Miss Sophie Mac

10 easy steps to a fantastic future for libraries

2011-10-21T13:00:00.000+11:00

10 easy steps to a fantastic future for libraries.
If we can we be:
• leaders in our community
• leading by doing
• proactive and engaged
• listening and forward thinking
• open and communicative
• learning and changing
• trusting and tolerant of failure
• free to experiment and play
• sharing our knowledge and skills
• creative and connected

Maybe easy isn't the right word but IMHO I think it's what we could be doing to create a strong and vibrant future. These 10 easy steps can be applied to any library context and then comes the hard part - where you put it into practice! This year I've been to a few events focussed on the future of libraries and the future of the profession and reflecting on those events helped me come up with this list. You may agree or disagree, I'd love to hear what you think?

More zombie library games

2011-06-24T15:02:00.001+10:00

Image from Matthew Stewart on flickr

This is a paper that Ashley brought to my attention and I think it's totally awesome! ...

The Library is Undead: Information Seeking During the Zombie Apocalypse

Also, check out Zombie walks! (found this via the flickr image)

Short blog post cause I'm off to Sardinia tomorrow!

Online security and protecting our data

2011-06-23T16:21:00.001+10:00

Should I be worried?

This morning I heard an interesting ABC Radio Program on Life Matters called Hacking: why we need to worry about online security. At first I thought it was a bit of a scare campaign on things like online banking, shopping and paying bills. But it got me thinking? How much do I really think before I go wacking my credit card details into an online form? Answer: probably not enough. I usually use PayPal where possible but so many times if I'm buying tickets or accommodation or anything - I just put the details in without thinking about it too much! I guess I'm lucky so far? Has anyone been not so lucky? There was also alot of talk about how hackers are getting better at accessing data from your mobile phone when you use a wireless network for online banking, paying bills or online shopping. When I looked into it further it turns out the world of cloud computing puts our personal data at greater risk of being hacked than ever before! This is scary stuff! Do we really need to worry about this? Please share your opinions.

Here are some recent stories about online security:
Story from The Conversation on recent hacker attacks
Story from BBC news on cloud computing and protecting your data
A string of recent stories on hacking from ABC news
Stories on hacking from mashable.com

The importance of great leadership

2011-06-23T15:34:00.000+10:00

While convalescing last week I was thinking about how important it is to have strong, supportive leadership in the workplace. As a newbie in any career, you rely on supervisors, managers and superiors to mentor, guide and lead. Under the right conditions you can flourish in your role and be rewarded. Under not so right conditions your self esteem and sense of purpose can plummet. In my worklife so far I've experienced both. I've worked in places where I didn't feel I could speak up and voice an opinion, where hard work is not acknowledged or rewarded, where new ideas are discouraged, where every move is scrutinised, or worse, where you are completely ignored and disregarded. Luckily those time are behind me because where I am now is the complete opposite. I am so grateful to be in an environment that is supportive, encouraging, innovative and engaging. I feel like I'm part of a team that includes all levels of staff with many different backgrounds, talents and interests. I've learned so much from all my supervisors and managers (and the whole team) about communicating, working together, planning, organising and teaching. I know I might not always be so lucky, but I hope I've learned enough from current and past experiences to realise when I'm not flourishing and to move on before my self esteem plummets. Of course there are good days and bad days in any workplace. But hopefully the good outweigh the bad. If they don't it could be an indication that it's time to spread your wings elsewhere.

Teaching and Learning Forum

2011-06-22T18:14:00.001+10:00

Yesterday I attended and presented at a Teaching and Learning Forum which I really enjoyed. I gave a presentation on collaborative tools along with Ashley, Jane and Janet who presented on using treasure hunts for teaching information literacy to nursing students. In the afternoon, there was a talk and panel discussion on final year students and alumni experiences of the transition to employment. This led onto what employers want from graduates. It seems many students perceive their communication skills and other attributes as high when in fact employers often rate them lower. How can we improve this? Also needing improvement is the ability of students to market themselves in an interview. Alot of emphasis was also placed on extra curricular activities as a way of enhancing your experience and skillset to improve employability. The final session held three streams and the one I attended included:

A presentation on U:PASS which is a fantastic program run by Student Services to assist students who are studying in subjects that are historically perceived as difficult, like physics and maths (there are many others). The service has seen most students attending go up a grade!
Hunting for Treasure by Ashley, Jane and Janet. Talking about using game based learning to teach information literacy skills to first year nursing students. Students are having fun and learning by finding the answers for themselves, resulting in fewer visits to the Research Help Desk for assistance
Collaborative tools by moi! I demonstrated Diigo and Google docs and talked about other tools in the prezi below. No need to zoom. It's meant to be like a poster. I shared a google doc with three people and demonstrated live editing! T'was fun!

Collaborate and connect on Prezi

Game based learning or how to make learning fun

2011-06-22T17:46:00.001+10:00

Last Sunday I wrote a guest post for the ALIA Sydney blog on Game Based Learning. I got quite carried away and still felt I had more to write so I'll try to add more things here as I find them. Here's the post (below) for those who missed it...

Mobile games

Everyone knows the joy of playing a game whether you grew up with board games, marbles, soccer, arcade games, Atari, Gameboy, Playstation, Nintendo, Xbox or Wii. The fun and competitiveness of playing against yourself and others can be addictive! Regardless of whether these are real life or digital games, there are rules and expected outcomes that players must determine and achieve. While concentrating hard on the game, players don’t even realise they’re learning! Recently people of all ages have started gaming like crazy as mobile apps make it easier than ever to play cheaply, anywhere-anytime, alone or with people around the world (if you haven’t heard of Angry Birds you’ve been living under a rock). One of my favourites is Fruit Ninja where you chop fruit with a sword and at the end of every game you get a fruit fact! Games are usually considered a leisure activity but increasingly they’re being used in learning environments to encourage experiential, active learning. For some reason they’ve been more commonly used with younger learners but why should they have all the fun? Just because you’re at high school, Tafe, uni, work or the library doesn’t mean learning has to be boring! Right? In fact, the 2011 Horizon Reportpredicts Game Based Learning will impact education in the next 2 to 3 years.

According to Wikipedia, Game Based Learning is a branch of serious games, which are activities with defined learning outcomes. 10 years ago, people like Prensky started pushing the digital game based learning (DGBL) revolution because of the potential for learning to be fun and engaging for the students, the trainers, parents and administrators. In 2001 Prensky described a tipping point when he believes learners will demand game based learning. Considering the current ubiquity of games and the blurring of the lines between work and play, I think we might have finally reached that tipping point.

Game based learning is certainly not new. Just think about simulation activities and software used for many years with doctors (did anyone play Operation?), nurses, pilots, defence personnel and many, many more. These learning games prepare people for real life situations by allowing them to safely practice and complete expected outcomes. Second life has also been very popular as a learning environment for many years, particularly in tertiary education. It allows geographically dispersed groups to meet up, interact and complete tasks while in the game. It has been particularly useful for the areas of engineering, design and architecture because groups can design and build large scale projects, that in real life would only be scoped as models or prototypes. Check out the Horizon report for many more awesome examples.

So what are libraries doing? Quite a bit actually! With the rise of mobile apps there’s been a move away from entirely online games to a blend of online, mobile and real life. The State Library of Queensland is using a scavenger hunt app to create self guided library tours using geo-location technology. In fact it seems treasure hunts and scavenger hunts are all the rage in libraries at the moment. The University of Technology, Sydney (UTS) and Charles Darwin University (CDU) libraries are doing treasure hunts with QR code clues to enhance information literacy instruction. These three projects were recently presented about at the 2011 m-libraries conference in Brisbane. The University of Sydney Library ran a scavenger hunt around all campus libraries during orientation this year and the New York Public Library invited 500 people to an overnight library scavenger hunt (particularly awesome) which they describe as an alternate reality app based game.

So what is all this hunting and gaming doing for us? Well, according to the 2011 Horizon report we’re learning by reaching for and achieving goals, problem-solving, collaborating and communicating. We can interact with content in more complex ways and build digital literacies. They also acknowledge that students are more engaged with game based learning because it’s fun! There are some great examples in the report and I think it’s interesting to consider how this links with other trends they predict such as Augmented Reality and Gesture-based Computing. Something to ponder.

Besides ‘hunts’ there are many other library games being developed like augmented reality apps using data mashups by the Bavarian State Library (among others) and a location based checkin and reward game by some people at the University of Huddersfield library (definitely want to know more about this one). There are Fun Days and Flash mobs, flash cards and quizzes, chases and Amazing Races (check out my Game based learning Diigo group for more examples). There is already quite a bit of game based learning going on but if trend predictions are correct it will soon be the norm rather than the interesting exception. How will libraries, museums and organisations rise to the challenge of providing game based learning opportunities? Some of the things I've described require tech skills and money to make possible but others only require a few people and some enthusiasm! It's time to get in the game but just remember it's not about winning it's about having fun!

Now I apologise if any serious gamers are reading this because I'm not one, and I probably haven't used the right lingo to describe things. But that's the point. You don't have to be an expert. You just have to have a go. For those interested, there is a lot of theory behind serious games, gamification and game based learning - if you want to get into that kind of thing. And if you're already into it please share your resources in the Game based learning Diigo group.

Sick Day cookies

2011-06-18T20:03:00.001+10:00

This is what to do when you're home sick, have a hankering for choc chip cookies and just happen to have more than 2.5 kg of finest quality dark Belgian chocolate in the cupboard.

Cream 150g unsalted butter with 1 cup of brown sugar. Add a tsp of vanilla, pinch of salt and an egg and then fold in 1 1/2 cups of sifted plain flour, 1/2 tsp of baking powder and 1/2 cup of cocoa. Finally stir through 200g of white or dark chocolate roughly chopped. Roll dough into a thick log, wrap in plastic and chill for 30 mins. Then cut into 1cm slices using a serrated knife and place 4cm apart on a tray with baking paper. Bake at 180 for 10-15 mins. Cool on try for 5 and transfer to a rack for 5. Eat warm and eat often! You won't regret it! Yum!

Recipe from Delicious magazine April 2011 p.96.

5 books meme

2011-06-17T20:04:00.001+10:00

Palenque, Mexico

1. The book I’m currently reading:
Then we came to the end by Joshua Ferris

2. The last book I finished:
Perks of being a wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

3. The next book I want to read:
The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint by Brady Udall. I just read his second book The Lonely Polygamist and loved it!

4. The last book I bought:
Paper Cutting by Laura Heyenga. Absolutely amazing book on this timeless and delicate craft.

5. The last book I was given:
The Principles of Uncertainty by Maira Kalman. An amazing illustrated book given to me by the lovely Gin. <3

Adventures with Chocolate

2011-06-10T17:52:00.001+10:00

I've always loved chocolate. If anyone ever offers to make, bring or buy a cake my preference is always chocolate. But my recent adventures with chocolate are worth noting because they began in April when Dave and I were given a 5kg block of finest quality dark Belgian chocolate as a wedding gift. This sizable block is quite daunting to behold. I hope this image gives you some indication of the quantity of chocolate I'm having adventures with! First of all carrying this gift when it was still wrapped, I had no idea what was inside. Then when we opened it I was astonished to discover it was all chocolate. Then the amazing moment of opening the packaging and smelling the deliciousness. The next step is what you can see in the flickr slideshow below. Since April I've made a chocolate fudge cake with chocolate ganache for Dave's birthday, chocolate truffles with my family for Easter, a flourless chocolate Chinese five spice cake (just because it required a large amount if chocolate!), a chocolate and coconut banana bread that I brought in to work and lastly black bottom cupcakes for a celebratory afternoon tea at work today. I've also experimented with hot chocolate and variations of chocolate and ice cream! So far this delicious adventure has resulted in using up less than half of the block. So I have about 2.5kg to go. It's only taken me 2 months to get through this much so we'll see how long it lasts!

Zombie Library Games

2011-06-08T18:08:00.000+10:00

Because I'm into games, libraries and zombies (who isn't!), today I googled zombie library games and I discovered so many exciting things I thought I better share with you! Chandler library teens section has a link to many excellent zombie games that are however, not library related. There are in fact many libraries linking to non library related zombie games. There seems to be a lack of library related zombie games! There are also many libraries coming up with brilliant zombie related promotion campaigns.The University of Florida has come up with a clever library promotion disguised as a Zombie survival guide with videos and other support. As well as zombies, libraries and games I'm also into information literacy so I added that to my search. So next I looked for - zombie information literacy and you'd be amazed at what's out there! My favourite is this graphic novel by McPherson College's Miller Library that features students taking cover in the library while zombies run amok on campus, and they quickly learn how to use the library and outsmart the living dead! Please let me know of any other zombie-library related goodness out there! I'll leave you with this video about what makes libraries so great when the zombie apocalypse comes!

Bildungsroman or the coming of age genre

2011-06-07T19:03:00.000+10:00

Last night at bookclub we discussed This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald. This debut novel was published in 1920 and follows the wealthy, charismatic and good looking Amory Blaine from his boarding school days, to Princeton and life in New York City post WW1. We all really enjoyed it and like the book nerds we are read passages aloud, talked about the themes and issues emerging and then found similarities in the story with recent TV teen dramas we've been watching! We've actually never in 2 years discussed a book in as much detail! We loved the lyrical, poetic style of writing and the rise and fall of the main character from youth to adulthood. We thought besides the style of writing, it could easily have been written today - the story is timeless! We started describing the book as a coming of age novel and decided we'd read another coming of age novel this month. So I googled coming of age novels (of course) and came across this word - Bildungsroman. I was fascinated to discover that this is the fancy word for the coming of age genre and has certain key characteristics like: psychological and moral growth on the journey from youth to adulthood ending in some sort of personal growth! Aha my inner me screamed! I *heart* bildungsroman! I always love coming of age stories be they books, movies or TV! We settled on our next book - A Hero Aint Nothin but a Sandwich and I set out to think about all the other bildungsroman I'd experienced and loved! Here is a list of some I've read and watched that I think represent the genre - of course there are many, many more!
Books

Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
Perks of Being a Wallflower - Stephen Chbosky
Catcher in the Rye - J D Salinger
Charlotte's Web - E. B. White
Secret History - Donna Tartt
Forever - Judy Blume
Oranges are not the Only Fruit - Jeanette Winterson
Persepolis - Marjane Satrapi
How I live now - Meg Rosoff
Harry Potter - Series
Hunger Games - Series

Movies

Dead Poets Society
Almost Famous
Pump up the Volume
Heathers
Basketball Diaries
Rushmore
Donnie Darko
Virgin Suicides
Stand by Me
My Girl
Dirty Dancing

Friday Night Lights
Vampire Diaries
Skins
Gossip Girl
OC
Dawsons Creek
Degrassi
Beverly Hills 90210
Twin Peaks
Buffy

Harry Potter fangirl outed

2011-06-06T16:20:00.000+10:00

I'm sure I'm not the only one but I'm really excited about the final Harry Potter movie! I read all the books (many times) and it was torture waiting a whole year for the next one to come out! Then came the movies and again the painful 12 month wait for the next one. To ease these painful times I would reread the books and get together with friends to discuss the stories and characters and draw maps of Hogwarts. Yes, many a night over a cold beer we'd be caught drawing on napkins and coasters and arguing about where the Quidditch pitch was in relation to Hagrids house! And when I got home I'd dream about my adventures with Harry, Ron and Hermione! Yes, I reread all the books, many times and loved it. Before each new book came out I'd reread all the books. Before the next movie came out I'd reread all the books and rewatch the movies (yes, I am prone to extremes). Of course, as the books got longer and longer and the movies were coming out during the wait for the last 3 books - there was a lot of reading and watching to do so I slacked off a bit. Now I don't tend to reread every book before the new movie comes out but I always reread the book before and the book of the movie about to come out. And I watch the movie before the one about to come out. I did this last year before watching Harry Potter and the deathly hallows part 1 at Gold Class and I'll do it again for part 2 coming out in July.

What has this 12 year journey of books and movies added to my life? So many things really. I feel like they're part of me. I feel connected and close to them. I feel like they're my friends. They taught me to have courage, believe in yourself and your friends, love owls, take chances and so much more. I feel quite emotional that this movie is the final installment. If there were more books and movies coming out I would read and watch them all with just as much enthusiasm. Is this kind of extreme commitment to something a form of escapism or something more?

What I need to do vs What I have time to do

2011-06-06T13:06:00.001+10:00

Drawing by MissSophieMac

Last week I taught a workshop on finding images for presentations and research, that also explores digital image copyright, including creative commons licenses. It's hands-on and I showed people how to refine their google image or flickr search to things that can be reused (among other things). Part of this process is explaining how the licenses work in relation to educational use and how things should be used and attributed according to the license. Last week one of the students wanted to know the definitive answer on copyright - "what do I have to do" and the answer "that depends", did not please her. If anyone knows anything about copyright it's that there are no definitive answers. This frustrated the student who just wanted to know what they have to do! I said you should only use images according to their license and attribute any you use by the way of a link etc. somewhere in the presentation and she said "but is that what I have to do? Or just what I should do?" I was perplexed by this question and she continued "because it's going to take me much longer to attribute all the images I use and I don't have time". This was the crux of the situation. The right answer vs the right now answer. While we might aspire to be ethical digital citizens in reality we've all used images off the web that we didn't attribute when we were in a hurry. There is no way to stop this and saying 'because you really should' isn't going to cut it! Anyway, I told her to do her best and things ran smoothly after that but it did challenge me to think about how I explain the importance of copyright when the educational use clause makes it seem so vague. Something I didn't share with the students: one way I get around this if I can't find an image that adequately depicts what I'm trying to convey - draw it yourself. Always an option! I've seen many great conference presentations recently featuring hand drawn graphics! Maybe the next top trend?

Weekend reflection: trying new things

2011-06-06T12:07:00.000+10:00

Animal leggings caught outside the Norfolk in Surry Hills

This weekend I had a barrage of family and friend related emotional crises to attend to so I didn't have time to #blogjune which is why I'm going to try and catch up today. I'm going to blog about these emotional crises because I so often find myself in the middle of them, exhausted and full of worry. Hopefully by blogging about it I can get some clarity. One of the crises this weekend resulted in my advice to try new things, don't be afraid, take a leap, start a hobby, make a new friend, open yourself up more, you only get back what you give and take rescue remedy. This usually happy person is just plain sad. How can you fix that? Tell them it will get better. How useless is that when you're sad? She's also bored and lonely which is why I gave the particular advice above. She's the kind of person who doesn't open up or give up alot about herself willingly which means she feels like no one really knows her at all. Hence my advice above. I think if she can start a hobby, be more open and make new friends she'll be less sad and bored and lonely. But who am I to say? I'm know how lucky I am not to be sad or bored or lonely. Why is that? Do I take my own advice? Definitely not always. All I know is, on Saturday night I saw a girl wearing animal leggings and I loved them *hearts* so I went up to her and said:
me "Hi I love your animal leggings! Could I take a photo?"
her "Thanks, sure you can"
me "actually I was going to roll you for them and steal them but I thought a photo would do"
her laughs slightly disturbed
me "where did you get them from?" as I take several blurry photos
her "a little shop in Melbourne"
me "oh! Melbourne! Of course!"
her "yeah! hahah"
me "thanks for the photo! bye!"
her "bye!"
I ran back to my friends who thought I was crazy for doing that but I just thought - why? I liked the leggings and really wanted them but thought a photo would be a good alternative. I wasn't afraid, took a leap, opened up and could have made a new friend if I wanted. I know it's not easy for everyone to do that kind of thing but I'm just saying if you're sad and bored and lonely - what are your options? You could stay in every night listening to the Dirty Three and reading vampire fiction (which can be quite satisfying) or you can get out there and get in it. I don't know what the remedy for sadness is but for me the recipe for happiness lies in the advice I gave this gorgeous girl.

