The wiki method of sharing and collaborating on information has, from what I can see, many potential uses in a library. I imagine a staff intructional wiki for how to use systems like our Millenniun and Pharos programs would be particularly useful, instead of an ordinary help page of instructions. This way staff members could easily enter extra tips, caveats, quicker methods, and so on. The way wiki's are laid out and searchable would also prove very handy for this kind of thing.
I also particularly liked the idea of using a wiki for a subject guide, especially when not just limited to staff members. This way something as valuable and compiling a subject list could be done quite quickly as it would be spread across all those who were interested, and not just the exhausting task of one person. Letting the public contribute would also generate a real sense of community - that the library is not just a place from which you receive information or whatever, but also a place which values participation and contribution. Looking around the internet it's obvious that a lot of people want to share the knowledge they have, and letting them do so on our library website would benefit all concerned, as far as I can imagine.
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Monday, November 5, 2007
Thing 15: future libraries will be staffed by robots
I read through Michael Stephens' Into a new world of librarianship and liked his idea that, in Library 2.0 "the Library is human," as it addresses the issue of a library as being a mere storage facility and distribution point for what is deemed worth collecting. A library, for me, should be responsive and helpful. We should endeavour to provide the service of collecting and providing access to knowledge in a way that is as inclusive as possible. Say what you like about marketing and brand image, but presenting a warm "human" face to customers will increase a library's profile, and increase the use of our services.
That's why it makes so much sense that Library 2.0 embraces Web2.0 technologies. Social networking sites, blogs, tag aggregators and so on are not just fancy technological tricks - they're something that is being adopted by customers/users in surprising numbers. It's still new at this point, but for a large amount of younger people these kinds of interfaces are the norm. As such they are unlikely to find much use in a library system which presents itself as static and top-down.
Of course, I'm not advocating we drop the cathedral and go all-out bazaar here. I'm simply suggesting that an awareness of the methods our customers use, and an integration of such, strikes me as an obvious next step for libraries.
It's Stephen's last point that I find most interesting - "Librarian 2.0 gets content." Content is easy to understand in the traditional, top-down, publisher to consumer model. It's user-generated content that I think it will be important to understand. The proliferation of, for example, user-submitted video on a site like YouTube, or even topic-related blogs are difficult to fit into a traditional model of libraries. Recoginising that often this is the sort of thing our customers will be seeking and dealing with is essential. Having an understanding of how such content can be accessed and used will be a valuable skill for librarians helping customers. An important part of this is to make such content readily available via library resources like the website and in-house computer systems.
That's why it makes so much sense that Library 2.0 embraces Web2.0 technologies. Social networking sites, blogs, tag aggregators and so on are not just fancy technological tricks - they're something that is being adopted by customers/users in surprising numbers. It's still new at this point, but for a large amount of younger people these kinds of interfaces are the norm. As such they are unlikely to find much use in a library system which presents itself as static and top-down.
Of course, I'm not advocating we drop the cathedral and go all-out bazaar here. I'm simply suggesting that an awareness of the methods our customers use, and an integration of such, strikes me as an obvious next step for libraries.
It's Stephen's last point that I find most interesting - "Librarian 2.0 gets content." Content is easy to understand in the traditional, top-down, publisher to consumer model. It's user-generated content that I think it will be important to understand. The proliferation of, for example, user-submitted video on a site like YouTube, or even topic-related blogs are difficult to fit into a traditional model of libraries. Recoginising that often this is the sort of thing our customers will be seeking and dealing with is essential. Having an understanding of how such content can be accessed and used will be a valuable skill for librarians helping customers. An important part of this is to make such content readily available via library resources like the website and in-house computer systems.
Sunday, November 4, 2007
Thing 14: fishing for tags
Today I plunged back into Technorati to see how tagging made a difference to my blogging life. I claimed this blog, and added some tags to it so that people might be more likely to stumble across it while looking for something more useful about web 2.0 and Auckland City Libraries. Who knows, maybe there's a fetish forLearning 2.0 blogs. On the internet this is very possible.
I tried searching for the term "Learning 2.0" in different ways on Technorati. Searching for post by keyword, blogs by keyword, and posts by tag all brought up a lot of posts focused on education and Web 2.0, and the crossover between them. The intersting result was that there was no overlap on the first result page between any method. I haven't really had time to see which way would help someone find this blog. Perhaps it's best if I don't know - I already spend too much time googling myself.
Looking at Technorati's popular page produced some results I would have expected - the top blogs are things like Boing Boing and Techcrunch - popular sites from the neo-nerd zeitgeist. The most amusing top blog result was Blog Tips to Help You Make Money Blogging. I'm glad these two things have come together.
The popular page also has a list of top searches, with the illuminating inclusion of hot girls. This proves that even in the world of Web 2.0 the internet has not lost sight of its original goals.
I tried searching for the term "Learning 2.0" in different ways on Technorati. Searching for post by keyword, blogs by keyword, and posts by tag all brought up a lot of posts focused on education and Web 2.0, and the crossover between them. The intersting result was that there was no overlap on the first result page between any method. I haven't really had time to see which way would help someone find this blog. Perhaps it's best if I don't know - I already spend too much time googling myself.
