Final thoughts

I can see all of these technologies being used in our libraries, but not necessarily in the near future.

Some of them could be implemented quite quickly with minimum  fuss - Flickr, Twitter, Delicious.

Others would need a bit more work - Wikis, LibraryThing,  online videos, podcasts.

They all require a committment from management to dedicating staff hours to these technologies.

I'd love to see all of the technologies we covered in this program implemented in our libraries.
I'd love to see iPads in each of our libraries, with staff roving the floor and answering customer queries on the spot.
I'd love to be using Wikis, videos and podcasts with the Teacher Librarian to better connect with the students.
I'd love us all to have Twitter and Facebook active on a PC all the time, to respond to customer comments and queries within minutes, not days, not weeks.
I'd love us to be connecting with the community with videos and podcasts.

These technologies take time - we can't just assume that because it is "technology" that it is easy and quick and can be an "add on" to what staff are already doing. If it is important to the future of libraries - and I believe it is - then we should be making the time now to implement them.

We are all about information - and these technologies are how our customers are beginning to expect they can get it.

We don't have to force every staff member to get involved. But when we find staff that are enthusiastic we need to give them the time and tools to get this happening!

Gutenberg Press, by Andrew Plumb, 1 April 2006, on Flickr

Geocaching

High tech treasure hunting - SO COOL!
I can't believe I have never done this before!!

Geocaching could be used to give our bored teenage customers something to do other than harrass library staff! We're always saying they need to go outside and use up some of their energy - this would be perfect!!

They all have bikes or scooters, and mobile phones, and I'm sure that one of them must have a GPS enabled one. I see them all over Ellenbrook and The Vines so they are already getting around the place.

I'm sure there are other customers who would enjoy this too.

So should Libraries be getting involved in this kind of thing? I say, Why not?
It's another way of getting out into the community, connecting with the things that interest our customers, and possibly attracting new customers.

Video didn't quite kill the radio star...

... just forced them to change their approach.

Podcasts - radio when you want it.
I'm not saying we should get rid of radio, but I love that Podcasting has allowed me to listen to something on my terms, when I want it.

Or if I have heard something really inspiring, to have the option to listen again.

I do this a lot with ABC content.

In our libraries we could record visiting speakers or a tour of the library or directions or instructions on how to do things, like setting up a gmail account - a great alternative to written instructions.

We could also work with other libraries and pool our podcasts - so that library users get even more value.

Video killed the radio star

I like YouTube, I use it for all kinds of things, from finding out how to do something on my computer, to watching funny cat videos, to following YouTube channels like Mike Wesch and NLA.

I'd love our libraries to have a You Tube channel - we could use it for training videos, information about how to use the library, to promote events, to record and show events like Library Lovers - imagine that as a whole new way of reaching our housebound customers and the digital natives?

Not to mention the potential of just seeming a whole lot more interesting than the pearl wearing shushing librarian!!!

So here is my pick - this years' NLA Christmas video.



The demise of my faithful iBook G4

In memory of the good times we have shared.

Flickr, by Chris Beach, April 14, 2005

I knocked one too many cups of coffee onto it.



This is why I need that iPad!!!

Twitter #2

Got twitter on my iphone so that i can keep up the 5 days of tweeting on my day off and weekend.

= dedication.

follow me @kittylibrary

Facebook - let's try again

I already have a facebook account so I have used that and friended Midland Swan, posted on their wall and sent a personal message.

I use Facebook to communicate with my family, to share photos, to play games like Farmville.

I think it's great that our library has a facebook page.

We get quite a few customers coming into the library to use the computers and sign up for Facebook - often someone has told them about it but they don't really know what it is. Just the other day I had a customer ask me what the difference was between using her wall to write a message and writing a "facebook email" meaning using the inbox/private messaging. I think there is some danger here for new users in regards to privacy and just the fact that they could reveal something personal unwillingly by not understanding the public public nature of Facebook.

Twitter

I don’t know how we are going to implement any of these technologies into our libraries with the internet connection as bad as it is out here @Ell.

Here’s an example:

Wrote my day 2 tweet

“Day 2 of tweeting for #WAWeb20 and it's lunch time and the internet is marginally faster than yesterday.”

Clicked TWEET.

Went to the tea room, made a sandwich, toasted it, came back to my desk AND THE TWEET WAS STILL UPLOADING.

Replaced “marginally faster” with “slower” and hit TWEET. Went and made a cup of tea and washed my plate.

Got back to my desk and that one was still going.

You think I am joking? I AM NOT!!

It is crazy!!

So for implementing in our library, aside from internet drop out/speed issue, I think it could be a good communication tool either with other branches or with customers, or with other libraries and networking contacts.

I use twitter personally, to follow politicians, abcnews, and a couple of other people who interest me.

Now that all the library branches have wifi, maybe we need a couple of ipads per branch and we can tweet when we have lost phones or email!

Facebook

This is how facebook loaded up for me today


Facebook screenshot, 16 December 2010


Good times.

