Connecting Librarian

Here’s the notes from the afternoon session of Michael Stephen’s visit to Melbourne. Over 70 librarian, mostly not all from public libraries were presented with an interesting and informative session, with plenty of inspiration to take back to their libraries.

World is changing, especially in the last few years.  Its getting smaller, collaboration is happening on a scale that would not have been possible before.  It has changed the way we comunicate.

Web 2.0 is open, decentralised and participatory. Commonalities are open, participatrory, tags, comments, RSS, APIs.

Library job descriptions are also changing as a result. Just look at recent job advertisements – these positions did not exist a few years ago, because the technologies didn’t exist.  This is one way our profession is responding to these changes.

Open Source software is growing fast – it levels the playing field a bit, but requires staff and other resources to use and manage.  eg. Open Office, Inkscape, Trillian and Pidgin.  Open Office duplicates the functions of Microsoft Office (offer to ours users as an alternative?).

Surveying best practices:

Blogs – how many libraries have blogs?  Worth thinking about adopting if you don’t already have one.  Its a software tool, a content management system which is organised and archived chronologically by date.  With a blog, its all automatic without having to go through bureaucracy.  Newest news is at the top of the page, where your users eyes are going to land first. All you need is software, server space (can be hosted) and some HTML, time to blog and something to say.  What to say? – what’s new, programs and materials, new resources, conference reports – some librarians put their conference notes on their library’s public blog.  Blogging can be used to promote your content, ie databases, its fast easy and cheap and you can promote conversation.  Lamson Library uses Scriblio to get their Web Opac out in a blog.

Best practices – look around at other library blog and check out what features of them that you like. Find your voice/mission – what is your goal, how do you want to say it, listen to your users responses. Focus on content – configure it then let it work for you, focus on interesting content, reach out by covering users interests. Design – make it seamless between your library website and blog, make sure its always usable, keep your software current.  Share authorship – spread out the blogging, agree on voice and mission.  Post often and be succinct – keep it simple, make it printable. Have a style guide and train your staff to blog – give them help sheets on tagging etc.  Make sure they have time to do it!  Incorporate the blog into your site as well as possible and link to the catalogue as often as you can – link it to your homepage. Be transparent – blog your projects and plans, listen and respond to your users comments.  Use the blog as a platform for videos, images, RSS feeds,news, customize widgets.

For Librarian Bloggers – cite your sources and links, post often but have something to say, invest time, post your passions, blog nice, learn about your blog application – spam filters are necessary, information feeds in, flickr images fed in, polls etc.

Blogs can create the voice of the library, administrators should be involved, enable comments, participate!

Podcasting – easy to create with some simple open source tools ie. Audacity (OSS), iTunes, Garageband. Podcasts are syndicated via RSS – search iTunes for libraries. Kankakee Public Library podcasts their author visits.  All you need is a computer, Audacity and a microphone.

Best practices – use free tools like Audacity, involve staff who are interested and capable, monitor time and use (be sure you are getting ROI), podcast news, speakers, stories and more, current awareness, offer a place for others to try it!  Give users a place to record their own podcast!  or some other form of studio (ie video etc).

RSS – take content from one place and have it available in another place. Some ILMS offer RSS feeds on new additions to the catalogue – ie. books, videos/DVDs, audio etc.  RSS feeds can be the most time consuming thing you can learn about – saves you having to visit different blogs, you can use an RSS aggregator to have the content delivered to you.  With RSS you can keep up to date and put your library content in other locations.  Hennepin hacked their catalogue to provide RSS feeds for user generated searches – click through and place holds.  RSS has taken the place of SDI. eg. RSS feed of animal books on RSPCA website.

Best practices – decide if you want to build a portal or provide RSS feeds – train staff and users, ask vendors for feeds, develop a policy of displaying RSS on your website. Have a what is this for RSS on your website and embed the Common Craft videos from YouTube.

Wikis – an easy web page.  Mostly WYSIWYG, but some need basic coding (related to HTML). SJCPL found that most people were using local content more, so when they revised and created their subject wikis, those are the heading they retained. Don’t even have to use the word wiki in its use.

Best practices – play with a wiki (ie. PBWiki), monitor changes to the wiki, use it in classes and instruction.  Policy manuals, group edits on a report are common library uses.  SJCPL had a no wiki, where they recorded when they said no to users.  Each month they were reviewed and analysed to see where policy changes might be of use.

