Thing #23 – Final Thoughts October 11, 2009

Going through the 23 Things of a Stick exercise has really opened my eyes to a lot of different things that can be utilized within the library.  The explanation about what Library 2.0 is, opened my eyes to the many wonderful things that libraries should be doing.  The whole movement of Library 2.0 has endless possibilities for those libraries that incorporate these ideas.  However, librarians need to remember that it’s not the technology that is the key; the key is interaction and engaging the community that is served by the library.  With these many 2.0 technologies, it allows the library to step into the users world of user-centered, user-powered information and allows them to feel like they are a necessary entity.  The involvement of the community will allow the library to reach more people and stay relevant.  It also might bring people into the library that otherwise would not be there.  It is indeed a wonderful tool to be used for the sake of promoting the library and its resources.

Also this exercise was a wonderful way to brush on many of these ideas before I take Comps in a couple of weeks.  It really let me see that the library is an important part of the community, we just need to make the community see that.

Thing #22 – What did I learn today? October 11, 2009

So for this blog post, we are supposed to write a resolution to keep up with 2.0 technologies, etc, etc.   However, I don’t want to make a resolution that I will not keep.  I am a very busy person, and if it had not been for this class I probably would not have done all of the things and explored these new technologies.  I did find some very interesting things that I will probably utilize even after this assignment.  For instance, I had not set up blog reader before.  That is one thing that I will probably still use almost daily.  It takes a lot less time to look at Google Reader rather than to go to every blog or website that I would like to keep up with.  As for the other things that we explored, I’m glad that I had the opportunity to learn about them and know that they are there.  Hopefully, if I need a site where I can create cool graphics or advertisements for library events, I will remember to go to Flickr and the mash-ups that can be used with Flickr. Whether or not, I do use these again, I’m not sure; however, I now know that they exist, which is half of the battle.

Thing #21 – Other Social Networks October 10, 2009

You mean there are other social networks other than Facebook and MySpace??  I have never looked for any other social networks, so I was very surprised to find on this thing that there are so many others.  Some of them looked very interesting!  I might try out the last.fm, which is a social network all about music.  last.fm even has its own terminology.  I learned what a “scrobble” was!    I’m not sure that I will genuinely use this site, but it was very cool.  However, I utilize iTunes for all of my music purchases, and this seemed to be one step further than iTunes.  They allowed members to show what music they are listening to at the moment, and users can also set up profiles.  Very cool!  I also checked out the Bake Space.  This seemed to also be a really neat network that allowed members to set up profiles and add recipes to share.

Thing #20 – Libraries and Social Networks October 10, 2009

I am an avid Facebook user and have been for a few years now.  Before it was open to everyone!  I love the fact that I can stay in touch with friends that I went to college with now that I am living in a different state.  If it wasn’t for Facebook, I would only be in contact with a handful of people at the most.  I think it is a great way to express your individuality by posting pictures of yourself, writing your about me section, and listing your interests.  I learned many things about people who I have known for years after befriending them on Facebook.  You are able to view their pictures and feel like you are still a part of their lives even if you don’t see them on a regular basis.

Now that FB is open to fan pages, it is a great way for libraries to stay relevant to the younger demographic by meeting where they are.  Some have felt that this might be an invasion of space, but I feel like it is a way for young users to learn that their local library cares enough about them to come to where they are.  It allows the library to not seem like a relic that isn’t necessary.  This is the same of other organizational fan pages.  They are able to stay a part of their lives even while they are not in the library or using the library resources.  It is slowly but surely becoming a way of life for organizations to keep up with their constituents.

Thing #19 – Podcast October 10, 2009

All of the podcasts that I have ever listened to have been found on iTunes.  I assumed that there were other places that these could be found, but I had never looked.  It’s good to know that the directories are available if I ever want to listen/watch any others.  I do like that iTunes has added iTunes U to their line-up.  I found some really great podcasts on film studies from a professor at Stanford University (I believe).  I think these are another great way for libraries to make their presence known.  They are able to produce podcasts on a variety of subjects that would let interested parties subscribe to them.  I do think that it would be a great way to share special interests and even invite guest speakers to share.  I know that the Seattle Public Library has a lot of events and author talks that they provide for the community.  They would be able to record these and share them by podcast for those that were interested but were unable to come to the event.

Thing #18 – YouTube and other Online Video October 10, 2009

Who hasn’t heard of YouTube?!  This is one of the biggest phenomena to hit the web in recent years.  I think that this is a great way for people to get their name out onto the web in hopes that someone will watch their clips.  And it works!  There are videos that are just for fun, such as a clip from a recent vacation or a mishap that happened to be caught on tape.  I have found some pretty amazing videos of musicians and even part of documentary that I hope to use when writing my thesis next spring.

However, I think that YouTube is also a great tool for libraries to utilize.  This would be a great way for librarians to reach more users in their quest for information literacy and instruction.  These useful tools would be a way that students and other users would be able to access this information 24/7 as opposed to only when the library was open, or only when they were on the library’s website.

This video is just fun! Enjoy!

Things #16 and 17 – Minnesota Library 2.0 October 9, 2009

I think that the assignment calculators are a great tool for students, especially freshmen who might be overwhelmed by all of the newness of the university.  Many times freshmen are too busy worrying about their social lives instead of focusing on completing assignments on time.  These are great tools to keep them on track and help ease the stress.  Librarians should utilize these tools as a way to incorporate information literacy into everyday use.  The handouts that are included are great for the student to understand their assignments and to use good resources.  The research project is better designed for secondary students like it states because it has fewer steps with more time between them.  This assumes that the students will be self-motivated to complete their projects.

Thing #15 – Online Games and Libraries October 9, 2009

The idea of Second Life is not new to me. However, I would not say that I am an expert by any means!  I was first introduced to SL last semester in my Information Literacy and Instruction course.  One of my fellow classmates introduced us to the idea of a library presence on SL.  I do understand the importance of having a library or presence in all environments, even virtual.  I think that this is a great way to expand the community that each library serves.  It is a wonderful way to meet the user where they are.  The idea of Library 2.0  is all about keeping the user engaged.   SL keeps the user engaged, but in a virtual world.  The SL library allows the user to find information while being in a virtual world.  I think that this is yet another great way for the library to reach more people.

Thing #14 – Library Thing October 7, 2009

I recently set up my library on Library Thing.  I really enjoy the concept.  It really speaks to the nerd in me!   I like to have things organized, and I love the fact that I can have a library with all of my books organized online.

I think that this would be a great tool for a public library that has a very active book club, or even a library that is trying to start a book club.  It would allow the patrons to read these books and write reviews for each other to read.  Also if they had a profile on LT, they would be able to interact with the library by viewing books that are similar to ones they have already read.  Also this would allow them to interact with other book club members and share their likes and dislikes outside the library walls. They would be able to compare their tags and see if there was any crossover between the two libraries.

I wasn’t able to put the widget up on my blog.  I’m not sure if I was doing something wrong or if it wasn’t working.

Thing #13 – Online Productivity Tools October 7, 2009

I already have a personalized Yahoo page.  This allows me to see the local news headlines, weather forecast, and has links to my most used sites right on the front page.  However, the other productivity tools seem to be too much work to set up and then visit.  My problem with the computer is that if I try to do work on my computer, many times I get distracted by everything that I don’t get anything done.  I just think that the other productivity tools would not help me save time, but instead would add to the distraction of getting things done.