Libology Blog

continued from here…

Evergreen and Project Conifer (John Fink) was a progress report / Q&A session about the installation of the Evergreen ILS for a consortium of academic libraries (McMaster University, University of Windsor, and Laurentian University). John gave a fantastic overview of the project, intended to go live sometime next year. It is a large undertaking, especially considering that they are writing the code for the Acquisitions and Serials areas of the software. He had an observation that I found interesting (and have noticed as well): people using III’s Millennium ILS tend to have a higher opinion of the software than is deserved. It is good, and it works fairly well, but it is deeply flawed, in my opinion. I will add that users of Voyager need to be reminded of the good points of their system now and then, but that it is also flawed. I will say again that Evergreen is going to have a much bigger impact than people realize.

Open Book, a WordPress plugin (John Miedema) was another high-interest session, since I had installed and used the plugin just one week earlier. To discuss the plugin and the reasons behind its functionality and existence with the developer was a great experience. The group discussed Amazon, OCLC, and Google (and their relative restrictions and freedoms) at length. John is a great supporter of the Open Library project, and for good reason.

Metasearch / APIs / Facebook for Libraries (David Fiander, Geoff Sinclair, Me) was a bit of a blur, since I was at the front and trying to think as effectively as possible (more challenging some days than others). I got to discuss my idea (a piece of software that uses an API that is as straightforward as possible, which passes requests to various library and bibliographic systems and returns the results… this could allow search tools and OPAC overlays to work with a standard set of rules, as well as allowing meta-search tools to become more effective), but didn’t feel that any brainstorming actually took place. If someone doesn’t point out a big flaw in my thinking (especially when I am stretching my abilities beyond their comfort zone) I suspect that I am politely being listened to. Maybe not…

The Wrap-up went fine, but there wasn’t a call for action, or a consensus as to what should come next from all of this. I can’t say I expected one, but I was hoping to have some sort of Eureka moment. I did have a strong feeling that I was going to put everything together in an interesting way during the drive home on Saturday, but it didn’t happen that way (keep reading).

We then walked over to the BiblioCommons office for a buffet tray/beer/wine dinner party. I had some great conversations here, and completely forgot to find out what exactly it is that makes people speak of BiblioCommons in reverent tones. There isn’t a lot of information out there beyond it being a “complete social discovery system for libraries” (from their website). People whose opinions I respect are very impressed with it, and I was in a conversation with one of the people directly involved and never asked one question about it. Shame on me!

I ended up skipping the pub night outing, as I stopped by the hotel and felt tired, and spent the time putting pictures online. I went to bed early, and slept very fitfully, until about 4 a.m. That was when the gunshots began. There were 7 ro 8 of them, from at least two guns, sounding like they were just outside the building. I woke at the first shot, rolled out of bed (away from the window) on the second, and duck-walked to the bathroom with my phone as they continued. I was on the third floor, so I don’t think I was likely to get caught in the line of fire (I figure they were either shooting at each other, or shooting into the air). It was a very unpleasant experience, and I didn’t get to sleep for quite a while (and didn’t sleep well then). When my alarm went off, I decided to cancel my sightseeing activities, get some more rest, and leave Toronto straight from the hotel.

So that’s why I didn’t spend the trip thinking about neat library technology and such. Too bad, because this was as good a conference as I have ever attended, and I complimpent John, William and Stacy on their excellent work. I encourage more groups to consider this format (it would work well as part of a standard conference format as well… just set up a block of time, or a conference track, as an unconference).

Previous posts here and here…

I attended the One Big Library Unconference (Facebook too) last Friday, and haven’t had a chance to post about it yet, so here goes:

I arrived in Toronto around 7 p.m. on Thursday after a smooth journey. I stayed in a hotel about 3 walking blocks from the conference venue, mainly so I could park the car on Thursday and walk everywhere. In daylight the neighborhood, part of Toronto’s Chinatown, reminded me of the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago: a wide variety of people in a busy, urban environment that feels very alive. At night it became somewhat worrisome: many homeless people sleeping in doorways and sidewalks, groups of people “hanging out” and looking a bit dangerous, and panhandlers approaching passers-by for change. I never felt directly threatened, but was very aware of the potential.

The conference was sponsored by York University, and held at the Centre for Social Innovation. The building was very warm, but the facilities were comfortable and pleasant. Everyone I came in contact with was fantastic.

How can I describe everything? Take about 70 people, self-selected to be interested in Libraries and Technology, everyone intent on learning and interacting with others of like mind. I have never seen a conference group as positively engaged in all that they were doing. I think this came about from a combination of the Unconference format, the selection of a well-defined yet general topic, and just the right amount of planning and structure (and not too much of either).

