Monthly Archives: February 2009

42 posts

Visiting the Second Life Reference Desk

 Each semester in LIS768 we take an hour and talk about Second Life and log in to see what it’s like. This is the first semester that we have actually chatted with a Reference Librarian and I was very happy the class got to participate. The librarian spoke with the class and told us she does a voluntary 2 hour shift weekly in world and gets a good number of reference questions from outside of LIS folk. Some synchronicity: add to this an email I received from a librarian that follows me on Twitter who is teaching at Catholic University this […]

What Libraries Can Learn from Facebook

http://librarygarden.blogspot.com/2009/02/what-libraries-can-learn-from-facebook.html Peter Bromberg wirites: But I also think that librarians, at times, can be too knee-jerk about privacy issues, and I wonder if while looking at one end of the Facebook dustup (big corporation trampling on privacy rights) we might be missing some important lessons on the other end (big corporation letting customers control their own information in exchange for a highly engaging experience. And Facebook DOES give customers a tremendous, leading edge, amount of control. See: “10 Privacy Settings Every Facebook User Should Know.) We all know that people (myself, and probably you included) will share personal information in […]

Twitter in the Classroom

http://silverinsf.blogspot.com/2009/02/this-replaces-those-twitter-in.html David Silver writes: this semester, twitter is the main mode of communication used by my students and me. twitter has replaced at least three classroom technologies, and has streamlined our outside-the-classroom conversations and collaborations. twitter has replaced the class listserv. for years, i’ve used a listserv (alternatively called a mailing list or discussion list) to extend our discussions beyond the classroom. these days, when we want to continue conversations, the 12 students in DMP, the 17 students in ESF, and i use twitter. twitter has replaced email announcements. in the past, if something’s come up, or i want to add a reading, or […]

Help Build a New School Library

From ALA TechSource: Ask and ye shall receive. Not 24 hours after I lamented our challenges in covering school libraries, I received an e-mail from an employee at a private, K-12 school in New Jersey: I am running a non-profit private school and I need some help in setting up my library. The main help that I need is to find out what kind of software I should be buying to launch the library. What initial things do I need? We have at least 1,500 Books and we want them to circulate to the students. Initially, I wasn’t sure how this […]

Upcoming Presentations

February 28, 2009. The Hyperlinked Library Trustee. ILA Trustees Conference, Lisle, Illinois March 10, 2009. The Hyperlinked Library: Trends, Tools, Transparency. Maricopa County Library Council Continuing Education Committee Program, Phoenix, Arizona March 11, 2009: “Managing Electronic Information Resources* in a 2.0 World” Workshop, Arizona State Library. March 20, 2009: Northbrook Public Library Staff Day (corrected date) April  1, 2009: “Michael Stephens Talks Hyperlinked Libraries, Texas Library Association, Houston, Texas. April 2, 2009: Top 10 Technologies & Ideas to Improve Library Productivity, Texas Library Association, Houston, Texas April 17, 2009: Plenary Session, BC Library Conference, Vancouver, British Columbia. April 24, 2009: Keynote, Trends & Technologies for the Hyperlinked Library, […]

How to Manage Your iPod Class

Rick Roche writes: I had several surprises: I expected audiobooks to be a primary interest with the group because we promote iPod books that we circulate from the reference desk. Music, however, was the primary interest of this group. Only a couple had borrowed our iPods for the audiobooks. Several did express interest in the audiobooks once they had heard of them. No one had listened to a podcast. Most had seen the folder on the iTunes software but did not know what it meant. The group was surprised to learn that podcasts are free to download. I had a […]

More from Mathews: Ten Essentials for Any Library Site

Do not miss: http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6634712.html Ten Essentials for Any Library Site A favorite of mine: Feedback The web site is an excellent venue to solicit ideas, concerns, compliments, and complaints, but don’t merely provide users with a form. Dedicate a section on your site to posting user feedback along with the library’s official response. Show your community that the library listens and has taken action, and use the opportunity to explain why a particular policy is in place or how certain decisions were made. This channel allows patrons to become more actively engaged with the library and feel that their feedback […]