Take a trip back in time with Penny Postcards, featuring scenes from every state. There are some great ones for Wisconsin, including this one of City Hall in Milwaukee.

Thanks to Angela Henes for the tip.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 8:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This Saturday, Cinematheque is screening the legal classic, Anatomy of a Murder.

Saturday, March 29, 7:30 p.m.
Anatomy of a Murder
USA, 1959, 35mm, b/w, 161 min.
Directed by Otto Preminger
With James Stewart, Ben Gazzara, Eve Arden

The Cinematheque is located at 4070 Vilas Hall, 821 University Avenue, immediately South and East of the intersection of Park Street and University Avenue. All screenings are free and open to the public on a first-come, first-seated basis.

The Cinematheque is a coalition of UW-Madison academic departments and student film groups dedicated to showcasing films which would otherwise never reach Madison screens.

Thanks to my colleague, Lisa Pfaff for the tip.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 1:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

If you're planning a little spring cleaning of your personal library, take a look at these clever uses for your old books:

• Make A Lamp Out of Books (from DIY) Artist and designer Alex Cobb makes a wonderful table lamp out of a stack of books. Look for books that have colorful lettering on the spines. Use children's books for the kids' room. Or how about those old law books sitting out in the garage? They'd make the perfect lamp for a den or study.



• How to Make a Hollow Book (from wikiHow):A hollow book can be a nifty way to hide something, whether it's a spare key, a secret note, or even money. Most people wouldn't think to browse your library for private or personal things. It's also a great way to pass something to someone discreetly--an unsuspecting onlooker will just think you're sharing a very good read!



• How to Turn a Book Into a Picture Frame (from wikiHow): Search the basement, the attic or the back of the bookshelves for an old book that has not been opened for years. Make sure that it isn't a valuable antique or first edition! Follow the steps to insert a favorite picture into the frame. Place the book on the end table to be enjoyed and shared by everyone.

Don't have the right books for these projects? Then stop by the Friends of the UW Madison Libraries used book sale on March 26-29, 2008. Held at the Memorial Library at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, this is the largest used book sale in Wisconsin and includes more than 15,000 books covering almost any subject.
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Update: 3/25/08
Laura Orr over at Oregon Legal Research offer some additional tips in her guide, How to Dispose of Used Law Books. My favorite is This Into That by artist, Jim Rosenau. His art includes book cases, book shelves, chairs, etc. - all made from vintage books.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 2:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A while back I posted about a free telephone conferencing service called FreeConference.com. This free service supplies you with a dial in number and an access code with which all callers can connect.

While this service worked great, I recently had a need to record a conference call. Although FreeConference.com does have recording capabilities, this feature is only available to premium subscribers.

Fortunately, I found another service called Basement Ventures which offered free recording of calls. Like FreeConference.com, you get a dial in number and a code (which they call a bridge number). Give this to all parties and have them call in at an appointed time. The moderator is also given a special code which allows her to access the special features, like recording, muting callers, etc. See the FAQ for more.

You can also access these special features using the BV Web Manager tool. In addition to recording, the Web Manager allows you to selectively mute and unmute callers. Muted callers can use the "raise hand" icon to alert you that they have a question whereupon you can unmute them. That could come in handy for a presentation.

Within 90 minutes after the call is completed, you may access the recording (MP3 file) on the BV site. You have the option of listening to the call on site (and inviting others to do so) where it will remain for at least 30 days; or you can download it to your own computer for permanent storage.

BV is a wonderful tool with lots of great applications. I needed it for a committee conference call. One of the committee members was unable to call in at the scheduled time and I wanted to offer him a chance to listen in on the meeting. It would also be a great way to archive a call for posterity. And since BV generates a RSS feed, you can even use it to podcast your conference calls.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 3:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

So there I am on my lunch break reading a book, when I feel the ground tremble beneath me. At the time, I assumed that someone had dropped something heavy in the mail room next door, but later I learned the true cause: an ice quake emanating from Lake Mendota which geologists measured as 0.2 on the Richter scale.

