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March 31, 2006
Podcasting
Here's a link to my Information Outlook column, "Podcasting: The Short Course".
Stephen
(Link is fixed now- Thanks for pointing it out.)
Posted by stephen at 4:39 PM | Comments (6)
Podding for Schools
Here's a link to my column for Multimedia and Internet@Schools entitled "The Proof is in the Podding".
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:26 PM | Comments (0)
Choosing an anti-Google
Here's a link to my Information Outlook article "Search Engine Alternatives: Will you suffer the DTs if you quit Google?"
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:20 PM | Comments (0)
OneSource February and March 2006
For these OneSource Issues I did a two part-parter called "Worry" about the devlish dozen worries in library land. Part one if here and part two is here.
Watch for the upcoming two parter on productivity in libraries. Oh oh. Shhhh. We better not talk to loudly about that. (grin)
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 2:02 PM | Comments (1)
OneSource January 2006 Article
January's article was already blogged called "Web 2.0, Library 2.0, and Librarian 2.0: Preparing for the 2.0 World". This posting is to get it linked in the sidebar on the blog. It is here.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 1:59 PM | Comments (0)
Lovely
Well at this moment I am sitting in a seat on a plane, connected wirelessly to you, and flying over St. Petersburg, Russia and heading over Ulan Bator and Beijing on my way to Shanghai, Taiwan and Hong Kong! Amazing. Apparently my cel phone being 'on' interferes with air fraffic and plane communications but massive e-mailing and posting to my blog doesn't!
Hmmmm.
Anyway, I realized that I haven't linked to my latest articles for SirsiDynix OneSource and since I have about 10 hours free in this seat I can catch up!
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 1:52 PM | Comments (0)
March 29, 2006
Travel Fun
So, if you're a Canadian and you travel often to the U.S. . .
If you're travelling to London UK from Dulles Airport and then on to Paris and Shanghai over a few weeks . . .
Do you expect the British Airways clerk to tag your luggage through to Tripoli?
And do you think in the back of your mind that luggage checked through to Libya somehow gets you on a list somewhere?
Luckily a nice man saw at Heathrow the wisdom in my rant and personally retrieved my bags from another terminal.
I don't know what lists I am on now.
If your Paris hotel sends their car for you and five other colleagues to Charles De Gaulle airport, do you think their Mini holds six people and our 3 weeks worth of luggage?
At least no lists were made, I think.
Sigh. Funny later, not funny then.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 3:23 PM | Comments (0)
March 28, 2006
Just for fun - and a $50K opportunity
I think this is humourous. Then again maybe my funny bone is quirky.
BTW - it's real.
I also intended this as satirical. I apologize to those who didn't get it and felt the need to respond in total seriousness. That's the nature of some edgier humour I guess. Reductio ad absurdum. (And please refrain from trying to explain humour to me. It's personal perspective not for public review.)
Just for the record. I could not care less what you title your conversations about various innovations in libraries. Some might be shocked that I really don't care if we have a title at all. I would love it if we spent as much time pointing to cool innovations, creative solutions, experiences, widgets, mash-ups, tweaks, applications, ideas and thoughts as a very few have spent worrying and fretting about appellations.
Either way, I sure hope we can return to a little light humour and perspective. Feelings are being hurt needlessly on many sides.
On the actual agenda of achieving the identification of neat or cool innovations in libraries, SirsiDynix clients are eligible for five $10,000 US awards by applying for the Building Better Communities Awards here. There's still time to apply. Nominate yourself or a colleague. It's actually quite simple and you don't need to call it 2 point anything.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 2:41 PM | Comments (0)
Living a Year Without Shopping
Has anyone read "Not Buying It: My Year Without Shopping" by Judith Levine?
I haven't and likely won't but it's profiled in People this week and I read it on the plane to the UK. I was motivated enough to write this posting and send a note to People.
Apparently Judith's biggest sacrifice was giving up books, CD's, DVD's and magazines for the year. She's passionate about what a truly difficult sacrifice this was during her year of non-shopping.
What moron doesn't have a free public library card? Who doesn't have at least one friend who points out that card leads you for free to the world of books, serials, DVD's, Tapes, CD's etc?
Sad, eh? Hope Katie Couric brings this up on the Today Show interview.
Cheers,
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 11:46 AM | Comments (1)
STM Trends
For those of you who claim I don't pay enough attention to scientific, technical and medical libraries, here's a recent link that I picked up from Cliff Lynch and CNI.
"Microsoft Research has issued a report on the practice of science in 2020 that emphasizes the growing role of information technology, e-science and related developments. You can find information about the report here.
and the report itself is available for downloading here.
In conjunction with this, the journal Nature has done a special issue on computing and science in 2020; all the articles in this appear to be open access, and the table of contents can be found here."
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 8:53 AM | Comments (0)
Libraries Designed for Learning
The inimitable Gary Price of ResourceShelf points to a resource that I rarely don't get a question about during my travels - How do we rethink our learning and library spaces in this mutating world?
"Source: JISC
New, Designing Spaces for Effective Learning "The focus is on the way technologies can transform space utilisation, as well as merely being 'fitted into' the design. Taking the approach of a walkthrough in an imaginary educational institution, the guide highlights current thinking about the use of learning technologies in key areas and their impact on these physical spaces. Richly illustrated, it also offers architect's prototype designs and concludes with a checklist of key points to help senior managers embarking on new build and refurbishment projects." 36 pages; PDF."
Find it here.
When you read this along with Scott Bennett's "Libraries Designed for Learning", you're making a good start to think these issues through.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 8:28 AM | Comments (0)
Highest paid adwords
CyberWyre has researched a list of the highest revenue adwords for, uh, Google as of Mar. 23, 2006. Dollars are Canadian. The full list is here.
