October 26, 2006

Exploring Libraries (...and our Users) in the Web 2.0 Realm - Follow Up

I hope you had a chance to check out my recent presentation. Since I did not record it, as I thought about it too late, let me share some comments.

I shared all the Web 2.0 tools for several reasons:

• Librarians can benefit from their use.
• Librarians need to recognize the names and terminology, in case a user approaches them.
• Libraries can benefit from or utilize these tools.
• Users may be using these tools in order to improve their library experience.
• Users may be using these tools instead of the library.
• Users are searching for answers using these tools, and is your library "advertised" in the data they discover.
• Users are creating data and tools that might be better than library resources.
• Users are creating data and tools that might benefit libraries.

I did not want to scare the audience, since I did not know everyone's technology knowledge. In order to relate to everyone, I focused on our USERS. We all have library users, no matter the level of technology. If a technology is intimidating, think about how it might help your user to replace or supplement a library service or resource. It gives you a strong base to start your exploration.

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Blog: Are You 2.0 Yet Libraries & Librarianship Library 2.0 My Experiences Web 2.0