Thing 12 - VBPL and IM

I have watched a fellow employee work the IM time slot on several occasions. Even though our program is still in infancy I have my doubts. There is going to have to be a major shift in patron access of the library website in order for this to work. I don't believe our patrons are quite to the point where they go to us first for needed information. We remain a big card catalog. That is not to say things won't change - but it will take time and lots of it.

Teens and IMs

Teens and Instant Messaging now go hand in hand. My thirteen year old spends at least an hour IMing her friends after school. There is always more to talk about and at least she's not on the phone! It is completely natural for her to do research, type a paper, do math homework and carry on an IM - all at the same time. Can a library fit into this equation? I really don't know. With so many information sources on the Web and even the libraries own online sources I don't imagine she or her friends asking questions of a librarian. They would rather go straight to the source themselves.

Thing 9

Learning about RSS feeds.
This afternoon I learned about RSS feeds. This is not really something I am interested in now, although I did subscribe to a few feeds. The most interesting in called "Cooking for Engineers." The process was very simple, everything is streamlined and mistake proof.

I don't know if I will check my feeds ever, but we'll see. Never say never!

Thing 5 - My thoughts on Library 2.0

Library 2.0, what a great concept. Now if we can just get there! I believe all library employees want to serve their customers in the best way possible. That means providing them the needed information in the format most suited to their lifestyle. In today's world that format is the web; our friend and our vehicle of delivery. Competing online information sources are stealing our customers. Especially our school-age friends. If it is on the web, it must be true! Why go to the library for old info? Our 'leg up' so to speak is our reputation for providing reliable and timely information. They have to know our information provided is spot on. No guess work involved. This reputation can follow us to the web. We have a built in clientele - let's grab them and keep them. Must get back to work, more thoughts later . . .

Thing 2

As our second assignment in our learning 2.0 adventure we watched an online video about lifelong learning. Evidently there are 7.5 habits associated with lifelong learning. The easiest habit of the 7.5 is number 7.5, and that is to play! No problems here. I have always believed we learn the most while playing. Just look at our children.

The most difficult habit for me is number 3, to view a problem as a challenge. It is very easy to become exasperated when faced with a difficult problem. If I just take a breath before flying off the handle the problem becomes a little smaller and easier to solve.

First posting from the law library

Working in a law library can be exciting and interesting. As we are located in our city Judicial Center many of our clients are in the law profession. Many, however, are members of the public needing to research various legal issues and problems. These are the folks I would like to learn ways to reach. Learning about WEB 2.0 will help me do just that.