I feel a bit of a cheat with this Thing really, as I already have a Linkedin profile and use it regularly. The benefits are immense; it provides a strong professional network, an alternative to the more social networks. I particularly like the function to join groups and I have learnt a lot from the CILIP discussions.
Sometimes one gets the feeling that, once the network of professionals has been created, no one is really sure what is supposed to happen next. Some people share news articles with their network and others have linked their Twitter feed. As I have mentioned before, I quite like having some things in different places and feel no urge to group everything together.
I think the long term benefits of this tool are more useful than the short term gains; in the current climate, being part of a strong network of professionals with a visible online presence could well make a real difference.
Tuesday 20 July 2010
Facebook has become such a part of our culture that it is now used as a verb: 'I'll Facebook you about it', a friend recently said to me when organising a barbeque. 'Are you on Facebook?' is one of the first questions I am asked when meeting friends of friends. Facebook has even been shortened to make it quicker to say and more embedded in our culture - 'I'll FB you' is a standard short hand way of saying 'I will contact you about this.'
Of course, we all know people who have completely turned away from the monster social networking site in distain and disgust. And whilst we acknowledge this as a good thing amongst our peers, secretly this annoys us beyond belief. Why can't I see what [insert dissenter's name here]'s had for breakfast? Why can I never invite that person to events via FB? Why does s/he have to be so obstinate in refusing to move with the current of the vast majority of people? People have many reasons for not joining Facebook; indeed, I myself deactivated my account. I lasted a day. This need, this addiction, to know what our friends are doing and thinking in real time despite their geographical location, has made us into a people of intensity. We no longer give ourselves time to formulate communication. And there are the dangers, the horror stories: people made redundant, people divorcing their spouse. People forget that what they put online is at some level accessible by other people.
I am still not a big believer in the power of Facebook for libraries; Facebook is a social place of social interaction. I am wary of 'dad at the disco syndrome' where we try to impress the Youff with our Kool FB pages. I do however like the way that some libraries have a page and people can become a fan if they wish. I think Twitter is a better tool for communication with students, however, perhaps that is because I use Twitter for professional purposes and Facebook for social reasons. Am I bringing my own preconceptions to the virtual table? This is an interesting area to watch closely.
Of course, we all know people who have completely turned away from the monster social networking site in distain and disgust. And whilst we acknowledge this as a good thing amongst our peers, secretly this annoys us beyond belief. Why can't I see what [insert dissenter's name here]'s had for breakfast? Why can I never invite that person to events via FB? Why does s/he have to be so obstinate in refusing to move with the current of the vast majority of people? People have many reasons for not joining Facebook; indeed, I myself deactivated my account. I lasted a day. This need, this addiction, to know what our friends are doing and thinking in real time despite their geographical location, has made us into a people of intensity. We no longer give ourselves time to formulate communication. And there are the dangers, the horror stories: people made redundant, people divorcing their spouse. People forget that what they put online is at some level accessible by other people.
I am still not a big believer in the power of Facebook for libraries; Facebook is a social place of social interaction. I am wary of 'dad at the disco syndrome' where we try to impress the Youff with our Kool FB pages. I do however like the way that some libraries have a page and people can become a fan if they wish. I think Twitter is a better tool for communication with students, however, perhaps that is because I use Twitter for professional purposes and Facebook for social reasons. Am I bringing my own preconceptions to the virtual table? This is an interesting area to watch closely.
Tuesday 13 July 2010
Librarything
It's a library thing, or perhaps a librarian thing, but I'm coming out of the closet - I am a fully addicted Librarythinger. Librarything.com is a revolution. I started using it in 2007 in order to have an online list of all the books that I'd ever owned or read. Whilst I'm no longer adding to my catalogue, I still use Librarything a lot for a variety of different purposes.
If someone recommends a book to me, I don't go to amazon.com to read a synopsis; I go straight to Librarything.com. I can read member reviews and look at the user generated tags for the book to gain an idea of both the content of the book and the general reaction to it. For example, if the tag 'tbr' (to be read) is heavily used on a book title, I want to know why. It would make me question things further. The groups on Librarything are also of interest and the grouping of all current information onto a homepage is a fantastic and relatively new feature.
I like the recommendations. I also like the concept of reconstructing the libraries of dead authors. I like that some libraries are using the technology to further the reach of the traditonal catalogue. However, this relies on student engagement, which is often the hardest thing to generate. Tags only become really relevant when a great majority of people join in, but they are also often personal to that individual and have little meaning in the wider community. I love Librarything.com. I spent an age cataloguing all my books, tagging them, reviewing them; but even I duplicated tags, confused terms, ran out of steam with the reviewing. I really like this tool but I am unsure as to its usefulness within the library setting.
If someone recommends a book to me, I don't go to amazon.com to read a synopsis; I go straight to Librarything.com. I can read member reviews and look at the user generated tags for the book to gain an idea of both the content of the book and the general reaction to it. For example, if the tag 'tbr' (to be read) is heavily used on a book title, I want to know why. It would make me question things further. The groups on Librarything are also of interest and the grouping of all current information onto a homepage is a fantastic and relatively new feature.
