I'm happy I finished Semester 1. I've learned a lot and I was especially glad to have gotten the experience with Flickr, since it's one of the 2.0 applications I hear mentioned most often. It was probably the most time consuming lesson for me, but well worth it. It is probably also the one that patrons are most likely to be interested in and need assistance with.
I'm very proud of my staff members for participating in Project Play. I know it wasn't always easy, but most of them stuck with it and have successfully finished Semester 1. Way to go!
I'm looking forward to Semester 2, and hope to do a better job of keeping up. I should at least be able to complete week 1 on time, since I've been using IM for a while now.
Thanks to Winnefox, OWLS, and SCLS for coordinating this. You've done a great job!
Monday, December 10, 2007
Flickr
This is a picture of the meeting room floor at the Seattle Public Library. It really is as red as it looks, although thankfully the meeting rooms themselves look normal.
For personal use, Flickr is a great way to share photos with others, especially those who live further away.
For library use, we have to be aware of posting photos of patrons with their permission. However, I think this would be very useful to have a tour of the library. It could be used to highlight smaller collections that might not be obvious to patrons when they walk in the door, such as the large print area in our children's room.
Flickr could also be used to give patrons an idea of the types of programs available at the library. Most presenters would probably grant permission to have their photos posted (and might like the publicity).
One thing that I disliked about Flickr is that when I uploaded the photos from a CD I wasn't able to preview them or see thumbnails. I was way over the size limit, so I randomly deleted photos until I was under the limit. I never intended to post all of them, but I was hoping to have some way to sort through them to pick and choose.
One feature I liked about Flickr is that they've got a group of interesting photographs. I like looking at unique pictures and it's nice that they've chosen some they think highly of.
Flickr was also fairly easy to use, and it's great that it ties into a Yahoo account, so that I didn't have to create yet another username and password.
For personal use, Flickr is a great way to share photos with others, especially those who live further away.
For library use, we have to be aware of posting photos of patrons with their permission. However, I think this would be very useful to have a tour of the library. It could be used to highlight smaller collections that might not be obvious to patrons when they walk in the door, such as the large print area in our children's room.
Flickr could also be used to give patrons an idea of the types of programs available at the library. Most presenters would probably grant permission to have their photos posted (and might like the publicity).
One thing that I disliked about Flickr is that when I uploaded the photos from a CD I wasn't able to preview them or see thumbnails. I was way over the size limit, so I randomly deleted photos until I was under the limit. I never intended to post all of them, but I was hoping to have some way to sort through them to pick and choose.
One feature I liked about Flickr is that they've got a group of interesting photographs. I like looking at unique pictures and it's nice that they've chosen some they think highly of.
Flickr was also fairly easy to use, and it's great that it ties into a Yahoo account, so that I didn't have to create yet another username and password.
Wikis
This week's exercises were very straightforward. I found the Project Play Wiki very easy to update and change.
I like the Davis, CA wiki. It has a lot of information and seems like a great starting point for someone new to the city.
I would like our website to act more like a Wiki (and it will once we redesign it) so that more than one person is able to easily edit content and update entries. I don't think it will be a true Wiki though, since it will be limited to certain staff members and editing control will be limited.
I've found Wikis more helpful from a reference point of view, although taken with a grain of salt. For example, the AFI's top 100 film list is only available on their website if you register. (Which I have, it's just that I've forgotten my password. Sound familiar?) A Google search led me to the complete list on Wikipedia. I've seen the list before, so I'm fairly confident in my Wikipedia results. I've heard that many political topics have been frequently edited or slanted towards one side or the other, so I would not trust results on these topics and would have to find another source to corroborate the information.
I like the Davis, CA wiki. It has a lot of information and seems like a great starting point for someone new to the city.
I would like our website to act more like a Wiki (and it will once we redesign it) so that more than one person is able to easily edit content and update entries. I don't think it will be a true Wiki though, since it will be limited to certain staff members and editing control will be limited.
I've found Wikis more helpful from a reference point of view, although taken with a grain of salt. For example, the AFI's top 100 film list is only available on their website if you register. (Which I have, it's just that I've forgotten my password. Sound familiar?) A Google search led me to the complete list on Wikipedia. I've seen the list before, so I'm fairly confident in my Wikipedia results. I've heard that many political topics have been frequently edited or slanted towards one side or the other, so I would not trust results on these topics and would have to find another source to corroborate the information.
del.icio.us
del.icio.us can be a very useful tool, especially as a way to have mobile bookmarks rather than having them stored on one computer.
