Task 21 and 22

Task 21 - Library 2.0 Reading List

I know that faced with a new technology, it's easier to see how you can use it yourself than it is to see how you can use it at work. With many of these designed for personal use, the possible benefits for libraries are not always the first thing to come to mind. Fortunately, Web 2.0 is all about sharing ideas, and libraries and librarians all over the world are coming up with new and interesting ways to use technology in libraries and sharing these ideas with the rest of us.

The ALA offered an online bootcamp on "Library 2.0" (while many people aren't fond of the name, it's what is being used to describe libraries who are using these new online services to their fullest advantage, providing more of a link between the library and their patrons), and provided a Squidoo page with links to what people were saying about it. There are links to blog posts, flickr pictures, del.icio.us links, as well as podcasts and webcasts on the subject.

Your task: Skim through the reading list. You don't need to read everything, but click on something that sounds interesting and see what people are saying. I saw many of these people speak at Internet Librarian 2006. They're all worth listening to. Some suggestions are this post by Michael Casey, this one by John Blyberg, or any of these by the ALA TechSource Crew.

Task 22 - Online Seminars with SirsiDynix

Now, we obviously can't afford to send everyone in the library to California next year for Internet Librarian. However, you don't need to spend a lot of money and travel time just to hear what the movers and shakers of the library world have to say. The SirsiDynix Institute provides free online seminars on library topics, many of them pertaining to Web and Library 2.0. From Podcasting, to Gaming in Libraries, to Blogging, all of these topics have been discussed in SirsiDynix Seminars, and are available free during the original broadcast as well as in the seminar archive which provides access to seminars you might have missed.

Your Task: Explore the SirsiDynix Institute page. See what's coming up, as well as take a look at the archive and see what they've already covered. I know that not everyone has a fast enough internet connection to view these at home, but consider taking a minute or two the next time you're at the library to check one of these out.