Cross Reality and Libraries

My library system has recently added a committee called Futures and Trends.  It’s purpose is to:

To recognize, review, and evaluate new or future trends in library service and communicate with Library Administration and related committees.  To consider feasibility, priority, and planning of new ideas for system wide needs that improve or enhance public service or efficiency.

I am fortunate enough to be on this committee and am really looking forward to seeing what it can do!

With this in mind I read 2 posts recently on ReadWriteWeb about a new technology being developed at MIT’s Responsive Environments Group.  You can read the posts here and here and what they describe is quite fascinating. These people are wicked smart!

What is cross reality? It is a way to connect information on-line and in person via ubiquitous sensors in a kind of virtual reality. But really, read the articles…they explain it much better. From RWW:

Cross Reality is about connecting “location-specific 3D animated constructs” in virtual worlds to in-building sensor installations.

In the second post on RWW they use bookstores as an example of how cross reality could possibly work.

Imagine for example walking down to your local shops and entering a bookstore. Theoretically, the bookstore would recognize you as you entered and would ‘ping’ your mobile device, which then might bring up that wish list of books you’ve been compiling…The app would let you know which of your wish list books are available. Also it would display a virtual map on your phone of exactly where each book is located in the store, via the barcodes of the books. Armed with all of this handy, very contextual information, you make your way to the first bookshelf.

This example just screams library to me. Really, just imagine a person walking into a library with a list of items they are looking for in their phone, a map of the library coming up that helps them locate those items.  How cool is that? Granted, it may make the reference desk a thing of the past but that is something that some have been advocating for a while. What are some other possibilities? I don’t know but it is exciting!

I’m sure something like this is a few years away from becoming an everyday thing but just thinking about how the use of technology is mixing with real life is mind boggling.  For an example of the “Tip of the Iceberg” check out this video.

Thanks to DCPL Labs for posting this video so I could find it.

Light at the end of the tunnel

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Originally uploaded by mwphillips75

Had a good meeting today in preparation for our presentation for the big boss. Tomorrow we have our first run through with an audience and will receive critical feedback on where we can improve. We have another run through in a few weeks then the big show early in August. Hopefully all of this will pay off and we will be able to move our library web presence into a more collaborative, innovative and dynamic direction.

I see light!

Big boss

Been reading A LOT lately about the use of online social networking tools (I just can’t use the term web 2.0…really I just can’t anymore…aren’t we past that? – And don’t even get me stated on Library 2.0!)  in relation to government use.  Not just libraries (there are TONS of articles about that!) but local, particularly county governments using SNT’s to connect with the people.  There’s plenty out there but I’m trying to find some good concise (recent) articles that I can share.  We’re trying to obtain approval from the Big boss to use stuff like facebook, blogs, twitter and flickr for the library.

So, I’m in over my paygrade and hoping I help more than hinder.  Should be fun though! I’ve learned a lot already.

New Strategies for Digital Natives

My first session of the day and I feel that it was a great way to begin.  Helen Blowers discussed some things that I have been reading/thinking about recently and her presentation helped get me focused on what I wanted to get from my day.  Unfortunately my notes do not do her presentation justice so I’ve embedded her slideshow here.

What is a digital native?  Anyone born after 1980

            There have always been computers, cell phones, and internet 

Digital Pioneers/Digital Immigrants = anyone born before 1980 

Web 1.0 = Find –>  Built on accessing information

Web 2.0 = Connect –> The ability to engage and share information 

We don’t (shouldn’t) chase information anymore; we have the ability to make it come to us (RSS) 

Engagement is the web now 

9 Digital Native Realities

Digital Identity

For many Digital Natives their online ID is the same as their ‘real’ ID.

Their digital identity is how they influence their authority online

“We leave our digital footprints out there to be discovered” 

Digital Creativity

The ability to create and leave your imprint.

Content Creation 

Digital Information Quality

There is a shift from authoritative control to collaborative control

How do we enable our information to get to the users?

Encyclopedia Britannica has recently added a wiki layer so users can do some editing. 

Digital Safety

DNs have grown up in a ‘safe’ world

Only .08% have actually met someone in person that they met online

DNs are smart, they know how to judge safety 

Digital Opportunity

The world is more accessable

Digitally…

            There are no barriers

            Playing field is leveled

            Access in universal

            Connection is ubiquitous

            All about me

                                    = Opportunites

Digital Piracy

Is sharing piracy?

There is influence through sharing

DNs come from a world of creative commons (copying and remixing are ways to create and make new things from other things)

Digital Privacy

There is none

Life streaming

Digital Advocacy

The voice you create can make a difference

Creating their leadership potential 

What does this mean for libraries? 

What elements need to be present in order for our strategies to support our users? 

Engagement –> How –>  Enable customers to connect with library and each other

            (People want to feel connected) 

Enrich –>  Provide a rich online experience that enhances their local branch & lives

            We want people to feel they are getting value 

Empower –> Personalize & add value to their library experience & celebrate themselves

            Want people to feel good about themselves 

When considering a new tool or service (especially online) we should ask the following questions

Does ___ engage/enrich/empower our users?

How does ___ engage/enrich/empower our users? 

We should look for tools that meet the needs of Digital Natives.  

I really enjoyed this session and wish I could remember everything she said.  This is a relevant  discussion for libraries and as we move forward in librayland we should consider the Digital Native more and more.  Not only with our online presence but with what we offer in our facilities.  

Some other good notes on this session can be found at these sites:

utopianlibray.com

Infotodayblog.com

davidleeking.com

Hurst Associates

Wired Librarian

Participatory Librarianship Characteristics

In my haste to post yesterday about Participatory Librarianship I neglected to mention some of its characteristics. According to what I watched yesterday by David Lankes they are:

1. Collection of services (acess to the collection)
2. Allow for user supplied organization (tags and more)
   • provide the means for users to reorder and restructure information in a way that makes sense to them
3. Provides tools for content creation
   • allow users to build on original content, make derivitaves and add new content
4. Provides conversation that match the norms of the community
   • have space available for users to communicate 
   • our system needs to let them converse about what they find
5. Go where the conversation is

He explaines these very well in his video and I tried to take notes but I couldn’t really keep up.  I will watch it again.  There is so much to learn!

Now I’m listening to a lecture he gave at the Free Library of Philadelphia (I think) that is part of the Participatory Librarianship Starter Kit.

Fascinating stuff!

Participatory Librarianship

     

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Originally uploaded by mwphillips75

I recently saw an intreaguing video on the blog Virtual Dave…Real Blog (thank you, R. David Lankes) about Participatory Librarianship (click here to see it yourself) and while this is not a new concept, it is new to me.  

After I watched it I was left wanting to learn more… so much more about this!

So being a good librarian I went in search for more information.   I followed some of the links on his blog and found a great place to start!  There is a lot to watch and read there.  

I think this is going to take a while for me to go over all of this and understand.  But it is something that I am more than just curious about.  I think this may be something I can really get excited about!