As I mentioned in the last blog, these and other social tagging sites make sense -- most people trust what their friends and family say about a product or service, so why not make it easier to look at these recommendations and search for specific terms?
Library Thing really seems to fill an online niche for book lovers. How many of us have wanted (or tried) to create and maintain a paper list of the books we have read? I received a gift notebook for Christmas a few years ago for just such a purpose, which I have yet to use. Since I'm already online most days, a tool like Library Thing would probably be more useful to me! Also, I can see its value for readers who like one or two authors so much that they read all the books available by that author. For me, one particular family member comes to mind -- she has found a couple authors that she really likes and frequently consults the list on the book's front pages to determine which titles she has yet to read. A list like on Library Thing facilitates this task. And from a social media perspective, you can share and compare your reading choices with others in your network. While this type of site may not replace the classic RA sites like NoveList, it does provide a nice supplement.
Like Library Thing, Delicious also fills a digital niche. Since I have started using computers, and laptops especially, there have been a couple times where the hard drive became unusable (through virus or overuse or otherwise) and I could not even boot up the machine, never mind get online. As a result, I would lose the list of Favorite websites I had stored on that particular computer and had to recreate the list as best I could from memory on my new machine. Also, there have been times where I would really like to have access to my favorites even when I'm not on one particular personal computer. By providing a space to store favorite links, Delicious helps to solve both of these issues. Additionally, I can share these links with others and get ideas for sites that I might like (and didn't realize existed) through my friends' Delicious lists.
Similar to the other two sites already discussed, Cite U Like makes existing tasks a little simpler by providing access to materials online, whereever the user might be. In this case, however, the site organizes scholarly articles and citations that may be of relevance to a paper the user is working on. In this instance, the social feature of being able to share citation and article ideas among members of your network makes Cite U Like unique -- otherwise, it would be more or less a site like RefWorks or EndNote, available through many academic institutions.
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Folksonomies
Wichowski, A. (2009). Survival of the fittest tag: Folksonomies, findability, and the evolution of information organization. First Monday, 14(5).
In general, the idea of folksonomies makes a lot of sense in the social media world. In a digital environment where so much is created by the users themselves, it's logical to have taxonomies and organization structures that are created by the people these users trust -- not always experts they have never met. As Wichowski points out, information in this environment must remain not only organized but also findable. Again, folksonomies are a good choice of tool because they generally consist of words and terms that the users themselves are familiar with -- as opposed to more formal textbook terms. Because users are more likely to use these familiar terms and search with them, the use of the same terms in information organization makes the system more findable and user-friendly.
In general, the idea of folksonomies makes a lot of sense in the social media world. In a digital environment where so much is created by the users themselves, it's logical to have taxonomies and organization structures that are created by the people these users trust -- not always experts they have never met. As Wichowski points out, information in this environment must remain not only organized but also findable. Again, folksonomies are a good choice of tool because they generally consist of words and terms that the users themselves are familiar with -- as opposed to more formal textbook terms. Because users are more likely to use these familiar terms and search with them, the use of the same terms in information organization makes the system more findable and user-friendly.
Using Twitter in Non-Profits
In her June 2, 2010 blog post on tips for writing Twitter and Facebook updates (http://www.nonprofitmarketingguide.com/blog/2010/06/02/tips-for-writing-facebook-and-twitter-updates/), Kivi Leroux Miller makes observations and points that directly relate to the idea of social capital. Miller notes that nonprofit social media includes three general options -- that is, trying to make people do something, think something, or feel something. The latter two portions of the trio -- think something and feel something -- relate directly to the idea of gaining social capital. In order to gain social capital, you want to interact and engage with someone, ideally in a way that benefits them. According to Miller, when you get someone to think something, you are "sharing something helpful or educating them." Miller also states that when you get someone to feel something, you are "building rapport" that results in some type of emotion. Both of these elements primarily benefit the other person in the interaction, thereby qualifying as ways of earning social capital. Once you have that social capital, you may want to withdraw some of it by promoting your service or organization and getting someone to do something -- "calling them to some kind of action," as Miller puts it.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
I am currently following these 6 groups on Twitter:
- ala_rusa (RUSA - ALA) -- Reference work is currently one of my major interests in librarianship. Also, this could be useful with my position at a local public library's reference desk.
- ALA_PLA (Public Library Association) -- Again, public libraries are one area that I am most interested in careerwise. Also, I am currently working part-time in a public library.