$54.33 mesothelioma lawyers
$47.79 what is mesothelioma
$47.72 peritoneal mesothelioma
$47.25 consolidate loans
$47.16 refinancing mortgage
$45.55 tax attorney
$41.22 mesothelioma
$38.86 car accident lawyer
$38.68 ameriquest mortgage
$38.03 mortgage refinance
$37.55 refinancing
$35.99 auto accident attorney
$35.52 equity mortgage
$34.34 mesothelioma texas
$34.05 mortgages
$33.80 criminal defense attorney
$33.54 epocrates
$32.95 mesothelioma
$32.08 car accident attorney
$31.60 mortgage refinance rate
$31.38 loan refinance
$31.29 personal injury attorney
$31.24 best refinance
$30.14 register domain names
$29.86 medical malpractice lawyer
$29.68 incorporate
$29.68 malignant mesothelioma
$29.49 mortgage refinance
$29.45 freecreditreport
$29.41 fargo refinance
$28.53 mortgage loans
$28.15 125 refinance
$28.05 los angeles lawyer
$27.96 re mortgage
$27.38 how to register a domain name
$27.31 mortgage refinance rate
$26.86 personal injury
$26.48 refinance
$26.17 refinance
$25.43 mortgage loan
$25.35 texas refinance
$25.33 medical malpractice attorneys
$25.33 mortgage application
$24.46 mortgage companies
$24.33 countrywide
$23.92 low mortgage rate
$23.26 va refinance
$22.83 gmac mortgage
$22.17 california mortgage rates
$21.86 ameriquest
$21.68 florida lawyer
$21.41 dui
$21.29 refinance leads
$21.16 domain register
$21.07 refinance new york
$20.62 refinance rental property
$20.46 utah mortgage
$20.38 mortgage lenders
$20.35 find a lawyer
$20.20 mortgage note
$20.17 wrongful death
Does this resemble your reference and research questions in any way?
Hmmmm.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 8:22 AM | Comments (2)
March 27, 2006
Norristown Public Library - Montgomery County
Great trip to the Philly airport again. This time to the fine people in Montgomery County. Again, we chatted about "Who's Afraid of the Google Wolf?" on March 15th.
The PPT is here.
Lovely people. Thanks.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:51 PM | Comments (0)
Personas and the NDP
As promised during the SirsiDynix Executive Conference. Here are Bob Molyneux's (Dr. Data!) and my slides that provide a overview on Personas and the Normative Data Project. They're here.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:46 PM | Comments (0)
SirsiDynix Personas Overview
Here's my light overview presented about our Public Libraries Personas project from the Nashville SuperConference.
More will follow as we roll out this major end-user insight project.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:43 PM | Comments (1)
Topeka Shawnee Library
I had a wonderful trip on Feb. 20th to Topeka Shawnee County Public Library. Here's the PPT here.
This one is called "Good Questions Generate Great Strategies: Strategic Questions for Libraries."
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:39 PM | Comments (0)
ASIDIC Presentation
You can link to my keynote presentation PPT for ASIDIC here. ASIDIC is the Association of Information and Dissemination Centers.
It's called "Who's Afraid of the Google Wolf?" It was a very interesting conference in Sanibel Florida on Mar. 12, 2006 - such a hardship! This multi-type association has technology, publisher, vendor, consortia and library members meeting twice annually.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:34 PM | Comments (0)
NFAIS Presentation
You can link to my keynote presentation PPT for NFAIS here. NFAIS is the National Federation of Abstracting and Indexing Services.
It's called "Re-defining Information Quality and Value-Add in the New Information Environment". It was a very interesting conference in Philadelphia on Feb. 26, 2006with the theme "Content Unleashed".
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:28 PM | Comments (0)
Changes the Lighthouse
We're making changes to the Lighthouse.
If you're viewing this posting through an aggregator like Bloglines or Technorati or an RSS feed you will notice that I'll start posting links to my presentations and articles here.
If you're visiting my blog's site you'll notice that I've added a lightly categorized list at your right where you can link to PPT's, links and articles (and maybe a podcast or two later). I am not a talented taxonomist like my friends are so be gentle. It may improve with time and experience.
Bear with me while I get used to doing this. This old dog is learning a few new tricks (sadly - at least new for me - probably not you!).
And in the 'small world' category - I am doing this from the lobby wireless in the Birmingham UK Crowne Plaza Hotel - on the day after Mothering Sunday and just after the time changed to Summer Time (weeks ahead of Mother's Day and Daylight Savings in North America).
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:18 PM | Comments (0)
Soda Pop 2.0
Now there are those in the soda pop industry who would say that we don't need a new name for this kind of pop because we've always done pop and don't need a new name to explain this innovation. It's just pop as we've always done it.
From Gizmodo:
"Ipfini offers the ability to program your soda with up to 32 different combinations. The patent-pending bottle design has aroma, flavor and color buttons on the side. The bottle is filled with basic carbonated high-fructose water and the user hits additives to taste. For instance, press the cherry flavor button and add the lime smell. One can only assume you shake the bottle vigorously to mix and then hand it to an unsuspecting co-worker and enjoy the show. After hearing it was programmable, the obvious questions arose: where are the caffeine buttons and will it run Linux?"
Then again, how do I know I am talking about a shift or change or different direction if I just say I'm drinking old pop from new bottles. No new brand or language necessary . . . let's just hide our pop in the old context and language so that the innovations spread slowly.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 3:45 PM | Comments (2)
Book Recommendation
Several people have recommended that I blog this book that I recommend all the time.
It's by Peter Morville, co-author of Information Architecture for the World Wide Web fame.
Definitely worth the read and reference. You can find a recent review here on page 14-15.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 3:35 PM | Comments (0)
A government mandarin who 'gets it'
Cabot Yu sent me this great quotation from a talk by a senior mandarin in Ottawa:
Nikolas Florakas, DG of the Organizational Readiness Office at PWGSC made this comment in a lunch-time address during MGI Policy Fund Day on January 27th:
"Now I want you to close your eyes and dream seriously. Close your eyes and dream of a Government of Canada where all information is managed the way we manage our libraries. Where everything is in it's right place, properly classified, easy to find, achieved when needed, destroyed when obsolete, available to all. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"
Background:
The Organizational Readiness Office (ORO) was established in November 2000 to identify and address the strategic "people" issues critical to success of major service transformation initiatives such as GOL, Service Improvement, and HR Modernization. In order to remain current and effective, the ORO has redefined its mandate by taking a leadership role in providing a whole-of government focus on departmental change-management initiatives, aligned with other major GOC initiatives that impact the IT, IM and Service Delivery communities.
