PLN - Staying current with Web 2.0 and other tools librarians use

Information Wants To Be Free by SJSU SLIS faculty member Meredith Farkas. I included this blog in my PLN because the writer offers some practical insight into both current trends in library land and the real world application of the those trends. Farkas' American Libraries article on screencasting inspired me to create theTalking Books Screencast.


American Libraries Columnist “Technology in Practice”

@librarianmer




The Scout Report is a weekly newsletter published by Computer Sciences Department at University of Wisconsin-Madison.  Each issue has about 20 hyperlinked annotations arranged by topic (Research and Education, General Interest, Network Tools and In the News) for quality Internet resources.  

David Lee King offers thoughtful opinions and practical advice in his blog posts. Topics often focus on the social web, emerging trends and libraries.  My experience has been that many of the most active and interesting librarian bloggers come from an academic library background. I feel that King is one of a few quality bloggers to write from the public librarians' perspective.

 

Public libraries are often used by people with disabilities. Unfortunately many public library staffer are not trained in how to use assistive technology and software. This part of my PLN is to help supplement that gap in my on the job training. No Limits 2 Learning is written by an assistive technology specialist and trainer. Topics include how education theory, gadget reviews and opinion pieces about accessibility issues related to technology and the Internet.

The Thinking Stick author, Jeff Utecht wrote the book Web 2.0: How-To for Educators. Along with some great practical advice about using Web 2.0 tools for education, for me this blog is source of inspiration and encouragement.
 

Walking Paper author Aaron Schmidt blogs about libraries with a focus on the user experiences. His post often include photos that clearly demonstrate what works and needs improvement.  For example this post about confusing library sign posted on the book drop "Signs On Signs. Never Good"
 

American Library Magazine and American Libraries Direct weekly email. I basically skim these source for article and links that catch my eye.  

LIB 203 Social Media and Older Adults

The brief article “AARP Overhauls Website as New Research Finds Social Networking Continues to Rise Among Boomers and 50+ Americans.” (June 2010) describes the recent changes to the AARP website. These changes are designed to create an interactive online community for AARO.org users. In conjunction with the website update AARP is expanding its online content delivery to e-readers, smart phones and mobile phones. The article also highlights research findings from AARP. These finding show that among Americas 50+ social networking is growing and Facebook is the most popular social networking site.

In the article “The Ongoing Web Revolutions” Michael Stephens (2007) suggests that participation in Web 2.0 social media like facebook, flickr and youtube is built on trust. The AARP research findings that a majority of 50+ Americans have heard about social media from family members, children and grandchild supports Stephens proposed link between Web 2.0 participation and trust. Working with older adults I’ve found many rely heavily on recommendations from family members with regards to computers and the internet. For example, my son recently got married out of state. For health reason his grandmother could not travel to the wedding. We upload the wedding video to youtube and she was able to see the wedding before the cake was cut! She then participated in the Web 2.0 by sharing that youtube link via email with her brothers and sister.

AARP Overhauls Website as New Research Finds Social Networking Continues to Rise Among Boomers and 50+ Americans. (2010, June 7). PR Newswire. Retrieved from http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/aarp-overhauls-website-as-new-research-finds-social-networking-continues-to-rise-among-boomers-and-50-americans-95762894.html

Update 8/27/10:
Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project data supports the AARP finding listed above. http://t.co/NjV5reZ

LIB 203 My Thoughts About Succeeding as an Online Student and as a Member of an Online Team

This year I’ve taken two undergraduate courses online. Based on my limited experience I would say that the personal qualities needed for being a successful online student aren’t that different from those needed to be a successful traditional student. These qualities include taking your assignments seriously, turning your work in on time and asking questions when you are unclear about the lectures or assignments.

I also think most successful online students make a habit of:

• Logging in every day or every weekday to check for course announcements posted by the instructor.
• Checking their course email every day.
• Making backups of assignments in two places.
• Having a back-up plan for those times when their computer or Internet goes down.

For me, one of the best things about being an online student…never having to worry about finding a parking place.




I work in a small department including me we have one full time and three part-time employees. We rely on teamwork to provide our patron’s with excellent service and keep our department running smoothly. Just like an online team, one of the biggest challenges facing our department is the lack of face time among part-time co-workers. Listening to Dr. Haycock's lecture on successful teamwork helped me focus on what works so well in our department. First good communication is essential. From my past experience at another organization, I know lack of communication can quickly lead to problems with the team. In our department, we communicate daily via email, written notes and document sharing with Microsoft SharePoint.

Secondly in our office we have well defined duties and performance standards. There is no ambiguity about who does what or when those tasks need to done. But when one of us needs help with a task the others chip in to get the job done. The department’s focus remains on the overall goals rather than individual assignments. Enid Irwin in her presentation “The Monster Inside Library School: Student Teams” states that “Teamwork is -- it's a combination of Attitude and Planning. The two fit together. It takes a lot of work. It takes a lot of thought.” I agree and I’ve found that a positive attitude among team members follows when they all understand the ground rules and have good communication.

I’m looking forward to working with other SLIS students on assignments and group projects.

Blog Post for LIB 203 or Yea! I’m Finally Starting Grad School

This month I start my graduate student studies. I’m attending San Jose State University (SJSU) School of Library and Information Science (SLIS). I’m working towards my Masters of Library and Information Science (MLIS). This fall I’m taking two classes LIB 203 which is a 1 credit introduction to the program and LIB 200 which is a core course that includes a term paper.

I’ve been thinking a lot about writing the term paper. I’ve talked to family and co-workers regarding the paper and the process of writing one. I’ve also been reading the posts on the yahoo group for SLIS students (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sjsumlis/).

To help with citations and keeping track of research a couple of tools have been recommended -

Evernote http://www.evernote.com/ and

Zotero http://www.zotero.org/

Blog readers I want your input! If you used Evernote or Zotero, please leave a comment and share your experience with me and other readers. Was the software easy to use? Did intergate well with your web browser and Mircsoft Office? In general was it a time saver?

A Short and Sweet “History of the Book”

6 minutes is all you need to view “A Video History of Every Book Ever Written” by Marshall Crook for the Wall Street Journal




Also on WSJ.com an article about Great Audiobooks http://on.wsj.com/awR3lf

Digital Talking Books Celebrated by Librarians Serving Blind and Physically Handicapped Readers

News release from the Library of Congress "The delivery of high-quality-sound book cartridges and easy-to-navigate players was the result of 10 years of research, planning, and development," said Frank Kurt Cylke, NLS director. "The digital talking-book system will eventually replace cassettes and the machines used to play them in the homes of all our patrons."

Tom Miller, executive director of the Blinded Veterans Association, lauded the librarians for their work. He said that "besides not being able to drive anymore, not being able to read" is a concern to soldiers who return from the war blind. "The service you provide is truly a joy and a pleasure to us."

Read the whole story here:
http://www.loc.gov/today/pr/2010/10-146.html