Wrap-Up

Wow! I cannot believe the challenge is over already. How am I going to keep up with all the 2.0 tools? Well, I use bloglines everyday now, so that is very cool! I also am using Delicious to bookmark all the websites I use. Wikis are something I have been using for awhile, and I also use Google Docs on a regular basis. I have connected with a number of librarians on Facebook, so I will probably stay active with that. The one 2.0 tool that I probably will not use very often is Flickr. I can see a real use for Flickr, but I don't take pictures.

This has been so much fun. I hope everyone else has enjoyed the challenge as much as I have.

Wikis

I really like the wiki that SDLA created for the annual conference. I referred to it all the time as I prepared for conference. A wiki would be one way that your library could have a web presence. I do know that there is a cost involved if you want access to all the bells and whistles. A continuing education group that I belong to uses a wiki to communicate information about the annual conference, to post a current membership roll, and to provide a means of communication. I also am part of a group that is using a wiki to write a grant. We can all view the grant application, make comments, and also make changes as needed. It is a private wiki, and only the four of us have access. I have found a variety of uses for wikis. I really like the notification feature, so when someone posts to the wiki, I receive an email. Too cool!

Tagging

I use Delicious all the time. When I bookmark something at work Delicious asks if I also want to add the bookmark to my Delicious account. I like being able to access my bookmarks from anywhere. I find this very useful with the work I do as a librarian. In some libraries there may be several workstations from which librarians assist patrons. By using Delicious all of your bookmarks are available, not matter which workstation you are at.

Social Networking

I am behind on posting and I thought that would be my biggest obstacle in using social networks. I never seem to have enough time. However, I created an account in Facebook and I have found that there are a lot of librarians that use Facebook. It has been nice to meet new people and to reconnect with people that I had lost touch with. I probably do not spend as much time on Facebook as other people do, but I have found that I like the idea of being connected to others.

I think that librarians need to realize that social networks are one way that kids communicate and that blocking kids from using social networks only hurts the library. A report from OCLC shows that people support libraries mainly because of how they percieve libraries, not necessarily because they use libraries. If kids have bad experiences with libraries, how do you think they are going to perceive those libraries once they are adults? Just a thought.

Facebook - LibrarianInBlack

The LibrarianInBlack just posted this. See, patrons think it is cool when their library has a presence in social networks.

My local library, the San Rafael Public Library, now has a Facebook page. A kind tech-savvy patron created it for the library and is maintaining it for them as well. The page has been up for a couple of months now and is going strong. They have photos, links to key services, and upcoming events listed on the site. It's a great way to stay up to date with what's happening there.

It was featured in our local newspaper, the Marin Independent Journal: "San Rafael Library joins social networking site Facebook." The story was even picked up by Business Week!

Interestingly, the writer contacted several of us who were fans of SRPL through Facebook's messaging system asking for comments for the article. I thought that was pretty darn neat. I was quoted briefly as were others. I am thrilled my small local library has a page. They have over 50 fans already with minimal publicity until this article. So cool!

Home on the Range

Home on the Range
Originally uploaded by SD Book Woman

Heavenly Days! With help from a colleague I was able to post this trading card. The problem was that I was using a different Yahoo login for flickr. Once I used the same login it worked. This is where I use to live. I think it is what is called a fixer-upper.

Office 2.0

I have decided that I like Google Docs best. I looked at Zoho, but did not like the features as well as in Google Docs. I can think of numerous uses for Google Docs.
1. Working on a presentation with a colleague
2. An address list for my 36 cousins that they can update as needed
3. Working on a grant application with colleagues
4. Sharing a calendar
5. Helping my niece with her homework



I think that is a good start.

YouTube

Okay, I love YouTube. I have thought about several different ways we could use YouTube at our library. Rapid City Public Library has used YouTube to show the opening of their branch library, for storytime, and to highlight the numerous library programs that they provide. If people do not come into the library, how do you get the word out about what the library offers? YouTube is a great way to reach an audience that libraries are currently missing. My current favorite YouTube video is not about libraries, but rather about the fact that our new president is Irish. I am Irish, so I think this is great. Take a look here, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Xkw8ip43Vk.

