The most obvious place for librarians and libraries in the long tail would seem to be as New Tastemakers. Tastemaking, after all, has always been a big part of the job. However, librarians have typically done this from a position of authority relative to the patron (if an advanced degree isn't a marker of authority, I don't know what is). New Tastemakers don't generally have the benefit of a degree: they tend to be hobbyists and enthusiasts who has studied a subject in depth for the love of it. For librarians to succeed in this new world, they will have to lean less on the assumption that they know more by virtue of their training and education. Instead, they will have to play up their own specialized interests (but let's face it, librarians tend to be people with interesting hobbies!).
Being New Producers seems straightforward enough. With the technological tools now available, it's easy for libraries and librarians to put up blogs, wikis, podcasts, Flickr streams...the whole nine yards. With the push toward open source software, libraries can even roll their own OPACs and other computer infrastructure without being limited to expensive proprietary software.
In terms of New Markets, I think one has to think of library systems as a large group, not as individual institutions. Inter-library loan is already a way in which this happens. What may ultimately happen is that libraries may build their collections as part of a whole that is held by a consortium. This could be a good way to build a more complete collection in a way that uses limited funds more effectively. Of course, some books will need more copies because they're more popular, but this might be an effective way of stocking a larger number of books with a smaller demand.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Thursday, October 23, 2008
SCILS experience
It's hard to condense my SCILS experience to a single blog post, since it has changed pretty much every aspect of my life. I'm a part-time on-campus student who is doing the program in three years, not the standard two years for a full-time student. Last year, all of my classes were night classes, which were relatively easy to fit in with a full-time job. This semester, I have one afternoon class and this online one, so I have to make up the hours I miss because of school. I'm lucky that I have a workplace where this is possible.
However, the combination of working full-time and taking two classes with plenty of homework means that I have very little time to spare for other things. Housework is at the bottom of the pile (literally), and I see very little of my friends (apart from the odd e-mail exchange). The constant round of trying to keep life organized enough to deal with all the things that need to be done can get very wearing.
One of my regrets about the program is that I can't take advantage of lots of things that are offered, such as special lectures. As a career-changer, I have to keep the job I have now in order to pay the bills, so I can't always be running off to lectures (no matter how intriguing) during work hours. I do have a paper from last semester's Human Information Behavior class that has the potential for publication, but finding the time even for revising that has been impossible so far (even though I know such a publication would be a huge plus for my resume). I spend a lot of my time being pulled in many directions at once, and that's also wearing.
Then there's the travel. I do a lot more driving than I used to, and the roads I travel have their share of, um, interesting drivers (never mind potholes). I have taken the train on occasion, but that requires a lot of logistical planning (I have to take the NJ Transit bus to and from the train station since parking is essentially unavailable at Princeton Junction). I would take public transit more often if it fit my temporal and geographical circumstances better. For the record, my one-way drive is about 45 minutes, so having an online class this semester is a terrific break.
The good stuff: I've done really well in my classes and enjoy the subjects I've studied (even Human Information Behavior and cataloging!). I've been out of school for a long time, and since I've returned to grad school, I've reminded myself that I really enjoy intellectual studies and challenge. The structure of a class is also kind of reassuring for someone whose life has been nothing short of chaotic for way too long. It's also great to meet others who are equally excited about the field. I think it's a very interesting time to be in the library field because of the opportunities offered by new technologies. These trends are everywhere, but I think LIS folks get to deal with them more consciously than a lot of other people.
I've also enjoyed seeing everybody else's images of their SCILS experience!
Google Analytics stats
When I first started blogging back in 2004 (when you had to walk uphill both ways to school in the snow^), I resisted installing site stats because I just knew I would get totally obsessed with them and waste too much time. So now here I am doing it for credit (and after I've succumbed to their lure in other departments of my online life). C'est la vie.
Almost three-quarters of visitors to this blog used Firefox (74.72%), while 25.58% used Internet Explorer. The connection speed results seemed surprising at first glance: a whopping 44.19% for dialup (woo hoo!), then 23.26% for T1 connections, then 18.60% for cable, 11.63% for DSL, and 2.33% (one whole visit) for "unknown" (though given how much else Google Analytics can determine, one wonders how something could possibly be unknown).