What does this all have to do with libraries? Not that I really need to draw any connections but as I was writing this I saw some. My advice - be more open, give what you want to get back, try new things, take a leap, these are all things I would say to people working in libraries too. If you want your community to feel like they know you, like they are involved and a part of you ( as a library) - you need to reach out and open up. Something to ponder this Monday morning.

The future of education

2011-06-03T23:10:00.000+10:00

Vivid Sydney Lights - Customs House

Last night I attended a Vivid Creative Sydney event with @malbooth @bella1609 and @jemimaeve at the Opera House on the future of education. I wasn't sure what to expect really but I found the panel to have some interesting perspectives and ideas to share. I'll try to relay some of them to you here. Some of the buzzwords flying around were: co-creation, game-based, connected, collaborative, visual, interactive, fun, social, creative, open experiential, technology. All great words! The 4 speakers were all from different areas of supporting education and were all very passionate. Most of the discussion circled around how to engage students for better learning outcomes that take into consideration the 'whole self'. That is not just reading, writing and arithmetic but also creativity, social and cultural aspects and mental and physical health.

The first speaker Raju Varanasi, talked about how he's been involved with using game-based learning to achieve this with the game Murder Under the Microscope. He said kids are spending a lot more time on it than any other homework and can't wait to come to school to share what they found out. The next speaker Phillip Cronin, talked about connecting every classroom in Australia and how this will level the playing field for socially isolated students in remote areas and those in low SES areas making do with less. The next speaker Chris Nicholls, talked about a school music program that started in Venezuela by one man who wanted to try to get kids off the streets and out of a future in crime. He now has about 350,000 students attending his program for 4 hours a day after school in Venezuela. With strong evidence that the program led to better school attendance, lower rates of crime, higher self esteem and better learning outcomes. Chris is now starting a similar program at a disadvantaged school in Melbourne. The final speaker was Sharon Clarke from NAB Schools First and talked about the importance of throwing open the school gates and letting the community in. She says in this world of rapid change, schools can't know everything, but they can use the expertise around them in their community.

They made some recommendations for the future: First of all embrace change and understand our humanity and not just come up with technical solutions. Find different ways to measure learning. Quantitative literacy and numeracy tests do not measure someones self esteem, tolerance, interpersonal skills and cross cultural understanding. We need to stop dumbing everything down to the lowest common denominator and allow kids to strive for something. The education system should question itself and all its assumptions. What is a school? What is a classroom? If every classroom is connected virtually imagine what could be possible! We need to open up schools to collaborating with the community and bring subject matter experts in. Businesses have a responsibility to give back and a great amount of expertise to share. Why not leverage their social and human capital for the greater good?

To finish Raju suggested a vision of the school of the future as a social learning space that looks more like a cafe. Where the teacher doesn't know all the answers but creates shared meaning through collaboration. If that all sounds a bit out there for you - they were saying that although the students want that now, the system and many of the teachers are slow to change. Baby steps I guess. It was an interesting panel and I was glad I attended.

Rough guide to building digital literacies

2011-06-02T15:53:00.003+10:00

In my post yesterday I alluded to being interested in building digital literacies. So here is my vague 'how to' guide. I think the first step is to think about your clients/community. Who are they and what are they doing?

Guide to building digital literacies

The who and what will depend on the library and even within one library it can vary wildly. Just remember there is no one size fits all library client. Whatever you decide to do needs to be flexible and modifiable. In an academic library our clients need to find, evaluate and use information for assignments, teaching and research, collaborate and work in groups, create and manage content like images, posters, models, presentations, video, animation, blogs and podcasts. They also like to share content via social media like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Flickr. Increasingly they like sharing where they are with Facebook and Foursquare checkins. When we figure out who they are and what they're doing we should try what they're doing so we can better understand how and why they're doing it. For example, having library Facebook, Twitter and Youtube sites to connect with your community, learn from them and share with them. The final step is helping them do things better and this is tricky. This might mean you have to try new things to come up with a solution. For example, developing new workshops on how to use collaborative tools to improve groupwork and dispersed communication. This is something many of our clients struggle with and there are many tools out there that can assist. One of our roles as librarians is to make connections (see awesome video by Kathryn Greenhill on librariansmatter) and this is an example where we can connect people with the right tools to help make groupwork more efficient and effective. Some of the tools are:

Diigo for shared bookmarking
Google docs for real-time shared editing of a wide range of document types
Dropbox for file sharing
Mendeley for sharing bibliographies
Elluminate for online conferencing
Skype for video calls and chatting
there are many, many more...

This is just one example where we thought about who our clients are and what they're doing and by trying new things were able to come up with a way to support what they need to do and help them do it better. In this example we're building digital literacies in online collaboration, shared bookmarking and cloud based information management. There are many more things our clients need to do that we could support by building digital literacies. Most of all I believe you need to make it fun! How you try to do that is up to you. Some things are easier to make fun than others... but who wouldn't want to play reference list Bingo? Please feel free to share your ideas.

Mobile learning and the future of information literacy

2011-06-01T14:48:00.000+10:00

To kick off 30 days of blogging with #blogjune I thought I'd share where I think the future of information literacy is headed. A couple of weeks ago I was in Brisbane for the m-libraries conference and the prezi below is kind of a Wordle of what I think were the major ideas coming out of the conference. Use autoplay for it to scroll through. The main things for me are building mobile and digital literacies, developing game-based learning, connecting/collaborating/co-creating with our clients, utilising geo-location technology and learning by doing. The future of mobile learning and information literacy is something I'm very passionate about and I'll be blogging about these things and more every day of June.

There's a librarian in my pocket! Mobile literacy at UTS Library

2011-05-31T16:39:00.001+10:00

This is my presentation from the m-libraries Conference 2011 held in Brisbane from 10-13 May. There was a strong focus on information literacy and game-based learning at the conference and I really got alot out of it. It was an inspiring week in Brisbane with RAILS on the Tuesday followed by m-libraries Wednesday - Friday. I really enjoyed catching up with library peeps from around Australia and the world and meeting some new ones!

There's a librarian in my pocket: mobile information literacy at UTS Library on Prezi

No more us and them: mobile support for clients and staff at UTS Library

2011-05-03T16:36:00.000+10:00

This is a presentation I gave with our IT Manager Rajan Davio at CCA EDUCAUSE on 4 April 2011. The extended abstract explains things in a bit more detail but we were basically talking about how IT staff and librarians are collaborating and learning from clients to develop mobile support and services for clients and library staff.

No more us and them: mobile support for clients and staff at UTS Library on Prezi

Hope you like it!

Information literacy for ubiquitous learning

2011-02-01T15:25:00.002+11:00

Today Jemima McDonald and I presented at the ALIA Information Online conference in Sydney. The title of the paper was Information Literacy for Ubiquitous Learning. A quick summary: to create an environment where ubiquitous learning is possible you need to understand the context of your clients - who they are and what they do? The focus was on two of our special events - Library Fun Day and Research Week. We also discussed the vodcasts/screencasts we've made which are available online and on mobile devices. Our prezi is here for your viewing pleasure. As we said during our presentation, everything described is the work of a very talented team of librarians who are not afraid to come up with ideas, learn from each other, collaborate with people inside and outside the library world, and experiment with what works best for our clients. We are also very lucky to have a management team that allows us to experiment, that encourages us to come up with innovative solutions to issues and continue to improve our services.

Information Literacy for Ubiquitous Learning on Prezi

Hope you enjoy!
p.s. Happy to answer questions here via comments since there was no time during our session.

Books read in 2010

2011-01-13T14:03:00.000+11:00

The books I read in 2010 were mostly highly enjoyable. Taming the beast and Dead Europe win the award for most disturbing and that's saying something as many of them were. I really enjoyed the Hunger Games trilogy and of course all vampire related reading! A special mention for The Lacuna which I read before going to Mexico and was surprisingly good! I can highly recommend Jasper Jones as a great Aussie read and lovers of animal fiction must read White Fang and Call of the Wild! Happy reading in 2011!

Room by Emma Donoghue

A Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey

White Fang and Call of the Wild by Jack London

Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
also, Catching Fire and Mockingjay (Hunger Games Trilogy)

Dead Europe by Christos Tsiolkas

So much for that by Lionel Shriver

The Unnamed by Joshua Ferris

Taming the Beast by Emily Maguire

History of Love by Nicole Krauss

Franny and Zooey by JD Salinger

Spirit Bound and Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead (Vampire Academy series)
Dead in the Family by Charlaine Harris (Last Sookie Stackhouse novel)

Handling the Undead by John Ajvide Lindqvist

The Lacuna - Barbara Kingsolver

The Red Tent - Anita Diamant

Making sense of transliteracy?

2010-12-03T11:16:00.002+11:00

A gift from my sister: owl glasses holder

Information literacy dressed up in sheeps clothing?

I'm a sucker for buzz words and the new one in libraries is transliteracy, described as the ability to read, write and interact across a range of platforms, tools and media . AACL recently featured an article attempting to demystify the concept for those who find it difficult to grasp and not long after a witty response popped up via Twitter.

Some argue this new buzz word is just a way of describing what libraries have always called information literacy because it basically means using new tools to understand, find, evaluate, use and create information. In many of my blog posts and papers written this year I’ve talked about the need to support 21st century learners and therefore build 21st literacies. My focus has been on supporting the physical, digital and mobile worlds of our clients including making use of social media to connect with them informally in their online communities. Some might call this Library 2.0 but I think it's just common sense to understand your clients and support them accordingly. This year I've been involved in many projects to reinvent our information literacy programs with a Fun Day, new workshops, treasure hunts, games, and mobile technology. This has taken considerable effort from a team of keen librarians who are committed to experimenting and playing with new technology in order to understand the information worlds of our clients and develop new services and support to meet their needs.Transliteracy seems to be the answer some people were looking for to make this easier and I wonder if it's already happening intuitively without the need for a buzz word?

A recent PEW internet report describes 21st Century learners as ‘networked learners’ who embrace new technology, mobile devices, gaming and social media as part of their information landscape. Obviously these people are making use of multiple platforms to read, write and interact. Is this transliteracy? Since Web 2.0 has created a blurring of the lines between work and play, we now use these platforms in multiple contexts of everyday life. I wonder if we are supposed to be transliterate at work or play or both?

I think in an everyday life context, transliteracy is easy to grasp – basically you get the main idea of something and apply it to other platforms. For example, in a previous post I wrote about a radio interview by Kathryn Greenhill who spoke about transliteracy in terms of the way her kids make sense of their world. They read Harry Potter books, watch Harry Potter movies, play Harry Potter Lego, play Harry Potter video games, dress up as Harry Potter – what more can there be? I’ve also spent too much time with friends drawing Hogwarts and dreaming Harry Potter dreams. This isn’t necessarily reading and writing but it is interacting across a range of platforms and making sense of information by embodying the experience. To me this seems like a better way to understand transliteracy - the ability to interact and make sense across a range of platforms.

I think transliteracy is harder to define in an academic context. Does it mean students can effectively use collaborative tools like Google docs to work on group projects , share files using Dropbox, find scholarly information such as books, journal articles, videos on YouTube, images on flickr, journal articles, webpages and create interactive multimedia presentations? How is this any different from what’s already happening? Perhaps it is more to do with the ability to find information in books, ebooks, journals, websites, blogs, video, images, social networks, and friends to effectively filter and evaluate that information and then create new information using appropriate tools and media? Is that any different? This second scenario places more emphasis on evaluation rather than just using the tools which has long been considered the more important of the two.
Another option is to harness the networked learner idea and combine it with the idea of Web 2.0 blurring the lines. Can we combine the work and play context to have one everyday life context that makes use of new technology, old technology, mobile devices, gaming and social networks to read, write, interact and make sense, therefore creating the ultimate transliteracy? ELT – Everyday Life Transliteracy? No more separation between how I make sense of the world at work and play. Worlds are merged and transliteracies are merged. This is what I think the 2010 ANZ Horizon report is getting at when it describes supporting students as they move from study to the workplace: (sorry for the long quote)

The need for formal instruction in key new skills, including information literacy, visual literacy, and technological literacy, poses a continuing challenge to educational programs. As noted a year ago, students need — and often lack — a strong understanding of content and media design, the ability to interpret advertising and other media, and the capacity to create multimedia messages that demonstrate visual fluency. A handful of institutions have begun to integrate the teaching of these skills into a standard curriculum, but the practice is not widespread and too many students remain unschooled in this critical area.

In today’s networked world, learners are placing greater value on knowing where to find information than on knowing the information themselves. The ways we learn are changing. The amount of knowledge collectively held by humanity is staggering, and being able to find, evaluate, and synthesize material from a variety of sources is arguably more important than holding much of that knowledge oneself.

Young people beginning postsecondary study — and those entering the workforce — are accustomed to constant access to a network of peers on whom they rely for knowledge, expertise, and mutual learning. This cohort may well expect to be able to make use of their own personal learning and social networks, and the technologies that support them, in their places of work or study. Their world is open and mobile, and they expect access to it constantly.

I think this extract emphasises that support and instruction is needed for students to develop a strong understanding of how to build transliteracies. Libraries are well placed to provide training and support through traditional face-to-face and online modes but we also need to think of new ways of supporting students through social media and mobile technology. I also see an opportunity for us to share our expertise and collaborate with academics who are interested but not experts themselves in these areas. The extract also point out the need to prepare students for the future workplace. Students need to seamlessly move from study to the workplace with the ability to read, write, interact and make sense across a range of platforms. Whether or not we call it transliteracy is irrelevant. If we don't get to know and understand our clients we/they don't stand a chance. We're hearing it all the time - they want flexible, open, spaces with ubiquitous access and support. So for one last time this year, I encourage you all to experiment and play in order to understand your clients and develop new services to meet their 21st century needs.

Mobile support for learning, teaching and research

2010-11-16T14:34:00.003+11:00

This is the presentation I gave today as part of the m-libraries 101 virtual conference hosted by QUT in Brisbane and organised by the wonderful Kate Davis. Meredith Farkas was the main presenter and gave a fantastic overview of mobile technologies and the way they can be used by libraries. The other speakers were Sarah Steed from ACT libraries and Richard Gray from UNSW. It was a fascinating look at the different ways libraries are investigating, playing and experimenting with mobile technologies. This was my first time participating in a virtual conference using Elluminate and it worked very well! The only problem I had was the lack of audience engagement as I was talking. Ever tried talking to a blank computer screen? It takes getting used to!

Mobile support for learning, teaching and research at UTS Library

View more presentations from Sophie McDonald.

Some of the slides are probably not very self explanatory - I should probably provide commentary. Maybe I'll add the link to audio when I get it. Feel free to ask me questions. Hope you enjoy!

Mobile internet in Austraila

2010-10-27T18:08:00.001+11:00

Recently I've been researching mobile internet usage in Australia and it's implications for library services and support. Today I found some statistics on mobile internet usage in Australia and I came up with this little infographic using prezi and some people and phone icons. The data comes from various sources that I've referenced at the bottom. Hope you like it!

Mobile internet in Australia infographic

View more presentations from Sophie McDonald.

I also found this infographic which shows the exponential growth of mobile internet usage in Australia and this article gives a more in depth look at how people are using the mobile internet. For example:

looking for maps and directions (67 per cent)
looking for weather information (64 per cent)
browsing new sites (59 per cent)
looking for products and services (56 per cent)
using a social network site (56 per cent)
checking sports results (46 per cent)
looking for suppliers (45 per cent)
downloading a mobile app (42 per cent)
using a satellite navigation (40 per cent)
downloading video content (35 per cent)

So what does this mean for libraries? That my friends will be explored in my next post. But for now, I'll say mobile interrnet usage in Australia is increasing at a rapid rate. Smart-phones and data plans are getting cheaper, free wifi is becoming more common and 3G mobile internet coverage is improving. That means we need to get in the game or miss out on a huge opportunity to engage with our clients in mobile space.

Digital storytelling with voki

2010-10-05T17:39:00.000+11:00

This is my first attempt at digital storytelling for #octshowntell and my first go at creating a voki! It's more of a virtual vlogging tool than a digital storytelling tool but it's fun! It didn't take long and next time I'd probably make the effort to record my own voice. The text to voice option cut me off after a certain number of characters which was a bit annoying.

These are the Diigo links I was talking about on mobile stuff! And here are some more on digital storytelling! Enjoy!

What I learned at Library Camp

2010-09-11T13:45:00.001+10:00

from aliaaccess flickr group: snail's trail

On the last day of ALIA access 2010 I joined fellow campers in a great day of participatory library fun. ADHD_librarian, snail and the many other people involved did a fine job of running this unconference and my first ever library camp. They got me in simply by calling it a camp and creating expectations of fun, laughter, noise, stories, games, singalongs, dancing... there was no dancing but I wasn't disappointed. There were very few sit and listen sessions and from the start people were freely calling out thoughts, ideas and opinions. I loved the structured unstructure of it all. The camp wiki was our program for the day and I love that it changed and morphed as ideas for breakout sessions ebbed and flowed. I loved the beanbags but I agree with @dendrea that the room was a bit restrictive and didn't allow much moving about and getting comfortable, camp style. All in all it was alot of fun and there was a great buzz in the room all day. I was telling a friend about library camp this week and they asked 'did you actually camp there'?

So what did I learn at Library Camp? I loved Stephen Abram's presentation "Not the Keynote" (on slideshare) which described the internet and ebooks as in their 'infancy'. Such a good analogy. Both still have such a long way to go to reach maturity with great changes expected to continue for many years. There was alot of talk at the conference and camp about the future of reading and books with regard to personalisaton and digital rights management (DRM). 'Read how you want' was a trend that came up many times and applied to both print and digital formats. In Abrams unkeynote I tweeted 'we love books but we don't care about the container'. I also tweeted 'I'm excited about the 21stC book experience' with the possibility of Harry Potters spellbook becoming a reality! While I'm excited about how books will change and become more interactive, I actually do care about the container. I think it was flexnib and katiedavis who tweeted that they care about the container when they can't get the content they want on their container. I agree wholeheartedly, this is a very annoying DRM issue - which became a late addition to the final camp breakout sessions. You can have a great container but what is the use if you can't get what you want on it? Publishers need a more open and flexible approach that allows users to 'read how they want'. I was on a 'Loungin around' panel session after lunch and one of the questions was about print on demand books. I suggested that currently ebooks supplied to academic libraries are so restrictive that they can't be downloaded to a mobile device for better screen reading and often only one page or one chapter can be printed to allow mobility. This needs to change. However, this could take a while and in the meantime print on demand will allow users to print the chapter they need, 24/7 so they can read anywhere anytime. Printing allows mobility just like any other mobile device and until publishers change the way they allow their content to be used, print on demand will be necessary.

There's another reason why I care about the container. I recently acquired an iPad and really enjoyed reading on it however, I've discovered that I still desire of the object, I miss the physical book (I'm a bit of a collector). I love to hold the book, absorb the cover, and see it on my shelf as a reminder of how it affected me and shaped my thoughts. Now my ebooks are on my iPad shelf and it's not the same. So I think, if I'm reading something trashy that I don't really want on my physical shelf, I'll go for the ebook but if I think I'm gonna love it and want to hold it and gaze at it I'm gonna buy the paper book. So for me, the container does matter. IMHO I think it matters to other people too and I think ebooks and print books will coexist happily for a long time.

So that was one thing I learned at Library Camp and there were many others... I'll try to be more succinct. I loved that Abrams said we need to consider the community, learning, entertainment, social and research purpose of the library - it's not just about books. He also said we need to be present in social spaces of our clients so we can collaborate in their learning.