The organizers introduced themselves and described the day’s schedule process. The topics that had been submitted via the wiki were laid out on sheets of paper (see the photos in the second post for detail) on tables, along with blank sheets for newer ideas. I suggested what I had been brainstorming about during the previous day’s drive, and voted on the topics I most wanted to attend.

They ended up combining sessions in order to include all ideas, meaning that I co-presented with two other people (kind of strange, since I wanted a roundtable discussion in order to brainstorm). While they were tabulating the votes and arranging the schedule, we all attended the first session.

Zotero: Start watching for the next update of this incredible tool… it is about to become even more powerful. Then, once you have that gem, watch for the next big release. A great summary is located on their roadmap. I am left with an exceptionally strong positive feeling about this tool and the people developing it. Trevor Owens did a great job with the demo and presentation.

Drupal: This ended up being more of a detailed presentation of what it takes to implement a new web presence in an institution when it involves dozens of people in many departments. Politics, control over presentation of content, and seamless functionality were the main points discussed. On alternate days I think it might just be better for a small team (no more than four people) to install, configure and implement the system. The other days I suspect the “many hands” approach might be better. I had hoped for more tips on installing and configuring Drupal (having installed and configured it for the first time only a couple of weeks ago… watch for an announcement), but didn’t get that. Good session, nevertheless.

Lunch was buffet sandwiches and fruit (and a wonderful coffee bar that was open all day). The highlight was the tours offered to the building’s roof, which has a rooftop garden installed. I enjoyed taking pictures of the people in my tour group.

(more in part 2)

I will definitely be attending the One Big Library Unconference next month in Toronto! I am enthusiastic about this, as it has been nearly a year since I have attended a conference, and I have been very curious about the unconference format. Having worked with Reaching Forward South for a few years, experiencing a participant-organized conference will be a big change.

This (un)conference is, partly because of it’s broad theme, a close fit for much of what fascinates me these days. Unstated, but implied, is the idea that the larger and more distinguished libraries need to join the tiny, underfunded community and special libraries in a way that the world as a whole can benefit. This is a challenging concept, and one that will strongly shape the library world in years to come.

Oh, yes… they’re in Facebook, too.

Google has packaged many of its tools into an offering for non-profit organizations.  If your group has a 501(c)(3) tax status, and is not political or religious in nature, then you most likely qualify.

This is fairly neat.  I worked with a library conference for several years, and much of what I set up for the collaborative and supportive workings for this group are included in the Google offering:  an online workspace, communication tools (e-mail and group discussion), online checkout, and analytics to offer feedback on the website are all analogous to tools I set up for the group one at a time.

In addition, they offers Google Docs, Calendar, and Google Grants (which is basically free advertising on Google search results pages).   For an organization like a Friends of the Library or a library-focused conference, these are tools that can take the work of a few people and turn out very professional, well-organized results.

If your group has a basic footprint on the web, but can see the benefits from increased collaboration and outreach, this is a fantastic offer that should be seriously reviewed and considered.

found via Official Google Blog

Columbus is an exciting town when you are interested in libraries.  This was driven home by the Code4lib Conference Proposal : Columbus, OH page of Roy Tennant’s website.  Take a look, and see if you agree.

The Code4Lib Conference has been something which I have really wanted to attend, but haven’t been able to travel to do so.  2009 may be my year!

Rethinking the Catalogue (pdf) is a paper that was delivered to the Innovative Ideas Forum in Australia by Alison Dellit and Kent Fitch.  It presents another perspective on the state of library catalogues, and how we can go about improving them.

from Resource Shelf  

Ken Varnum - RSS Basics and Beyond : Tips and Tricks for Getting the Most out of Syndicated Content. (PowerPoint) (Handout)

Really Simple Syndication (RSS)

• Data format: RSS, RDF, Atom, etc.
• data interchange (sharing) : syndication - think of what AP or Reuters does with news stories

Where does RSS come from?

