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Friday, January 16, 2009
YouTube - #20
I love this song. It avoids all the political debates and speaks directly to the hearts of those whose loved ones are serving somewhere far away. Like my sister. . .
YouTube is one of the more enjoyable applications we've explored. I've used it many times, mostly for music videos. It's also useful any time you need a visual demonstration of something. (Which, of course, is the use 23 Things has put it to.) And videos could be made of training sessions which would allow staff who couldn't make the original presentation to participate at a later date.
Wiki - #16 & #17
I've already looked at some of the online aps, like Google Docs. I'm thinking a wiki would be useful in a lot of the same situations. (Mostly for group collaborations.)
I think a wiki would be more useful for library staff as they assemble the thing they're creating for library patrons. (For example, while they are in the process of creating a subject guide or writing a grant proposal. I'd think once the group has 'finished' their document they probably wouldn't want patrons to come along and re-write it. *shrug* I guess it would depend on what they were creating, but. . . )
After using both I think I like Google Docs better. You have more control over the content and who can change the content. (And I'm a bit of a control freak.) But mostly I dislike the appearance of wikis. (I find them ugly and somewhat dysfunctional. Or maybe it's just the one I was trying to use. *shrug*)
At any rate I added my library's name and my blog's name to the plcmclearning wiki sandbox. Sort of an 'I was here' mark.
I think a wiki would be more useful for library staff as they assemble the thing they're creating for library patrons. (For example, while they are in the process of creating a subject guide or writing a grant proposal. I'd think once the group has 'finished' their document they probably wouldn't want patrons to come along and re-write it. *shrug* I guess it would depend on what they were creating, but. . . )
After using both I think I like Google Docs better. You have more control over the content and who can change the content. (And I'm a bit of a control freak.) But mostly I dislike the appearance of wikis. (I find them ugly and somewhat dysfunctional. Or maybe it's just the one I was trying to use. *shrug*)
At any rate I added my library's name and my blog's name to the plcmclearning wiki sandbox. Sort of an 'I was here' mark.
Del.icio.us - #13
I really like the portability aspect of Delicious' setup. I work with multiple computers at work and I use a lot of different websites. So the ability to bookmark a web page once and have it apply everywhere could be very convenient. And I can see where the sharing could be helpful.
On the other hand, when it comes to my personal interests I'm not as wild about sharing everything. Although I *did* notice the user has the option to 'not share'. (Which kinda defeats a big chunk of the purpose, but I like the option.) And the import feature made it really easy to copy my bookmarked favorites from my computer to Delicious.
As far as using other people's tags. . . .The sheer number is more than a little overwhelming.
I'm not sure if I'll start using it regularly. It's got possibilities so we'll see. . .
On the other hand, when it comes to my personal interests I'm not as wild about sharing everything. Although I *did* notice the user has the option to 'not share'. (Which kinda defeats a big chunk of the purpose, but I like the option.) And the import feature made it really easy to copy my bookmarked favorites from my computer to Delicious.
As far as using other people's tags. . . .The sheer number is more than a little overwhelming.
I'm not sure if I'll start using it regularly. It's got possibilities so we'll see. . .
Google Docs - #18
*looks down* Well, as you can see I've got the basic idea down, but my execution could use a little work. *snicker* Apparently Google Docs automatically creates the document on standard letter size paper, and when I publish the document to my blog (with the main post area considerably smaller) the results are less than optimal. Oops.
I can see where online apps would be very helpful to small or informal organizations. A large organization or company (like the place I work for) will undoubtedly offer desktop applications to their employees. But for a small organization, like a church, or an informal group like the local writing group, Google Docs has tremendous potential. (Even a large company could find it useful for small temporary work groups. Individuals could work on the documents from Google Docs instead of swapping the documents around and hoping that everyone's working from the same version.)
I can definitely see myself using Google Docs specifically in the future for some group projects. I like this lesson's application.
I can see where online apps would be very helpful to small or informal organizations. A large organization or company (like the place I work for) will undoubtedly offer desktop applications to their employees. But for a small organization, like a church, or an informal group like the local writing group, Google Docs has tremendous potential. (Even a large company could find it useful for small temporary work groups. Individuals could work on the documents from Google Docs instead of swapping the documents around and hoping that everyone's working from the same version.)
