It's a Wrap

My thoughts on finally reaching the end of Web 2.0. I must say it has been interesting but very time consuming. Most of the course was done in my own time at home due to time restraints, and because of the smaller staff numbers in a small library we just do not have that much time off desk.

Probably the only two applications I would use and have already been using for quite a while were Delicious and YouTube, both of which I find positively addictive. I can see Twitter and Facebook as important resources in distributing information quickly (if you don’t mind sifting through the mounds of mindless rubbish and incorrect information that is also posted) but I would not personally use either of them. A Wiki locked to 'staff use only’ would, I believe, be an excellent resource for staff training, posting of procedures, and for advising staff of shortcuts within the system that would make our job a lot easier.
Whilst there are aspects of the Web 2.0 training which I will not be applying to my personal life, I feel it is important for the future progress of our libraries that we stay abreast of the new technologies. In this manner, we can be a centre for education and offer assistance to our patrons if they so desire it.

Thank you Melissa and Mark for all the hard work you have put into the running of this course. The opportunity to participate and learn about these new technologies is very much appreciated, but like most others, I am so glad it’s over.

Geocaching

Whilst I must admit geocaching would definitely bring some fun into the library I personally hated orienteering at school. Not all people have handheld GPS devices or phones with those capabilities, especially not children, who I feel would be the majority interested in this. Also the time restraints would make it difficult. Most people would be participating outside of school and work hours so unless we are going to keep the libraries open for longer hours I don’t know how it would work The treasures would have to be placed outside of the library, which then defeats the purpose of getting patrons into the library.

Podcasts

Podcasts are something I am rather new to. Admittedly, I do own an IPhone, yet I had never previously understood the concept of podcasts. On discussing this week’s topic with my daughter, I learned that most universities worldwide are offering podcast recordings of lectures within the context of particular units, as well as universally accessible podcast series on various academic topics. Obviously this allows students to listen to lectures at home, but it also allows interested parties to subscribe to podcasts they find interesting regardless of whether they are students or not. At this moment I have three podcasts on my IPhone - one on the various Mythologies or different societies, one on the origins of the English language, and the Nova “Summer Breakfast” with Nathan and Nat. If a library was to offer a podcast with the first chapter of the latest titles, or perhaps ‘read’ an audio book of the week, I would subscribe to that too.

Online Video

Ok here we go – As I am now on holidays my enthusiasm for Web 2.0 is beginning to wane. I am now on a mission to just finish it.

Online Video is a cheap and easy marketing tool for the promotion of libraries. We should look into embedding videos on the following topics into library websites.

• Computer courses (Though people would need to know enough to MAKE IT to the website first!)
• Tours of the individual libraries so people have a visual image of what is available and the resources they provide
• Induction videos on how to use the library resources for new members and for members too shy to ask
• A story time session could be uploaded to encourage more patrons to come to the library
• Upload events we have held for patrons who were unable to attend.

Completely off the track of Libraries, these are a couple of videos that I have found entertaining – Revenge of us dinosaurs!!

Social Networking Shines Through Tragic Times

When first this training was discussed, I will admit I was concerned about the Facebook and Twitter sections. I know from ‘googling’ my children how unsecure these sites can be. In light of this, I have not opened an account for myself on either website. This has not, however, prevented me from using them.

Both websites are concerned with communication. This can be between friends, groups or the general public. Not long ago I was under the impression that these websites had very little value other than informing people about one’s day to day experience, much like a diary. Facebook offered the added ability to play games, or post pictures, or maybe invite people to events. Twitter seemed to have no use other than sharing in the moment information, which in the hands of some youth seemed to include “I am waiting for the bus” or “I really need to pee”. Not earth shattering stuff by any means. This all changed when I realised the profound implications of having a website with such instantaneous communication ability. The recent flooding in Queensland put this into perspective for me.

In a disaster environment where information was slow to reach the media, one could be left wondering what was going on. If you simply opened Twitter, however, new information was being shared every second, all organised into one easy list by the hash tag #qldfloods. People all over the globe were sharing messages of support, offering donations and getting the word out. Emergency workers and police were offering up to date information about the goings on, and what to expect. Possibly the best part was the sheer speed in which misinformation was being rectified. Often in these situations the media can get the wrong idea, miscommunicate missing person’s counts or put a spin on information. The sheer number of people using Twitter to share the information meant that any errors were recognised and fixed within seconds. Some conventional media recognised the value of these websites, reporting information they had received from “tweets”. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation even included a panel showing all the latest twitter feeds pertaining to the floods on their flood emergency webpage.

Twitter managed to reach greater numbers of people far more quickly. At one point all the elderly residents of a nursing home in Ipswich (many suffering with dementia) had to be evacuated in the middle of the night to a church hall that was being utilised as an evacuation centre. The local Priest put a call out on Facebook and Twitter for young people who would like to come and spend some time just to talk with the residents as they were frightened and unsure of what was happening. Within a very short amount of time, he had hundreds of people arriving to help. Had that call gone out via the conventional media, it may have been days before anyone showed up.

While Facebook does not quite have the reach and speed of Twitter, the website proved extremely useful in the locating of family members and friends, often taking the heat off of emergency services. I personally have some family members in Queensland, and my children were able to keep in touch with them and updated about their situation via the Facebook website.

