Getting Jingy with it!

Jing is something that I have actually used in the past.  I love Jing because it is easy to use and simple to understand. You select the size of the recording and start recording.  It is a great way to create screen cast and 5 minutes is plenty of recording time.  I feel like libraries can easily incorporate Jing into their web presence and show patrons how navigate the library’s website. Jing has next to no learning curve and if there was ever a product that was intuitive, it is Jing. It is easy to share the Jing videos and to send them to friends and family.    

                Libraries are always looking for easy-to-use products and Jing allows librarians to created guided tours and teach patrons how to do research.  A single Jing video can help librarians show hundreds and potentially thousands of patrons how to perform a task online without having to explain it over and over.  Jing videos are limited in what they show the patron because it is a bit tricky to open up new pages and switch between images in a way that looks professional but anything you can do on your computer you can show someone else. Plus the audio commentary make Jing a powerful tool in the world of school media.  You could make a Jing on how to pick a research topic, how to do the research, and how to format the paper. Imagine an entire semester research paper explained in a single video!

At this point I am aware that I sound like Jing is giving me a kickback but I assure you it is simply my love the technology that is shining through. Free, easy, and eminently presentable, what more could a librarian ask for?

My JING!

Soooo...my Wikispace or yours?

Wikispaces is very easy to use and the inclusion of videos was so simple I thought it had to be some sort of trap.  Wikipedia (I am nervous even typing that word in an academic setting)…is one long stream of consciousness about a particular subject while Wikispaces allows you divide the information up by pages.  This feature is really a double-edged sword. On one hand it makes the information easier to divide, but on the other hand it requires descriptive labeling and more aforethought.

I think that libraries should avail themselves of this technology simply because it is so easy to use. You can have a video and images posted in a manner of seconds using the widgets and before you know it, your library has a web presence that is easy to update and modify.  One problem with Wikis is that many people have the perception that the information on them is somehow tainted and would discourage children from using them as sources of information.  While this is a valid concern in the academic setting, I feel for simple information such as library hours or the dates of upcoming events, a Wiki is a great tool.  The fact that this technology is simple, free, has some name recognition, and has little-to-no learning curve and allows for group design and collaboration make Wikispaces a powerful tool in the hands of a librarian with a free lunch hour.

 We had to use this Web 2.0 technology in a group context and this is where Wikispaces shines. I was able to make my edits and additions while the other members of my group were able to make theirs.  In order for libraries to stay current and have a powerful web presence they need to have more than one person using the technologies and updating the information; this is something that Wikispaces makes easy and secure.  However, I am still nervous about mentioning Wikipedia since I spent four years as an undergrad hearing about how evil it was. 

Pin for the Win!

I am a very big fan of Delicious and found Diigo to be less than appealing visually. Diigo was difficult to read but offered some features that I found very useful.  I like the ability to highlight text and make sticky notes.  Delicious was very easy to set up and the display was much easier to read. I think that librarians can use Delicious to stay current on many related internet sites and can group topics together. Diigo and Delicious seem to be cut from the same cloth and they are some similar there is little reason to use both.  The ability to bundle tags is really useful in a research context because you can keep items to tags such as “LIS???” or by paper topic. The internet is full of information and in the sea of knowledge that is out there, it is vital to have anchors that can lock the information into one place.

It is hard to compare Pinterest to Diigo and Delicious because it is such a different type of tool.  I really like Pinterest because I am a visual learner and seeing is believing for me. Pinterest also has a fun factor which I feel the other two sites lack.  I liked the ability to open a webpage and pin any of the images on it, this made the use of Pinterest pretty easy and the learning curve was almost nonexistent. I would say Pinterest has the greatest utility in a library because you can put up pictures of library events, locations, maps, and everything a patron would need all in one board. 

Delicious 

Diigo

Pinterest

QR Code

This will link you to my Google Site. There is nothing there now but that will soon change.

This library really speaks to me!

