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The article looks at the Family Study Room at Portland State University Library and its role in making the reading environment suitable for parents and children. Topics discussed include the room was established as a recommendation from the 2011 report by the Presidential Task Force on Child Development and Family Support, and the room features 2 computers and scanners for parents and can accommodate up to 2 family groups.

The article discusses how the library staff at the Portland State University Library in Oregon renovated the library and created collaborative, and technology-rich learning spaces despite having minimal budget. Topics covered include the factors to consider when renovating a library for those with minimal budget, pictures of changes in the library before and after the renovation, and the library's collaboration with the Helen Gordon Child Development Center to create a family-friendly room.

Libraries are offering more services through social media Web sites like Twitter and Facebook, and this presence online is encouraging more conversation between libraries and patrons, including collection development requests. A review of popular Twitter and Facebook library profiles reveals the most successful accounts to be those where the library actively engages its users online. Through these media, libraries can have direct, immediate conversations with patrons that result in patron-initiated material requests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses free online and Internet tools that can be adapted by librarians for use with library instruction and information literacy training, with a focus on social media and Web 2.0 technologies, including social networking websites Facebook and Twitter, blogs, RSS, wikis, and video sharing. Many students already use these technologies and are readily engaged with the library when the technologies are incorporated into library websites and classes. There are challenges in using these technologies, especially in countries with oppressive governments. This paper is based, in part, on a presentation the authors gave at the UNESCO Training the Trainers in Information Literacy Workshop at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Alexandria, Egypt in November 2008. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article presents the author's insights on the transition in her family after moving from Carrboro, North Carolina to Cairo, Egypt, where she will spend her two years working as Reference and Instruction Librarian at the American University in Cairo, Egypt (AUC). The author says that the welcome change in her family was the employment of a part-time housekeeper and nanny. She adds that most of the evenings and weekends of her family were spent at the club, visiting with friends, and relaxing.

An introduction to a series of articles featured in the issue is presented which includes one by Portland State University Library Dean Marilyn Moody on communications with donors, one by Kate Lasky on the foundations for success in marketing, and one by Clarissa Mansfield on the value of stories in library marketing.