OLJ Evaluative Report

EVALUATIVE STATEMENT

The immersive activities undertaken during the course of this unit have developed my understanding of Library 2.0, participative library services, and social media/networking tools and their application in meeting the needs of library clients. I have also learned about the importance and process of creating social media/networking policies to guide and manage the implementation of social networking technologies in organisations. Below is a discussion of my learning’s throughout the unit, specifically in relation to the following three immersive activities documented in this online journal, Connections Online.

• (2013, April 19). Why libraries should be on social media – comparison – OLJ activity

• (2013, April 06). Second Life – OLJ activity

• (2013, May 15). 5 key points of advice for a Social Media Policy Working Party

Library 2.0

Library 2.0 is a Web 2.0 derivative that adopts Web 2.0 tools for libraries (Anttiroiko & Savolainen, 2011). The term’s specific meaning is debated with suggestion that it involves current and up-to-date tools, social collaboration, online communities, interactivity, and a focus on the user experience (liseducation, 2009, March 22). Library 2.0 involves participatory library services which focus on the relationship between libraries and users (Nguyen & Edwards, 2012).

To investigate how social media/networking tools enhance participatory services in libraries I compared three different libraries, Arlington Public Library, ACT Library Service, and Los Angeles Public Library. Facebook and Twitter were particularly effective in allowing library clients to engage with library staff. Feedback provided through these forums enabled the libraries to improve their services, and guided the development of new services to better meet the needs of their clients (Brown, 2013, April 19).

Meeting User Needs

With massive changes occurring in the media landscape it is essential for libraries to embrace new philosophies, technologies and spaces (Hendrix, 2010). Clients expect instant and mobile access to information, interaction using a variety of media and forums, and 24/7 access. Social media/networking tools have been especially effective in overcoming time and geographical barriers to meeting client expectations. The Arlington Library has created a series of instructional videos for clients which can be accessed any time through YouTube. These videos provide clients with assistance on using the library’s resources and services even when a librarian is not physically available. Facebook and Twitter offer clients answers to reference questions despite their physical location (Brown, 2013, April 19) and Second Life provides a new virtual space for libraries to provide reference services (Brown, 2013, April 06).

Social Media/Networking Tools

This unit provided an opportunity to develop my experience and investigate the social media/networking tools currently being used as part of Library 2.0. I explored a wide variety of social networking technologies including blogs, Del.icio.us, QR codes, RSS feeds, Facebook, Twitter, and Second Life.

My experiences with Second Life were particularly informative. My initial impressions were not good—the platform was not easy to learn and my experiences with it were not very productive. The true benefits of Second Life were realised when I participated in a group tutorial. This tutorial allowed me to practice using the tools while being instructed by a knowledgeable guide and interacting directly with other participants of the unit. I was amazed at how well the personalities of participants shone through within this platform, a real sense of community and collaboration was experienced (Brown, 2013, April 06).

Second Life has proven successful in supporting virtual communities and collaboration. Many conferences, presentations, meetings and tutorials are conducted within Second Life. The Virtual Worlds in Education Conference was held entirely within Second Life. It provided an opportunity for education faculty and administrators around the world to collaborate and share experiences in one virtual space (Brown, Hodge, Kisling & Collins, 2009).

Another tool which I was unfamiliar with at the beginning of this unit was Pinterest. During my comparative investigation of three libraries I discovered Pinterest was a popular tool particularly for Readers Advisory services. Los Angeles Public Library maintains pin boards for a variety of topics including ‘Best of 2012: Teen Books’, and ‘If you like Mad Men…’ (Brown, 2013, April 19). Library clients are able to ‘like’ or comment on particular books displayed on the pin boards and information gained assists library staff to better understand their clients’ interests and guides collection development decisions (Brown, 2013, April 19).