           

     I think the podcasts and MP3 files are great tools for libraries to use.  FREE! You can’t beat that price! This economy is not going anywhere fast (just watch the debates) and that means libraries have to get even more adept at finding free ways to reach and teach the public. Also podcasts are something that appeal to younger users and are simple enough for any iPhone user to use. One of the biggest problems facing libraries is that of awareness.  A weekly podcast of upcoming events or new materials is a great way for the library to speak to its public.  The MP3 format will not be around forever, but it is here to stay for the indefinite future.  Podcasts can give audio tours, provide samples of new audio resources, deliver news, and provide the listener with information about the library that they can take with them. Unlike a website or blog that require active reading or browsing by the user, the podcast can be played while driving or at the gym. Now I feel bad for the person that is working out to “What is new in your library” but who am I to judge?

                One of the big disadvantages of podcasts is that they are solely an audio source of information and some information does not translate well into the audio format.  Podcasts are not a panacea for all of the problems of a budget-impaired library, but they can go a long way to making the library more popular, better understood, and hopefully more usual to its patrons. Another key factor of podcasts being a viable tool in public library is their simplicity. They are easy to create and share.  Also even the most technology inhibited librarian can create a podcast since you simply need to talk in front of a microphone and we all know talking is something every librarian is good at.  Podcasts can also be used to provide story time to children. Even an illiterate parent can read a book with their child using a podcast just by simply turning the page and clicking play. 

Law Library Audio Tour

This podcast was created to help users learn more about the Miami-Dade County Law Library for the Office of the State Attorney.  The audio tour covers all of the resources available for use in the law library. The target audience for this podcast is anyone that would want to access the law library, but was not sure how to access it or did not know what resources were available. I wanted the listeners to learn that they can access Westlaw, have full printing, full internet and that they are able to receive Westlaw training upon request. 

Audio Tour

With Prezi around what is the point of PowerPoint?

                It is hard for me to not be overly-critical of PowerPoint.  Prezi…where have you been all of my life?  PowerPoint is a dinosaur and I find many of the features on it difficult to use, impossible to use, or just plain hard to find.  One major advantage the Prezi has over PowerPoint is in the world of government libraries; not all computers would be given Microsoft Office, but would most likely have internet access.  I can’t use PowerPoint in my library because none of the six computers have Microsoft PowerPoint and if they did, it would likely be an out-of-date version anyway!  Prezi is something that I could use in my library starting Monday morning to help teach lawyers how to use Westlaw Next and that is something of great value to me.   PowerPoint often feels linear and forced similar to “It’s a Small World” while Prezi feels more like the “Harry Potter” ride.  One can get “Prezidiculous” (a term I am coining) and leave the reader confused and over-stimulated.  If anything, Prezi is new and like any child who just switched schools can attest, sometimes that is all it takes to be popular.  If these two presentation methods were people:

PowerPoint would say “Are you still with me?”

 

Prezi would scream “ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED!!!!”

               

 Another big problem with PowerPoint is that it always seems to have trouble with audio.  I sent my PowerPoint to two friends to review to make sure everything played correctly. One of them had audio, one of them didn’t. I sent my Prezi link to numerous people and they have reported no problems, aside from containing their laughter.  I was not sure if there was a way to do audio files in Prezi and that is something that I want to learn more about. Either way, Prezi is the wave of the future that I hope will wash away the trash heap known as PowerPoint. 

GO GATORS- UF takes a bite out of twitter!

I choose to examine the University Of Florida Levin College Of Law’s twitter account.  I have not been on campus in over two years and right away the images on the page took me back.  I was able to see the grand entrance of the library and at a glance I was able to see many events that are taking place on campus. 

Overall I think the twitter page is very well done and highly informative.  The information about the Law Library being closed on GAMEDAY is very important because many new students would not assume that the library would be closed on a Saturday.  This type of information is very good to have tweeted to students instead of them having to check the website because it is the very type of information that you forget to check.

There was also a post about when a librarian would be in the courtyard to give out research tips and advice. This is an example of Web 2.0 providing information about traditional in-person services! Irony anyone? Also there were numerous posts “more propagandistic in nature” which extolled the virtues of attending the University of Florida.  Some of the limitations that I see are the very small number of followers. At any given moment there are some 1000 law students attending the University Of Florida Levin College Of Law and the total number of followers was only 357.  Awareness is always an issue with Web 2.0 technologies and this is something that can be solved rather easily. Also there were no recently added images and I think this is a flaw to the account since I am a firm believer that a picture is worth a thousand words.