(That's sarcasm)

CueCat

I want one of these! Definately would motivate me to add mor books to my LibraryThing!

Total cuteness!!

CueCat, by Denn, 12 June 2005 Source: Flickr

Should be known as CuteCat!!

LibraryThing... gadgets and widgets and confusion

I like the idea of using it in libraries but I don't think I will use it personally. After dealing with a library catalogue all day I don't think I'm that motivated to go home and do the same thing!

Anyway I don't have that many books at home any more - I work in a library and have a tiny house!!

Creating the widget was easy enough, choose from the various layout and appearance options  and then copy the code. But I could not work out how to get it on my blog! Because Blogger calls them gadgets, and there was nowhere easy for me to paste it. So I googled and then felt embarrased that i didn't realise i had to add a HTML/JavaScript gadget to be able to embed my LibraryThing widget.

Oh silly me! (That might be sarcasm)

You're It!

Tag, you're it, get it?! hahahaha.

Delicious yep been there, it's like the virtual version of the stacks of recipes and home inmprovemaent articles I have in my study at hom - always motivated to refer back  to them or even just read them, but then they just sit there collecting dust.

I haven't used my delicious account in ages, but I used to love my firefox add on that made tagging and adding to delicious even easier.

So I will make an effort to get back into it, not quite sure why I stopped.

By the way, tag clouds are so cool.

And I wish wish wish our customers could tag the items in our library catalogue!

Delicious could be used as a fantastic reference tool in our libraries - as long as we are all using similar tags I guess.

Again, as with all of these web 2.0 technologies - we need to make/be given the time to develop these resources.

Wikis

I can really see the usefulness of wikis in libraries, even for Ellenbrook Library - maybe a community information hub or an internal working document for processes and procedures.

I've had a look at all of the suggested wikis.
My main comment is that they are not very pretty!
Except for the Twilight one. Yay Team Jacob.

Since I've started a twitter account  already I can use that to sign in to Wetpaint. Yay.

I've applied to be a writer, now waiting to be approved so I can add my 150 words.

I'm going to read some Wikileaks while I'm waiting.



*Update* wiki addition here

Twitter

Starting it early because otherwise I can't be in the prize draw.

http://twitter.com/ kittylibrary

I'll write my 100 words on it later, but for now, I'll be tweeting daily to meet the requirement.

New names and RSS

Week 4

Now my dear readers I know you have missed me, but fear not, I have returned!

Yes I've changed my blog title, it was feeling clunky. So, now it's ReThink. Much snappier! And the capital T in the middle is so hip.

So RSS feeds...

I've added the following to my google reader
http://www.jeanettewinterson.com//column.asp

http://orangette.blogspot.com/ (which I discovered from reading one of my colleagues blogs - thankyou you-know-who)

http://www.abc.net.au/news/australia

http://meetmeatmikes.com/

and i've also used it to follow some of my colleagues blogs

http://greenshadeparadise.blogspot.com/

http://endlessprobabilities.blogspot.com/

I love the concept of being so organised and having a snapshot of useful and favourite blogs all in one place.
But I sometimes feel like it's just another thing for me to check on and "deal with", like the 1238 unread emails in my gmail account...

Flickr

Flickr is a great tool for sharing photos. I use it for sharing pics with my family, some live here, others interstate and so it's a nice way to keep everyone involved in what is going on in our lives.

I've got the Flickr uploader on my computer at home and also on my iPhone so i can snap and upload pretty quickly no matter where I am!

The National Library's use of Flickr is a great example for all libraries. While it might not be practical/appropriate/possible for all libraries to do this kind of thing, it's really positive to see it happening at the national level.

Creative Commons is a refreshing approach to copyright issues that have arisen with Web 2.0 technologies.



http://www.flickr.com/photos/library_of_congress/2162669255/

Post #1

So firstly my blog title - inspired by the final seconds of the Michael Wesch video The Machine is Us/ing Us. I've seen this video before, but this time, it was those final seconds of "rethink...." that really stuck with me.

Maybe because I've done a similar program to this before, so I am familiar with many of the technologies and applications that we will be learning about, and I don't want to get lazy and think that because I've done it before there isn't anything new for me to learn.

I am also hoping that by participating in this Learning 2.0 program I will understand better the challenges and apprehension felt by people when faced with these new technologies and applications.

I'm really more of a reader of blogs than a writer. There are a couple I read regularly, my faves:

http://www.mytinyplot.co.uk

Northern Hemisphere gardening, but worth it for the fantastic photos, short sharp blog entries, not too much waffle and I'm jealous every time I see the soil - Perth sandy soil is hard work when it comes to vegies.

http://www.mytartelette.com/

Yum, yum, yum! Again great photos, and stories. One or two resulted in tears, and the rest - drool on my keyboard.

http://librariansmatter.com/blog/

Melissa and Mark referred everyone to this blog - definitely a good one! I'm always inspired by it.

It's where I go when I am losing faith in the library world.