• blog software
• CMS/wikis (”what’s new feeds”)
• Perl, PHP, Ruby, etc - search databases (Search Alerts)

Reminder to remember copyright

Tools - common traits

• can access feed
• can track whats been seen already
• can reproduce item content
• can link to original source

Computer-based:

• FeedDemon
• FeedReader
• NetNewsWire (Mac)

Browser-based:

• Safari
• IE7
• Firefox / thunderbird

Aggregators (web-based):

• Yahoo
• Bloglines
• Google Reader (now offline-enabled)

Integration — RSS = Stream of information = easy to integrate into HTML

hooks:

• webblog software
• cms
• wikis

HTML:

• feed2JS (build & post rss html)
• RSS2HTML

Myfeedz — from Adobe’s Romanian office
generates new content based on your feed choices

Create “live” subject guides
del.icio.us (all tags have RSS feeds)

New books lists

Checked out book reminders for patrons

Library Elf

Monitoring the web
web page changes
Google Alerts
Page2RSS

Roll your own
Write by hand (not recommended)
set up free blog
write a script (Perl, PHP, Ruby)
FeedXs

Course reserve lists on class pages as an example of a script

Notes: Kens presentation was great as an overview of what can be done with RSS beyond just blog postings and news story gathering. I plan to use several of his suggestions, and expect that it will change the way I work with the web.

Brian Mathews - Social Computing

When do we reach Library 2.0? No final destination; no “library 2.0″ finishing point: it’s an evolving picture.

Sisyphus analogy: it’s not what you do when rolling the rock up the hill, it’s what you do walking back down… “how do I do it differently this time?”

Website: LiveJournal - geared towards blogging to friends

We use social networks as:

• assessment tools
• opinions
• use
• non-use
• etc.
• outreach tools
• reference
• institution
• tutorials??
• search
• relationship building / collaboration
• etc.

He discussed library storefronts (comment: makes me think of a portal)

• blogs
• photo
• IM
• calendars

Facebook has lots of librarians, and for academic and school libraries, a lot of your patrons

the key to using these tools / sites = social interaction… “not manipulating, but causing ripples”

• They are ready-made for groups
• how do people find out about ???
• can we use new tools to create new messages? new images? experiences?
• can we match our product offerings with their needs?
• the right message to the right person at the right time

Products Needs

• targeted message
• “marketing”

blogs, facebook, myspace, posters, classroom sessions, etc.

• “Don’t just do it because everyone else is”
• “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Experiment! And be prepared to make a mess.”
• “Don’t expect students to get excited.”

Website: Google Groups

q&a question:

Tools for self forming groups (his campus system implemented one; he has generated groups relating to library, i.e. distance learning library resources)

Notes: Social networking is the area I am least familiar with, so this was a great learning experience. I like his emphasis on these services being the means to communicate with our patrons, not the end in and of themselves.

I especially think his approach towards finding campus social computing groups that the library would be a natural part of (study groups, class projects, etc.) and introducing his services into the equation. Very proactive.

Chad Boeninger - Wikis in Libraries : Enhancing Services, Promoting Sources, and Building Community (Powerpoint)

Chad started off with a show of hands - what type of librarian’s were in the audience, including media specialists.

He went on to define what a wiki is.

He emphasized that the strength of a resource depends on the strength of the community.

Software: Gallery (similar to Flickr, but hosted on your own server)

Wiki examples:

• Executive Planet (a wiki devoted to worldwide business etiquette)
• LibrarySuccess.org (devoted to promoting networking among library staff)
  

Internal wiki example:

• ReferenceWiki (only available to Ohio University reference staff - watch the presentation to view)

ReferenceWiki replaces their 3-ring binder of stumper questions, sticky-notes, and shared network folder documents.

Internal wikis ultimately become a knowledgebase:

• keyword searchable
• organized by category
• location neutral (save for network access)
• RSS feed available for new edits
• enables group collaboration

Important extras:

• A how-to page (guide to editing, style, etc.)
• faq (Frequently Asked Questions)
• sandbox (a place to practice editing)

Scholarly software is linked via reference wiki

Their library has skype-based video chat between floors — remote reference!

External wiki apps can be used for:

• communication with library users
• Research guides
• replace html/pdf guides
• can cut through the time and effort needed to maintain research guides
• dynamic content (blogs and wikis)

Wiki example: Biz Wiki (similar to ReferenceWiki in structure and style)

He demonstrated the creation and editing of info on the wiki

So you want a wiki:

• Find a purpose
• it’s not a hula hoop or ipod
• what void will it fill?
• communicate and collaborate easier
• how do others feel about the current system

Choose software

• WikiMatrix to compare and contrast various wikis
• Open Source CMS to use the various wikis without having to install (my suggestion)

Locally hosted options

• requires experience with dynamic websites (php & mysql)
• requires desire to experiment
• allow custom look and feel
• data lives on your server

Wiki farms / services

• very little technical experience needed
• free resources may run slowly, however
• you may have limited customization options
• no upgrade worries
• support varies (better than DIY)

Wiki: WikiIndex (a wiki of wikis)

How to create a community

• start with core group to add content and build momentum
• get buy-in from others
• refer to the wiki in blog posts, emails, etc. whenever applicable (use the resource)
• don’t be a control freak

when is a wiki done?

