Registration opens May 1 for 2008 LITA National Forum

Online registration is available beginning May 1 for the 2008 LITA National Forum,  "Technology & Community: Building the Techno Community Library," to be held October 16-19 at the Hilton Netherland Plaza Hotel, Cincinnati, Ohio. Visit http://www.lita.org/forum08 to register for the Forum.

Keynote sessions anchor the event, which will include speakers Michael Porter, community product manager, WebJunction, and R. David Lankes, director of the Information Institute of Syracuse University. On Saturday, Michael Porter will present his session Hi-Fi-Sci-Fi-Library: Technology, Convergence, Content, Community, Ubiquity and Library Futures. Porter will examine past trends, current tech, emerging tech, academic futurism and pop culture.  Using this information, Porter will consider what we can do now to ensure that libraries not only continue to offer a vital service, but that librarians’ roles and contributions to society increase. R. David Lankes will close the Forum on Sunday with his talk Obligation of Leadership. Lankes seeks the core principles of librarianship that can be used in creating new technologies. He makes the argument that libraries are relegating themselves to a permanent technological second place and that they should be in the business of creating the next big thing, not waiting for it.

More than 30 concurrent sessions will provide a wealth of practical information on a wide range of topics and Sunday-morning poster sessions round out the Forum. Two preconference workshops will also be offered.  Starting Thursday afternoon and concluding Friday morning, Andrew Nagy of Villanova University, Tim Daniels, Pines Program, and Darrell R. Ulm of Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library will present Innovations in Next Generation Library Management Systems. Developments in open-source library applications and how they can improve the landscape of Library Management Systems for current and future collection needs will be presented. Also spanning Thursday afternoon and Friday morning will be Marketing the Value of the Library’s IT Department, presented by Grace Sines and Gary McCone of the National Agricultural Library. Examine the crucial role of the library IT Department and learn how to deal constructively with misperceptions. Tools and strategies for strengthening the perceived value of the IT department’s role will be addressed.

            Corporate sponsors of the LITA Forum help to bring programming and networking opportunities to attendees.  We gratefully acknowledge the support of Innovative Interfaces, OCLC, Ex Libris, Swets Information Services, Serials Solutions, WebFeat, and Oasis.  An opening reception will be held Friday night to showcase our sponsors and provide great networking and camaraderie for attendees.  Other networking opportunities include lunch, breakfasts and refreshment breaks, as well as Saturday evening no-host dinner groups organized by LITA leaders plus Open Gaming Night.

            Registration is limited to 500.  For more information, visit http://www.lita.org/forum08.

LITA is a division of the American Library Association.