I have made two comments on David Pringle's blog here and here.
I also made two comments on Danielle Klumanta's blog here and here.
Thursday, 24 November 2011
Exercise 14. Add authors
Exercise 13. Page arrangement
I was fairly happy already with the initial page layout so I didn't add or change many aspects of it. The first gadget I added was a gadget to show how many people have visited my blog at the bottom of the page. The second gadget was a search box at the top right hand corner to make it easy to navigate through my blog via searching. I also made the blog archive gadget wider so that the labels didn't look so cramped on the side.
Exercise 12. Colour and design
As is probably very obvious i have altered some aspects of my blog in order to personalise it. I started out by adding a dark background image of 'dark wood' to give it a more sombre and cozy feel. I then decided to change the text to white and background of the post section to black to fit the newer darker theme. The white text especially comes up nicely on the dark background. I also made the links yellow to help them stand out in the new theme.
Exercise 11. Recommendations
I don't know which libraries in the world have the 'best practises' to try and emulate or how using separate categories such as 'adult fiction' or 'reference' is really applicable to 2.0 technologies so I'm going to go ahead and just tell you the first steps I'd take in making the Warringah Library Service 2.0 friendly.
The first recommendation I'd give to the Warringah Library Services would be to create a Facebook page. This is one of the first major steps in embracing 2.0 technology. Having a Facebook page gives you access to a huge market in terms of advertising. Not only is it a large untapped resource but it also costs next to nothing except for a small time investment. As well as the advertising and larger chance to reach new customers it also lets you keep in touch with your clients and allows them to provide instant feedback about their experiences. The librarians can also use it as a portal for promoting events and activities or upcoming releases to their clients creating a much higher level of interaction between the clients and the library community.
Once a Facebook page has been created you can then start to add social media buttons to your website in order to promote your Facebook page. This lets people know that you have a Facebook page and helps to show potential clients that you're abreast of the times, making them more likely to partake of your services.
Likewise with the Facebook page they could also create a twitter account for people to follow. It is a very popular technology and an easy way to get quick instant messages out to the people who are interested in them.
The first recommendation I'd give to the Warringah Library Services would be to create a Facebook page. This is one of the first major steps in embracing 2.0 technology. Having a Facebook page gives you access to a huge market in terms of advertising. Not only is it a large untapped resource but it also costs next to nothing except for a small time investment. As well as the advertising and larger chance to reach new customers it also lets you keep in touch with your clients and allows them to provide instant feedback about their experiences. The librarians can also use it as a portal for promoting events and activities or upcoming releases to their clients creating a much higher level of interaction between the clients and the library community.
Once a Facebook page has been created you can then start to add social media buttons to your website in order to promote your Facebook page. This lets people know that you have a Facebook page and helps to show potential clients that you're abreast of the times, making them more likely to partake of your services.
Likewise with the Facebook page they could also create a twitter account for people to follow. It is a very popular technology and an easy way to get quick instant messages out to the people who are interested in them.
Exercise 10. Evaluation
The Warringah Library service offers the use of some 2.0 technologies but doesn't utilise them for every part of their service.
The Local Area section of the library offers access to pictures of the area, an index of street names and an oral history project. Other fields that they can assist you with are
The children's area is a bit more interactive as it starts using the web to intergrate systems of learning and reading and educational games via the library website. While this might not be true 2.0 technology it is a step in the right direction to keeping abreast of the times.
The youth section of the library is starting to integrate their web services very closely with other services they provide such as Get Your Game On, HSC Help, Ask A Librarian, Online Resources, eBooks, A place to meet. Perhaps. Because of the target audience (which can be assumed is more tech savvy) the library seems to be utilising 2.0 technologies more so in this area than others.
The Adult fiction and reference sections allow users to add reviews online of the books they've used. They can also add tags they think are appropriate to the book and you can also just add a comment under 'community discussion' if they want to quickly discuss the book. This is a great use of 2.0 technologies as it is getting the users involved not only with the books but also with each other and the service provider.
The Local Area section of the library offers access to pictures of the area, an index of street names and an oral history project. Other fields that they can assist you with are
- Aboriginal history
- Social history
- Geography and geology
- Built and natural environment
- Contemporary environmental and social issues
- Books
- Reports and environmental studies
- Maps and plans
- Photographs
- Local newspapers
- Oral histories
- Newspaper clippings file
The children's area is a bit more interactive as it starts using the web to intergrate systems of learning and reading and educational games via the library website. While this might not be true 2.0 technology it is a step in the right direction to keeping abreast of the times.
