This is amazing! I love how they say “we are so much more than a public library” while actively showing a patron sipping coffee while sitting in a comfy chair–it just exudes coziness. I love it. This commercial makes me appreciate libraries even more!

Wow! I just submitted my Innovation Strategy & Roadmap into this Audio AI and it created a perfect 5 minute podcast summarzing the project. My mind is blown. Will share along with my finished roadmap when finished.

I just pasted my last blog post and listened to the podcast created, and it just blew my mind. Here is a link to it: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1WQ5cbjLAHqrQNWIE4i8uagM7tHT7rIpw/view

@michael This is so COOL! Mine ended up being like 12 minutes long, but this technology is INCREDIBLE!
https://notebooklm.google.com/notebook/2049ad73-81f6-47db-b981-4aa6cc1e3229?original_referer=https:%2F%2F287.hyperlib.sjsu.edu%23&pli=1
I had to click on the Notebook guide then load to listen to the podcast. Thanks for the info!

This is so cool! I can’t wait to try it out.

@michael I tried this for the roadmap assignment. Very cool! https://notebooklm.google.com/notebook/51c6ee63-66f5-4ff7-ad83-4d386d2055a3/audio

Adobe Stock and Pixabay are good places to download duty-free images for a project as well.

I use Pixabay.com!

Pexels is my go-to, but I’ve also used Unsplash.

unsplash.com is one of my favs. It has beautiful photographs that, honestly, I can’t believe are free to use.

I love this so much! When my kids were little our public library used to host a sleepover for kids who pledged, and succeeded, to go screen-free for a week. We have such precious memories of making blanket forts in the stacks and reading late into the night surrounded by our neighbors and community!

@michael I LOVE that library you shared about in Copenhagen with the climbable shelving! I worked as a media assistant at a public elementary school library for several years which has an amphitheater that begs to be climbed on and you bet that I let the kiddos get comfy on those oversized steps to read and get cozy and socialize. It made them so happy.

@michael I did not get a comment from you.

@michael I absolutely love this idea – it is so creative and cool! As an extension, the library could also host board game nights and have people bring their homemade board games. So fun!

@bklint I really enjoyed your video. Thank you for all of your sharing. The real life situations you described along with your responses through the lens of our course were spot on. I so agree with your points – especially about mental health, etc.

@bklint Excellent video! Having the library host a sign-up for a walk that raises awareness and funds for suicide prevention sounds to me like the epitome of wholehearted librarianship / whole-person perspective. I’m sorry your efforts were shut down. It sounds like an initiative with great potential for community building.

Also, I’m becoming more and more convinced that public and academic libraries need to have cafes attached to them for the reasons you lay out: people need a place to drink coffee and tea, to sit comfortably, socialize, and decompress — the third place!

@bklint I really enjoyed your video and your ideas on connecting students to one another, and not just academic resources. Mentioning coffee shops – the academic library I currently intern at has had a coffee shop for a few years now and it actually makes a huge difference. The coffee shop is right next to a really big comfy sitting area where talking is allowed, and there are also computers, printers, and scanners for schoolwork as well. Many of the students that come to the coffee shop aren’t necessarily coming for the library, but end up staying, socializing, and using the library services because they are already there and get comfy. I honestly believe that every academic library should incorporate coffee shops.

@bklint That last paragraph resonates! I like your approach…and the idea of a torch into the night!