After Abrams we had a great talk by 2010 Library Journal 'Mover & Shaker' Paul Hagon from the NLA who debunked mobile myths and talked about that fast paced changes that have occurred in the online and tech worlds in the last 5 years. Interesting that only 4% of Aussie kids use a mobile to access the web (much lower than USA) and most of them are just accessing Facebook. Also interesting is that most people access the web on their mobile to find simple info such as directions, restaurants, weather, movie times etc. He noted that the NLA website gets only about 0.5% of its traffic from mobile devices. Best of all Hagon encouraged us all to think small, get dirty, experiment and play to learn about new tech and see what the potential is. I'm not being very succinct am I? There's more...

I loved all the lightening talks and found these little snippets really got the mind juices flowing and I was wishing I could hear more - so tantalising. I'm excited about the ALIA sustainable libraries group, enthused about social media in libraries, excited by the future of personalisation and impressed by the use of an iPad to give a presentation on how awesome the iPad is. That was my lightening paragraph on the lightening talks. I haven't even started on the breakout sessions! But me thinks that is enough for now. I certainly have a lot to ponder and will try to share more of my thoughts on Library Camp soon. Can't wait for the next one!

Librarians on tour at ALIAaccess

2010-09-10T12:24:00.000+10:00

Last week I attended ALIA access 2010 in sunny Brisbane and the first day kicked off with various site visits to Brisbane area libraries. I was on the Brisbane city walking tour with a great bunch of people and we visited QUT library, Brisbane City Square Library, State Library of QLD and Southbank Institute Library. I was wearing my pedometer because I'm doing 10,000 steps with some colleagues at the moment and by the end of the day I'd walked well over 20, 000 steps! Yes, we were a tired bunch of librarians by the end of the day but totally excited and blown away by all the things going on in the libraries we visited. I got into quite a frenzy taking photos which I've put on flickr and embedded below. You can see from the photos what I was most excited about but overall I think there were a few trends:

More support for multi-media in terms of consuming and creating e.g. there were listening stations, media lounges, digital story pods, editing suites, COWS (computers on wheels) and more!
Open learning spaces with natural light and creative use of space, technology and furnishings
Creativity in the library - displays of library community art, design, objects, crafts, jewelery, etc.
Library as social and community hub with a range of related support and assistance available such as IT, photocopying, city council offices, academic literacy support

Enjoy!

Transforming information literacy through experimentation and play

2010-09-10T11:25:00.003+10:00

Last week I attended ALIA access 2010 in Brisbane and gave a presentation in the information literacy stream. The presentation was based on the paper written by Jemima McDonald and me titled: Transforming information literacy through experimentation and play. The presentation illustrated some of the ways UTS Library is creating a more dynamic and engaging information literacy program in physical, digital and mobile spaces. Some of the things we're using are games, vodcasts, podcasts, screencasts, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, flickr, blogs, QR codes, interactive teamboards, fun days and hands on workshops! Toward the end of the presentation I emphasised that none of this would be possible without the hard work and enthusiasm of all the staff at UTS Library who are willing to experiment and play to make all these projects a reality. The presentation was created in prezi and includes animations created using xtranormal.

Information literacy is seriously fun! on Prezi

The idea behind all of this is that Web 2.0 has changed the way we engage with information. Information is now everywhere created by everyone and we need to transform our information literacy programs to better support the 21stC learning, teaching and research of our clients in their information worlds. Not only online but in physical and mobile spaces by understanding the concept of Library 2.0 which is about users, participation and interaction (Luo, 2009). If you're interested, I recommend reading the paper - it's not too long!

We've had a lot of great feedback about the presentation and genuine interest in what we're doing at UTS Library. I'd like to thank everyone who came to the presentation and shared their thoughts with me at the conference. I also have many people to thank for their help in making this presentation happen. Firstly, my co-author Jemima for all her hard work and support through this experience from initiating and leading many of the projects, to abstract submission, paper writing, presentation creation and presenting! Thanks to Sally for help with the abstract, making the projects happen and grilling me with potential questions, Belinda for super quick editing, Mal for reminding me I'm from UTS Library and that means no rules, Ashley for being my spirit lifter and helper in all things, Fides for beaming at me from the back row and Alex for his leadership in all of this and trusting a newbie like me to represent the Library! Finally I'd like to thank all the staff who've made it all possible. This is becoming a bit of a love fest but I really want to express how much I appreciate the people I work with. They're a great bunch!

Intro to podcasting workshop

2010-08-14T12:12:00.003+10:00

A couple of weeks ago I was asked to run two short introduction to podcasting workshops for academics so they could understand the basics of how to create a podcast. In 30 mins I managed to give them an overview of the pedagogy behind podcasting, we discussed how they could use it in their teaching and we recorded, edited and uploaded a podcast using an iphone (voice memos app), mac and audacity. Quite a feat! There were about 10 in each group and none of them had tried making podcasts before. Overall, the response was very positive and they all felt it was something they could now have a go at. I told them I'm a very lazy podcaster and gave them all my tips for making a podcast quickly without worrying if it's perfect. One of the participants had just been to a screencasting workshop and asked why you would podcast when you can screencast? I said that it depends on what you need it to do. In a library we're often teaching people how to use databases which is better explained through a screencast that provides a visual demonstration. However, for teaching you might be explaining ideas, concepts and theories that don't necessarily NEED visuals. In that case you can make a podcast. Of course you can put slides or other visuals to accompany the podcast if you wish. The other reason for making a podcast is because you can easily put it on your ipod and listen on-the-go, on the bus, in the car etc. which is not as easy to do with a screencast.

Here's the handout I made for them using prezi. All I did was make it as a single view in prezi without any zooming path and then when you hit print, it saves as a PDF and you can print it out as a handout. Much more exciting than a word doc handout!

Interactive podcasting on Prezi

So here's my intro to podcasting:
1. Have a reason for it. Ultimately it has to add value in some way.
2. Plan what you're going to say. Either rough notes or more scripted. Keep it short, simple and to the point. Between 5-20 mins is best but keep it as short as possible.
3. Find a recording device. Either an iphone or ipod with mic attached OR a USB mic plugged into a computer with audacity open
4. Start recording. Keep mic close to your mouth, record in a quiet place, don't worry if you cough, sneeze, say ummmmmmm, make a mistake or swear - this can all be edited out VERY easily. Just keep going. Even start a section again if you want. (Maybe do a short test first time to check the sound isn't too loud or soft).
5. Speaking tips - speak slowly, clearly and use your voice to provide emphasis and sell what it is you're trying to say.
6. Plug your device into a computer and open the sound files in audacity. If you plugged a mic into audacity you're already there.
7. Listen to what you recorded and identify any bits you want to delete. Simply click and drag to select and then hit delete. Easy!
8. 'Normalise' the file for better sound quality - this can take a little while. Don't worry if you forget.
9. Save as a compressed file so it's a smaller file and quicker to download
10. Export file as MP3 or WAV and save
11. Upload to Learning Management System or somewhere sensible for easy access
12. Even better if people can subscribe to your podcasts via RSS so they automatically download to iTunes.

Here's a screenshot of audacity which is the free audio editing/recording software I used and available for mac or PC. I think it's easier to use than garage band for podcasting.

Image from flicke by npslibrarian

Have fun podcasting!

Information literacy in context

2010-07-29T14:13:00.000+10:00

Today I'm considering what information literacy in context means and why it is important. I believe first and foremost that it's important because information is experienced in socio-cultural context and outside this information has no meaning. I work in an academic library which means the context of IL I'm dealing with is a tertiary education setting in which information literacy instruction is delivered in accordance with the Australian and New Zealand Information Literacy Framework with the aim of enabling individuals to know when information is needed and identify, locate, evaluate, organise and effectively use the information to help resolve personal, job related or broader social issues and problems (Bundy, 2004: 3). However, most of the time in academic libraries those wider contexts are forgotten and all that is addressed in instruction is the immediate context of formal education. By that I mean IL instruction that transfers generic skills and attributes such as how to find a book or use a database. Those skills are necessary in a formal educational setting but are they transferable to wider contexts? Possibly, however the context in which learning these skills occurs could dramatically influence the outcome. What I mean by that is the p word, 'pedegogy'. If academic libraries consider IL instruction in the context of everyday life information seeking rather than purely in the context of formal education then we have a real chance of achieving the goal of creating lifelong learners.

Web 2.0 has created a blurring of the lines between formalised learning and informal play. That means curriculum has changed and now learners are expected to be active content creators engaged in collaborative projects in both physical and digital space. Is our information literacy instruction supporting learners in this context? Does the framework apply? Traditionally, IL instruction would provide learners with the skills to find information relating to the content they need to create but I believe we have an opportunity to move beyond that and provide skills in how to create and share content collaboratively. Lee Rainie considers so called 'digital natives' to be networked learners who embrace new technology, mobile devices, gaming and social media as part of their information landscape. If we want to support learners in the 21stC we should take up the challenge and provide new IL programs supporting this changing information landscape.

Getting back to context. I believe IL instruction should be situated in an everyday life context so learners can apply their experiences to formal and informal educational settings. If learners can apply IL instruction to formal and informal learning environments we may be able to achieve the elusive goal of creating lifelong learners. For example, there is an abundance of literature about students prolific searching of google over library resources. Why not teach them to use google more effectively so they can evaluate results and find more scholarly resources? (In doing so they may better understand the weaknesses of google and the strengths of library databases.) This provides them with skills they can apply in formal and informal contexts in everyday life.

I also believe there is context within context. (Has anyone seen Inception?) Within an everyday life information seeking context there are socio-cultural contexts to consider when planning IL training. For example, an academic library IL program might be three tiered consisting of: generic skills, subject specific skills, assignment specific skills. When teaching subject or assignment specific skills is there a way to apply an everyday life lens so the experiences can be applied to formal and informal settings? I believe we can achieve this by understanding the needs of learners and the socio-cultural context of their learning.

Summing up. Learning occurs through formal and informal means knowingly and unknowingly throughout life. If we embed IL training in an everyday life context learners can apply these experiences to formal and informal settings and perhaps achieve the goal of lifelong learning.

Library day in the life

2010-07-28T13:38:00.000+10:00

I just had a week off after a really busy period at the library and I've returned to an equally busy period. All my own doing because I'm constantly coming up with ideas for new and fun things we should try. All these things seem to be coming to fruition at the moment including writing a paper for InfoOnline 2011. This 5 min Library day in the life video gives you a bit of an overview of what's been going on. I even show you my new owl badge and my ipad. It was made using photobooth on a mac and then I edited in imove. All I did in imovie was add the opening and closing credits and edit out me coughing. So easy!

The next week for me entails: vod/screencasting and editing, writing lesson plans, teaching IL classes, writing a paper, demonstrating podcasting, hosting a visit by a visiting academic, doing library tours, meeting with academics, law database training, meeting with special needs students.... is that all?

I keep promising myself that I'll get better at not doing 'too much'. I don't seem to be getting better at it yet but I still have hope.

Winding up #blogeverydayofjune

2010-06-30T17:53:00.000+10:00

When I read the tweet from @flexnib a month ago asking who wanted to #blogeverydayofjune I thought, "tell her she's dreaming"! I couldn't fathom writing a blog post every single day! Needless to say, by the end of the day I felt I had no option but to join in because I think I could sense the potential magnitude of this experience. At first it was hard to write everyday but now at the end I feel like I'm just getting started! Someone said early on, the key to a good blog is having something to say. Did we ever! Not only did we blog but we commented too. AT times it was hard to keep up. I definitely got addicted to checking how many people had viewed or commented on my posts. I'm still not over that actually.

This has been an amazing experience for me. Learning so much about all of you who have participated by blogging, commenting and tweeting. And learning so much about myself. I've found my 'voice' for blogging and it has evolved over this month in collaboration with all of you. By creating a dialogue with the wider library community I've found my authentic voice, one that is passionate and brave, curious and forward thinking (I hope). Best of all it's a mix of personal and professional because you shared with me and I felt I could share with you. We created a trusting community of collaborators. I think that's awesome.

I've been inspired to think more about where and how I work, and the impact I have on others. I've been encouraged to value enthusiasm, creativity and fun in the workplace. I've cemented my interest in the future of libraries, information literacy and Library 2.0. I've been constantly thinking about blogs, blogging, libraries, librarians to the point that all my (non-librarian) friends know about #blogeverydayofjune and now ask me "how's your blog?" with genuine interest! Best of all, I feel connected to a vibrant community of librarians who share ideas and learn from each other. That's a yay!

I don't think I'll be able to keep blogging everyday because it has been a bit intense but I know I'll blog more than I ever did before. I really look forward to meeting all of you at conferences etc. when we get the chance. And I hope this is something we can do every year? Thanks to all of you, the thrill of blogging will be with me forever.

p.s. image is a quick sketch I just did of owl waving goodbye!

Response to @zaana's post on designing workspaces conducive to work

2010-06-30T16:56:00.002+10:00

Does an orderly desk = an orderly person?

Like many libraries at the moment we are gathering ideas for a new library building and part of that is thinking about work styles and how that translates as staff workspaces. The google offices have been thrown into the mix and of course we all go why can't we have that? @zaana's post Designing workspaces conducive to work got me thinking. Do we really want that? I certainly like to make my workspace feel like mine by putting up pictures and having tea paraphernalia strewn everywhere but that's it and I think my space is conducive to work. Could it be more conducive? Seeing those google offices I think, what if we had a 'break out area', gym, chef, wii games, espresso machine, ball pit and fairy floss machine? What next? I want a pony! Don't stake me but I think I'd get really distracted by all those things and be a bit less conducive. I guess my work style is 'block out distractions cause you're easily distracted by flashing lights and a ball pit'. What's yours?

While the google example is a little bit overwhelming for me, I find the Macquarie scenario @zaana describes terrifying! Always competing for a space, not feeling like you belong anywhere. I understand the desire to be mobile but that's ridiculous! @zaana didn't seem too against it and I noticed in the comments that someone had tried it in their workplace and thought it really encouraged collaboration so I guess it suits some work styles?

Can we find a balance? I believe we need a flexible, creative workspace that is conducive to work without distracting us. Just like a library, our workspaces need to facilitate noisy group work and quiet individual work, encourage collaboration, innovation and lifelong learning. Just like a library it needs to feel like 'our' space where we feel comfortable and at home. It needs to inspire and motivate us to work and efficiency will follow. We need multi-media editing suites to be expert content creators and comfy places to contemplate new ideas. Recently the librarians here said they want space to 'play'... I guess the problem is finding a way to translate these things into physical space and not just by having colourful walls and funky furniture. I would really like to work in a tree house though...

Response to the future of libraries RN interview

2010-06-30T15:45:00.003+10:00

Today I listened to the Radio National interview on the future of libraries with Dr. Ian McShane and Kathryn Greenhill. A few things stood out for me that I'd like to share with you (hope you don't mind me paraphrasing). Here's the link to the radio show.

Kathryn,
What the library opened up for me was boundless...

Ian,
The library did open a world for me that continues to fascinate and engage me...

Kathryn,
The real value of the library, just having a place to go and connect with your community is valuable

Ian,
The library model based on the concept of acquiring a collection has come to the end of it's life. At the same time the concept of the library is a very trusted one and not to be discarded lightly.

Kathryn,
The fundamental role of the library hasn't changed, "we connect people and information... You've got to love and know about people you've got to love and know about information and the cultural history and find new and different ways to put them together".

Ian,
Traditionally the measure of success for libraries has been gate counts and often directly linked to funding. The library of the future should have different measures of success: the extent to which they can demonstrate they're preserving the memory, the way they engage with informal education and literacy and changing literacies and finally the citizenship and community aspect.(great but how can these things be measured?)

Kathryn,
The new library aims to be the community lounge room, a space where you can be yourself.

Ian,
New technologies have led to a rise in the potential of peer-to-peer learning. Librarians can't be everywhere all the time and know everything about everything (although we try - sm).

Kathryn,
We need to understand transliteracy and the new way of understanding imagined worlds that have traditionally been available only through books. For example, the world of Harry Potter can be accessed through books, gaming, movies, online, Lego and more. Reading is only one part of this information/sense-making world.

Kathryn,
We need to position ourselves as an asset to our community when it comes to ebooks and related issues like copyright, formats, what to read, etc.

IMHO to conclude I think libraries are still boundless and continue to inspire and engage us. Libraries are now vibrant social spaces that are so important to the community they support. The interview within the interview demonstrated some of the many social functions the library performs. A place to work alone while surrounded by others doing the same. A place to get away from distractions. A place to learn from others. A place for serious study. A place to have fun. Great interview!

p.s. the photo above is of a plane I jumped out of in April!

Are you a library genius?

2010-06-29T18:03:00.000+10:00

My first attempt at glogging! I must admit it was a bit complicated. I hope they streamline the interface and tools a bit to make it easier to use. But overall, much fun!

30 things meme

2010-06-29T09:57:00.003+10:00

30 things I've done this month in addition to #blogeverydayofjune

1. Wrote a paper
2. Wrote an abstract
3. Visited my family in the wilds of NSW
4. Visited my partners family in the wilds of Bayview
5. Pulled sweet potato from the ground and made soup with it
6. Helped a friend in dire need
7. Helped a sister in slightly less dire need
8. Documented my owl collection
9. Reinvigorated my interest in cameras and photography
10. Participated in 10,000 steps
11. Had my last swim in the ocean for a while
12. Brushed up on Kurzweil and Dragon software
13. Made Italian Biscotti
14. Read 4 books
15. Started knitting in remembrance of my nanna
16. Started wearing my scarf collection in earnest
17. Designed cover art for a friends album (that I also helped record earlier in the year)
18. Contemplated life, death, relationships and the meaning of it all
19. Attended a double 5th dress up birthday party
20. Saw two films in the SFF
21. Went to the Bienale of Sydney at MCA and AGNSW
22. Attended a talk by Frank Howarth from the Australian Museum
23. Attended a student hub workshop
24. Attended a talk on new learning commons
25. Attended a talk by Kevin O'Brien on the Aboriginal notion of Country in architecture
26. Attended a meeting with my pod/vodcasting community
27. Saw Animal Kingdom at the Academy Twin Cinema before it closed down
28. Saw Toy Story 3 in 3D with my nieces and nephews
29. Started to feel more a part of the Australian library community
30. Learned the value of blogging

Why am I a librarian?

2010-06-28T18:27:00.001+10:00

This is a response to @gigglesigh's and @fionawb's question, 'why am I a librarian'? I've only been a librarian for two years and I guess the why part will keep changing over time but right now this is what I've come up with.

I started my academic life at art school which involved trying to force order onto chaos and disarray. It can be hard to organise creativity and I don't think I was very good at it back then. At some point I turned from Sculpture and installation to printmaking and I think this was a turning point that in part led to my becoming a librarian. Why, I hear you ask? Well, printmaking is a very precise skill involving etching with acids, resins, fine tools, inks, and papers. I learned to examine every detail of an etching and organise my sketches, ideas, tools, and supplies with care. I became a master at the craft and loved using my skill to create new effects, layers, images, ideas. It was the precise and detailed nature of the work that I loved and I think is one thing I love about being a librarian. I started teaching printmaking after a while and loved sharing my experience with students. This too is something I love about being a librarian.

After art school I worked in a new and 2nd hand bookstore for many years. It was a great part-time job with great people, flexible hours and an endless supply of books! I loved reading, looking at, touching and smelling books. Talking books with customers and colleagues was a real pleasure but above all I loved helping customers find what they were after (another thing I love about being a librarian). Being a second hand dealer, you have no idea how obscure some of the requests would be. But I'd wander through the shelves searching and sure enough find a book on a rare breed of poultry or a historical figure of Tibet. It was during this time that I decided I needed to do something more with my life. I felt I had more to offer (society? the world?) and needed a new way to express that. I thought to myself, what do I like? and the answer was: books and helping people. So I thought: I should be a librarian. So naive.