- NAHSL_mla (North Atlantic Health Sciences Libraries) -- In addition to public libraries, my other strong interest area is health sciences libraries. Also, I currently work in an academic health sciences library.
- acrl_nec (ACRL New England chapter) -- As mentioned above, I work in an academic library here in New England.
- LibraryJournal (Library Journal) -- a library publication I generally like to at least browse through, as they often have interesting articles about library trends and goings-on around the country.
- WeightWatchers (Weight Watchers) -- I am currently a member of Weight Watchers, and I have found that both the Twitter feed and Facebook group provide helpful tips, links to articles, and motivational quotes.
Mobile Web
Griggs, K., Bridges, L.M., & Rempel, H.G. (2009). Tips on designing and developing mobile web sites. Code4Lib Journal, 8. Retrieved from http://journal.code4lib.org/articles/2055.
In this article, the authors make the observation that "sites designed specifically for mobile devices increase usability." This statement makes a lot of sense for a couple of reasons. First, the size difference between a classic desktop or laptop screen and the average modern smart phone is considerable. If you simply try to shrink a website that was specifically designed with a certain range of measurements in mind, you will not have the same experience on the smaller version of that site. Second, in general mobile websites are used for different purposes than their traditional counterparts. A user sitting at a desktop or laptop computer may have the time to sit and browse for the information they need. However, a mobile user who is on the go wants the necessary information readily available, whether they are on a college campus or a city bus.
The authors also make the valid point that website creators should take as much time to adapt the mobile site to different mobile devices as they would in adapting a traditional site to different browsers. One major goal of librarians is to determine a user's needs and serve those needs to the best of their ability. If a patron is most comfortable using Firefox for their Internet searching and browsing, it would not be fair to tell them they have to use Internet Explorer simply because the library staff would not put in the effort to adapt the library site to both browsers. Similarly, it would be unfair to expect a Blackberry user to find an iPhone because the library website is best suited for iPhone viewing. In fact, the need to adapt to more than one device is even greater than with just the different Internet browsers. A desktop/laptop user could easily download Firefox for free if it would enhance their online experience. However, given the cost of smartphones, it is unlikely that the user of a Blackberry will also have ready use of an iPhone.
Finally, it is very useful that the authors of this article provide specific criteria/dimensions for mobile websites and analyses of major options for adapting a website to a mobile version.
In this article, the authors make the observation that "sites designed specifically for mobile devices increase usability." This statement makes a lot of sense for a couple of reasons. First, the size difference between a classic desktop or laptop screen and the average modern smart phone is considerable. If you simply try to shrink a website that was specifically designed with a certain range of measurements in mind, you will not have the same experience on the smaller version of that site. Second, in general mobile websites are used for different purposes than their traditional counterparts. A user sitting at a desktop or laptop computer may have the time to sit and browse for the information they need. However, a mobile user who is on the go wants the necessary information readily available, whether they are on a college campus or a city bus.
The authors also make the valid point that website creators should take as much time to adapt the mobile site to different mobile devices as they would in adapting a traditional site to different browsers. One major goal of librarians is to determine a user's needs and serve those needs to the best of their ability. If a patron is most comfortable using Firefox for their Internet searching and browsing, it would not be fair to tell them they have to use Internet Explorer simply because the library staff would not put in the effort to adapt the library site to both browsers. Similarly, it would be unfair to expect a Blackberry user to find an iPhone because the library website is best suited for iPhone viewing. In fact, the need to adapt to more than one device is even greater than with just the different Internet browsers. A desktop/laptop user could easily download Firefox for free if it would enhance their online experience. However, given the cost of smartphones, it is unlikely that the user of a Blackberry will also have ready use of an iPhone.
Finally, it is very useful that the authors of this article provide specific criteria/dimensions for mobile websites and analyses of major options for adapting a website to a mobile version.
Mashups and Wikis and Blogs...Oh My!
In the May 12, 2011 blog (http://www.zdnet.com/blog/hinchcliffe) post titled "How social media and big data will unleash what we know," Dion Hinchcliffe states that modern day social media "generates more information in a short period of time than was previously available in the entire world a few generations ago." While this statement may be true, it does not necessarily mean that all of that information is the correct information. As Hinchcliffe notes, users must "make sense of" and understand the information that is being produced. This overwhelming amount of available information makes our information skills all the more important. Also, librarians need to not only use their own info literacy skills but should also make an extra effort to teach others how to use those skills. I am reminded of one or two readings that I read as part of LSC 528 a couple years ago, which focused on reinforcing these skills with young adults. It is still important, of course, to teach information literacy skills to youth; however, Hinchcliffe's blog post demonstrates that it is just as important now to also teach these skills to adults. Librarians, especially those that interact with a wide age range of patrons, must be aware of this teaching need and how to fill it.