Implementing Social Media/Networking Tools

The implementation of social media/networking projects was explored during this unit, highlighting the importance of planning and social media/networking policy development to manage technical, ethical, social and cultural issues. A few major considerations were highlighted. Firstly, in order for social networking to be successful within an organisation a culture of openness must be established with the ideas and opinions of employees respected. The development of social media policy needs a collaborative effort and should build upon existing policies (Lauby, 2009, 27 April; Society for New Communications Research, n.d). Finally, policy must address the myriad of legal implications that social networking use brings to an organisation. In particular, employees must be aware of their responsibilities in relation to privacy, ethical online behaviour and the release of organisational information (Kroski, 2009; Lauby, 2009, 27 April; Brown, 2013, May 15).

REFLECTIVE STATEMENT

On commencement of this unit of study my experience with social networking involved interacting on Facebook, watching YouTube clips, reading blogs and limited use of Twitter. My first ‘Connections Online’ blog post, 04 March, described my initial perspective of ‘social networking’.

“Social networking is the development of relationships, sharing of information, and facilitation of communication between like-minded people. Social networks are effective in communicating, managing and creating knowledge within communities and can be productively utilised for personal and professional endeavors.” (Brown, 2013, March 04).

I still believe this is an excellent description of the concept of social networking— however through this course I have gained greater insight into how Web 2.0 tools achieve this. Web 2.0 involves social networking and social media tools. These terms are often used interchangeably however their purpose and content can be used for different purposes. Social networking sites facilitate interaction between users’ shared interests, attitudes and activities. In contrast, social media sites are focused on publishing and sharing content such as video clips, photos, or bookmarks (De Rosa, Cantrell, Havens, Hawk & Jenkins, 2007).

I have experimented with a variety of Web 2.0 tools and investigated their application within organisations, libraries and information agencies. My attitudes towards some of these tools have evolved greatly throughout this unit, for example on commencing this unit I thought Second Life was some experiment which had faded out of use many years ago and I had barely even heard of Pinterest. I discovered that Second Life is used within many organisations to conduct meetings, teach classes and display library collections. One interesting example of Second Life use comes from Canada’s Public Service Commission where young job seekers can explore the dimensions of a job virtually rather than just reading about it (Downey & Jones, 2012).

I am excited about investigating Web 2.0 tools further and promoting their implementation within my library workplace. I have already established a WordPress blog which is a very effective way to keep clients up-to-date on the latest open access resources published on the Internet relevant to their core business. This blog organises resources by category creating an invaluable resource for our clients.

The organisation that I work within is very mobile making the adoption of Web 2.0 tools verging on essential. Web 2.0 tools enable my library to provide clients with services despite their location in a very efficient and effective way. Web 2.0 tools are also a great cost saving option. My library currently provides an induction presentation to all new employees however with budget cuts it is becoming increasingly difficult to provide this service for interstate and overseas employees. Second Life and Skype are two social networking tools which would enable these induction presentations to be conducted online, saving the organisation time and money and providing increased flexibility. Second Life would offer the opportunity to provide the induction in a virtual representation of a lecture theatre and could allow new employees to explore a virtual representation of the library itself. Both Skype and Second Life would facilitate live online instruction which would allow induction attendees to ask questions as issues arise throughout the presentation (Nicholson & Eva, 2011).

Web 2.0 tools provide great opportunities for geographically distributed teams to collaborate. I will be moving overseas next year and I can see the possibilities that Web 2.0 can offer which would enable me to continue my work effectively from a remote location. A virtual environment can be created where team members can communicate, collaborate and contribute through instant messaging, web conferencing, wikis, blogs, forums, social networking sites, and document sharing and collaboration sites (O’Keefe & Chen, 2011). One study found that the decision making capability of virtual teams is equivalent to face-to-face teams (Pridmore & Phillips-Wren, 2011).

I discovered the effectiveness of Web 2.0 tools for knowledge management within organisations. This concept seems to cause much debate, especially within government organisations due to security issues (Downey & Jones, 2012). My organisation has opted to use Yammer rather than Facebook for internal collaboration. Yammer provides similar features and look to Facebook but with added security benefits. Yammer is designed for private communications within organisations; to join you require a working email address from the organisation’s domain. Yammer is an effective platform for solving work problems through crowdsourcing, breaking down hierarchical barriers and stimulating communication across the organisation (Foreshew, 2012).