The initally surprising results for dialup, however, are quickly explained by the fact that I haven't gotten my new DSL to work yet (mostly because of lack of time to devote to the problem), so I am still on dialup except when using the network at Rutgers while on campus. The T1 stat suggests someone is looking at this blog at work (though that isn't me, I figure that Flickring on my lunch hour is way too much as it is).
For comparison (well, ok, just because I wanted to, but it offers a comparison), I also installed Google Analytics on my birding blog, and the top speed there is cable (36.36%), with DSL second (27.97%). IE is the big fave of folks looking at the bird blog (53.15%), with Firefox (28.67%), and Safari (18.18%) runners-up. Most of that blog's vistors find it through search engines, while most visitors to this blog use the russl wiki.
Almost three-quarters of visitors to this blog used Firefox (74.72%), while 25.58% used Internet Explorer. The connection speed results seemed surprising at first glance: a whopping 44.19% for dialup (woo hoo!), then 23.26% for T1 connections, then 18.60% for cable, 11.63% for DSL, and 2.33% (one whole visit) for "unknown" (though given how much else Google Analytics can determine, one wonders how something could possibly be unknown).
The initally surprising results for dialup, however, are quickly explained by the fact that I haven't gotten my new DSL to work yet (mostly because of lack of time to devote to the problem), so I am still on dialup except when using the network at Rutgers while on campus. The T1 stat suggests someone is looking at this blog at work (though that isn't me, I figure that Flickring on my lunch hour is way too much as it is).
For comparison (well, ok, just because I wanted to, but it offers a comparison), I also installed Google Analytics on my birding blog, and the top speed there is cable (36.36%), with DSL second (27.97%). IE is the big fave of folks looking at the bird blog (53.15%), with Firefox (28.67%), and Safari (18.18%) runners-up. Most of that blog's vistors find it through search engines, while most visitors to this blog use the russl wiki.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
pbwiki vs. wikispaces
For my wiki comparison, I decided to try wikispaces. Its setup was very quick and painless, faster than pbwiki. Once in, I noticed Google AdSense ads on the side (though to be fair, pbwiki also has ads; I just haven't seen them since my pbwiki experiences have been with wikis for education (without ads).
Wikispaces' editing interface seemed more limited than pbwiki's, although it might just be because I'm used to the pbwiki interface. I tried embedding a VoiceThread, but wasn't able to do it; that might be because I couldn't decide whether it qualified as video, audio or other media.
One different feature in wikispaces is the appearance of a field for notes on a revision when one is in editing mode. These notes can be added to the history log and are a nice feature.
Once again, I feel as though I need to dig deeper into wikispaces in order to ferret out more distinctions between it and pbwiki. The more you play with these services, the more quirks you find, and the more you refine your understanding of them.
Wikispaces' editing interface seemed more limited than pbwiki's, although it might just be because I'm used to the pbwiki interface. I tried embedding a VoiceThread, but wasn't able to do it; that might be because I couldn't decide whether it qualified as video, audio or other media.
One different feature in wikispaces is the appearance of a field for notes on a revision when one is in editing mode. These notes can be added to the history log and are a nice feature.
Once again, I feel as though I need to dig deeper into wikispaces in order to ferret out more distinctions between it and pbwiki. The more you play with these services, the more quirks you find, and the more you refine your understanding of them.
Shared docs and students
In some ways, shared documents such as Google Docs can be a boon to students, whether online or offline. Although students who don't meet face to face in the classroom at all need to rely on such collaborative services, students who need to work on projects in an on-campus class can also find these services useful. Just because on-campus students attend class in a physical classroom doesn't mean that they are in class all the time! There's also likely to be a mix of students who live on campus and students who commute (and therefore spend much less time on campus).
However, everybody has certain preferences for communications media and working with others. Collaboration via shared docs may be easy or second nature to some, while others will have a hard time getting used to it. Working asynchronously on a document after a clear workflow is agreed upon may favor those who like to work independently. Working on a document all at once may favor those who prefer conversation and hashing things out together (and its online version, IM).
In sum, I think that whether a collaborative document is an asset to a group of students (whether online or on-campus) depends as much on the individual personalities and working styles as anything else.