So it was that I started 'library school' and discovered that the idea I had of a librarian was long gone. Thank goodness because I soon embraced my new notion with gusto. I really loved studying so much more than I had the first time. I was learning new things everyday and consuming it all like I'd woken up after a long deep sleep. By halfway through I thought there are so many jobs I could do after finishing - one of my last choices would be librarian. However, after some work experience in a public library I wasn't so sure. I enjoyed helping people and felt a sense of purpose but there was still something niggling at me. I wanted more...

After finishing my studies I worked in a social research centre library for a while and really loved supporting researchers, building databases, websites, teaching them skills, and all the basics of librarianship. The only thing was, I was the only librarian and felt professionally lonely. Being a newbie, I felt I needed to be around other people so I could learn more and be supported and encouraged to find my feet as a librarian.

Now I'm at an academic library and loving it. I feel like I'm in the right place at the right time. What I currently love the most is: helping people learn new things that will help them (staff or clients), feeling supported and encouraged by a great bunch of colleagues, sharing ideas and making ideas a reality, constantly learning new things, meeting like-minded librarians through social media and conferences all over the world, pondering the future of the profession and libraries. That might seem a bit vague but it means a lot to me. I know I've been lucky in my short career. I can only hope my luck continues!

Another obsession: my camera collection

2010-06-28T17:19:00.001+10:00

I've already confided in you about my owl obsession which is being documented on my owl flickr set so I thought I better confess to another obsession of mine. My camera collection. 14 in total, consisting of: 2 point and shoot digital, 1 waterproof digital video, 1 lomo digital, 1 digital SLR, 2 Polaroid, 1 lomo medium format, 1 baby Holga, 2 35mm cameras, 1 box brownie and 1 8mm video camera. Missing from this photo is an amazing super8 camera I used to own and a great Pentax ME super (SLR) that both broke and went to camera heaven (not to mention numerous others that have been lost/stolen over the years). I feel like I need to describe them in a bit more detail so here goes from right to left, front to back.

First up, baby Holga, given to me by a friend. This takes 110 film and really old school photos. They always look like the shots in old family albums. So simple, it doesn't even have a viewfinder, all you do is wind and press. It's so small that it's on a keyring and I keep it dangling from my handbag 'at the ready'. Second is a digital 'lomo-like' camera, the Harinezumi 2 from Japan. This is so cool and one of the newest. It takes colour and B&W photos and video with a lomo-like look. Really cool.

Next is the Ricoh 35 FM: old 35mm non rangefinder camera. Takes you back to the 70's with a great 'pancake' lens that takes clean sharp pics. I haven't put any up yet but check out this flickr group! The next one (with blue on top) is a Diana + medium format. A remake of a 60's plastic cult classic. This takes amazing rich, creative shots. You're never quite sure what you'll get though - which is the whole point. One of the cool things is you can do really long exposures just leaving the shutter open or you can take multiple shots on the same frame. Using slide film and cross processing gives some really cool colour and contrast effects. Check out the flickr group. Next is the Kodak Retina Ib folding camera made around 1954. Got this one recently from an awesome shop in Surry Hills. It has a great all metal German made body and lens that I definitely need to spend more time with. Here are some shots on flickr. Moving along we have the Polaroid Spirit 600. I picked this one up from an op shop about 12 years ago and it has captured many a fine moment. I love this but the film is really hard to get now and so expensive - about $30 for 10 shots! A friend of mine has a really cool new mini Polaroid but I don't think it's as good as this one (when I say good I mean unpredictable).

In the next row up on the right we have a box brownie that has never been used by me since film stopped being made a very long time ago. Likewise, the 8mm camera has never been used because Super 8 took over and they stopped making the film but I like to keep both as part of the collection. On the left we have an old Canon EOS 10D digital SLR from 2003. This takes amazing shots at 6.3mp using only EF lenses but it's slow, heavy and has a tiny screen. This camera really does take the best shots of the bunch but because it's a bit old now it gets less use (sorry).

RECOMMENDED: Next we have my current favourite and most versatile compact digital camera; the Canon Powershot S90. This can pass itself off as your average digital camera but it has a great lens and loads of oomph that definitely puts it a cut above. Heaps of great manual and semi-manual settings but even if you leave it on auto you'll get great shots. I recently found the 'night' setting and they ain't kiddin' around! This recent set was taken with it. The only downside is no HD video and no optical zoom in vid mode. On the left we have the good old Canon digital IXUS 70. I have a long history with the IXUS. The think I had one of the first back in 1997 that used APS film (weird short lived phase). It's always been a great, tiny, point and shoot camera for all occasions. Nothing fancy, just a simple little digital camera that takes a good shot. I've had this one for a few years now and it's travelled with me almost everywhere. It was only recently replaced by the more sophisticated Canon Powershot S90.

On the top right is the Kodak Playsport waterproof digital HD videocamera. This is the newest camera and was a replacement by the insurance company for our Sanyo Xacti underwater camera which died of water damage (yes really). Not sure why they got to choose or why they choose this one especially since it was worth way less than the Xacti (I would have preferred a flipcam), but hey - at first they said they didn't insure against water damage so I guess we can't complain. I haven't actually used this one yet and I'm annoyed it didn't arrive before my recent trip snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef. Would have been perfect. Maybe on my next intrepid adventure? Finally on the left you see the Polaroid 1000 land camera. This darling now only works with modified Polaroid 600 film (which as you know is hard to get) because they stopped making film for it a while back. So as you can imagine it hasn't been used much. Photo quality isn't great but that's the fun thing about this camera.

Last but not least (and not in the photo because it took the photo) is my iphone camera. I use this by far the most because of convenience and wish I used some of my other cameras more but I have to admit I'm in love with the immediacy. In particular I love the Hipstamatic app for taking photos and Swankolab for developing. So much fun. I also have the lomo app which is fantastic too. My iphone is currently my most used camera but I would love to change that.

I had no idea this post would turn out so long and it really has reinvigorated my love of photography and cameras. My pledge: *hand on heart* for the rest of the year I'm going to take photos on all my cameras and upload to flickr as individual sets. I really love each camera and think they all have something different to contribute. It'll be interesting to compare flickr sets when I'm done and hopefully prove the unique qualities of each camera.

Behind the scenes fun

2010-06-25T17:56:00.002+10:00

Two things I enjoyed behind the scenes at the library today. We have a whiteboard in our staff tea room which is usually not used very much. However, last week someone wrote on there - 'what are you reading'? The board is now full of all the books people are currently reading! While it is anonymous, I really like seeing what else is being read by people I work with. I also like to see a participatory spirit in action and it's been exciting seeing the list grow all week. It's great to see that someone has added 'tags' to the list, well only one tag - (vampire)!

Secondly, also behind the scenes: I'm currently participating in the 10,000 steps challenge with an all library peeps team. We only started on Sunday so we're sill keen-as and rearing to go (well a few of us are anyway). Today we went walking at lunchtime and it was really fun to get out, be active and have some fun in the fresh air! You should try it! I can also recommend a well deserved pitstop on one of these walks - even if the walk is only 30 mins - you need to hydrate!

The future learning hub

2010-06-24T18:20:00.000+10:00

If the library is the current learing hub, what will the learning hub be in the future? Will the library be at the centre of a giant student mall with services, shops, cafes and IT centres instead of Myer and K-Mart?

I've just been to a workshop on how to create a future learning hub that the library will be a part of. Of course I think the library should BE the learning hub but then I'm a library evangelist. The participants of this workshop were mostly big wigs so I'm not sure how I wangled my way in but it was interesting to look outside my little bubble world for a while. What I discovered (as if I didn't already know) is that the library is way ahead in all the areas that were being discussed; already providing the kinds of spaces students like and already experimenting with new ideas for the future. Research was shown that students like a safe and secure, scholarly space to work individually or in groups, that is clean, light, quiet but not too quiet and with support available. Does such a place exist? Yes! It's the library! And what do you know? The library is always full because people like studying there for all those reasons. It seemed to me like the other participants hadn't been to the library or didn't know we already have a learning hub (aka. the library). I guess they just wanted to take a bigger picture view, get everyone up to speed and see it in the context of the future of education, learning and changing learner demographics (seems reasonable).

There was some discussion about the kinds of behaviour we want our hub to encourage. Some of the ideas were collaboration, spirit of enquiry, peer-to-peer learning, communication, etc. There was some confusion about how that translates into physical space. Library people know all about this. For example, if you want to create quiet areas you have individual desks and if you want noisy group areas you have comfortable, flexible, group seating. We have group study rooms for collaborative work, we have silent rooms or super quiet stuff. We recently introduced a new space called 'create space' (see photo above) that has an interactive teamboard, a data projector, 7 computers, 2 whiteboard walls, funky desks on wheels and really funky chairs. I wrote a post about it a while ago. The room encourages collaboration, is usually a bit noisy but always full by groups practicing their presentations, individual studiers, the lot! Interestingly we find students are very good at self managing these spaces. For example, too much noise is frowned upon by neighbouring students and quickly squashed or reported to us. I think this happens when students appreciate a space enough to feel ownership or pride in the space. If we provide spaces students 'like' they'll care enough to want to keep it 'nice'.

Random thoughts: does the campus need to be 'sticky'? should we be designing for the ones for whom it is sticky rather then everyone? e.g. full-time students rather than part-time? How do we create a welcoming atmosphere while providing a secure, managed space? How can it be sustainable?

I look forward to experimenting with new spaces, furniture, design etc. as we continue on our path to the Library of the Future!

@fionawb's musical meme

2010-06-24T10:24:00.003+10:00

Although it's not as exciting as the news that we have a new PM - go Julia! I had a lot of fun doing this. The songs all seem stragely appropriate. Thanks to @fionawb for this meme.

Here are the instructions:

1. Open your library (iTunes, iPod, etc)
2. Put it on shuffle
3. Press play
4. For every question, type the song that’s playing
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button
6. Don’t lie and try to pretend you’re cool!

Opening Credits: Random rainforest bird sounds - (so appropriate)

Waking Up: Our House: Architecture in Helsinki - Fumble

First Day At School: Le Tigre - Dude yr so crazy (must be first day of high school)

Falling In Love: Simple Minds - Alive and Kicking (I don't think I've ever heard this song before?)

Fight Song: Tom Waits - In the Colosseum (no way!)

Breaking Up: Sufjian Stevens - Out of Egypt, into the great laugh of mankind and I shake the dirt from my sandals as I run (long title)

Prom: Pearl Jam - Glorified G

Life: Faith no More - King for a Day (awesome)

Mental Breakdown: Otis Redding - You left the water running (fitting)

Driving: Adem - These are your friends (beautiful)

Flashback: Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Done all wrong (oh no!)

Getting Back Together: Salt N Pepper & En Vougue - Whatta man (funny)

Wedding: Radiohead - Thinking about you

Birth of Child: Aretha Franklin -Think (lol)

Final Battle: Crowded House - Better be home soon

Death Scene: Gomez - We haven't turned around

Funeral Song: Cowboy Junkies - Rock and Bird

Remembrance Song: Pavement - Blue Hawaiian

End Credits: Nusrat ALi Khan - Allah Hoo (cool)

Getting creative by creating content

2010-06-23T16:53:00.001+10:00

I thought I'd share with you a few of the free web tools I think are really cool for creating content. You can create promos, informative and instructional things in a fun and informal way. Then you can share them on your blog, facebook, twitter, YouTube etc. Our clients are expected to be expert content creators and we need to be too so we can support them. Here's a little animation I created a while back for a presentation I was doing for some students. I used xtranoral.com which is a text animation tool.

Today I discovered storybird which is really beautiful digital storytelling tool. You choose the theme and it chooses illustrations for you. No embed code though. Here's the one I made.
http://storybird.com/books/sophie-the-owl-outside-the-library/

Google Searchstories is a really quick and easy way to get a message across- see my blogpost on that more more info. I used photobooth to record the video on one of my recent posts. Mostly cause I liked the fish background! I've also used prezi.com as an alternative to powerpoint and screenr.com for screencasting

Some others I'm going to have a play with:
VoiceThread is collaborative visual storytelling with audio
MakeBelieveComix is a really cool comic creation tool. A little bit complicated but loads of features. I tried to make one and had a #fail after much tinkering and felt too defeated to start again.
Animasher looks really fun, using your photos to create wacky animations
Vuvox is like a multi-media slideshow and Glogster is an interactive poster - definately has potential.

Happy creating, library folks.

iphone meme & iphone love

2010-06-21T17:56:00.001+10:00

Today I was feeling particularly fond of my iphone. So I decided to take part in the meme. I'm actually often fond of my iphone and a colleague (who must know this) shared this article with me recently about what students can teach us about iphones. I cringed when I read some of the student responses and thought "I feel like that', 'I do that', 'I've said that'... yes I'm in the 9% who admit to patting thier iphone...

So, this my home screen. There are a few highly used apps that are not on my home screen. Angry Birds is one. A highly addictive game - if this was on my home screen I think I'd play it twice as much. As it is, I've reached the highest level and everyday I'm on the lookout for an update... I also use sporcle, kindle, calculator, meebo, ABC and dropbox. Of all my music apps I like FingerBeat, tonepad and VoiceBand the best. Glee is good too. Of my ereader apps Classics (most like iBooks) is great except it takes too long for the page to turn and Freebooks has a great range. Kindle is the most basic of all the reader apps but it's the only one you can buy newer stuff with. Now onto the home screen...

Tweetdeck -have been using this one for a while and I'm not convinced it's the best but I like that it's easy to create new saved searches on the go

Facebook - love being in touch with my fam and friends who are yet to jump into twitter

Hipstamatic - my favourite camera app. Like an old plastic camera it takes photos like a lomo. Different film and lenses to choose from!

Camera - regular camera for the odd times when Hipstamatic doesn't cut it

Settings - cause I like them handy

Weather - It's not very reliable but I walk to work so I need to know how to dress and I like to know what the temp is at all times (is that wierd?)

Evernote - still trying to find the best note/todo app. Not sure if this is all I want it to be but it's pretty good

Photos - gotta have em handy. I take lots and upload lots

Clock - I need to set my alarm for the morning and check what time it is on the other side of the world for skyping

Calendar - synced with ical calendar and my work calendar. I get alerts for everything and it is awesome

Maps - I don't like to get lost

i-nigma - QR code reader. I should probably move it off the home screen since I don't use it all that often but it's definately the best

Messages - I heart texting

App store - I'm obsessed with finding, testing and updating apps

iTunes - I actually don't use it that much on my iphone. Mostly on my laptop. I should move it off

Phone - of course

Mail - synched to gmail and work email which is great! Except on weekends when I'm tempted to see whats in my inbox...

Google - "Friend to all librarians" @haikugirloz

Safari - not sure if I need safari and google but I do use both. I like that safari saves my search history, favourites etc.

iPod - most used app by far - while walking to work, at work to block out distractions, at the gym, on the bus, etc.

Animal Kingdom and the loss of a great arthouse cinema

2010-06-20T21:37:00.000+10:00

Tonight I saw Animal Kingdom at the Academy Twin cinema in Darlinghurst which is closing down in a week. This cinema has been showing arthouse films for more than 30 years and I love it there! Why is it closing? The problem seems to be the current owners (greek orthodox church) won't renew the lease because they don't want to fork out for the significant upgrades needed. Boo. This could be your last chance to go to the Academy Twin before it's gone for good. Make sure you get there this week!

The movie I saw there tonight was amazing. Animal Kingdom is an Australian tale of underworld crims versus shady cops but it is so much better then the string of film and TV in this genre recently. I agree with everything Mal had to say about the film - it is easily my favourite Aussie film of recent times. Jackie Weaver is incredible as the underworld matriarch and despite her marshmallow exterior she shows herself to be a true cruella before too long. I thought it was written and directed like a Shakespearean tragedy. POSSIBLE SPOILER ALERT: Josh was at the heart of this tale and seemingly in constant fear of what he was getting involved with. Yet, one by one the crims met their demise and the poor 'defenseless' Josh ends up the King. I thought the actor that played Josh did an amazing job of portraying a troubled teen and the scene when he hits rock bottom and finally cracks was incredible. I loved the way it unraveled at the end and in hindsight I can see that it was all planned out. However, after discussing the film with my partner, in particular the ending, we disagreed about what we thought was going on. Don't want to spoil it for anyone but I thought he knew he wanted to do that from the time he said he wanted to help (if you know what I mean). Because he knew he'd never be safe otherwise. Make sure you go and see this film. It gets 5 stars from me.

Seeing this reminded me of other gutsy Aussie films I've enjoyed such as The Boys, Lantana, Two Hands, Romulus My Father, Japanese Story, Romper Stomper, Rabbit Proof Fence, The Year my Voice Broke, Angel Baby, Bad Boy Bubby, Proof and Candy.
Some still on my list to see are: Beneath Hill 60, Wake in Fright, Suburban Mayhem, Samson and Delilah, The Black Balloon and Amy.
One to look out for: Wasted on the Young - premiered at the recent Sydney Film Festival. Anyone get to see it?

Post-apocalyptic fiction: one of my favourite genres

2010-06-19T19:15:00.000+10:00

For such an optimistic person I find it a bit strange that I have such a fascination with a genre of fiction depicting the despicable ways the world might end and what happens afterward. I think I've always loved reading apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction. I remember Taronga, Z for Zachariah and the Tomorrow series from my young adult years and being absolutely glued to the page. Why? I think I enjoy putting myself in their place and and some kind of survival instinct is stirred within me. I secretly like to think I would be one of the survivors of whatever the apocalypse turns out to be. By reading these books I can get tips for when it comes! Although I've in no way read all books in the genre I thought I'd share with you a bit about the genre, the ones I've read and some I might read before the apocalypse comes.

A brief history... Noah's ark is often mentioned as the first apocalyptic fiction however, I'm sure it the genre dates back before that (anyone know?). But as far as the first in modern times, Mary Shelley’s The Last Man published 1826 apparently takes the prize. I've been more interested in recent offerings such as Cat's Cradle, The Stand, Blindness, The Road, The Stone Gods, How I Live Now and I also loved Watership Down which crosses over into another favourite genre - allegory/animal fiction.

I'm currently reading Handling the Undead by Swedish author Lindqvist in which a few thousand recently deceased are no longer dead. They are also not alive. It's currently at a critical point where I'm not sure if it is indeed the apocalypse as foretold in the Bible or some kind of pharmaceutical company experiment gone wrong. Though not strictly apocalyptic, I'm really enjoying it at the moment - will let you know how it goes.

What I'm reading next in this genre:
White Earth - McGahan
Hunger Games - Collins
City of Ember series

What I might read one day in this genre:
Brave New World - Huxley

I am Legend - Matheson
In the Country of Last Things - Auster
On the Beach - Shute
Chrysalids - Wyndham

Some other books I've enjoyed, depicting dystopias that I somehow associate with this genre:
Animal farm - Orwell
1984 - Orwell
Slaughterhouse 5 - Vonnegut
Lord of the Flies - Golding
Heart of Darkness- Conrad
Midnights Children - Rushdie

From the lone survivor to the battle of good and evil. I just can't get enough! I think the reason I like this kind of end of the world, survival fiction is also why I'm drawn to vampire and zombie fiction. But that my friends, is another post.

Scenario building for the Library of the Future

2010-06-18T16:02:00.002+10:00

There is so much speculation about what the future will bring for libraries. Just last week this blog sparked a string of comments about the many optimistic/pessimistic views of possible future scenarios. I thought I'd look into it a bit more and here's a few things I found.

