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Where will you be on Tuesday, March 26th? If you're interested in learning more about providing technology, storytime, and other services that make the library welcoming for children on the autism spectrum, then you may want to be online! Two free online webinars are being offered.

Here at TechSoup, we're big on stories because we believe they can change lives. That's why we've created a month-long global campaign built around the transformative power of storytelling, uniquely customized to the nonprofits, libraries, and social benefit organizations we serve. Have you heard of the TechSoup Digital Storytelling Challenge?

We've interviewed a lot of people from libraries for the Edge Initiative. In our interviews we're trying to uncover what factors or best practices aligned to create a situation for success in a particular benchmark area. In our seven published Edge Spotlights, we uncovered that it all comes down to...

It's not our first time advocating for charities and libraries in the hallowed halls of the U.S. Congress, but this time I've created a catch phrase that I hope will capture some hearts and minds of policymakers. I call it "humanitarian electronics recycling and refurbishment." Perhaps I should explain.

Thanks to Meredith Nelson, Business Reference Librarian at the Johnson County (KS) Library, I have now seen a 3D printer up close and personal! Meredith provided me with a sneak preview of the library’s brand new makerspace, which will soon be open to the public.

In this blog series, we are exploring various technology training models in public libraries and sharing tips and real life success stories. In our last post, we looked at how to use volunteers as technology instructors in order to increase the impact of technology training programs. In this post, we look at how to expand technology training to include gadgets and mobile devices. We share best practices for using both library and user devices and for training on a wide range of platforms.

Last week’s Big Talk from Small Libraries online conference was organized and hosted by Michael Sauers, Laura Johnson, and Christa Burns of the Nebraska Library Commission and was co-sponsored by the Association for Rural & Small Libraries. It was jam packed with good sessions, delivered by people who work in small libraries. One of my favorites was a lightning round (10 minute) session called “Kitchen Creations at the Library”, presented by Lee Schauer, who is the director at the Rock Springs Public Library (WI).

There are many exciting ways in which technology is empowering some people who have disabilities. At its best, technology can help people communicate more effectively and function more independently. It can improve quality of life. Many libraries are finding ways to facilitate adoption of technology for library patrons who have disabilities. Other libraries are working to find ways to add to the assistive technology at the library.

As smartphones and tablets grow in popularity, mobile optimization is something libraries and nonprofits should pay close attention to in the coming year. Responsive web design (also known as mobile optimization) refers to designing a site to provide an optimal viewing experience across a wide range of devices.

Describe what your library means to its community.

We are a "third place," some place other than work and home, where people can relax, get information and entertainment, use computers, and feel welcomed and cared about.