Iosco-Arenac District Library Technology Blog

Reminder of Certain Usage Guidelines

2009-04-10T12:43:00.002-04:00

Those of you who might come across this blog, are actually living in Michigan and use our public access computers, are no doubt aware of our usage guidelines and FAQ.

IADL AUP

IADL Tech FAQ

I also suggest that you read Merit Network's AUP Merit AUP as it applies here too.

The reason that I'm bringing this up again is that a patron had downloaded Limewire and tried to install it on one of our computers.

This isn't allowed.

There are two important reasons for this: first, we don't support P2P file sharing because of the legality involved, and second, the software might not actually be Limewire but a piece of malware.

There are other reasons, it's another program that has to be maintained (thus requiring more time in regard to patching), it opens the door to malware getting on and thus threatening security, and it hogs bandwidth.

While I would love to make our systems as flexible as possible, I have to respectfully draw the line here.

Now does this mean I'm against P2P? No. I've used bittorrent and Limewire to download things like Ubuntu and OpenOffice.org, and both are perfectly stable pieces of software. But, for a public setting, it just doesn't work because of the time limits and bandwidth requirements.

Public WiFi Scheduled Downtime

2009-03-13T09:50:00.003-04:00

On Sunday, March 15, the primary server, which hosts WifiDog and our content filter, will be down for maintenance and upgrades from Noon until 6 P.M. EST. During that time, public wireless access will be down, and all systems that utilize content filtering and caching will not have Internet access.

The updates to the server will improve security and stability. The upgrade will include a clean installation of Ubuntu Server 64-bit.

Updates, Time Management

2009-01-11T22:34:00.002-05:00

Happy New Year.

The latest round of security patches include the latest version of FireFox, and an open source PDF printer. Users can now convert anything that can be printed into a PDF file. Robert J. Parks Library, East Tawas Library, and Plainfield Public Library, have been updated. The remaining branches will be completed by Friday of this coming week.

We are tentatively deploying Envisionware PCReservation (Time Management) at Robert J. Parks Library first. At this time, the clients and management console have already been installed but are not in active use. Our plan is to get all the staff at a branch together after hours for a 2-hour training session, and then go live with the Technology Coordinator on-site for two days to fine-tune and solve any problems that may occur. Later, we'll deploy LPTOne--the Print Management solution.

While the software itself is easy to install, our staff range widely in age and technical know-how. We can't just spring this on them, and they need to be ready.

Time and Print Management Is Coming

2008-11-06T11:22:00.003-05:00

Thanks to the Valley Library Consortium, we have finally settled on a product for time and print management. Envisionware's PC Reservation (Time management) and LPTOne (Print management) will be deployed at the following four locations:

AuGres Community Library
Robert J. Parks Library in Oscoda
Mary Johnston Memorial Library in Standish
Whittemore Library

The software training will take place in mid-November. The first deployment will take place in Oscoda as soon as possible; meaning that it will be no later than January of 2009 and no sooner than December 2008. The Technology Coordinator will be on-site for each deployment and be on-hand for two days afterward to observe and work out any issues.

The biggest advantage these products have will be reduced paper waste; which is especially noticeable at Robert J. Parks Library. We will be adding coin operated print stations where space and cost allows so that patrons will be able to pay for their own print jobs and avoid printing unnecessary pages.

Reminder About Office Format Compatibility

2008-11-06T11:10:00.003-05:00

As of October, 2008, all public and staff computers now have OpenOffice.org 3.0.

This means that you have the choice of opening, editing, and saving common Microsoft Office 2007 formats in either OpenOffice.org or Microsoft Office 2007.

Both Office Suites support exporting documents to Adobe Acrobat PDF. You also have the option of exporting or converting documents in either Office Suite into any number of other formats. In Office 2007, in addition to PDF you can also export to XPS, and open and edit ODF (the open format used by open-source office suites).

For documents created on another computer with Microsoft Works 6-9, only Microsoft Office 2007 can open and edit these documents; however, you can convert them to a different format.

For opening and using Works Documents, it is recommended that the following procedure is followed (due to Works apparently not adding the file extension to a Works file when it is saved).

