It's All Presidential

From the Presidential Inauguration to executive orders on gun control and Cabinet appointments, the President and presidential documents have been much in the news lately.  One of the best overall sources combining various types of presidential documents, election data, and an audio/visual archive, is the American Presidency Project.  Established in 1999 as a collaboration between professors John T. Woolley and Gerhard Peters at the University of California, Santa Barbara, this free internet resource now provides searchable access to over 103,000 documents, including the Messages and Papers of the Presidents, Washington - Taft (1789-1913); the Public Papers of the Presidents from Herbert Hoover to George W. Bush; and presidential documents from the first term of Barack Obama. 

For an official source of presidential documents in PDF, try the Government Printing Office's website, FDsys. Here you'll find easy access to the Compilation of Presidential Documents Collection, with supplementary materials such as nominations and press releases. Coverage is from 1993 to the current week. For access on the go, GPO Mobile's Presidential Documents app provides mobile access to documents released by the White House Press Secretary beginning in 2009, including searchable executive orders, speeches, statements, approved acts, nominations, and press releases.  The app works with any smart phone at http://m.gpo.gov/dcpd.

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Using tabs in your web browser

So I prowl the web a lot and occasionally find myself with a bunch of open tabs.  Sometimes I want to be able to compare contents in the two tabs - say two lists of all-time best movies to see what one list leaves out.

Use the Split Panel  add-on for Firefox or Frame Two Pages for Chrome.  In Firefox, all you need to do is right click on your page, choose  Split and then decide Left, Right or Bottom.  Then in the new pane choose the tab you want to compare  from your open tabs.

 In Chrome, click on the tab you want with the other tab you want just to the left.  Then click on the Frame Two Pages icon at top right .



Pretty easy.

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

HG.Org Global Resources

According to its Web site, HG.org Global Resources is “one of the very first online law and government information sites. It was founded in January of 1995 by Lex Mundi, a large network of independent law firms. The objective of HG.org is to make law, government and related professional information easily accessible to the legal profession, businesses and consumers.”

Among its many useful features, HG.org Global Resources contains brief guides to particular areas of law, such as telecommunications law, along with external links to relevant primary and secondary resources.

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton Testifies Before Congress

Today, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and  House Foreign Affairs Committee concerning the assault on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya.


Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Print Books Are Still Loved By Library Patrons

Ernster loves knowledge and all the ways to get it, whether online or print.  As e-readers and e-books increase in popularity and sales, however, many libraries are caught between moving to the future and preserving the past. 

"While many patrons appreciate bring able to access new digital resources at libraries, they also say they value having print books and other traditional resources at libraries and still want a personal connection with library staff," Kathryn Zickuhr, research analyst at Pew, observed in a press statement. "Many libraries are torn between expanding their digital offerings on the latest platforms and still providing quality resources for patrons who may lack experience with technology or the means to own the latest devices."

What happens to your reader when the battery dies on that desert island?  On the other hand, you can probably only carry 20-30 print books, but your e-reader can bring thousands.  Like most things...it is a toss-up.

Read more @ Mashable: Libraries' Love Affair With Print Is Far From Over
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

New York Gun Laws

Governor Cuomo recently signed into law a new gun control measure for New York State.  It was signed on January 15, 2013 after the State Assembly approved it by a 104-to-43 vote and a 43-to-18 vote by the State Senate.  The gun control laws will take effect immediately and has several key provisions.  To learn more about this legislation and its key provisions click here.

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat