I find myself surprised when Wikipedia offers better information than articles, I had a hard time with the Map Mashup article, but Wikipedia made it clearer.
"Mashups can be divided into four main categories, mapping, video & photo, search & shopping and news."
I think Wikipedia uses clearer language. All that aside, I think that this article was good for showing the breadth of the use for mashups. When I hear the word mashup I think "map." And personally, I don't think map mashups are useful for libraries else than mapping branch libraries.
But this article also includes uses for mashups, such as businesses, and libraries can be similar to businesses in that "Information overload is a problem that many companies face, whether it’s within the company itself or when presenting information to users." I can't think of a great mashup on the top of my head. Images of book covers perhaps? We'll see.
And as a famous pig once said "Th-th-th-thats all folks!"
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Monday, June 23, 2008
Annotated List -
This article is pretty cool. I think Library 2.0 is great, but many classes I feel push us to work it harder, make it better, do it faster. But low-tech is a great tool, we don't have to implement all these crazy whacky ideas that patrons aren't looking for from a library. Patrons don't expect us to be web designers or IT workers, we need to use our tools, not become one. I cannot agree with the learning/educational tool more. I wanted to be a teacher ever since I was 5. I changed my career, but I don't feel that I changed my core interest, I still want to inform and educate - and not grade papers. I also agree that Library 2.0 focuses more on the younger generation - and we need to not forget about serving our older patrons.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Meet the New You
I was skeptical of the title of this article, because I felt it would be a gung-ho "Get into Second Life NOW!" article. But thankfully it wasn't. I think that teen support is one of the best uses of library resources in Second Life. As the article stated, it's easier for teens to adapt to this type of virtual world, and they are more likely to use the resources offered to them.
Librarians and Second Life
Apologies for not completing this by class, Budapest Prep has been a hassle and somewhere between reading articles, laundry, and packing, I neglected to remember the Blog.
I'm glad that Jill Hurst-Wahl didn't do any urging for librarians to jump onto Second Life. It's just not that useful for some libraries, and librarians feel too much pressure that our patrons are there. However, she does say that "If you do not want to create an account, talk to librarians in your region. Likely, you will find someone who can give you a personal tour of Second Life."
Really? I'm at my home now in Wanamingo, MN. The libraries in my region, at least those close enough to my home serve rural patrons, and I doubt any of them even have a Second Life account, much less be able to give a tour of it. At my local library, the computers in the library are likely too old, not enough memory, etc to even run Second Life. Technology just isn't a high priority here. At most the only technology any patron needs is access to the internet. Second Life? It just doesn't serve these patrons.
I'm glad that Jill Hurst-Wahl didn't do any urging for librarians to jump onto Second Life. It's just not that useful for some libraries, and librarians feel too much pressure that our patrons are there. However, she does say that "If you do not want to create an account, talk to librarians in your region. Likely, you will find someone who can give you a personal tour of Second Life."
Really? I'm at my home now in Wanamingo, MN. The libraries in my region, at least those close enough to my home serve rural patrons, and I doubt any of them even have a Second Life account, much less be able to give a tour of it. At my local library, the computers in the library are likely too old, not enough memory, etc to even run Second Life. Technology just isn't a high priority here. At most the only technology any patron needs is access to the internet. Second Life? It just doesn't serve these patrons.
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Friday, June 13, 2008
Creating Communities With Podcasting
I was so glad to find an article that actually did a study on the usability of podcasting in libraries. It's nice to know how it works, but better to know who uses it, why, and does it work. Not to mention the analysis of what needs to be improved. While it may seem obvious that sound quality and enunciation are necessary, other aspects such as volume and length may not be an obvious downfall. Articles like this one seem more useful when it comes to implementation of Library 2.0 Tools.
Making a Podcast Vs. Podcast 1-2-3
When I started the readings for the podcasts I started at the beginning: Making a Podcast. I read it, I swear I did, but my eyes glazed over and my head swam. The letters and words passed, but the comprehension never came. It was like reading about Quantum Mechanics when you've only gone through Algebra 2 "way back" in high school. And here I thought I was pretty tech savvy. The thing is, I know I could figure out how to make a podcast, it's not like it's rocket surgery. But using these instructions did not help.
Podcast 1-2-3 by Jason Griffey did a much better job of breaking it down. Though his article wasn't exactly a 'how to' it was much more useful to understand the basics of podcasting. I know that an iPod is not needed, and that any computer at the very least can play the audio, that for video MPEG4 is the best bet for video and so on with Griffey's article. Granted, my job deals with video and internet and audio files quite often, but even for me the fundamentals of Podcasts were more evident in the easier-to-read article.
Podcast 1-2-3 by Jason Griffey did a much better job of breaking it down. Though his article wasn't exactly a 'how to' it was much more useful to understand the basics of podcasting. I know that an iPod is not needed, and that any computer at the very least can play the audio, that for video MPEG4 is the best bet for video and so on with Griffey's article. Granted, my job deals with video and internet and audio files quite often, but even for me the fundamentals of Podcasts were more evident in the easier-to-read article.