1. If the file is on a CD, copy it to the desktop first; otherwise, continue to Step 2.

2. Open the Microsoft Office application that corresponds to the type of document you want to open (Excel for spreadsheets, Powerpoint for presentations, and Word for word processing).

3. Click on the Office symbol (gold colored circle on the upper left-hand corner) and select "Open."

4. Make sure "Files of type" is set to "All Files"

5. Navigate to where your document is, select it, and click "Open." The file should then open.

Software Updates and Upgrades

2008-07-10T13:06:00.002-04:00

The next three months are going to be rife with software updates and upgrades.

*Starting in a week, all Windows PCs will be upgraded to AVG 8.0 from 7.5.

*In August, all Windows computers will get Office 2007 Professional with ODF compatibility for open formats that are used by OpenOffice.org.

*Firefox will be upgraded to version 3.0.

*The usual round of security patches and updates

All our staff will be switching over to Mozilla Thunderbird from Outlook and Outlook Express, and MailShell anti-spam will be phased out. Thunderbird is just as easy to use, more secure, and easy to migrate from one platform to another as needed.

To improve the ability to keep anti-virus definitions up-to-date, the scheduling for our computers will be changed to allow updates to be installed in the mornings before business hours. It will be an automated process where our PCs will boot up on their own, update and scan, then shut themselves down.

We will finally have a copy of Windows Vista Ultimate for in-house evaluation and testing, as well as a troubleshooting aid for users that have Vista. Though we will not upgrade our existing PCs to Vista, it's important to have some familiarity.

WifiDog Valdation - Hotmail Users

2008-05-02T14:53:00.002-04:00

Apparently, there's some kind of delivery problem with Hotmail accounts. Fortunately, there is a simple work-around that anyone can perform within the 20-minute validation period.

After creating a WifiDog account, you will have twenty minutes of Internet time to retrieve the validation e-mail. For Hotmail users, to receive your validation e-mail, you will need to add the address validation@ioscoarenaclibrary.org as a safe sender. Here's how.

Note: Leave the WifiDog login page alone and open a new web browser window.

*With you logged into your Hotmail account, click on "Options.
*Under the heading "Junk E-Mail" click on "Safe and blocked senders"
*Click on "Safe senders," enter the e-mail address validation@ioscoarenaclibrary.org, then click on *the "Add to list>>" button. The address should then appear in the list.

Go back to the login page, click on the link marked "Resend Validation E-Mail"
Wait a couple of minutes and the validation e-mail should show up in your account's inbox.

Status of Validation E-Mails

2008-04-28T09:22:00.003-04:00

The Reverse DNS entry for our authentication server was added and came online Saturday morning. To further ensure that our e-mails are not flagged as spam, we've been added to AOL's Whitelist (though messages are being accepted) and will be effective within a day.

This means users who sign for for a WifiDog account and use an AOL address will receive a validation e-mail and validate their account.

Hotmail users are still not going to get our validation e-mails. I'm going to contact their Postmaster and see if they can add us to their Whitelist too.

Update:

Hotmail users will now be able to receive our validation e-mails.

Validation E-mails - Reverse DNS Update

2008-04-25T15:07:00.003-04:00

Our Internet Service Provider is going to provide us with a DNS record that will be associated with the IP address of our authentication server. That means that when someone does a reverse DNS lookup of 198.109.89.170, it should bring back the domain name ioscoarenaclibrary.org. That should satisfy the various e-mail provider's automated spam checks and allow the validation e-mail through.

It should be up and running by the end of the weekend or as early as tomorrow morning.

After which, Hotmail and AOL providers should allow the message through without delay, and it shouldn't be flagged as spam.

Update, Hotmail Users

2008-04-23T14:39:00.002-04:00

Those with Hotmail addresses that sign up for our Public Wireless service will not receive our validation e-mails at this time.

However, given that there many people who use Hotmail as their e-mail provider, I have opened a ticket with Hotmail in an effort to resolve the issue.

In the meantime, it is recommended that either you sign up with a non-Hotmail address (mail.com, Yahoo, and Gmail all work) or you can have your account manually validated.

WifiDog Validation E-Mail Issue

2008-04-18T22:14:00.006-04:00

It has come to my attention that new users have not been receiving validation e-mails when they sign up on our Public Wifi System. I plan to repair this problem on Saturday, the 19th.