MGI Policy Fund Day 2006 - Objectives
Hosted by Treasury Board Secretariat, MGI Policy Fund Day is to share the results of the Intake I MGI Policy Implementation Fund projects. The event is open to Government of Canada IM community personnel who are interested in learning more about these projects. The objectives of the day are to:
* Maximize exchange of information about project results and findings;
* See demos & ask questions; and,
* Take successful practices and approaches back to your departments and agencies.
Thanks Cabot!
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 9:29 AM | Comments (0)
March 25, 2006
Britannica Fights Back
It took them a while but ENCYCLOPEDIA BRITANNICA has written a stinging criticism of the Nature Study that compared Wikipedia favourably to EB.
You can find the BBC report here.
The original Nature study is here and a response is here.
The EB report is here. The title is "Fatally Flawed: Refuting the recent study on encyclopedic accuracy by the journal Nature". March 2006.
Ths debate will go on for a long time. The recent report comparing Google Scholar favourably to ISI citation tools is another skirmish on the quality front.
Of course, with a well designed library collection and portal access you can have a choice.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 8:38 AM | Comments (0)
March 24, 2006
School Libraries Matter
An ALA press release worthy of wide distribution.
Stephen
New national report: School library media programs critical to high school reform
CHICAGO — The Partnership for 21st Century Skills (the Partnership) issued a new national report today, “Results That Matter: 21st Century Skills and High School Reform.” The report designs a compelling framework for 21st century learning that focuses on the results that matter for today’s high school graduates’ success in the workplace of the present and future.
The American Association of School Librarians (AASL), an active member of the Partnership, applauds the report’s findings and considers school library media programs to be crucial to the success of high school reform.
According to the report (available for download at www.21stcenturyskills.org) high schools must focus on improving student learning, achievement and competencies based on the needs of today’s work environments. Schools must teach skills and attributes that are increasingly important for every high school graduate, which are different than traditional metrics.
AASL advocates for strong and effective school library media programs as essential to educational progress in today’s high schools. School library media specialists have a substantial impact on student’s academic success. In the context of core subjects, school library media specialists develop in their students the information and communication technology (ICT) skills to access up-to-date information from around the world, to evaluate its relevance to the questions at hand, to assess its authority and reliability, and to apply it to information problem solving.
“Working in effective school library media programs, students experience learning as not merely an acquisition of factual information, but rather as questioning, analyzing, interpreting and applying information to solve problems, make decisions and generate new ideas,” said AASL President J. Linda Williams.
According to “Results That Matter,” today’s graduates need to be critical thinkers, problem solvers and effective communicators who are proficient in both core subjects and new, 21st century content and skills. These 21st century skills include learning and thinking skills, information and communications technology literacy skills, and life skills. Twenty-first century skills are in demand for all students, no matter what their future plans—and they will have an enormous impact on students’ prospects.
School library media specialists have an active role in instruction beyond the scope of the traditional library setting. Teachers collaborate with media specialists to engage their students in complex writing, integrating facts and ideas from a range of sources, learning to critically assess them and arrive at well-reasoned and well-supported conclusions. Effective school library media programs teach students how to learn, how to think critically and how to use the tools and information available to solve complex problems. Those skills, taught in library media centers, are what today’s employers seek. Without them, graduates are inadequately prepared for the workplace and adult life.
“High schools must be designed, organized and managed with a relentless focus on the results that matter in the 21st century—in addition to the traditional metrics of attendance, graduation and college matriculation rates—or they risk missing the mark,” said John Wilson, chair, Partnership for 21st Century Skills, and executive director of the National Education Association. “Traditional metrics are important, but they are no longer sufficient indicators of student preparedness.”
The Partnership for 21st Century Skills (www.21stcenturyskills.org) was formed in 2002 with support from the U.S. Department of Education and is the leading advocacy organization transforming learning in the 21st century. In 2003, the Partnership issued Learning for the 21st Century: A Report and MILE Guide for 21st Century Skills, which articulates a collective vision for learning in the 21st century and assists schools, districts and states in meeting the challenges of incorporating 21st century skills into their curriculum. AASL joined the Partnership in February 2005.
The American Association of School Librarians (www.aasl.org), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), promotes the improvement and extension of library media services in elementary and secondary schools as a means of strengthening the total education program. Its mission is to advocate excellence, facilitate change and develop leaders in the school library media field.
Posted by stephen at 8:34 AM | Comments (0)
March 15, 2006
Using Evidence to Run Our Libraries
I direct your attention to a reasonably new journal: Evidence Based Library and Information Practice. The first issue of EBLIP has just been published.
"EBLIP is open access, peer reviewed, and is the first journal to focus specifically on evidence based practice in the information professions. EBLIP is published by the University of Alberta Learning Services, and proudly uses the Open Journal Systems (OJS) journal management and publishing system developed by the Public Knowledge Project.
The Evidence Based Librarianship Interest Group of the Canadian Library Association governs EBLIP by establishing the journal’s guiding principles and ensuring that the journal’s editorial board is in place on an annual basis. We have great support from our international Editorial Advisory and Evidence Summaries Teams too.
In addition to the valuable Evidence Summaries section, this issue also contains research articles, papers presented at the 3rd EBL Conference in Australia, and the EBL Conference abstracts."
More info at: http://pamryan.info/?p=93
Journal at: http://ejournals.library.ualberta.ca/index.php/EBLIP
Congratulations to the editorial team on starting this great initiative! There are about 20 articles in this first issue that all address the real issue of proving that something works.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 10:59 PM | Comments (3)
March 11, 2006
Out of School Youth Strategies
Looking for ideas on how to improve the lives of drop-outs and other youths in your community. This 196 page report has some ideas. There are a few mentions of libraries but partnerships of all types seem the successful focus.
WHATEVER IT TAKES: How Twelve Communities Are Reconnecting Out-of-School Youth
"Whatever It Takes: How Twelve Communities Are Reconnecting Out-Of-School Youth documents what committed educators, policymakers, and community leaders across the country are doing to reconnect out-of-school youth to the social and economic mainstream. It provides background on the serious high school dropout problem and describes in-depth what twelve communities are doing to reconnect dropouts to education and employment training. It also includes descriptions of major national program models serving out-of-school youth."
Worth a try!