I can definitely see myself using Google Docs specifically in the future for some group projects. I like this lesson's application.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Web 2.0 & Library 2.0 - #15
There is a, perhaps unavoidable, underlying assumption in all of these perspectives I'm reading about Library 2.0.
Assumption: That all users can and will prefer to use online/electronic/computer-based services.
That assumption is wrong. (It's probably something most public librarians who work directly with the public are aware of, but I think it's worth reminding people of.)
Michael Stephens asserts that the Librarian 2.0 "controls technolust" and does not subscribe to technology for technologies sake. I like that idea. While I also like his assertion that the "Librarian 2.0 makes good, yet fast decisions" I see no sign of that happening in some systems. Probably most systems, since most libraries are part of large governmental bodies and governments love bureaucracy.
I'm not so enamored of his idea of Librarian 2.0 as a trendspotter. Librarians could easily spend all their time looking for and adapting to trends without accomplishing anything else. Plus, I'm not convinced libraries should adapt to trends. Trends are ephemeral and most people never adapt to any specific trend. Libraries should adapt/adopt/conform to accepted, customary practices.
Michael's complete thoughts on Librarian 2.0 can be found here: http://www.oclc.org/nextspace/002/3.htm
I also like Rick Anderson's insistence that we move away from systems that require users to educate themselves on using the system. (http://www.oclc.org/nextspace/002/2.htm) But I don't think we should completely discount 'research skills' as he calls them. Actually, I believe they become more important as the total sum of knowledge grows and the percentage of knowledge available to everyone grows.
The actual skills and methods of 'research skills' will, and should, change as our ways of organizing and storing knowledge changes. But, the ability to figure out what you need, find something, evaluate its relevance and authority, and then put it into context in relation to all the other bits of things you found will only grow more important.
Assumption: That all users can and will prefer to use online/electronic/computer-based services.
That assumption is wrong. (It's probably something most public librarians who work directly with the public are aware of, but I think it's worth reminding people of.)
Michael Stephens asserts that the Librarian 2.0 "controls technolust" and does not subscribe to technology for technologies sake. I like that idea. While I also like his assertion that the "Librarian 2.0 makes good, yet fast decisions" I see no sign of that happening in some systems. Probably most systems, since most libraries are part of large governmental bodies and governments love bureaucracy.
I'm not so enamored of his idea of Librarian 2.0 as a trendspotter. Librarians could easily spend all their time looking for and adapting to trends without accomplishing anything else. Plus, I'm not convinced libraries should adapt to trends. Trends are ephemeral and most people never adapt to any specific trend. Libraries should adapt/adopt/conform to accepted, customary practices.
Michael's complete thoughts on Librarian 2.0 can be found here: http://www.oclc.org/nextspace/002/3.htm
I also like Rick Anderson's insistence that we move away from systems that require users to educate themselves on using the system. (http://www.oclc.org/nextspace/002/2.htm) But I don't think we should completely discount 'research skills' as he calls them. Actually, I believe they become more important as the total sum of knowledge grows and the percentage of knowledge available to everyone grows.
The actual skills and methods of 'research skills' will, and should, change as our ways of organizing and storing knowledge changes. But, the ability to figure out what you need, find something, evaluate its relevance and authority, and then put it into context in relation to all the other bits of things you found will only grow more important.
Technorati - #14
Oh, my. When I search Technorati tags for the tag I'm supposed to use for this post, I only found 11 results.
Either I'm searching in the wrong way, or the others participating in this project are having as much trouble with some of the lessons as I am.
I'm all in favor of organization and aggregation that assists people in finding information. And the site seems to be well-organized. I like the flexibility in searching for your term solely in the tags or anywhere in the post. And the watchlist allowing you to essentially save your search is a good idea.
I don't think I'll use Technorati much because I don't really enjoy reading blogs unless I know the blogger personally.
Either I'm searching in the wrong way, or the others participating in this project are having as much trouble with some of the lessons as I am.
I'm all in favor of organization and aggregation that assists people in finding information. And the site seems to be well-organized. I like the flexibility in searching for your term solely in the tags or anywhere in the post. And the watchlist allowing you to essentially save your search is a good idea.
I don't think I'll use Technorati much because I don't really enjoy reading blogs unless I know the blogger personally.
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