The ways in which Facebook and Twitter were utilised during the floods are not new or ground-breaking, as they have proved their worth in the same manner many times before. During the Iranian uprising of 2009 television and media crews were banned, and Twitter became one of the only ways information could get out of the country. The California bushfires in 2007 saw the websites being used by fire and emergency services to get information in and out, notify people about road closures and evacuation points, and call for assistance when required.

I do not have either Facebook or Twitter accounts but I was still able to utilise all the information being posted. Whilst it is a personal chose not to open accounts due to my issues with security and privacy of both sites, I can see the enormous benefits for the library and corporate world to use these mediums.

Social networking has proven to be the fastest way to distribute information, regardless of whether it relates to emergencies, events, or the colour of one’s breakfast cereal. In terms of library usage, the fast and targeted release of information about upcoming events, important notifications to patrons, self-promotion of the library, and the answering of patron’s questions could make for a greater community experience, and draw more members back to our fold.

Rather Delicious Library Thing

Finally! A new technology I will actually use. I am talking about Delicious, which I have only recently discovered. It always bugged me that I couldn’t bookmark something on my computer, and then show it to my kids later on their PC’s, or access it at work. I thought, ‘surely there must be an easier way to do this, that doesn’t involve sending myself links all the time’. Then I learned about Delicious.

After signing up I began to search for those websites I check on a daily basis. Sites like “Perth Now”, “WA Today”, “Zoupon” and “EatingWA” immediately popped up on my screen, ready for the tagging. I found Genes Reunited and the TV guide too. Having all of these bookmarks in one place allowed me to open just one website, and check on all my regulars. It was to my delight that I realised, after trying to search the tag “food”, that recipes from the “Taste” website could also be bookmarked in this way. Suddenly the bookmark list on my browser was much smaller, and yet I had access to everything I wanted. Furthermore, searching with tags allowed me to easily find other websites I would enjoy, by looking into what users with similar tastes to my own were tagging.

LibraryThing was another matter. While I see merit in a website that allows me to read book reviews, I don’t believe in cataloguing what I have read. To me this seems like I am simply counting books, like they are just a means to a number. I have read some books multiple times, and revisited books years after I first read them. Having them in a list of books I have already read would discourage me from revisiting them and take away some of the enjoyment of reading in the first place. There is something poetic and beautiful in not knowing the number of books you have read, nor remembering all the titles.

Whilst I can't see myself personally using Librarything, I can definitely see merit for its incorporation into libraries. I believe it would make a brilliant resource for book clubs. Any web application that encourages patrons to actively participate in their library (be it through book reviews, discussions on forums about recommended books and authors, or connecting patrons to members with similar tastes) has to be a good thing.

Wikivalue in a Wikination

"A mind-grenade as iconographic for this generation as a nuclear bomb was for the last." - Kevin Kelly

If you were to ask any teacher, professor or academic what their pet hate was, the majority would probably say Wikipedia. Students, on the other hand, would probably not survive without it. Having learned about the nature of wikis this week, I can understand why.
The etymology of the word wiki is the first sign as to what exactly a wiki is. Wiki is the Hawaiian word for “quick”. The idea behind the wiki is to enable the fast production of ‘pages’ and the fast distribution of facts and information. Wikis are characterised by the way they are accessed and edited. Articles are assessed by links from other articles, rather than in some form or sequential order (like an encyclopaedia), and can be edited by anyone within the wiki’s “world”. This means that a wiki open to the whole internet (such as Wikipedia) can be contributed to by any internet user, whereas a wiki that is specific to a particular intranet or group (such as a company or department) can only be contributed to by members of that group.
There are many situations in which a wiki is an appropriate source of information, and even more where it is patently not. Taking the example of academic institutions, let’s examine the value of Wikipedia. As a student, Wikipedia provides a useful first look into a topic that may be foreign. Once the basis of knowledge had been established, a student can move on to academic information and peer reviewed sources with the understanding required to actively and critically research. The trouble is that many students don’t. They simply use the information given on Wikipedia and reference this as their academic source. Teachers and academics have come to associate Wikipedia with lazy students, and some feel that Wikipedia is actively endangering the learning and research capabilities of the internet generation. My daughter informs me that some universities are actually giving automatic fails to students who use Wikipedia as an academic source.
Wikis do have high values outside of the academic realm. Company I.T departments can create wikis that aid computer users, for example. Within the library environment procedures and policies could be turned into a wiki allowing information to be accessed more efficiently as seen in Antioch University's Staff Training and Support Wiki. If the employee had to leave their post to get a manual, and then proceed to flick through it for the next ten minutes looking for the answer or procedure in question, valuable time is lost. A wiki such as this one would need to be locked so that only staff could contribute to it.
A wiki that allowed patron contributions would make a great community project. Book reviews and recommendations, upcoming shire events, news and community information could all be included, together with local business listings, information about shire history, industrial development projects and local school events.
As we can see, wikis have more value than they are first given credit for, but there is definitely an ethical element involved. Wikis must be used correctly, or the consequences may outweigh the benefits.