Describing Web/Library 2.0 to unwilling staff

[Tracey Reed]

My director has tasked me (and I'm very willing to take it on) with doing brief, hit-and-run, emails to all the library staff to explain Library 2.0 concepts and tools to our staff, most of whom have no desire to move forward (there are some and I'm thrilled to have them on board). This is a copy of the email I sent out today. I'd be curious to what y'all think. The next one will be on del.icio.us because it's probably the most relevant to them.
-t

Subject: What's this I hear about Library2.0?

Hi all,

You may have heard the terms "web 2.0" and "library 2.0" buzzing about the library world. Or maybe you haven't, and that's ok. But what I'd like to do is take a second and explain what both of those things mean, and some of the "2.0 tools" that you might continue to hear about, and that we here at CPLS might be looking at to better serve our patrons. I'll try to keep the editorial comments out of it (like what parts of it I love and what I can't stand), but I make no guarantees.

This is the first in a series of emails that I ' ll be sending out regarding Library 2.0, to explain some of the sites and concepts I've given a brief introduction to below. So if not all of it makes sense, or you need more details, or you have something to add, please feel free to email me, or better yet, the group. That's how this works.

So what exactly are Web 2.0 and Library 2.0?

Well, honestly, it depends who you ask. Web 2.0 is touted as the next generation web, with more interaction and interactive sites as opposed to just static information. Web 2.0 is everything from blogs, RSS feeds, wikis and IM/chat to things like Second Life (www.secondlife.com) myspace (www.myspace.com) (note, this will be blocked by the City IT dept), facebook (www.facebook.com) (this one will be blocked too), flickr (www.flickr.com), del.icio.us (http://del.icio.us), technorati (www.technorati.com) and dig (www.digg.com). What it really means is that the web sites that require you to do something with them (share information, play, create content) are becoming more popular. Terms like "social networking sites" are being buzzed about because of the ability to create neighborhoods and "friends" lists and to interact with others through the Internet in a way other than email or the more common chat programs such as AIM or Yahoo Instant Messenger.

It also is about creating the metadata (information about your Information) and sharing it with others. Things like sharing bookmarks and seeing how many have also bookmarked something (del.icio.us) or blogged about it (technorati) as well as tagging - what they've called it when people have applied their own labels to things like their photos (flickr), their blog entries (Livejournal, vox (www.vox.com)), their bookmarks (have you bookmarked sptimes.com? what did you label it? News? Local? Drek?) and who looks at what at any given moment (digg). The concept of tagging is the part that the libraries and librarians have kind of grasped onto, mostly because it's familiar to us - we like to organize. (Course, have you seen my desk lately?)

Library 2.0 is actually the application of the concepts of Web 2.0 to the library world. Things like del.icio.us which allow people to share what they ' ve bookmarked with anyone and technorati that allow people to see what others are blogging about and linking to in real time were things that libraries found useful. More recently, it's been about how real language tagging can be beneficial to library catalogs, and what catalogs can learn from sites such as del.icio.us and technorati.

The other buzz in the Library 2.0 community are the "social networking” side. Libraries and librarians with professional myspace accounts are popping up all over the place (Hennepin County (MN), Denver Public, Topeka (KS) just to name a few). It's not just for kids and teens anymore. In fact, facebook is in the process of overtaking myspace as the favored destination for teens and college students. A big buzz is being made over Second Life (www.secondlife.com), which we've had at least one information session on here at CPLS. And many, many libraries (including us) have photos of the libraries and library staff up on flickr.

What does it mean for us as a library?

Well, honestly, at this point, no one really knows how it will impact libraries in the long term. There’s a wiki called Library 2.0 (http://library20.ning.com) where Just that is being discussed. Things like tagging and sharing bookmarks will most likely have the greatest long term impact (imagine patrons being able to create tags for items in our catalog!!!), but the sexy aspects of 2.0 like Second Life and Twitter and Tumblr (www.tumblr.com) are what people seem to be talking about more. So I'll be, in this series of emails, talking about these various tools and sites in more detail as time goes on.

In my opinion (and you know what that's worth, and whoops, here I go slipping into judgment), it doesn't change libraries as much as we think it does. We're still places people can come for information, be it educational, recreational or social. We still need a sense of place, both physical and online, to allow them to do this. What it will require is a shift in attitude from "we have all the information" to "we need to have input from those around us on and in what we offer." And that could be tough for libraries and librarians to get.

Like I said above, feel free to email me (or the group!) with questions, comments or additional information about anything. We all learn from each other and no one knows it all.

:-)

[Susan LaPat]

Our library has been participating in a project called 10 Things in 10 Weeks over the summer months. I must admit that I'm one of those people who was dragging their feet in participating, but I'm glad I did. I may not end up using many of the different tools, but at least I'll know I can join in, if I so choose.