• never
• static wiki is a bad sign
• maintain, create, and edit to keep it viable

Is a wiki for you?

• flexible
• can be adapted
• save time
• requires time and effort

Challenges

• biggest challenge: getting others to contribute
• more content = more maintenance
• maintain organization and structure with growth
• difficult to see new content
• spam spam spam spam

Notes: This was a very good how-to session with a very well-defined purpose. If someone were asking the question of whether a wiki could be beneficial, and what it would take to make it happen, then 90% of their questions were answered here (the other 10% would be local questions concerning their IT setup, administration, etc.). Having set up a few wikis for a variety of purposes, I found this to be an excellent presentation.

Steven Bell - It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad Web 2.0 World : Hidden Treasure or Just More Pressure? (Powerpoint) (Handout)

The title is adapted from It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World, the “epic comedy” film from 1963. He likened our (libraries) search for “Library 2.0″ to the frantic search for the “big W” in the film, even showing a couple of clips.

He recommended a Wired magazine article by Chris Anderson called People Power.

A manifestation of the second-generation web is User Generated Content (which strikes me as a good summation of the change taking place).

Business Week’s June 11, 2007 issue of Inside Innovation has an incredible set of charts showing demographics of those using and generating content.

He recommended an article from the v.25#2 issue of Library Hi-Tech called Taking the information to the public through Library 2.0 (abstract only; sounds like an ILL opportunity).

He pointed out a blog post by David Lee King called How Can We Change the Unchangeable, or David’s Rant.

He showed several video clips of library staff scenarios (think of those training movies you see with acted examples):

• Library Director/Admin reacting to a librarian’s blogging
• Co-workers discussing the possibilities of a Wiki
• Instant Messaging as a library tool

His main points were to try out new technology, be open-minded about staff using technology, and recognize that much of Library 2.0 technology involves a time investment, but is otherwise low-risk (and low-cost).

His caveats were to focus on identifying problems needing solutions, find technology with the potential to solve those problems, learn about the technology, and practice.

He referred to an article in the April 2004 American Libraries titled A Dozen Solutions to all Library Problems (which makes some great points with a dose of humor).

Design thinking – libraries approaching problems like designers approaching problems

Library revolution: designers went directly to patrons – how they use library, what they want to do but cannot, etc. They did not use the library staff as a primary resource for the design.

Stages for implementing change:

1. Reflect, analyze, diagnose and design
2. Imagine and visualize
3. Model plan and prototype
4. Implement

Designing Better Libraries (one of Steven’s blogs)

He used an interesting prop to illustrate increased tension associated with technology: a block of wood with a bolt partly screwed into it… he uses a ratchet to tighten the bolt… increasing the tension.

“Reverse the Technology Ratchet”

• consider the opportunity costs
• Balance experimentation and investment of time
• pick your edge - leading or trail
• identify your compassionate pioneers
• reverse mentoring (relatively new library people training established people on newer methods)
• make a plan and let it guide (but there are exceptions)

Website: Steven Bell’s Keeping Up Website

We must learn to evolve

Example: Change. Deal with It. (a.k.a. Jim Carroll’s squirrel experiment)

He concluded with a quote from David Bishop, Charles Deering McCormick University Librarian at Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois:

We have watched whole professions go out of business as a result of changes in technology. Libraries are not immune. Change must happen soon and across the board if libraries of all types are to remain viable.

Notes: This was essentially a keynote, and did not go in-depth on any topic. It hit many points, and used a great deal of humor to do so. It was a great start for the conference, and the end quote sets the tone for one of the later sessions.

I am attending (not presenting, though) Ohio State University’s Library 2.0 Seminar, being held yesterday and today on the OSU campus. I am taking lots of notes, and plan to at least outline each of the sessions here.

The speakers and topics have been fantastic, and I hope to convey that with the following entries. In addition, videos of the presentations will be available (within a week, they said) via the OSU Knowledge Bank website.

Here are direct links to the posts:

• Steven Bell - It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad Web 2.0 World
• Chad Boeninger - Wikis in Libraries
• Brian Mathews - Social Computing
• Ken Varnum - RSS Basics and Beyond
• Eric Schnell - Mashups and Web Services
• Ellyssa Kroski - Folksonomies and User-Based Tagging
• Stephen Abram - Our User Experience
• Lorcan Dempsey - From Discovery to Disclosure

The first segment of “ALA In Focus”, an online video detailing the inner workings of various areas of the American Library Association, features Gwendolyn Prellwitz, Program Officer for the ALA Office of Diversity & Spectrum.