This article by Marcum from 2003 looks at the library of 2012. Only 2 years away and I think he's done a great job of putting a pretty out there vision of the future forward. Marcum thinks we'll be Cybrarians in InfoSpace which is dominated by 'multiple-media' and utilising video-displaying walls, situation room theaters, learning "cafeterias," dispersed, theme-centered constructions and multi-media "books". Does anyone else think 2003 sounds really long ago? Weren't ebooks on the horizon yet? I guess the vook has only just become a reality?

In 2004 IFLA published Defining Information Literacy in the 21st Century. The scenario they imagine is: Libraries are no longer the primary source of information, we will not be dealing with clients face-to-face, information literacy with be client driven which they see as point-of-need and just-in-time, and evaluation will become more important. At the time this was written it might have been considered radical? But I think alot of this is (and probably was) already the case. This scenario is now. We want to know what you think will happen next?

In 2006, Futurist Speaker put forward some suggestions for libraries wanting to transform with the changes that confronting us and recommends: evaluating library experiences, embracing new technologies, preserving the memories of our communities, experimenting and being creative with space and the role of the library. He emphasises the need for creative spaces and suggests: band practice rooms, podcasting stations, blogger stations, Art studios, Recording studios, Video studios, Imagination rooms, Theater-drama practice rooms (dancing rooms - Mal that was for you). Pretty good stuff huh!

This year at #plff2010 the State Library of New South Wales launched the Bookends Scenarios which goes into great detail about scenario planning and the process they went through in coming up with a matrix of four possible future scenarios for public libraries. I was at the panel discussion for the launch of the report and there was much disagreement over each scenario and the plausibility of each one. Pretty much all of them had both optimistic and pessimistic elements which I think is where the problems were born. The optimists couldn't imagine the negative things in the scenario occurring while the pessimists obviously felt the opposite. Can we ever bring the two together? SO what were they?

No.1. Silent Spring: Climate change has ravaged the world and due to resource shortages the only place people can access technology and resources is through the library. There is move back to print based products and a more local approach to community life. It' seems a bit like when your mum decides you won't have TV for a year when you're a kid and everyone bonds and reads books and feels better about themselves and the world. NOT GOING TO HAPPEN! (oooh that sounded cynical!)

No.2. How Buildings learn: technology overload has created a fast-pased globalised world of digital everything. Information overload has made everyone uneasy (who?) and libraries have become community centres, cafe's gyms, etc and vital in helping navigate the information overloaded digital world... not sure how I feel about this one. It doesn't seem all that far away from what's happening now - except for some reason it makes me feel uneasy.

No.3. Neuromancer: The world gone mad, everything is in short supply and prices are sky high due to big corporations creating, owning and controlling information! People have to go to the library because they can't afford computers or Internet access. I think this is the least likely of all the scenarios. User- generated content cannot be stopped and with open source, open content movements on the rise I don't think it's reasonable to think that big corps will suddenly create, own and control everything. Hang on... what am I saying... Google... Apple... etc...

No.4. Fahrenheit 451: "A screenagers paradise" with physical books almost dead this is a post-literate world where digital is all. For some reason in this scenario libraries struggle due to funding cuts and in desperation they start mental health gyms, screening rooms and download centres... This one is just too disparate for me. I like the first part but predictably I don't like the second part.

What else is in the works 'out there'? ARL is embarking on a scenario planning project for research libraries and plan on releasing a report in Oct/Nov this year. They claim "Each scenario will tell a different plausible story that starts at the current state and takes the reader out into highly divergent future situations of research libraries". From what I can see this project looks really constrained. They refer the Bookends Scenarios and a UK project exploring academic library of the future scenarios. Can't wait to see what these projects come up with.

There are many blogs about the future of libraries and various aspects of the future such as information literacy, ebooks, mobile devices, etc.. etc... So what do I think? Well, in case you haven't seen it yet, check out my post on my presentation from VALA this year with Mal Booth and Belinda Tiffen. The most popular video from the presentation is above. We made it ourselves as an homage to the commoncraft videos. But on top of that, here are some general observations that I think will help people slide into the future... Don't get stuck on definitions or semantics. The future is coming no matter what you call it. Be prepared to constantly change and learn. Experiment and be creative. Staffing and spaces will be flexible and lines will be blurred between work and play. Services will be 24/7 and mobile. Library spaces will be social, comfortable, well lit, safe, full of facilities and tech know how. In other words - who wouldn't want to be there? It's not about the technology - which will always change. It's about the social practices of us 'humans' that determine the direction the future will take.

Getting to know our clients on 'wallwisher'

2010-06-17T12:10:00.000+10:00

A few months ago we installed a 'wallwisher' suggestion board in our foyer for client comments and feedback. It replaced an antiquated system of pen on paper comments posted on a notice board. It's caused quite a stir among clients and staff and some of the comments are hilarious. I particularly like the ongoing discussion about our Kenny G elevator music and the problem it's causing... clients ask our advice because they start to feel a bit romantic in the lift and they're worried one thing might lead to another... I've wanted to blog about this for a while but I've asked the wonderful Ashley to be my guest blogger for this post because she's more involved than me and quite the comedian. I hope you enjoy.

~

Serious Asks: Does the Library have plans for response on a wizard attack on Blake Library?
Library: The Library has plans for earthquakes, fire, wizard and zombie attacks. However no one can stop Godzilla; except maybe ninja. Please dial 6 in an emergency.

Anon asks: this wall is amazing, I bet the person who set this up is amazing too. And handsome.
Library: We suspect this was put up by a member of our IT Staff.
Library (aka PinkFairaeDust): If you think the IT guys are cute, you should see the Librarians who write on this wall ;)

I suppose you realise by now that this is not one of lovely Sophie’s clever posts. She has asked me to write something about our Brilliant Library Suggestion Board. I am not entirely sure she has picked the right person. I am generally known for doing silly things like naming my lemon tree Fredrick, or asking my boss’ boss’ boss if the new ASRS will be pretty. Ah well here goes!

Above you can see me in front of our gorgeous suggestion board. I am one of the people who respond to students comments and have fallen head over heels in love with the process. They have surprised and thrilled me with their comments and general Geekery.

I guess what I really enjoy are the cheeky comments designed to test our boundaries. Most of the time they are not testing our boundaries by being bad or rude. I guess I can only describe it was testing out how human we are and if we have a sense of humour. So far, we have only had to moderate them lightly, taking down one racist comment and another with a naughty word in it. Actually, we really wanted to leave the latter one up due to its pertinence to the student experience. Shall we play Blankety blanks? “Life is like a sometimes it gets hard for no reason.” True in oh so many ways. Alas we do have to draw a line somewhere. You can see some of the initial comments in our Facebook Photo Gallery.

Some of you might be wondering what this has to do with providing Library Services. Not everyone probably agrees with me, but I represent the silly 25-year-old new graduates and I think it is a crucial step in engaging with students. Sure some of the comments are silly; sure some of them have nothing to do with traditional Library business. That doesn’t bother me at all. Anything that engages students and makes library staff appear less stern and more approachable is fine by me. One bad Library experience will turn you away from Libraries and Librarians for good. Secretly, between you and me, Librarians still petrify me. I was far too scared to approach Librarians in both my degrees – even when I was studying to be one!

What matters to me is that our students (patrons? Researchers? Learners?) feel comfortable talking to us no matter how silly the question may seem and know that we are interested in helping them solve their problems. Even if it is only to suggest a game of rock, paper, scissors, lizard, spock to settle who gets to use the computers first (then point out our Online computer availability system).

Yours, @pinkfairaedust

Writing with passion and endurance

2010-06-16T19:18:00.000+10:00

A while back I wrote a post about a workshop I attended on 'Developing skills in writing and delivering papers' and the subsequent workshop I co-ran for colleagues on the same subject using prezi! Today I found myself attempting to finish a paper and thought... take your own advice... stay calm... it'll be all right. (I really have to thank my colleagues for being so understanding). Last night when I posted about the difficulty of writing, I'd really dragged myself to the top of the mountain. Today when I came back to it I was able to traverse the mountain and by this afternoon I'm coasting down to the finish line. I find it's always the same when I'm writing. I get to a point when I'm researching when by brain feels like it will burst with all the new ideas that are forming and then again when I'm trying to write, all those ideas are fighting to get on the page. Once the ideas are out on the page I find the hard work is mostly done. That's where I'm at right now. It is an act of endurance, yet I love it. While still in the throes of completing this paper, I'm already thinking about the abstract I have to submit next week. Ludicrous yes, but I feel compelled to do this. Why? I'm not sure. I love new ideas and researching a paper is the best opportunity to really investigate what other people are doing in order to think about how you can do things differently. I also get really excited by theory... yes those big words. I'm excited by the thought of linking the practical and theoretical to perhaps shine a light on things in a new way. I'm even getting excited writing this right now. Does anyone else love writing even though it sometimes destroys them? Please share.

Halfway owl update & the struggle to write the perfect paragraph

2010-06-15T18:24:00.002+10:00

Today is the halfway point of documenting my owl collection for #blogeverydayofjune. Last week I was casting about thinking how many more photos will I have to take. In a quick glance I saw about 10 that I hadn't snapped yet and thought - I still have plenty to go. Hope you enjoy what I've put up so far.

When good ideas go bad... Today I was attempting to write a paper which has been in the works for some time but I'm trying to put the polish on it (and finish the intro and conclusion). Well, I thought all this blogging would have helped - (maybe it has) but I kept writing a sentence, deconstructing it, thinking it through way to much, rewriting it, cutting and pasting it to somewhere else, adding a second part, deleting a few words... in other words doing my head in. Do other people have as much trouble writing something when they know exactly what they want to say but they just can't say it. I'm feeling like one frustrated individual right now. I think the best plan is to clear my head. Come at it fresh tomorrow and just let it flow. Then let someone else look at it for some feedback and edit from there. Fresh eyes will do the paper and me a world of good. Maybe I just need a holiday... all those memes have distracted me...

Two things about me meme

2010-06-14T22:13:00.000+10:00

Long weekend meme fever ends with a bit about me and some photos of my weekend in the wilds. “About You” meme via Ghylene

Two names you go by:
1) Sopha
2) Sophiemaccadoodlewacca

Two things you are wearing right now:
1) Antique Navajo turquoise ring
2) Santa Domingo pueblo turquoise and shell earings

Two things you would want (or have) in a relationship:
1) laughter
2) loving moments

Two things you like to do:
1) sing
2) make art

Two things you want very badly at the moment:
1) a warm bed
2) A clone who could do all the boring things I don't have time for

Two things you did last night:
1) Hung out with my family
2) Ate a very yummy dinner my mum made

Two things you ate today:
1) Homemade scones
2) Mushroom soup

Two people you last talked to:
1) 5 year old Lennox
2) David G Herbert

Two things you’re doing tomorrow:
1) Writing a paper for ALIA access
2) Exercise

Two Favorite Holidays
1) Japan, snowboarding and roaming the country on a gastronomic adventure
2) Borneo, trekking, mountain climbing, beaching, boating, orang utans

Two favourite beverages
1) Brown rice green tea
2) Montepulciano Red

Two things about me! Things you may not have known.
1) I'm vegetarian and have been for 17 years
2) I sometimes consider becoming a part-time hermit

Two jobs I have had in my life:
1) Printmaking teacher
2) Antique bookseller

Two movies I would watch over and over:
1) Millers crossing
2) The Princess Bride

Two places I have lived:
1) Tamarama
2) Caringbah

Two of my favourite foods:
1) real Italian pizza
2) desserts of all kinds

Two places I’d rather be right now:
1) Riding horses over the Andes Mountains of Chile
2) Climbing the treetops with Gibbons in Laos

Response to @malbooth's TV meme

2010-06-13T13:01:00.001+10:00

Thanks to @malbooth for this one. Long weekend meme fever continues...

Do you snack while watching TV?
Of course! Usually popcorn or chocolate

What is your favourite TV show?
True Blood

What TV show makes you run to change channels?
Today tonight, rugby league, Sunrise

How do you view your TV guide: online, on-screen, newspaper, magazine, other?
Rarely but when I do defo online

Have you ever been surveyed for your TV-viewing habits or do you know anyone who has been?
My partner was surveyed in person by someone nocking at the door. It took ages.

Do you watch TV news and/or current affairs regularly?
Yep, Lateline, QandA, insight, 7:30 report, ABC2 in the morning

Do you watch any TV "soaps"? (Truth please, even if it is embarrassing.)
Law & Order SVU

What other series shows do you try not to miss?
United States of Tara

Any previous series or shows you really liked?
Only on DVD but there's quite a few: West wing, Northern exposure, Buffy, Entourage, Scrubs, Flight of the Conchords, Gossip girl, 30 Rock, Tudors, Mad Men,

Do you have pay TV or are the digital channels enough?
Digital is enough

Do you only watch certain TV shows online?
Not really - I did watch United States of Tara online cause I worked the night it was on but now I have it DVD

Do you regularly use services like ABC catch-up or other online replays?
Not regularly - If I missed it, I missed it.

Do you ever pay any attention to the adverts?
Not unless there's a puppy in the add - that always gets me

Do you multi-task while watching TV & if so what else are you doing?
Reading, eating, writing, on my iphone, talking, texting, playing games, downloading apps, twitter and Facebook, on my laptop, downloading music, uploading photos, doing housework etc.

Is there a TV show that makes you laugh out loud?
The IT crowd! 30 Rock!

Have you ever said no to a social invitation to stay at home and watch TV? (Truth again please.) Mind telling us what the show was?
Really? No.

Do you record TV shows & if so why and how (VCR, DVD recorder, TIVO, laptop, etc.)?
No way - as I said if I missed it I missed it - or I'll buy the DVD

Have you ever seen anything really memorable on TV (not news/events - made for TV drama, etc.)?
Yellowstone BBC doco

Do you prefer TV series or stand-alone shows?
Series

Is there a specific show you find yourself recommending over and over?
Yellowstone!

Photo is of my mums farm where I'm at right now about to eat fresh baked sponge cake!

@snailx's travel meme

2010-06-12T16:45:00.000+10:00

Long weekend 'meme fever' not as catchy as 'Bieber fever' but fun nonetheless...

What “City, Country” do you live in?
Sydney, Australia
What was the last country you visited other than your own (or that you want to if you haven’t been out of your country)?
Japan
What is your favourite kind of trip (i.e. camping, laying on the beach, cruise, etc.)?
Action/adventure with a little luxury - I need a reward if I'm going to trek through a jungle!
What is the farthest location south that you have gone?
Probably Santiago Chile or Queenstown NZ. Not sure of the latitudes
What is the farthest location north that you have gone?
Lubeck in Northern Germany. Near Hamburg. Quaint little place
What is your preferred mode of transportation when traveling long distances?
Absolutely flying. I love it!
What kind of vehicle do you own (or would like to own)?
Peugeot 307 turbo diesel
What is your ideal destination?
Oohhh. That's tough. I've been a lot of places. Somewhere with awesome food, lots to see and do, some adventure and some good relaxation too. I really loved Japan, Turkey, Croatia, Chile
Who is your favourite travel companion?
My current lover (of 13 years)
What is the largest city you have visited?
Tokyo - biggest city in the world but it didn't feel like it! Japan is amazing.
What destination would you recommend to a friend?
Depends... probably Thailand, it has so many options it could suit anyone's holiday desires
If you could live anywhere, where would it be?
hmmm... Italy or Spain? Good food, friendly people and relaxed way of life
Sophie's bonus question - What's the highest altitude you've been?
5800 meters above sea level trekking in Peru

Travel photo is from Niseko, Japan - view from my bed

Creativity in the library

2010-06-11T17:42:00.000+10:00

...blogging from the wilds of northern NSW... managed to find a viable internet connection... will see how I go for the rest of the weekend... no excuses...

Today I've been exposed as a creative-innovator thanks to @malbooth and now I feel a fair bit of pressure to live up to the high expectations I've created this week in #blogeverydayofjune land. It's been amazing to see the response to all this reflection and debate about libraries, 2.0 and the future. I look forward to the rest of the month and all the excitement it's sure to bring. Optimists and pessimists are putting their cards on the table and choosing sides. Although it's only the pessimists who are quibbling over semantics. They think they should be called realists and optimists should be called dreamers. IMHO that's a pessimist being optimistic if ever I've heard it!

All this talk of creativity and the optimist/pessimist divide got me thinking. I consider myself a creative optimist and rather than see problems I see possibilities. However, often I think pessimists seem to see the problems before the possibilities. Don't get me wrong, I think we need both sides to any argument as long as both sides are willing to be open to each others ideas (again with the optimism Sophie). I'll be realistic - that is a huge challenge. I commented on @malbooths post that creativity is only possible when we have trust, freedom and encouragement from above. I am lucky to have that in my workplace and thanks to previous experience I know how unusual that is! I thank Ruth for her comment that my enthusiasm is infectious because sometimes I worry that it's annoying. I do speak out and as Mal said I'm not afraid to give my opinion which is not always popular but due to sheer enthusiasm can often win people over! My message today is 'be not afraid, say what you think with passion and you can get away with (almost anything)'! And finally a new motto for us all 'I am librarian, hear me roar!'

Response to the future of libraries and librarians debate

2010-06-10T10:57:00.001+10:00

Yesterday all my posts about the future of information literacy seemed to come to a head and cause some heated debate in the comments of yesterday's post. Two opposing sides seemed to form: the optimistic and the pessimistic view of the future. Let's be clear, I'm on the optimistic side and I have to say the pessimistic side really baffles and confounds me! I think this debate is fantastic because it really makes us think about where we stand on these issues. Even though I disagree with everything the pessimistic view says, this debate makes me ask 'why'. Today I thought I'd post a response to yesterday and look forward to your thoughts.

OK pessimist, I suppose you think in this future of yours that we’ll have robots to create and manage these entirely online libraries, automated response systems to manage virtual reference (or no need for reference at all) and all our clients will be studying as individuals from home, Mars or wherever else they exist with no need for social interaction? I just can’t see any signs that the future you imagine is even remotely possible. Have you not seen how vibrant and social the library is? Most people don’t want to study at home alone all the time – why do you think the library is so busy?!? Not because people come here ‘just for the books’ or even ‘just for the computers’ it’s because they like the social space the library provides. It gives them somewhere to meet up, see and be seen, a sense of community, a place they feel they belong and belongs to them! And as more and more of our lives is spent online the desire to spend time online together increases. As long as this trend continues I can't see people suddenly not coming to the library which is what you're saying will happen. As long as students continue to flock to the library - libraries will continue to be vibrant social spaces.

As for your notion that the future for librarians lies in collection development - maybe I should change professions now! I really can't see where that idea comes from. We already have approval plans for much of our collection development as a way to automate the system so we 'librarians' can spend our time on other things. What are those other things and what will they be in the future? I think we spend out time trying to engage with clients in more collaborative ways. Embed ourselves in their study and research practices (online and physical). The thing is they 'don't know what they don't know' so we need to find ways to connect with clients and join them as active content creators, advocates of a social approach to information seeking and use, mentors in evaluating, synthesising, analysing and ethically reusing information. I'm sure more and more of our library services will be online, librarians will be able to work from home but I don't think we'll be less visible - I think we need to be more visible - regardless of physical or digital space. Another whole can of worms would be to bring up the ever growing digital divide - how can you assume all clients will stop needing our help?

To sum up, I think in 100 years from now libraries will be very different but only because of changes to sociocultural practices surrounding technology which I think will bring us all closer together not further apart. As I've said before: the future is what we make it, there is no truth, reality is socially constructed and I'm proud to be a librarian.