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 10:37 PM | Comments (2)
Visualization
There are a ton of visual metaphors to explore in finding new ways to display complex information sets. There's a neat tool to explore these at Visual Complexity. Have fun.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 10:34 PM | Comments (0)
Seniors (instead of Millennials)
Everyone who reads my blog regularly knows I love to talk about Millennials (having two myself). If you've heard my talks lately, you'll know I also highlight changes in the senior population.
A new report from the U.S. Census Bureau 65+ in the United States: 2005 [PDF] covers a lot of ground. The report is here and the press release is here.
Here's the highlights from the release:
"Among the trends:
The U.S. population age 65 and over is expected to double in size within the next 25 years. By 2030, almost 1-out-of-5 Americans — some 72 million people — will be 65 years or older. The age group 85 and older is now the fastest growing segment of the U.S. population.
The health of older Americans is improving. Still, many are disabled and suffer from chronic conditions. The proportion with a disability fell significantly from 26.2 percent in 1982 to 19.7 percent in 1999. But 14 million people age 65 and older reported some level of disability in Census 2000, mostly linked to a high prevalence of chronic conditions such as heart disease or arthritis.
The financial circumstances of older people have improved dramatically, although there are wide variations in income and wealth. The proportion of people aged 65 and older in poverty decreased from 35 percent in 1959 to 10 percent in 2003, mostly attributed to the support of Social Security. In 2000, the poorest fifth of senior households had a net worth of $3,500 ($44,346 including home equity) and the wealthiest had $328,432 ($449,800 including home equity).
Florida (17.6 percent), Pennsylvania (15.6 percent) and West Virginia (15.3 percent) are the “oldest” states, with the highest percentages of people age 65 and older. Charlotte County, Fla., (34.7 percent) has the highest concentration of older residents and McIntosh County, N.D., (34.2 percent) ranks second.
Higher levels of education, which are linked to better health, higher income, more wealth and a higher standard of living in retirement, will continue to increase among people 65 and older. The proportion of Americans with at least a bachelor’s degree grew five-fold from 1950 to 2003, from 3.4 percent to 17.4 percent; and by 2030, more than one-fourth of the older population is expected to have an undergraduate degree. The percentage completing high school quadrupled from 1950 to 2003, from 17 percent to 71.5 percent.
As the United States as a whole grows more diverse, so does the population age 65 and older. In 2003, older Americans were 83 percent non-Hispanic white, 8 percent black, 6 percent Hispanic and 3 percent Asian. By 2030, an estimated 72 percent of older Americans will be non-Hispanic white, 11 percent Hispanic, 10 percent black and 5 percent Asian.
Changes in the American family have significant implications for future aging. Divorce, for example, is on the rise, and some researchers suggest that fewer children and more stepchildren may change the availability of family support in the future for people at older ages. In 1960, only 1.6 percent of older men and 1.5 percent of women age 65 and older were divorced; but by 2003, 7 percent of older men and 8.6 percent of older women were divorced and had not remarried. The trend may be continuing. In 2003, among people in their early 60s, 12.2 percent of men and 15.9 percent of women were divorced."
Like I've been saying, if you're still in the mindset of programming for poor, web-illiterate, unheathy folks, look again. Add to this data the impact of new retirees being internet aware and competent (Seniors are one of the fastest growing segments) and you've got a major shift in this market for library services.
So libraries are bookended - Millennials to the right of us, Seniors to the left, and stuck in the middle with you.
(Yes, that's with apologies to Stealers Wheel (not Dylan):
Clowns to the left of me!
Jokers to the right!
Here I am stuck in the middle with you.)
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 9:49 PM | Comments (6)
March 10, 2006
Ken Roberts and a Community Portal
Ken Roberts, award winning children's author and city librarian for Hamilton, Ontario, showed us his cool community portal. As background you need to know that at one point Ken was seconded to be head of IT for the city and then merged the city's IT department into the library's main building under his direction. There's too much to say and you should just go look.
Here's the library here. Here's the city's portal. Notice the look and feel and seamlessness of the community experience. Ken used local citizen personas to develop the sites. McMaster University is doing a review right now.
Either way, no matter where you go, the library is omnipresent in this city.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:31 PM | Comments (0)
Ernie Ingles on Making a Difference
Ernie Ingles from the University of Alberta has participated on may teams to create transformational change and to get it funded. Besides leading one of the most electronic university libraries in North America, Ernie has assisted in the transformation of his province's libraries through the Alberta Library as well as many digitization, publishing, preservation and bibliographic projects. This year I asked him how one raises tens of millions of dollars to fund such amazing projects. He gave a very thougtful response. He discussed networking and used the fabric metaphor where his network of friends and contacts for the fabric. He noted that it wasn't so much the fabric that was important but the spaces between the threads. This he equated to social capital. Social captial:
- is strong ties and weak ties.
- is trying and hard work.
- is sincere and passionate.
- is understanding.
- has reciprocity as a quintessential element.
- has practicality on call at all times.
- is all about maintenance too.
One can see that Ernie lives his list through just his annual 5,000+ Christmas cards! If you know Ernie you know that this network is your network and if you engage your passion for libraries into his, amazing things happen.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:20 PM | Comments (0)
Donna Scheeder on Influence
Donna Scheeder from the Law Library of Congress had some sage advice at the SirsiDynix SuperConference about library politics based on her experience in national and local level politics. Here's some soundbites:
- Good ideas do not implement themselves.
- Process is as important as content.
- Workplace is collaboration and influence brings people together.
- Leaders need to persuade in order to prevail in common goals.
- Speak with one voice.
- Understand that there is both positive and negative influence.
TIPS:
1. Power Network.
2. Build a favor bank.
3. Build a power map of decision makers.
4. Build alliances.
5. Understand and use the process.
6. Do your homework.
7. Get and use feedback.
8. Learn how to deal with enemies.
9. Fill the void.
10. Use consensus and compromise.
11. No bomb throwing.
12. Be a team player.
13. Acknowledge your supporters.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:12 PM | Comments (1)
Patricia Martin and Sponsorships
Patricia Martin did a great session at the SirsiDynix SuperConference about sponsorship and reminded us about why libraries make great partners for the business community. She was all about building clout, capital and users.
First she reminded us about the lexicon that works for sponsorship and foundation communities. We can't expect them to learn our language:
Libraries are 'properties' (we're the 'sponsee' - another new word)
Sponsors are the folks who have cash to invest (they want access to your marketing assets.)
