Give us the Good, Bad and the Ugly of our new website!

By the time you read this, Rochester will have unveiled its shiny new website. Along with clearer functions, a cleaner look, and a general overall better vibe, we're excited to hear what you think of it.

That old quote about how paintings are never finished, but they only stop in interesting places applies about a thousand-fold to web sites. Let us know the good, the bad and the ugly (although hopefully you'll phrase it a little more kindly than "ugly") about the new site.
We're constantly trying to improve it. Send us an email (reference@rochester.lib.mn.us), IM us (screenname: RPLmnInfo), or use one of the feedback forms on the new site to tell us what you think.

Also, we just got the book on CD of Lewis Black's Nothing's Sacred. And if you think I'm mentioning it because I both think he's hilarious and I want a picture for my post, you would be right.

"Secrets" of the Rochester Public Library

As a new librarian, I am quickly learning about some of the "secrets" here at RPL, and I am here to tell all.... Or at least two to begin with...

1. We have Graphic Novels for adults. The library has two of the most interesting compilations fom the previous year. Featuring old and new graphic novel material, The Best American Comics, edited by Anne Elizabeth Moore and guest editor Harvey Pekar, and An Anthology of Graphic Fiction, Cartoons & True Stories, edited by Ivan Brunetti. Even before comic books written for the literary set went mainstrem, RPL was there. These are two collections well worth reserving for fans of graphic fact and fiction.

2. Fantastic Online Databases Okay, the word "database" is boring. But when I can have newspaper and magazine articles about whatever topic I am interested in (say, news about the last few episodes of The Sopranos) delivered to me via e-mail, it's not such a boring word.

One of the things I have discovered is that not all of our patrons know about the fabulous online databases we subscribe to. Instead of thinking of it as an "online database", think of it as a smart way to flip through thousands of newspaper and magazine articles at one time using our (or your) computer. Think of it as "Google" without all the advertisements or "not-really-what-I'm-looking-for" links. And the best part is that you can access most of our databases from home on your computer (go to www.rochesterpubliclibrary.org, select the "research page" link and then scroll down the list for something interesting. You can get articles for your school papers from sources that your teacher will acknowledge (sorry, Wikipedia).

More secrets to come....