However, everybody has certain preferences for communications media and working with others. Collaboration via shared docs may be easy or second nature to some, while others will have a hard time getting used to it. Working asynchronously on a document after a clear workflow is agreed upon may favor those who like to work independently. Working on a document all at once may favor those who prefer conversation and hashing things out together (and its online version, IM).
In sum, I think that whether a collaborative document is an asset to a group of students (whether online or on-campus) depends as much on the individual personalities and working styles as anything else.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
del.icio.us introductions?
Using del.icio.us bookmarks as a way for people to introduce themselves is an interesting idea. Pros are:
The one negative I've come up with is that human beings love stories, and there's no narrative in a set of del.icio.us bookmarks (unless the viewer constructs a hypothetical one) like there is in a statement about "who I am." Whether a story is more memorable than a quirky bookmark choice, however, is probably debatable.
So, I think my decision would be to give it a try in appropriate situations.
- it's simple
- it's fun and not-too-serious
- it's a painless way of introducing Web 2.0 and tagging
- people don't have to agonize over what to say in response to the question, "Tell me a little about yourself."
- the lighter side of people's personalities comes out (hobbies) and many people prefer talking about those things than work or career
The one negative I've come up with is that human beings love stories, and there's no narrative in a set of del.icio.us bookmarks (unless the viewer constructs a hypothetical one) like there is in a statement about "who I am." Whether a story is more memorable than a quirky bookmark choice, however, is probably debatable.
So, I think my decision would be to give it a try in appropriate situations.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Libraries and the long tail
I think the idea of the long tail has a lot to offer libraries, but I also think not all libraries will benefit from it. The libraries that will get the most out of it are likely to be special and academic libraries. These libraries need deep collections in topics that may be esoteric; even topics that are relatively mainstream get more obscure the deeper you dig. These libraries also serve patrons who need more than just the usual information, and are frequently extremely knowledgeable (and demanding) about specialized subjects and sources.
Archives also have the potential to benefit from the long tail, though many archival materials are so unique that they are beyond the scope of the long tail. If an archive has collections that provide context to the archive’s unique materials, however, the long tail may come into play. Since archival reference sources may be even more specialized than those found in special libraries, this is an obvious long tail situation.
A standard public library may not need the long tail, however. A public library needs to have a wide range of resources to cover a wide variety of needs, but may not have the need (or resources) to specialize. In a way, inter-library loan may be the best way for public libraries to use the long tail: if a patron needs more specialized information than what the public library can offer from its own holdings, inter-library loan is the next obvious path to take.
Archives also have the potential to benefit from the long tail, though many archival materials are so unique that they are beyond the scope of the long tail. If an archive has collections that provide context to the archive’s unique materials, however, the long tail may come into play. Since archival reference sources may be even more specialized than those found in special libraries, this is an obvious long tail situation.
A standard public library may not need the long tail, however. A public library needs to have a wide range of resources to cover a wide variety of needs, but may not have the need (or resources) to specialize. In a way, inter-library loan may be the best way for public libraries to use the long tail: if a patron needs more specialized information than what the public library can offer from its own holdings, inter-library loan is the next obvious path to take.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
del.icio.us vs. ma.gnolia
One of the confusing parts about today's internet landscape is the plethora of different sites doing the same things; there isn't just one social bookmarking service, there are many. So many different platforms leads to fragmentation, to the point that it sometimes seems like a wonder that anybody can find each other on the net at all.
Which brings us to the topic of this post. ma.gnolia is a social bookmarking site like del.icio.us, but with its own unique features as well. One thing that struck me (apart from ma.gnolia's interface, which is simple but more esthetically pleasing than del.icio.us' interface) was the prominence that ma.gnolia gives to groups. Groups (or pools) are a big part of Flickr's interface, but del.icio.us doesn't highlight this aspect at all (unless I just haven't found it yet, which is possible).