If the account is for more than personal use, I think the issue of tagging needs to be thought out in advance. If more than one person is contributing to del.icio.us, you may need to agree on common terms ahead of time in order to be consistent.
In looking at Menasha's account it was nice to see that the tags could be organized into bundles, although even then it was still a long list to scroll through. Is there an easier way to view the tags, rather than in one long list down the side of the screen?
Tagging in the catalog could be very helpful for patrons. One subject heading that I've always found frustrating is "cookery". This is not a common term and the word "cooking" seems like it would be much more useful. I also noticed that "recipes" is not commonly used as a subject heading, and it seems to be used more for books that fall under entertaining or other non-cookery areas where patrons might not think to look for recipes. (For example, Amy Sedaris' I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence.) I also found the subject heading "quick and easy cookery" - I can't imagine any patron being lucky enough to guess this exact subject heading, so tagging might be very useful for items like these where the Library of Congress Subject Headings are no longer in vogue.
If patrons were allowed to tag items, there might need to be a moderator in order to sort out any obscene words or phrases. (I would prefer this to a filter; it would be interesting to know what AADL does.) There also might need to be an option to turn off the tags, so that patrons could search a sleek version of the catalog, if that's what they want. Otherwise, some might find the extra information distracting and unnecessary.
Having an uncontrolled vocabulary would not bother me, because you would know from the start whether you wanted it to be open to patrons or just to staff.
In browsing through del.icio.us, one criticism is that the tags need to be one word and cannot be a phrase. Some tags are written with an underscore replacing the space, while others skip the space and push the words together. Menasha's list includes both of these, so this goes back to my comment about being consistent.
If the account is for more than personal use, I think the issue of tagging needs to be thought out in advance. If more than one person is contributing to del.icio.us, you may need to agree on common terms ahead of time in order to be consistent.
In looking at Menasha's account it was nice to see that the tags could be organized into bundles, although even then it was still a long list to scroll through. Is there an easier way to view the tags, rather than in one long list down the side of the screen?
Tagging in the catalog could be very helpful for patrons. One subject heading that I've always found frustrating is "cookery". This is not a common term and the word "cooking" seems like it would be much more useful. I also noticed that "recipes" is not commonly used as a subject heading, and it seems to be used more for books that fall under entertaining or other non-cookery areas where patrons might not think to look for recipes. (For example, Amy Sedaris' I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence.) I also found the subject heading "quick and easy cookery" - I can't imagine any patron being lucky enough to guess this exact subject heading, so tagging might be very useful for items like these where the Library of Congress Subject Headings are no longer in vogue.
If patrons were allowed to tag items, there might need to be a moderator in order to sort out any obscene words or phrases. (I would prefer this to a filter; it would be interesting to know what AADL does.) There also might need to be an option to turn off the tags, so that patrons could search a sleek version of the catalog, if that's what they want. Otherwise, some might find the extra information distracting and unnecessary.
Having an uncontrolled vocabulary would not bother me, because you would know from the start whether you wanted it to be open to patrons or just to staff.
In browsing through del.icio.us, one criticism is that the tags need to be one word and cannot be a phrase. Some tags are written with an underscore replacing the space, while others skip the space and push the words together. Menasha's list includes both of these, so this goes back to my comment about being consistent.
Thursday, December 6, 2007
LibraryThing
Here's the link for my LibraryThing account: http://www.librarything.com/catalog/dbongers
One weakness of LT is that the free account is limited to 200 books - for an active book club this could fill up fast.
I think it's very easy to add books (even without scanning the barcode) and to find suggestions.
I'm a little disappointed by the suggestion feature though, and I don't know if it's reliable enough to suggest to patrons for readers advisory. I tried a few different titles and the combined recommendations always included other books by the same author - most patrons would know to have looked for these already.
I was also surprised to see that Little Children was suggested for both The Pleasure of My Company and The Book of Joe. The latter books are both very comedic and light in tone, which is what I was looking for; Little Children sounds like a darker, more serious book. Maybe I'll give it a try anyway.
One weakness of LT is that the free account is limited to 200 books - for an active book club this could fill up fast.
I think it's very easy to add books (even without scanning the barcode) and to find suggestions.
I'm a little disappointed by the suggestion feature though, and I don't know if it's reliable enough to suggest to patrons for readers advisory. I tried a few different titles and the combined recommendations always included other books by the same author - most patrons would know to have looked for these already.