Information literacy thoughts of the day

2010-06-09T16:13:00.000+10:00

Today I was feeling a bit brain fried from all this blogging so for a bit of fun I was messing around with our new mac and decided to make a little vodcast of what I've been thinking about today. This was unrehearsed and unscripted so please be kind. This is in no way a comprehensive overview of all my thoughts but simply a glimpse inside my brain in a short moment of time. enjoy

Information literacy 2.0

2010-06-08T17:58:00.001+10:00

Although I'm not sure how I feel about anything '2.0' it gives us a point of reference so I'm using it for now, ok... Following on from yesterday I thought I'd look more closely at how web 2.0 has impacted on information literacy (IL) programs.

Web 2.0 initiatives have been implemented across libraries in many ways and there is a growing amount of literature dealing with how libraries are using blogs, wikis, RSS, podcasting and other tools to communicate with clients in new ways. There is a smaller amount of literature that evaluates client use of these tools and services with an emphasis on vague "what if" type questions that provide little insight into user experience. The smallest section of this literature pie is dealing with the point of intersection between Web 2.0 and information literacy instruction and in particular evaluation of such programs.

In much of the literature there is an emphasis on the problem learners have with evaluating information and understanding how to manage it's ethical reuse. This is seen as one of the biggest problems facing IL instructors. So how can Web 2.0 help address this issue? Many libraries now teach clients how to make better use of google, RSS feeds, collaborative software etc. but we need to embed this training within the context those tools are used in so clients can learn to evaluate information and ethically apply its reuse? Godwin (2007) suggests web 2.0 is not about technology but a "state of mind" that needs to be reflected in our IL training. Thus, web 2.0 can help but, it's not about the tools... it's about what you do with them...

Luo claims web 2.0 is blurring the "boundaries between formalised learning and informalised play" (p.33) in a way that encourages learners to integrate their sense of self into their learning. Her research examines how web 2.0 is being used in IL instruction and how effective it is. Findings suggest IL instructors who are proactive and creative in their approach to integrating web 2.0 into their teaching are effective in helping students master IL concepts and skills through enhanced interaction and collaboration (p.39). Staying current, experimentation and creativity are seen as very important if trainers are to cope with the constantly evolving web 2.0 world (Godwin, 2007).

To achieve IL 2.0 success Williams suggests a hybrid model (just like the prius) of IL instruction that combines online and face-to-face learning. Most libraries have already taken on this model by providing face-to-face and online training however, can we bring the two closer together so they are more of a complimentary pair rather than competing individuals. A convergence of physical and digital IL programs can enhance the learning environment by providing multiple learning pathways, 'just in time' access and revision of training. Williams also suggests web 2.0 has enabled IL training to encompass multi-media and gaming which ultimately means FUN!

In general the debate seems to be divided over how we can use web 2.0 to enhance our IL instruction delivery versus how we can do that and also teach how to use web.2.0 to effectively organise, evaluate, create and reuse information. Quite different perspectives. In case you can't tell I'm for the latter.

Overall, the literature emphasizes four main points:

teaching critical thinking skills so clients can effectively evaluate the validity and authority of information
develop an understanding of ethical issues relating to reuse, copyright and correct attribution
constant experimentation by educators in the face of a rapidly evolving 2.0 world
more emphasis on evaluation of these new programs

That's enough for now. Maybe tomorrow I'll do away with the serious stuff and tell ya'll about all the cool innovative IL 2.0 training going on out there. Would love to hear your thoughts.

Some light reading:
Luo, 2010. Web 2.0 integration in information literacy instruction: An overview
Williams, 2010. New tools for online information literacy instruction
Godwin, 2007. Information literacy meets web 2.0: how new tools affect our own training and our teaching

My information literacy manifesto

2010-06-07T18:37:00.001+10:00

It's not about the tools...

Following on from yesterday. My head is in an epistemological, ontological, pedagogical three way over information literacy right now. There, I've used all my big words, now I can get down to business (or try to make some sense anyway).

The traditional notion of the library and librarian are changing (when are they not).

Libraries are no longer the gate-keepers of information and knowledge they once were. With easy access to an explosion of information online, today's learner can find almost anything without the mediation of a library. Despite this change, libraries have evolved since the spread of web 2.0 into an important part of the new information seeking ecosystem. Rather than become redundant repositories of the old way, libraries have become vibrant social spaces.

Learners now have access to more information than ever in a multitude of media. However, with great freedom comes great responsibility and that's where librarians come in. The stereotype of the scary pearl and twinset wearing librarian is slowly dissapearing as learners begin to consider us a partner in their everyday life information seeking. We are on facebook, twitter, YouTube and other spaces they inhabit and when they can't find something in google we know how to help (among other things). We need to reexamine our role as mentor and focus our teaching on ways of thinking/seeing rather than technology to be mastered.

Web 2.0 and social media has led to a more social and collaborative approach to information seeking and this is where we should look to reinvent our framing of information literacy (IL). Traditionally IL has been described as a set of skills or competencies that we can teach individuals regardless of context. However, we must consider information seeking as a social process based on the context of learners. By this I mean the socio-cultural time and space within which learning occurs. Too often the tools are the focus of IL training when it should be on the symbiotic relationship between technology and changing social practices. By situating learning in context, we allow learners to construct and attach meaning to new skills rather than seeing them as apart from their everyday life information seeking.

Web 2.0 has created a blurring of work/play in everyday life as new technologies enable collaboration and sharing like never before. Social learning and collaborative construction of meaning in context is the crux of a 21stC model of information literacy. With my postmodernist hat on, 'there is no truth, all meaning is socially constructed'. This theory brings to mind the creative commons movement and how critical it was in developing the 'share and reuse' revolution that has led to a more open web. This open, sharing and collaborative online environment allowed a new way of finding, reusing, sharing and creating information which is available via multiple pathways in a multitude of media and user-created content. Learners are now active content-creators and we must take up the challenge ourselves and collaborate in creating shared meanings. All this creativity has led to a push for more fun and games in the library which should of course be integral to any 21stC model of information literacy.

To sum up, I've been thinking about how information literacy came to be and where it's at now. Since developing out of a print paradigm (sorry another big word) IL has failed to naturally adapt, as it should have in response to constantly evolving technologies within a wide range of socio-cultural contexts. I believe we have an opportunity to revitalise IL by taking a more social approach to the way we consider learning, and situating it in socio-cultural context, rather than as a set of competencies or skills/tools that need to be mastered.

Hope that wasn't too out there...
I'm now reading it back and wondering what the hell I'm going on about...

Some of my inspirational reading:
2010 Horizon report
Tuominen et. al. 2005. Information literacy as a sociocultural practice
Kapitzke, Cushla (2003) Information literacy : a review and poststructural critique. Australian Journal of Language and Literacy, 26(1). pp. 53-66.

p.s. we got a new mac today and photos in this post are 'librarians being silly while playing with Photobooth'.

Reinventing information literacy

2010-06-06T15:22:00.002+10:00

Two things happened this week relating to information literacy that made me go 'efgweifbbfmmmeh' (loosely interpreted that's the noise in my head when I have too many things to say at once). One was @flexnib asking on twitter "librarians, what are ur thoughts on info lit in the 21st century? scrap the concept, start again? broaden it? swap it (eg dig lit)? #lazyweb

The other thing was a meeting of my pod/vodcasting community where one of the academics asked me, "do you think the library will exist in the future or just be virtual"? I actually laughed in his face! I know that might seem harsh and some of you would probably say he asked a valid question but seriously... (so many responses were forming that I heard that noise in my head again and had a hard time answering him)! Immediate thoughts: assumptions, change, social, personal, skills, multi modal...

Before I start to rant I'll try to sum up all my thoughts in one pithy sentence, here goes: Information literacy is dead, long live information literacy.

We make so many assumptions about so called digital natives but just because they want geospatial tagging and they want it now doesn't mean they know how to find academic resources for their assignments!!!!!!! Information overload = librarians needed more than ever! At best these 'digital natives' can do a basic google search, use the first few results that look OK and wonder why they're asked to resubmit an assignment (to grossly generalise). That's when the light bulb goes on and they think 'maybe I should go to the library and ask a librarian'? I see this all the time on the reference desk and it's amazing to see their faces light up when you show them a few tips and tricks to easily finding what they need. One girl I helped was so impressed, when the lecturer asked in class how she found her sources, she replied 'I asked the librarian' and they all went 'oooooooh'.

I think the way we define and teach information literacy needs to change to reflect client needs. I know this is the most obvious statement in the world but this should be a constantly evolving process, why does it seem to stop/start sporadically? Curriculum is changing and drawing on new ways of communicating through the use of blogs, wikis, multimedia and user created content. This means a whole new set of skills is needed to find this kind of information and then know how to create your own. Information is no longer just in books, journals or printed form. We need to understand the multi modal approach learners are facing and equip them with skills to understand, find, use and create all forms of information. In addition we need to take a multi modal approach to our teaching. This is already the case with online and face-to-face information literacy programs but more can and must be done.

The library plays a vital social role in our university community. It's a place to see and be seen. As more and more of our lives are spent online, physical social spaces to gather, share and engage are very important. Personally, I can't imagine a future where social engagement disappears and we all work/study from home sitting at our desks alone all day/night. BORING! We need libraries and other cultural institutions to gather, work together, share experiences and feel a part of a community. Related to this is the importance of personal face-to-face help. We can provide dozens of virtual reference options but for some people actually talking to a person is really important. And I must say I find it a very satisfying part of my job.

No matter what you call it, what's currently known as information literacy needs to change but continue to exist. That's my rant for now. Much more to come on this throughout the week.

p.s. the photo above is of Bronte pool yesterday during a brief break in Sydney's ongoing bleak weather.

Prezi workshops for professional development

2010-06-04T11:32:00.004+10:00

Learning to use Prezi! on Prezi

Over the last few months I've been playing around with Prezi and given some presentations using it both inside and outside the library. Managers and staff were really interested in this alternative to PowerPoint and wanted to know more so I've been running a series of workshops for library staff on how to use prezi! The workshops were hands on and covered the whole prezi making process from woe to go. I made a prezi to show the class on 'how to use prezi' (above) and then as a class we made one together from scratch. I was surprised (probably shouldn't have been) by the diversity of creativity and skill levels within each group and luckily had two helpers with me. For example, in one class we had to repeatedly remind people to open a new browser tab when opening YouTube and Flickr! They kept losing their prezi! Luckily prezi auto saves so all was not lost. The most common problem was people having trouble using the mouse? I'm not sure why - maybe it was the combination of one click and double clicks you need to master?

We got them to add text, links, images, video and cite the creator. Then add frames, create the zooming path and play their prezi back. People were most excited when they saw their video load and then when they saw the prezi come to life by zooming.

My main tips were:

Create a Student/Teacher account if you have a .edu.au email address because you get a huge amount of storage space which means you can embed images and video to your hearts content
Think of it like a poster you can zoom in on
Aim for simple uncluttered design
Be creative! Surprise them!
Group ideas together in frames
Don't do too many dramatic zooms - known as the sea-sickness effect
Begin and end with the whole picture so people get a good overview of the content

The workshops were well attended and each participant received their 'prezi license' if they successfully made a prezi - which they all did. Some were so excited to receive their prezi license that they've proudly stuck them around their desks! I'm considering running advanced prezi workshops for people who want to add animation and do other cool things! Since the workshops there has been a proliferation of prezi's around the library for various purposes which is very exciting and there's a real possibility we may never have to see another PowerPoint (or kill another kitten) again!

Sorry Day and Owl dreaming

2010-06-03T11:48:00.001+10:00

Last week I attended a Sorry Day talk at the Library and it was a very moving experience. Susan Moylan-Coombs told her story as an Aboriginal woman who was taken away from her parents, who had each been taken from their parents before meeting up in the mission. Susan was born and immediately taken from her parents in 1964 when Aboriginal people were not considered people but as part of the Flora and Fauna Act. During the talk Susan described having no memories of her life in the mission, a happy life with her adopted family, the moment of meeting her birth mother and the intense emotions the National Apology stirred up for her. She explained that the apology made her realise for the first time the magnitude of what happened. That it wasn't just her but two or three generations of Aboriginal people were affected with ongoing repercussions for generations to come. As a positive and powerful person Susan has overcome so much in her life and her achievements are inspiring. I felt privileged to be in the room hearing her story.

She described returning to the hospital where she was born - "The nurses said 'all your needs were met' as if to say why are you upset? She explained that despite her basic needs being met in terms of Maslow's Hierarchy, there was a fundamental need she feels was not met - Spirit. She explained that Spirit is very important to Aboriginal people sometimes described as Country or Dreaming. Just because someone is fed and clothed doesn't mean that their spirit is nourished. I thought about this as I returned to my desk after the talk. My spirit was low and I thought about my spirit animal... the owl.. and there it was... someone came running through the offices calling 'there's an owl outside a window upstairs, come and have a look!' My spirit called and the owl appeared! I ran upstairs and there it was, sheltering from the pouring rain, in the tree with a rat in it's talons. I was glued to the window looking at it and it looked back. I showed it my owl gumboots (I'm wearing them again today) and my spirit soared!

I returned to my desk uplifted and joyous! I suppose I must now confess to being owl obsessed. It is indeed my spirit animal and a part of my Dreaming. I have (many) owl mugs, t-shirts, candle holders, (so many) ornaments, spectacle holders, salt-n-pepper shakers, necklaces, brooches, books, gumboots and more! As a printmaker/illustrator the owl is a common theme/character in my work. As a tribute to the owl and to nourish my spirit I have decided to wear something owly everyday for the month of June, photograph it (and all my owl objects) and upload to flickr. I hope you all enjoy the journey and perhaps find your own spirit animal to nourish your spirit.

Library knit-in: where creativity and sustainability meet

2010-06-02T14:07:00.006+10:00

Yesterday I helped out with our first ever Library knit-in! @malbooth has already got in before me blogging about it (very briefly) at frommelbin.blogspot.com but I thought I definitely had more to add. In particular, since I actually knitted and he merely took photos and made witty remarks from the sidelines!

I wanted to be involved in the day for two reasons. 1. Promoting sustainability. The idea for the day came from an Earth Hour competition we ran to come up with ways to be more green/sustainable. The winner suggested we "rug up for winter, don't turn up the heater"! What a great message! (Last year I was the winner of the same competition with my idea 'pedal power' which I might have to blog about another time!)

2. Connecting with my roots. The idea of knitting seems to interest and terrify me in equal measures. Growing up with an award winning crafter for a nanna was intimidating to a youngster trying to knit for the first time, especially when you're constantly measuring yourself up to her high standards! Now fully grown, I seem to take up the task of knitting every few of years or so and have a bag full of unfinished projects (mostly scarves) in the back of a cupboard somewhere. Two years ago I asked nanna to help me start a beanie, which she did and I told her I'd bring it next time I visited so she could check up on my progress. Unfortunately, my interest waned and I never got past 6 rows (of admittedly tough stitches). Last year my beloved nanna passed away and with her all that expertise and knowledge of all matters craft related. So yesterday I brought in that unfinished beanie and felt like I was reconnecting with my nanna and paying tribute to her knowledge and passion as a knitter. I was told by the expert that the beanie was a pipedream, so I unpicked it and started a neck warmer (small scarf) because it was manageable and I really want to finish this one for my nanna.

Overall, I found the day very enjoyable with a great sustainability message while managing to rekindle a flame for knitting. It was a rare informal meeting of staff from all over the uni and students from all levels and backgrounds. I thought it was great to be able to mix informally with students and perhaps change perceptions they might have about libraries and librarians. Libraries can be creative spaces and even the people walking past the knit-in yesterday must have been intrigued by the unusual event. I think more creativity and events like this should be encouraged in academic libraries that can seem utilitarian in purpose but can be so much more. Most importantly, the day has inspired me to get that bag of unfinished projects out of the cupboard and give them another go! I'll let you know when I finish my neck warmer!

p.s. This final photo is of the State Library of NSW which is being lit up for the Vivid Sydney festival.

The Future of Libraries: VALA 2010 redux

2010-05-05T11:45:00.011+10:00

In February this year Mal Booth, Belinda Tiffen and I made a big splash at VALA 2010 with this presentation on our vision of the future of libraries. We showed 3 videos, audio, slideshows, tweeted live and wore green as a sign of our committment to sustainability! Yes, we know how to put on a good show! We were blown away by the support and interest that was shown face to face, via twitter and by bloggers worldwide. The biggest concern people had was how they can make buzz words like trust and creativity - a reality? If you read my blog you'll know some of the things we're doing to try to promote trust and creativity among staff but what works for us may not work for you. Our best advice is to experiment, play, allow mistakes, communicate and share!

I was going to blog about our VALA 2010 presentation (much) sooner but held off because we've recently been asked to present it at a number of places, including the State Library of NSW Public Libraries Futures Forum #plff2010 last week. At VALA 2010 we presented our session with Keynote but we've rejigged it using prezi which we've used for our recent presentations. We've added the Google searchstory for fun (see previous post) and refined the words a bit but otherwise it's all the same.

Library of the Future - UTS on Prezi

As you can see there are three scenarios explored: what the future may hold for students, researchers and staff in our library of the future. The text accompanying each video are the key points we want you to get out of each scenario. We talked briefly to each point and summed up at the end while showing the wordle of our paper which can be found on the VALA website.

The most popular video by far is the one about staff. Not surprisingly, because it's about US! Now with over 6000 views on YouTube it continues to be shared by librarians the world over! Of course we're interested in how our lives will be affected in the future and yes, I think we've given quite a rose coloured vision but why not? And it's not just lip service (as some of the YouTube comments suggest). Experimentation, fun and play have become de rigueur around here and that leads to trust, more open communication and sharing among staff. Within this month I've run workshops for staff in our interactive teamboard room on developing skills for writing and delivering papers, how to use twitter and how to use prezi! Our annual planning day included group craft activities and live tweeting #libpd! We just ran our second Earth Hour competition to find new ways we can be more green and sustainable (we were surprised that no-one else brought up sustainability at VALA 2010). So we're not just talking the talk with this presentation. We're actively trying to create the future we want!

The student video in the prezi was actually made by some of our students with very little guidance from us! We gave them a few things to include like mobile devices and the ASRS but we wanted to see the future from their point of view. The researcher video was made using xtranormal.com, (a text animation program) to create a video blog in the year 2015.

We are really excited about the buzz this paper and presentation have received all over the world. It's sparked the beginning of some exciting things, not just for us but for many people working in libraries who are wondering what the future will bring. Thanks to all who saw the original at VALA 2010 and who came along to #plff2010 last week at the State Library of NSW!

New Google Tool: Searchstories

2010-04-16T17:10:00.006+10:00

I had so much fun when I discovered this yesterday. Yes, many of you will have seen these already because I tweeted them as I did them but I thought they were worthy of putting in my blog. http://www.youtube.com/user/SearchStories

You can now create animated searches and upload them to YouTube within minutes! The great thing about these is that they tell a story, have dramatic theme music and are a bit of a teaser! See 'Google Skills like no other' - made by Ashley (soon to be guest blogger) for ideas on how IL can now be taught in 35 seconds! I also like that this gives a whole new meaning to googling yourself! Enjoy!

Google skills like no other

New way to Google yourself!

UTS Library: a learning space like no other

Library Fun Day: O week, games , prizes and QR code treasure hunt

2010-04-16T14:42:00.009+10:00

Due to an extreme amount of peer pressure exerted via Twitter I'm going to do my best to join in #blogeverydayofjune and thought I'd start with this post I began months ago and only just realised I never published! Oh noes!!

During O week this year we held our inaugural Library Fun Day! And what a day of fun it was! There was Wii and Xbox 360 games, library trivia, rogues gallery, free food and drink and a totally awesome library treasure hunt! I really got into the fun spirit of the day as you can see I wore a maroon afro wig and orange T-shirt. This first photo shows people gathering for the first treasure hunt of the day.

