This is for any cat lovers out there!
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Go Wikis!
At last I know what a Wiki is!!! I've used Wikipedia many times but never realised it was a "Wiki," or how easy it is to edit Wikipedia articles. I was very surprised to learn that anybody can edit without having to even log in.
Also found it very interesting that the German language version of Wikipedia was more accurate than the leading German language encyclopedia!! This made me stop and reflect on the times that I have neglected to use Wikipedia as an information source for library patrons, given that I didn't think that it was reliable. Perhaps now, instead of being so quick to reject it as an information source, I can show patrons information contained in Wikipedia (along with other sources) and explain some its strengths and weaknesses. I also really enjoyed the "Information Today" article for all of the different viewpoints it highlighted.
I would like to try creating a Wiki for our book club though I'm not sure how receptive the predominantly older people in our book club would be to posting book reviews on a Wiki themselves. (Yes I know, very stereotypical but I do believe this would be the case). Maybe I would have to post the book reviews on the Wiki myself or introduce it to our young adult library members who may also like to post book reviews during school holidays. I like the idea of a Wiki for staff use too, especially for event planning where people in different branches could brainstorm and post their ideas for others to build on. A Wiki, used as a repository for policy and procedures and other documents for staff use, would also benefit staff at smaller branches who may not have access to a common drive. I guess the possibilities are endless.....
Also found it very interesting that the German language version of Wikipedia was more accurate than the leading German language encyclopedia!! This made me stop and reflect on the times that I have neglected to use Wikipedia as an information source for library patrons, given that I didn't think that it was reliable. Perhaps now, instead of being so quick to reject it as an information source, I can show patrons information contained in Wikipedia (along with other sources) and explain some its strengths and weaknesses. I also really enjoyed the "Information Today" article for all of the different viewpoints it highlighted.
I would like to try creating a Wiki for our book club though I'm not sure how receptive the predominantly older people in our book club would be to posting book reviews on a Wiki themselves. (Yes I know, very stereotypical but I do believe this would be the case). Maybe I would have to post the book reviews on the Wiki myself or introduce it to our young adult library members who may also like to post book reviews during school holidays. I like the idea of a Wiki for staff use too, especially for event planning where people in different branches could brainstorm and post their ideas for others to build on. A Wiki, used as a repository for policy and procedures and other documents for staff use, would also benefit staff at smaller branches who may not have access to a common drive. I guess the possibilities are endless.....
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Feed Me..... Chocolate!
Well, I was surprised to find that it was quite easy to set up my bloglines account and RSS feeds - I simply pasted the URL of some general library-related blogs into the reader... so this process seems to have been pretty straightforward.
I'm still pondering how beneficial RSS feeds will be to me.... I wonder whether they will contribute to a feeling of "information overload"..... as a result of all of these snippets of information coming directly to me everyday - they seem a bit like subscribing to e-lists I think. I suppose the key will be to set up feeds from a few quality sites rather than feeds from a great number of blogs and sites which contain information and updates that mightn't be very useful to me in my day-to-day work. I'm keen to follow through and explore this further though, as I'm sure that with some more experience using RSS feeds I'll probably become more accepting of this new technology.
Oh and by the way... an interesting article I stumbled across which I thought was very relevant to Week 3's learning was Why and How to Use Blogs to Promote Your Library's Services by Darlene Fichter at http://www.infotoday.com/mls/nov03/fichter.shtml - I'm going to have a look at some of the libraryland blogs listed - when I can find some time!
I'm still pondering how beneficial RSS feeds will be to me.... I wonder whether they will contribute to a feeling of "information overload"..... as a result of all of these snippets of information coming directly to me everyday - they seem a bit like subscribing to e-lists I think. I suppose the key will be to set up feeds from a few quality sites rather than feeds from a great number of blogs and sites which contain information and updates that mightn't be very useful to me in my day-to-day work. I'm keen to follow through and explore this further though, as I'm sure that with some more experience using RSS feeds I'll probably become more accepting of this new technology.
Oh and by the way... an interesting article I stumbled across which I thought was very relevant to Week 3's learning was Why and How to Use Blogs to Promote Your Library's Services by Darlene Fichter at http://www.infotoday.com/mls/nov03/fichter.shtml - I'm going to have a look at some of the libraryland blogs listed - when I can find some time!
Loving It!
I found this great picture of the water fountain near the Sydney Olympic Park on Flickr at http://www.flickr.com/photos/serdar/78791452/
The image brings back some wonderful memories of the time I visited the Sydney Olympics. I was lucky enough to be a spectator at a volleyball match - it was fascinating to see the athletes in action and the atmoshpere in the stadium was just electric. It was also really amazing to think that I was watching the world's best right infront of me!
As for my learning this week, I have thoroughly enjoyed Week 3's activities and I am now considering how our activities for our library promotions in September might be able to tie in with Flickr (like the photographic competition for teens at Lansing Pubilc Library). There are obviously so many opportunities for libraries to promote themselves and their collections with these types of photosharing tools - opportunities which I really had not considered much before so this training is really 'broadening my horizons'.
I've also enjoyed learning how I can apply this knowledge in my personal life - I love my digital camera and I would love to share some of my photos with family and friends on Flickr. I too, have reservations about making them accessible to the public though.
Now... here's hoping my image from Flickr uploads to my blog...
The image brings back some wonderful memories of the time I visited the Sydney Olympics. I was lucky enough to be a spectator at a volleyball match - it was fascinating to see the athletes in action and the atmoshpere in the stadium was just electric. It was also really amazing to think that I was watching the world's best right infront of me!
As for my learning this week, I have thoroughly enjoyed Week 3's activities and I am now considering how our activities for our library promotions in September might be able to tie in with Flickr (like the photographic competition for teens at Lansing Pubilc Library). There are obviously so many opportunities for libraries to promote themselves and their collections with these types of photosharing tools - opportunities which I really had not considered much before so this training is really 'broadening my horizons'.
I've also enjoyed learning how I can apply this knowledge in my personal life - I love my digital camera and I would love to share some of my photos with family and friends on Flickr. I too, have reservations about making them accessible to the public though.
Now... here's hoping my image from Flickr uploads to my blog...
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Welcome to my blog!
I am looking forward to this journey into the Public Libraries Learning 2.0 program so very much. I can't wait to learn about all of the technologies that I see and hear others using, especially the young teens in our public library. I feel so 'behind the times' when it comes to knowing about things like podcasts, Flickr and social networking sites and I am very excited about the opportunity to become familiar with all of these sites and technologies and to be more 'intouch' with our younger generation and their activities on the internet.
I loved the examples of blogs provided - I haven't really explored any blogs before though I had a basic understanding of the concept of blogging. Now having seen a couple of library blogs I am going to search for some more that relate to books and reading promotion, as this is my greatest passion. What a great opportunity for an online book discussion for all of our patrons who are unable to access our regular daytime book club!
I loved the examples of blogs provided - I haven't really explored any blogs before though I had a basic understanding of the concept of blogging. Now having seen a couple of library blogs I am going to search for some more that relate to books and reading promotion, as this is my greatest passion. What a great opportunity for an online book discussion for all of our patrons who are unable to access our regular daytime book club!
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