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Social Networking Final Week Closing Thoughts

wlward — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:49:02 +0000

Wow! I agree with a posting on the Semls 2.0 discussion board on Facebook this week – we have certainly gotten a lot of great information over the last 6 weeks in this class. First, I owe a big thank you to Kathy for the tremendous job she has done in presenting and teaching this fantastic class! When I signed up for the class, I did so with reservations. This was primarily because I felt so unsure of my capabilities when it comes to all of this new uncharted territory (for me anyway) called 2.0 However, that was really the most important reason to, in fact, participate in the class and I’m so glad I didn’t let that initial nervousness stop me from signing up.

When the class began, I thought wikis was the thing I would find most useful in applying to my own workplace but I have found so many more technologies that I would like to try to use as well. I would like to try to add a wiki component to our summer reading program this year(which was my initial thought after seeing the great one the Seekonk library added last summer) , but also think it could be useful to have a wiki for parents to go to find out more family resources available to them in our community. I can definitely see the usefulness of Flickr on library websites (although as will so much of this technology there are privacy concerns and policy decisions to be made in conjunction with usage) Blogging is another area which perhaps could be used for bookgroups to further discussions we have when we meet face to face each month or perhaps for book reviews. Finally, although I knew a bit about Librarything before we began this class, Goodreads was new to me. I have already used these tools to help with readers advisory for patrons.

This class has not only broadened my horizons, but has made me more comfortable with getting out there and exploring all of this new technology that so many of our patrons are already using. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to participate in the class and would be very interested in participating in additional/follow-up classes if they were ever offered. I think I can honestly say this is the best SEMLS workshop I’ve ever participated in.

YouTube

wlward — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 13:43:11 +0000

YouTube is a lot of fun. I searched using the term “library” and found a bunch of videos I really liked. This first one just cracked me up, and shows how much fun you can make a potentially very boring ”welcome to our library – here’s what we have to offer” video using YouTube.

O.k. since you can’t have just one, here are two more “library” videos I loved. This first one is from the Saint Joe County Public Library system in South Bend Indiana where my husband grew up, and where numerous nieces and nephews have held part time jobs. This next one is from a Seinfeld episode called library detective and is very funny! Who knew “homework” could be this much fun?

Wiki’s

wlward — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 14:57:59 +0000

I have enjoyed this week very much and found wiki’s very interesting. Also, as with many of the new areas in technology (at least to me) that we have explored, once again it was easier to use than I thought it would be. I can see possibilities for use in my own library, including using a wiki similar to the way a wiki was used in conjunction with the summer reading program by the Seekonk public library this past summer. Also, I think a link to a wiki on a public library’s webpage (simliar to some of the ones we looked at in this week’s coursework) could be quite a beneficial service for our patrons as long as it is made relevant to their lives. As I mentioned in my comments on our wiki this week, I think a wiki about available town resources (my focus would be for parents about daycare, preschools, town sports sign-ups and contacts etc…) for new members of a community or even for long time residents who might like an update regarding what’s new in their community could be a great thing.

Flickr

wlward — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 18:11:01 +0000

Just a few more thoughts about Flickr now that I have had more of a chance to explore it. I enjoyed looking at the Weymouth Library Flickr page. I would definitely be interested in posting pictures of performers we have here for our kids’ programs. Although, there would have to be a policy in place regarding putting pictures of minors online. I also noticed their Books in Bloom pictures, which is an event we have here every year. It seems like a great way to showcase an event.

JENKINSTOWN WOOD. KILKENNY, IRELAND.

wlward — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 16:04:56 +0000

JENKINSTOWN WOOD. KILKENNY, IRELAND.

Originally uploaded by EDWARD DULLARD

Well, Flickr wasn’t too hard to navigate. I love this time of year, even though the past few days all we’ve had is rain and I just thought this was a beautiful autumn photograph!

Del.icio.us and Technorati

wlward — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 17:45:57 +0000

I had never heard of Del.icio.us or Technorati ; so these were completely new worlds to me. I was able to use both without too much trouble, but found Del.icio.us more user friendly overall. I can see how you could easily get hooked on using Del.icio.us, since it is such an easy way to get hooked up with information on virtually any topic. I found it much easier to get sites and info. about my pet topic (book groups), working with Del.icio.us and Technorati than it was trying to get the same information via a traditional web search. I had heard of tags, but didn’t really understand them until now. They are very useful tools in narrowing the field down when searching for something.

I read and tagged several articles including, Web 2.0 where will the next generation take libraries? It’s an interesting read in light of what we are all trying to do in one way another by taking this class – bring ourselves up to date on 2.0 technology, and hopefully find a way to make it relevant for our workplace. Questions are raised about whether or not libraries have moved into the 2.0 arena quickly enough, and whether librarians are ready to meet the challenge and opportunity all of this new technology presents to us. It also warns against jumping on the technology bandwagon just for the sake of it (as other articles have that I have read for this class), and cautions us to make sure that we make our libraries and the ways we offer our patrons to interface with us relevant to their needs.

Overall, I found these exercises to be interesting and will definitely continue to explore both Del.icio.us and Technorati.

More on blogs and book discussion groups

wlward — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 15:39:41 +0000

Thanks to all who have posted comments on my blog. I enjoyed reading all of the comments. One thing that I apparently did not make completely clear, is that my idea was to use the blog as an extension of the face to face book group. I would definitely still want to have a traditional meeting in person once a month, but the blog would allow kids to interface via the web as they were reading the book. Also, the blog might bring in other kids to the discussion who might not have otherwise participated. I think if blogging is used responsibly and if we can all make time for it for in our day, it could be a great way to get people more involved in their libraries.

Wendy

Hello world!

wlward — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 17:48:50 +0000

Welcome to WordPress.com. This is your first post. Edit or delete it and start blogging!

my first posting

wlward — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 18:49:42 +0000

This is my first attempt at creating a blog. As a children’s librarian, I am interested in the idea of using blogs on our library’s webpage as a place where kids involved in our book discussion groups could post comments about books we are reading.