I like the recommendations. I also like the concept of reconstructing the libraries of dead authors. I like that some libraries are using the technology to further the reach of the traditonal catalogue. However, this relies on student engagement, which is often the hardest thing to generate. Tags only become really relevant when a great majority of people join in, but they are also often personal to that individual and have little meaning in the wider community. I love Librarything.com. I spent an age cataloguing all my books, tagging them, reviewing them; but even I duplicated tags, confused terms, ran out of steam with the reviewing. I really like this tool but I am unsure as to its usefulness within the library setting.
Friday 9 July 2010
Reflection
Whew, almost back up to date with the blogging! This week is a reflection week for the Cambridge 23 Things programme. As such, I have reflected on the whole experience so far and have judged it to be a positive experience in several ways.
Firstly, I am more confident in using the technologies now that I know that other people use them in similar and different ways. This has confirmed my suspicion that there is no 'right way' to either follow or avoid. This is good.
Secondly, I have learnt new things about the technologies that I was already using. For example, I did not know about the creative commons search option in Flickr and the ability in iGoogle to have several tabs each with their own page designs.
Thirdly, it has encouraged me to become an active blogger and to engage with the wider community online.
Fourthly, it has generated lots and lots of Cambridge library-based blogs which have been fascinating to read and comment on; a real sense of community has developed. I just wish I had more time to fully read everything for every Thing!
Finally, and crucially, it has helped me to start thinking about how these tools could be used within the library setting. I already used the majority of these tools before starting the programme, but mainly for personal and professional developmental reasons. Take Twitter as an example. I've used Twitter now for a while for professional development. Now I can see the application for library users. Raising the profile of the library and connecting us to our users are important aspects of the modern profession; both can be realised through social media tools. I have started to become more creative in my approch to tools and their use. The Cam23 programme has really helped me to develop in this direction.
I can't wait for the next ten things!
Firstly, I am more confident in using the technologies now that I know that other people use them in similar and different ways. This has confirmed my suspicion that there is no 'right way' to either follow or avoid. This is good.
Secondly, I have learnt new things about the technologies that I was already using. For example, I did not know about the creative commons search option in Flickr and the ability in iGoogle to have several tabs each with their own page designs.
Thirdly, it has encouraged me to become an active blogger and to engage with the wider community online.
Fourthly, it has generated lots and lots of Cambridge library-based blogs which have been fascinating to read and comment on; a real sense of community has developed. I just wish I had more time to fully read everything for every Thing!
Finally, and crucially, it has helped me to start thinking about how these tools could be used within the library setting. I already used the majority of these tools before starting the programme, but mainly for personal and professional developmental reasons. Take Twitter as an example. I've used Twitter now for a while for professional development. Now I can see the application for library users. Raising the profile of the library and connecting us to our users are important aspects of the modern profession; both can be realised through social media tools. I have started to become more creative in my approch to tools and their use. The Cam23 programme has really helped me to develop in this direction.
I can't wait for the next ten things!
Thing 12: Delicious
Whilst I completely see the point of this tool for storing bookmarks within the 'cloud' itself (who hasn't had a computer die on them and all their bookmarks gone with it), I think it would take me less time to reassemble my bookmarks in their file hierarchy on a new machine than it would to store them all on Delicious. Whilst I acknowledge that the problem would eventually happen again, it is a question of time management. If there were 40 hours in each day, I would gladly spend more of them playing with Delicious. I think it is a very interesting and useful tool. Yet, once I start exploring it, I find so many aspects of it so interesting that I find myself getting so lost in exploring other people's bookmarks that Ihave no time left for anything else!
Perhaps when I next have a block of free time, I will come back and explore this Thing further. For now, let me say that I am in awe of the libraries using Delicious so efficiently and do definitely see the potential for this tool. The sheer vastness of information and the potential for organisation will need to be delved into at some future point.
Perhaps when I next have a block of free time, I will come back and explore this Thing further. For now, let me say that I am in awe of the libraries using Delicious so efficiently and do definitely see the potential for this tool. The sheer vastness of information and the potential for organisation will need to be delved into at some future point.
Tuesday 6 July 2010
Thing 11 - Slideshare
I used Slideshare for the first time recently, in fact to link a powerpoint presentation to a previous blog post about tagging. I found it extremely useful and a convenient way of sharing information across the web. This way of working, being able to store documents and information on the web itself, is becoming more popular. It frees the individual from the machine. It also raises questions about copyright, control of one's own information, and other legal issues. I was pleased to see a variety of privacy settings on slideshare. Very impressive.
There are so many interesting presentations on Slideshare which makes it a fantastic resource for catching up on conferences and other events as well as being a useful place to store information. Libraries could for example put their induction presentations onto Slideshare and point to it in a link on the 'help' section of the website and via Twitter. A very interesting resource overall with many creative applications within the library setting.
There are so many interesting presentations on Slideshare which makes it a fantastic resource for catching up on conferences and other events as well as being a useful place to store information. Libraries could for example put their induction presentations onto Slideshare and point to it in a link on the 'help' section of the website and via Twitter. A very interesting resource overall with many creative applications within the library setting.
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