Nowadays, lots of libraries link up to loan each other books. For the library user, that means if your local library doesn’t have that book, you can request it anyway. In a few days, that book will be shipped to your local library from the library that has that book in their collection. Thus, the library user now has access to books from many libraries. Big smile here! Then reality sets in. You have to wait days before you get your hands on that book to find if it actually contains the information or story that you want. If not, then more days of waiting to try again. It’s a great excuse for your local library not to have that book in the local collection since you can always request it. When you do request it, the result is sometimes “Sorry, no copies available for requests.”. That is because you are now competing for that book not with just the users of your local library, but also the users of all those other libraries. Unlike database information, that book must spend part of its time in transit, during which nobody gets to read it. The library is not likely to add more copies of that book if it is wanted mostly by users of other libraries. Seldom is there any attempt to keep the book in the library closest to most of those people that want it. The tradeoff made by libraries that do this is the resources spent to make these loans possible is cheaper than buying all those books to which access is gained. Unfortunately, sometimes that access is just to the message “Sorry, no copies available for requests.”.
Another Library has That Book…
November 26, 2009
Airplane Pilot Stories as a Library display
February 14, 2009
Captain Sully landing in the Hudson is one more story added to the lore of flying. New York Magazine 2009 February 9 had a good article about pilots. Libraries looking for a subject to display should consider flying and airline pilots.
The novel “Airport” by Arthur Hailey was made into a hit movie, and the movie spawned sequels. The movie was better than the sequels, and the book was better than the movie. The novel “The Right Stuff” by Tom Wolfe was made into a movie. In that movie, Pancho was played by Kim Stanley. The local library had a copy of the biography “The Happy Bottom Riding Club: The Life and Times of Pancho Barnes”, but it was weeded a few years back.
It was loosely adapted to a TV Movie “Pancho Barnes” starring Valerie Bertinelli. An earlier novel was “The High and the Mighty”, which was made into a movie starring John Wayne. I consider the father of this genre to be the autobiography of Ernest K. Gann titled “Fate is the Hunter”. This was loosely adapted into a couple of movies: “Fate is the Hunter” starring Glen Ford, and “Island in the Sky” starring John Wayne. The movies were average, but the book is among my favorites. Hollywood seldom makes the movie as good as the book, and script changes sometimes drastically alter the facts. Other books of interest are “Hard Air” by W. Scott Olsen and “Flying’s Strangest Moments” by John Harding.
Kids ARE allowed in Libraries after Feb 10th, BUT …
February 2, 2009
That collective sigh of relief you heard is from Libraries across the U.S. See:
http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6633893.html?rssid=192
While most books may be presumed safe for now, note that Libraries are still on the hook for kid books that contain plastic softeners or lead. Thus, all kid books that may contain softeners or lead should be pulled immediately. Electronics commonly uses solder that contains lead. All Kid books that play music, talk, make sounds, or have flashing lights should be pulled.
In the plumbing world, it was decided a while back that lead should no longer be allowed in contact with drinking water. Copper pipes are joined by soldering. The solder was about 60% lead. The reason lead was originally used is because it created a solder with a low melting point close to eutectic. To create a lead free solder, the lead was mostly replaced with silver. To handle the higher temperatures needed for the silver solder, instead of using propane in torches, MAP gas is usually needed now. I remember back in vacuum tube days that silver solder was used in the electronics of Tektronix Oscilloscopes. The electronic chips of today can be degraded by heat, so higher temperature soldering makes manufacuring with them more difficult and expensive. The bottom line is also that silver is a lot more expensive than lead.
With that in mind, acquisition of any kid book with electronics from now on had better include safety certifications that the book meets the present and future standards for lead in the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008.
Eventually, ALA will promulgate some official standards, and advise what to do with the pulled books, but your liability starts February 10th.
