I’ve always been fascinated by social interaction online, all the way back to 1994 when I started a discussion list for Fleetwood Mac and Stevie Nicks fans on my old Mac with a dial-up connection. I didn’t know it then, but I was attempting to bring together a community–to make some connections between various folks who shared an interest and to let them talk to each other. Now, more than 12 years later, I realize it was one of many early examples of building a virtual community and the beginnings of social networks. Social networking services (SNS) are […]
Categories Web 2.0 & Library 2.0
641 posts
Dear TTW: I’m taking a little one-credit class called “The Thoughtful Professional” in my library school. One of the requirements of the class is to send the professor a short email with a “Heretical Idea” about libraries. During the last 30-minutes of each class we discuss the idea. The author remains anonymous.I wanted to share mine with you because a photo you put in your Flickr stream inspired me. Here it is: Throw away the library policy book; toss aside the library rules! Most library rules and policies serve no one, except the ineffective managers who implement and administer them. […]
http://president.mlanet.org/mfunk/2008/01/send-me-you-success-and-failure-stories/ MLA president Mark Funk is asking folks, especially in health librarianship, to share their stories about access to social sites at work: In an earlier post I presented some findings from the survey done by the Task Force on Social Networking Software. They found that many librarians are having access to various social networking web sites and applications blocked by their IT departments. I asked for some success stories on getting these sites unblocked, but I didn’t receive any. I’m asking again for you to send me not only success stories, but failure stories as well. I’m working on […]
Via Stephen’s Lighthouse: http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/ten_common_objections_to_socia.php Emphasis mine: A List of Objections, Replies and Concessions Regarding Social Media and Tools 1. I suffer from information overload already. Possible replies: Try just skimming messages in some fora – you may need to look closely at every email you get but you don’t have to look at every Facebook friend’s update. The right tools for you will feel helpful in time, not like a burden. Experiment for awhile with new tools and stick with the ones that deliver you the most high-quality information, whether those tools are high-quantity or not. (Thanks to Aaron Hockley […]
http://www.blyberg.net/2008/01/17/library-20-debased/ Don’t hold your breath waiting for technology to adapt to the library environment. Web 2.0 did not evolve with libraries in mind, and there’s no reason to think that it ever will. I realize that, at first glance, that statement seems to run counter to what I’ve been saying with regards to not forcing a square peg into a round hole. What I mean is that we cannot expect to retrofit our libraries with tomorrow’s technology. The true pursuit of Library 2.0 involves a thorough recalibration of process, policy, physical spaces, staffing, and technology so that any hand-offs in […]
Some synchronicity: http://librariansmatter.com/blog/2008/01/15/emerging-technologies-specialist/ Kathryn Greenhill notes her new job title: Emerging Technologies Specialist — Actually, the contract says “Librarian – Emerging Technologies” – but we’re still sorting that bit out… I’m still at Murdoch University and based in the library. The position is funded 50% by the library and 50% by central IT, and covers more than just the library. (snip) I report to the chair of the Learning Technologies Steering Group . The LTSG is a University Committee that looks at existing systems like WebCt and Turnitin, but is also the group where Web2.0 types of technologies are examined […]
Bryan Sinclair writes at EDUCAUSE Quarterly: With the rise of Web 2.0 and social software we are witnessing a major shift in the ways students approach and use information. They no longer merely consume and download information; increasingly, they create and participate in it. They are social creatures in every way that past generations were and in some new ways, sharing information digitally and using each other as sounding boards. They value social experiences that blend communication and learning. Social software in the form of blogs, wikis, MySpace, Flickr, and YouTube is merely an extension of this socialization in a […]
Great reading: http://clifflandis.net/2008/01/07/my-20-advice-to-vendors/ Find out who your users are. Remember that no matter who the target audience is, you always have a diverse user population. Librarians are your users. Students are your users. Faculty & staff are your users. Members of the public are your users. People of many ages, skill levels, degree of ability and background are all your users. Each one searches differently. How does your tool cater to their needs? Let your users generate & change content. The larger your tool, the more you need this. Your organization’s workers won’t look at every remote record, but your […]
Helene Blowers blogs that the Salt Lake City Public Library is looking for a director, including: …application instructions for the newly reopened Salt Lake City Public Library’s director search — Your application “package should include a paper resume and directions to your digital presence, blog, or social networking Web site” — you can definitely see a shift is occurring. In my presentations for the last year or so I’ve been talking about the shift in LIS jobs and urging folks to get ready for the time when director or administrative duties will including use of social tools. That time is […]
Cliff Landis reports a converation Laura Endress of OCLC about upcoming social features of WorldCat. Cliff then offers a little rant: (emphasis mine) For users to add content to WC.org will take a big shift for OCLC, who have always seemed to me to set up barriers to end-users making any sort of comment on WorldCat (there’s no “report this record” button anywhere, and my attempts as a reference librarian to report bad records have seen no response in the past). I mentioned to Laura that a lot of the things that they’re trying to do, LibraryThing is already doing–successfully. […]