Online Learning Journal Activity

Select three (3) libraries of your choice that use social networking to meet their goals.

Develop a comparative table which documents how each of the libraries use social networking tools to support information service provision, educational programs, conduct business etc.

Based on this comparison (and in no more than 350 words) develop your own list of “Reasons why libraries should be on social media”, and draw upon aspects of these three libraries to illustrate each point.

Library	Information Service Provision	Educational Programs	Conduct Business	Community
Clarence Regional Library	Embedded within the council website. Net library eAudio books.	Trove. Homework help. Interactive sites for children-Premier’s Reading Challenge. e-resources for HSC students. DataBase access from home. Access Encyclopedia Britannica from home.	Join online. Online catalogue. Online Reservations. SMS notification of availability of book in branch. Online interlibrary loan reservations. Online renewal. E –newsletter. Ask-a-Librarian. Free wireless Wi Fi.	Book reviews. Quick links for kids, teens and seniors. Links to newspapers. Family history. Local history. Web links to over 33 different areas of interest.
State Library of New South Wales	Blogs. 345 bookmarking sharing options. E-newsletter. Facebook. Flickr. RSS feeds. Twitter. Video and Podcasts. Vimmeo.	Discover Collections. E-Resources for students. E-Resources for teachers. E-Resources for academics.	Online catalogue. Online renewals. Computer bookings. Free wireless Wi Fi. Ask-a-Librarian. Digital downloads.	Links to: Indigenous community. Community languages. Services for Seniors. Family History. History of our Nation. Drug information. Legal information.
National Library of Australia	Blogs. Facebook. Pandora. Picture Australia. Podcasts. Twitter. YouTube.	Digital Collections. Trove. Online DataBases. Australian Newspapers. Music Australia. Australia Dancing.	Online catalogue. Online renewals. Computer bookings. Ask-a-Librarian. Electronic calendar.	Links to: Family History. History of our Nation.

Burkhardt(2009) suggested four reasons why libraries should be on social media. Using this as a starting point for my reasons I have also added a few more.

Communication and to engage – Only the State and National libraries offer Facebook, twitter, blogs, podcasts and a variety of other tools for engaging the community. These are important if the library wants to engage the younger members of society who are very comfortable using the different social media. The regional library uses SMS messaging to notify clients of the arrival of a book in the branch that they may have requested, while the other two libraries don’t seem to promote this method of communication.

Respond to Positive/Negative Feedback – Using social media like Facebook is very important as it encourages feedback and increases dialog between the user and the provider. Unfortunately the Regional library is lagging in this area and possibly should look into the viability of using social media to communicate with its patrons.

Marketing – It is important to attract potential users by illustrating the services provided by the library for all ages in the community. The Regional library does this via the website while the other two libraries rely more on RSS feeds, blogs, Facebook and Twitter.

Understanding the community it serves – The Regional library has quick links on the website divided according to the age of the user. The State library has a reputation earned over many years and a definite community that it is well aware of and serves well. Both it and the National library have embraced social media and the way that it can be utilized in the library to serve the community. These two libraries are also better funded than the regional library and possibly have experts of digital media on staff to ensure they stay up to date in this area.

Accessibility – All libraries allow the catalogue and DataBases and the opportunity to renew loans externally.

Partnerships with other libraries – All three libraries provide opportunities to borrow from a wider network of libraries, thus adding value to the services in the libraries.

References:

Andy Burkhardt’s post Four Reasons Libraries Should be on Social Media  (August 25, 2009).

 

Module 3 - A-Z of Social Networking for Libraries.

A to Z of Social Networking for Libraries

A-active, in order for your library patrons to view you as being serious about your social networking and for it to work for you and your library, you need to use it on a regular basis.

B- Blog, does your library have a blog. This is a great way for you to offer value and content for your library and it has become the standard for libraries to have one.

C-Content- just like businesses have to offer valuable content in order to market their businesses, your library needs to offer valuable content that your patrons will read and appreciate.

Direction- What are you planning to accomplish for your library with social networking?

Ebooks- You can share these on social networking to increase their exposure.

F-Facebook, having a presence on facebook with a fan page or a group is a must. Facebook is so popular now that it is expected.

G-Good Reads, Do your patrons need some ideas of what to read? Help them out with Good Reads.

H-Help- relying on only one or two people to build your library’s social networking presence will not work. It needs to be a whole team effort on behalf of your entire library staff.

I-Interesting- Are your library’s social networking profiles and content interesting? They had better be if you want them to work for you.

J-Joomla- an open source web design program that can make editing your library website and adding in social networking features much easier.

K-Koha the best open source program for your library catalog, you can also integrate social networking into this tool.

L-Library Thing- use this great site to share your library collections with others.

M- Mobile, more and more your library’s social networking needs to be able to be accessed via mobile devices. There are also more options than ever for making this a reality.

N-Ning this free social networking site allows you to create a social networking specifically for your library.

O-Open Source- use these programs and tools to enhance your social networking experience and to help your library save money.

