Comments on: Post-Its: Bad For Books?

By: david tiley

david tiley — Fri, 13 Jan 2006 04:53:38 +0000

I know this is very very petty but..

The Cambridge site on book damage from 8. refers to the “Legal Deposit Libraries” and “Agency for the Legal Depsot Libraries” almost atlernately.

I am surprised that no-one has alerted us to the damaging properties of tears of frustration. Many a modern scholar’s books will dissolve in less than fifty years.

By: clew

clew — Fri, 13 Jan 2006 01:37:50 +0000

I think the University of Washington warns us not to use Post-Its. Pity, but they’re their books. I expect I should be typing all my comments into a bibtex-exporting database anyhow.

I asked a librarian if the thin copper pointers harmed books, and she hadn’t heard of them one way or the other.

By: Another Damned Medievalist

Another Damned Medievalist — Fri, 13 Jan 2006 01:35:19 +0000

I gloss my books. I dog-ear them. I have a gajillion post-its. At least, the books I teach regularly are all messed up that way. What else would I do, walk into class with a tidy pile of notes referring to page numbers and line numbers in Roland and Antigone? I don’t think so! Of course, I have ‘nice’ copies, too, and generally treat my books very well. I have paperbacks you can’t tell have been opened, even though I’ve read them a couple of times.

By: Anderson

Anderson — Thu, 12 Jan 2006 23:30:53 +0000

“Regarding the underlining/highlighting of library books, my favorite is when they begin highlighting the first page of the first chapter, highlight every other sentence, then stop by page 5. Where’s the perseverance?”

That’s the point where they dropped the course in the 1st week.

By: Pretty Cunning

Pretty Cunning — Thu, 12 Jan 2006 10:45:56 +0000

[...] Isn’t the interweb frakkin[1] fantastic. Via Crooked Timber[2] there is this genius site where you too can make your own bookmarks. Why would you want to, I hear you cry, well, because supposedly post-it glue damages books and should not be used. Course, people who say that won’t tell you that reading books can also damage them. And as for touching them with your fingers! Are you mad? The acid on your skin[3] will eat away the paper. [...]

By: magistra

magistra — Thu, 12 Jan 2006 07:11:01 +0000

I saw the real rather than the virtual Cambridge University Library exhibition on the dangers in 2005. I notice that the online version of the exhibition has removed one of the more unfortunate captions in the original version:

‘Never leave books near mice, pigeons, children or other vermin that are likely to damage books.

By: John Holbo

John Holbo — Thu, 12 Jan 2006 05:13:09 +0000

No, the university library was not in Singapore. It was a top Ivy League school whose identity I will not divulge just in case my friend was exaggerating for humor value. (I wouldn’t want to get any librarians angry at me, passing along unverified rumors of post-it inquisitions.) I think the existence of an on-campus forensic lab for paper testing probably has to do with the existence of certain extremely valuable old collections at this school.

By: 'As you know' Bob

'As you know' Bob — Thu, 12 Jan 2006 02:32:51 +0000

Was this a university library in Singapore?

Because, you know, most American university libraries would just be glad that the book came back….

By: fjm

fjm — Wed, 11 Jan 2006 21:37:07 +0000

My own experience is that you should not use post-its on older paperbacks as the paper will crumble when you try to remove it.

Otherwise, they are safe on your own books as long as you don’t leave them long. The little transparent and coloured tags tend to fall off after a while but I suspct they dry the paper.

By: Ronald Brak

Ronald Brak — Wed, 11 Jan 2006 20:57:31 +0000

Oh god, I post-ited Francis Fukuyama! I hope he doesn’t come and end my history.

By: Daniel

Daniel — Wed, 11 Jan 2006 20:46:07 +0000

the library has a forensic lab?

By: Jon

Jon — Wed, 11 Jan 2006 19:47:30 +0000

freddie, bending the corners of library books will also, as far as I’m concerned, condemn you to one of the circles of Hell. Albeit a different circle than the one reserved for those who use highligters.

Meanwhile, I’m distressed to learn about the damage caused by post-its, which I have been using with some abandon on library books. I will henceforth desist.

The only worse crime than the defacement of library books is when students make marks on books kindly lent them by their professors. And when they try to rub out their pencil marks, and the pages start coming out, that really doesn’t help either…

(Yes, I speak from personal experience.)

By: Peter

Peter — Wed, 11 Jan 2006 19:43:29 +0000

The people to ask about this would be the CIA. I recall reading an article a few years back about a major joint research project between the CIA and the Library of Congress to study preservation of books using various chemicals on different combinations of inks and papers. The study involved automated contraptions to lower books into acid baths (or was it antacid baths?) and to turn their pages, and cost millions to undertake. Perhaps, with their mind
on the country’s literary treasures, this explains the CIA’s intelligence failures in recent years.

By: Emerald City Weblog » Book Vandalism: Science Fiction and Fantasy News

Emerald City Weblog » Book Vandalism: Science Fiction and Fantasy News — Wed, 11 Jan 2006 17:22:48 +0000

[...] Crooked Timber has a long discussion about the evil practice of marking pages in your books using post-its. Librarians of a tender disposition should look away now. [...]

By: Henry (not that Henry)

Henry (not that Henry) — Wed, 11 Jan 2006 16:47:41 +0000

There is a place for marginalia: for details see the first chapter of Myles na gCopaleen’s book, “The Best of Myles.”