Instant messaging – usually text, but can be voice or video. All IM systems have a presence awareness system. “Faster IM” Computer in Libraries 2006 Stephens, M. “It can be cost effective means for any library to have a virtual reference presence in virtual spaces where our users already live!”  FASTER – Flow, ask questions, software, training, ease of use, return on investment (is high).  Meebo allows you to access multiple IM accounts via an online interface, or insert a widget into your webpage and allow users to IM you without an IM address (library has to have one).  Meebo benefits – no viruses, multiple services at once, voicemail for the web.

Best practices – promote the service, add you IM to your publicity, use a consistent naming scheme for all clients, use away messages effectively, use all your resources to answer questions.

Make IM part of your policy – fold it in to the reference desk duties.   People are usually happy to wait when the library is busy.

Flickr – a way of putting a human face on the library (photos). Another example of a social network, enabling tags, comments and being fed into other sites via links, widgets etc. Can use a flickr set for a library tour – including behind the scenes.

Best practices – allow flickr to be accessed on your public computers, tag-note-comment, create a useful profile page for your library, tell stories, make the library human,capture events-buildings, speakers, be mindful of little people etc.  Use it to be out there – experiment with Flickr toys too!

The Big Picture – best practices for social software
Meet the mission – convey the mission.  Ground your use of social software in the mission and vision of your library.  Use it to further the library mission and to meet your long range plan. (Maraine Valley College podcast page)

Prototype – great for roadblock builders, use it for education and planning, it demonstrates a need. Create a sandbox and get staff to play with it.  Use Ning to create a social network. (do it at State level for our library sector?).

Comments – enable it, moderate if needed, participate and ask vendors to give us this functionality.

Invite participation – allow comments, offer RSS feeds, aks surveys to do something – surveys, polls etc.

Give physical services a virtual space – ie. give the book club a blog, do an audio tour of the library.

Create social spaces for real time access to the tools – ImaginOn – Studio I for animation, make stations available for podcasting, video creation, blogging.

Be human tell stories – we have great stories to tell in libraries.  ie. Storypalooza – Gail Borden Library  YouTube contest – Denver Public Library.

Replace or remove outdated methods – NetFlix, Book Swim (mail delivery of items).  Topeka and Shawnee County Library mails holds to users – have a budget line for this.

Admin buy-in and use is PRICELESS.  Josie Parker at AADL and Louise Berry at Darien both blog.  But Staff buy in makes it HAPPEN!  Getting staff buy in can be helped by a Learning 2.0 program.  Also LISTEN to your staff and get their buyin.
Extra info coming from questions:

Sample policies may be available through Web Junction or the Library Success Wiki.

Seed your social sight with entries or comments to set the tone.

Michael says the future of our catalogues will incorporate both formal library subject headings as well as users tags.

Need to seriously consider how we want our presence to be available on the converged device ie. mobile phone.  iPhone is allowing normal web page browsing, next generation of phones should be the same.

Cross promotion between neighbouring facilities – Dutch example of library having recipe of the month and food market across the road displaying the ingredients for that recipe.

I was very happy to be able to attend a day of presentations by Michael Stephens of Tame the Web today. I met Michael for breakfast one morning towards the end of my study tour last year, so it was wonderful to renew our acquaintance. Although the time was all too short, it was great to catch up.

Anyway, here’s the notes I took – Michael will post the slides to his blog – Tame the Web.

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Suffering is optional in this session.

Jesse Hauk Shera quote – “that society will determine what the library of the future will be.”

World has shifted in the last few years, beginning with the dot.com bust.  Web rebooted itself, more interactive and social.

Recommended “Cluetrain Manifesto” which is available online for free.

Continous computing – Roush “Social machines” – Web as platform, wifi is ubiquitous, devices are converging and connecting.i

Time Magazine – “You control the information age” – not libraries.

Recommended “Everthing is miscellaneous”.

Many descriptions of Web 2.0 – 2 Michael focusses on – harvesting collective intelligence and rich user experiences.

Web 2.0? – Live Web or as Michael says “Find others like you”.  Friending etc.  No 1 social site that Michael uses is Flickr – he is an image based person, so he loves it.  Can track his travels from his Flickr account.  Can also find him at Last FM – tracks what he is listening to on his Mac.  Michael has also has a Facebook profile.

Can make anything you want with image generators.