Update:

The auth software was successfully upgraded and e-mail validation is working correctly. However, there appears to be a bug with New Account Signup. The problem is that when a user signs up for a new account, an error message comes up stating "Access Denied" or some problem with the portal. Simply go back on your web browser, logout and log back in with your new account and continue the validation process.

Update 2:
Hotmail users will not be able to receive a validation e-mail. I confirmed that e-mails were successfully sent by our authentication server, but were not received by Hotmail.

At this time, the following e-mail providers are known to accept the validation e-mail: Yahoo, Charter, Peoplepc, Mail.com and Gmail. Other e-mail accounts (such as AOL) should accept the message, but may be falsely flagged as spam, so be sure to check your spam/junk folders. The message is sent immediately after clicking the Signup button and should be received by your e-mail provider and arrive in your inbox within a couple minutes or less.

April Software Updates

2008-04-11T11:28:00.003-04:00

This month's round of software updates is short and will be completed Friday night, April 11. It includes:

Flash Player
QuickTime
Java

Also, I'm adding Microsoft Works compatibility to Microsoft Office. This will allow full compatibility with documents created on Microsoft Works from versions 6-9; including documents created on Vista.

This summer, we will finally be upgrading all installations of Microsoft Office to 2007 Professional Plus. In addition, document conversion for OpenOffice.org will be added to Office 2007, but OpenOffice.org will be kept and maintained on all public and staff computers.

For ease of compatibility across platforms, Office 2007 will be configured to save documents in Office 2003 or earlier by default. Office 2007 compatibility is currently not available for OpenOffice.org for Windows. However, Ubuntu users can install a compatibility extension for OpenOffice.

Demonstrating Virtual Machine and the Viability of Linux

2008-03-26T13:18:00.003-04:00

Last week, I demonstrated the viability of running Windows XP Pro on top of a Linux Distribution. Here's the computer that was used.

It's a Dell Optiplex 745 with an Intel Core 2 Duo, 2GB of RAM, an ATI 256MB video card, 160GB SATA hard disk, DVD/CD burner, USB keyboard and optical mouse. The monitor it's hooked up to is my office Samsung 22" Widescreen LCD via DVI. In the picture, I also have an HHP IT3800 hand held scanner via a PS/2 to USB adapter, and a HP ScanJet 4300C flatbed scanner. On top of the CPU, you can barely see the iPod Nano and flash card reader. All the hardware you see in the picture worked with little configuration or requiring access to the command line.

Originally, I was going to do the demonstration on Kubuntu 7.10, but found that things had gotten a little too buggy for my taste (made worse when I ran a desktop eye-candy package called Compiz). On another computer, I had installed Fedora 8 to test out Bluetooth functionality (much better than Xubuntu or Kubuntu), and found it much easier to setup and use in regard to things like a firewall.

What you see on the screen is Fedora 8 running the Gnome 2 desktop environment, with Windows XP Pro SP2 running on Innotek Virtual Box. Please note to the Innotek people that I was using your software for evaluation purposes, and there are no plans to do a full-scale deployment at this time; when we do, we will be giving you a ring for the licenses.

That being said, the setup ended up being pressed into official use for a few hours when we had to get a copy of our yearly newsletter over to the publisher. The problem we had last year was that we create our publications on Microsoft Publisher on Windows XP while they only have Macs. Since the only format they could access was Adobe PDF, we had to export the publication as such. Unfortunately, though our bookkeeper has a PDF Mailer program that does the conversion, it never rendered pages from Publisher correctly--we had to print out the publication in color and have them copy from that. This degraded the print quality a bit.

This year, when I was polishing things for the demonstration (since it was a demonstration of what can be done and should have all features setup and working), I found that there's a free PDF exporter called Cups-PDF that allows you to export anything to PDF simply by printing. Since I also had a copy of Office 2007 installed in the virtual machine, we decided to put it to the test. Well, apart from some incompatibility problems between Office 2007's Publisher and the older version of Publisher, we did succeed in creating a correctly-rendered newsletter for the publisher. Later, I was able to refine the process further by sharing Cups-PDF to allow printing from inside the virtual machine itself--though it wasn't an elegant solution, it worked and was much faster.