Podcast Asyncronous Blog Assignment
Number 1. A Podcast I would like to recommend to the class.
I have only subscribed to one podcast - I don't particularly like them, because it's one more thing I have to keep track of. I am subscribed to The Current Podcast. It is located at Minnesota Public Radio Podcasts I keep track of the The Current Song of the Day, which delivers a new song to my iTunes. It's easy to keep up with because I can listen to the new song whenever I listen to my music.
Number 2. A 'Hypothetical' Good Library Podcast.
A good podcast may be a library instructional Podcast. Starting with using OPAC searches - perhaps the different search techniques etc. Other Podcasts could be about FAQ from the reference desk - at least for the more in depth questions (other than the directional "where is the bathroom?" questions) Database use could also be explained - how to use the various library databases and so forth. These Podcasts can be useful over and over again by new users, they will not get old/dated for some time.
Number 3. A 'Hypothetical' Bad Library Podcast
A weekly "What's New" Podcast. This may sound like a really good idea, but if users don't know what's coming out and listen to "Whats New" weeks after the podcast is released, they will have to try to catch up with the newer podcasts. New Library events don't stay new long, and if users don't listen to the Podcast until the event is upon us or worse, after the fact, they won't be able to attend library events. Oh No!
I have only subscribed to one podcast - I don't particularly like them, because it's one more thing I have to keep track of. I am subscribed to The Current Podcast. It is located at Minnesota Public Radio Podcasts I keep track of the The Current Song of the Day, which delivers a new song to my iTunes. It's easy to keep up with because I can listen to the new song whenever I listen to my music.
Number 2. A 'Hypothetical' Good Library Podcast.
A good podcast may be a library instructional Podcast. Starting with using OPAC searches - perhaps the different search techniques etc. Other Podcasts could be about FAQ from the reference desk - at least for the more in depth questions (other than the directional "where is the bathroom?" questions) Database use could also be explained - how to use the various library databases and so forth. These Podcasts can be useful over and over again by new users, they will not get old/dated for some time.
Number 3. A 'Hypothetical' Bad Library Podcast
A weekly "What's New" Podcast. This may sound like a really good idea, but if users don't know what's coming out and listen to "Whats New" weeks after the podcast is released, they will have to try to catch up with the newer podcasts. New Library events don't stay new long, and if users don't listen to the Podcast until the event is upon us or worse, after the fact, they won't be able to attend library events. Oh No!
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Social networking services
Stephens, Michael. “Social Networking”. Library Technology Reports. Vol. 43 No. 5 (2007) 45-51.
I don't know what to think about the Hennepin County Public Library MySpace page. First... its obscenely bright and difficult for me to read. Is the Library really single? or is it just trying to make more people interested by appearing available? and I don't trust those Capricorns, they are nothing but trouble. The Interests list that allow viewers to check out the library though.. those were cool. The search option is great. And the Blog appears to be updated on occasion when new things are available at the library. So, overall it's a pretty neat page. But it might not be the best option to attract users for small libraries.
Ning sounds very interesting, and might be more useful for Libraries than Facebook or Myspace, the only issue is: Who's heard of Ning? Who uses Ning? How many people will you reach? Who knows?
I don't know what to think about the Hennepin County Public Library MySpace page. First... its obscenely bright and difficult for me to read. Is the Library really single? or is it just trying to make more people interested by appearing available? and I don't trust those Capricorns, they are nothing but trouble. The Interests list that allow viewers to check out the library though.. those were cool. The search option is great. And the Blog appears to be updated on occasion when new things are available at the library. So, overall it's a pretty neat page. But it might not be the best option to attract users for small libraries.
Ning sounds very interesting, and might be more useful for Libraries than Facebook or Myspace, the only issue is: Who's heard of Ning? Who uses Ning? How many people will you reach? Who knows?
Viewing American class divisions through Facebook and Myspace
This blog is in response to the Boyd article
First of all, I found it amusing when "Facebookers' described MySpace as being "so lame" and "so middle school" etc etc. The description of gaudy/glitzy/bling were also entertaining. To tell you the truth, I do not like MySpace because too many users have bright and busy backgrounds, which make text hard to read. Not to mention that adding music to MySpace also means being subjected to other peoples taste in music, which may not meet my own music tastes.
Being a sociologist, it really irked me that the methodology was written at the end of the article. But it's not an academic article so I guess I can let it slide.
I don't know what I think about the class usage of the two social sites, but I do agree that each appeals to different demographics. Myspace users do not like that they cannot customize Facebook the same way that they can to Myspace and Facebook users think Myspace is too messy. It only makes sense these differences cause users to prefer one over the other.