Podcasts

I found a cool podcast called the Library Channel. The focus is more research libraries, but I still found it very interesting. You can listen to the September newsletter at http://podcast.com/show/53155/. I could see where librarie could use podcasts to promote library events or even to record library events (be sure to get copyright permission). I have added this podcast to my Bloglines. I will be interested to learn more about this podcast site.

More about Flickr

Thank you to Fabric and Books, who helped me with adding another blog to my Flickr account. I was able to do that, but I still could not post from Flickr to my Book Woman blog. According to Flickr the picture was posted to my blog, but it seems to have ended up in the black hole. I really can see a lot of uses for promoting my library using Flickr. I just have to figure out how to make Flickr work. I am now off to do the next lesson.

Flickr Tools

I liked the trading cards, but after I created some I could not post them to my blog. I will have to try again another day. I could see where you might use the trading cards for a teen program. I think I would use more of the tools for personal use, rather then library, but there are ways you could use the tools to promote your library.

Frosty Morning in South Dakota

Frosty Morning in South Dakota, originally uploaded by superlibrarian58.

My husband took this photo in our yard. I loaded the photo from our computer to flickr.

Flickr

I am on vacation this week, but did not want to get behind in my lessons. I am really learning a lot. I had heard of Flickr, but never used it before. It was easy to create an account. I found some pictures of South Dakota libraries. Flickr would be a great tool to use if your library had a construction or remodeling project that you wanted to document and allow people to view. You could create a link to the photos on your library's homepage. Augustana is doing this with their construction project. You can find the photos on flickr at http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikkelsenlibrary/. I also blogged about a picture my husband took.

RSS

I am using Bloglines as my aggregator. I have added everyones blog, so now I can easily see when you have updated your blog.

I have added a bloglines bookmarklet to my browser. Now we will see if I remember how to use it.

I thought there was a lot to absorb in all of the articles and tutorials. I tried Syndic8, but it was very slow and I got frustrated. I searched blogs using Google and that worked well. Using Google's blog search I found a blog about mysteries called the Cozy Mystery List Blog. Very cool! In my personal life I will use RSS to keep up with blogs about the latest mysteries and also blogs about gardening. In my professional life I will use RSS to keep up with what is happening in the world of librarianship. Some of my favorite blogs are Librarian in Black, Handheld Librarian, and Impromptu Librarian.

Blogging

I have created blogs before, so it was not too hard to create the blog. My problem is that I am always wanting to tweak the layout. I like to change the colors, style, etc. Keep an eye on my blog because it could look very strange at times. I shall have to add something for Halloween.

On a personal level I have a good example of how someone could use a blog. When my brother-in-law's mother was hurt in a car accident, my brother-in-law created a blog to keep everyone posted on his mother's progress.

We are not currently using a blog in my library, but I could think of several ways we could use a blog. We could use a blog to post about events happening at the library. Or we could ask one of our book clubs to post about the books they are reading. We could also do a best-sellers blog, or a mystery blog.

Okay, enough thoughts for today. I cannot wait to try the next lesson.

7 1/2 Habits

The first lesson said we were to identify what we feel is the easiest habit and what is the hardest habit of the 7 1/2 Habits of Highly Successful Learners.

For me the easiest habit would be determining my goal. I have lots of goals, like losing 50 lbs or being independently wealthy. It is in the follow through that I seemed to get bogged down.

The hardest habit for me is going to be #3, View Problems as Challenges. I am the first to admit that I am not the most positive person, but really people, sometimes a problem really is just a problem! For example when the cattle get out and are in the neighbor's cornfield. What is the challenge there? To see if you can get the cattle out of the field before they destroy the field and your neighbor sues you???? As you can see this will definitely be the hardest habit for me to obtain.

My goal for this class is going to be to use social networking tools more. I am not a very social person, which is a challenge not a problem, and one I plan to overcome in the next several weeks.