———————————————————————————————————–
**Update** 2009 Feb 14 Kid books printed with lead ink before 1985 are in danger of violating the law. See article:
Big Brother Bugs Books! Libraries and RFID
January 11, 2009
Public libraries have thin budgets, so are easily tempted by cost saving promises. As a child, I concluded that automation could improve mankind, and I became a gadget guy. Here comes RFID for libraries. I think the amount of improvement gained over barcodes is minimal, and not worth the cost. One promise is that automatic checkin can save labor costs. Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be a safety guideline on how close workers can be to a RFID reader for a period of hours. I used to work around kilowatt radio transmitters, and know there can be hazzards. Also, a RFID reader doesn’t inspect the condition of the library material being checked in. The best way to do that is to have a human to look for damage. See my old blog:
https://thedonofpages.wordpress.com/2008/04/15/automatic-checkin/
Librarians talk about the importance of privacy, but talk is cheap and people’s privacy is a commodity worth money. Industry and Commerce will increasingly use RFID to track people (“to help with consumer preferences”), and Readers will become widespread. Readers are placed at access points such as building entrances, mass transit, retail stores, parking lots, even floor tiles and shelving. Woodward Labs has a Reader hidden in a liquid soap dispenser. Thus, if you are carrying a library book at any of those locations, you could be scanned and identified. The book will say what you are reading. The travels of the book itself from scanner to scanner can reveal your path to Big Brother. Your employee badge identifies you, or perhaps your customer loyalty card will. If you aren’t wearing your employee badge, maybe those Levi jeans you are wearing or other RFID tagged clothing you purchased will identify you. See:
http://www.nonaiswa.org/?p=1222
See patent 6,348,640 granted 2002 Febr 19.
A Patron checked a book out of a Library. The self-checkout machine showed the book had the wrong title and subject, presumably because the RFID contained the wrong info. The Patron showed the error to Library staff before leaving. Some time after the book was returned to the Library, the Patron received an automatically generated overdue notice for the book. The Patron had to go to the Library to pull the returned book off the Library shelf and hand it to them. If you want to see less of a particular patron, try changing the RFID encoded subject of their book being checked out to “blowing up airplanes’ or “hostage taking”. Sorry, Homeland Security, the library can’t talk about that particular patron and the book they had. At a library, maybe you can get the book “Spychips” by Albrecht & McIntyre, published by Nelson Current, ISBN 1-5955-5020-8. But better hurry before the library replaces the barcode with RFID, or Big Brother will know.
DTV Converter Coupon supply to Slow?
December 25, 2008
The question is, how much longer will the $40 granny box coupons be available? Because there are so many variables, the best I can do is guess. The Feds will issue 34 million coupons. Of those, they have now mailed 40 million coupons. Yes, the coupons are coming back from the dead. Over half of the 34 million coupons died a quick death after only 90 days without being used. That makes available 17 million zombie coupons. But if half of the zombie coupons redie a quick death, that’s another 8 million zombie coupons, of which half can re-redie to create yet another batch of 4 million zombie coupons, etc. So, the zombie coupons could number 32 million. Optimistically, 34 million bleeding edge coupons plus 32 million zombie coupons equals 66 million granny box coupons to eventually be mailed. But eventually doesn’t keep the pipeline full if the zombies aren’t rising from the dead quickly enough. The number of coupon requests per day has recently doubled as The Transition looms closer. A majority of the bleeding edge coupons became zombies. Now with some Granny Boxes on store shelves without major bugs, only a minority of mailed coupons will continue to die at expiration to continue to rise again to become zombie coupons. I’m guessing there is presently only a 2 week supply in the pipeline, and the pipeline could run dry. To watch, see:
https://www.dtv2009.gov/Stats.aspx
I recommend the Zenith DTT901 as best for Granny, but consider getting a better remote and a better antenna.
On Wednesday, January 14 at 3:00 PM in the Sunnyvale Public Library (Silicon Valley), a representative from the FCC will talk about the February 17 Transition to Digital Television.
Update: January 10, 2009: Yes, the pipeline did run dry, so it is too late to try to get coupons before the Transition. See:
http://blogs.consumerreports.org/electronics/2009/01/dtv-coupons-joi.html
DTV Misinformation Continues
September 1, 2008
In June 2005, with good weather, I decided to build an antenna for a digital television receiver. I had heard that DTV offered crystal clear, ghost-free reception. The TV transmitters here were in different directions, so I built a wide angle antenna (stacked cardioid) since I couldn’t buy one. The “art object” without planned camoflage looked like this:
To check the reception with the antenna, I used a splitter to feed both the digital receiver and an old TV that I used to measure the signal strength (AGC). I found the antenna was haunted (multipath). The picture on the old TV was good, but had a noticeable ghost. The digital receiver indicated receiving a strong signal, but the picture was the pit of blackness. The haunting had produced a different symptom on the DTV than the old TV. Ghost free reception for digital wasn’t really true. After I gained some experience with the quirks of DTV, I began collecting for a bibliography on DTV. If the Library did a program on DTV, the bibliography could help people (and librarians) find accurate information. As the years went by with no chance of a program, I finally gave up on the bibliography. Sadly, accurate information is still unavailable to the average viewer. KQED, the San Francisco PBS Station has on their web site the following:
Are You Ready for More Channels?
Clearer Picture?
Better Sound Quality?
No More Ghosting?
