Exploration 9 - What's Next and Looking Back

"Remember how encouraging it was to see that first comment posted on your blog post?"

Sniff...I'm still waiting for mine!

Aside from the loneliness, it's been rather fun learning about the many possibilties that exist with web 2.0. Before the project, I usually just thought of web 2.0 in terms of what I was already familiar with: YouTube, MySpace/Facebook, blogs, tagging and folksonomies. Granted, all of those things were wonderful but at this point, they are old hat to me. I'm experienced with them and I've gotten to the point where I see the value, but believe that our technological limitations here in the library prevent us from using them to our full advantage.

While this project gave you the opportunity to explore those sites if you had not already, I enjoyed how the focus was on other less talked about tools of this revolution: online desktop publishing software, web-based "libraries", and social bookmarking were all things that I had heard of in passing, but never really explored in terms of thier usefulness here in the libraries. After exploring them in the name of on-the-job research, I see their value as more than just a time-waster and am seriously considering how I could use them in my day-to-day duties.

In addition, I came to appreciate other sites in a different way. Before the project, Flickr was the place (along with Picasa and Photobucket) was a site I went to to to view pictures from a friend's trip or night out. Now I see that fellow librarians and major institutions (such as the Library of Congress) are taking advantage of it as a way to reach out to others in their field, or simply use participatory culture to both aid their research as well as open up their collections to a whole new audience.

Though I haven't decided yet if I'll keep updating my blog, I do plan to continue utilizing and looking into the possibilties of web 2.0 in our library. I still believe that we need to do more to improve the technological capabilities and capacities of our system in order to support new technologies. At the same time, I now realize that there is plenty out there that we can handle with our current setup and use to the benefit of our patrons as well as each other.

Exploration 8 - Social Bookmarking Sites and Folksonomies

Social bookmarking sites, such as del.icio.us, fall into the catagory of "things I've heard a lot about but have yet to check out myself". The idea interests me, as I have always just been in the habit of emailing myself interesting links, but never figuring out an organized way to gather and access them. del.icio.us seems to simplify a part of our job (finding and evaluating great sites for patron and staff use), while also giving us a better way to share it.

I see social bookmarking sites as a great way to share links with each other and the public. We can organize them according to topic, and even write a few sentences (or a whole review!) about what's on the site and what it's good for. Linking del.icio.us up with our recommended sites page would be smart, as librarians from around the system could continually update links on the page and add new sites as we see them.

The general concept of folksonomies is something I've discussed on here many times before, so I'll just repeat what I've always said: the idea and implimentation of folksonomies and tagging into library catalogs and other information sharing sites is a truly revolutionary thing. It will hopefully make it easier for people to find what they are looking forward, based on natural language descriptions of materials.

Exploration 7 - Wikis

I think Wikis are quickly becoming my favorite aspect of the web 2.0 era. They are a terrific way to gather, collaborate and share all types of information. In addition, they are easily searchable, making for quick access if someone wants to find something specific in a large document or site. The 2008 MLA conference actually featured a session on Wikis in the workplace, where librarians from UMBC and Loyola Maryland showed how their libraries are using this technology for the benefit of both patrons and staff.

I've always felt that one of the best uses for a Wiki in the library environment was as the electronic version of a policy and procedure manual. Instead of having several individual document files scattered on a drive or in a folder on server, all components of the manual could be a part of the wiki. Library staff could restrict access to only those allowed to manipulate the manual, with the option to restore a previous version of a document if the most recent edit is not to the liking of whoever is in charge. Changes to the manual would be easy to track, while searching the manual for what a staff member needs to find at a given moment would be much easier. I know that some libraries (at least on the academic end) are starting to go this direction with their P&P manual, with positive results. Seeing how my branch's current manual is stored (and managed) electronically, I think it's something we might want to look into as well.

Systemwide, I think it might be interesting to switch our "recommended sites" page over to a Wiki, to allow for staff from all over the system to add links when they find them. There may be some issues here in terms of regulating the quality of links (having an editor who approves changes, for instance), or maybe who on staff would be considered "qualified" to post, but it would be an interesting approach.

Exploration 6 - Online Office Tools

I have previously fiddled around with Google Docs, so I was somewhat familiar with the advantages (and disadvantages) that come along with using online office tools. Obviously, they are great for creating and sharing basic word processing and spreadsheet documents. Friends of mine have used them for collaborating on group papers, not having too many complaints despite the limited features and other little quirks that go along with using a web-based program.

