Week 7, Thing 16

Check out this video, "Wikis in Plain English" for more info on what wikis are and how they are used. I think wikis are neat way to gather input from people - esp. in terms of major projects that require lots of planning. Setting up a wiki for strategic planning or summer reading planning might be a good way to generate lots of ideas and discussion - without having to hold a meeting!

Library Success: a best practices wiki is a neat resource - some of the categories are more detailed than others, but it's definitely worth a look. I came across an interesting document "The Angry Customer" from the Memphis Public Library.

Week 6, Thing 15

I am excited about the ways Library 2.0 expands services to patrons. I think many patrons would be interested in setting up their own Library Thing account and wanting to learn how to post their photos to Flickr. These tools can also be used to attract new patrons too - think about students who prefer chat reference to visiting the reference desk.

I especially appreciate what Michael Stephens writes in his piece Into a New World of Librarianship:

"Technology is put to the test: Does it meet the users need in a new or improved way? Does it create a useful service for putting users together with the information and experience they seek? These are some of the questions this librarian asks when planning for technology. This librarian creates and nurtures a living, breathing technology plan."

But librarians have always asked those questions - whether it be about technology or collection development or programming or library outreach. So, I think we're in good shape to face Library 2.0 and Library 3.0, 4.0... :-)

Week 6, Thing 14

Although I had heard a lot about technorati before, this is the first time I've really used it. Not sure if I understand its importance - but the search results I found weren't that helpful. I need to look into this more...

Week 6, Thing 13

Del.icio.us seems like a great tool for reference staff to use. Since the reference desk may have more than one computer, staff can still access their favorite reference websites by using del.icio.us. Del.icio.us is also a great tool to tell students about too (if they don't know already!). Most students prefer to research online and del.icio.us can help them track the websites they've used - which will make writing those bibliographies a lot easier.

One thing I don't want people to forget that just because a website has been tagged by a number of users doesn't automatically make that website the best source out there. A lot of people are using these social bookmarking sites to increase the activity/traffic on their own websites by adding tags, etc. That way their website has a better chance of being found on a Google search.

Is Web 2.0 all its cracked up to be?

Andrew Keen doesn't think so. I haven't read his book "The Cult of the Amateur" yet - but check out this review from NY Times.

Week 5, con't.

Amy from WICO blogged about a South Park Generator, so I had to make one too!

Week 5, Thing 12

Here is my Rollyo list. I think this could be useful to put together some good websites for children/students to search without having them run into inappropriate sites. Or, maybe a great list of websites for local research. I can forsee lots of uses with this tool as well.

Google has a similar feature available - it's called "customized search engines." There is a directory of CSEs available as well.