P-Podcasting- this is a great way to share interviews and valuable audio tips with your library’s audience.

R-Reference- you may think that offering reference services via social networking is impossible but the reality is that so many of your patrons use facebook, twitter and youtube that you can offer the answers to frequently asked questions as a form of reference services on these sites.

S-Slideshare, this heavy traffic and awesome social networking site lets you share power point presentations. Use this site to embed your presentations and promote them on other sites as well.

T-Text messaging- Is your library using it yet?

U-Ustream- use this program to broadcast live to your library patrons.

V-Video whether on youtube or elsewhere, use video to enhance and engage with your users via social networking.

W-Widgets- many database vendors provide these and you can use them in many ways to promote your library resources.

Y- Youth- using social networking allows you to connect on a deeper level with young people.

Z-zeal, is your library staff exciting about the possibilities that social networking can offer your library? If not, you will struggle to make it work for you.

Retrieved from 

http://socialnetworkinglibrarian.com/2010/01/22/a-to-z-of-social-networking-for-libraries/

Online Learning Journal Activity

 READ the post A to Z of Social Networking for Libraries (22 January, 2010) on the Social Networking for Libraries blog.

Consider this advice in terms of a library and information agency that you know (as an employee or user). Select advice from five (5) letters of this A-Z list and consider how these may be applied to this library to help it embrace a Library 2.0 ethos. Write up your findings as a post (of no more than 350 words in your OLJ). 

As an employee of the Department of Education in a primary school library some of the things listed on the blog would be inappropriate to use. Taking this into consideration I have chosen the five following areas to discuss.

Blog – By using a blog in our library we will be able to extend the library beyond the school walls and into the homes of the students. We will be able to discuss the different literature genres that are popular among the students. We will also be able to use this medium as a way of broadening the genres that the students currently read.

Ebooks- Ebooks are definitely the way of the future and with several members of staff owning Ebook readers such as kindle they have been enthusiastic in the possibilities of using it in the library to promote reading. They could also be promoted on the library blog. Currently the Principal is reluctant to include these in the collection due to the high cost.

Good Reads – The school library has a very healthy budget and as a result purchases books regularly. Each week there is a ‘book of the week’ that is put on display for all to see  and shown on the blog before being borrowed. Students are able to read it in the library and then record their recommendation on the library blog. This is working well and encouraging students to read new titles in different genres to the ones they normally read.

Help – We are trying to build the social networking presence in the library by working with the technology team. They have been enthusiastic and have been showing the students tools available during technology lessons. With the library staff combining with the technology team social networking has a positive future in my primary school.

Zeal – The school library needs to be seen as part of the school and an exciting place to be. One Principal told me that she saw the library as an exciting hub and wanted enthusiastic staff in there promoting it. With enthusiastic teacher librarians it can’t help but overflow to the students and the rest of the staff. The possibilities are endless.

References

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

Online Journal Activity- RSS feed

Below is the task that was set for us about RSS feed in module 2, this is followed by my response for this activity.

  

Now that you have explored some examples of how libraries and the media make use of RSS to deliver updated information and the applications that can tailor and aggregate feeds for specific users, find two (2) additional examples of 'RSS in action', and develop a 350 word post to your OLJ on how RSS can enhance a library or information service’s ability to meet the information needs of its users.

After looking at the RSS feed symbol on many websites and not knowing what it was for I have embraced this tool wholeheartedly. I subscribed to the two feeds as required for this activity as well as subscribing to live feeds from a number of other sites. They have been chosen because they interest me personally as well as professionally. They give me the headline version of events so that I can look into it further if I am interested.

As the State Library of NSW confirms (2011) RSS feed enables you to collect up to date information from all of your favourite websites without having to visit each one individually. As a result it is efficient and a massive time saver and therefore a useful tool for the busy librarian who in the past has had to read a mountain of publications to remain up to date.

The term Really Simple Syndication is very appropriate as even someone like myself who is not an expert in this field is able to embrace this form of web2.0 technology. 

The first feed to be discussed is the State Library of NSW RSS feed. The feed I chose was the new titles added to the catalogue. This library has a variety of feeds to choose from, but I am finding this one the most beneficial as it has kept me up to date on the new publications available. Working in a primary school library you often rely on word of mouth and information given by booksellers when it comes to purchasing books. I have found this beneficial as it puts me a step ahead by making me aware of the new titles available so that I can ask the book sellers for the books on approval.

The second feed I subscribed to was the ALIA homepage. It has been beneficial in keeping me up to date with the latest library news that I may not have been aware. Recently it focused on the National Simultaneous story time by releasing the title of the book to be used. As my school likes to participate in this event it has enabled me to purchase the book ahead of time.

References:

Australian Library and Information Association. (2011). Homepage. Retrieved from http://www.alia.org.au/

State Library of New South Wales. (2011). About RSS feeds. Retrieved from http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/rss/about_RSS.html

State Library of New South Wales. (2011). New Titles added to the collection of the State library of New South Wales. Retrieved from http://feeds.feedburner.com/cataloguenewtitlesslnsw