This is where we live – people are spending a lot of their social lives online – not just for the internet addict.  Lots of these sites, more and more being created every day.
All these sites are open, participatory and are about access.

Shared the Library 2.0 definition by Casey & Savistinuk – most important “physical and virtual services” and “consistently evaluating”.

Check out the Perceptions of Libraries and Information Sources and Sharing, privacy and trust in the networked world reports from OCLC.
96% of people had walked into a public library at least onece, 51% used IM and 30% had never heard of databases.  Users want seamless service and self-service options – think Google. They want seamless – not silos. Our websites are little versions of the library – they shouldn’t be.  “Books” are the library brand.  Only 1% surveyed used the library as their search starting point.   Why not visiting the library website – didn’t know it existed, other sites have better info, can’t find the site.Brian Mathews – social network will be ubiquitous – will expect it everywhere they go online – be able to tag, leave comments or reviews, wherever they go.

Pew Internet found that 36% of adults used Wikipedia. 8% were on it on any one day.  Make sure your library is on Wikipedia, including in the geographic area entries (ie. Council, suburbs, town etc). Add content, links – give it more value.

ACRL – put out a report (check slides) – need to do 3 things:
Evolve – reference signs have gone – welcome, ask here (Allen County), round tables for collaboration, transparent reference desk, with comfy chairs and flat screens and also IM service (NC library state uni), (MSN most popular in Australia). Dublin Library used PageFlakes to create a portal with feeds to the information you give it.  Georgia Tech Library did a welcome celebration free pizza, speed dating, music, poker, games, DDR, drama and more. (again Brian Mathews)  Didn’t talk about library resources, want them to find the library on their own.  YPRL using tablets for reference.  LC launched The Commons – a project with Flickr – hosting photos and inviting comments and tags.

Let go of control – (used the warning sign generator). If we don’t, we could lose both users and staff.  What stories are these libraries telling?   Showed signs banning phones – we should be banning the more concerning bad behaviour, not the technology.  Things we do can now go around the world – with a phone and a quick picture, then to Flickr and a blog and its publicised wider than your local library. PLCMC – Rules for the Loft – Respect yourself, respect others, respect the space.  Casey and Stephens – understand the people who are breaking the rules (Transparency column).  Walk through the library with users eyes – a teen even.

Be visible – Wyoming mud flap girl – caused controversy but was aimed at getting truckers in to borrow their audio books. Laptop Librarian – offers assistance in the dining hall. Librarian visits Panera cafe and offers library service, signs up members etc, answers questions.

“Cluetrain Manifesto” published in 1999, but foretold the advent of social networking. We can rally together online, make changes together online, share and discuss content online.  Cluetrain says Markets are conversations, Hyperlinks subvert hierarchy – and can go around the chain of command, get information out to people – ie. hacks to DRM.  Libraries can now communicate directly with teir users. Web is a little bit broken – hyperlinked organisation can be the same thing. Learn who to go around to get things done.

Organisational Chart – the hyperlinked library is more team based (although still need leadership), but it is focussed around the user, not a pyramid.

Technology is just a tool it is not going to save your library.  We need to understand technolust and should not be putting resources into things are users don’t want or will not use.

Transparency: technology storm – ie. locked down library website, technology plans without staff buy-in, siege mentality due to concerns about privacy, security etc – NO LONGER FLIES!

People want to talk to each other – open and honest conversations, open and honest decisions, speaking in a human voice.  Conversations among human beings sound human- we recognise PR speak. Make the library as flat as possible – Darien Library circ staff are blogging and buying for the collection – they know what the users are borrowing and requesting – even sending them to the Book Expo.  Going to the field – visit the front lines, examine different staffing models, develop big picture understanding (management). SJCPL has 30 bloggers contributing content to their blog, AADL website is blog based, State Librarian of Kansas is blogging her travels around her state.  Outside eg. Chief of Police in Nebraska is blogging – talking about crime, but in a human way and responding to comments, having a conversation.

Most important – Say Yes!

The Library tell stories:
Look for stories about the library and also give your users the chance to tell their stories. Gwinnett Library “Rock the Shelves 2005″ on Flickr. National Library photos on Flickr. Storypalooza – make a video about the library and reading, put the video on the library website. (Gail Borden Library).
“Participatory Culutre” – Jenkin quote “consumers are transformed into participants”. Ohio Uni library tour podcasts, done by librarian and another by a student. Hennenpin County Book Space.