Another exciting discovery during this unit was the opportunities Web 2.0 tools offer for professional development. I discovered some informative library and information profession centred Facebook groups, Twitter feeds, blogs, Second Life locations, Pinterest boards and YouTube channels. Using these Web 2.0 tools I can participate in a ‘community of practice’ to share and develop my knowledge in the area of library and information management and more specifically in relation to the application of social networking in libraries.

REFERENCES

Anttiroiko, A.V., & Savolainen, R. (2011). Towards Library 2.0: The Adoption of Web 2.0 Technologies in Public Libraries. Libri: International Journal of Libraries & Information Services, 61(2), 87-99. doi: 10.1515/libr.2011.008

Brown, A., Hodge, E., Kisling, E., & Collins, S. (2009). The Virtual Worlds in Education Conference: Lessons Learned from Conducting an International, Peer-Reviewed Conference within Second Life. Educational Technology, 49(3), 33-36. Retrieved from http://www.asianvu.com/bookstoread/etp/

Brown, T. (2013, March 04). Assessment item 1 – OLJ creation and first entry [Web log post]. Retrieved from https://connectionsonline.wordpress.com/2013/04/06/second-life-olj-activity

Brown, T. (2013, April 06). Second Life – OLJ activity [Web log post]. Retrieved from https://connectionsonline.wordpress.com/2013/03/04/assessment-item-1-olj-creation-and-first-entry

Brown, T. (2013, April 19). Why libraries should be on social media – comparison – OLJ activity [Web log post]. Retrieved from https://connectionsonline.wordpress.com/2013/04/19/why-libraries-should-be-on-social-media-comparison-olj-activity

Brown, T. (2013, May 15). 5 key points of advice for a Social Media Policy Working Party [Web log post]. Retrieved from https://connectionsonline.wordpress.com/2013/05/15/5-key-points-of-advice-for-a-social-media-policy-working-party-olj-activity

De Rosa, C., Cantrell, J., Hawk, J., & Jenkins, L. (2007). Sharing privacy and trust in our networked world: A report to the OCLC membership. Retrieved from http://www.oclc.org/reports/pdfs/sharing.pdf

Downey, E. & Jones, J. (2012). Public service, governance and Web 2.0 technologies. Hershey, PA: IGI Global.

Foreshew, J. (2012, December 04). Yammer is a social network focused on one organisation. The Australian. Retrieved from http://www.theaustralian.com.au/australian-it/it-business/yammer-is-a-social-network-focused-on-one-organisation/story-e6frganx-1226529201872

Hendrix, J.C. (2010). Checking out the future: perspectives from the library community on information technology and 21st century libraries (ALA Office for Information Technology Policy, Policy Brief no. 2, February 2010). Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/offices/sites/ala.org.offices/files/content/oitp/publications/policybriefs/ala_checking_out_the.pdf

Kroski, E. (2009). Should your library have a social media policy? School Library Journal, 55(10), 44-46. Retrieved from http://www.slj.com

Lauby, S. (2009, April 27). Should your company have a social media policy? [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://mashable.com/2009/04/27/social-media-policy .

liseducation. (2009, March 22). Librarian 2.0. [Video File]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGiew3lrybs

Nguyen, L. C., Partridge, H., & Edwards, S. L. (2012). Towards an understanding of the participatory library. Library Hi Tech, 30(2), 335-346. doi: 10.1108/07378831211239997

Nicholson, H., & Eva, N. (2011). Information literacy instruction for satellite university students. Reference Services Review, 39(3), 497-513. doi: 10.1108/00907321111161458

O’Keefe, M., & Chen, E. T. (2011). The Impact of Emergent Web 2.0 on Virtual Teams. Communications of the IIMA, 11(2), 91-106. doi: 10.1016/j.hrmr.2005.01.002

Pridmore, J., & Phillips-Wren, G. (2011). Assessing Decision Making Quality in Face-to-Face versus Virtual Teams in a Virtual World. Journal of Decision Systems, 20(3), 283-308. doi: 10.3166/jds.20.283-308

Society for New Communications Research. (n.d.). Best practices for developing a social media policy. Retrieved from Socialmedia.biz website: http://socialmedia.biz/social-media-policies/best-practices-for-developing-a-social-media-policy .