Channel 3000 reported that the ice quake was too small to cause any damage, but experts said it was the strongest ice quake the area has seen in nearly a decade.

According to the Isthmus:

Such events are not without precedent. There's a lot of expansion and contraction happening out on the big ice sheets that cover Madison's lakes in winter. One of the most dramatic such occurrences happened a little before noon on Jan.15, 1948, when seismographs measured a tremor at 3.8 on the Richter scale.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 9:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

From a City of Madison News Release:

Beginning Monday, January 28, 2008, the Parking Utility will not charge for parking in cashiered sections of city garages between 9 p.m. and 7 a.m. on declared snow emergency days.

Parkers will need to pay for parking before 9 p.m. or after 7 a.m. on those days.

These new times will take affect immediately at the following facilities: Government East, Overture Center, State Street Campus, State Street Capitol and Capitol Square North. It is not available at other Parking Utility facilities.

By expanding these parking hours during snow emergencies, the City hopes that there will be fewer parked vehicles on public streets, which would help facilitate snow removal during heavy snowfalls.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 1:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This is one of those odd-ball posts that I like to sometimes share. It has nothing to do with law or libraries, but I just thought it was so awesome.

Boing Boing reports on a unique item up for auction:

"Brian Sack offers to drive a person of your choice crazy with mysterious postcards from Poland while he is vacationing there. The postcards will be laced with odd personal details about this person, supplied by you, and signed with an indecipherable signature. So far, Sack reports, some 73,000 people have bid on this since yesterday."

To add to the sheer confusion and genuine discomfort, one missive will be on an original promotional postcard announcing the 1995 television premiere of Central Park West on CBS.

Another will be a postcard celebrating Atlanta's disastrous hosting of the 1996 summer Olympic games.

Your mark will be at a complete loss, desperate for answers, debating contacting people he or she hasn't talked to in years.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 2:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

JS Online reports that earlier this month, Skybus began offering service from Mitchell International Airport to Columbus, Ohio. This no-frills airline offers 10 seats on each flight for only $10. And even if you miss one of the $10 flights, many of the remaining flights were priced under $100.

According to JS Online:

Tickets are sold only online at www.skybus.com. They cannot be bought at the airport or on the phone, and Skybus flights also do not show up on common Internet airfare search engines such as kayak.com.

The carrier does have a desk at Mitchell, but only to accept luggage - at $5 a bag for the first two, more thereafter....

The airline also does not sell connecting tickets. Passengers who want to go on to the other airports Skybus serves must get off in Columbus, claim their baggage and check in again. The airline does not recommend it.

So, the question is - how much hassle you be willing to endure for a $10 flight?
------
Update: Skybus Airlines will cease all operations effective Saturday, April 5, 2008.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 3:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Milwaukee Public Library traces the origin of the term "bubbler" back to the original 1888 Kohler trademark of that name.

To those readers outside of our great state: many Wisconsinites use the term "bubbler" in place of "drinking fountain".

Photo from Portland State University.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 2:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

There is an AP News story making the rounds about a devious little hooky-enabling product called The Excused Absence Network.

For about $25, students and employees can buy excuse notes that appear to come from doctors or hospitals. Other options include a fake jury summons or an authentic-looking funeral service program complete with comforting poems and a list of pallbearers.

Interesting that when I tried to take a look at the web site, I got a "Service Unavailable" message. You can still see it via the WayBack Machine, however. According to an article in the NJ Star-Ledger, there are dozens of other Web sites which offer variations on the fake absence note, ranging in price from $3 to $25.

