Thing 17 - LPLS wiki

Well, I suppose that I could mention here that I set up the wiki, including the front page, the sandbox page, and the Checking In Materials entry (as an example) and call it a day. But I'll go an extra mile and throw up a couple of additional entries: the opening procedures and closing procedures for MGL Library.

One thing I like so much about this wiki, a feature that I think will make it very useful, is that it's searchable. Have a question, type in a term, find pages that are related. Awesome! And pbwiki is a very easy site to use -- much easier than some other wiki sites I've visited and explored.

If it isn't obvious yet, I am really excited about this project. This week's activities are the ones I have been most looking forward to. I've been wanting to create a staff wiki for some time now, and this Learning 2.0 program was a great excuse to finally get it going. I'm glad to see that some of you fellow L2.0 folks are into this idea too -- now we just have to convert the rest of the staff!

Thing 16 - I like wikis

I do! I think it's a great concept and I love that it's so popular. You can harp about the questionable reliability of wikipedia all you want, but I use it all the time for general information. Sure, I don't consider it to be on the same authoritative level as Encyclopedia Britannica or the OED, but I do think it is a good resource. I also use another wiki, ZineWiki, which is a wiki dedicated to zines. I've made a few entries and edits there. Here's the entry about the zine I publish, Zine World. Here's wikipedia's entry on ZW.

Anyway, about wikis in libraries: I think there are a lot of possibilities for using wikis. I think the sites mentioned in this exercise are good examples. I like the subject guide / pathfinders idea. And Library Success is a great resource. I could see wikis also being useful in a school setting -- for group projects, class assignments, syllabuses, etc.

I really hope that we're able to build a comprehensive staff resource using the wiki. I've already given a few other ideas about what we could add: procedures, instructions, library forms (with instructions), reference resources (website links, links to entries in the catalog, etc.), training guides, party planning. I'm interested to see what you guys suggest!

for my reference

Flickr pool of zines in libraries

Thing #15 - Library 2.0

I read all the articles, because I’m a geek like that. I thought Dr. Wendy Shultz’s article (temporary place) was really interesting, to imagine her predictions for libraries of the future. The article that resonated the most with me was Michael Stephens (new world) because that’s really how I see “Library 2.0.”

Though I disagree with some of the points Rick Anderson (icebergs) made, I think this comment really sums the topic up well: “There was a time, not very long ago, when libraries exercised something close to monopoly power in the information marketplace. … In the post-print era, libraries no longer have the monopoly power that they had in the days before the Internet.”

I’ve always thought of libraries (at least public libraries) as a center of the community: a place where everyone had equal access, no matter your wealth, to information and entertainment. And, right now, they still are. But we’re losing that edge. We’re all struggling to keep our circulation numbers up. As they are going down, our computer usage numbers are skyrocketing. And what of the people who no longer come to the library because they have Internet at home and through the Internet, they can find everything they need?

Most people do not think they need a guide in navigating the Internet. We can’t wait for them to come to us so we can show them all the lovely things we have to offer. We have to find a way to go to them. We need to meet them where they are. And that’s where I see the true benefit in using Web 2.0 tools. Just because a person doesn’t physically step foot into one of our library buildings doesn’t mean we should write them off as a library patron. We have to find ways to make it happen.

So my question is: What can we do once this program is over? How can we make use of the tools we have been playing with and learning about? How do we go out and reach our patrons? Who is going to help me do it? I hope to hear comments from some of you about this by the time we get to the end of the program.

#12 roll your own

This has been my least favorite activity so far, which I guess is why I put it off. I just don't really see myself using this very often. It took me a while to think of a topic I could use: what's something I repeatedly search for that involves looking at multiple websites? Finally it dawned on me: recipes. So I loaded up several sites and viola.

Select Search Engine...recipe finderSearch The Web

Powered by Rollyo

Interesting that when you do a search using your rollyo tool, you still end up with results from places other than the ones you selected -- "sponsored links."

Other ideas I came up with which might be useful rollyo searches: Crafts or coloring sheets (could be useful for YS programs). Or medical sites (better to used trusted sources than a google search, if you're looking up diseases or symptoms, etc.). Maybe parenting tips / advice.

Anyway, it's not something I'd add to the library website, but I could see it being used by specific staff or in specific departments, maybe.

#14 Technorati

I'm still trying to wrap my head around the inner workings of Technorati. I see how to use it as a search / blog finding tool, and I understand how they manage their ranking / authority, but somehow it feels like the site hasn't quite clicked for me yet. In an effort to raise the authority ranking of the LPLS Learning 2.0 website a bit above 1, I'm adding a link within this blog entry. Because blogs linking to other blogs is where the authority comes from.

You know, I was thinking that it's cool that Technorati displays videos among its search results. I just did a search for my name (to see if this here blog was listing in Technorati, which is is, with 0 authority -- which shows you that even if you don't go through the claim process, as described in this week's exercise, your blog may still be included in Technorati listings), and what do you know, it included videos from youtube that I'm in (from the Richmond Zine Festival this summer). It also pulled up a video of me and my kiddo (from his grammy's webcam, which we were using to make a video for the kiddo's uncle). And I found a blog post about Linebaugh's zine collection. Course, it also includes links to blog posts & videos that are not me. (Yes, it's still possible, even with a name as uncommon as mine.)

#11 my LibraryThing

I've known about LibraryThing for a while, and I've thought about setting up an account but I never did. So, now I am. I think I'm going to try to use it to keep track of books that I have read or books that I want to read. I've tried a few times keeping a book journal or a reading log, and I always bail out after a few weeks. Maybe this will be easier to maintain! And having some way to keep a 'want to read' list (somewhere other than in my head) will be great.

So here I am: http://www.librarything.com/catalog/jerianne

I think LibraryThing is pretty cool and has lots of interesting and useful features. I'd like to go back later and spend more time exploring, especially the features that are related to libraries. I think that ILS systems could learn a lot from the way people have flocked to, and use, LibraryThing.