This is the first part in a multi-part series looking at tech news and issues relevant to the Free Library of Philadelphia’s customers and patrons.

One of the more recent buzzwords gaining attention in the tech world and in government circles is the idea of “Open Data”. In its simplest definition, it is the sharing of information by everyone, free from restrictions (albeit without violating any copyright laws or rights to privacy), for the common good and betterment of the community.

This past April, Philadelphia joined the ranks of other major U.S. cities such as New York, Chicago, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., in adopting an Open Data Policy to provide increased access to and transparency of data and information in its City government. The policy allows the City to publish collected data online and for the public to have the opportunity to participate in the City agency decision-making processes. After signing the Open Data Initiative into effect, Mayor Michael Nutter assigned Mark Headd as the City of Philadelphia's first Chief Data Officer.

So what does Open Data really mean to you and how can it be used in your everyday life?

Well, you are probably already using it and interacting with it on a daily basis and not even realizing it. Anytime you look up an address or map out directions on Google, you are accessing Open Data. If you call 911 for emergency help, the information from your call is logged into a database that may provide statistics for reports at a later date.

Recently, the Free Library hosted an all-day event in cooperation with City of Philadelphia as part of National GIS Day.

Various uses of Open Data are currently being employed in City Planning, Police Operations, Streets, Emergency Management, and most recent in the development of the Philly 311 app. Online through their website or through its mobile app, you can use Philly 311 to request non-emergency city services and report neighborhood issues such as street light outage, potholes, sanitation and abandoned automobiles.

Through GIS (Geographic Information Systems), the City has developed a robust maps website, CityMaps, that creates detailed maps out of data where you can for example find information on police crime reports and statistics, what day of the week your trash is collected, or to find out the boundaries of a specific city zip code. And this is just a very small sampling of what is currently possible with GIS and Open Data.

Next time, we'll discuss the potential benefits of Open Data for the patrons and customers of the Free Library...

Tags: Events at the Library, Government Information, databases, maps, tech

Hang out, make new friends, eat snacks - Teen Tuesday is back!

Every Tuesday during the school year from 3:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. join us in the Skyline Room on the 4th floor at Parkway Central.  

Its Free.  It's Fun.  There's Food.

Upcoming Events:

October 2nd - PLAY! Video Games

October 9th - (Book 2) Movie

October 16th - 3D Pop Art and Duct Tape

October 20th - BINGO!

Can't get enough?  Try out Teen Thursdays - now in the new Teen Center in Philbrick Hall!

Upcoming Thursday programs:

October 4th - Get Stumped - TRIVIA!

October 11th - BYO Board Games

October 18th - It Came From The Library! (Teen Read Week, make your own mask)

October 25th - BYO Board Games

Click here to find more teen events and programs at all branches of the Free Library of Philadelphia!

Parkway Central Library

1901 Vine Street

Philadelphia, PA 19103

For more information call Aurora at 215-686-5372 or email teentuesday@freelibrary.org.

Teen Tuesday is made possible with generous support from the Independence Foundation and the Caroline J.S. Sanders Trust #1.

Tags: Events at the Library, Parkway Central, Teens

The Free Library of Philadelphia is honored to host a special exhibition from the Philadelphia Holocaust Remembrance Foundation that highlights the power of the human spirit even in the face of egregious atrocities.

In 1941, Hitler and the Nazis opened an internment camp in Terezin (also known as Theresienstadt), Czechoslovakia.  According to the Jewish Virtual Library, 97,297 of the Jews imprisoned in Terezin died.  Of those that died, almost 15,000 were children.

The exhibition “Transcending Their Boundaries:  The Children of Terezin” is more than an acknowledgement of the viciousness of the Nazis.  It is a celebration of the lives of the Jewish men, women and children who were confined at Terezin.  Through the pictures, games, and toys that the children and their teachers made during their time there, the spirit of the people shines through.

Please join the Free Library community at the opening event featuring the film “Liga Terezin” on Wednesday, September 12, 2012 at 7:30 p.m. in the Montgomery Auditorium at the Parkway Central Library.  The exhibition is installed on the ground floor in front of the auditorium and runs through November 20, 2012.

As the exhibition features the artwork of the children of Terezin, our librarians have prepared a special booklist to help you should you wish to share information with your children regarding Terezin and the Holocaust.  These books, and many others, are all available in the Parkway Central Children’s Department.

Littlesugar, Amy.  Willy & Max:  a Holocaust Story.  (call # j)

Kushner, Tony. (Illustrated by Maurice Sendak.)  Brundibar.  (call # j782.13 K968b)

Abells, Chana Byers.  The Children We Remember:  Photographs from the Archives of Yad Vashem, The Holocaust Martyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Authority, Jerusalem, Israel.  (call # j940.5316 Ab35c)

Rubin, Susan Goldman. Fireflies in the Dark: The Story of Friedl Dicker-Brandeis and the Children of Terezin. (call # j940.5318 D558r)

Smith, Frank Dabba.  (Photographs by Mendel Grossman.)  My Secret Camera:  Life in the Lodz Ghetto.  (call # j940.5318 G914m)

Perl, Lila and Marion Blumenthal Lazan.  Four Perfect Pebbles:  A Holocaust Story.  (call # j940.5318 L455p)

Leitner, Isabella.  The Big Lie.  (call # j940.5318 L536b)

Whiteman, Dorit Bader.  Lonek’s Journey:  The True Story of a Boy’s Escape to Freedom.  (call # j940.5318 L847w)

Rosenberg, Maxine B.  Hiding to Survive:  Stories of Jewish Children Rescued from the Holocaust.  (call # j940.5318 R723h)

Thomson, Ruth.  Terezín:  Voices from the Holocaust.  (call # j940.5318 T386t)

Tags: Children's books, Events at the Library, Exhibitions

Tonight's opening of Paint The American Eagle marks the Free Library's first foray into hosting and co-producing a production for the Philadelphia Fringe Festival.  The partnership with local playwright and producer Reuben Wade is particularly fitting for the 2012 festival as the staged reading of this play is a new type of event in our popular Year of Dickens celebration.  While the show is based on Charles Dickens's American Notes, a travelogue of his journey to North America in 1842, it isn't simply a recap of what Dickens wrote; instead, it looks at the trip and his observations from the viewpoint of his wife Catherine.  And we aren't the only ones excited about the production.  Stage Magazine named it one of its top 15 picks of the festival.  Uwishunu's Fringe Festival Roundup picked it as one of the top free performances, and an article about the playwright and producer appeared on the Fringe Festival blog.

This is a chance to celebrate Dickens, the Free Library, and the Philadelphia Fringe all at once and for free.  Tickets are still available for all three performances, and groups (schools, book clubs, seniors, etc.) are strongly encouraged to attend on Wednesday afternoon.  While walk-ins are more than welcome, but making a reservation in advance will guarantee your spot in the audience.  For more information on the show and to reserve tickets, visit Paint The American Eagle on the Fringe Festival website.

Performances are Monday, September 10th and Tuesday, September 11th from 7.00-8.00 p.m. in Room 108 of the Parkway Central Library and Wednesday, September 12th from 2.00-3.00 p.m. in the Montgomery Auditorium of the Parkway Central Library.

Tags: Charles Dickens, Events at the Library, Parkway Central, Year of Dickens, theatre