Online Learning with Lynda.com

Do you want to keep up to date on the software you use?  The Ridgefield Library’s newest online resource lynda.com is for you.  This powerful learning tool offers over 3,400 video courses for professional and personal development.

These instructional videos, taught by experts in their fields, can be accessed anywhere an Internet connection is available.  Topics offered include business and management skills, software training, design and web development, 3D and animation, and computer programming.   You’ll also find a wealth of instruction on photography and multimedia editing. Videos are searchable by topic and can be viewed in short segments. 

Seeking a job or professional advancement?   Lynda.com is a powerful tool for information on job search strategies, designing a resume, preparing for an interview, and managing your career.  Once you’ve finished a course, upload a Certificate of Completion to your LinkedIn profile.

All you need to get started is a Ridgefield Library card.  We will be offering training sessions on using lynda.com on June 17th, June 18th, and June 19th in the Library’s Donofrio Family Technology Center.   To register for one of these sessions or to start learning, visit our website at www.ridgefieldlibrary.org.  

Contributed by Dorothy Pawlowski, Head of Adult Services

June Is for Audiobooks

June is a perfect time to celebrate National Audiobook Month, as family vacations get underway and folks spend more time in outdoor pursuits like gardening.  At the Ridgefield Library, we offer an extensive collection of listening material on CD, mp3 and Playaway and in several digital formats. Options include fiction and non-fiction for adults, favorite children’s and teen titles, recommendations for family listening, language learning material and even lecture courses by celebrated college professors.

Audiobooks are a great boon for commuters who want to put their travel time to good use catching up with the latest bestseller.  They can also be of great benefit to beginning or reluctant readers who need a helping hand.  Playaways in particular, with their self-contained player and simple one-button operation, are popular with those whose vision or dexterity may be less than 100%.

Some listeners seek out audiobooks read by particular narrators. Some readers are such a perfect fit with the material they present that they add immense pleasure to the listening experience.

Look for audiobooks in physical formats in the adult, children’s and teen areas. For a quick start to using digital audiobooks, just click on the square blue “Download Audiobooks” icon on our homepage at www.ridgefieldlibrary.org.  

Print's Not Dead!

Library Board and staff had the pleasure of hearing a presentation recently by Len Vlahos, outgoing executive director of the Book Industry Study Group (BISG), the leading book trade association for standardized best practices, research and information, and education and events. Looking at trends in the publishing industry over the past few years (study data covered the years 2008-2013), Len shared some interesting insights, a few of which are included below.

• 77% of trade sales continue to be in physical format, with only 23% being digital content (e-books).
• E-books did experience rapid expansion both in units sold and in revenue from 2009-2012, during the period when many people acquired and started using smartphones and tablets such as iPads for the first time.  But this trend has declined as the novelty of these devices has worn off.  At the same time, hard and soft cover book sales remained stable.
• Two titles accounted practically all by themselves for an increase in trade book sales in 2012 of almost 8% - what Len referred to as the “Fifty Shades of Hunger Games” phenomenon.

In fact, Len is so bullish on the future of print publishing that he is moving to Colorado to take over ownership of the famed Tattered Cover independent bookstores!

Not So Lazy Days of Summer @ the Library

School may be winding down, but things are just heating up for the summer at the Library. Get out your smartphone or old-fashioned paper datebook and mark down the following dates.

• Memorial Day Weekend:  The Library will be closed on Sunday the 24^th and Monday the 25^th but will be open our regular hours 9 AM – 5 PM on Saturday the 23^rd.  Look for us in the town parade on Monday morning!
• Summer Hours Begin: Starting on June 21^st, we will be closed on Sundays through Labor Day.
• Summer Reading Starts: School is out on June 18^th, and Summer Reading at the Library gets off to a roaring start the very next day!  The theme this year is “Every Hero Has a Story,” and we have special programs for preschoolers, elementary age students, teens and adults.
• Comic Con 2015:  The Library is proud to announce that it will be holding its first ever Comic Convention on Saturday, July 25^th.  This will be a full day of events and activities celebrating popular culture, in particular comics, graphic novels, films, games, science fiction and more.  You won’t want to miss it!  Much more information will be coming soon.

Ridgefield Library for: Questions and Answers

Close observers may have noticed that the Library has gone trivia crazy in the past few months. We have done Downton Abbey trivia, wild game trivia, literary trivia and Academy Award trivia.  We have challenged teams of young people at our popular Teen Trivia afternoons and older contestants at the Library’s celebrity bartender night at Gallo Ristorante. For the Run Like a Mother 5K Race, we offered questions for both kids and their parents on the topics of famous mothers, running and other sports, and health.  What is behind this obsession with trivia at the Library?

We think it is a natural fit.  After all, questions and answers are the stock in trade of reference librarians. As a matter of fact, many of the questions we have incorporated into our quizzes come straight from the inquiries made by patrons at the Library’s service desks (for example, triskaidekaphobia is the answer to a frequent question on certain Fridays).

Look for history and children’s book trivia at the Keeler Tavern Museum Family Day on June 13th and 1970s and superhero trivia at Summerfest in July.  And you can challenge our librarians any time by dropping in to the Library with your questions!

Get Magazines on the Go

Looking for the latest issue of a magazine? Zinio is an online resource offering beautiful full color, interactive digital magazines accessible from computers and from a wide range of smartphones and tablets.   Ridgefield Library cardholders can now download current and back issues of 48 magazines including National Geographic, Newsweek, The New Yorker and a range of specialty magazines such as Cooks Illustrated, Eating Well, ARTnews and The Family Handyman.   Some titles offer enhanced elements such as audio and video that bring content to life.     

These magazines are available from anywhere with an Internet connection and, once downloaded, can be read offline.   The Zinio interface has just been updated, streamlining the process for checkout and reading on a computer, and the new Zinio for Libraries app has been redesigned to improve ease of access to magazines on most mobile devices.   Select as many current and back issues as you like and retain them for as long as you like.

Drop by the Donofrio Technology Center on Thursday, May 7th between 1 and 3 PM or on Wednesday, May 20^th between 4 and 6 PM for a demo and one-on-one help in getting started with Zinio or visit our website for more information. 

Contributed by Head of Adult Services Dorothy Pawlowski

Library Open Late for AP Prep

The AP (Advanced Placement) exams are coming up and the Ridgefield Library wants high school students to know: we are here for you. The Library has many AP exam study guides put out by Barron’s and the Princeton Review. If you’d prefer to prepare electronically, our website offers access to Learning Express’s College Preparation Center where you take nine different practice AP exams and look at some flash review eBooks. As the exam dates get closer, and students want to hunker down with their study groups, the Library is happy to announce that it will be staying open late on four different evenings during the two weeks of AP exams. On May 5, 7, 11, and 13, Ridgefield Library will stay open from 8:00 PM to 11:00 PM exclusively for RHS students who are studying for their exams. There will be several librarians available for any reference questions that crop up, and study groups will be welcome to occupy any and all spaces on the upper level of the building. Students who wish to take advantage of these extended study hours will need to be in the building by 8:00 PM those nights, as the Library will not be open for regular business and the doors will be locked.

Contributed by Teen Services Librarian Geri Diorio