By Michael Casey & Michael Stephens We’ve written about ideas for improving customer service, boosting staff morale, fostering change, and building a management and communication style that is win-win for both staff and administration. Almost everything we’ve discussed has, as its only cost, time–necessary to plan, implement, and review. There are no expensive technologies to purchase, no cutting-edge software to struggle with, and no $500-an-hour consultants. Our suggestions involve listening, dialog, and transparent actions. Trust is the underlying concept. Communication is its foundation. Economics hit morale On April 1, 2007, when we began writing The Transparent Library column, the nation’s […]
Monthly Archives: March 2009
33 posts
The Importance of the Non-Techie or How I Learned to Stop Pulling Out My Hair and Love my Luddite by: Mick Jacobsen My wife mocks Twitter thoroughly, “You don’t even know these people,” she repeats. She thinks Facebook/MySpace is weird. She considers online gaming to be silly. She wasn’t sure about this whole “Blog Thing” and renamed my Google Reader an RSS aggravator (which I still find hilarious). She doesn’t want her images on Flickr. I think it is safe to say she pretty much dislikes any 2.0 technology on contact. Last week she started a LibraryThing account and loves […]
John Taube writes: I am a Library Director in Western Maryland and am pushing our system to more library 2.0 stuff such as patron tagging of records and using the library as a communication hub of the community. I have hit a snag in that due to our rural location, I cannot find local programmers or IT folk to help me out. Can you point me in the right direction? Any prospects or interested people should still feel free to contact me at jtaube@allconet.org. Thanks Any TTW readers have thoughts? Send John an email!
Two Days at the Arizona Biltmore Hotel, Phoenix Arizona, originally uploaded by mstephens7. We’re leaving tomorrow for eight days in Arizona, starting with 3 days at the Grand Canyon. Next week, we’ll be in Phoenix for my presentations on Tuesday and Wednesday. If you’re attending “The Hyperlinked Library” on Tuesday or the databases discussion on Wednesday, please say hi. 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 for the Arizona State Library. I can’t believe it’s spring break […]
Do not miss this intriguing discussion that really speaks to the sea change were in. Star here, with this post from Bob McKee, Chief Executive of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP): (emphasis in bold mine) http://communities.cilip.org.uk/blogs/cesdesk/archive/2009/02/18/all-of-a-twitter.aspx There’s some twittering at present about whether CILIP has (or should have) any “official” presence on various lists or micro blog sites. The simple answer, of course, is no. In terms of “official” activity, cyber life is just like real like – if it happens in a CILIP-sanctioned space, it’s official; if it happens down the pub or in someone else’s […]
Dr. Scott Nicholson left this comment on my post about ALA’s Gaming Toolkit. It’s an added dimension to the nebraska story about gaming: After seeing the Nebraska story, I picked up the phone and called the auditor’s office and talked with him. I told him about the studies that I’ve done on the topic and asked if he’s like copies (he did, and I sent them over). After we talked, it’s not the gaming itself that was the problem, but the creation of the video showing staff members playing the games (with no other content). If the video had shown […]
Genius bar concept, originally uploaded by Meg Canada. Meg Canada shares a photo of the Genius Bar concept at DOK Delft.
2009/365/60: Downed by Paperwork, originally uploaded by cogdogblog. Alan Levine writes: In valiant attempts to get campus wireless access for me at Baylor, Gardner went to the extremes to work the channels. I had to provide my home address, phone number, forms were faxed, we went to the IT office, phone calls were made to various corners of the IT org chart, I showed by driver’s license and signed more forms…. and the system would still not authenticate the credentials they provided. I offered a pint of blood and my grandmother’s maiden name, to no avail. It may sound like […]
http://www.librarygamingtoolkit.org We’re adding this resource to the Gaming in Libraries modules for my classes. If you are curious about getting started with gaming or would like to see a clearinghouse of articles and supporting research on games and literacy, please take a look. I might urge the folks in Nebraska to take a serious look at the supporting research and survey data for a bigger picture of these initiatives.
web links, originally uploaded by New Jersey State Library. Don’t miss this: http://www.solvinglifesproblems.org/