Since then, since the hardware I was using is a Gates grant public access computer, it's been re-imaged with XP Pro and will be deployed to Standish this Friday. However, both the Director and Bookkeeper walked away impressed. While we may not switch to Linux, it is increasingly becoming a viable option over Windows Vista.

Another advantage over Windows is that I was able to copy the partitions from the Opiplex's hard disk to another drive, plug it into an older model Optiplex and boot it right up with a few minimal changes. Even with only 1GB of RAM, with half that dedicated to the XP virutal machine, the whole system still seemed responsive and very useable. In fact, I'm using that very system to type this blog; a Dell Optiplex GX280 with a Pentium 4 2.8Ghz CPU, 1GB of RAM, 80GB SATA, slim DVD/CD combo, Intel integrated graphics, 19" LCD and sound bar. Apart from a partitioning issue (due to the difference in hard disk sizes) and two configuration changes, it worked perfectly.

We're going to keep that particular system as-is to further evaluate the Linux/Windows Virtual Machine, since our next computer purchase may require us to get Vista.

Also, next week, I'm going to re-deploy an older public access computer as a secondary staff workstation using Fedora 8 or Ubuntu Hardy Heron Beta for one of our librarians. We're going the Linux route versus XP for this computer due to the fact that we have insufficient licenses for AVG and Office (that'll change later this year when we renew or purchase more licenses). Plus, the computer, a Dell Dimension 2400, runs slow (only 256MB RAM).

Virtualization, the Future of Computing

2008-03-06T10:38:00.003-05:00

Imagine a Technology Lab, and the first scheduled class of the day is a 2-hour block that covers using Microsoft Word in Microsoft Windows XP. Twenty minutes after the class ends, another 2-hour block is going to cover building and administering a web server. In the afternoon, there are at least three more class sessions that will teach Novel Netware (providing their own disk images and curriculum), Introduction to Linux via Ubuntu, and DVD authoring.

All of it runs on the same hardware, all on different operating systems, and all without rebooting or reloading anything. How is this possible? Virtual Machine software.

Here's another scenario. At one of our branch libraries, the staff computer hard disk has crashed. A new one is delivered, pre-imaged with a standard Linux distribution and configured on-site with the username, hostname and IP address. A single file is copied over from a USB flash drive or recovered from the defective hard disk. The system is booted up and the Librarian continues working using Dynix Horizon on Windows XP Pro. All e-mail and other settings were automatically retrieved from a network-attached storage device. The same device also shares duties with a content filtering and caching server and firewall running on a single headless black box inside a network cabinet.

Today, there are virtual machine solutions from Parallels, VMWare and Innotek (now owned by Sun Microsystems) that allow you to install and run as many operating systems on a single computer that you have memory, storage and processing power for. Instead of having to run a dual-boot system where you have to restart in order to switch from Windows to Ubuntu, you simply click and run the operating system, or resume from a certain "point." I use VirtualBox on my ThinkPad to run XP Pro; which has a few administration tools. I also use it to test disk iso images before burning them to disk or test new operating systems.

Another advantage a virtual machine is that moving your existing installation of Windows to a new or different model computer is as simple as copying the virtual disk file. Otherwise, either you'd have to do a clean or repair install and re-patch. Viruses and malware are less of a concern because even if they run, the underlying operating system is untouched--simply restore a backup copy of the disk. Does a patron prefer Windows XP, Vista or would like to try something new with Ubuntu? Simply choose what you want.

The only major disadvantage to using a virtual machine is that 3D graphics acceleration using the "real" hardware is not implemented yet. Parallels and VMWare do support 3D graphics, but only on Intel Macintosh computers running OSX. However, in two years, it may become common-place on generic hardware.

Another potential problem is that some "real" hardware may not be seen in a Virtual Machine; though I've used USB flash drives, DVDs, and even a serial port with no issues.

PACs Deployed and Software Updates

2008-02-06T08:54:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, two of the remaining three Gates' Public Access Computers were deployed to AuGres and Whittemore libraries.

Starting this week, I will be scheduling after-hours software updates and will start them the same week.