Cooperating with wikis
In the article "Blogs, Mashups, & Wikis, Oh My!" Bruce W. Dearstyne observes that as of the article's publication in 2007, the term "Web 2.0" does not have a solid formal definition. This statement seems to be the case even today, in 2011. Many people have a general idea of what Web 2.0 is, that it involves the user's input and participation more than the traditional Web before it. However, when asked to define the term, it is possible and probable that each source will provide a slight variation on that basic premise.
I like the variety of examples Dearstyne provides of companies and industries who use Web 2.0 in their daily internal operations. When asked to name an example of a Web 2.0 application, many people would first say "Wikipedia." However, these examples demonstrate that the practical uses of Web 2.0 extend beyond the realm of librarians and information professionals, with evidence of blogs and mashups in use by institutions ranging from Northwest Mutual to the Chicago Police Department.
Dearstyne also raises some important issues that information professionals should consider when managing Web 2.0 tools. Based on the issues mentioned in the article, it seems that it would benefit a library or other institution to have a central "point person" for one or more of the Web 2.0 tools used. Other staff members should be aware of at least the basics of the tools and should be able to contribute appropriately to the social media (internal wiki at a company, for instance). However, this "point person" would have a more extensive knowledge of the tool(s) they are responsible for and might have primary responsibility for keeping them updated. For instance, a library might have one particular librarian who is responsible for updating the library blog. This person would collect comments and ideas from staff members for blog content but would physically be the one to add the post to the site. Also, other staff would know to turn to this person with any questions they might have about the Web 2.0 tools.
I like the variety of examples Dearstyne provides of companies and industries who use Web 2.0 in their daily internal operations. When asked to name an example of a Web 2.0 application, many people would first say "Wikipedia." However, these examples demonstrate that the practical uses of Web 2.0 extend beyond the realm of librarians and information professionals, with evidence of blogs and mashups in use by institutions ranging from Northwest Mutual to the Chicago Police Department.
Dearstyne also raises some important issues that information professionals should consider when managing Web 2.0 tools. Based on the issues mentioned in the article, it seems that it would benefit a library or other institution to have a central "point person" for one or more of the Web 2.0 tools used. Other staff members should be aware of at least the basics of the tools and should be able to contribute appropriately to the social media (internal wiki at a company, for instance). However, this "point person" would have a more extensive knowledge of the tool(s) they are responsible for and might have primary responsibility for keeping them updated. For instance, a library might have one particular librarian who is responsible for updating the library blog. This person would collect comments and ideas from staff members for blog content but would physically be the one to add the post to the site. Also, other staff would know to turn to this person with any questions they might have about the Web 2.0 tools.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Networked Library
In his May 6 presentation on libraries as social networks, Lee Rainie made several good observations about librarians and their role in the current social media environment. While he included the classic "librarians are well suited for the job" comments that are somewhat common at conferences and webinars these days, he also went beyond this basic level to provide some very helpful thinking points for librarians. A few of these points that really stuck out for me are listed below:
- Libraries should try to balance the types of space available to their patrons within the physical library. People want and need quiet space where they can concentrate and contemplate in peace and solitude. At the same time, other patrons (or the same patrons at a different time) will need a space where they can collaborate and talk a little louder without disturbing others. Many libraries already have a variety of spaces available, including group study rooms, easy chairs, large study tables in the open part of the library, and individual study carrels. With so much information available to us now, this variety of space might be more important than ever to be able to process all of that data/information.
- Libraries should look at forming alliances with other institutions. In the Public Library Service course I took last fall, we were already required to think along these lines in the final project. We needed to create a certain number of programs for a public library, but a minimum number of those programs needed to include collaboration with another institution or organization in the community.
- Social networking provides a great opportunity for patrons to directly tell librarians what their thoughts, wants, and needs are regarding the library's services. With this emphasis on content creation, librarians do not need to bear the entire burden of determining what their patrons are looking for. Many patrons are probably willing to share their ideas and thoughts with the librarians -- they may just need to be asked!
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