Archive for January, 2006

An important lesson for tech trainers

Tuesday, January 31st, 2006

I know Michael Stephens and Jessamyn are good at teaching people about technology, but I really think they could learn a thing or two from StrongBad of the hilarious Internet cartoon Homestar Runner. Check out this scene where StrongBad offers an introduction to technology for middle school students. My favorite quote: “Robots are [...]

HigherEd BlogCon Call for Presenters Closing Jan 31

Sunday, January 29th, 2006

January 31st is the deadline for submissions to HigherEd BlogCon. If you have some great ideas about how to implement social tools in libraries or are doing cool things at your library, please consider submitting a proposal. One myth I’d like to dispell is that only “BIG names” in the library blogosphere or [...]

On being vague in the online medium, with no apology

Friday, January 27th, 2006

“There’s something that’s really bothering me that I want to tell you about… but I can’t…”
“There’s someone I think is an egotistical jerk. I’m sure you all know who I’m talking about.”
“I want to write about a certain blogger who did ____, but I don’t want to stir the pot.”
“Certain bloggers have been writing [...]

Making assumptions in the online medium and a mea culpa

Thursday, January 26th, 2006

I got my library science degree through distance learning, which was definitely an interesting experience. It’s fascinating to never meet most of your classmates and yet form definite opinions about them since you connect with them through online chat and asynchronous discussion. What was more interesting was how we viewed our professors. [...]

2.0, the book and podcasting: what I’ve been up to

Wednesday, January 25th, 2006

This may be the longest I’ve gone without writing in my blog since I started it. Sorry ’bout that. All the craziness that went on in the comments section of my blog regarding Library 2.0 really made me want to take a break. I didn’t have the mental energy to defend myself [...]

Wiki world presentation

Friday, January 13th, 2006

I think the presentation went really well yesterday! A crazy number of people showed up — 120 at one point. So of course with that many people, the co-browsing didn’t work and I think we may have hurt a few servers trying to all hit them at once, but I was able to [...]

Wiki World talk

Thursday, January 12th, 2006

Just a quick reminder that today I’ll be giving an online talk on Wikis at 3 pm ET. It’s totally free to attend, so stop by if you’re interested in the subject.
OPAL is pleased to present Wiki World: An Introduction. To participate, go to the online auditorium at http://67.19.231.218/v4/login.asp?r=67955673&p=0 type your name and [...]

Patience and staff buy-in

Wednesday, January 11th, 2006

I’m not the most patient person in the world (I can just imagine my husband snickering when he reads this). Ok, I’m really impatient. I have a lot of ideas and I want them all to happen NOW. I can sometimes get discouraged by people’s negative reactions to an idea I have. [...]

Let’s make libraries better, ok?

Tuesday, January 10th, 2006

Since the fall, I’ve pretty much been processing my thoughts about Library 2.0 on this blog in real-time. If one is going for ideological consistency, it’s probably not the best way to do things, but it is the most human way. I’ve been learning and reflecting and sharing those reflections with you. [...]

Go where the patrons are… literally

Sunday, January 8th, 2006

In New Jersey, the Camden County Library System did just that. In November, they opened Shelf Life, a decidedly non-traditional branch of the library at the Echelon Mall in Voorhees. They managed to get the space donated by the company that manages the mall and created a hip place for patrons to visit [...]

Label 2.0

Friday, January 6th, 2006

It’s a bird. It’s a plane. No! It’s Library 2.0!
What is Library 2.0? Is it all about technology? It is new? Is it just old? If Library 2.0 were an animal, what would it be?
Does any of it really matter?
Why do people like to squish things into these [...]

Wiki spam begone!

Wednesday, January 4th, 2006

You have no idea how happy I am to report that my brilliant husband seems to have found the solution to my spam problems. We’re tried blacklists and they never worked. I required people to register and the spambots were kind enough to register before dumping spams on 60 or more pages. [...]