Predictably, someone was bound to get caught, as was a NJ woman who got busted for using a fake doctor's note obtained from The Excuse Network.
The AP reports that:

She was arrested this year after using one of the company's notes to support her claim she was too injured to appear in traffic court for a speeding ticket. She was caught after court officials called the chiropractor listed and he told them he never heard of the woman.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 9:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

There is more video/audio footage from the Wisconsin Book Festival over at Wisconsin Eye. Here are some of the latest offerings:

• 10.14.07: "Odd Wisconsin: Amusing, Perplexing, and Unlikely Stories from Wisconsin's Past"
• 10.13.07 "Provoking Democracy: Why We Need the Arts"
• 10.12.07: "Tranquility at any Price?" with Authors Matthew Rothschild and Chris Finan
• 10.11.07: Best New Writing from Wisconsin People and Ideas: 2007 Contest Winners
• 10.11.07: "Communication Revolution: Bob McChesney and John Nichols on the Future of Media"
• 10.10.07: Opening Event: Environmental Authors Rick Bass and Terry Tempest Williams

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 1:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

From the Daily Cardinal:

The new University Station U.S. Post Office, 441 Lake Street, opens today, replacing a temporary location at University Bookstore and a previous site at the old University Square, the post office announced Friday.

The Lake Street station [formerly a McDonald's] includes services exclusively tailored to students, including an Automated Postal Center to be installed this week and a possible passport service in the future.

Thanks to my colleague, Bill Ebbott, for the tip.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 3:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

From UW Madison News:

If a piece of toast fell on the floor, would you pick it up and eat it? You probably would if you believe in the 5-second rule, which suggests that your spilled breakfast stays germ-free as long as you snatch it up in five seconds.

But while the 5-second rule remains a popular rule of thumb, there is no hard science to support it, says Glenn Chambliss, a bacteriologist at UW-Madison. In fact, if you dropped food in places harboring nasties like E. Coli bacteria, any contamination would happen instantaneously, the scientist says.

At our house we don't live by "The 5 second rule" for dropped food as much as we do by the "get it before the dog does" rule. And the dog usually wins.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 11:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

JS Online reports that "'The Fonz' soon might be part of our downtown [Milwaukee] landscape, immortalized in a life-size bronze sculpture that city tourism leaders hope would be a stopping point for visitors."

From the article:

The Fonz, of course, is Arthur "Fonzie" Fonzarelli, the character from the long-running TV show "Happy Days," set in a nostalgic version of Milwaukee, circa the late 1950s and early 1960s. Visit Milwaukee, a non-profit group that promotes the city as a tourism and convention destination, is leading an effort to raise $85,000 to commission the statue, which likely would be in the plaza south of E. Wisconsin Ave. and west of N. Water St., near the Chase Plaza office tower.

Aaay - I love it.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 11:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Have you ever been bidding on something at Ebay and up until the last few seconds, you think you've got it - then someone swoops in at the very end and outbids you? Urgh! This is called sniping and Wikipedia defines it as watching a timed online auction (such as on eBay or Yahoo!), and placing a winning bid at the last possible moment (often seconds before the end of the auction), giving the other bidders no time to outbid the sniper.

Can they do that? Technically, yes, it doesn't break any auction rules, although the practice is frowned upon by some. According to USA Today, a Korean study proved sniping to be the most effective method of bidding.

Although last second bidders could wait online at the close of the auction ready to pounce, a more efficient strategy is to use a sniping software application. One of these, BidSniper, offers a free service whereby it will place your bid in the last ten seconds of the auction. You can also get the premium service which will bid in the last three seconds.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 10:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Soon NBC will be allow viewers to download many of their most popular programs free to personal computers and other devices for one week immediately after their broadcasts. NBC announced a few weeks ago that it was pulling it's shows off of iTunes.

According to the New York Times:

The files, which would be downloaded overnight to home computers, would contain commercials that viewers would not be able to skip through. And the file would not be transferable to a disk or to another computer.

The files would degrade after the seven-day period and be unwatchable. "Kind of like 'Mission: Impossible,' only I don't think there would be any explosion and smoke," [Jeff Gaspin, the president of the NBC Universal Television Group] said.

Update 9/21: Looks like ABC is also offering downloads.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 1:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Having a bad day? You need a little ice cream. Have a really bad day? You need a lot. That's the premise behind the Dr. Whippy machine which debuted at the Ars Technica festival.

