Chasing Shadows

I was recently walking with my two year old daughter, as we were walking she began to follow her shadow. After a few minutes of this she began chasing her shadow. It was just out of reach, no matter how fast she ran she couldn’t catch it. That futility did not diminish her fun or her determination. She was having a blast!

Later, at work I was thinking about this and it dawned on me that I was doing a similar exercise at work. I am chasing the shadow of  libraries and how they can make lives better. I know I will never be able to fully comprehend everything related to libraries. I won’t be able to catch that shadow. But that won’t stop me from trying.

It’s an exciting time and I have every intention of enjoying my work. While I’m busy chasing my shadow I get the opportunity to learn new things and help other people learn at the same time. I do love my job.

Library Savings Calculator

Now here is something I really like!  Check it out!  Simply plug in the fields that are relevant to you and see how much money the library can save you.  It saves me about $500 a month! 

Coins by Joe Shlabotnik

Killing our libraries

    

killing our libraries

Originally uploaded by libraryman

This was designed by libraryman (aka Michael Porter) and I couldn’t agree more!

Googlization & Gadget Support for the Library

This session was really two different topics, two different libraries/audiences, and two different presentations.  The slides for both presentations are available here.

The first speaker was Lorette S.J. Weldon.  She discussed how she was able to increase the use of her library by using Google.  She began by replicating (?) her small library’s (I apologize for missing the name of the library) collection by using Google Docs and creating Google Groups for her users.  The groups were used to hold online presentations/group discussions twice a month.  She found that the researchers really liked the new method of content delivery and the collaboration of research that it enabled.  The users were able to share information and work together in ways that they were not able to before.  The use of her library’s collection jumped from 200 users per quarter in 2007 to 2000 users in 2008.  She did exceptional work and I only wish it were more applicable to my work environment.

The next group of speakers was Jenny Norvalis, Elisa Day, and Dawn Fischer from the Bedford Public Library (VA). They discussed their ‘Tech Chat’ series of programs.  This is an amazing service!  The ‘Tech Chat’ program allows the people of Bedford to come to the library, ask questions about new gadgets or social networks and receive informed assistance from the staff.  It is kind of an open house where people can bring in their new stuff and the staff also provides examples of gadgets they have.  These monthly programs allow people to get hands on experience with new (expensive) gadgetry and ask questions they may be a little hesitant to ask their kids/family. 

They have set up a wiki for quick access to tutorials, frequently asked questions and reviews for different technology related categories.  It is available online as a quick reference for anyone wanting to know more about the selected topics. 

Select staff has been trained as ‘Tech Authorities’ at each branch.  It is their responsibility to support other staff members, contribute to the wiki and be the ‘go-to’ person at his/her branch for tech questions.  They are educated by the staff at library administration and their colleagues. 

I really think this is a great way to serve the community!

Social Network Profile Management

Here are my notes (mostly coherent) from one of the sessions I attended at Computers In Libraries 2009.

Four member panel discussed different ways and strategies for managing your social network profiles.  This was a good session.  The topic is relevant to me and to the library if we decide to begin using social networking tools.  Each speaker had 5 minutes to speak then the session was opened to questions.  There is a good write up of this session at the electriclibrarian blog.

The first speaker was Greg Schwartz.  He began his segment by discussing identity.  A brief definition of identity:  What I say about me.  What others say about me.  You do not own/control your online ID…but you can influence it.  Here are his four suggestions for influencing your online ID.           

1. Own your username.  Pick a name that represents you, is relatively professional and hopefully unique and stick with it (use it on all the social sites you sign up with).  A handy site for checking the availability of your username is www.checkusernames.com.
2. Join the conversation.  Participate in the network you have joined.  Make friends, follow people, comment when/where appropriate.
3. Listen.  Set up a twitter search and google alerts for your username.  When someone mentions you/your username you will be notified.  You can respond as you see fit.
4. Be authentic/real.  Don’t be institutional or try to be someone other than yourself.  People will see through it. 

Amanda Clay Powers was next.  She began by stating that people have been telling stories forever and that social networking is just another way to tell your story.  Creating your identity is tied to managing your information.  Libraries can help manage people their identity by helping them manage their information.  We can educate about what they are doing and teach them the best way to manage their information.  An example is helping people who are setting up a social network profile with the privacy settings.

The third presenter was Sarah Houghton-Jan  and she had some tips for setting up an institutional social network profile. 

1. Have a uniform username.  Try to use the same name across all of the social networks your library participates in. 
2. Use a uniform, generic email address when signing up for social networks.  You want to do this so more than one person can log in and (most importantly) if the person who sets up the account leaves the username/log on information doesn’t leave with him/her.
3. Make sure your profile information is current.  NO information is better than having wrong information.
4. When people comment or ask you a question reply quickly.  You using social networks to listen to and engage the community so if you don’t reply then you are not helping your library.
5. Be personal not institutional in tone.  Social networks are not a forum for press releases. 
6. Be open to everyone.  If someone across the country wants to friend/follow you, let him/her.  

Realize that there is a time commitment to any social network you sign the library up for.  Who keeps the information up to date?  She recommends spreading the responsibility around so one person is the only one responsible for your online presence.  

The final presenter was Michael Porter.  His mission for this presentation was to give personal examples of do’s and don’ts for social networks.  Hilarity ensued.  His point was to be personal/real but be careful what you post especially when you are representing your institution/library. 

There was some time for questions and answers at the end of their presentations.  I can’t remember all of the questions but the one I do remember had to do with keeping your professional and personal lives separate online.  All four panel members agreed that it is difficult to do and maybe impossible if you are really being genuine online.  Eventually a blend of personal and professional will emerge.

Some other notes can be found at these sites:

Librarian in black

Hurst Associates

“Pro” Library Account

I have an idea that may help some libraries during times of budget cuts.   It hasn’t been thoroughly thought out but I want to put it out there to see what others think.

My idea is that a library could create a ‘Pro’ account much like many internet services do (flickr, vimeo, etc).   It could cost 5-15$ per year and it would include:

1. Extended loan times on library materials (from 4 weeks to 5)
2. Extended computer time (from 2 hrs to 2.5/3 hrs)
3. Money added to a printing account (2$ or so)

This is just an idea.  All comments are welcome.  Does anyone think something like this could work?  Anything else a library could include?