Libraries and Readers

The New York Times just posted a report from the Pew Charitable Foundation and Research Center's Internet and American Life project. It indicates the Libraries are on the rise again. The public is using libraries, their books and digital resources. That's fantastic news.  "Survey Finds Rising Reliance on Libraries as a Gateway to the Web" New York Times (01/22/2013)on page B3   http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/01/22/pew-survey-finds-reliance-on-libraries-for-computers-and-internet/?smid=pl-share
Here's a link to the actual study "Library Services in the Digital Age" http://libraries.pewinternet.org/2013/01/22/library-services/

It's interesting that while patrons want their e-books, they also want books to hold and read. The study validates the notion that the death of the book is a myth, at least for now.

a virtual exhibit of King James Bible

You know I've been studying bibles for a few years now. Most of the examples I've looked at are Vulgate Bibles, Septuagints or Tanakh (Jewish Bibles containing the Pentateuch, Writings and Prophets). In 1611, The King James Bible was printed and disseminated throughout England and from there the rest of the world. It is this English translation from Hebrew, Greek, and Latin that is the most common text / translation found in bibles today. 

The Ohio State University had a fantastic exhibit of their King James Bible and other bibles in 2011 to commemorate the 400th anniversary of its publication. Now OSU Special Collections has launched a virtual exhibit. Here's their publicity:

The Ohio State University Libraries recently launched a digital version of its 2011 physical exhibition, “‘Translation… openeth the window to let in the light’: The Pre-History and Abiding Impact of the King James Bible.” This is a “pilot” exhibition that we have created in order to help determine future directions for a more systematic and programmatic approach to preparing and hosting digital exhibitions at OSU. We would be very pleased to hear any comments any of you might have about the exhibition’s contents, organization, layout, technical features, etc. There are direct links in the exhibition itself to the curator (me) and the web development team. So, if you’ve got the time, take a look at the exhibition, check out its special features, and try your hand at a few sliding tile games in which you get a chance to reconstruct medieval manuscripts, early-printed title pages, and more! And please feel free to send along any comments.

Here are two links. The first will take you directly to the exhibition, and the second will take you to an OSUL blog entry about physical vs. digital exhibitions:

http://library.osu.edu/innovation-projects/omeka/exhibits/show/the-king-james-bible

http://library.osu.edu/blogs/digitalscholarship/2013/01/07/a-curator-steps-from-the-analog-to-the-digital/

 

Here are some of the numerous virtual exhibits commemorating the King James Bible and its 400th anniversary:

• British Library "Sacred Texts" http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/sacredtexts/kingjames.html
• Ransom Center, UT "The King James Bible: Its History and Influence" http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/2012/kingjamesbible/  
• The Folger Library's "Manifold Greatness" http://www.manifoldgreatness.org/