According to Boing Boing, "It's a self-serve frozen custard machine that doles out portion sizes based on the amount of misery it detects in a voice-stress analysis. The sadder you are, the more ice-cream you get."

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 2:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tomorrow (Wed, Sept 12), Walgreens is offering inkjet printer cartridge refills for free. Customers can bring one empty b&w or color cartridge to the Walgreens photo counter and get it filled for free. Pick up a coupon in the weekly ad.

To find a the nearest Walgreens that offers refill service, search the Walgreens store locator. Be sure to check the box that reads "Printer cartridge refills".

Source: Research Buzz

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 11:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

If you were a book, what book would you be? Answer just six questions to find your exact literary match! My match is To Kill a Mockingbird.

Hat tip to my colleague, Mary Jo Koranda.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 4:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Wisconsin History Society has a lot of interesting RSS feeds, including one highlighting old photographs from it's archives.

This photo came around last week. A group of young men is sitting in a darkened, smoky-looking theater. On the screen is a quote from Jay Gould: "I can hire one-half of the working class to kill the other half" That's just creepy.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 10:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Ever wondered how you'd look as a character on the Simpsons? Now you can find out at Simpsonizeme.com. Upload a head shot, check a few preferences, and poof - you're Simpsonized. That's me on the right.

This is really cool. It actually analyzes your photo and creates a pretty good representation (I thought mine was anyway). The photo has to be a close-up of your face with a minimum resolution of 640 x 480 pixels.

Source: Wisconsin State Journal (7/22/07)

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 4:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It's time to nominate your favorite legal support staffer for the 2nd Annual Unsung Heroes Award. The Wisconsin Law Journal sponsors the award to honor the "'Unsung Heroes' whose efforts are essential to helping law firms and courts run efficiently."

Nomination forms, which are due August 10, 2007, are available on the Wisconsin Law Journal web site. Categories include:

• Secretary
  
• Paralegal
  
• Law Library Staff
  
• Administrator
  
• Human Resources
  
• IT Specialists
  
• Marketers
  
• Court staff

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 3:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In addition to its coverage of the Wisconsin Legislature, WisconsinEye has also produced a series of programs about Wisconsin-themed books. Some are author interviews and others are appearances by authors at local bookstores. Archived audio and video is available.

Some of the featured books so far include the Café Wisconsin Cookbook; Living a Country Year: Wit and Wisdom from the Good Old Days; Aztalan: Mysteries of an Ancient Indian Town; From Door County to Lake Superior; Coming Home to China. Libraries@UW-Madison reports that they've also been filming at Memorial Library's Special Collections Department for a program on Making Maps, Mapping History which is set to air in a few weeks.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 11:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Margaret Booth, our Documents Assistant, clued me into a fun site for Badger fans called Bucky's Badger Den. It's geared for kids, but I have to admit that some of the games looked pretty fun. Check out my paper doll Bucky. Can you tell I'm going on vacation in a few weeks?

Update - turns out Margaret was the one who suggested the paper doll idea to the Athletics Dept. and was tickled when she heard about it on Channel 3 news the other day. Way to go, Margaret!

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 2:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Don't forget that the new United States Postal Service rates go into effect today. The price of a first class stamp is now 41 cents. Looks like I'll have to go get a bunch of make up stamps. From now on, I think I'll buy the new Forever Stamps which are good for mailing one-ounce First-Class Mail letters anytime in the future -- regardless of price changes.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 9:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

My colleague, Nancy Paul, shared this item of interest:

This year the time and date three minutes and four seconds after 2 AM on the 6th of May will be 02:03:04:05/06/07. This will never again happen.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 10:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

This Saturday, April 21st, the City of Madison will be hosting the spring Computer and Electronics Recycling Roundup. The event takes place from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. at the City Transfer Station, 121 E. Olin Ave, between the Alliant Energy Center and Goodman Field . For details visit the City of Madison Streets and Recycling web page. [Source: What's New at the Madison Public Library]

According to the Wall Street Journal, many big-name computer manufacturers also offer their own recycling programs, some of which come right to your door. See the article for more information.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 1:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

beSpacific has a great tip for saving money on Amazon:

RSStalker.com provides RSS feeds to track price changes of Amazon.com products. Generate a feed for a single product or for an entire wishlist. Add it to your favorite aggregator and you will be automatically notified when the price changes. Simply unsubscribe to the feed when you are done...

