The weird state of libraries these days is exemplified by the range of articles about them. On one hand, the library has become too commercialized and is losing its spark. On the other hand, hey, with all this technology, we could open a National Digital Library!

Speaking of technology, MetaLib is a new resource from the U.S. Government, searching multiple agencies and other sources for federal information. Hooray!

I've linked to the early film footage of San Francisco before. Now, an historian has pinpointed the date -- only a few days before the 1906 earthquake hit. Yikes.  (I love this sort of research. The Library of Congress's Flickr stream is another example of people finding facts by studying the tiny details.)

Blank on Blank serves as an audio archive for previously unheard interviews. Interesting crowdsourcing stuff here!

And finally, a book will be out next Tuesday, and you should buy it, and here's why.

Tomorrow: Friday! And links sent in by readers.