For non-fiction, I haven't read Redefining Realness yet.  Janet Mock spoke at 
the university where I work.

Video Games:
Continuing Guild Wars 2.  Picked up Guild Wars 1 to play through all the 
original lore and get the linked rewards.  Quantum Conundrum (by Kim Swift, 
original designer of Portal).  Picked up Never Alone and Alice: Madness Returns 
but haven't had a chance to play them yet.

Board/Tabletop Games:
Played the aforementioned Lords of Waterdeep, which was quite enjoyable.  
Finished a two year Pathfinder campaign.  Pathfinder Card Game, but I didn't 
enjoy it as much as I hoped.  I no longer go to the local game store's board 
game night, so I doubt I will do much with board games any more.

Re: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?

[Heidi Elaine Dowding]

This year's been a pretty great one in terms of reading.  Some of my
highlights:

Roxanne Gay's Bad Feminist  - A
great collection of essays on pop culture, feminism, race, and professional
Scrabble.

bell hooks' Writing Beyond Race
 -
With everything happening around the US and as the Code4Lib Journal ramps
up to put out our first special issue on diversity, I've been re-reading
hooks' work, and especially love this book.

Matt Kirschenbaum's Mechanisms : New Media and the Forensic Imagination

- Words cannot describe.  Another book that I'm reading that's in the same
vein (though a bit older and more theoretical) is Embodying Technesis by
Mark Hansen.

Cory Doctorow's Little Brother and Homeland - The first one is by far
better, but both are great, quick reads.

Books I'm really excited to read, but haven't had time yet:

Martin Paul Eve's Open Access and the Humanities


Doctorow's Information Doesn't Want to Be Free: Laws for the Internet Age


Biella Coleman's Hacker, Hoaxer, Whistleblower, Spy: The Many Faces of
Anonymous




On Wed, Dec 10, 2014 at 2:03 PM, Henry, Catherine  wrote:

> Video games: Seconding Dragon Age: Inquisition. I've logged over 80 hours,
> and there's still tons to do. Running an inquisition is hard work!
>
> Not from this year, but I played a bunch of the Lego games near the
> beginning of the year. The Harry Potter ones were my favorites, followed
> closely by Star Wars.
>
> Also seconding Guardians of the Galaxy. Best comic book movie yet!
>
> Books I enjoyed:
>
> - Fevre Dream by George R.R. Martin. It was so good I took the time to
> write a short review on Goodreads. It was a nice standalone novel amidst
> all the ridiculously huge series I usually read. Great for people who like
> the steamboat/Mark Twain era of U.S. history -or heck, even if you don't.
> It might be a good gateway book from historical fiction to
> fantasy/paranormal. It had kind of a gothic, Anne Rice-ish feel to it.
>
> - Mike Carey's Lucifer graphic novel series, based on Neil Gaiman's
> amazing Sandman series
>
> - Gillian Flynn's three books, Sharp Objects, Dark Places and Gone Girl
>
> L. Catherine Henry, MLS, Assistant Systems Librarian
> Beaufort County Library
> 311 Scott Street, Beaufort, SC 29902
> Phone 843.255.6444   lhe...@bcgov.net
> www.beaufortcountylibrary.org
> For Learning ♦ For Leisure ♦ For Life
>
> -Original Message-
> From: Code for Libraries [mailto:CODE4LIB@LISTSERV.ND.EDU] On Behalf Of
> Matthew Sherman
> Sent: Tuesday, December 09, 2014 2:06 PM
> To: CODE4LIB@LISTSERV.ND.EDU
> Subject: Re: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?
>
> Nothing professional comes to mind but here are some fun stuff in no
> particular order:
>
>
> Books:
>
> Skin Game by Jim Butcher
> - Another in the consistently great Dresden Files series.  For those
> unfamiliar urban fantasy novels that are always just a fun read.
>
> The Broken Eye by Brent Weeks
> - The third in the Lightbringer series from a newer but really good fantasy
> author.
>
>
> Comics:
>
> Avengers vol. 5 and New Avengers vol. 3 by Jonathan Hickman
> - The current run on Avengers and New Avengers, both written by Jonathan
> Hickman who is good at playing the long game and paying off well as proven
> by his run on Fantastic Four.
>
> Batman vol. 2 by Scott Snyder
> - The current run on Batman by Scott Snyder who has been consistently a
> great batman author, and currently doing a very interesting Joker story.
>
>
> Movies:
>
> Guardians of the Galaxy
> - Great movie as Andromeda mentioned.  As a fan of the book it was based on
> I was afraid this was going to be awful and was pleasantly surprised.
>
>
> TV:
>
> The Flash
> - The new Flash show has been one of the most fun TV shows I have seen in
> quite some time, they have a very fun dynamic and surprisingly good
> production values.
>
>
> Games:
>
> Dragon Age: Inquisition
> - Another great Bioware RPG, with real pay off if you have played the
> previous games.  Even if you haven't it is a lot of fun and a pretty good
> story.  Admittedly I am only part way in, but when it took the reviewers 80
> hours to finish the story it is not something you will finish within the
> first month of getting it.
>
> On Tue, Dec 9, 2014 at 1:34 PM, Mark Pernotto 
> wrote:
>
> > Fun question - thanks!
> >
> > In no partic

Re: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?

