18 episodes

This podcast is a collection of audio stories from the libraries, archives, and museums of New York City. It is brought to you by the Metropolitan New York Library Council, where the libraries and archives of New York comes together to learn, share ideas, and collaborate.

Library Bytegeist Library podcast by the Metropolitan New York Library Council

    • Society & Culture

This podcast is a collection of audio stories from the libraries, archives, and museums of New York City. It is brought to you by the Metropolitan New York Library Council, where the libraries and archives of New York comes together to learn, share ideas, and collaborate.

    #18 Presenting Preserve This Podcast!

    #18 Presenting Preserve This Podcast!

    Enjoy this clip from a new podcast that Library Bytegeist host and producer, Molly Schwartz, has been working on! It's called Preserve This Podcast. You can find more information on our website, at www.preservethispodcast.org.

    Episode 18 transcript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xVS-XXlEx3kggw9artPMjSDhkPQpSKpjURDi_Xut8hk/edit

    “The Podsucker” is a machine that Jason Scott built in his basement 15 years ago. Jason was trying to capture all the podcasts -- before they disappear. Preserve This Podcast is a series about how podcasts are disappearing. And what podcasters can do to save them. Follow along with our podcast preservation exercises by downloading the zine at [preservethispodcast.org][1].

    - More about Jason Scott's podcast archiving work on [his website: ASCII by Jason Scott][2]
    - More about Dave Winer's RSS work on [his website: RSS on the desktop, 15 years later][3]
    - [Download/print our zine][4] from our website to prepare for Episode 1, coming out March 21st!


    [1]: http://preservethispodcast.org/#zine
    [2]: http://ascii.textfiles.com/archives/844
    [3]: http://scripting.com/2017/03/30/rssOnTheDesktop15YearsLater.html
    [4]: http://preservethispodcast.org/#zine

    • 6 min
    #17 At Home in the Library

    #17 At Home in the Library

    This episode of Library Bytegeist is all about New York’s public libraries and the people who inhabit them. In a city that has a reputation for being inhospitable, many people have found a makeshift home away from home in the library. Leila Goldstein reports a story about the live-in custodians and their families who used to have apartments in NYPL. Noam Osband reports a story about Brooklyn Public Library's experiments with new furniture to make library spaces more flexible.

    Transcript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1cOp_s5z2S2vS0aFYVjsvn6U5p30QT_ByyDjX2WcQkxA/edit?usp=sharing

    Hosted and Produced by Molly Schwartz
    Reported features by Leila Goldstein and Noam Osband
    Audio Mastering by Dalton Harts

    Music and Soundtracks:

    Opening track: “Magic” by Otis MacDonald from the YouTube Audio Library
    “Rarified” by Podington Bear from www.soundofpicture.com
    "Magical Dirt" by Sir Cubworth from the YouTube Audio Library
    Closing track: "Red Hair, Blue Sky" by Monplaisir from the Free Music Archive

    Tools used to record this podcast:

    The audio booth at METRO: bit.ly/MetroAudio
    RE20 microphone: www.electrovoice.com/product.php?id=91
    oTranscribe: otranscribe.com/
    Reaper: www.reaper.fm/
    Izotope: www.izotope.com/en/products/repai…plug-in-pack.html

    • 31 min
    #16 Collectors, Keepers, and a Kitchen Sister

    #16 Collectors, Keepers, and a Kitchen Sister

    This episode of Library Bytegeist is all about collectors and keepers. The people who go through life gathering and capturing and saving things. First up, we have a short story by Sarah Esocoff about Collector’s Night in NYC (minute 2:38 - 9:56). Then, we have an interview Nikki Silva, one half of a radio duo known as the Kitchen Sisters (minute 10:40 - 38:18). The Kitchen Sisters have produced hundreds of stories for NPR and other public radio programs. In this interview, Nikki breaks down how she and Davia Nelson find and use archival audio, and how they became accidental archivists in the process. The Kitchen Sisters are launching a new series called “The Keepers,” and they’re looking for stories about archivists, librarians, and curators. You can call The Keepers Hotline at 415-496-9049 and listen to their work on their podcast, "The Kitchen Sisters Present," part of Radiotopia's collective of independent producers.