Looking at Technorati's popular page produced some results I would have expected - the top blogs are things like Boing Boing and Techcrunch - popular sites from the neo-nerd zeitgeist. The most amusing top blog result was Blog Tips to Help You Make Money Blogging. I'm glad these two things have come together.
The popular page also has a list of top searches, with the illuminating inclusion of hot girls. This proves that even in the world of Web 2.0 the internet has not lost sight of its original goals.
Saturday, November 3, 2007
Thing 13: my bookmarks follow me around
A site like del.icio.us hovers around the edges of my web use. I know it's out there, I know it's popular, and I guess that means I know it must be useful. But I've never tried to use it. Why not? Maybe I'm thinking "my web experience isn't broken, so why fix it?" I guess I've felt that the way I handle my bookmarks was getting the job done pretty well.
So I'd like to thank the ACL Learning 2.0 programme for steering me to del.icio.us. I think I'm actually going to use this. One thing I like about it is the portability it gives. I think the ability to follows chains of bookmarks by tag is really handy to, but more as a way of having fun. I like being pointed to parts of the web I haven't seen before. I imagine it'd be very seldom that I'd find anything useful, but that's just because I don't have much faith in user-generated tags, for whatever reason.
No, wait, I know the reason. It's because I myself am allowed to tag, and so arethe various younger myselves. I don't think these people are much of an authority. I wouldn't trust me.
So I'd like to thank the ACL Learning 2.0 programme for steering me to del.icio.us. I think I'm actually going to use this. One thing I like about it is the portability it gives. I think the ability to follows chains of bookmarks by tag is really handy to, but more as a way of having fun. I like being pointed to parts of the web I haven't seen before. I imagine it'd be very seldom that I'd find anything useful, but that's just because I don't have much faith in user-generated tags, for whatever reason.
No, wait, I know the reason. It's because I myself am allowed to tag, and so arethe various younger myselves. I don't think these people are much of an authority. I wouldn't trust me.
Saturday, October 27, 2007
Thing 12: Keep rollin'
Rollyo is a handy little website, indeed. It's quite easy with most blogs to add a search box that lets readers flick through your archives and find all your posts about 'lunch', Rollyo takes things one step further.
After signing up, I quickly whipped up a search tool of a few websites I read most days, and some reference sites I use quite frequently. And bing, bang, boom, there it is. You can search this site right now, if you want. I didn't include the search of my favourite websites, cause it's not particularly useful or relevant to this blog.
I imagine this function of Rollyo could be quite handy. I can think of numerous occasions when I've wanted to show someone a particular post on a website, but didn't have the link to hand. Sometimes I can't even remember what site it was on. Rather than scroll through pages of pages, this search tool could get me straight to the point. Another handy tool in my belt, and better than Google for when I can't remember exactly what site something was on.
After signing up, I quickly whipped up a search tool of a few websites I read most days, and some reference sites I use quite frequently. And bing, bang, boom, there it is. You can search this site right now, if you want. I didn't include the search of my favourite websites, cause it's not particularly useful or relevant to this blog.
I imagine this function of Rollyo could be quite handy. I can think of numerous occasions when I've wanted to show someone a particular post on a website, but didn't have the link to hand. Sometimes I can't even remember what site it was on. Rather than scroll through pages of pages, this search tool could get me straight to the point. Another handy tool in my belt, and better than Google for when I can't remember exactly what site something was on.
Thing 11: the Library Thing
The Library Thing
I have to admit this is a pretty addictive website. I could've spent hours following suggestions, adding books, comparing my tastes to other people's. I wasn't at all sure whether it was appropriate to include only books I own, or if I could list all the books I've read. It would make sense to list what I've read, because then the suggestion tool wouldn't keep telling me to read things I've already read.
I think I need to stay well away from this website until I have a lot of free time. This could really suck a hole in my day. I tend to avoid online forums for varying reasons, but I found the forums at Library Thing really interesting. Dangerous stuff.
Check out my catalogue, or search it using the Library Thing search tool I added to this blog.
I have to admit this is a pretty addictive website. I could've spent hours following suggestions, adding books, comparing my tastes to other people's. I wasn't at all sure whether it was appropriate to include only books I own, or if I could list all the books I've read. It would make sense to list what I've read, because then the suggestion tool wouldn't keep telling me to read things I've already read.
I think I need to stay well away from this website until I have a lot of free time. This could really suck a hole in my day. I tend to avoid online forums for varying reasons, but I found the forums at Library Thing really interesting. Dangerous stuff.
Check out my catalogue, or search it using the Library Thing search tool I added to this blog.
Thing #10: get generating
I decided that I should honour the mathematical nature of this blog's title for this Thing. I found an image generator called Back to School Chalkboard Message! and plugged in my rigorously proven formula on the Math background.
There wasn't room for me to provide the full proof, but it is of a standard form, and I will leave it as an exercise for the reader. Maths and logic reprazentz!
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