Monday, January 31, 2011

Library 2.0 again

Do I agree that library 2.0 exists and what it is if it does exist? The library geek John Blyberg thinks that we are a different society, that our needs are different as a result of our communication styles. In fact he thinks that our needs as baby boomers are different than his because he has been raised in a society where communication has changed. Instead of a linear style of communication, i.e. I talk or write, you listen, and then respond, everyone one now talks at the same time. Nowadays as a result of twitter and you tube and Google where information can be updated almost instantly, everyone gets information at the same time. So information has changed, according to blyberg.net. We or they, no longer think the same way because we no longer process information the same way.
First, in terms of information, doesn't this sound more like a large get together to you? I remember them from my youth. Everyone got together, shared information, changed ideas as the information was processed and then reprocessed it.The only difference I see in those terms is that it seems like a longer get together. It may be different in the library and perhaps be driven by technology as suggested. I think though that it's an overwrought word. We are a service driven organization, always have been according to the ALA. Articles like Casey and Savastinuks' Service for the next-generation library suggest that we have to go out and find our patrons and bring our services to them are we really doing anything different than we have been? We're still serving the public, albeit with a less authoritative attitude.

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

See previous post
And so,
I'm officially down the rabbit hole as I hit this new world of blogs, readers, rss, and wikis and delicious. I'm going to publish what I think of this new world of social media which is a very good term for saying I'm writing what I think I'm learning. So far I've learned that I still know nothing about delicious, which means I'm going to be wrestling with it for a while. I know it has something to do with tags and finding things but that's it. I want to say I know nothing about nothing but as it turns out I do. I have an iphone into which I can dictate texts, an apple computer onto which I can add things to a calendar that get magically transposed to my school calendar. As soon as evernote lets me sign on again, I'll be putting all sorts of work from school into it. I wanted onenote but it's not yet available on apple except through the iphone app and I refuse to type that much into the iphone. I also use facebook a lot and consider the other social media obsolete - so obsolete that I can't remember what it's called.
I also have four cats which seems out of sync with what I'm writing until you notice that my writing turns into a series of zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzs and xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxs. Two of the four love the computer, one stands on the keyboard kneading the letters and the other claws at the keys furiously. Last week she removed the ., the ?, and nearly demolished the ". Cat protection habits are important: yet another thing I've learned.
So the obvious things I want to learn are how to operate within this virtual world successfully. I like it here. Dodads abound and the language is different than on facebook and twitter. On those two a whole new language and thinking style seem to be forming, a style of interacting I've never seen before. I'm more comfortable with the language style on the sites we're discussing tonight. Even with the gadgetry, the system works in language I understand. I want to be able to multitask here. I want to create a document, plan a video and make it part of a wiki with a group and then work on it with them. I want to see how to present my information in this new place.
I just noticed the label section for the blog so now I'm going to post on that and see what happens.
I found my blog!!! I left it nearly a year ago and two years or so before that. I don't remember who it gets published to or how to make a new one so if this goes out and bores you, just ignore it. Better yet, contact me and show me how to get out of there. It will make both of us happy. Now I'm preparing to blog about something for class but first have to remember where to put the address for this. So here goes. And if you don't hear from me soon it will be because I've lost myself again...Sigh.