Amazon.com doesn't advertise it, but they have a 30 day price drop policy. If you bought something from them and they lower the price within 30 days, just fill out a form and they'll refund you the difference. See the FAQ for details.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 10:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

From the Daily Cardinal: The U.S. Postal Service in Madison announced Monday it will be moving into the vacant building previously occupied by McDonald's at 441 N. Lake St.

According to Terri Bouffiou, spokesperson for Madison's postal service, the post office will start renovations on the building once a contractor is chosen. She said by next fall, students can expect to see a fully functional post office...

Currently, the post office is leasing temporary space from the University Bookstore to serve the campus community. Bouffiou said although the bookstore has provided a great interim location, a large, permanent residence is ideal.

Thanks to my UW Madison Libraries colleague, Steve Frye, for the tip.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 9:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Friends of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Library semiannual used book sale starts today. The sale will be held for the March 21-24, at Memorial Library, 728 State St (room 116) Today is the preview sale ($5 admission) which will be held from 5-9 p.m. The regular sale, open to the public at no charge, will be held from 10:30 a.m.-7 p.m. on Thursday, March 22, and Friday, March 23. From 10:30 a.m.-2 p.m. on Saturday, March 24, patrons can bring a bag and fill it for $3.

This spring's sale will offer special collections of books in literary criticism, history of science and philosophy, theater and drama, South Asian studies and the UW Press.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 9:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A Lawyer Walks into a Bar is the name of a new lawyer documentary from Camel's Back Films. According to the web site, "the documentary explores the influence of law and its practitioners on American culture, while following six characters as they do whatever it takes to become lawyers themselves. WARNING: the film contains karaoke, murder, vampires, and America's one million attorneys."

Looks like the closest showing will be at the Chicago Intl Doc Film Festival. A trailer and clips are available on the web site, though.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 9:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

From UW Libraries Head of Communication, Don Johnson: Alando Tucker, Wisconsin men's basketball senior forward and National Player of the Year finalist, is the focus of the newest READ poster created by the UW-Madison Libraries, which is in press. The photo for the 18" x 24" poster, a promotion for the upcoming National Library Week April 15-21, was shot at College Library on Friday, Feb. 23. The UW Athletic Department has more information about the poster series. The project was paid for with private support. Contact bucky@library.wisc.edu for copies.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 11:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

From the UW Space Place:

Total Lunar Eclipse
Sat, 3-Mar-2007, 5:45 pm (3:00 hrs)

The full moon of 3 March will rise in Madison at 5:45 p.m., but it will not be your typical full moon. The rising moon will be totally eclipsed by Earth's shadow.

Unlike a solar eclipse, there is no safety hazard at all in looking at the moon, whether eclipsed or not. Equipment is not needed to appreciate the lunar eclipse, which is plainly visible to the eye.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 12:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

If you haven't heard yet, the Energy Policy Act of 2005 changed the start and end dates of Daylight Savings Time beginning in 2007. Clocks will be set ahead one hour on March 11, which is three weeks earlier than they traditionally change.

Online calendars and computer clocks that have not been updated with patches to automatically adjust may have to be manually reset.

Thanks to the UW Madison Faculty/Staff Tech News for the reminder.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 9:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In contrast to Governor Doyle's recent budget proposal, Odd Wisconsin has a bit about Wisconsin's first budget.

So, let's see... $25 billion in 2007, for a single year's operation of state government, works out to be $63,493,150 per day; or about $12.37 per day per person (using the U.S. Census Bureau's population estimate of 5,536,201).