[Marci Severson]

This has all been quite an education - lots of new terms to digest. I can see where Library 2.0 can be a good way to share information about libraries. I'll be looking forward to more explanations of it and to having it "sink in" !

[Pat Jeddy]

I've been an avid "internet" user since bulletin boards, Compuserve, and 300 baud modems. (that's way before there was a "World Wide Web.")
I suppose the term Web 2.0 developed because there has been such an explosion of applications, websites, faster, more reliable computer hardware and software, and most importantly, a fantastic increase in bandwidth available to the average user in a relatively short period of time. The "need for speed" is the important aspect to this stage of the revolution. Without it, YouTube, torrents, MySpace, Second Life, online gaming, etc would be slow and frustrating and would probably not exist.
I think folks are confused because the concept of Web 2.0 lumps so many different applications together that serve very different purposes. The only thing these some of the apps have in common is that they are internet based.
Our summer project, "10 things in 10 weeks," has been successful because the team broke down segments and presented them as separate tools. I've learned a lot while experimenting and discovering. Don't be fooled by fancy buzzwords and hype. Just dig into an application or network that intrigues you. You can't break it and the only thing you might lose is a bit of time.

[Suzanne V.]

I'm another CCCLibber playing catch-up before the 10 Things deadline--just found out the mug is stainless steel--gee whillikers! Now I'm motivated.

Like Pat, I'm an old hand with the interwebs, and I'm already familiar with a lot of 2.0 technologies, both from work and private life. The fun part of using 2.0 at work is figuring out how and if the tech is applicable to work. For those less familiar, the 10 Things show that the tools aren't so hard to master as one might think.

As others have said in this thread, utility is ALL when it comes of overcoming resistance. Developing real-world walkthroughs that show how each tool might make a difference in efficiency could be a big help in "selling" 2.0 to staff.

[Marian Partridge]

It's important for librarians to be aware of new technology, but I'm glad to hear that you think that we still need a "sense of place".

[Anastacia]

At the end of the day, libraries need to help people access and make sense of information. If Web 2.0 was just about individuals entertaining themselves and making connections, it would still be good for us to understand it. But Web 2.0 apps are also being used by businesses, political campaigns, media outlets, support groups, job seekers...it's important for us to be fluent in these new methods of communication, not only because we might want to help a patron seek information there, but because we need to be able to help them evaluate the type of information they'll find there, whether it's opinion, spin, facts (backed up by citation), debate or creative expression.

[Laura]

This is an incredible program, and such an important one for everyone in the library field. So much changes so quickly that it's hard to keep up--but it's our job, and a fun one too!

[Caroline Gick]

Yet another comment from a Contra Costa County Library 2.0'er working hard to complete the My 10 Things project!

Personally, I'm all for 2.0 - I use it in my personal life, am integrating it into my professional life, etc. As the manager of a community library, I have a more bird's eye view of the benefits of different 2.0 applications - from an administrative standpoint (staff communications, committee work, etc.), as as well as from the perspective of integrating applications that benefit our work with the public.

I have received varied feedback from my staff in working on this 10 Things Library 2.0 project - not so much about the applicability of 2.0 technologies, but the time it takes to learn about them when the benefit to one's daily work isn't so obvious. I think its important to tie the usability of the different applications in to each person's job - using IM on the reference desk doesn't mean anything to our clerks/circulation staff - they may "get" that it is a good tool for communicating with library users, but it doesn't affect their job.

[DHerrera]

I agree with you on this post, but let me give another perspective (from what I lovingly call the bottom of the library food chain-the LSA's point of view) in regards to the IMing for the clerks/circulation staff. For the clerks/aides/LSAs at Pleasant Hill who staff the Periodicals desk IM (actually, internet access in general) could be very useful- especially for taking obituary or article requests in real time. The positives are: It's relatively quiet except for the keyboard noise (since we're supposed to be quiet in the reference room) and also it's easier to confirm the spelling of someone's name for the obits since the person requesting has to type it out. Also, it can be used to silently summon help if we have the occasional unruly/difficult patron or situation that requires someone "higher up on the food chain". Yes, we had a situation like that recently and it was not pretty. No, it did not happen to me as I am still employed ^_~.

[Ana Elias]

This was one of the hardest assignments so far.

[Liz Fuller]

There's also the problem of time. Taking the time to learn how to use these sites is yet another thing we need to squeeze into our daily routines. I wish I had grown up with this stuff, so I could just absorb everything that's changing!

Liz Fuller, Contra Costa County Library

[Carol]

I don't find the Contra Costa staff unwilling, simply lacking in time. If the technologies save time or make a task easier, library staff will use them.