What I liked about Zoho was the ability to place one document in many different files using tags. I don't recall Google Docs having this feature, but it's one they may want to ad. I have had the problem of wanting a document to appear many different places, but having to re-save it in many different places when I edited one particular copy. I also dig how it will link up with many blogging serviecs to that a person can post to their blog from the program. Offline editing capabilities can also come in handy when you are (shock!) without internet but need to work on that web-based document you've created. The limited features aren't too noticible (except when it comes to font selection), though there seems to be a bit of a lag in response time when you click on commands. This is likely just due to the slow connection here in the libraries.

As the 2.0 blog pointed out already, web-based office tools are great for our patrons, who otherwise would be without things like Excel and PowerPoint in the library. They are also great for working on projects with people in other locations. Though there are probably a few kinks to work out (and a few features the creators may want to add), these programs are pretty solid and will likely stick around, if not dominate the office tool field in the next few years.

Exploration 5 - It's a LibraryThing

Though I have been using GoodReads on Facebook, I decided to go ahead and sign up for LibraryThing just to see what it is all about. The tagging and "cloud" features are very interesting and a great way for users to create common subject headings that might otherwise be ignored by traditional cataloging standards. And like with GoodReads, I enjoy the level of interaction a user can have with people in terms of sharing and recommending books, and linking with favorite authors. This appears to be especially strong on LT.

I think Book Banter's presence on LT is terrific, as it is a great way for patrons and system employees to keep track of the book club selections. It can also be a potential way for patrons to recommend particular titles that the library does not already carry. Patrons could post these recommendations directly on the site, while staff could post them as they receive them at the desk.

Exploration 4 - RSS Feeds and Feed Readers

I am not sure why, but I have never been too excited over the whole "RSS Feed" phenomenon. I understand how they work. I understand how they are useful. I know a lot of people who swear by them. For myself though, I find them to be a waste of time.

I visit many different websites every day, reading up on important (and not-so-important) news and gossip. I've never found that typing in the individual web addresses (which are all very short and easy to remember) took up any more time than logging into a separate site like Bloglines to read a feed. When I view a blog or another site through a feed, I lose out on graphics and other little features that are unique to a particular site.

Where I feel RSS feeds come in handy is in the delivery of news and events about an organization that may not be a regular distributor of news (like CNN or NYT). For instance, a library website. We are not constantly putting out news stories about our organization. But when we want to annouce a particular promotion, or information about upcoming programs, we can put up a story that would immediately reach people subscribed to a feed (and who may not otherwise check the website constantly for the latest library news). In addition, having several different feeds specific to other not frequent (but important when they occur) updates, like the release of a book by an author a patron is following, or news about a particular library group, is great for keeping patrons up to date on the specific events, authors, and whatnot they rely on the library to provide.

So basically, my view on RSS feeds is this: quite useful in the library world for communicating with the public, but of varying usefulness in everyday life depending on one's needs.

Exploration 3 - Flickr

I've always felt that one of Flickr's best qualities was the ability for people to add tags to describe their photos in natural language. It is a feature that is starting to be included in some databases and library catalogs. After all, the way LC or Dewey describes a particular material is not necessarily how a regular person would. Additionally, why should an item necessarily be limited to three descriptors? Though bibliographic control certainly has its place in libraries, the advent of tagging is a welcome addition to make searching easier and more accessible to the everyday user--and possibly more interactive (or "2.0") by allowing them to add their own tags to a libray catalog.

But back to Flickr itself. Doing a search for "librarian", I came across a group called "I am a librarian", which encouraged its members and viewers to consider the following:

"Since we don't look like librarians, what does a librarian look like?"

By posting photos of librarians both inside and outside their "natural habitat", the group seeks to break the outdated stereotypes of who we are in our profession. We are not the stuffy, reserved "shusshers" of yesteryear, but a more proactive (and increasingly younger) group of individuals looking to serve our community while providing traditional as well as innovative informational services. I really like how this group is using a 2.0 initiative like Flickr to allow people to question their traditional views of our profession.

I think Flickr could have some useful purposes in the library. For staff, it would be a great way to document and easily catagorize and maintain photos from library programs. This would be an easy way for people throughout the system to take a look at what's going on at each branch, add comments, and link pictures through common tags (such as "Summer Reading Club" or "holiday").

The Library of Congress' Flickr project fascinates me in that they are encouraging the public to contribute to the pursuit of better understanding and identifying the people and circumstances in some of the photos they have collected. I think a public library could take a similar initiative by teaming up with a local archive and encouraging its patrons to help identify people and places in old photos that have been donated over the years. Another possibility is starting a community album of patron submissions that would help document the past and present through family photographs and commentary. Other community users could contribute their own comments and notes to photos, adding to the collective memory in an organized, interactive way.