Thing#10 The Virtual Library Branch
(1) Best Library Website: Public Library Hall of Fame
I browsed this list and came across two overseas and two domestic library websites with creative graphics and special effects. (Whether our patrons would take to these features is another question!)
Biblioteca Sala Borsa of Bologna Italy has an abstract shape that remains in the background as you scroll the page and current events scroll vertically and stop just like the moving billboards at Old Orchard.
DOK Delft Public Library of the Netherlands has book images scrolling horizontally like a moving picture gallery, with the silhouette of a patron in the foreground.
Osceola Public Libraries, Florida, features images that expand and slide as the cursor is run over them.
Westerville Ohio Public Libraries features an automatic tour of catalog search and other features at the top of the home page.
(2) Downloadable Audio Book
The ladies at Reader's Services graciously allowed me to explore the two sites for downloadable digital books on the one computer in the library that is set up to perform such downloads. I like the collection listing and the NetLibrary/AudioBooks Center versus North Suburban Digital Consortium comparison chart. Clearly this is a medium designed for a tech-savvy patron. All of the information is relevant and well organized. To expand usage of this service, a seminar or workshop might be useful to advertise this service and encourage its use. However, please don't be disappointed if some traditional patrons stick to a fine paper book for their reading pleasure!
(3) Overall Library Web Site Impressions
I like the tabs with color coded drop down menus with defintions of terms such as RSS. I like the quick access to the "My Account" section. I mentioned some clever bells and whistles used at other libraries, but I am not sure that making the site busier or more animated would add value. Patrons of all ages and backgrounds may have reached a point where they tire of animated pop-up ads on their home computers and may find an uncluttered research and education site refreshing. The organization and presentation of information on our site is great and I like the photo gallery and easy links to Skokie Net and with community images and information.
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
November 6, 2007 Thing 9 Online Productivity
Thing 9: Online Productivity
Well. I signed onto Google Docs, went to the "Communicate, show & share" area and played with the spreadsheet program. creating a hypothetical document I called entitled Hours Log for Ten Things in the process.
The automatic save feature seems eerie at first. It seems easier to get rid of document you don't need using a software based program. It seems you have more control over the document. Google documents are nuch more public and theis is how they are designed.
The spreadsheet functions worked very similarly to those of a software based program. I deliberately picked a spreadsheet not a word processing document because I haven't created a new spreadsheet in a long time.
Once you begin using one of the document creation programs, it seems to be difficult to back out into tools again. The rest look interesting but seem to duplicate many of the funtions we've already explored with previous Things. )
Note: Products is an e-bay like function, not a tool page!
Well. I signed onto Google Docs, went to the "Communicate, show & share" area and played with the spreadsheet program. creating a hypothetical document I called entitled Hours Log for Ten Things in the process.
The automatic save feature seems eerie at first. It seems easier to get rid of document you don't need using a software based program. It seems you have more control over the document. Google documents are nuch more public and theis is how they are designed.
The spreadsheet functions worked very similarly to those of a software based program. I deliberately picked a spreadsheet not a word processing document because I haven't created a new spreadsheet in a long time.
Once you begin using one of the document creation programs, it seems to be difficult to back out into tools again. The rest look interesting but seem to duplicate many of the funtions we've already explored with previous Things. )
Note: Products is an e-bay like function, not a tool page!
Friday, November 2, 2007
November 2, 2007 (3) Wikis
Thing 8: Wikis
So that is how a wiki works. I edited and saved to add my comment to 10Things @ SPL: Staff Picks - TV shows. It is easy to use. Now for the questions.
An alert, diligent, committed, and independently well-informed user base may keep the information in a wiki such as Wikipedia relevant and I do not want to discount common knowlege entirely. However, what passes for knowledge these days is often extremely biased and shallow, critical for the sake of criticism, not understanding, heavy on popular culture and celebrities, and light on scientific and historical knowledge.
I think libraries should stick to expert sources when providing information to patrons not only currently popular sources. That is what patrons are relying on, especially for medical, financial or government information. Now, in some cases, a wiki may offer the only information on a topic. (Example: A librarian found a definition for fahrvergnugen in Wikipedia, not a German-English dictionary. Why? It was a Gernan advertising jingle from the 1970's not a dictionary word--that is a wiki strength--answering questions pertaining to popular culture. Also, I could see where a historical fact from, say, Shepherd's Historical Atlas could be supplemented by someon's personal observation from a trip, as long as the two sources are clearly labeled fact and opinion or comment.