Here comes the Digital TV Transition.
On February 17, 2009, Television will be Changed Forever.
Are you Ready?
In spite of what they say about “no more ghosting?”, nowadays, there is some awareness of the DTV haunting problem. The 6th generation chip in the Zenith DTT901 resists haunting with a much better demodulator. With most granny boxes, haunting results in the usual black screen instead of pixel pus.
I winced when I read in the San Francisco Chronicle August 17, 2008 Page D6, the following: “Some history: Congress allocated more spectrum to broadcasters in 1996 so they could create digital broadcast channels.” Actually, TV viewers are losing over 200 Megahertz of prime radio spectrum. Before the big spectrum grab, there were TV channels 2 through 83. What now? Channels 2,3,4,5, and 6 are “unsuitable”. Channels 37, and 70 through 83 are gone. AT&T gets channels 54 and 59. Qual Comm gets channels 55 and 56. Verizon gets channels 60, 61, 65, and 66. Public Safety gets channels 63, 64, 68, and 69. Various Cell phone companies get channels 52, 53, 57, and 58. For Sale are channels 62 and 67. Regional Emergency Services share channels 14 through 20 with DTV stations. People must realize the $40 for each coupon came from somewhere.
A post script to the Library turning down my request to put a message about the $40 coupons on the Widescreen: they are now requesting Staff ideas for messages. For background, see:
https://thedonofpages.wordpress.com/2008/08/11/why-libraries-failed-with-granny-box-coupons/
***Edit September 14, 2008: The San Francisco Chronicle, Friday, Page C1, “FCC steps up … digital TV” repeats the error of “Congress allocated more spectrum”. I had sent an Email to them nearly 2 weeks ago telling them of their mistake. Even if they didn’t believe me, there are several TV Broadcast stations in San Francisco with studios and Chief Engineers. Then again, the PBS Broadcast station here is still running the announcement with the “This Old House” stars saying every household is entitled to a pair of $40 coupons. The FCC is mandating the Broadcasters air an increasing number of spots about the DTV Transition, but apparently there is no requirement that the spots be factually correct. Well no, I haven’t sent PBS an Email, and I suppose I should. Maybe they can get David Brancaccio to do the spot correctly instead of Norm Abram.***
***September 18, 2008
Another error source. ME!! Coupons are still available to everyone. See my next post titled: “DTV Coupon Misinformation from ME!!” ***
Why Libraries failed with Granny Box Coupons
August 11, 2008
Since most households can no longer get the $40 coupons, time to assess what happened. Manufacturers were slow to make the DTV granny boxes, and most were flawed. Overheating shortens their lifetime, chirps were in the audio, lipsync sometimes failed, buggy timers miss timepoints, multipath haunts some boxes, the EPG fails to deliver the promise of PSIP, buttons are too small for Granny, APT finally arrived, smart antennas didn’t arrive, some Grannys will need antenna upgrades, menus were strange, and box crashes happened. Magazine reviews of granny boxes were shallow at best. Consumer Advocates said little on Granny Boxes. On the web, avsforum had lots of noisy chatter, but contained some fabulous pearls of wisdom well worth the digging. The Feds with beancounting mentality made the coupons die quickly, a mere 90 days. Households that got coupons when first available found nothing worth purchasing, and 5 million coupons expired as waste. The Feds flip flop on APT hurt manufacturers as well as the LP stations. The States of confusion have cash refunds for taxes on the coupons. See:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=14072944#post14072944
When retailers were originally shipped product, they seemed caught unawares. Of course they didn’t know of flaws in their product, but they still don’t know about the flaws in the products sold by their competitors, either. Newspapers did barely more on granny boxes than quote press releases, and showed listings for cable TV, but not DTV. Nobody mentions that viewers are losing over 35 TV channels of prime radio spectrum. See:
http://www.tvtechnology.com/pages/s.0157/t.12136.html
Just a week ago, I told someone who didn’t know it that DTV has been transmitted for years now. Viewers have lots to learn, and with no one to help, they will learn the hard way. Broadcasters successfully informed the public that the transition was coming, but their sound bytes didn’t include the phrase “while supplies last”. One crawl ended with “… for more information, contact your electronic retailer.”
Well, at least retailers are not as clueless as most libraries. Here in Silicon Valley, programs on DTV were presented by the Alameda County Library, a shining light in the darkness. At a December library staff meeting, I said that the coupons would be available in January, and we should have a program about the DTV converters. Hopefully, this wasn’t confused with my previous requests for a program on DTV. Those had been rejected year after year after year because it wouldn’t fit in the budget. This year, well, it didn’t fit in the budget, and a program on converters didn’t either, so I suggested cheaper approaches. How about a display in the small display case? Maybe later, it’s booked up for months. Well, then I suggested the following message on the widescreen for our passerbys:
The Digital TV transition happens February 17, 2009.