I was also surprised to see that Little Children was suggested for both The Pleasure of My Company and The Book of Joe. The latter books are both very comedic and light in tone, which is what I was looking for; Little Children sounds like a darker, more serious book. Maybe I'll give it a try anyway.
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Feedback Thingies
I think allowing comments on blogs is a great idea. For libraries, it is probably simpler to allow anyone (not necessarily just a registered user) to comment on the blog and assign a staff member to moderate the comments.
A challenge for libraries is giving patrons a reason to comment on the blog. With the entertainment blogs I read, they receive a lot of responses when asking the audience for input. (For example, they'll ask people to name their top 5 sci fi films.) They also get a lot of comments on their summaries of television shows, especially complex or cliffhanger episodes which are open to interpretation. Popular books with unique or open-ended endings might inspire some postings. (Two possible examples: Life of Pi and Oryx and Crake.)
Surveys could also be a useful tool, but I think they would need to be targeted to the correct audience. You would also have to keep in mind that the non-web users might not have a voice unless you take extra measures. Here's one idea: if your library sends out an email newsletter, you could survey those subscribers to see what information they find useful and if there is anything else they would like to see in the newsletter. You might have a better response rate since they are already computer users.
What do you think? Will patrons be interested in commenting on books and movies? Is there a real future for this in libraries, or will something even better come along?
A challenge for libraries is giving patrons a reason to comment on the blog. With the entertainment blogs I read, they receive a lot of responses when asking the audience for input. (For example, they'll ask people to name their top 5 sci fi films.) They also get a lot of comments on their summaries of television shows, especially complex or cliffhanger episodes which are open to interpretation. Popular books with unique or open-ended endings might inspire some postings. (Two possible examples: Life of Pi and Oryx and Crake.)
Surveys could also be a useful tool, but I think they would need to be targeted to the correct audience. You would also have to keep in mind that the non-web users might not have a voice unless you take extra measures. Here's one idea: if your library sends out an email newsletter, you could survey those subscribers to see what information they find useful and if there is anything else they would like to see in the newsletter. You might have a better response rate since they are already computer users.
What do you think? Will patrons be interested in commenting on books and movies? Is there a real future for this in libraries, or will something even better come along?
Friday, October 5, 2007
RSS Feeds and the Library
Neenah Public Library has an email notification list, "First in Line," which notifies patrons when a book by their favorite author is placed on order in the system so that they can place a hold on it right away. I wonder if there is a way to use blogs to do this?
A library could set up blogs for various genres (fiction, mystery, nonfiction, etc.) and encourage patrons to subscribe to these feeds. On the plus side it would make the announcement public, since anyone who explored the library's website might find it. It also would give patrons the opportunity to only subscribe to genres of interest.
The one obvious negative is that you would need to teach patrons how to subscribe to the feeds.
This is not something that is feasible for my library since we don't currently add short records to the catalog when we place books on order and I've noticed that there aren't necessarily always records available for the popular items at the time I'm ordering (especially in large print).
I've also noticed that unless the book is by a blockbuster author (Patterson, Sparks, Roberts, etc.) my patrons seem to prefer to browse rather than placing a hold, so I don't think we would get as much use of this service as a bigger library might.
A library could set up blogs for various genres (fiction, mystery, nonfiction, etc.) and encourage patrons to subscribe to these feeds. On the plus side it would make the announcement public, since anyone who explored the library's website might find it. It also would give patrons the opportunity to only subscribe to genres of interest.
The one obvious negative is that you would need to teach patrons how to subscribe to the feeds.
This is not something that is feasible for my library since we don't currently add short records to the catalog when we place books on order and I've noticed that there aren't necessarily always records available for the popular items at the time I'm ordering (especially in large print).
I've also noticed that unless the book is by a blockbuster author (Patterson, Sparks, Roberts, etc.) my patrons seem to prefer to browse rather than placing a hold, so I don't think we would get as much use of this service as a bigger library might.
Friday, September 28, 2007
Project Play Week 2
One of my favorite non-work blogs is the Entertainment Weekly blog, found at http://popwatch.ew.com. There are new posts throughout the day and they generally deal with entertainment musings. They also love creating lists, such as the top 5 most depressing songs. :) It's not really the place for gossip, although they will have reactions to big events (like the Emmys or VMAs) or new TV shows.
Michael Ausiello at http://www.tvguide.com also has a good blog for the scoop on all of your favorite TV shows, although his isn't updated as frequently as Popwatch.
Michael Ausiello at http://www.tvguide.com also has a good blog for the scoop on all of your favorite TV shows, although his isn't updated as frequently as Popwatch.
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