    Transcript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ejXGbKPEMWnAAIYF_-JuCWZlDpGkalbcg1yIkQX4RcE/edit?usp=sharing

    Hosted and Produced by Molly Schwartz
    Audio Mastering by Dalton Harts

    Music and Soundtracks:
    Opening track: “Magic” by Otis MacDonald from the YouTube Audio Library
    “Letter to Louie" by Mrs. B, a home recording from the Kitchen Sisters
    “The Road Ranger” by The Kitchen Sisters for NPR: http://www.kitchensisters.org/stories/early-work/
    "The Legend of Ernest Morgan" by The Kitchen Sisters for NPR: https://soundcloud.com/kitchensisters/the-legend-of-ernest-morgan
    "An Unexpected Kitchen: The George Foreman Grill" by The Kitchen Sisters on "The Kitchen Sisters Present" podcast, part of Radiotopia: http://www.kitchensisters.org/fugitivewaves/george-foreman/
    "Tennessee Williams: The Pennyland Recordings" by The Kitchen Sisters on "The Kitchen Sisters Present" podcast, part of Radiotopia: https://soundcloud.com/fugitivewaves/tennessee-williams-the-pennyland-recordings
    "First Day of School, 1960, New Orleans" by The Kitchen Sisters on "The Kitchen Sisters Present" podcast, part of Radiotopia: http://www.kitchensisters.org/present/first-day-of-school-1960-new-orleans/
    The Keepers, a new Kitchen Sisters series coming to NPR’s Morning Edition, June 2018: http://www.kitchensisters.org/keepers/
    Closing track: "A Gentleman" by Podington Bear from the Free Music Archive

    Tools used to record this podcast:
    The audio booth at METRO: bit.ly/MetroAudio
    RE20 microphone: www.electrovoice.com/product.php?id=91
    oTranscribe: otranscribe.com/
    Reaper: www.reaper.fm/
    Izotope: www.izotope.com/en/products/repai…plug-in-pack.html

    • 39 min
    #15 Classifying Books, Classifying People

    #15 Classifying Books, Classifying People

    The Dewey Decimal System is the most popular library classification system in the world. It was created by a man, named Melvil Dewey, in the late 1870's. And Dewey's system of classifying knowledge reflects his worldview as a white man living in the late 19th century. In this episode of Library Bytegeist, we break down the Dewey Decimal System and talk frankly about the power and pitfalls of classifying. We'll visit the Bard High School Early College in Queens to find out about how students there are planning to rebel from the Dewey Decimal System, and talk to Greg Cotton (Cornell College), Barbara Fister (Gustavus Adolphus College), and Dorothy Berry (Umbra Search Project).

    Transcript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1cnCgQFM3HYqN_EnZ8SV5TwP_-czrYtZAoqwKUDUC3dk/edit?usp=sharing

    Hosted and Produced by Molly Schwartz
    Editing help from the Metropolitan New York Library Council staff and Peter Balonon-Rosen
    Audio Mastering by Dalton Harts

    Music and Soundtracks:
    Opening track: “Magic” by Otis MacDonald from the YouTube Audio Library
    “Library Ambiance” by morosopher from freesound.org
    “Bookshelf, findbooks.wav” by Ryding from freesound.org
    "The Music Room" by WMRhapsodies from the Free Music Archive
    Closing track: "Red Hair, Blue Sky" by Monplaisir from the Free Music Archive

    Tools used to record this podcast:
    The audio booth at METRO: bit.ly/MetroAudio
    RE20 microphone: https://www.electrovoice.com/product.php?id=91
    AT8035 shotgun microphone: https://www.audio-technica.com/cms/wired_mics/0576da91f00c03db/
    Zoom H5 recorder: https://www.zoom-na.com/products/field-video-recording/field-recording/zoom-h5-handy-recorder
    oTranscribe: http://otranscribe.com/
    Reaper: www.reaper.fm/
    Izotope: www.izotope.com/en/products/repai…plug-in-pack.html

    • 22 min
    #14 Bye bye Bytegeist ... a year in review!