Government agencies social media policies – OLJ Activity

Below is a list of articles relating to social media policy development in policing and government agencies. A few social media policy examples are also provided.

Articles

To post or not to post: employee rights and social media

Jacobson, W., & Howie Tufts, S.
Review of Public Personnel Administration, March 2013, vol. 33, no. 1, pp. 84-107
DOI: 10.1177/0734371X12443265

Governments are increasingly introducing the use of social media to enhance communication and engagement with the public. This article examines the rights of employees in relation to social media policies. A variety of state government policies are analysed, providing an overview of the current state of practice. The article discusses employee rights, recommendations for practice and identifies future research needs.

The impact of policies on government social media usage: issues, challenges, and recommendations

Bertot, J., Jaeger, P., & Hansen, D.
Government Information Quarterly, vol. 29, iss. 1, January 2012, pp. 30-40
DOI: 10.1016/j.giq.2011.04.004

With the increase in the usage of social media within government agencies, it has become necessary to update regulatory framework related to information. Social media use introduces a variety of new challenges related to privacy security, data management, accessibility, social inclusion, and governance. This paper presents an examination of current regulatory frameworks and its application for social media use in U.S. federal government.

Social Media Policies

Personal Use of Social Media Policy and Guidelines, 2011 – NSW Police Force

This is the NSW Police Force Social Media Policy for personal use. The policy aims to maximise the benefits offered by social media while minimising the inherent risks. This document provides an outline of the policy along with guidelines for the protection of privacy, safety, and the integrity of careers. The policy specifically discusses the impact of social media on covert careers.

Official Use of Social Media Policy, 2011 – NSW Police Force

This is the NSW Police Force Social Media Policy for official use. This policy covers guidelines for representing the police force online, managing content, moderation of police sites and the evaluation and decommissioning of official sites. This policy emphasises the importance of maintaining open communication with the community in order to maximise public assistance to solve crimes, clarify information released through the media, increase police visibility, encourage recruitment and reduce community fear of crime.

Sample police department social media policies

This website provides access to a variety of sample social media policies for police departments. The examples would be useful for developing policies to cover the use of social media for investigations, community interaction, and off-duty employee use. Specific examples are provided from the Brook Park (Ohio) Police Department (PD), Cumberland (Indiana) PD, Minneapolis PD, Northampton (Massachusetts) PD, Saline County (Kansas) Sheriff’s Office and the U.S. Department of Defense.

Use of social media by Defence personnel

This social media policy provides guidance for the use of social media by Defence personnel. The focus is on the use of social media for engagement with the public. One main consideration in this policy is the management of the reputational risk posed by social media. The policy covers the responsibilities of Defence personnel when engaging in the use of social media, guidelines for record keeping in relation to social media, and relevant legislation, instruction and related policy.

5 Key points of advice for a Social Media Policy Working Party – OLJ Activity

A social media policy is essential to ensure the effective and appropriate use of Web 2.0 technologies in an organisation. The following five pieces of advice are provided to assist with the development of a social media policy to guide employee use of Web 2.0 tools for work and personal use while using the organisations computers, network and time.

1. The development of social media policy should be a collaborative effort and build on current human resources and communications policies (Lauby, 2009, 27 April; Society for New Communications Research, n.d). Members of senior management, marketing, public relations, human resources, information technology and legal departments should all be involved (Fleet, 2009).