They are selling - and the arrangement is called "deal"
Here's are some soundbites:
We are a visual culture.
Be where your users are.
Good words and positions are "authentic" or "extreme"
Self expressive
"Intent to buy" vs "intent to borrow"
The sponsor wants to become 'embedded"
Does the customer believe that you understand them? Then they'll buy.
"Are you sponsor worthy?"
We are in the rise of the second renaissance. 63% list reading for pleasure as their #1 leisure activity. This gives us power that we can bring to the relationship.
Why libraries make good partners:
3 key assets: Technology, Talent, Timeliness
What you know is what you value and libraries are authentic, liked, they care about you, revered.
"Libraries are the legacy brand."
"Librarians are the xenophiles among the geeks. Deep insights into how users consume information."
"Libraries are the infrastructure of the knowledge society."
"Libraries are the franchise"
Good places to add cash:
1. Youth reading programs. poetry slams, other events.
2. Sponsored resources- home improvement weeks, investor education, etc.
3. Onsite sales (e.g. Starbucks, Snapple, etc.)
4. New product trials (software, downloads, etc.)
5. Small business services
3 important steps:
1. Get visual
2. Get a vision
3. Get new friends
What's in it for you as a library?
1. Clout
2. Community
3. Cash to do the extras.
Reality Check - What does it take to succeed?
1. Entrepreneurial culture
2. Really know your user group
3. Know your limits, what is and isn't for sale and why.
4. Know which assets are valuable
5. Can you commit to the discomfort of growth?
Points to ponder...
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 3:51 PM | Comments (0)
The Incomparable Lee Rainie
I had the great opportunity to hear Lee twice in the last month. I blogged Dr. Rainie last week too here.
While my notes can never replace the real thing, here's what I wrote down:
145 million or 73% of Americans have internet access.
79 million or 87% of all teens.
79 million or 39% are broadband already.
If you're broadband you are more likely to go online, use a greater variety of content and services, more likely to create content and have a more positive attitude.
1/4 of Americans do not use the Internet.
1/5 have never had any serious contact with the internet.
This is largely because of their social environment, their location or by personal choice.
Broadband adoption will slow as the pool of interested upgraders shrinks.
Non users / users divide up this way:
- half are cold to the internet, isolated and indifferent to it.
- some have a tepid relationship and dial up is fine with them
- 40-50% are hot to the internet and these are the broadband users who are also hyper-connected and use PDA's etc. in their voracious information use.
The heaviest users are the cohort under 36 years old. They are broadband, heavy long term users (6-12 years). They are 60% more likely to get their news from the internet than newspapers, TV or radio. They love blogs but don't shun traditional sources.
It will sound quaint a generation from now that we were discussing the various content channels. We are waiting for the next killer app. The big events have been circa 1991 when the public internet started and 1994 when the browser was released. We're awaiting the next e-mail killer app and streaming media might not be it.
There is a threat to internet neutrality. There are moves afoot to control the flow of internet information. The market as a whole prefers the 'whole feast' and everything - the market prefers neutrality. This will put the forces at odds.
39% have broadband at home.
Another 10-15% have broadband at work which tends to be used for personal and work use.
AOL is forcing many of its users onto broadband.
The big two gaps are related to rural use. First the issue with flat out internet access at all and then the issue of broadband access. Half of all rural citizens don't know if they have access.
Chat room use is declining. However, merely having internet access is a "very strong indicator of joining a group." This is a strong mechanism for creating social capital. Groups are anything from book clubs, sporting teams, etc.
IM is the preferred method for communicating now. "E-mail is for talking to 'old' people."
Youth are wild for Facebook and MySpace. These are growing at about 250,000 new users a DAY! Other hot sites are Second Life, iTunes Garageband, eBay, Zillow, Skype and sites that allow for mashups and remixing.
"Half of people searching are searching for information for another person."
"Many are trying to find experts and not just information."
5 big trends to watch:
1. Smart devices - everything is connected (toilets, golf balls, dog tags, etc.)
2. Mobility Power of teens - 70% have a cel, 25% have a laptop, 20 have a wireless PDA. This leads to smart mobs. "The conversation never ends."
3. Growing content creation and content sharing - Yahoo! grows by 5 terabytes of data day. Add more webcams, podcasts, blog swarms, citizen news, etc.
4. Search Power will expand and become more social - semantic and social web, collaboraive filtering, tagging and social filters. e.g. del.icio.us, Flickr, Eurekster, etc.
5. Data linked to its geographic context. Reputation systems move into the social realm.
Notions to watch:
1. The Long Tail from Chris Anderson. This is the notion that 20-40% of usage, traffic or sales is in the long tail of services like Amazon, Rhapsody, iTunes, NetFlix, etc. for books, music and movies.
2. Smart Mobs. Read more in a book by Howard Rheingold called "The Next Social Revolution."
3. "Continuous Partial Attention" as promulgated by Linda Stone in the Kaiser Family Foundation report on Generation M.
4. Daniel Levi's theories on the role of technology in our culture from Josef Pieper's book "Leisure: The Basis of Culture". Leisure is not about idleness but about stillness and we might want to start planning for more stillness in our culture.
In the end Lee called for more balance and a better mix in our world. Libraries are ideally situated for this place. We must balance the connected and the contemplative; be open to inputs but also our muse; be aware of insights and research; be on top of the latest news but being aware of the restorative powers of turning things off. Lee called for an Information Habitat where there is time for rest and contemplation too.
Wise words, as always.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 2:39 PM | Comments (0)
Resolving Conflict
Pat Wagner from Pattern Research Inc. gave a great presentation for resolving conflict at the SirsiDynix SuperConference last week. Here's her three main tips:
I. What do you to have happen instead oof what is happening?
1. Is the outcome an internal or external outcome?
2. Is the problem a personal or personnel problem?
3. Are you being specific?
4. Are you being emotionally neutral?
5. What will this outcome do for you?
6. What are five other ways to get this outcome?
7. What esle would you want to have happen instead of your first choice?
II. What about the other persons?
1. What is the cost of change for them? What is the benefit for them?
2. How will this outcome affect the other person(s)?
3. How will this outcome affect other people indirectly?
4. How will this outcome affect other departments?
5. How will this outcome affect the other library?
6. How will this outcome affect library users?
7. How will this outcome affect the larger institution or community?
III. What are you going to do instead of what you are doing, in order to change the outcome from what you have to what you want?
