On ALA 2.0

4301 posts

On ALA 2.0

I’m serving on the ALA Participation Task Force this year. President Leslie Burger established the ALA Participation Task Force “to develop recommendations for expanding member opportunities, especially for the for the next generation of leaders, to participate in their association in meaningful ways,” according to the document Jim Rettig sent this summer. I just heard that Jim is a candidate for vice-president/president-elect and if elected he will serve as VP in 2007-08 and President in 2008-09. Woohoo! Jim asked the group to envision “ALA 2.0” and asked for submissions by today. Jim put his up at his blog: http://keillor.richmond.edu/blojsom/blog/jrettig/American+Library+Association/?permalink=font-face-Arial-Helvetica-sans-serif-size-2-ALA-2-0-font.html Below […]

Young & Wired:How Today’s Young Tech Elite will influence the Libraries of Tomorrow

New from Pew: http://www.pewinternet.org/presentation_display.asp?r=80 Libraries are the living, breathing internet that existed long before the digital network that we know today. They are the connected nodes of information and community exchange that we have relied on to communicate, collaborate, share resources and preserve knowledge in our societies for centuries. But there are concerns about the future of physical libraries, given that so many of us have easy access to virtual libraries of information on our computers at home. Recent Pew Internet Project research examines technology use by teenagers and suggests how the behavior and expectations of young internet users might […]

The Best Customer Service

Via Digg: http://www.crmlowdown.com/2006/11/the_10_best_and.html This fascinates me: the top ten best customer service sompanies includes Apple (hurrah!), GE and Hilton Hotels. I’ve achieved Hilton Honors Diamond staus because of all the Hamptons and Doubletrees I’ve stayed while on the road and have no complaints about their service, so I wasn’t surprised. This bit did intrigue me: 7. HILTON HOTELS CORPORATION – Laboratory Studies for Improved Customer Service Innovation combined with a desire to better the customer’s experience is apparent in Hilton’s programs like the Hilton Technology Room, which is basically a laboratory for gathering customer feedback on new and emerging technologies. […]

Curious about Gaming in Libraries? Look No Further!

http://www.techsource.ala.org/pr/getting-game-your-library.html New Issue of LTR Reveals Benefits of Gaming Services at Libraries ALA TechSource is pleased to announce the publication of its latest issue of Library Technology Reports, “Gaming and Libraries: Intersection of Services” by Jenny Levine, librarian, author of the popular The Shifted Librarian blog, and an avid gamer. “What if traditionally apathetic library users were instead motivated to get up early on a Saturday morning and plead for library staff members to open the doors?” she asks in the introduction to this highly accessible report. Lookout! Jenny’s take on gaming in libraries, along with the case studies, will […]

A Librarian’s 2.0 Manifesto

I hope Laura Cohen doesn’t mind me quoting so much of this. Go, read the whole thing, print it and share it with your staff. http://liblogs.albany.edu/library20/2006/11/a_librarians_20_manifesto.html A Librarian’s 2.0 Manifesto I will recognize that the universe of information culture is changing fast and that libraries need to respond positively to these changes to provide resources and services that users need and want. I will educate myself about the information culture of my users and look for ways to incorporate what I learn into library services. I will not be defensive about my library, but will look clearly at its situation […]

At the Talis Cybrary w/TalisPaul

At the Talis Cybrary w/TalisPaul Originally uploaded by mstephens7. I visited the new Talis Cybrary in Second Life this evening and chatted with Paul Miller’s avatar about SL, libraries, and our beautiful view. Please read his post about the Talis/SLL2.0 initiative here: http://blogs.talis.com/panlibus/archives/2006/11/talis_helps_bri.php I can’t emphasize this point enough, and have said similar in recent presentations: Come on in and take a look around, whether with the intention of in-world service delivery, to better understand the possibilities raised by the next generation of environments that will undoubtedly follow Second Life, or just to join me sitting on the roof of […]

Congrats to Stephen Abram

http://stephenslighthouse.sirsidynix.com/archives/2006/11/news_from_sirsi.html HUNTSVILLE, Ala., Nov. 6, 2006 – The SirsiDynix Institute, a forum for professional development in the library community, announced today that Stephen Abram, vice president of Innovation at SirsiDynix, was recently named chief strategist for the SirsiDynix Institute. Abram will continue in his role as vice president of Innovation at SirsiDynix.