System Spotlight
By Staff
Future Dates & Training Opportunities (All Times in CST)
Click the arrow next to each week to open the list of available training opportunities.
Week of December 23rd – 27th
24th – 26th – SWKLS Office Closed for the Winter Holiday
If you still have CE to complete before the year’s end, please check our wiki for recorded opportunities. Thank you! Enjoy the holidays!
Consulting
By Sara Wilson
Image provided by pixabay.com contributor Jenny_Nguyen
I want to take this time to thank each one of you for the time you take to work within your communities and make them a better place. You as the director do many duties that the general public don’t see, but know that I appreciate all that you do. To your staff and board, I thank them for the hours they spend at the library. To the staff that are meeting the public everyday and providing the programming for your communities, thank you for all your hard work.
Thank you to the System Board members. You are the guiding force for the System that I have the pleasure of navigating for the members. To the staff here at the System Office: Tandy; Sara; Miguel; Steve; Bernardo; and Chris…thank you for all you do for the System and our members. You have all been hard working and been willing to make adjustments when I ask you to.
I appreciate how everyone allows me to be serious, when need be, but also have fun when we get together. I always love seeing each of your smiling faces at our meetings and/or workshops and how you network with each other at these events.
I hope your holidays and New Year is filled with Joy – Richard
Some Holiday Cheer for You!
Cataloging, Collection Development, and ILL
By Miguel Coca
Collection Development Inspiration
Adult Fiction
Children’s & YA Fiction
From the SWKLS Pro Collection
You know the value of your library, but elected officials, donors, community leaders, funders, and other important stakeholders may not. How can you make the library a priority for these groups, who may have preconceived notions about what the library does, as you compete with other important community organizations for funding? In this book from United for Libraries, you’ll learn how to use The E’s of Libraries® (Education, Employment, Entrepreneurship, Empowerment, and Engagement) to quickly demonstrate why your library is essential and worthy of funding, using messaging that is organized, persuasive, and memorable. With the help of worksheets, charts, and prompts, you will learn how to
- use language designed to win over stakeholders, funders, and partners;
- craft custom messaging in several formats that is easily accessible and memorable, including elevator speeches, budget presentations, and annual appeals; and
- create presentations and other materials tailored to any audience based on the sample documents included.
This book’s innovative framework can be used by any size or type of library, and by any library advocate, including Friends groups, library staff, trustees, and foundations.
From the SWKLS S.T.E.A.M Collection
The 4M Doodling Robot uses vibration and spin generated by its motor to create works of art. Adjust the angle and height of the robot’s colored pens and watch it work.
No special tools or knowledge are required; the kit contains detailed instructions and all the necessary parts.
Ideal for young science enthusiasts, especially those with an interest in robotics.
Technology
by Christopher Dressler
This week in Cybersecurity!
Hackers are trying to gain access to your account for financial gain. This article explains how hackers working for a foreign government gained access to text messages of AT&T and Verizon customer and how you can protect yourself in the future.
China Telecom Hack: How to Protect Your Messages – National Cybersecurity Alliance
SMS or Short Message Service or “text messages” from your cellphone service provider are sent in clear text (unencrypted) allow you to send short messages (less than 160 characters) at a cheaper rate. These SMS messages were the target of the hack. Longer messages are sent using a different service called MMS or Multimedia Messaging Service that your cellphone carrier usually charges more when sent. MMS messages can also support the delivery of photos and small files. One more thing to mention is that messages between iPhone and Android are also sent in clear text.
Encryption is a process of scrambling up the message so that it is not readable by another person without deciphering using an encryption key. Your phone and the receiver’s phone are the only devices that have that encryption key at the time you send a message. This means that if you send a message, any hacker that would capture the message between your phone and the receiver’s phone will not be able to read that message. There are a few apps that have encryption by default like Signal and WhatsApp. iPhone and Google Messages are encrypted when sending to someone on the same platform.
As stated in my Other Cybersecurity presentation, keep your software updated on your devices and avoid sending sensitive information to anyone in an email or text message and use 2FA to keep hackers out of your accounts.
If you are on a website that does not have “Https://” the information you send using it will be in the clear. This includes any passwords you use on the website.
If you have any other questions, please contact the IT guys at the SWKLS office.