Another thing that struck me was that when I created a bookmark, it automatically was given a Creative Commons license. Although I think a lot about copyright and rights management, it never occurred to me that a bookmark might be a unit of information with a license, like a book or photo. Creative Commons is an interesting alternative to standard copyright (which seems to be getting more intrusive and draconian by the hour), but I haven't yet used it for any of my online content (I've been considering it for some of my Flickr photos). In other words, it was a bit of a shock not only to have a license attached to "my" bookmark, but a CC one at that. On the other hand, none of the content in that bookmark, nor the bookmarking technology itself, is mine; the only thing that's mine is my choice of it as significant. Since ma.gnolia is a social bookmarking site, bookmarks are meant to be shared, so a share-alike CC license is an appropriate choice.
Which brings us to the topic of this post. ma.gnolia is a social bookmarking site like del.icio.us, but with its own unique features as well. One thing that struck me (apart from ma.gnolia's interface, which is simple but more esthetically pleasing than del.icio.us' interface) was the prominence that ma.gnolia gives to groups. Groups (or pools) are a big part of Flickr's interface, but del.icio.us doesn't highlight this aspect at all (unless I just haven't found it yet, which is possible).
Another thing that struck me was that when I created a bookmark, it automatically was given a Creative Commons license. Although I think a lot about copyright and rights management, it never occurred to me that a bookmark might be a unit of information with a license, like a book or photo. Creative Commons is an interesting alternative to standard copyright (which seems to be getting more intrusive and draconian by the hour), but I haven't yet used it for any of my online content (I've been considering it for some of my Flickr photos). In other words, it was a bit of a shock not only to have a license attached to "my" bookmark, but a CC one at that. On the other hand, none of the content in that bookmark, nor the bookmarking technology itself, is mine; the only thing that's mine is my choice of it as significant. Since ma.gnolia is a social bookmarking site, bookmarks are meant to be shared, so a share-alike CC license is an appropriate choice.
Education
One thing that strikes me about Brown and Duguid's discussions of learning in The Social Life of Information is that their model is very different from much that the US educational system has to offer. B&D emphasize that learning is an on-demand activity, and that "learning about" is different from "learning to be". In effect, the context of learning is what allows learning to happen, not the process of transmitting information itself.
Although there are many programs that no longer take this approach, the typical model for school learning in the US is that of a teacher lecturing to a room of students. It's hard to imagine a process that is less hands-on and participatory. If there's a need here, the need is "I need to pass this exam to get a good grade." No wonder students don't retain information past the end of the class! School is a separate universe from the rest of life, while Brown and Duguid argue that it needs to be an organic part of an individual's life.
In practice, this may be a difficult model to achieve. The current US school system has universal standards and benchmarks. Brown and Duguid envision something much more decentralized and able to adapt to the situations of unique individuals. Rather than one standardized process, there needs to be many different processes to suit different professions/occupations/fields of study, not to mention the different temperaments and backgrounds that students bring with them.
I'm reminded of the video we watched at the beginning of this class, "A Vision of Students Today." Those students were saying things that fit very neatly with what B&D are saying in their book.
Although there are many programs that no longer take this approach, the typical model for school learning in the US is that of a teacher lecturing to a room of students. It's hard to imagine a process that is less hands-on and participatory. If there's a need here, the need is "I need to pass this exam to get a good grade." No wonder students don't retain information past the end of the class! School is a separate universe from the rest of life, while Brown and Duguid argue that it needs to be an organic part of an individual's life.
In practice, this may be a difficult model to achieve. The current US school system has universal standards and benchmarks. Brown and Duguid envision something much more decentralized and able to adapt to the situations of unique individuals. Rather than one standardized process, there needs to be many different processes to suit different professions/occupations/fields of study, not to mention the different temperaments and backgrounds that students bring with them.
I'm reminded of the video we watched at the beginning of this class, "A Vision of Students Today." Those students were saying things that fit very neatly with what B&D are saying in their book.
Digg vs. del.icio.us
After messing around with del.icio.us for a while (and quickly liking it very much), I set up an account on Digg. I've seen plenty of references to Digg online, but had never tried it.
I was surprised to quickly get a bad case of what could best be called culture shock! Advertising is prominent on Digg, whereas it's nonexistent on del.icio.us. As a result, the whole feel of the sites is very different. Digg's site seemed loud and busy, with Flash animation in the ads. del.icio.us is much more minimalist. Navigation on Digg seemed more difficult too.