Wikis as demonstrated in the Video example on the Ten Things site could be useful to our department perhaps as a project management tool if it ever became impossible to communicate with everyone involved in person by other means. It also might be a useful tool if it were ever necessary to stimulate and gather opinions from our group. That is, long as it is used to supplement, not replace face to face meetings.
So that is how a wiki works. I edited and saved to add my comment to 10Things @ SPL: Staff Picks - TV shows. It is easy to use. Now for the questions.
An alert, diligent, committed, and independently well-informed user base may keep the information in a wiki such as Wikipedia relevant and I do not want to discount common knowlege entirely. However, what passes for knowledge these days is often extremely biased and shallow, critical for the sake of criticism, not understanding, heavy on popular culture and celebrities, and light on scientific and historical knowledge.
I think libraries should stick to expert sources when providing information to patrons not only currently popular sources. That is what patrons are relying on, especially for medical, financial or government information. Now, in some cases, a wiki may offer the only information on a topic. (Example: A librarian found a definition for fahrvergnugen in Wikipedia, not a German-English dictionary. Why? It was a Gernan advertising jingle from the 1970's not a dictionary word--that is a wiki strength--answering questions pertaining to popular culture. Also, I could see where a historical fact from, say, Shepherd's Historical Atlas could be supplemented by someon's personal observation from a trip, as long as the two sources are clearly labeled fact and opinion or comment.
Wikis as demonstrated in the Video example on the Ten Things site could be useful to our department perhaps as a project management tool if it ever became impossible to communicate with everyone involved in person by other means. It also might be a useful tool if it were ever necessary to stimulate and gather opinions from our group. That is, long as it is used to supplement, not replace face to face meetings.
November 2 2007 (#2)
Thing 7 Podcasting
I checked Jared Diamond's works on the Learn Out Loud podcasting site, but without the "radio wave" podcasting symbol, they can't be loaded into the RSS feed reader.
(Q1) I listened to Medieval History last week and Byzantine History and Rough Guides Intro and Da Vinci Code interviews today. I added the Learn Out Loud Byzantine History Lecture Series and the Rough Guides DaVinci Code interview to my RSS Feed Reader in Google.
(Q2) Podcasts can be a useful supplement to audiobooks and playaways that enable patrons with a home broadband connection but with limited physical mobility or time to experience some aspects of an interview or lecture. Some multitasking people might be able to listen to a podcast on an area of interest while doing a spreadsheet or text document on their computer for example.
(Q3) Our patrons might be interested in hearing travel or history, especially of their ancestral country or a place they plan to visit. Philosophy, and trends of science discovery and topics in the social sciences might also lend themselves to audio feeds.
(Q4) I really have no other experience -- this was interesting to check out.
I checked Jared Diamond's works on the Learn Out Loud podcasting site, but without the "radio wave" podcasting symbol, they can't be loaded into the RSS feed reader.
(Q1) I listened to Medieval History last week and Byzantine History and Rough Guides Intro and Da Vinci Code interviews today. I added the Learn Out Loud Byzantine History Lecture Series and the Rough Guides DaVinci Code interview to my RSS Feed Reader in Google.
(Q2) Podcasts can be a useful supplement to audiobooks and playaways that enable patrons with a home broadband connection but with limited physical mobility or time to experience some aspects of an interview or lecture. Some multitasking people might be able to listen to a podcast on an area of interest while doing a spreadsheet or text document on their computer for example.
(Q3) Our patrons might be interested in hearing travel or history, especially of their ancestral country or a place they plan to visit. Philosophy, and trends of science discovery and topics in the social sciences might also lend themselves to audio feeds.
(Q4) I really have no other experience -- this was interesting to check out.
November 2 2007
Thing 5:
Thanks to a LOT of hand-holding and technology, I was able to post some photos with a digital camera to the skokie10 library slideshow and plunk a couple in yesterday's blog. The camera's screen only gave a hint of the brilliance of the outdoor shots as displayed on the websites.
Thing 6:
It was interesting to create some public tags for the one website I figured might be useful, NOAA's weather site. I did not see the tags other than staffpicks show up on the list immediately. A later visit might show these other tags.
Thanks to a LOT of hand-holding and technology, I was able to post some photos with a digital camera to the skokie10 library slideshow and plunk a couple in yesterday's blog. The camera's screen only gave a hint of the brilliance of the outdoor shots as displayed on the websites.
Thing 6:
It was interesting to create some public tags for the one website I figured might be useful, NOAA's weather site. I did not see the tags other than staffpicks show up on the list immediately. A later visit might show these other tags.
Thursday, November 1, 2007
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