This social networking tool would be useful for conference goers. It would serve as a way of documenting and sharing what is being learned real time with others that are in the same conference.
Social Networking in Libraries
I think it’s of great value to reach out to patrons and engage them at web locations such as MySpace and Facebook. The operative word here is “engage”, not just push out information. Further, I feel that social networking tools used for 2-way communication (specifically commenting tools) can and should be included on our public website. Providing the ability for patrons to comment on our web content (features, services, collections, etc) would make it apparent that we are interested in the patron’s input. I look forward to gaining permission to turn this very important feature on!
Wikis – Week 2
Entering content into the krl2pt0 wiki is as easy as entering a blog entry. All you need to know is basic editor features – a real no-brainer.
My content entry was kind of a no-brainer too. Just added a little background on how the new website was developed, how it’s being currently maintained and the direction we will soon be going – all in very general terms.
I think the krl2pt0 wiki could be of great value as a source of “how-tos” and help files for patrons. Off the top of my head, I’m thinking mostly help required for patrons using the catalog but it could be used for all of our library services.
Wikis – Week 1
Wiki publishing is a collaborative online effort, in which, many people will post ideas or theories which are then edited or improved upon by other authors. It’s quite something to harness all of this collective intelligence. Implementing this in the library world should be especially interesting … the possibilities are endless.
YouTube
Since videos need to be less than 10 minutes long, I’m thinking (off the top of my head), that this could be a great way to provide help files to our patrons!
My general thoughts regarding YouTube is that it can be as passive or social as you want it to be, just as the other social networking tools. And if nothing else, a great distraction for some down time.
LibraryThing
I had to spam every book lover I know with this little treat! The new year generally brings the desire to get organized so you can make more room in your life for fun. LibraryThing provides both organization and fun! I don’t know if we will be adding the LibraryThing widget to our online public catalog, but I sure hope so.
Podcasting
Okay, I admit it … I love NPR! I have it on in the house and in my car all the time. There is nothing better than to have their podcasts at my fingertips. Better still, I have access to more stuff online than our local affiliated NPR stations could ever have time to air. It’s easy and fun and feels personal in some way. Like you want to go to someone you know can deliver a good story and just simply ask for it … just for you … here’s your story. Ahhh, very satisfying indeed. And if this doesn’t fit into our library offerings for new website development, then frankly, nothing does. Who better to deliver a book review (in their own words and voice!) than a beloved, trusted and local librarian. Can’t wait to get this one started too!
PhotoSharing
Yet another worthwhile learning experience! I’d heard about Flickr for some time now and never bothered with it. Mostly because I had created my own photo sharing site (as a student intern for a professor). Trust me, Flickr is much easier to use … and looks better than mine too!! Ah well, the limitations of a JavaScript novice (my defense, of course).
As for implementing this into the KRL site, the possibilities are many. Photo contests for our patrons would be fun! Sharing the images of the new building progression for Little Boston’s new branch library facility would be interesting. Of course, featured events such as Storytime or Speakers’ Forums might be good for getting the public interested and engaged. It will be fun tossing around the ideas with the web committee! And more fun including it into our library website … now that I see how easy and fun it is!
I sure see it as another topic for the web committee to discuss!
RSS Feeds
I had every intention of whipping right through this exercise because (as we all know) RSS truly is reeeeeally simple. Instead, I found myself reading through pages and pages of news, blogs, library design success tips … and fun stuff too, for the last several hours of my Saturday morning.
One of our first steps toward creating a more dynamic and relevant public library website will be to feed our web pages from our electronic resources (online catalog and databases, digital media, etc). We can then provide subscriptions (RSS feeds) to our patrons when new or updated information of these resources is made available. This way they can be conveniently kept up-to-date.
Currently, there is an RSS Feed on our KRL Homepage only. It allows the subscriber to receive our latest featured events without having to go to the website to find out. But like I said, the plan is to implement this functionality throughout our new website.
Social Bookmarking
The social bookmarking tool (most prominently, delicious) has given our reference librarians at KRL a clear shot at controlling and organizing authoritative, well-organized information for their patrons’ web experience.
I have found Port Orchard’s reference librarians delicious page (http://del.icio.us/ptref/) to be created with so much care that I have since contacted their branch manager and suggested that we link to it from KRL’s public website. It’s a very small step toward including Web 2.0 technologies into the site!
For my own tags, I had to go with web development sites that I have grown dependent upon over the past several months. Most of the selected tags are forums for developers of open source solutions. The developer’s forums are a great way to research solutions to technical problems that others have undoubtedly come across in their own web development.