Old TV’s may need a TV Converter Box. Every
household is entitled for up to 2 coupons for a Box
while supplies last, probably through July 2008.
From your household, call 1-888-DTV-2009
to request your $40 coupons, good at local stores.
The answer was no, the widescreen is mostly for library events. I wonder if the librarians could have answered in a timely manner the series of questions that my suggested message would have generated anyway. Librarians are great at patting themselves on the back with talk of nobly educating the public and being 2.0 aware. But I guess “reaching across the digital divide” means turning kids into gamers, as it didn’t include helping Granny get her box, make it work, or learn how to use it, much less explain UHF reception problems. Firedog at Circuit City will do that for over $79 after coupon. So, why did most libraries here fail Granny so badly? Programs here are divided into 3 types: Adult, Children, and Teens. Bulletin Boards show the plethora of upcoming programs for each. If Granny sat in the chair in the Large Print Room, then on the other side of the Large Print Stack in front of Granny (not “a” Large Print Stack), the wall is empty. No bulletin board, no posting of events for Granny put on by the Geriatric Librarian. The kids check out piles of books, and we ask for library funding based on the high circulation figures. Maybe Granny just doesn’t check out enough library books to be worth noticing. Besides, programs for kids are an investment in the library’s future. Granny will just be dead soon. My post on purchasing is here:
https://thedonofpages.wordpress.com/2008/06/17/digital-tv-granny-box-purchasing/
I’ll work on the November Election with some of the many Grannies that will work a 15 hour day at the Polls to make it possible for the community to vote. After that, I’ll evaluate the Granny boxes yet again, so I can make another purchase then. I’ll try to ignore the DTV test coming up in Wilmington. See:
Digital TV “Granny Box” purchasing
June 17, 2008
I’m disappointed this time with Consumer Reports and also Sound & Vision Magazine. They do such a great job testing many products, but have failed with the CECB Granny boxes. Libraries have also failed to have even a display with useful information, much less a program for Granny. There are 6 million first batch coupons still available, and thanks to $millions spent on advertising (“On Feb. 17, 2009, …”), requests for the coupons are about three fourths of a million per week. Thus, the availability should end in 8 weeks. There could be a rush at the end if somebody notices, so it may end sooner, like before August. I’ll continue to ask the Library to do something before then. Meanwhile, the City of Palo Alto Community Media Center has a class on CECB’s for beginners. See:
http://www.paloaltodailynews.com/article/2008-5-9-bcn-17
I’m privately recommending the April build or May build of the Zenith DTT900 where signals are weak or haunted (multipath). If the bypass is needed, get the untested Zenith DTT901. My previous post on Granny Boxes was March 2, 2008. See:
https://thedonofpages.wordpress.com/2008/03/02/digital-tv-granny-box-coupons/
Buying strategies include the following:
THE FUTURES TRADE: It’s illegal to sell the coupon, but you can do whatever with the box. So I tell Mabel I will trade her for the privilege of me using her coupon in the future. She gets the box I have now, bought with my coupon just before it expired. That way I have the chance to buy a future box that hasn’t hit the shelves yet. The problem is to find a Mabel.
THE REBUY: A store has a return policy. You go to the store and buy a box and pay for it without using the nonrefundable coupon. At home, you test the box for whatever (like the left audio channel chirp), then take it back to the store for a full refund. If it failed the test, well, you could try another box, or another store. If it passed the test, then you want not just any similar box, but that exact box that you’ve tested and programmed for your home. So, rebuy that very box, this time using up the coupon.
THE ADVANCE ORDER: You purchase a box now with your coupon, and the supplier will ship you the box when they become available. Some suppliers were caught taking advance orders for boxes, however, and got burned by the Feds. see:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1023326&page=5
THE HOSTAGE: Circuit City has the Zenith DTT900, but the Zenith DTT901 which has the bypass won’t arrive for a few weeks. I’m going to buy a 900 in a few days with my coupon just before it expires. I will keep the 900 as a hostage, and won’t open the packaging. If the 901 arrives within 30 days of my purchase, I can exchange the hostage for a 901.