2. There are a variety of legal considerations which must be addressed in the social media policy relating to employee’s online behaviour and the content that they post. Employees need to be made aware that employers have a right to monitor their use of social media and that their online behaviour should be governed in the same way as their offline behaviour. All organisational policies relating to anti-harrassment, ethics and company loyalty extend to all forms of communication (Lauby, 2009, 27 April). Employees should be encouraged to use good judgement when posting on social networking sites and efforts should be undertaken to ensure that it is clear that opinions expressed are those of the employee and not the organisation (Kroski, 2009).

3. Social media policies should be designed to protect and enable (Fleet, 2009). A positive focus should be presented highlighting what employees can do rather than what they can’t (Lauby, 2009, 02 June).

4. For a social media policy to be successful there must be a corporate culture of openness. Employees should be involved in the development process and their ideas and opinions must be respected (Society for New Communications Research, n.d.).

5. Training is crucial to ensuring the effective implementation of social media policies. Employees must be given the opportunity to practice and develop their skills using social media tools. Training sessions also provide an opportunity to develop employees understanding of the legal and ethical implications involved in social media use in the workplace (Lauby, 2009, 27 April; Society for New Communications Research, n.d; Kroski, 2009).

References

Lauby, S. (2009, April 27). Should your company have a social media policy? Retrieved from http://mashable.com/2009/04/27/social-media-policy .

Lauby, S. (2009, June 02). 10 Must-haves for your social media policy. Retrieved from http://mashable.com/2009/04/27/social-media-policy .

Fleet, D. (2009). Social media policies ebook. Retrieved from http://www.slideshare.net/davefleet/social-media-policies-ebook .

Society for New Communications Research. (n.d.). Best practices for developing a social media policy. Retrieved from http://socialmedia.biz/social-media-policies/best-practices-for-developing-a-social-media-policy .

Kroski, E. (2009). Should your library have a social media policy? School Library Journal. 10 January. Retrieved from http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6699104.html

Why libraries should be on social media – comparison – OLJ Activity

The use of social networking and social media tools have become a part of most people’s everyday life. Libraries are making the most of this by creating a presence within these platforms. I have investigated the websites of three very different libraries looking at the ways that they use online social media/networking. The below tables provide a brief overview.

There are many reasons for libraries to implement the use of social media tools. Three key reasons are discussed below.

To engage with their clients more fully

Social media allows libraries to gain feedback from their clients and use that feedback to improve services. A quick response to feedback is a great way to display to library clients that the library is interested and values their input. Arlington library and the ACT Library Service are very active on Twitter responding to specific complaints and complements from library clients. Embracing social media tools allows the library to go to where the library clients are, discover what they are interested in and take part in relevant conversations.

To provide better service provision

Social media tools allow libraries to provide anywhere, anytime service to their clients. Arlington Library provides a series of instructional videos on YouTube. These videos can assist library clients even when a librarian in unavailable.

The Los Angeles Public Library provides a great reader advisory service via Pinterest. A variety of boards have been set up recommending great books to read for adults, teens, and children. They have even provided a board for ‘If you like Madmen…’, recommending books for fans of Mad Men to read.

http://pinterest.com/laplcentral/if-you-like-mad-men

To promote their products and services

Social media can be used to promote the libraries collections, services, and events. The Arlington Library, Los Angeles Public Library and ACT Library Service use Facebook and Twitter extensively for promotion and marketing. These are great tools to entice clients into the library both in person and virtually. The re-tweeting and share facilities on these platforms are great for spreading the word.

The Los Angeles Public Library and ACT Library service also use RSS feeds to promote new and popular items and events.

New Young Adult Fiction RSS feed (LA Public Library) – http://www.lapl.org/new-ya-fiction-to-lapl.xml

What’s New RSS feed (ACT Library Service) – http://www.library.act.gov.au/functions/rss/announcements

Building Academic Library 2.0 – Advice for Government Library – OLJ Activity

The presentation “Building Academic Library 2.0” provides a variety of innovative ideas which could be implemented at the library that I work in (a federal government library) to embrace the Library 2.0 culture.