The following software is being updated for security purposes:
Adobe Flash Player
Adobe Acrobat Reader
Firefox
OpenOffice
QuickTime
RealPlayer

The following will be added for additional functionality:
Microsoft eBook Reader

Please note that the eBook Reader application will not be activated on a computer--meaning that a patron won't be able to buy books through the reader. However, you will be able to download eBooks and read them. As for printing or transferring an eBook to another storage device, it is recommended that you have a USB flash drive at least 256MB in size or more. Printing is permitted, but bear in mind the number of pages and the printing costs--use the Print Preview function first.

PAC Deployment Canceled

2008-02-01T08:10:00.000-05:00

Due to weather conditions--we're expecting 4-6 inches of snow today--I won't be able to deploy the PACs as scheduled.

PAC Deployment Update

2008-01-31T13:11:00.000-05:00

Two more of the Gates-granted Public Access Computers will be deployed tomorrow morning to AuGres and Whittemore. As for Standish Library, I don't have a date for its deployment due to one stumbling block: space.

Anyone who has been to Mary Johnston Memorial Library in Standish will realize that space for anything is at a premium. When you add in the requirements that it has to be in plain view of the staff (the equipment, not the screen), and be hooked into power and network, and the fact that we can't rearrange the shelving or run new electrical outlets, you begin to understand our problem. Once we solve this problem, I'll deploy the computer.

Starting next week, I'm going to schedule the software updates for all our equipment. As with the last update, it will take place via remote and after business hours.

New Printer at Robert J. Parks Library

2008-01-25T16:01:00.000-05:00

After yet another problem with print quality with the printer at our Oscoda branch, which was eating up expensive supplies, the Director and I decided it would be best to replace the printer rather than repair it. A new Ricoh CL3500N was ordered earlier in the week, was delivered to our office today and was installed at the library an hour later.

In light of the really heavy use this printer will receive, and the issues we had with its predecessor, I opted to purchase a 3-year warranty plan in addition to the 1-year warranty--which totals four years. This will cover any repair or parts replacement, plus full product replacement if the printer turns out to be a dud.

Also, and this is a reminder to anyone who uses our printers. Our printers use heat to bond toner to printed media. Therefore the following types of media CAN NOT BE USED OR DAMAGE WILL RESULT:

According to the Ricoh Manual:

❒ Do not use ink-jet printer paper because it may stick to the fusing unit and
cause a paper misfeed.
❒ Set the paper as described below
• Tray 1, Paper Feed Unit (Tray 2, Tray 3): Print side facing up
• Bypass Tray: Print side facing down
❒ Print quality cannot be guaranteed if paper other than the ones recommended
is used. For more information about recommended paper, contact your sales
or service representative.
❒ Do not use paper that has already been printed onto by other printers.

In addition, the following is not supported, and DAMAGE MAY RESULT:
Paper not supported by this printer
Avoid using the following paper as they are not supported by this printer.
• Paper meant for an ink-jet printer
• Bent, folded, or creased paper
• Curled or twisted paper
• Torn paper
• Wrinkled paper
• Damp paper
• Paper that is dry enough to emit static electricity
• Paper that has already been printed onto, except a preprinted letterhead.
Malfunctions are especially likely when using paper printed on by other than
a laser printer (e.g. monochrome and color copiers, ink-jet printers, etc.)
• Special paper, such as thermal paper, aluminum foil, carbon paper and conductive
paper
• Paper whose weight is heavier or lighter than the limitation
• Paper with windows, holes, perforations, cutouts, or embossing
• Adhesive label paper on which glue or base paper is exposed
• Paper with clips or staples
• Do not use the following envelopes:
• Envelopes with multiple flaps
• Envelopes with a peel-off adhesive strip
• Envelopes with windows or clasps

Currently, we only allow plain white paper to be used, but we may be able to accommodate special requests, please speak to your librarian.

There will also be a sign posted next to the printer to remind our patrons.

New Year, New Public Access Computers

2008-01-15T15:01:00.000-05:00

Now in 2008, I am happy to announce that we will be adding a total of five additional computers to our library district. Robert J. Parks will receive... um... where's my notebook? There it is, under a stack of papers and anti-static wrappers.

