Editor's Introduction

As we noted in our recent Library Technology, 2018 Year in Review, circulating nontraditional materials is certainly a trend. Want to add something to your "library of things" collection that will be an instant hit with your millennial patrons? Megan Keane reports in her Hack Library School blog post that it took a couple of tries before the Burlingame Public Library in California developed its first video game collection. The library trustees needed time to get on board with the idea and approve some funding. The library's circulating video game collection was an instant hit as soon as it launched — with almost no marketing.

From 1997 to 2018, the Gates Library Foundation (a program of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation) invested $1 billion over 21 years in public libraries both domestically and globally. Its investments have ensured that millions of people around the world have better access to digital tools that can help improve their lives. The program has left a powerful legacy, nothing less than bringing digital inclusion to many thousands of public libraries and their patrons around the world. TechSoup is deeply proud to have had the chance to work with the Gates Foundation to empower public libraries everywhere.

Here's what's new in library tech this month! Library tech newsbytes is a monthly collection of fun news items from pretty much anywhere we find them. This month we cover the results of the midterm elections for library measures, offer you some free posters, highlight awesome children's libraries including Harry Potter–themed ones, provide info on what to do about patrons wanting to 3D print a working gun, showcase a fun Library of Things offer by New York Public Library, the Ilovelibraries facts about why libraries are more relevant than ever, and Silicon Valley's warnings about kids and screen time. We hope you enjoy our holiday batch of newsbytes this time around!

Editor's Introduction

Samantha Lopez works on the Public Library Association's (PLA's) Project Outcome. Project Outcome is a free online toolkit designed to help public libraries understand and share the impact of essential library services and programs. The toolkit offers simple surveys and an easy-to-use process for measuring and analyzing outcomes. Project Outcome also provides libraries with the resources and training needed to apply their results and confidently advocate for their library's future. We want to raise awareness about this excellent free resource by showing a bit of what it can do.

This article is an excerpt of a larger piece by PLA's expert in measuring library outcomes, Samantha Lopez. It first appeared in PLA's Public Libraries magazine (PDF) and is reprinted here by permission of the author and PLA.