Week 7, Thing 17: Learning 2.0 SandBox Wiki

I added an entry under 'What I Am Reading' in the Maryland Libraries Sandbox - which was easy to do. The sharing of favorite books is always fun as well as reading other people's entries. I'm forever on the lookout for good reads. I have to admit that I feel like a blind person wandering in a confusing maze. I hope the more I navigate and explore, the more I'll understand.

I agree with the other participants' confusion about being able to edit them. Why would you want to have an entry of my favorite [anything] and then have people edit and change it? Then it's not your favorites anymore, it's a group of people's favorites. But maybe that's the point - they're suppose to be fluid and malleable. Is that right?

Week 7, Thing 16: Wikis

Being a bibliophile, I took a look at 'Book Lovers Wiki' developed by the Princeton Public Library. Technically, I don't know how we would make it happen, but I think it would be a fantastic service if patrons could write their own reviews of the library materials they've read or used and be able to link to those reviews while searching our catalog. A Wiki sounds like a good tool to allow patrons the ability to share this kind of knowledge. I know when I'm searching for books at amazon.com, I like to read the public reviews, as well as, the professional ones. Also valuable would be the ability to connect to people who have similar reading tastes (similar to the service LibraryThing provides) as well as view a list of read-alikes... I could keep going as the possibilities seem endless.

Week 6, Thing 15: Web 2.0, Library 2.0 & Beyond

After reading the OCLC Next Space Newsletter - Web 2.0 Where will the next generation of the web take libraries, I'm amazed at people's ability to imagine what was once the unimaginable - their vision astounds me.
The perspective on the "just in case" collection struck a cord. I compare "building a comprehensive collection of materials that anticipates the user's every need" to a dog chasing its tail - most often, it's a fruitless task. The idea of collecting in a non-traditional sense is intriguing to a Materials Manager. Wouldn't it be wonderful to build a collection in which there are no "shelf sitters" - whether virtual or real? Wouldn't it be wonderful to satisfy every patron's request, whatever it might be? It sounds like the sky's the limit for libraries in the next generation of the web.

Week 6, Thing 14: Technorati

Using "Learning 2.0" as a search term, the highest results were from blog posts, then tags, and the lowest results were from the directory. I liked searching by blog tag because the search terms appear highlighted within the text. I found this a good way to evaluate relevancy. I found searching by blog directory more visually appealing. Maybe the folks at Technorati can combine the best of both methods.

Week 6, Thing 13: Del.icio.us

Not only does Del.icio.us provide an easy way to create bookmarks that can be accessed anywhere but it's also an invaluable tool to use for research. What a wonderful idea to create this level of detail to simple bookmarks-through the use of tags. I was so impressed that I created my own Del.icio.us account. I still have a lot to learn and explore but I've at least made a start...and I have to admit that it wasn't as hard as I thought it was going to be.

Week 5, Thing 12: Rollyo

I created a search roll at Rollyo for homeschool resources - in preparation for another year homeschooling my daughters as well as to update the library's homeschool resources bookmark.

Week 5, Thing 11: Library Thing

Library Thing is a wonderful resource for book lovers. I was able to import my five book titles in my blog but I'd actually like to have it appear in the margin. I'm sure this location has a special name but I don't know what it is.