The youth section of the library is starting to integrate their web services very closely with other services they provide such as Get Your Game On, HSC Help, Ask A Librarian, Online Resources, eBooks, A place to meet. Perhaps. Because of the target audience (which can be assumed is more tech savvy) the library seems to be utilising 2.0 technologies more so in this area than others.
The Adult fiction and reference sections allow users to add reviews online of the books they've used. They can also add tags they think are appropriate to the book and you can also just add a comment under 'community discussion' if they want to quickly discuss the book. This is a great use of 2.0 technologies as it is getting the users involved not only with the books but also with each other and the service provider.
Exercise 9. Community profiles
The Warringah Council area includes the suburbs and rural localities of Allambie Heights, Beacon Hill, Belrose, Brookvale, Collaroy, Cottage Point, Cromer, Curl Curl, Davidson, Dee Why, Duffys Forest, Forestville, Frenchs Forest, Freshwater, Ingleside (part), Killarney Heights, Manly Vale, Narrabeen, Narraweena, North Balgowlah, North Curl Curl, North Manly, Oxford Falls, Queenscliff, Terrey Hills and Wheeler Heights.
Warringah Council is a mainly residential area, with some smaller rural areas (mainly in the north). There are also substantial industrial and commercial areas. Warringah encompasses a total land area of 153 square kilometres and has a population of ca. 145,000.
Warringah Council Site
Warringah Library Service
Exercise 8. Current awareness post
The technology being showcased at the James B. Hunt Jr library is an automated book retrieval system. These new kinds of technologies and promoting them are helping to bring libraries into the modern day and age. It helps to publicize that libraries are no longer purely the 'silent refuge of university scholars' but an evolving engaging environment with something for everybody.
This kind of technology which helps protect the longevity of books also helps free up librarians time allowing them to engage in other less menial tasks.
This kind of technology which helps protect the longevity of books also helps free up librarians time allowing them to engage in other less menial tasks.
Monday, 21 November 2011
Exercise 7. Podcasts
Paul Brunton talks about Charles Darwin
Hear Paul Brunton, Exhibition Curator, talk about Darwin's impressions of Sydney in 1836, and about the first edition of On the origin of species.
Link
Exercise 6. Book reviews on library catalogues
The site I'm using as my example for this blog entry is this
How useful do I think these reviews are? Honestly I would never use them. Why's that you ask? To start with I have no idea who these users are. If I were to receive a recommendation from somebody I know in the real world I'd only pay any attention to it if I shared or valued (at least in part) their tastes in books or whatever format of item we were discussing. The fact that I have no idea of the reviewers tastes and the fact there's nothing stopping them from being completely subjective in their assessment because they're not professional reviewers means that to me it holds little to no value.
If however the libraries linked to peer reviewed well known review sites then it would be another matter!
How useful do I think these reviews are? Honestly I would never use them. Why's that you ask? To start with I have no idea who these users are. If I were to receive a recommendation from somebody I know in the real world I'd only pay any attention to it if I shared or valued (at least in part) their tastes in books or whatever format of item we were discussing. The fact that I have no idea of the reviewers tastes and the fact there's nothing stopping them from being completely subjective in their assessment because they're not professional reviewers means that to me it holds little to no value.
If however the libraries linked to peer reviewed well known review sites then it would be another matter!
Exercise 5. Social networking
It is important these days for libraries and any business for that matter to keep up to date with technology. Social networking opens up new channels for support and communication with your clients and other libraries. Not only that but it also creates a great free way to advertise your library and really keep peoples attention and interest focused on it. Social networking is here to stay whether you like using it or not so you better get cracking and keep you library in the loop!
Exercise 4. Youtube
This Youtube clip parodies a famous commercial to try and encourage more people to use the library to study to become 'scholars'.
Exercise 3. Flickr
On the Chicago Ridge public libraries flickr photostream we can see a photo of a table full of folded quilts. The image is labelled quilts 030 and can be found at
Tuesday, 25 October 2011
Exercise 1
"Internet Librarian 2011: Community Embraces Online 11:1"
I like this article from the 'librarian in black' blog because it talks about how certain librarians are moving to embrace the online world and by doing so keeping their libraries relevant to the times.
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