Almost - But Not Quite

I haven't posted to PlainTalk for a few days because I've been frantically tying up the loose ends of our new Web site. We sure had hoped to have it finished by May 28, 2008 - however, if you have any experience with Web site design, you know things rarely go according to plan. So, we're asking for your patience for just a few more days, with a new launch date of Monday, June 2, 2008. It's disappointing to me, as I'm just about to celebrate my one year anniversary at DPPL and was looking forward to the new Web site as the culmination of 365 days' worth of work. However, chin up -- now it will simply be the culmination of 369 days of work! Don't worry, the old site won't disappear until the new one is ready, so our "virtual branch" will always be here for you. Wait for it...it'll be worth it!

Karen McBride,
Web Services Librarian
Des Plaines Public Library

Countdown to a new DPPL Web site

Did any of our sharp-eyed PlainTalk readers notice that our blog got a little bit of a makeover earlier this week? Just a subtle change from shades of green to shades of blue, but there's method behind my madness. In just a few days, the Des Plaines Public Library will be rolling out a brand new Web site for you. While celebrating our 100th anniversary last year, we made a commitment to also "Create the Future," and part of that future is a new, completely redesigned and enhanced Web site for you, the people who use it.

Why a new Web site? Our current Web site has grown by leaps and bounds over the years. In the beginning, when the site was small, it was easy to add a new page and then provide a link to it on a prominent place on the home page. But as page after page got added on, the home page was getting difficult to organize and the site difficult to navigate. So now we've got a clean slate on which to build, with a lovely and elegant new logo to let you know you've found the Des Plaines Public Library online.



We've also added lots of fun and useful new features - we hope the new Web site is a place that you will enjoy visiting and spending time, much like the library's building on Ellinwood Street. Wait until you see our new Children's section. With cute animation and graphics designed to make kids feel like they're in our youth department, even children too young to read will learn about the library while having fun with hippos, giraffes and leaping fish. You can see some of these darling cartoon characters at the top of this post. Teens will be getting an entirely redesigned section soon, too, and the designers are fast at work on a Web site with funky, hand-drawn graphics and less formal language, where we hope teens will feel welcome.

What else is new? A "Starting Places" section points specific types of library users in the right direction, with links for kids, teens, parents, adults, seniors and others. Our Event calendar listings have been made more specific, so you can go right to events for kids, teens or adults. Our Readers' Service section has been greatly expanded into "Read/Watch/Listen," because that department also covers movies and music. One really exciting new service will be "Positively Ellinwood Street," a blog written by our Readers' Service employees. They will tell you all about what new books and movies are coming, as well as sharing their recommendations and reviews with you, filling you in on our book discussion groups and more. Don't get hung up on what a "blog" is -- it's just a new, instant way of publishing information on the Web. I'm delighted that my colleagues in Readers' Services are about to become Internet "content creators" - not just surfing the 'Net, but, um, stocking it with new stuff, too!

Our blogs, videos and other news will have a special home on our new site, labelled "What's New." In an effort to let you get to know us better, we've also included more photographs on the site, and lots of "email us" links so you can communicate with us.

When can you expect to see the new Web site? Within the coming week. If all goes as scheduled, head to www.dppl.org on Thursday, 5/29/2008, and you should find our new "virtual branch" waiting for you. We'll let you try it for a few weeks, then we'll want to hear your comments and feedback, so watch for an online survey, too. In the meantime, I'd better get back to work - putting together a new Web site isn't easy but it sure has been challenging and rewarding, and I hope you are proud of and happy with the results!

Library News Updates!

It's a busy Monday morning and I've got all the news that's fit to print.






First of all, congratulations to the Book Babes (forgive me for being self-congratulatory with that statement!), our Relay for Life team. The Book Babes were the top fundraising team for this year's Relay for Life Des Plaines/Park Ridge, earning Gold Level team status by raising $5254,00 and counting...(we're selling baked good and candy in the staff lunch room right now!) To the right you can see the truly dedicated members of the Book Babes who did the entire 12 hours of Relay for Life: Linda Knorr, Eileen Gladish, Gail Bradley, Joanie Sebastian, Veronica Schwartz (our fearless leader) and Kathy Kyrouac. What I want to know is: how do these women look so radiant and happy after 12 hours of walking and trying to stay warm in the wee hours of the morning? Proof that doing good for people is better than any beauty product on the market. It may also be the magic cookie bars that Linda made...

Other library members of the Book Babes included Francine Gralak and her daughter Kat, Pat Horn, Bob Blanchard, and yours truly, along with Bonnie Gaynor. All of us were grateful that our library buddies and family members came out to cheer us on, too. We walked, we sold raffle tickets and baked goods, we bought raffle tickets and snacks from other teams, we even bounced in the Moon Walk and hula hooped (hooray for the Web Services Hula Hoop Team!). I hope to have a short video to share with you later this week, featuring not only the Book Babes but many of the other Relay for Life teams and events.

Now -- I said I had all the news, so here's item number 2. The Library has distributed the last of the CFL bulbs that we had. The City of Des Plaines has a small supply left, so if you'd still like to get your three, free CFL bulbs, call the City first before arriving. We regret that the Library has no more bulbs to share, but we were excited to see how many people in Des Plaines want to take part in saving energy and becoming more "green."

News Flash Number Three: speaking of going green, we want to give you advance notice that the Library will soon be selling good quality, reusable tote bags for just ONE DOLLAR. That's right. Just a buck. Not too many useful things you can get for a dollar these days. But it's important to us to stop choking the Earth with plastic bags that don't decompose in landfills - we want to leave a positive legacy behind for the children we serve in our Youth Services department today, and that legacy doesn't include mountains of trash. So we'll be making these new, large and sturdy bags available to you for just one dollar. How can we do that? By buying responsibly and through a very generous donation from our amazing Friends of the Library. Watch this space for more information about the bags as soon as they arrive.

TA DA! News Flash Number Four: A reminder that the Memorial Day holiday falls on Monday, May 26 this year, so the Library will be closed next Sunday, May 25 and Monday, May 26, in observance. We will reopen on Tuesday, May 27 at 9 AM. We hope that you and yours have a safe and enjoyable holiday weekend, with time to reflect on the true meaning of Memorial Day.

That's all for now but if it's this busy on Monday, you know there will be more news later this week.