AuGres will receive two, one of which is provided by the Grant, the other a redeployed computer. Their total number of public access computers will increase from five to six.

Robert J. Parks Library will receive two; one of which is provided by the Gates grant, the other one we purchased on our own. That brings their total PACs from six to eight (seven with Internet access, one that's Children's only).

Whittemore already has four PCs, one of which is the new PC we purchased on our own. But, since they also are supposed to receive a Gates Grant PC, we'll be redploying their oldest, an Optiplex GX280, to AuGres, which will give them four up-to-date PACs.

Finally, Mary Johnston Memorial Library will receive a new Gates computer, bringing their total number of PACs from three to four. Though, I'm not sure where we'll find space for it.

The computers are all Dell Optiplex 745 PCs with Intel dual-core processors, 2GB of RAM, 256MB 3D cards, 160GB hard disk drives, 17" LCD monitors, wired optical mice and keyboards. The two differences between the Gates and our own out-of-pocket versions are the Gates have DVD burners and in a full tower case while ours have DVD/CDRW combo drives and comes in a small form factor case. Otherwise, the software and configuration will be identical (in fact, the Ghost image on our 745 works perfectly on the Gates 745).

Naturally, they will also come with cable locks to protect the chassis from tampering and Sennheiser HD201 headphones with inline volume controls.

Expect deployment to take place in the next two weeks.

Meanwhile, I am almost done deploying all our new APC UPS units, with four branches remaining. The router at our district headquarters is finally equipped with its own UPS, so momentary power-failures will not interrupt Public Internet and Wifi access for our patrons.

The units we upgraded too are APC RS series 500VA for router-only duty and RS series 800VA for our staff. The units themselves are so much easier to work with, either neatly fitting next to the computer or on top of it. Setup was a breeze, with swapping taking mere minutes. Our old units will be packed up and shipped back to APC.

PAC Updates for December 2007

2007-12-11T11:07:00.000-05:00

This month, maintenance will be limited to the Public Access Computers, and will fix the following glitches and allow the following:

1. InfraRecord will be reconfigured to use a temporary folder that has write permissions so that CD burning will work.

2. OpenOffice.org will be reconfigured to work with the latest version of Java; without which the Template Wizard will not work.

3. All software policies that restricted executables from running on the desktop or removable drives will be removed. This will allow software like SharePod to run. However, this will not allow patrons to install software.

Oscoda was completed last night, and the other seven branches will follow this week. Regular operations will not be disrupted. The schedule is as follows:

AuGres Community Library - Wednesday, 5 P.M.
East Tawas Library - Wednesday, 5 P.M.
Mary Johnston Memorial Library - Friday, 3 P.M.
Omer Library - Wednesday, 6 P.M.
Plainfield Library - Tuesday, 5:30 P.M.
Robert J. Parks Library - Monday, 5 P.M. - completed with exception of Chldren's PC
Tawas City Library - Thursday, 1 P.M.
Whittemore Library - Friday, 10 A.M.

Updates will be conducted via VNC with the exception of Whittemore Library, which will be conducted on-site due to delivery of new equipment.

MP3 Music Players, Purchased Music and PACs

2007-12-07T15:41:00.000-05:00

Over the past year, I have gotten some inquiries about people who want to load music on a new music player that they bought using one of our Public Access Computers. My answer had always been no because:

1. We didn't want to support iTunes--which isn't meant for public use anyway (in regard to the iTunes store)--nor provide software support on our PACs for every major music player manufacturer.

2. There were legal concerns about music downloads, what services can be used, etc.

3. I wasn't sure if you could plug a music player into a PAC and transfer anything to it without requiring additional software.

So, to answer this question and to satisfy my own curiousity, I purchased three portable MP3 players from three different manufacturers out-of-pocket. They are:

1. A reconditioned Apple iPod Nano 2nd Gen, 2GB silver from newegg.com
2. RCA OPal 8GB from Wal-Mart
3. Creative Zen Stone 1GB also from Wal-Mart

Each of these players have USB 2.0 connectivity, and I found that each one can be mounted and used as a regular USB flash drive. Music can be transferred to and from the latter two players without any additional software needed. The iPod Nano did require iTunes to initialize it, but you only need to perform this step once. For future transfers, you can use a piece of freeware software called SharePod, which can stay on your iPod, is small, lightweight, and can be run on any Windows Computer with .NET 2.0 framework (which all our computers have).