I also found Digg's language intimidating. You "submit" a link, and the process isn't nearly as intuitive as del.icio.us makes it (of course, you don't have to install an add-on to your browser, either, which could be a plus). Then of course, there is the voting process of "digging" a link (or not). On del.icio.us, you can see how many other people have bookmarked a link, but Digg's more active language makes the process seem more competitive or game-like. That could be a draw to some people (obviously, given Digg's success, it is a big draw for lots of people) but it just turned me off.
All in all, I found Digg to be overly commercial, busy and competitive. I think I really haven't given it a fair trial, and if I came across it at another time (during a week that was less personally stressful), I might have liked it more; I certainly can be quite competitive on occasion, and playing random games on the internet can be lots of fun. I'm interested to see if anyone else tried Digg, and if they had different opinions than I did.
I was surprised to quickly get a bad case of what could best be called culture shock! Advertising is prominent on Digg, whereas it's nonexistent on del.icio.us. As a result, the whole feel of the sites is very different. Digg's site seemed loud and busy, with Flash animation in the ads. del.icio.us is much more minimalist. Navigation on Digg seemed more difficult too.
I also found Digg's language intimidating. You "submit" a link, and the process isn't nearly as intuitive as del.icio.us makes it (of course, you don't have to install an add-on to your browser, either, which could be a plus). Then of course, there is the voting process of "digging" a link (or not). On del.icio.us, you can see how many other people have bookmarked a link, but Digg's more active language makes the process seem more competitive or game-like. That could be a draw to some people (obviously, given Digg's success, it is a big draw for lots of people) but it just turned me off.
All in all, I found Digg to be overly commercial, busy and competitive. I think I really haven't given it a fair trial, and if I came across it at another time (during a week that was less personally stressful), I might have liked it more; I certainly can be quite competitive on occasion, and playing random games on the internet can be lots of fun. I'm interested to see if anyone else tried Digg, and if they had different opinions than I did.
Saturday, October 4, 2008
SlideShare
I'd glancingly run into SlideShare a few times, but I decided it was new enough to me to qualify as a "new-to-me" 2.0 type site, so I went and looked at it some more. I knew that it was a place for people to post their Powerpoints, but that was all I knew about it.
Looking at SlideShare more deeply revealed features I hadn't expected, such as thematic groups in which you can put your presentations (here's New Yorker). You can look for events such as conferences, or browse by tags, or stick with the tried-and-true hits posted on SlideShare's home page. People may lament PowerPoint (and particularly bad PowerPoint), but there's no shortage of folks looking to share their presentations on SlideShare.
SlideShare even has toys like karaoke, which allows you to search on a tag and then watch an assortment of presentations (all with Creative Commons licenses). I'm not sure what this has to do with standing up and warbling along with ABBA's greatest hits, but if SlideShare calls it karaoke, it must be. As a Flickr addict, I have to admit that both the topic groups and the "toys" remind me of Flickr (never mind the tags, but everybody has tags these days, it seems).
So, SlideShare looks a bit like Flickr for PowerPoints. Say what you like about these presentations, they're omnipresent in some places (academia comes to mind) and it's not so bad to have a place where presentations are as accessible as photos on Flickr, or videos on YouTube.
Looking at SlideShare more deeply revealed features I hadn't expected, such as thematic groups in which you can put your presentations (here's New Yorker). You can look for events such as conferences, or browse by tags, or stick with the tried-and-true hits posted on SlideShare's home page. People may lament PowerPoint (and particularly bad PowerPoint), but there's no shortage of folks looking to share their presentations on SlideShare.
SlideShare even has toys like karaoke, which allows you to search on a tag and then watch an assortment of presentations (all with Creative Commons licenses). I'm not sure what this has to do with standing up and warbling along with ABBA's greatest hits, but if SlideShare calls it karaoke, it must be. As a Flickr addict, I have to admit that both the topic groups and the "toys" remind me of Flickr (never mind the tags, but everybody has tags these days, it seems).