1. How will you build rapport back with the person?
2. Do you need to stop talking about the person to others?
3. Do you need to change your day-to-day behavior with them?
4. What details of your behavior do you need to change?
5. Have you received criticism about your own behavior that you need to consider?
6. What are five behaviors that really annoy you in other people?
7. How can you learn if these are behaviors that you do as well?
8. How will you measure success?
Why would a technology company have sessions on conflict resolution? Because most of the issues that arise from these projects are interpersonal, not technological.
If you ever get to see Pat in action, here session are wonderful.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 12:24 PM | Comments (2)
March 9, 2006
The New SLA President-elect (in June)
Well, I won. Now the real work starts! Wheeee.
Stephen
FOR IMMEDIATE DISTRIBUTION
CONTACT:
John Crosby
+1.703.647.4916
jcrosby@sla.org
SLA ANNOUNCES FIRST BOARD OF DIRECTORS eVOTE RESULTS
Thought Leader Stephen Abram to Serve as President-Elect
Alexandria, Virginia, 9 March 2005 – The Special Libraries Association (SLA) announces the results of its 2006 Board of Directors elections today. The 2006 election was the first SLA has conducted using an Internet-based voting system. Of the 2,870 members of the Association who voted, 93 percent of them cast their ballots online.
Stephen Abram, Vice President of Innovation at SirsiDynix and a leading thinker in the North American library community, was elected to serve as the association’s next President-Elect. His term as SLA President will begin in January 2008.
Abram and the other newly-elected board members will be installed to the SLA Board of Directors at the Association’s 97th Annual Conference in Baltimore, 11-14 June. Others elected include:
Treasurer:
Sylvia James, Principal, Sylvia James Consultancy, West Sussex, UK
Chapter Cabinet Chair-Elect:
Libby Trudell, Senior Vice President, Dialog, Sunnyvale, California
Division Cabinet Chair-Elect:
Robyn Frank, Robyn Frank Strategic Partners, Fulton, Maryland
At-Large Directors:
Kate Arnold, Head of Knowledge Management, NHS Direct Online, Hampshire, UK
Tamika Barnes McCollough, Head of Reference and Information Literacy, North Carolina A&T State University, Greensboro.
For more information on the newly-elected members of the SLA Board of Directors, please visit the 2006 Election Results page on the SLA Web site.
About SLA
The Special Libraries Association (SLA) is a nonprofit global organization for innovative information professionals and their strategic partners. SLA serves more than approximately 11,000 members in 75 countries in the information profession, including corporate, academic, and government information specialists. SLA promotes and strengthens its members through learning, advocacy, and networking initiatives. For more information, visit us on the Web at www.sla.org.
Posted by stephen at 12:08 PM | Comments (10)
March 5, 2006
Winding up the DRA Users' Group
We've been celebrating the old DRA Users' Group as it winds up at the SirsiDynix SuperConference today. They've made a very nice donation to the Electronic Frontier Foundation and the Freedom to Read Foundation in support of free speech. There was a nice reception to celebrate their achievements over the past decades.
Stephen
Data Research Users’ Group Donates more than $30,000 to Free Speech Causes
The Electronic Frontier Foundation and the Freedom to Read Foundation will receive gift
NASHVILLE, Tenn., March 5, 2006 – The Data Research Users’ Group announced today it is donating approximately $30,000 to organizations that support and defend free speech, free expression and privacy. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and the Freedom to Read Foundation (FTRF) will each receive about $15,000. The announcement was made here at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Hotel as part of SirsiDynix SuperConference 2006, the annual gathering of Unicorn® and DRA library software users.
The Data Research Users’ Group is disbanding, and its membership is merging with the Unicorn Users’ Group International (UUGI). As a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization founded in Missouri, the Data Research Users’ Group is allowed to donate its final assets to other 501(c)(3) organizations, and chose the Electronic Frontier Foundation and the Freedom to Read Foundation as recipients. Final assets are estimated to be worth $30,000, with the two free speech organizations dividing the proceeds equally.
“The Electronic Frontier Foundation and the Freedom to Read Foundation have long and successful records of defending the First Amendment rights that we as librarians – and as citizens – hold very dear,” said Steven M. Schermerhorn, president of the Data Research Users’ Group. “Both organizations depend on contributions to successfully defend our rights, and the Data Research Users’ Group is happy to donate a substantial amount of money to the cause of intellectual freedom.”
Shari Steele, executive director and president of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, said: “EFF is so grateful for such a generous donation from the Data Research Users’ Group. A major donation such as this will go a long way toward helping us fight for free speech rights and protect fair use rights.”
Judith Krug, executive director of the Freedom to Read Foundation, said: “I cannot thank the members of the Data Research Users’ Group enough for the extremely generous donation to the Freedom to Read Foundation. This is one of the single largest donations FTRF has received in its 37 years. The Freedom to Read Foundation has been on the forefront of groundbreaking litigation that has cemented major principles we hold dear as a profession. This award comes at a most propitious time as libraries are under renewed pressure to restrict their users’ access to information.”
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:
Lebron Miles
Corporate Communications Director
1.256.704.7152
lebron.miles@sirsidynix.com
# # #
About Electronic Frontier Foundation
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has championed the public interest in every critical battle affecting digital rights. Blending the expertise of lawyers, policy analysts, activists and technologists, it achieves significant victories on behalf of consumers and the general public. EFF fights for freedom primarily in the courts, bringing and defending lawsuits even when that means taking on the U.S. government or large corporations. By mobilizing more than 50,000 concerned citizens through its Action Center, EFF beats back bad legislation. In addition to advising policymakers, EFF educates the press and public. Sometimes just defending technologies isn't enough, so EFF also supports the development of freedom-enhancing inventions. For more information, visit www.eff.org.
About Freedom to Read Foundation
The Freedom to Read Foundation (FTRF) was founded in 1969 to promote and defend the right of individuals to freely express ideas and to access information in libraries and elsewhere. FTRF fulfills its mission through the disbursement of grants to individuals and groups, primarily for the purpose of aiding them in litigation, and through direct participation in litigation dealing with freedom of speech and of the press. It is part of the American Library Association. For more information, visit www.ala.org.