As for legal music services, the iTunes online store was out because the only way to purchase music is through the iTunes software; plus you have to authorize a computer and sign in. On a computer used by a single user or a family, this isn't a problem. On a publicly accessible computer where you have multiple visitors a day, it can be a major problem.

So, I came up with three alternative music services which are all legal, do not require any additional software to run, and have no DRM. They are Amazon.com MP3, Magnatune, and eMusic. So far, I've bought music from the first two services, downloaded and transferred music to each player without any problems.

What a user needs to watch out for is on Amazon.com, you must sign off when you're done and be sure to clear out the files you downloaded after transferring them to the music player. Otherwise, other people could use another user's account to buy music.

So, part of this working is going to require trust and responsibility from our Patrons. As for concerns about files remaining on the computer, this isn't an issue. After the computers shut themselves down or reboot, any activity or saved data is wiped. So, after purchasing music online, it is recommended that a computer be restarted to wipe the data.

As for what music player I'd recommend, I could sum it up with this rule of thumb:

1. If you want a music player that's well-made, has an intuitive user interface, and you don't mind paying a premium for it, Apple's iPod is an excellent unit.

2. If you want a music player that is simple and just works for a lot less, look elsewhere. The Creative Zen Stone is a barebones simple media player that has decent sound quality and just plain works. The same goes for the RCA OPal, which has a color display and four times the storage capacity of the iPod for far less money; though the user interface isn't as good as the iPod's.

I paid $101.98 shipped for my Nano, while the other two I bought locally cost me $40 (for the Zen) and $70 (for the OPal) respectively. Another good media player to look at are the Sandisk Sansa units, which offer a MiniSD slot for more storage. There are also units from iRiver, Archos, and others that are worth a look.

Another possibility is to use a PocketPC, Palm or Nokia PDA, which supports not only music and video, but other software functions. I use a Nokia N800 for my music, videos, web browsing, remote administration, e-mail on the go, GPS navigation, and most recently OBDII diagnostics. Of course, everyone is going to have different requirements.

As for upgrades, regardless of what price point you choose, I strongly recommend buying a new pair of good-sounding headphones. The ear-buds that are included with most media players won't do their sound quality justice; lack of bass and highs and they can easily fall out of your ear. The exception are the ones included with the RCA, which include silicone plugs and sound pretty good. Personally, I use a pair of Sennheiser PX100 headphones that sound great, fold to a compact size, and are relatively inexpensive at $35-40.

As for legality, I'm going to make myself as clear as I can on this: we will allow people to come in, purchase music from an online store with their own money, and transfer it to their music player on their own initiative. We will not allow people to use our equipment to illegally share music (by making multiple copies of music, or our own items) or use P2P networks (which we do not provide software or support for); if we catch you, we will ask you to stop and leave the library.

For the RIAA and law enforcement, I want you to know that we are acting in good faith, and do our best to obey local, state and Federal law; if the law changes, we'll change with it. If we find that there's a problem, we'll solve it. Our intention is to provide our patrons with as many services as we can, not invite them to break the law.

Time and Print Management and General News

2007-11-28T12:36:00.000-05:00

One of our goals in our Technology Plan is to automate the PAC sign-up process, streamlining and better enforcing time limits of public access computers and collect revenue on print jobs. We were original set on getting SAM - Smart Access Manager - from Comprise.

Unfortunately, we can not use that product because it won't work with our circulation system, so we had to look elsewhere. Another product that's under serious consideration is PC Cop, which is comparable to SAM for features and ease-of-use. I was able to actually try the system out as a Patron on-site at the New Albany-Floyd County Public Library in New Albany, Indiana last Saturday. It was effortless to get on a computer and deposit money for print jobs. The hardware and software seem solid and stable.