The year 1849's expenditures of $52,845.96 works out to $144.78 per day; or (using the 1850 Census figure of 305,391) about $0.00047 - about 1/20th of a cent -- per day per person.

Read the full article for more.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 9:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A colleague sent me a link to this awesome YouTube video, Introducing the Book. Think early - really early - help desk. I laughed out loud.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 12:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Know anyone that's taking the LSAT soon? How about the SAT, ACT or GRE? If so, direct them to LearningExpressLibrary, an interactive online learning platform of practice tests and tutorial course series. LearningExpressLibrary is available at no cost at the Madison Public Library, the Milwaukee Public Library or remotely to Milwaukee Public Library cardholders. For a list of the many exams available, see the LearningExpressLibrary web site.

From What's New at the Madison Public Library:

In Learning Express, users can create their own accounts, take any of the dozens of tests offered or read any of the electronic books relating to study skills, military service, Federal job requirements and much more. Want to know how you're doing? Learning Express will score your test. Not enough time to finish? You can stop at any point and pick up next time where you left off.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 10:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Developed by Dane County and the City of Madison to reduce the amount of waste going to the Dane County Landfill, Madison Stuff Exchange provides area residents and businesses with a convenient way to exchange, re-use, or sell items they no longer need or want.

To be eligible to post items, you must live or work in Dane County. Anyone, regardless of where you live, may respond to a post. You do not have to live in Dane County. Listings are posted for free.

Check out also Craigslist Madison or Milwaukee for local "stuff," jobs, events, etc.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 10:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

From the Christian Science Monitor:
How to go to M.I.T. for free

By the end of this year, the contents of all 1,800 courses taught at one of the world's most prestigious universities will be available online to anyone in the world, anywhere in the world. Learners won't have to register for the classes, and everyone is accepted. The cost? It's all free of charge...

The MIT site (ocw.mit.edu), along with companion sites that translate the material into other languages, now average about 1.4 million visits per month from learners "in every single country on the planet,"

Thanks to Mary Ray for the tip.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 2:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

From Inter Alia: Free Software.....Every Day

I've been a big fan of Giveaway of the Day for about a month now. It's a site that offers fully licensed software to you every day -- a different title -- for free. Software developers are giving away free copies of their software for one day only -- it's a win-win situation, because we get to know about new software, and the software companies get great exposure. I have already downloaded 5 or 6 programs that I have started to regularly use. This is a great place to learn about new software.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 11:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

From the Capital Times:

Starting January 1st, Wisconsin authorities will start enforcing a law that requires children who are at least 4 years old but younger than 8 to travel in a booster seat while in the car, unless they are 4 feet 9 inches or taller or weigh 80 pounds or more. Wisconsin law already required children under 4 years old to be in a safety seat.

If a child 4 or older, but not yet 8, is unrestrained or not properly restrained, drivers will face a $135.60 fine for a first offense and $184.50 for a second offense. For children younger than 4, the fine is $160.80 for a first offense.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 9:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CNN reports that a record number of Americans will be traveling this holiday season - about 65 million people between December 23 and January 2, more than the record 63.5 million who traveled last year, according to a survey by the Travel Industry Association and the AAA.

If you'll be taking to the Wisconsin roads, you may want to check out the Department of Transportation's Online Travel Center. You'll find several interactive maps including a winter road condition report which indicates whether highways are in good driving condition, slippery in stretches, snow or ice covered. The map is updated four times per day.

Traveling outside of the state? See the National Traffic and Road Closure Information which links to road conditions for every state.

Thanks to my colleague, Sue Center, for the tip.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 9:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Many Wisconsinites may soon be dropped off the Wisconsin No-call list which identifies residents who do not wish to receive telemarketing calls. Numbers remain on the list for two years.

If it's been a while since you added your name to the list, you can sing up again at the Wisconsin No Call List web site or call 1-866-9NO-CALL (1-866-966-2255).