In particular I have identified five key pieces of advice:

Build Participation
The keynote speaker Meredith Farkas, suggests that librarian’s should ‘get over the whole, we are the experts thing’. The idea of allowing library users to contribute to the content of the library is one that would greatly improve library services. As librarians we try our best to collect resources relevant to the various departments of our organisation but we are not fully aware of the everyday business of every department.
A wiki could be set up for various topics related to the work of my organisation and the content of the courses that we provide. This would allow course participants, trainers and other staff to contribute relevant resources and knowledge, creating a valuable resource for future staff and course participants.
The use of social bookmarking sites such as Delicious would also be a great way for the organisations staff to contribute to the development of a key resource of annotated bibliographies.

Create Partnerships
Collaboration should occur both internally to my organisation and externally with other similar organisations. This should include the creation of partnerships with other library organisations.

Nurture Talent
My organisation needs to embrace the enthusiasm and creativity of individual staff who are exploring the use of various Web 2.0 tools. At the moment there is much resistance to change and a definite risk averse culture within the management of the organisation.

Make ‘Keeping Up’ a Part of People’s Job Description
Library staffs need to develop and maintain their knowledge of the types of Web 2.0 tools available. Professional development should be encouraged in this area and be considered an essential part of library staffs job description.

Devote Time
Supporting the enthusiasm of library staff in the development of various Web 2.0 projects is not enough to ensure successful implementation. Without the appropriate time devoted to these projects for research, planning, implementation, evaluation and maintenance, failure is almost certain. These projects should not be additional side projects on top of the usual everyday tasks of library staff. The development of a Web 2.0 librarian role would be greatly beneficial.

Second Life – OLJ Activity

Initially I found Second Life to be very frustrating. I managed to transport into the CSU-SIS Learning centre and friend a few people. I explored a little but found that there wasn’t much to do but wander around aimlessly. The functions were not very intuitive and it was very lonely. I found the Quick Start guide to be quite helpful.

 All alone in Second Life.

The turning point for me was taking part in one of the group tutorials with other course participants. It was great to have a knowledgeable guide to take us through various basic skills. I found the voice chat to be a little confronting and was hesitant to use it however, as the tutorial went on I found that it allowed everybody’s personalities to shine through and I felt like I was getting to know the other participants. A study at the University of Central Missouri found that students were also reluctant to use the voice chat feature, preferring the text chat. This was identified as a significant barrier to effective communication in the teaching of online courses through Second Life (Davis & Smith, 2009).

  Group tutorial in Second Life.

I have since tried to visit other worlds within Second Life but find that there is rarely anyone around and not much to do. It would be great if there was some kind of guide to events which are occurring on Second Life.

  University of Western Australia.

  Rockcliffe University Library.

  Cybrary City 2.

Second Life has a lot of potential for the library industry. It could be used for online conferences and presentations as well as for collaboration amongst librarians from across the globe. The Virtual Worlds in Education Conference hosted by the East Carolina University was held entirely within Second Life and provided an opportunity for 135 faculty and administrators from around the world to collaborate and share experiences on teaching, learning and technology support (Brown, Hodge, Kisling, & Collins, 2009).

Reference services are particularly successful in Second Life. The Alliance Virtual Library staffs their information desk more than eighty hours a week. They assist Second Life users to find and evaluate online information and answer questions about Second Life itself (Chow et al., 2012).

Library induction presentations could also be presented through Second Life. In 2008 librarians at the University of Central Missouri began embedding into online university courses being taught through Second Life. They provided virtual reference consultations, offered formal library instruction sessions and developed a virtual branch of the university library (Davis & Smith, 2009).

Second Life would also be great for language learning. Participants could immerse themselves in the culture and undertake authentic interaction with target language speakers (Balcikanli, 2012).

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References

Balcikanli, C. (2012). Language learning in Second Life: American and Turkish Students’ Experiences. [Article]. Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education (TOJDE), 13(2), 131-146.

Brown, A., Hodge, E., Kisling, E., & Collins, S. (2009). The Virtual Worlds in Education Conference: Lessons Learned from Conducting an International, Peer-Reviewed Conference within Second Life. Educational Technology, 49(3), 33-36.