So, SlideShare looks a bit like Flickr for PowerPoints. Say what you like about these presentations, they're omnipresent in some places (academia comes to mind) and it's not so bad to have a place where presentations are as accessible as photos on Flickr, or videos on YouTube.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
More Feed thoughts
Finished Feed and I have to confess I was hoping for (but not expecting) a happy ending. The bit at the end where Titus was also wanting a happy heart-warming ending reminded me of the way the dystopian sf movie Brazil was recut for tv release, with a ridicuously fake happy ending slapped on, totally against the filmmaker's wishes.
I think in terms of technology, we're a ways away from the world of the book. It'll be a while before a jaunt to the moon is as routine as a jaunt to a casino. In terms of social attitudes, though, I think we're pretty much there. The obsession with celebrities, being cool, consuming the right products, demand for instant (and often superficial) information, corporations positioning themselves as being agents of good...it's all here already. Although it's more an undertone in the book (the geopolitical threats of war from other countries), the narcissistic society of feed consumers also allows them to shut out that unpleasant reality in a way that seems rather familiar.
The ultimate paradox I'm left with (and one that doesn't figure in the book so much) is how the ultimate customization of what one consumes (in terms of information and other products) leads to a society that is so conformist. It's as if even the nonconformists are looking for some way to fit in.
I think in terms of technology, we're a ways away from the world of the book. It'll be a while before a jaunt to the moon is as routine as a jaunt to a casino. In terms of social attitudes, though, I think we're pretty much there. The obsession with celebrities, being cool, consuming the right products, demand for instant (and often superficial) information, corporations positioning themselves as being agents of good...it's all here already. Although it's more an undertone in the book (the geopolitical threats of war from other countries), the narcissistic society of feed consumers also allows them to shut out that unpleasant reality in a way that seems rather familiar.
The ultimate paradox I'm left with (and one that doesn't figure in the book so much) is how the ultimate customization of what one consumes (in terms of information and other products) leads to a society that is so conformist. It's as if even the nonconformists are looking for some way to fit in.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
RSS and information overload: cure or cause?
I have to admit I have mixed feelings about this topic. I follow a bunch of feeds in Google Reader, and when I consider that the average number of unread items on login lately tends to be running between 700 and 800, it seems like it would be a perfect example of information overload. But I find that it's actually a good way of skimming content. Depending on my whim, I can scan all my feeds at once, or I can pick out a particular one ("Ok, there are way too many unread lolcats. Time to prune."^) Sometimes I give up entirely on a very active blog such as Boing Boing, mark all read, and start from scratch (it helps that Boing Boing links back to its past posts on recurring themes). I am still learning the best way to keep up with my subscriptions, which include news, webcomics, birding blogs, foodie boards, lifehackers, tropical storm updates and environmental news, to name but a few. Plus, with Google Reader, it's all on the web and not cluttering up my e-mail in-box(es) (which is/are mostly out of control).
And that's why I like RSS. I wouldn't argue it serves all of my information needs, but it serves some very specialized areas very well. I get to combine those specialized interests into one "newspaper" customized for my unique tastes (most of my interests are so esoteric that no mainstream publication could ever break even trying to hit my demographic). Sometimes I get general hard news through my RSS feeds, but usually I prefer NPR for that (plus I subscribe to Newsweek). A specialized blog like WorldChanging, however, covers the environment in a much more detailed way than most other sources out there (probably why their blog graduated to being a book as well as a blog).
For some reason, RSS doesn't trigger my "overload" circuits in the same way that too much e-mail or the thought of subscribing to an actual physical newspaper does. I don't know why that is, but that seems to be the case for me.
And that's why I like RSS. I wouldn't argue it serves all of my information needs, but it serves some very specialized areas very well. I get to combine those specialized interests into one "newspaper" customized for my unique tastes (most of my interests are so esoteric that no mainstream publication could ever break even trying to hit my demographic). Sometimes I get general hard news through my RSS feeds, but usually I prefer NPR for that (plus I subscribe to Newsweek). A specialized blog like WorldChanging, however, covers the environment in a much more detailed way than most other sources out there (probably why their blog graduated to being a book as well as a blog).
For some reason, RSS doesn't trigger my "overload" circuits in the same way that too much e-mail or the thought of subscribing to an actual physical newspaper does. I don't know why that is, but that seems to be the case for me.
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