San Mateo County Library (SMCL) has launched its new free mobile app, powered by Boopsie, available for smart phones and tablets. Download it at smcl.boopsie.com or visit the app store for your particular device. With the app, customers can perform many of the same tasks they do online: search the catalog, place holds, renew materials, and see a display of new books, movies, and music. They can follow SMCL blogs, check out events and programs, locate SMCL branches, and connect with library staff. The new app is also designed to simplify access to the library’s collection of ebooks/e-audiobooks with easy download ability. Finally, the app features BookLook, which can be used to scan a book’s ISBN code to find out if the item is owned by SMCL.
We encourage you to contribute $25 or more to Single Payer Now to receive a copy of Health Care Wars by John Geyman, M.D. Please mail your check to Single Payer Now, PO Box 460622, San Francisco, CA 94146. Questions? Call Don Bechler, Chair, Single Payer Now, 415-695-7891, 415-810-5826 (cell)
From the Preface: "We
have been told from time immemorial in this country that free markets,
unfettered by government interference, are the fix for any of our
problems. The notion that a competitive private marketplace gives us
more information, choice, efficiency and value has been repeated so
often for so long that it has become a meme (a self-replicating idea
that is perpetuated regardless of its merits). Although this idea has
become as American as apple pie and might work in some sectors of the
economy, it does not work that way in health care. The
shared prosperity that followed World War II gave rise to the American
dream that brought new hope and opportunities for much of our
population. But over the last 30 years, under a relentless attack by
conservatives and willing Democrats, this dream is disappearing."
This
book takes an evidence-based approach to assess and describe the track
record of health care markets as they actually work. As you will see, it
is a story of profiteering, greed and waste with very little
accountability. I hope that this book is useful in informing the public,
policymakers and politicians of the real problems with markets. We will
need a strong and powerful unified grassroots movement to push our
leaders toward real reform. Single Payer Now survives on the generosity of its supporters. Please consider making a donation.
San Mateo County Library (SMCL), which includes Pacifica's two public libraries (Sharp Park and Sanchez), has added a new digital platform for e-books and more than 1,500 titles to its collection. Axis360 is a new digital media service that offers interactive e-books enhanced by color, video, and audio. Library users can access a growing collection of bestsellers, new releases, and classic titles, as well as heavily illustrated e-books such as children’s storybooks, cookbooks, and craft books.
Readers with a San Mateo County Library card can take advantage of the new e-book service 24/7 when they visit the library’s website from a computer or mobile device. The cloud-based delivery system greatly simplifies the process of downloading what patrons want to read onto the devices they prefer to use, including Apple, Android, and Windows tablets and smartphones. At the end of the lending period, titles automatically expire and are returned to the digital collection – eliminating late fees. Axis360 is the most accessible e-book platform available, allowing limited-sight patrons guided reading as well as text-to-voice options for all titles. To check out and download e-books and more, visit www.smcl.org/axis360.
Pacifican Rudie Tretten has written a book, Where Are We? Thoughts from an American Geezer, a collection of brief essays on society, politics, economics, education, and sports. Rudie worked with Amazon’s Create Space to self-publish his book. Some of you may know Rudie from his excellent travelogues published in the Pacifica Tribune. He also served on the Pacifica School District board for many years. Rudie and his wife of 57 years, Shirley, have lived in Pacifica since 1966. To buy the book, see Aaron Schlieve at Florey’s Book Co. on Palmetto, or help Riptide by buying the book at our Amazon bookstore (top right sidebar).
Click the link below for an article in the most recent newsletter from Book Passage, an independent bookstore in Corte Madera. It discusses the ethics of people who go to bookstores, use an Amazon app to compare prices, then go home and order the book online, for which they receive a $5 additional discount. But the most important information is about data mined from purchased e-books. Not that anyone I know is buying subversive or seditious books, but what bothers me is that info is gleaned by Apple, Amazon, and others, which share this info so you can be targeted. I know it is everywhere on the Internet and is unavoidable, but tracking one's reading habits seems more Big Brotherish than noting what toaster you buy. Even though I am a printed-book person, I think e-books have their virtues, but there needs to be more regulation of data collection and distribution.
Florey's Book Co. welcomes your special orders, and most books are available in just a few days. Florey's offers FREE gift wrapping for any purchase. Florey's invites you to its ongoing Tuesday night series "Speakeasy," a free event for readers to share and read aloud from their own work or passages from others. To provide a loose framework, we suggest the following themes: 1st Tuesday, best sellers, hear passages from current hot titles 2nd Tuesday, stories--your own or favorite short stories 3rd Tuesday, memory work--anything memorized, lists, speeches 4th Tuesday, classics--Dickens, Proust, Zola, Nabokov, etc. 5th Tuesday, annotated books--Mother Goose, Alice in Wonderland, etc.
Art Recreation Time (ART) children's art classes, weekly drop-in art class at Florey's. For more information, call Janet Barker at 650-291-9614. Wednesdays from 2 to 4 p.m. Ages 6-16. Cost $10 (includes supplies). Why: Because it’s fun! Explore art and develop your inner artist (drop-in program customized for kids of all ages): - finish a creative project - experiment with art materials - experiment with art techniques - develop your artistic style - relax and have some creative fun Visit Janet's website for sample illustrations: http://artrecreationtime.wordpress.com/
Florey's Book Co. 2120 Palmetto Ave. Pacifica, CA 94044 (650) 355-8811 Open 10am to 6pm every day! http://www.floreysbooks.blogspot.com http://www.facebook.com/FloreysBookCo
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