Posted by stephen at 10:19 AM | Comments (1)
March 3, 2006
The Globe and Mail's Thought du jour
I like the Globe's Thought du jour, today. It reminded be of the essential contradiction of change in libraries:
F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote: "The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function. One should, for example, be able to see that things are hopeless and yet be determined to make them otherwise."
Library budget time for anyone?
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 2:53 PM | Comments (0)
Understanding Google
Elinor Mills at CNet has a good article on Google here.
It's an interesting insight into Google.
Nathan Weinberg offers this summary here:
"- Eric Schmidt says the same principles from the founder's letter of two years ago are still in place.
- High points of the year: the AOL deal, and moving into China
- There's a $283 billion market for ads in broadcast TV, cable TV, radio, internet, print and direct mail. Google intends to be a major player in all of those markets.
- "Google is primarily focused on Microsoft as a competitor because of the software giant's history as a company, but Google hasn't seen an impact from Microsoft's search products yet."
- Google does not consider click fraud a major issue yet.
- Google does not believe in being constrained by things like bandwidth and CPU power.
- 20% of resources spent on: Google Video, Google Talk, Gmail, Google Earth, Local Search, Enterprise, Book search, AdSense, Desktop Search and Mobile Search.
- 10% of resources spent on: AdSense Offline, Google Suggest, Orkut and Google Reader.
- Google Ride Finder didn't work because it followed GPS signals from cabs, but people couldn't get to the street in time to hail them.
- Google earns $1.44 million per employee.
- Google admits it has not done a good job communicating that some of its betas are just tests, and that's why they close them so quickly."
Whatever you think about Google, they're certainly interesting to watch.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 10:43 AM | Comments (0)
March 2, 2006
Keeping Up
I had the opportunity to record a short podcast for Palinet this week. Since you can't provide easy links in a podcast I am blogging the links for anyone who might find them useful.
We called the podcast "6 tips for keeping up with library change".
My key tip was to find short periods of 10-15 minutes to learn continuously. I follow the 3 "F's": Find, Filter and Flow. Find places and tools that let's learning opportunities flow over you. Then develop personal filters to separate what needs to be learned.
Here's six ways to do that:
1. Subscribe to Bloglines and download the 'sub with Bloglines' bookmarklet. You'll start by learning Bloglines and also learn about bookmarklets. There's no excuse to be visting bookmarked blogs anymore. It's a time watster. Then subscribe to your favorite blogs and the key library blogs like Steven Cohen's Library Stuff, Jenny Levine's Shifted Librarian, Blake Carver's LIS News, Michael Stephen's Tame the Web, Gary Price's ResourceShelf, Michael Casey's LibraryCrunch, John Blyberg's Blyberg.net, Ed Vielmetti's SuperPatron and more. Don't forget the team blogs from OCLC It's All Good, ACRLlog, etc. Then use Bloglines social filters to find others that match your interests driven by folks who have like interests to you.
2. Subscribe to the RSS feed from the Pew Internet and American Life Project. These reports make great subway, bus, airport and doctor's office reading. Fill in those boring gaps of time. Don't forget to read the Horizon report, OCLC studies, scans and surveys, etc.
3. Set up alerts for your personal interests. Among others you can do free alerts at Google Alerts, PubSub and Technorati. At least set up some for your own name and employer!
4. Do my 43 Things idea. Play. and track your play. Just choose something new and interesting like MySpace, Technorati, Google Base, or whatever and do it. Click and play. Try Google Labs for lists of new staff.
5. Use Podzinger and Podscope to find podcasts about library issues and other things you want to learn. Search iTunes for library-oriented podcasts. And follow and attend the free web programs offered by WebJunction, SirsiDynix Institute or Blended Librarian. It's easy to learn when you schedule it and share it with colleagues.
6. And don't forget print. I read Library Journal, American Libraries, CLA's Feliciter, SLA's Information Outlook, Computers in Libraries, Searcher, Information Today, Multimedia and Internet @ Schools, eContent, and more. Some have 'lite' online versions to check out.
That's it. Enjoy.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 9:45 PM | Comments (0)
Lee Rainie and Homo Connectus
Lee Rainie, founding director of the Pew Internet and American Life Project is one of my favorite speakers.
Recently he outlined the 8 Realities of the Millennials, or Homo Connectus at the NFAIS conference last week.
Reality #1
Millennials are a distinct age cohort, according to many measures of generational behavior and attitude. They are 'special'. Some words Lee used to decribe them: sheltered, the play date generation, confident, team-oriented, achievement oriented, pressured, trophy kids, conventional, technology embracing though not necessarily tech-savvy.
Reality #2
Millennials are immersed in a world of media and gadgets. Their homes are FILLED with gadgets. Lee said that the average home now has 26 (!!) information and communication tools. I laughed and then started counting what was around my home.
Reality #3
"If they can't be with the device they love, they'll love the one they're with"
Discman, Walkman, cel phone, handheld game, MP3 player, Internet, laptop, PDA...
Their technology is mobile. He discussed the consequence of mobility as smart mobs and instant sharing. They share and act quickly.
Reality #4
The Internet plays a special role in their world. 1/3 download video; 1/2 download music; 1/3 create content; 20% blog; 75% IM. Of nearly all Internet activities only buying products, and searching for health and job information is done by Boomers more. They approach research as a self-directed process.
Reality #5
They are multi-taskers. They cram 8:33 hours of time spent with media into 6:21 hours. This covers TV, video, music, reading, radio, and using computers.
They practice "continuous partial attention". This is not the same as multi-tasking. Some quotes: "Scanning to seize upon", "foraging behaviors", "the need for sanctuary", need "contemplative space", and maybe need occasional "technology sabbaths".
Reality #6
"Millennials are often unaware or indifferent to the consequences of their use of technology. This is particularly interesting in the attitudes for downloadig music and video, and privacy. 19% remix in some manner. A new term "soft surveillance" and the role it might play for professors and employers. It's an emerging issue.
Reality #7
Their own technology world will change radically in the next decade. This will be driven by:
- Computing power doubling every 18 months (Moore's Law)
- Communication Power doubling every nine months (Gilder's Law)
- Spectrum power increasing
- Storage Power doubling every 12 months.