[Henry, Catherine]

Video games: Seconding Dragon Age: Inquisition. I've logged over 80 hours, and 
there's still tons to do. Running an inquisition is hard work! 

Not from this year, but I played a bunch of the Lego games near the beginning 
of the year. The Harry Potter ones were my favorites, followed closely by Star 
Wars. 

Also seconding Guardians of the Galaxy. Best comic book movie yet!

Books I enjoyed: 

- Fevre Dream by George R.R. Martin. It was so good I took the time to write a 
short review on Goodreads. It was a nice standalone novel amidst all the 
ridiculously huge series I usually read. Great for people who like the 
steamboat/Mark Twain era of U.S. history -or heck, even if you don't. It might 
be a good gateway book from historical fiction to fantasy/paranormal. It had 
kind of a gothic, Anne Rice-ish feel to it.

- Mike Carey's Lucifer graphic novel series, based on Neil Gaiman's amazing 
Sandman series

- Gillian Flynn's three books, Sharp Objects, Dark Places and Gone Girl

L. Catherine Henry, MLS, Assistant Systems Librarian
Beaufort County Library
311 Scott Street, Beaufort, SC 29902
Phone 843.255.6444   lhe...@bcgov.net
www.beaufortcountylibrary.org
For Learning ♦ For Leisure ♦ For Life

-Original Message-
From: Code for Libraries [mailto:CODE4LIB@LISTSERV.ND.EDU] On Behalf Of Matthew 
Sherman
Sent: Tuesday, December 09, 2014 2:06 PM
To: CODE4LIB@LISTSERV.ND.EDU
Subject: Re: [CODE4LIB] what good books did you read in 2014?

Nothing professional comes to mind but here are some fun stuff in no
particular order:


Books:

Skin Game by Jim Butcher
- Another in the consistently great Dresden Files series.  For those
unfamiliar urban fantasy novels that are always just a fun read.

The Broken Eye by Brent Weeks
- The third in the Lightbringer series from a newer but really good fantasy
author.


Comics:

Avengers vol. 5 and New Avengers vol. 3 by Jonathan Hickman
- The current run on Avengers and New Avengers, both written by Jonathan
Hickman who is good at playing the long game and paying off well as proven
by his run on Fantastic Four.

Batman vol. 2 by Scott Snyder
- The current run on Batman by Scott Snyder who has been consistently a
great batman author, and currently doing a very interesting Joker story.


Movies:

Guardians of the Galaxy
- Great movie as Andromeda mentioned.  As a fan of the book it was based on
I was afraid this was going to be awful and was pleasantly surprised.


TV:

The Flash
- The new Flash show has been one of the most fun TV shows I have seen in
quite some time, they have a very fun dynamic and surprisingly good
production values.


Games:

Dragon Age: Inquisition
- Another great Bioware RPG, with real pay off if you have played the
previous games.  Even if you haven't it is a lot of fun and a pretty good
story.  Admittedly I am only part way in, but when it took the reviewers 80
hours to finish the story it is not something you will finish within the
first month of getting it.

On Tue, Dec 9, 2014 at 1:34 PM, Mark Pernotto 
wrote:

> Fun question - thanks!
>
> In no particular order:
>
> *What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions* by
> Randall Munroe
> - *I really enjoy the physics, as well as the absurdity.*
>
> *Two Scoops of Django 1.6*
> - *based on Andromeda's recommendation - thanks! Looks like I have another
> Django book to read now. Really appreciate it!*
>
> *Invincible Compendium Volume 2* by Robert Kirkman
> - *someone had gifted me Compendium 1 last Christmas - I just had to
> continue. I feel accomplished after reading such a large book*
>
> *Wonders of Life* by Brian Cox
> - *I know there's a lot of hype surrounding Neil Degrasse Tyson's "Cosmos",
> but I prefer Cox's presentation. He also did a series "Wonders of the
> Universe" and "Wonders of the Solar System" years ago. If you hurry, you
> can get the 3-series BluRay set for $0.12 cheaper than just "Wonders of
> Life"*
>
>
> On Tue, Dec 9, 2014 at 6:47 AM, Andromeda Yelton <
> andromeda.yel...@gmail.com
> > wrote:
>
> > Hey, code4lib! I bet you consume fascinating media. What good books did
> you
> > read in 2014 that you think your colleagues would like, too?  (And hey,
> > we're all digital, so feel free to include movies and video games and so
> > forth.)
> >
> > Mine:
> > http://www.obeythetestinggoat.com/ (O'Reilly book, plus read free
> online)
> > -
> > a book on testing from a Django-centric, front end perspective.
> *Finally* I
> > get how testing works. This book rewrote my brain.
> >
> > _The Warmth of Other Suns_ - finally got around to reading this magnum
> opus
> > history of the Great Migration, am halfway through, it's amazing. If
> you're
> > looking for some historical context on how we got to Ferguson, Isabel
> > Wilkerson has you covered.
> >
> > _Her_ - Imma let you finish, Citzenfour and Big Hero 6 and LEGO movie and
> > Guardians of the Galaxy - you were all good - but I walked out of the
> > theater and literally couldn't speak after this one.