The video is fantastic to watch, but what has really caught my attention is the interviewer.  His name is John Chrastka, and I had the pleasure to work with him when I was the webmaster for Reaching Forward South.

John was (still is?) involved with the $39 support staff membership for ALA, which is directly tied with their efforts to recruit library-folk who happen to not-be-librarians.  This is still one of the best deals that ALA has offered, and John is a really pleasant and friendly presence.  His personality and enthusiasm really shows in the video segment.

As an additional note, videos like this are much more interesting to me than the polished, professional productions that organizations usually craft to show off their projects and people.  This truly feels like a casual conversation between two people who enjoy what they do.

found on The Shifted Librarian

The Wikipedia of Public Libraries : A quickie wiki primer, the PLWiki project, and You (pdf) is a presentation by Andrea Mercado, PLA Blog Manager, on wikis and how they can benefit libraries.   It contains a link to a request for feedback about a proposed PLA wiki.

If you work for a public library, or if you have any interest in how this might benefit libraries, check this out and give her your feedback and suggestions.

from ResourceShelf

Library Journal came out with their Movers & Shakers supplement last week, and I got a chance to browse through it.  I was surprised to discover that I have not only met one, but two of the people on their list.  Note that I say “met”… I don’t “know” either of them, but have had opportunities to meet them.

Linda Slusar from College of DuPage (IL) is an incredible influence in the world of library support staff.  She is directly, and indirectly, responsible for many, many staff obtaining their LTA certification, as well as co-founding and producing Soaring to Excellence (highly recommended).  I first met her at the LTA graduation ceremony of a co-worker, several years ago.

“Gene Ambaum” is a pseudonym for an anonymous teen librarian from the Pacific Northwest who is one-half of the infamous Unshelved team.  Unlike with Linda, I remembered to get proof of not only meeting “Gene”, but his co-creater Bill Barnes as well:

The Public Knowledge Project is a Canadian research initiative started nine years ago in order to develop “free, open source software for the management, publishing, and indexing of journals and conferences.” In doing so, they have found themselves at the forefront of both the open source and open access movements.

With the trend of increasing subscription prices and tightening budgets only getting worse, projects like this may play an ever greater role in our libraries in years to come.

from IT Manager’s Journal, via NewsForge

The Library of Congress has formed the Working Group on the Future of Bibliographic Control, and will be having their first public meeting tomorrow, March 8th, at Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, California.

The truly interesting thing is that anyone can attend, no prior registration needed. I would love to be able to drop in at Google tomorrow and delve into the topic of Users and Uses of Bibliographic Data, but it isn’t going to happen for me without a tornado, puppy and ruby slippers. Andrew Pace and Karen Markey are among the speakers; it ought to be an excellent day.

Karen Schneider was inspired to dash off an open letter to the Library of Congress on ALA TechSource. Karen Coyle is planning to attend (as per a post to the NGC4Lib listserv) and will likely post info on her blog about the meeting.

I am entertaining the idea of wandering over to Chicago for their May 9th meeting on “Structures and Standards for Bibliographic Data”, which I think I would find almost as fascinating as the user focus of this meeting. Several things would need to fall into place to allow that to happen, including the LOC keeping the meetings open to all without invitation, and I think I shall see what the feedback from tomorrow is before pursuing it.

March of the Librarians, by Nick Baker, is a fantastic parody of March of the Penguins, set in the environs of Seattle during the ALA Midwinter last month.  It brings back memories of Chicago 2005 (the last ALA I attended).

Libraries facilitate open access to information with open source software is an interesting article posted on Linux.com.

I have opened my Open Source Software and Libraries with the same observation that the open source movement and libraries share many of the same ideals.

from NewsForge

While at Reaching Forward South last week, I met someone from the Lincoln Trail Library System who is involved in a project called PolyTalk.

PolyTalk is a volunteer group from Illinois libraries that provide translation services between patrons and library staff.  They set up schedules so that when you have someone in your library who doesn’t speak English, and you don’t have someone who speaks their language, you can call them and have your conversation translated.

Also, their list of vendors that specialize in foreign-language materials is worth a look (scroll down the page).

This list is from Rachel, aka The Liminal Librarian. The comments add a great deal of information beneficial to those of us who present, as well as those of us who organize conferences.

At this moment, it is too much information for me (RFS is one week away, and nothing seems ready), but it will be reviewed as part of my approach for next year’s conference.

from Librarian.net