The Library is user driven:
Get out of the users way – don’t create problems.   Karen Schneider – The user is not broken. Our systems are a little bit broken when it comes to engaging the user. They want the information in the easiest way possible.  User driven service is user-centred, can involve the users, ask them what they want (link on website – prizes offered.  Listen to your users and to your front-line staff – they know the story of the library.  5 Factors to Consider – does it place a barrier between the user and the service, is it born from complaints from librarians or users, does it add more rules, does it make more work for the user or the librarian, does it involve damage control begin you even begin? eg. SJCPL Subject wiki – public can’t edit but can sugest. Biz Wiki – Ohio U.

Engage your users: Facebook search box – UIUC and Hennepin. Comments on the catalogue (Hennepin) and also Book Space.

Let them drive, let them participate, let them create.  Amazon now has user generated video reviews. Competitions on your social networking space.  Pew Internet study showed that 57% of US teens that created content online. Rest don’t have the technology at home to be able to do this. Might be well serving our users to come and create content to put online.  ie. podcasting station, place to blog etc.  AADL Tag Cloud shows the most popular searches on their catalogue. Hennepin County – images of reading Harry Potter.  Privacy concerns allayed by agreeing to terms of use and having it as opt-in.

Library uses trends as opportunities: social network federation – networks will be converging, be able to talk between networks – may come from one of the social networks or from a third party. Choosing among trends: good signs are that everyone is doing it, its being asked for, most importantly its fun!
Trendspotting – hand out current magazines and ask staff to look for trends that we may be able to tap into.  Our jobs are changing – both in content and in title.  Trend: citizen journalism – mobile phones and blogs can spread news which in turn can change everything.  Challenge of how these tools are challenging privacy, reputation and more. There are legal implications which are still being explored.  We can be educators in how to deal with our online presence – if its out there.  Google your library or chedck Technorati to find conversations about your library that you may not know is happening. Open source software is a trend, but its free as in kittens,not free as in beer – need resources to adapt it and keep it going.  Emerging Tech Group – group of staff who regularly meet to discuss new tech and how it may be used in the library (use a blog for the group).  Check out the books he recommends on the slides.  Are we failing to innovate because of fear. (Kathy Sierra)

The Library has presence: library is out in spaces where we might not expect it to be. Buckland quote “There is much greater opportunity to bring service to potential users wherever they may be”.  YouTube video puts the library out where people may see it.  Use profiles on social networking sites to give more background – make it a miniature website which then links back to your library website.  Google SMS service – text a message to Google.  Libraries using twitter to do current awareness on book titles, events etc, then has RSS feed which you can add to your website.

Library learns, plays and innovates.  Learning should be part of staff development, throughout the staff structure. Everyone should be experimenting with new technology. Well trained staff are a great marketing tool for your users.  Get sandboxes for staff, both virtual spaces and physical – where you bring the gadgets in for staff to play with. Best thing to do for staff is getting them set up with an RSS reader.

Discover and experience the new tools: Learning 2.0 program – can be scaled and adapted for users. (offer it for users?). Check out Hey Jude’s blog on learning 2.0 and schools.  Second Life – shopping, events and a library presence – what does it mean for libraries?  We are still finding out.  Ning – do it yourself social networking site – users get blogs, forums etc. Golden rule of innovation – say YES – encourage people to play.

Encourage the heart – we get into libraries because we care.

The Library knows me – personalisation is the big trend coming – other sites have been doing it for years and users will come to expect it from libraries.
The Library is human – use Flickr to show this.  “Bring your heart with you to work”. (David Warlick)
Throw out the culture of perfect – trial and error is OK, it might not work but that’s OK too, there are still thing learned.
Open Libraries – control fades, communication is up and down.
Create a culture of trust – trust your users, trust each other.

Everything we have talked about today is about a cultural shift, not just shiny new toys.  To move forward, ground them in the mission of your library and your long term plans.  Be selective, choose the tools that work best for your library and your user, use evidence to decide which ones.  Be sure to balance innovation with ROI.  The next big step is how we evaluate these Web 2.0 tools in our libraries.

Five things you can do now:
Be a trendspotter – Form an Emerging Tech Group – Try Learning 2.0 – Create a What’s New blog – Explore presence (ways in which you can put your library out in social networks).

IMPORTANT:
Learn to learn.
Adapt to change.
Scan the horizon.

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