Chow, A. S., Baity, C. C., Zamarripa, M., Chappell, P., Rachlin, D., & Vinson, C. (2012). The Information Needs of Virtual Users: A Study of Second Life Libraries. The Library Quarterly, 82(4), 477-510. doi: 10.1086/667436

Davis, M. G., & Smith, C. E. (2009). Virtually embedded: library instruction within Second Life. Journal of Library & Information Services in Distance Learning, 3(3-4), 120-137. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15332900903375465

A to Z of social networking for libraries – OLJ Activity

The ACT Public Library Service (ACTPLS) maintain a Facebook, YouTube, Flickr, blog, Twitter and Pinterest account. According to “A to Z of social networking” (Social Networking for Libraries Blog, 22 Jan 2010) there are a few areas in which the library could improve their presence on and use of social networking tools.

A – Active

An active presence on social networking sites is essential for success. The ACTPLS have neglected their YouTube channel and library blog. Perhaps they are maintaining too many sites and need to focus on a few.

C – Content

The ACTPLS’s social media sites are dominated by advertising and announcements. To improve the content of these sites library staff could create individual staff profiles and use them to stimulate discussion on the library’s posts.

P – Podcasting and V – Video

Creating a series of video clips would assist in engaging library patrons. A great example of this is the “Library Minute” video series provided by the Arizona State University Library.

Podcasts of interviews with authors or experts, readings of famous speeches or story books could also be beneficial. Here are some great examples of how podcasts are being used in libraries:

State Library of NSW – http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/podcasts/events/index.html

National Library of Australia – http://www.nla.gov.au/podcasts

Denver Public Library – http://podcast.denverlibrary.org

G- Good Reads

GoodReads is a great tool to improve the ACTPLS ‘s readers advisory service. Library staff can get to know the reading preferences of their partons and make suggestions of appropriate books based on information gained through patron comments and profiles (Stover, 2009).

A good example of GoodReads in use can be found at:
http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/33998-salt-lake-county-library-services.

R – Reference

Providing an online reference service via social media would allow library users to pose reference questions in real time regardless of their location making the library more accessible. Questions can be asked and answered and a record of these transactions can be archived for other users to view (Anttiroiko & Savolainen, 2011).

One piece of advice which could be added to the “A to Z of Social Networking for Libraries” is:

Q – Qualitative and quantitative feedback

The ACTPLS should regularly gather feedback through their social media tools. Comments on social media pages can be used as well as responses through more formal tools such as SurveyMonkey. This feedback can be used to develop new services or improve current services.

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References

Anttiroiko, A.-V., & Savolainen, R. (2011). Towards Library 2.0: The Adoption of Web 2.0 Technologies in Public Libraries. [Article]. Libri: International Journal of Libraries & Information Services, 61(2), 87-99. doi: 10.1515/libr.2011.008

Social Networking for Libraries. (2010, January 22). A to Z of social networking for libraries. Retrieved from http://socialnetworkinglibrarian.com/2010/01/22/a-to-z-of-social-networking-for-libraries

Stover, K. M. (2009). Stalking the wild Appeal factor. [Article]. Reference & User Services Quarterly, 48(3), 243-246.

ASU library’s use of social media – OLJ Activity

The Arizona State University (ASU) library uses a wide variety of social media tools to engage with their users and create an online community.

One great service that they provide is a series of 1 minute videos on various topics relating to the library’s resources and services. “The Library Minute” videos are short, simple and to the point, allowing users to receive information effectively without having to commit too much time. The videos are fast paced and engaging with the use of animations, music, pictures and a sense of humour. The ASU also maintains a presence on Facebook and Twitter.

Through their social media pages the library facilitates effective communication with their users. The Twitter page seemed to be the most successful in facilitating two way communications. While most of the posts were advertising events and making announcements there were also many responses to user complaints or user initiated queries. For example, one user made a complaint about the library not being open over Spring Break. The library was very quick to respond in a friendly manner and provide a link to the library’s Spring Break opening hours.