All around I would say GO GATORS!

UFLL twitter!

Web 2.0 v. Law Libraries

This blog post will deal with the emergence of Web 2.0 technologies in libraries and will focus on the difficulties and issues that arise in the law library context.   One of the greatest difficulties with using Web 2.0 technologies in libraries appears to be the merging of necessary services such as reference and circulation with the “luxury” services such as blogs, twitter updates, and online support.  In order for libraries to stay relevant and current, they must be unafraid to take the technological bull by the horns.   Steele (n.d.) makes the need for technology apparent with the statement “…because a commitment to reference service in libraries is also a commitment to being comfortable with the latest technology” (p. 114).  It is easy for a library to decide they want to add services but the reality is that in a world of across-the-board budget cuts and reductions, any new service that a library adds will require the library to cut service somewhere else.  While having a blog may not have a direct monthly fee associated with it, the time and resources spent keeping current in Web 2.0 technologies does divert resources away from other library services. There are only so many hours in a work day and how many, if any, of those are spent blogging by library staff is a difficult decision.

One of the biggest issues facing librarianship in general is the desire by libraries to avoid becoming or being considered obsolete.  Cannan (2008) points out this reality within the law library context with the statement, “The tenor of this literature is that in a profession like law librarianship, where it is critical to remain current, you are not current unless you know Web 2.0” (p. 17).  It appears that law libraries (like all libraries) must remain abreast of the Web 2.0 development in order to be perceived as current and forward-thinking.  Law libraries often have a focus on education and training, and Web 2.0 technologies are very useful with this mission statement.  Posting information on a library website is a useful way to keep patrons abreast of events, but Twitter announcements are a real game changer because they make the library experience interactive.  Being able to be a part of a patron’s social network is a way to become a part of their life, and the interactivity of Web 2.0 is beauty of the technology.  

 This leads to the question of what Web 2.0 technologies should be adopted by a law library and which ones should not.  Murley (2008) states, “It is impossible to generalize about which Library 2.0 ideas and tools should be adopted in law libraries” (p. 201) and it is important for library administrators to not be suckered into adopting those technologies with the most name recognition, but rather choose those that will have the greatest impact upon their patrons.  The ability for blogs to be used to avoid many of the spam issues associated with emails is commendable, but the main advantage of a blog is the ability for readers to post commentary; however, this is something that needs to be monitored and moderated and any such activity requires library staff being allotted time during working hours to do so (Murley, 2008, p. 202).  I remember my law school having a class on internet crimes that was taught entirely in Second Life and this would also allow for distance learning (Cannan, 2008, p. 18).  The ability of law libraries to use blogs and social networking to create a web presence is vital to libraries promoting awareness of their services.  Since awareness and funding often go hand-in-hand, all libraries should have the desire to create as strong a web presence as is practicable.

I think that blogs are the most practical way for law libraries and libraries in general to implement Web 2.0.  They are cost-effective, simple, and can be used to increase information literacy among patrons. As Steele (n.d) comments, “Recent law library literature has discussed the blogosphere as a means for libraries to share law-related information with their patrons” (p. 114).  I think that other Web 2.0 technologies have too many drawbacks both in implementation and in keeping them current as technology changes staff would need to be train in the new versions of existing technologies.  While the statement by Steele (n.d) that “At first the province of technologists and teenagers, the blog has evolved to be a publishing platform by which a number of voices, including those of librarians, can be heard” (p. 113-114) remains true, libraries must be aware of what resources they are giving up in order to create this voice.

References

Cannan, J. (2008). In search of Web 2.0. AALL Spectrum, 12(5), 16-19.

Murley, D. (2008). What is all the fuss about library 2.0?. Law Library Journal, 100(1), 197-204.

Steele, J., & Greenlee, E. (n.d). Thinking, writing, sharing, blogging: Lessons learned from            implementing a law library blog. Law Library Journal, 103(1), 113-13.

Art!!!!