However, we are still very leery about adding such a system for two very important reasons: cost and staff time. These systems cost thousands of dollars just for the software alone, and the price goes up from there with options like LED signs for waiting lists, computers for the print management stations, and vending units for accepting cash. Though the patron experience was effortless, there's still the question of the staff side of it; I only spoke to two staff at the library, and they generally liked it and got along with it; but I'm still not 100% sure. Remember that this is not only an involving undertaking, but an expensive one, so choosing a good product is a very important consideration since we'll have to live with said product for several years.

We received two new PACs that will be deployed to AuGres and Whittemore in December or January at the very latest. Also, the Director has just signed the contract for four additional PACs--via a Grant--that will be deployed to four other libraries in the District. These four will supplement existing PACs or replace older PACs.

Also, during December, we will be replacing all our Uninterruptible Power Supplies with new ones through APC's Trade-In Program; which will allow us to ship our old units back in to APC. East Tawas's router, which also serves Administrative Headquarters, will have its own UPS, ensuring that any power failures or brownouts will have less impact on Content Filtering and Public Wifi for the District.

The new units are APC RS 500VA (for the routers) and RS 800VA black (staff or combined main circulation and routers) that have an AVR circuit that will minimize battery use and be able to generate an even cleaner source of electricity for our equipment.

Please note that our printers, PACs and item catalog computers do not use UPS units. The purpose of using an Uninterruptible Power Supply is to prevent data loss from a power failure, and allow staff to gracefully save their work and shutdown.

Another project, which I hope to take into the prototype stage next month or at the beginning of next year, is the VPN/firewall appliances. The purpose of such appliances is to provide secure data linkups between our branch libraries and headquarters, ensuring secure access and better security for our equipment.

The branch units will be based around VIA's mini-ITX form factor and use the C7 processor and flash-based storage, while the headquarters unit will have a more powerful processor and RAM to handle the incoming connections from the branches. The operating system will be Lintrack 2.0, a Linux distribution meant for ISP use. We are looking at a target cost per branch unit of $500, and headquarters of under $1000.

The testing will use the C7-based unit installed at one of the branches, and a modified Pentium 4 PC at headquarters. We hope to use these units to tunnel through traffic for WOL, Samba, DeepFreeze, and printing; allowing more secure system administration.

24-Hour Wifi at Robert J. Parks Library and General News

2007-11-20T11:00:00.000-05:00

As of today, we have set the wireless hotspot at Robert J. Parks Library to stay on 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for public wifi access. The city of Oscoda is aware of and has approved this change and understands the issues involved.

Software maintenance will be completed this evening with Omer Library. All public and staff computers now have compatibility with Office 2007 file formats, as well as current versions of productivity and Internet applications. Notable additions include Gzip for handling other file compression formats, OpenOffice 2.3 with OpenClip art and templates, updated Google Earth and Stellarium 0.9.0.

In the coming weeks, AuGres and Whittemore will each have one additional public access computer; both current model Dell Optiplex series systems. This will also mark the first transition to a minimum of 2GB of RAM and discrete graphics (ATI with 256MB of video RAM). We still do not plan to transition to Vista, but we want to leave the option open if there's some "must-have application" that only runs on Vista or a application that requires a lot of memory or graphics to run. We will continue to use XP Pro well into the future.

Maintenance via VNC After Hours

2007-11-08T12:14:00.000-05:00

Yesterday marked a change in how software maintenance will be handled from now on. During software maintenance periods, I would've traveled on-site to every branch during business hours and manually installed software updates (for Office, Quicktime and other applications). This caused a disruption for our patrons and I've felt that it was unacceptable (plus put pressure on me to rush and potentially make mistakes).

Using DeepFreeze Administrator, VNC and eventually WOL, all future updates will be accomplished remotely. However, due to the size of the latest round of software updates (totaling 500MB), site visits will be made to copy over data; but this process takes mere minutes per computer (less than five). This is due to the time it would take to upload data over a T1, which could take several hours. Updates totaling less than 100MB will be handled without a site visit.

Also, this method will further save travel time and fuel costs, and will encourage faster delivery of critical updates. The next step will be an enterprise management tool that will automate this process for all staff and public access computers.

Oscoda Printer Fixed

2007-10-30T08:53:00.000-04:00

The new part arrived on Friday, and was installed yesterday, Monday the 29th.