    #14 Bye bye Bytegeist ... a year in review!

    One year ago today, we post the first episode of Library Bytegeist. Molly Schwartz, METRO’s Studio Manager who also hosts and produces LB, decided to take the 14th episode to put together a kind of “year in review.” It’s a look back at the year gone by, including audio snippets from past episodes, a short history of how the podcast came into being, and a reflection on all of the changes that METRO has been through in the past year. And there are also a couple of announcements about what’s in store for the future of LB … so listen away and stay tuned!

    Audio Mastering by Dalton Harts

    Music and Soundtracks:
    “Wendy Critical Reader // Walter Scott // ASMR Page Turning” by ~tingleheads~ from YouTube
    Opening track: “Magic” by Otis MacDonald from the YouTube Audio Library
    "Rodeo Show" by The Green Orbs from the YouTube Audio Library
    “Electric car start-up and drive away” by evsecrets from freesound.org
    “Car_Start_Drive_1.wav” by Duesenbert from freesound.org
    “Typing” by yugi16dm from freesound.org
    "Transmography” by X________X" from the Free Music Archive
    “A Gentleman” by Podington Bear from the Free Music Archive

    Including clips from the following Library Bytegeist episodes:
    #1 Meet the METRO Fellows (Katie Martinez, Karen Hwang, Molly Schwartz)
    #3 Talking Smart Cities with the New School's Shannon Mattern (Shannon Mattern)
    #4 Talking Pop-up Media Migration with the XFR Collective’s Rachel Mattson (Rachel Mattson)
    #5 Talking Love Letters in the Digital Age with AMNH's Iris Lee (Iris Lee)
    #6 Talking Privacy with Librarians (Chuck McAndrew)
    #8 In the Library with the Paintbrush: artist residencies (Ben Vershbow)
    #11 Talking Internet Filters in Public Libraries with Westchester Library System's Rob Caluori (Rob Caluori)

    Tools used to record this podcast:
    Blue Yeti microphone: www.bluemic.com/products/yeti/
    Transcribe: transcribe.wreally.com/app
    Reaper: www.reaper.fm/
    Izotope: www.izotope.com/en/products/repai…plug-in-pack.html

    • 11 min
    #13 Talking GitHub with Dinah Handel and Ethan Gates

    #13 Talking GitHub with Dinah Handel and Ethan Gates

    GitHub is a great tool for collaborating and providing access to content -- which makes it a great tool for libraries and archives! Dinah Handel (NYPL) and Ethan Gates (NYU) taught an introductory GitHub workshop at METRO on August 2, 2017. This is a supplementary episode about what they covered in their workshop.

    Audio Mastering by Dalton Harts

    Related Links:

    METRO's website on GitHub: https://github.com/mnylc/mnylc.github.io

    XFR Collective: https://xfrcollective.wordpress.com/

    Mango: Git Completely Decentralised: https://medium.com/@alexberegszaszi/mango-git-completely-decentralised-7aef8bcbcfe6


    Music and Soundtracks:
    Opening and closing tracks: “Magic” by Otis MacDonald from the YouTube Audio Library
    “All the Colors in the World” by Podington Bear from the Free Music Archive

    Tools used to record this podcast:
    Blue Yeti microphone: www.bluemic.com/products/yeti/
    Transcribe: transcribe.wreally.com/app
    Reaper: www.reaper.fm/
    Izotope Rx Plugins: https://www.izotope.com/en/products/repair-and-edit/rx.html

    • 12 min

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