SETTLE FOR FLAWS: I was busy with the June Election, but I had a coupon about to expire. I got a March build DTT900 with the weaker LG tuner and tried it out at my apartment. It was strange to rotate a handmade 3dBd colinear antenna and find no nulls. Maybe haunting can be a good thing. I didn’t get the expected screen of evil blackness, but instead got a picture that would break into pixel pus. Most channels were fine in spite of the challenging location. I’m usually working during the NBC News, so I haven’t checked for the chirp flaw. I’m a Senior Citizen, so I checked my hearing. My Mom couldn’t hear the 12KHz tone, but I could. See (Hear?):
http://www.freemosquitoringtones.org/
If desparate, I could cobble up a passive 10KHz low pass. See:
http://www.themusicworkshopchicago.com/special/aprilbuild.zip
THE PRAYER: The coupon’s expiration date is coming; let it die and pray for a resurrection. With only 90 days of life, over half of the coupons died before use because there was a small number of actual products to choose from They all had serious flaws, and most were not even better than nothing. Some Congressmen are suggesting the life of the coupon should be extended (I figure no chance), or that after the coupon has expired, you should be able to reapply. The present rules forbid this, but there is a chance of a future change. See:
http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D917DHCO0.htm
I’m going to pray with one dying coupon since I am eligible for second batch coupons. If you aren’t an eligible batchelor like me, I suggest you don’t risk it. It took God to do a single resurrection in a matter of days, and Congress isn’t noted for doing anything properly without months of politicking first. By the time the rules change, the first batch may no longer be available.
Digital TV “Granny Box” coupons
March 2, 2008
The digital TV revolution is coming; will some of your patrons be a casualty? Who will show granny how to connect the converter? What virtual channels are available in your area? The Feds offer of $40 coupons is scheduled to end March 31. **Update: Offer extended until March 31, 2009 “while supplies last”. First batch is 22 million coupons.** Has your library scheduled a program for beginners on the granny boxes before then? The Ref Desk in the future explaining the deadline passed is of little help. Libraries should give granny a clue now.
See http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=12688712&postcount=16
To decide whether to buy a granny box now instead of later, check the Digital TV program guide at the website listed below. There’s likely few additional TV shows. If for example, you decide you can’t miss “Commonwealth Club Speakers” on virtual channel 7-2, then buy one granny box now.
In Silicon Valley, virtual channel 7-2 comes from Sutro Tower on channel 24. A rooftop antenna of 12dBd on Channel 24 aimed at San Francisco should work, but I haven’t found specs for 5th or 6th generation DTV chips. Retailers start their participation this week, but reviewers haven’t committed. With only 5 million coupon requests so far, looks like the added restrictions won’t kick in soon. Privately, for now try a Zenith DTT900 though it doesn’t have the smart antenna jack. Avoid the Insignia, which is a rebranded Zenith, unless LG will back the warranty. I’ll wait to decide what to buy until May, when hopefully there’s more user results posted and my coupons will still be good. **Update April 22: Hold off on the Zenith/Insignia because of even more audio problems. See: http://www.freelists.org/archives/op…/msg00211.html **
coupon elgible converter box (CECB) official Fed list:
https://www.ntiadtv.gov/cecb_list.cfm
Digital TV program guide:
http://tvlistings.zap2it.com/tvlistings/
Broadcast TV station locator tools: http://www.antennaweb.org
http://www.tvfool.com/index.php?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=80
List of converter box product reviews:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=13059530&postcount=59
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=13258993&postcount=70
Spreadsheet of granny box products:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=13051519&postcount=49
ChannelMaster CM7000:
http://www.solidsignal.com/prod_display.asp?PROD=CM-7000
Digital Stream D2A1D10L:
http://www.ezdigitaltv.com/Digital_STREAM_D2A1D10.html
Magnavox TB100MW9:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=12967623&postcount=1
RCA DTA800 review:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=13074735&postcount=285
Sansonic ad: http://www.sansonic.net/consumer/atsc_converter.asp
Zenith DTT900 review:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=13047439#post13047439
Roof top antennas are allowed anyway:
http://www.fcc.gov/mb/facts/otard.html
Sound and Vision Magazine links with Circuit City Stores:
http://www.broadcastnewsroom.com/articles/viewarticle.jsp?id=304447
The conspiracy on Weapons Signal Destruction (WSD):
http://broadcastengineering.com/eng/fcc_announces_second_round/
For DX nerds only: http://www.geocities.com/toddemslie/UHF-TV-DX.html
http://www.broadcast.net/~sbe1/8vsb/8vsb.htm
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=12688712&postcount=16
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6532079.html
San Francisco stations: http://www.choisser.com/sfonair.html
Ch 3 combiner: http://www.solidsignal.com/prod_display.asp?PROD=SPSC3&xzoom=Large#xview
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