| In this issue: Lines and Colors • January 28, 2011 By the time you read this . . . you'll know who won the Renoir. This year's Super Bowl cities are following a new tradition of using the sports event to raise the visibility of their collections and maybe get lucky while they're at it. You might also take a look at We Have a Super Bowl Bet! Ya gotta love it when museum directors talk smack and put precious paintings on the line (well, actually "on loan"), based on the outcome of a game played by the local pro sports team. When Rashard Mendenhall of the Steelers fumbled near the Packer 30-yard-line late in the 4th quarter of this year's Super Bowl, you could almost hear dozens (if not hundreds) of Pittsburgh art lovers slapping their foreheads and crying, "Darn it to heck! There goes the Caillebotte!" ( Massie) Hub Magazine • January/February 2011 It's all about the journey. The importance of a seamless integration between online and offline consumer experiences is key as the next generation of maturing "digital natives" raises expectations. The key is tearing down the silos between IT and everyone else. Check out ways some top brands are synching their bricks-and-mortar environment with their organization's Web and mobile experience. I'm probably not the consumer I could be, as the Ralph Lauren shopping experience described here struck me as both unusual and unwelcome. However, even I recognize that the online presence and physical collection for some libraries today may represent a house divided. The sales steps of "awareness, research, purchase, and usage" are given varying levels of attention depending on where you are. Recommendations differ between discovery systems and those encountered in-house, physical locations may support events that aren't accessible on the Web, and so on. The importance of "seamless access to resources" is one of the findings highlighted in the The Digital Information Seeker, a recent report produced for JISC by Lynn Connaway and Timothy Dickey of OCLC Research. ( Washburn) Strategy+Business • January 18, 2011 Culture wars. Rigid or counter-productive corporate cultures can form a barrier to innovation and change, but two consultants from Booz & Company say tackling a negative work environment head-on can be a wasted effort: "Don't blame your culture; use it purposefully . . . Figure out which of the old constructive behaviors embedded in your culture can be applied to accelerate the changes that you want." Take a look at ways to leverage cultural constraints to achieve your goals. The article focuses on specific behaviors that solve real problems and deliver real results. "Cultures can be diagnosed best by the work behaviors they promote." Focus on the few critical behaviors that matter most. Several of the positive elements cited are core to our profession: Do people collaborate easily? Are they open with their information? I would say yes! ( Smith-Yoshimura) The Guardian • January 27, 2011 Info junkies, rejoice! Check out The Guardian's comprehensive compilation of data collected over the past two years for its datablog. This is an eclectic mix of fascinating facts and figures—go ahead and block out an hour or two for browsing . . . This is not only fascinating, but should be a model for those of us in the business of collecting and interpreting data. For more, check out the Guardian Datastore Group Pool on Flickr for visualizations based on the data. ( Proffitt) Thought Catalog • January 12, 2011 Cyber-psychosis. Okay, these are not really emotions "invented" by the Internet, but they are behaviors to avoid, especially the one about "being 'installed' at a computer or laptop for an extended period of time without purpose . . . " This is a fun post that may spur thoughts on how the Internet has changed your own behavior, or spawned new sources of frustration or joy. Don't feel obligated to read the whole thing, if you just read the bits in bold you will have likely extracted the meat. That's another behavior that the Internet has exacerbated even if it didn't invent it—skimming." ( Tennant) Above the Fold Quiz: According to an item in this week's News and Views section, what are some examples of entities supporting shared library services and infrastructure? Click here to find the answer. | 