For more information about this list, call the toll free hotline of the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection at 1-800-422-7128.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 9:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

My colleague, Lisa Pfaff, passed on an interesting article this morning from Slate. In the article, Dead Plagiarists Society, author Paul Collins contemplates the use of Google Book Search as a tool to detect plagiarism in the literary tomes of yesteryear.

Given the popularity of plagiarism-seeking software services for academics, it may be only a matter of time before some enterprising scholar yokes Google Book Search and plagiarism-detection software together into a massive literary dragnet, scooping out hundreds of years' worth of plagiarists--giants and forgotten hacks alike--who have all escaped detection until now.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 9:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Starting in January, a new international standard is expanding the current 10-digit ISBN to a 13-digit ISBN. See the press release from OCLC. [What is an ISBN?]

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 11:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The New York Times reports that "airline passengers will soon be able to connect their iPods to in-flight entertainment systems and watch their favorite videos while traveling on any of six major carriers."

Air France, Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Emirates, KLM and United Airlines will begin offering passengers iPod seat connections as early as next year.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 9:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Think today's political campaigns are nasty? The Wisconsin State Journal's Odd Wisconsin column reminds us of the not-so-good-old-days when campaign rallies sometimes became bloody affairs.

These outdoor political events were more like protest rallies than TV speeches, as a candidate's backers came together in a park or plaza. They often preceded torch-lit marches through town, and if two opposing parties met on the street, the scene was less like a League of Women's Voters debate than a Packers- Bears game.

In the spring of 1847, two such groups clashed in Milwaukee. "I witnessed from the store door the free fight which took place," recalled A.W. Kellogg. "Both sides used their torch sticks for weapons, or any club they could find, and belabored each other till heads were broken and clothes stripped off.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 9:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Last Friday, the Wisconsin Law Journal celebrated the efforts of law firm and court support staff during its inaugural Unsung Heroes program. The newspaper celebrated the achievements of 41 honorees and presented awards to 10 individuals.

Profiles of the honorees appear in the current issue of WLJ and are also available on the WLJ site. A big congratulations to all those honored.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 9:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Are you a Badger fan with a RSS reader? Check out the UWBadgers.com RSS Feeds. Follow you favorite team by choosing top headlines, or pick an individual sport.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 10:26 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

From What's New from the Madison Public Library:

The next computer recycling roundup is this Saturday, November 11, from 9 AM until 1 PM at the City Transfer Station, 121 E. Olin Ave, between the Alliant Energy Center and Goodman Field.

This event is limited to home electronics ONLY. No computers from businesses. For more information, please refer to the City's acceptable computer components and electronics list. For additional computer recycling options check the Dane County Public Works web site.

Note that Cascade Asset Management of Madison, which runs the Computer Recycling Round-up, completely erases or destroys the hard drives it receives. See earlier WisBlawg post on this problem.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 10:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

If you are a fan of the Wisconsin Historical Society's Odd Wisconsin web site, you may also be interested in On This Day in Wisconsin History from WHS. There is even a RSS feed. You can also submit an event of historical significance to the database.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 8:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Today's Odd Wisconsin describes Wisconsin's first election in 1836.

I thought that this was interesting:

That first census taken in August 1836 was performed in order to identify voters. It found only 11,683 non-Indian residents within the bounds of today's Wisconsin: Brown County - 2,706 Crawford County - 850 Iowa County - 5,234 Milwaukee County - 2,893. So when it was born, Wisconsin contained only about as many people as Cedarburg, Fort Atkinson, Hudson, or Plover do today.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 9:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Photo from SlashPhone

There is a very interesting article in the International Herald Tribune about QR, or quick response codes. It begins with a young woman snapping a picture with her cell phone of QR code on a movie poster and instantly retrieving show times and a review of the film.

QR, or quick response, codes are a similar to bar codes except they are square, look a bit like an ink blot and contain much more information. In Japan and South Korea, QR codes are used to link directly to a Web site, as in the case of the subway poster, saving the user the need to type an address on the tiny keypad of the phone. As marketers seek an edge on competitors, QR codes are appearing practically everywhere in Japan.

Source: Library Marketing

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 4:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)