First of all, I found it amusing when "Facebookers' described MySpace as being "so lame" and "so middle school" etc etc. The description of gaudy/glitzy/bling were also entertaining. To tell you the truth, I do not like MySpace because too many users have bright and busy backgrounds, which make text hard to read. Not to mention that adding music to MySpace also means being subjected to other peoples taste in music, which may not meet my own music tastes.
Being a sociologist, it really irked me that the methodology was written at the end of the article. But it's not an academic article so I guess I can let it slide.
I don't know what I think about the class usage of the two social sites, but I do agree that each appeals to different demographics. Myspace users do not like that they cannot customize Facebook the same way that they can to Myspace and Facebook users think Myspace is too messy. It only makes sense these differences cause users to prefer one over the other.
Wikis in Plain English
Wow, I have to update a blog again, I stopped updating LiveJournal a really long time ago.
Wiki's in Plain English
I never thought of using a wiki for something as small as a camping trip. Other than Wikipedia, I have only ever been to class wikis (such as PBWiki) and a humongous World of Warcraft Wiki (WowWiki) While I knew how Wiki's worked, I didn't think much about the usages of them. Thinking about it, a wiki might be a better use for my user needs at the Resource Center, because original pages can be edited with completion notes and details on the progress as it is being made.
Wiki's in Plain English
I never thought of using a wiki for something as small as a camping trip. Other than Wikipedia, I have only ever been to class wikis (such as PBWiki) and a humongous World of Warcraft Wiki (WowWiki) While I knew how Wiki's worked, I didn't think much about the usages of them. Thinking about it, a wiki might be a better use for my user needs at the Resource Center, because original pages can be edited with completion notes and details on the progress as it is being made.
Friday, June 6, 2008
Social Bookmarking Tools
This post relates to this article.
In the world of social bookmarking and the so called Web 2.0, I have one pet peeve:
What use is it really to view images tagged as 2004 even if it were the year 2004? How much does it help a user to find a photo taken in 2004? I understand when it comes to personal labels, maybe I want to search my personal photos for a vacation I had taken that year. But for social networking, I have a hard time seeing how these clouds are useful. In the Social Bookmarking Tools article, it is noted that this is a snapshot in February 2005, and "the tag 'christmas' is still very much in evidence one month after the event." Today I visited the same tag cloud. It is June 2008, and the christmas tag is the same size as it had been in February 2005.
Now, I'm not saying tags are "bad" in any way, and tag clouds are quite interesting to examine. But they aren't helpful, in my opinion, as a search mechanism. I use tags almost daily to organize my online material. However, I can control my tags. I think that controlled tags are far easier to browse. Boing Boing is an example of useful (browseable) tags.
Spray-can graffiti controller for Wii
Clearly, spray-can graffiti is "art", the controller aspect makes it a "gadget", Wii is a "game" console, and this is a "kid" friendly item (Wii has a wide variety of kid-friendly games). Reading the article tells you about the fact that this is a 'hacked' controller, meaning it was made by a person - hence "maker". Now, "happy mutants" is an interesting tag, but one that is recognisable as the users of Boing Boing. From what I can tell its an assortment of the weird, unique and often colorful posts. But for this site, it's part of the vocabulary. Using these types of tags I can find articles similar to the aspect of the article/post I am currently reading. Is it a neat gadget? Do I want to make art? Find something for a child? Do I like hacked (re-made) tech things? Or is it just fun and off-the-wall and I want to see something else?
In the world of social bookmarking and the so called Web 2.0, I have one pet peeve:
What use is it really to view images tagged as 2004 even if it were the year 2004? How much does it help a user to find a photo taken in 2004? I understand when it comes to personal labels, maybe I want to search my personal photos for a vacation I had taken that year. But for social networking, I have a hard time seeing how these clouds are useful. In the Social Bookmarking Tools article, it is noted that this is a snapshot in February 2005, and "the tag 'christmas' is still very much in evidence one month after the event." Today I visited the same tag cloud. It is June 2008, and the christmas tag is the same size as it had been in February 2005.
Now, I'm not saying tags are "bad" in any way, and tag clouds are quite interesting to examine. But they aren't helpful, in my opinion, as a search mechanism. I use tags almost daily to organize my online material. However, I can control my tags. I think that controlled tags are far easier to browse. Boing Boing is an example of useful (browseable) tags.
Spray-can graffiti controller for Wii
Clearly, spray-can graffiti is "art", the controller aspect makes it a "gadget", Wii is a "game" console, and this is a "kid" friendly item (Wii has a wide variety of kid-friendly games). Reading the article tells you about the fact that this is a 'hacked' controller, meaning it was made by a person - hence "maker". Now, "happy mutants" is an interesting tag, but one that is recognisable as the users of Boing Boing. From what I can tell its an assortment of the weird, unique and often colorful posts. But for this site, it's part of the vocabulary. Using these types of tags I can find articles similar to the aspect of the article/post I am currently reading. Is it a neat gadget? Do I want to make art? Find something for a child? Do I like hacked (re-made) tech things? Or is it just fun and off-the-wall and I want to see something else?
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