News

Well right now it is -- number 7 in Google Search results for 'search APIs' sharing company with some pretty famous search APIs. I wouldn't classify this as 'huge news' but fun to note. Report in with your new WorldCat API consuming applications -- keep us up to date! Don

If you're an information professional in Monterey, CA this week, chances are you're at Internet Librarian. And one of the great mobile-related sessions you won't want to miss this year is being hosted tomorrow by Cindy Cunningham, the Director of OCLC Partner Programs and includes a number of mobile developers. Here's the scoop: Tuesday, 27 October 1:30-2:30 pm C203 Putting Your library on a Mobile phone

• Moderator: Cindy Cunningham, Director of OCLC Partner Programs
• Greg Carpenter, CEO & Technical Lead, Boopsie, and WorldCat Mobile Pilot partner
• Bruce Washburn, OCLC Research Engineer and iPhone WorldCat Search API Web App Creator
• Jeff Sharkey, Google Android Developer, Compare Everywhere App

This demo and lively panel discussion highlights what OCLC has learned so far in reaching library users through their mobile phones. Hear from three different developers about how they approached working with WorldCat library data in the mobile format, and how each one designed the optimal user experience­it's so much more than screen size. Learn more about how to approach "going mobile" with your library, what factors to consider from the library side, and see what's possible technically.

If you're lucky enough to be in Salt Lake City today, chances are you're at the LITA National Forum 2009. I wanted to highlight a couple of sessions that might be of interest to you, as a member of the OCLC Developer Network. Our own Bruce Washburn and CIndy Cunningham will be there, along with a host of other good speakers: Session Today Friday, Oct. 2, 4:20-5:30 pm, Alpine West, Hilton Salt Lake City Center Putting your Library on a Mobile Phone--It's More than Screen Size Cindy Cunningham (OCLC) Offering library-based information in a mobile environment is not about exporting your OPAC onto a mobile phone, and there is much more to the user experience than screen real estate. Learn about what mobile library access is really about and how to create an optimal user experience. (Note that Cindy will also be showing the WorldCat Mobile pilot, which is powered by the WorldCat Search API and the WorldCat Registry. Session Tomorrow Saturday, Oct. 3, 10:50 a.m. - noon, Alpine West, Hilton Salt Lake City Center Real Life Experiences with Library APIs Bruce Washburn (OCLC), Karen A. Coombs (University of Houston) Have you wondered just what an API is, and what it would mean to use one? Are you thinking of investing effort into building new systems that rely on APIs, or enhancing an existing service with API-provided data? Bruce Washburn will describe the APIs offered by OCLC, and how these are built to support production-level services, global availability, new markets, and web scale activity. Then, Karen Coombs of the University of Houston will discuss the evolution of the Library's use of APIs offered by OCLC in combination with other APIs and the role these currently play in extending information access for the UH community. Slides for both presentations are out on the LITA site on ALAConnect. Look forward to seeing you there!

Next week is the 2009 Access Conference, hosted by the University of Prince Edward Island in Charlottetown, PEI.