The “Library Minute” videos and the Facebook page facilitated more limited two way communication with the user community through comments, and a like button. Most of the “Library Minute” videos had been viewed thousands of times however there was usually just a few likes and a few comments.
The ASU Library’s use of social media provided a sense of community for their users. Each “Library Minute” video featured the same presenter which provided a friendly face to represent the library and allowed a personal relationship to develop between the presenter and the users. This presenter also maintained profiles on the ASU library’s Facebook and Twitter pages.

Through the use of social media tools the ASU library collaborates with their user community to improve the quality of their services. Users make suggestions and comments on particular services that they are happy or unhappy with. Based on user feedback the library can alter current services or create new services that meet user needs.

Edublogs Teacher Challenge

So far I am finding this journey of discovery very exciting. I have explored some excellent tools which will assist with my blogging and show great promise for use at work. I hope to get more time later to investigate all of the tools in more depth.

The Teacher Challenge from Edublogs has been eye opening.

#1 Set up blog
#2 Writing posts
#3 Write pages
#4 Connecting to others
#5 Adding images
#6 Embed media
#7 Add widgets
#8 Build readership

In particular the sites for finding Creative Commons images will be essential to my work in the library. Copyright is an issue which has complicated many attempts to set up attractive websites, newsletters etc for work. It is the topic of much debate. I can now use images which I know are legally covered for copyright. Yay!! Some sites are listed below.

Compfight
FlickrCC
Wylio.com

RSS – OLJ Activity

RSS feeds enable new information on a website, blog or wiki to be distributed to the public without the need to constantly revisit the site. This is facilitated via feeds which can be managed through an RSS reader such as Google Reader or iGoogle (Bansode, Dahibhate, & Ingale, 2009). The following video provides simple instructions for setting up an RSS feed using IGoogle.

The Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) provides some great RSS feeds containing updates on AIC events, new publications and new resources by subject. To subscribe go to   http://www.aic.gov.au/rss_feeds.html.

The Australian Federal Police (AFP) also provide RSS feeds to keep the public updated on recently released news items published on their website. The RSS feed contains headlines and hyperlinks to the full article. To subscribe go to http://www.afp.gov.au/sitecore/content/RSS/afp-news.aspx .

RSS feeds are a great tool for libraries to use when setting up personalised alerting services for library clients. RSS feeds for relevant websites could be set up based on the specific information needs of the client. The librarian would then monitor the RSS feed and provide regular updates via email to the library user. This type of service was trialled at Dixie Regional Medical Centre in 2009. It was found that 90% of participants found the service to be at least of moderate value, 55% indicated high value, and 15% found the service to be of critical value. Only one participant indicated that the service was of no value at all (Youngkin, 2010).

Booklists are another great way to use RSS feeds to improve library services. RSS feeds for various booklists could be set up alerting clients to ‘New Items’, ‘Most Reserved’ or ‘Longest Unseen’ books. Feeds could also be set up for new books by subject (Celikbas, n.d.). My library currently produces a monthly ‘Just Captured’ newsletter (a list of new books added to the collection) which is distributed to all staff. This service could be distributed through an RSS feed which would improve the efficiency and timeliness of the service. Library clients could be alerted as soon as the book arrives rather than waiting till the end of the month for the newsletter to be compiled and distributed.

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References:

Bansode, S., Dahibhate, N. B., & Ingale, K. (2009). RSS applications in libraries and information centres. [Article]. Library Philosophy & Practice, 11(1), 1-4. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.csu.edu.au/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lih&AN=42319442&site=ehost-live

Celikbas, Z. (n.d.). What is RSS and how can it serve libraries?. Retrieved from http://eprints.rclis.org/bitstream/10760/5617/1/RSS_and_libraries_EN3.pdf

Youngkin, A. (2010). Librarian-controlled RSS: a novel approach to literature search follow-up. Journal of Hospital Librarianship, 10(2), 123–131. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.csu.edu.au/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lih&AN=49261619&site=ehost-live