These J-curve laws will change everthing (again). This applies in particular to content creation, connectedness, me media vs. mass media, better contextual search (like the semantic web), and advanced social search and networks and tagging.
Lee talked about a smart doorknob. (You had to be there.)
Reality #8
"The way they approach learning and research will be shaped by their new techno-world." It will be:
- less top down
- more reliant on feedback and response
- more tags and personal taxonomies
- open and cross-disciplinary
- more focused on individual creation
Anyway, when you get a chance to hear Lee, do it.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 9:10 PM | Comments (0)
MySpace Library Sites
Helene Blowers, Public Services Technology Director for the Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County (PLCMC) has started a list of library presences in the MySpace site. It's on her blog, Library TechBytes. Very cool. There are some pretty good ideas here and they're not too overbearing in a teen and college space...! Kudos. If you've got a MySpace presence for your libary, tell Helene.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:39 PM | Comments (1)
Change
Rochelle, just Rochelle at Tinfoil + Racoon reminded me of ths quote:
"Things do not change; we change." from Henry David Thoreau.
It's an important lesson to remember for those of us who keep looking for change in technology opportunity rather than human adoption and behaviourial change. It's a tandem act.
Then again, there's wisdom in the Ghandi quote:
"Be the change that you seek in the world."
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:32 PM | Comments (0)
March 1, 2006
Process, Process - ongoing and organic
Dave Hook, The Industrial Librarian, pointed to a slide about the Intranet being a process:
"Intranet is a process
It is not a thing, a project, an objective
It is an enabler, a way of thinking, a way of communicating
It is always evolving with the organization
It should be one step ahead of the organization"
The original is here.
This got me to thinking. We see so many intranet, web content and portal projects managed as bounded projects
Portals are a process
Portals are reactive and proactive
Portals are driven by the community through the insights of their developers
Portals evolve like the climate not in phases like the seasons
Portals can change communities
Portals can show leadership
Portals are more about 2-way communication and interaction than information display
Just a few thoughts while March arrives like a lamb in Toronto.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 8:34 AM | Comments (0)
eTech Ohio
I did a few speeches for the state-wide eTech Ohio Conference for the Ohio education community (teachers, librarians, media specialists, systems folks, admins, etc.) last month.
They've made them available on their website here.
Another one that was pretty cool was Joanna McNally's presentation on the InfOhio School Rooms project in partnership with SirsiDynix, called "INFOhio and School Rooms: The Antidote to Information Overload."
When you attend this huge, dynamic conference you can feel the energy and motivation that makes Ohio such a successful environment for users and students and consequently for schools and libraries.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 8:00 AM | Comments (0)
Brown Bag Idea
Are you looking for something to listen to?
National Public Radio (NPR) had this recent broadcast Talk of the Nation, Feb. 27, 2006) ... an audio link
from the site:
"If a Library is Bookless, What's in it?"
The guests are:
Tom Frey, executive director, The DaVinci Institute
Jo Haight-Sarling, director, access and technology services at the Denver Public Library System
Charles Brown, director, Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, N.C.
You may recall the DaVinci paper's ten trends in The Future of Libraries: Beginning the Great Transformation. Another good read.
Consider listening to this broadcast as a group in your library and having a brown bag discussion. It's a great jumping off point.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 7:50 AM | Comments (0)
Investing Oil Dollars Wisely
We're told that the oil won't last forever. Therefore the investments in libraries in Alberta (Canada's oil-rich province) are to be commended.
The Lois Hole Campus Alberta Digital Library is "a digital library that will allow post-secondary students and faculty across the province to access the digitized resources and knowledge currently held in the individual libraries of post-secondary institutions." This will amount to approximately $30 million over 3 years towards "the acquisition of digital information products, implementation of infrastructure to deliver information to the entire post-secondary system, and the development of four regional Digitization Centres."
You can read the plan here.
Another big honking vision developed collaboratively by librarians.
This will pay dividends for all libraries as Alberta invests, learns and shares.
Alberta has a long tradition of province-wide cooperation through The Alberta Library. This goes to show that vision can be achieved through patience, collaboration and sharing.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 7:38 AM | Comments (1)
An interesting project proposal
Back in 2001 Mike Ridley and I planned a province-wide summit on the concept of an Ontario Digital Library. Things have progressed since then.
The Ontario Digital Library (ODL) is a vision of how publicly assisted organizations in Ontario can collaborate to create and sustain a partnership that will provide seamless services and resources to all the citizens of Ontario. While recognizing the unique responsibilities of public libraries, school libraries, college and university libraries, museums and archives, the Ontario Digital Library envisions a digital network of information resources and services that will inter-link and inter-operate to enable province-wide access to high quality information resources.
Knowledge Ontario is the public face of the Ontario Digital Library and unites ODL initiatives into a single service point and set of projects. You cna view a powerpoint about it here.
I think that the following is a eloquent and simple statement of principles.
10 Guiding Principles of Knowledge Ontario Digital Services
1. A sensible collection reflects a knowledgeable collections policy
2. Libraries are a sensible infrastructure for mediating community access to licensed content, and Knowledge Ontario is well positioned to promote the creation and dissemination of free content
3. Authentication and authorization mechanisms must be within reach of all Knowledge Ontario partners, regardless of available systems and systems expertise
4. Knowledge Ontario partners will retain some level of branding even when providing access to remote content
5. A digital collection must be accessible and discoverable to all of its target audiences
6. Preservation is fundamentally a commitment rather than a technology
7. The best digital collections play well with others
8. Virtual Reference, digital collection building, and many other technology-fueled initiatives have established enough of a track record to make the effort of identifying best practices worthwhile
9. A framework of "social software" has emerged to facilitate communications and interactions with the communities served by Knowledge Ontario partners
10. A URI/URL is your contract with the world, persistent and sensible web addresses are what gives you the ability to leverage the web to tell your stories
The Knowledge Ontario proposition is now with the my provincial government. I do hope it goes well since Ontario will be a better more competitive place with it is enabled.
However, no matter what becomes of it, Ontario libraries are in a much better place for having had the discussions about uber-levels of cooperation and collaboration. Things will happen as a result. Sometimes people criticize visions as lacking substance. The ODL and Knowledge Ontario history, process and work shows how to put meat on the bones of bigger visions that impact the wider community.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 7:26 AM | Comments (0)