I organised the treasure hunt with a little help from my friends (thanks) and gave participants the option of using QR code or paper clues so no one was disadvantaged. We thought most people would have web enabled phones and could download a QR code reader before starting if they didn't already have one. However, we found most people didn't have wifi enabled phones and couldn't utilise the QR code clues (BTW we ran the treasure hunt twice and both winners used the QR code clues)! There were six stations in the treasure hunt and participants had to photograph each station and be first back to claim the prize. The stations were: find the research help desk, find **** in the catalogue, find same book on shelf, take our librarian or not test, become our fan on Facebook and find the printing/copying room.

There was such excitement in the library as everyone scurried up and down the stairs looking for all the stations and clues. At one point @malbooth may have remarked that it was "an OH&S nightmare"! The triumphant winners exclaimed that they'd had so much fun and learnt a lot about the library! In light of this great success we're considering how we can integrate treasure hunts into our usual start of semester tours schedule! Information literacy and fun can be in the same sentence!

Library staff really got into the swing of things by participating in our Meet your Librarians gallery. Before the Fun Day a few of us went around taking photos of co-operating library staff using my iPhone and then manipulated the photos using an iPhone app. The results were so funny that everyone started emailing each other their photos, printing them and putting them up everywhere (see above)! It proved a really fun way to get to know library staff and start a little silliness! Breaking down the perceptions students may have about librarians being all serious and foreboding is a hard task but I think we really achieved this.

We had many goals for the day but I think a real positive to come out of it was students coming to the library, seeing it as a vibrant fun place to be and breaking down preconceptions they might have about libraries/librarians.

It took a team of people, much planning, crazy ideas and enthusiasm to pull off this extravaganza and it was well worth it. We really showed our clients that libraries aren't just about books. We had so many first timers to the library and we overheard many comments from people about how much fun they were having. Can't wait to make it even bigger and better next year!

QR codes: linking digital and physical space

2010-04-08T15:32:00.014+10:00

Time for another update… Many of you would know that QR codes are a pet project for me and I’ve been trying to wangle them into the library for a while now. My nagging recently coincided with the decision to increase our video content and so viola - QR codes and our YouTube channel are a match made in heaven! We worked with a team of people to prioritise the content of the videos, then scripted them and early this year two colleagues and I agreed to star in them. We shot the vids and now you can enjoy watching them at your leisure on our YouTube channel! Most of them are very short (20-40 seconds) and informative or instructional about areas or services in the library.

For example, you can see in these images how QR codes are being used next to our self-service loans machine to link people to our video about how to use the machine. Our most popular video by far (starring Ashley – soon to be guest blogger) is the one explaining our printing system. The vids are also embedded in our website at relevant spots and it’s always fun to teach an IL class and come across a video of myself on the website… “hey, that’s you”… lol. I recently gave a presentation and introduced myself with 'you might remember me from such places as the library youTube channel...'

The two other stars of the videos and myself were recently recognised by the university for our contribution to social media because of this QR code video project. We were invited to ring the university bell to mark the start off semester. The festive occasion was much fun and we were honored to ring the bell and receive a commemorative pen.

I also recently had a paper published in inCite called QR codes and the mobile web. I'm putting a pre-print up for those who haven’t seen it yet.

QR codes and the mobile web
We are engaged in the delivery of high quality information literacy training and services to clients. We endeavour to maintain awareness of emerging trends in technology and communications with regard to their impact on educational and library settings. Through this process we hope to better meet the needs and expectations of our clients by creating an evolving and dynamic teaching, learning and research environment. One way we are trying to achieve this is through the use of QR codes. QR codes are barcodes for the 21st century that can be scanned by a web-enabled mobile device and link you to digital content such as a website, video, podcast, quiz, pdf, or almost anything!

Recently, Australia has experienced a massive increase in the use of mobile devices and clients now expect to access library services and resources anywhere, anytime. The nature of a mobile device means that digital content can now be accessed immediately, in context, when it’s most relevant or bookmarked for later. QR codes are a simple way to achieve this by connecting the physical and digital worlds through the use of a mobile device.

Trend watching: What the experts say
The recent ANZ Horizon Report (2009) outlines key technology trends they recognise as emerging in educational settings over the next two to five years. QR codes are recognised in two categories:
The delivery of mobile content and augmented realities emerging within the next two to three years.

This includes the development of educational gaming programs using augmented reality layers and making use of geo-location technology

QR codes are included in this category because of their ability to deliver mobile content when a connection between the physical and digital worlds is required

As part of a group of ‘smart objects’ which are classified as technology that connects the physical and digital worlds, emerging within the next four to five years.

Includes technology such as QR codes, RFID, smart cards and microchips
QR codes are included in this category because they combine “the ability to collect and transmit information with the means to immediately use that information“ (Horizon, p.22, 2009)

Physical and digital spaces
QR codes have been used in a wide variety of contexts such as music, museums, games, marketing, libraries and education. In all contexts they have been used to connect users in a physical space to contextualised digital content.
We are trialling QR codes in a number of ways. We are placing them on objects in the physical library such as self-check machines and printers where assistance may be required. This allows clients to take a photo of the QR code and immediately watch a short demonstration of the service they are trying to use. Traditionally, instructional and promotional materials have been text-based, however with the addition of QR codes these resources are now enhanced with more dynamic content.

QR codes can be used on promotional bookmarks and brochures to connect clients to online content in context. QR codes can also be used online to link to specific mobile content. For example, we are launching a mobile website in February 2010 which runs on a range of mobile platforms including iphone/itouch, Android, Windows mobile and Opera mini. A simple way of promoting the mobile site to clients is placing a QR code on the library home page. The code links clients to the new mobile site and they can immediately move around the library searching and browsing at the shelf rather than at the PC terminal. Similarly, databases are starting to provide mobile platforms and QR codes could be used in the OPAC to link clients directly to mobile databases rather than having to type in a long URL. While these ideas are simple, they provide library clients with easy access to mobile content and services.

Moving forward
We are raising client awareness of QR codes so that clients can use this new technology more effectively. We will monitor this pilot project by tracking usage statistics of the content we link to and engaging in discussion with clients through our social networking sites. We see the addition of QR codes to our promotional and instructional material as a way to enhance traditional services rather than replacing them altogether. As the number of people using mobile devices increases, so does the demand for mobile content. Here, we aim to meet that demand by continuing to develop services that address client needs. Through the use of QR codes we will enhance our existing library services and create a more engaging and dynamic library environment.

More information can be found in this poster Sophie presented at the UTS Teaching and Learning Forum and at the HCTD Mobile Research Workshop both held in November 2009: http://www.slideshare.net/MissSophieMac/qr-codes-and-the-mobile-web. The ANZ Horizon report can be found here: http://www.nmc.org/pdf/2009-Horizon-Report-ANZ-Edition.pdf

Developing skills in writing and delivering papers: using prezi

2010-04-08T10:10:00.023+10:00

OK... it's been a while. I became one of those people who say 'I'm too busy'. I have to say that's not just some lame excuse because I've been so so busy with all sorts of great things that I'll share with you all in good time. However, now that the first 4 weeks of semester are over and my working day has a little more space in it I'm ready to divulge what's been going on in the world of misssophiemac!

To start with I'll tell you about a presentation I did last week with my colleague Janet. Last year we attended a one day LATN workshop on developing skills in writing and delivering papers. There was a great mix of people there from all levels of libraries and it was a practical and hands on day of challenging fun. We had to write an abstract, author bio, turn our abstract into a paper outline, give a 3 min presentation of our ideas and critique each presentation. Overall we felt the day was a huge learning experience.

We returned to work energised and enthused and started a writing group to support each other in our writing efforts. Our group expanded to about 12 and we now support each other in writing short papers, abstracts and submitting to conferences etc. We were also determined to share the workshop experience with library colleagues and decided to do an interactive presentation of what we learned using the prezi below in our new interactive teamboard room: Create Space. (couldn't get prezi to embed??? so had to do it this way)

Create Space was the perfect location for our presentation because the room creates an informal atmosphere of engagement, communication and collaboration! (If you don't believe me try being a fly on the wall at our next staff meeting in there). People don't sit on regular chairs facing the front in a lecture style environment, they get involved, ask questions, we got them up for a brainstorming session and it was hard to get them to stop! The best part was that with the interactive whiteboard, we could touch the screen anywhere and our prezi would just zoom right in on whatever we touched! Very cool!

The Brainstorming section of the prezi was when we made people get up and start writing their ideas on the whiteboard and greenboard walls. Though tentative at first, they soon warmed up and started writing all the things they were working on or interested in and then started to see the connections and talk to each other about collaborating!

Turning it into a paper: I reflected on my experience of writing a paper for VALA2010 with Mal Booth and Belinda Tiffen and discussed how we approached the writing process collaboratively.

We then moved on to 'Writing V Presenting' and after going over the differences we asked participants to critique our own presentation in real-time. The critique was very positive *pumps fist* and I wrote on the greenboard as people were commenting. Comments included: fun, creative, movement, images, not talking at but with, colour, participation, no jargon, engaged, cool use of technology, easy to read, short bursts...

Our main aim was to make it fun, engaging, interactive and practical. We wanted people to realise that through sharing ideas, we can collaborate and by collaborating we can write together and share the load, making it an easier task to contemplate. We tried to show people that if you start small by sharing ideas and working together then anything is possible! I think we were really successful in getting that across based on comments from participants and the fact that people hung around afterward talking about writing together! So what next? We will continue to encourage and support colleagues through our writing group and hope we can start spreading the word more widely about all the great things going on at UTS Library!

QR codes and the mobile web

2009-11-18T15:22:00.003+11:00

This is a poster I presented yesterday at the UTS Teaching and Learning Forum called "QR codes and the mobile web". There was much interest in the poster and I demonstrated how they work with my iphone which has the i-nigma reader installed (I think this is the best reader I have tested for the iphone as it auto takes photos very quickly with low error rate - much for efficient than the BeeTag reader). The poster was aimed at raising awareness of QR codes and their potential use in teaching, learning and research environments. The audience was mainly academic staff and most had seen QR codes before but weren't sure how they worked. I explained how we're using them in the library and suggested ways they could use them in their contexts. Most people were enthusiastic about trying to use them in some way and appreciated the way QR codes can bridge the gap between physical and digital learning environments. The full abstract is below.

QR codes and the mobile web

View more documents from MissSophieMac.

At UTS Library we are engaged in the delivery of high quality information literacy training and services to clients. We endeavour to maintain awareness of emerging trends in technology and communications with regard to their impact on educational and library settings. Through this process we hope to better meet client needs and expectations by creating an evolving and dynamic teaching and learning environment. One way UTS library is trying to achieve this is through the use of QR codes. QR codes are barcodes for the 21st century that can be scanned by a mobile device and lead you to a website, video, podcast, quiz, pdf, or almost anything! They are simple to create and use as will be demonstrated live during the poster session. As more and more people use mobile devices everyday, the need to provide mobile content for accessing on-the-go is increasing and QR codes are a simple way to achieve that. Mobile devices allow the digital and physical worlds to interact via QR codes and enhance the teaching and learning environment.

At UTS Library we are trialling QR codes in our promotional bookmarks and flyers for example, a flyer promoting the new catalogue will have a QR code leading to a short screencast of how to use the new catalogue. While this is a simple idea, it provides library clients with an immediate interactive experience of how to use a new hands-on service that is better explained by demonstration than in reading a flyer. QR codes have been used in a wide variety of contexts such as advertising, events, music, museums, games, libraries and education. In an educational setting QR codes could be introduced to handouts or UTSonline as a way to enhance the learning experience. For example, websites, quizzes or video content referred to could have a QR code attached allowing people to access content on their mobile device in the classroom or on-the-go. It is also possible to create short screencasts or vodcasts for specific classes in minutes and link them to QR codes for placing in handouts, lecture slides or UTSonline. An added benefit of using QR codes is that they can be scanned by the mobile device and stored to be accessed anytime.

We will be educating our clients about QR codes and monitoring this pilot project by tracking usage statistics of the content we link to. We hope to enhance our existing library services through the use of QR codes by creating a more engaging and dynamic teaching and learning environment.

Into the real world: a day in the life of a new information professional

2009-11-02T12:31:00.006+11:00

This is a presentation I did last week for a group of 'Communications - information and media' students. I was part of a 5 person panel and each of us presented a typical day as a recently graduated information professional. There was an interesting and diverse range of careers from librarians to, information architect, online presence consultant and senior knowledge manager.

Into The Real World

View more presentations from MissSophieMac.

The students asked us to explain the relevance of our studies to the 'real' world which is somewhat explained in the presentation from my point of view. We each explained different aspects of how theory relates to practice but we all agreed that being able to compare, critically analyse and synthesise theories into practice is a vital skill used on a daily basis. This understanding of theory provides the foundation for understanding our clients/users and the how/what/why of their information behaviour.

They also wanted to know what kind of jobs there will be for them in the future. A tricky one to answer. I suggested that future information professionals will have a lot of flexibility and freedom to pursue their interests and hone their skills in whichever 'job' they happen to have - which is already what I see happening in my own experience. Employers in this field seem to be very encouraging of staff developing skills and interests that can be of use to the organisation. We also suggested that the skills and experience gained at uni will put them in a position to land a future job that may not even exist yet.

My final piece of advice for future information professionals is: constant change means constant learning, continue to play and be curious.

The battle of the ebook readers

2009-10-28T10:46:00.008+11:00

The Kindle, the Nook, the Sony or someone else... who will win?

The Kindle has been on the market for only 2 years and in that time it's become amazon.com's fastest selling item. Kindle has just released their long awaited international version that works in 100 countries including Australia - but does it offer enough to entice us to buy into the Kindle craze? It offers some great features such as text to speech translation, over 280, 000 titles, native PDF viewing and free use of wikipedia. However, it is a proprietary device that only allows ebooks to be downloaded from amazon. I just don't think I can support such a device. Open access if the only way to go and so far I'm willing to hold out for a device that is multi-platform and non-proprietary.

The Nook by Barnes and Noble has just launched onto the scene with much panache and great reviews. They announced today that the Nook is the fastest selling Barnes and Noble item and they expect to take a large share of ebook reader sales away from amazon. The Nook is very attractive and has some fantastic features such as: full colour visual touchscreen interface with book covers, add a memory card for extra storage, lend an ebook to a friend and great accessories! Pretty cool, and if they had an international version I might have to bend my morals. However, the Nook can only download books from Barnes and Noble which means I can't buy one but I think many people will. I definitely think this device is a big step up from the Kindle!

Sony have developed a multi-platform ebook reader that can download books from a range of stores that Sony have agreemenst with including Borders and Waterstones. While this is not truly open it is a step in the right direction. The Sony reader also allows free content to be downloaded from sites like Project Gutenberg and they're partnering with some independent digital publishers which allows authors to upload original content directly. These are some mighty fine things they've achieved and if the Nook could do all that with the features it has in an international wireless version I would be saving my pennies for a purchase. In terms of features the Sony reader has less to offer than the Kindle and Nook but it does have a touchscreen and supports multiple file formats.

Rumours...

Apple's worst kept secret is the Apple Tablet that that may or may not eventuate to kill the Kindle and take over the ebook reader market. If and when it is released it will probably be available in Australia and worldwide. With Apple's reputation for design and function and their as yet non-affiliation with any one major bookseller the tablet could be just what I've been waiting for. It will also no doubt seemlessly sync and fit with all other apple products creatign a 'must have' feeling among mac/Apple lovers.

Green ebook readers

LG have announced the development of a solar powered ebook reader with the ability to be charged by battery or solar power.

What's next?

Vooks! The publishing phenomenon of the 21st century. Why publish plain old text based material when ebook readers allow you to view multi-media content alongside text. A video/text book. Imagine the possibilities! Interactive books with video demonstrations, screencasts and links to wikipedia for more info about facts, history, issues and more.

What it all means?

Once ebook readers have broken out of the US market and gone global, prices should fall, features should improve and sales will rise. The benefit of being able to have 1000's of books in one portable device is immense. Remember how hard it was to lug around all those textbooks? Or when you go travelling and can't help taking 10 books away for the weekend? No more excess baggage fees! Where I can imagine ebook readers being of greatest benefit is in education. Clients would be able to download all their textbooks from the library for a standard loan period like they do with books now. What a relief not to have to lug books around with you and be able to read your ebooks anywhere, anytime.

Riding the wave and feeling confused

2009-10-26T15:55:00.004+11:00

It's been a little while since my last post due to a few things happening at the same time: I got a new iphone! I got a new job! I got a Google Wave invite! So I've been busy playing and testing and adding apps and playing some more. So far I think Google Wave is not what it was hyped up to be - mostly because you can only 'wave' with people who got an invite (unless you go ::public) so you can't use it like your normal email/communication system yet. The big word is yet. While it's use is a bit limited at the moment I still believe it will blossom into a most majestic tool for commmunication and collaboration once it's out of preview mode and integrates more fully with other google products such as gmail, docs, reader etc.

So far, I've been a bit dormant on the GWave while I get a handle on it but I have connected with 'librarians who wave' and 'AUS and NZ librarians who wave'. Don't be shy...

If you managed to snag an invite and just don't get it yet - check out these tips by LifeHacker such as how to filter waves, save searches, make a wave public and bounce bots. Very good to know! Also, check out this post which explains how to connect with fellow wavers, the unofficial Google Wave blog and some potential uses of the GWave. For anyone needing even more - check out Mashable's guide to all things Google Wave.

Even after checking out all those things you may still be a little confused (like me) - don't panic. Just go with it for now and be sure that it'll all just suddenly make sense one day (I hope). I really think this will be an amazing tool one day very soon. Be patient, keep playing and enjoy the ride!

QR code watch this week

2009-10-06T20:57:00.009+11:00

While out and about this week I've discovered a few more interesting uses of QR codes. While in Melbourne for a writing workshop I came across this one (originally uploaded by mstephens7) at RMIT Library which leads you to some text asking you to SMS your ideas for how the library can use QR codes. What a simple idea!

The next one I found is on the Curtin University Library website leading you to their mobile site which is quite good. I like the podcasts and computer availability.

The next one I think is great is this walking QR code advertising. While I'm usually uninterested with the use of QR codes for marketing purposes - I think you'll agree that this one is quite cool. It is promoting a poetry competition in Japan. Just think of the possibilities in libraries! Takes the term 'rovers' to a whole new level.

Pondering the future of libraries while waiting for Google Wave

2009-09-30T12:50:00.004+10:00

Like many others I am patiently waiting to see if I get an invite to Google Wave! Sometime today I'll hopefully receive an email with the happy news... will try not to be too bitter if that email doesn't come. While I wait I'll tell you about some of the things that have been spinning around me this week which I hope to elaborate on soon. This week I'm heading to Melbourne to participate in a workshop on writing for journals and conferences, which should be fun! The other exciting news this week is my new iphone (after a very long wait). I'll blog soon on the many cool apps I'm playing with.

Daniel Greenstein vice provost for academic planning and programs at the University of California System told a room full of University Librarians last week that "The university library of the future will be sparsely staffed, highly decentralized, and have a physical plant consisting of little more than special collections and study areas." The meeting was held to discuss "sustainable scholarship", doesn't sound like Greenstein thinks libraries have much of a future at all! Like many of the commenters at the end of the article I actually couldn't disagree with Greenstein more. He obviously hasn't visited a university library lately. They are vibrant, vital places and often the lifeblood of the campus. You only have to be in touch with current news, studies and blogs on libraries to know that! There is so much the Library will offer in the future and rather than the distributed 'physical plant' that Greenstein describes I think we'll be a central hub for study, learning, technology, culture and socialising. Librarians will play an important role in this future by providing specialised services and reference help in a world of increasing information overload.

Maybe it's a generational thing or maybe I'm just a fanatical optimist but I see an exciting and challenging future ahead. One with a focus on people, connecting and sharing. Technology has already assisted us in this direction but in the future this will be more obvious in the physical world too. We need to stay in touch with developments in libraries, publishing, information management, teaching and learning, sustainability and technology so we can create a library of the future that inspires and engages clients and staff alike!

"Your Library does not end here" Both David Lee King and Librarian In Black have been blogging about my favourite theme of connecting the physical and the digital. I'm happy to see there are others out there thinking about ways we can create more interactivity in the physical world so there is a seamless integration of physical and digital space. With clever use of technology we can create a more engaging library experience for our clients wherever they may be. However, technology is not the only factor. Librarians need to be out there and visible in physical and digital space to continue providing expert services by anticipating and responding to client needs. The library of the future I imagine is ubiquitous, embracing the idea of 'anytime, anywhere', it supports peer-to-peer learning and customisation of space and services. Very different to Greensteins idea. I look forward to the future that I imagine.

Dropbox: is a new cloud-based app that auto-syncs all your files to your phone, desktop and the web. You can view files offline on your phone and upload from anywhere. Perfect for work or pleasure! You'll never have to email something to yourself or carry around a stick again and if you loose your phone or laptop the files are all backed up online.

Coming soon: more on QR codes, RFID, ebook readers, iphone, iTunesU, Augmented Reality and vampire fiction. Stay tuned.

QR codes let your blog go mobile

2009-09-24T16:44:00.005+10:00

I just created this QR code which directs people to the mobile ready version of my blog! I created it in Mofuse.com and it was really easy with great features like site analytics. There are many other QR code generators out there and maybe I'll try some others for you too.

The great thing about this is you can add it to a business card, email, blog comment, conference poster and so much more.

The growing use of QR codes

2009-09-23T19:50:00.006+10:00

In my last blog post there was a poll about QR codes and most people responded that they'd like to know more. In case you missed the QR code boat entirely - I'll briefly explain what they're all about. Similar to a traditional barcode but better, QR codes can link to multi-media online content. All you have to do is scan the code ( i.e. take a photo on your camera phone using free software) and up pops a video, sound, blog, website or pdf optimised for mobile browsers. For example, QR codes have been widely used for marketing purposes to capture consumers reading magazines or walking the streets by directing them to online stores and promotional sites through their mobile phones. However, more creatively, they've been used by museums, street artists, fashion labels, musicians and activists.

Imagine the old business card (which has almost become a thing of the past) with a QR code that links back to your blog or LinkedIn profile! So much more information than you can fit on a tiny little card.

Street artists such as Bansky have used the codes alongside their impermanent work as a link back to more information, wikipedia entries, online galleries and video art. Public art enthusiasts need only scan the code with their phone to get a whole lot more information about the artist and where else to see their work. For example, geo-tagging is being used in this area so street art can be found in google maps.

QR codes are also being used in museums to direct visitors to more information, interactive content and images. For example, the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, trialled them in a recent exhibition of Japanese fashion with mixed success and recommend education as a way to combat low usage stats. The Mattress Factory in San Francisco have incorporated QR codes and have also pro actively educate visitors and guide them through downloading a free a QR code reader.

Musicians are using QR codes on gig posters and CD art to link back to their website, myspace, music videos, free song downloads or directly to the itunes store. Fashion has grabbed hold of QR codes are are using them as a branding and functional design element. For example, a stylish limited edition QR code scarf or a reconfigurable velcro QR code T-shirt? The space invader scarf holds messages 'from outer space' and the velcro T-shirt... presumably you could generate a QR code and then replicate it on the T-shirt to create a walking QR code platform.

Other uses include scavenger hunts where you have to scan the codes to get the clues to follow the trail that leads to the treasure! Or in activism, where a simple black and white code stuck on a building belies the power of the message and social network behind it.

Those are some of the uses of QR codes that I've uncovered. I would be interested to hear about any other interesting uses, particularly in libraries. So, in my last post I remarked that I thought I had some pretty cool ideas about how we can use QR codes in libraries. For a start I think we could print them on our flyers, pamphlets, bookmarks, posters etc, so people could scan them and link to online content such as video of search tips, database demos, library orientation, news and updates and more. I think the QR code is another example of the convergence of physical and digital worlds, and it will be exciting to see how the use of them develops.

QR codes and great expectations

2009-09-16T19:56:00.005+10:00

Whenever I have a new idea I get carried away thinking how marvelous I am - don't we all. Recently I've had some fantastic ideas about how to use QR codes for information literacy - yet to be revealed. However, I decided that I may be getting way ahead of myself with expecting people will a) know what QR codes are and b) know how to use them. So I've created this quiz with the hope of some responses. If most answer 'tell me more' - I will. Also, I'm trying out this poll software so let me know what you think of it.

Google wave and the future of communication

2009-09-08T10:21:00.006+10:00

Google wave is less than a month away for 100,000 lucky invited first release users. Will this mean momentous changes in the way we communicate online? I say yes! This new tool will revolutionise the way we interact with each other, documents, photos, video, news, blogs, social networks and more. Google wave brings all these elements together in one single portal allowing real time communication with so many features it's hard to know where to start.

In Google's words:

A wave is equal parts conversation and document. People can communicate and work together with richly formatted text, photos, videos, maps, and more.

A wave is shared. Any participant can reply anywhere in the message, edit the content and add participants at any point in the process. Then playback lets anyone rewind the wave to see who said what and when.

A wave is live. With live transmission as you type, participants on a wave can have faster conversations, see edits and interact with extensions in real-time.

Google wave enables users to create a personalised information and communication portal where it is easy to: collaboratively edit documents, share photos, update your blog, check RSS feeds and update twitter, facebook etc. Developers tried to imagine what email would look like it if were invented today and have created features such as: live collaborative editing, live chat, wave playback, drag and drop attachments and natural language spell check. However, features aside, Google wave will make managing email easier by uncluttering your inbox with waves.

Imagine the possibilities of Google wave combined with iGoogle! I'll try to calm myself now and give you a scenario. I start a new wave telling my colleague about an idea I have for a project. She writes back with comments inserted into the wave and suggests we add another colleague who is then able to playback the entire wave so far. The three of us collaboratively write a project outline live in the wave and we each drag some images from our desktops into the wave for inclusion in the document. When we're happy with the outline we add our supervisor to the wave and can see her comments live when it is approved. We then upload the outline and images to our blog instantly from the wave, for comments from the wider world.

As an information professional it is important to be aware of trends in communication and this one has a huge potential to change personal information management. I look forward to seeing this new tool in action.

Visualisation of thoughts on the future of libraries

2009-09-05T16:47:00.003+10:00

A friend of mine suggested my blog needed more pictures so this wordle is for her.

Physical and virtual library services: social media influences

2009-09-05T14:34:00.006+10:00

Web 2.0 has had a significant influence on the way library services are delivered. Clients now face an abundance of library help through SMS, IM, email, phone, face-to-face, classes, workshops, online tutorials and more. The challenge for libraries has always been; how do we reach our clients and provide them with high quality services? Many libraries have recently sought to address this issue by creating social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Ning and LibraryThing with the goal of reaching clients in their online communities. By entering these spaces, libraries are allowing open communication with their clients and breaking down the tradition notion of the library as place. Thanks to mobile devices and social media, the library is transforming from a physical place to a ubiquitous space. For this to happen, libraries need to consider how they reach their clients in both physical and virtual space.

Creating a ubiquitous library service model must fit in with the theory of physical and virtual convergence and the social and personal framework that has been discussed in previous blog posts. Therefore to be ubiquitous, service must be integrated across physical and virtual, make use of social media influences and allow personalisation. Some examples include:

24/7 access to online and physical library services
Wider range of physical and online spaces for clients to interact, share, engage, collaborate
Being able to 'fave' your favourite librarian for personalised service
Wider range of online and physical reference help spaces
More interactive and engaging information literacy
Maximising potential of mobile devices, QR codes and RFID
Jumping on 'the cloud' - allowing shared spaces for collaboration and information mashups
OPAC's becomes AIRPAC's then SOPAC's and move towards augmented reality with tagging of physical space and resources

These changes would allow clients to interact and engage with the physical library in a similar way to the online library. In particular, library services need to be customisable across physical and virtual spaces to better meet the needs of clients. For example, libraries could learn from the Apple Genius bar and provide more open plan reference help areas with casual seating, room for groups, laptops, and extended consultations. Following this approach could be a more visible and open plan area providing casual information literacy classes. Librarians also need to be integrated in the physical and virtual by using web 2.0 and social media tools to access clients anywhere, anytime. The librarian or the client could be in the library, cafe, on the bus, at home or in a lecture while at the same time participating in a reference help session using IM, email, SMS, Twitter, or Facebook.

A possible scenario
As libraries go mobile and social, clients will be able to search for resources on their way to the library via their phone, let their friends know they'll be in the e.g. engineering learning commons, look up recommended resources for their subjects as voted by clients, read comments, then create a list and send a request to the library for collection from the automatic storage and retrieval system (ASRS). While at the library, they could scan the latest library tips QR code to watch a video on their phone of what's new, participate in an online information literacy session or meet their 'fave' librarian in the cafe for a reference question. Finally, this could all be happening at anytime of the day or night.

This scenario may seem far off for some but I believe we are already close to being there. The exponential growth of technology and mobile device use will see expectations change in such a short time that clients will demand the types of services described in this scenario. The ubiquitous library is coming and it is up to us to anticipate the ways we can provide the types of integrated services our clients will need and expect in such a continuous and ever-changing physical and virtual environment.

The physical and virtual converge: social media influences

2009-09-04T10:42:00.004+10:00

The rise of web 2.0 and social media has created an online world of interaction, sharing, and community engagement. This online behaviour is now so much a part of everyday life for many people that we expect the physical world to more closely mirror aspects of the virtual world. This convergence of the physical and virtual is already displayed in libraries for example, in the trend for group study spaces and 'information/learning commons'. However, certain aspects of online social media could be transferred to the physical world to better meet client expectations.

Social media is well known for allowing users to tag online content such as text, video, images, and bookmarks. This allows users to create a personalised metadata system that is shared with others to create folksonomies. While not replacing traditional classification systems, folksomonies make it easier for clients to find resources by allowling them to search and browse using everyday language. If the online world of information can be navigated more easily through this personalised classification system, why is the physical world not following suit?

A possible scenario
Traditionally, a new library client arrives and is confronted with the daunting prospect of finding books by number. Most clients have little understanding of Dewey numbers and find the system confusing and hard to navigate. The serendipitous finding of information in a Dewey library is limited because often, books on a similar subject area can be spread across many levels of the library. If we allow the physical space of the library to more closely mirror the online realm perhaps we can create a more engaging space with more opportunities for serendipity.

For example, resources could be arranged by subject area around an information common space. This would create a natural gathering place for people interested in that subject area to meet, share ideas and collaborate. In this scenario, the library catalogue is able to accommodate tagging and clients can tag items while they are at the shelf looking at them via their mobile phone. This could allow clients to physically browse the shelves and scan items with their phone to see user-generated tags, comments, ratings etc. to determine if the resource is worthwhile. They could then 'share' the resource with their project team, tutorial group etc. in much the same way they currently share items online.

The library could be responsive to user generated tags and move resources accordingly to allow more serendipity than is currently possible with Dewey systems. Of course, resources must to be located easily when a client knows what they need. In this scenario, the implementation of an RFID system would ensure that clients are directed to the exact location of the item they require.

The scenario described above creates a further integration of physical and virtual realms within the library. It enables the development of a more responsive and interactive physical space that more closely mirrors what clients have come to expect online. With the advancement of the semantic web there is even greater potential for user-generated tags to be a useful tool for the personalisation of information access and discovery (Specia & Motta, 2007). Information/learning commons already create a social space within the library but more can be done to create an interactive library that allows genuine community engagement and information sharing. Customisation of the physical space to more closely mirror virtual space is one way this can be achieved.

Semantic search and customisation

2009-09-03T11:18:00.003+10:00

The words 'semantic web' fill some library folk with dread; mostly because the vague term seems to be lacking any real meaning for most people. Here are some examples of the semantic web in action.

Dorthy.com is a semantic search engine for dreams (RRW article). The idea is that you can enter your dream, ambition, aspiration and dorthy will find you articles, video, photos, tweets and more on your chosen dream. The more you share about your interests and background the more the search can personalise your results. For example, you might want to 'walk Mount Kilimanjaro' and Dorthy will help you get there. Dorthy is in private Alpha at the moment so there are some bugs and anyone outside the USA might find there is no way of limiting your results to content from your own country. Hopefully this will be improved as it moves out of Alpha. At this stage it is an interesting example of the direction search is headed and it's only a matter of time before the big search engines follow suit.

Hunch helps you make decisions so well, that you'll never have to decide anything for yourself again (RRW article). This is a fun search engine that asks you questions to build your profile and compare to others with similar traits. For example, I asked hunch 'where should I go on vacation' and it asked me a series of questions before suggesting 'Maldives' - who wouldn't want to go there? But in addition to this suggestion I get alternative options and pros and cons about the place from fellow hunch users. You can give your results a thumbs up or down and add to faves so you can keep a record of your searches and provide further information for refining your results. Beware, if you are addicted to quizzes - hunch could suck you in and never let go.

Pandia reviews what they consider the top 5 of the growing number of semantic search engines. However, after playing with some of these you'll see that they all act in different ways. If we are to customise library search we need to understand the possibilities of the semantic web and investigate ways it can be introduced to libraries in a sustainable and manageable way. Surely it should be possible for clients to login and enter their preferences, answer a few short questions and viola! The traditional catalogue is reborn as a semantic search engine of stunning proportions! We'll have to wait and see.

The physical and virtual converge

2009-09-02T20:34:00.003+10:00

Trends in the online world are being mirrored in the physical world, creating a convergence.

So this is my theory of convergence. Not to be confused with other convergence theories out there - of which I was surprised to learn there are many. The online trend towards the social and the customisable is being mirrored in the physical world. With the increase in the use of mobile devices, Web 2.0 and social networking has developed in such a way that people expect to interact and engage with the physical world in the same way as the online world. Clients are expecting more opportunities in the physical world for sharing, tagging, interacting and engaging with their surroundings and surroundees.

There are ways that the divide between the physical and the virtual can be bridged with such things as: mobile devices, QR codes, RFID and augmented reality. However, we can go further to enable online communities to remain engaged in the physical world by tapping into what and who people know and how they share what they know. For example 'information commons', or group study spaces have been built into library design with an increasing use of casual, modular furniture that is movable and hence, customisable. These spaces allow casual interaction in the library and create a social space to see and be seen. In a way, breaking down the traditional boundaries between 'work and play'. So what should we do to develop this growing convergence?

We need to latch onto the 'gift economy ' (Us Now film - quite long) and create physical and virtual peer-to-peer learning.
We need to embed the virtual in the physical by using QR codes in printed library information with links to multi-media content.
We need to personalise the library experience by using RFID to customise the delivery of services and resources
We need to customise the physical space by allowing tagging and notes through the use of augmented reality.

While these ideas may seem vague, I have very concrete ideas about how they could be implemented. I believe the convergence of the physical and virtual has begun and we must act now to develop the type of responsive services our library clients expect. Could this mean the end of Dewey? If the physical is to mirror the virtual (e.g tagging & folksonomies), then perhaps so.

Twitter and interactive teaching and learning support

2009-08-25T15:21:00.005+10:00

This is a short aside from my customisation theme to introduce a few ways of providing more interactive support to learning and teaching activities. Libraries are starting to use social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter to reach clients in their online worlds rather than expecting them to visit the library website (which in a way is related to customisation). While this is a smart move, it could be redundant if not managed well. What is the point of being there, what are you posting, what is the benefit? Below are some ways interactivity can be embedded not just in social networking sites but in any teaching and learning space.

Screenr: Web-based screencasting tool. So easy! All you need is a microphone so you can record your voice over the screencast. What this is good for is demonstrating a website, catalogue, databases or lecture slides while you talk through what to do. This tool allows you to create a screencast up to 5 mins that could be in response to a reference question you received or as a quick tip on how to better use resources. When you've finished recording your screencast: screenr can tweet the description and link for you, you can email the link, you can embed the video in a powerpoint slide, blog, website or upload to your WebCT. Overall, this is a very simple tool requiring no technical knowledge with the potential to make short informative messages more interactive and engaging.

Twitcam: You may have seen my first attempts at this today! The Elton John style glasses were actually memorabilia from the Sydney 2000 Olympics Games. In case you haven't seen it yet take a look below. This simple web-based vodcasting tool requires nothing but a webcam and a microphone. This would be great for recording short messages, updates and news items that would be more engaging than text based messages. For example, to quickly update library clients on new services and resources or conducting short interviews. When you've finished recording your video, twitchat has the same possibilities as screenr but also allows live chat which is tweeted. This means you can get live discussion going about the content presented. Overall, this is a great alternative to more complex video editing software.

Tinychat: "Create an instant web-based chatroom with a unique short URL... at the drop of a hat." Downloadsquad. This web-based tool is great for creating a temporary chatroom with screensharing capabilities. You simply give your room a name and you can share the link with Facebook and Twitter followers or you can email it to a select group. Up to 12 people can join at one time and you have control over access etc. It is possible to use this tool without a webcam - but not as interactive. This would be great for group meetings, team work, classes for rural and remote students, follow up to lectures, etc. It is best to have a purpose for the chatroom such as a topic, theme or reason for the online meeting. Basically, just another option for supporting teaching learning and research.

Have fun playing with these tools and figuring out how they could be used in your context. I will be sure to keep you updated when new tools are available.

The Personal Web

2009-08-24T14:31:00.004+10:00

There has been a growing trend in recent years towards a 'personal web' which allows people to have a personal online experience without clutter and information overload. Emarketing has been a leader in this field through personalised advertising by using profile data such as that available in Facebook. However, more and more the personal web has become about users deciding what they want to see and how they want to see it. For example igoogle, pageflakes and Netvibes allow users to create a personalised home page with only the gadgets, news and tools they want to see. These services make it possible for one page to contain your: email, calendar, RSS, docs, Twitter, Facebook, podcasts, YouTube and much more. This essentially creates a single personal web portal which diminishes the need to be constantly navigating between all these sites individually.

RSS was the first big step in personalising the web by allowing all the blogs, news and awareness services you follow to be aggregated by an RSS Reader such as Google reader. The personal web takes this idea one step further by collecting all your social networks, calendars, emails, news, blogs etc all to the one personal online portal. This process began with sites such as igoogle but now for example, Facebook has such a wide network and variety of apps available that it is able to compete as a personal web portal.

Mobile devices are also leading the way on the personal web front through the proliferation of apps and the improved technology of smart phones. Apps are available to help you with the usual tasks such as: email, news and social networking but some of the more unusual ones can also help you: create a personal soundtrack to your life, track and plan your daily exercise and hygiene regimes, help you find a public toilet or create a digital postcard from a photo to send to your friends. No two mobile devices in the world would have the exact same set of apps and the way people use these apps would be even more varied.

There is now so much information available, tools to use, news to follow and places to look that it can seem impossible to keep up. A personal web diminishes the stress and burden of keeping up with all of this by providing a single portal containing only the things you need. There are so many more examples of personalising the web and I aim to continue blogging on this theme. Future topics will include: Google wave, Hunch, augmented reality, Drupal, mashups and how these things could be used in future library contexts.

What is the library?

2009-08-18T20:05:00.005+10:00

Libraries are changing faster than ever before. Historically libraries have been known as places of books but the digital age means more information is available than ever and much of it is not in book form. Perceptions of libraries are changing to include more social spaces, engaging communities and enabling access to reliable sources of information. Trends in social networking and mobile devices are impacting client expectations of libraries and we need to adapt in order to maintain relevance.

This blog is where I plan to get my thoughts out there on libraries of the future.