Evaluative Report

Web 2.0 has initiated a cultural change, a significant shift in attitude in the library profession. (Partridge, Lee, & Munro, 2010, p.332)   Our library service to patrons should be egalitarian. The library should go where its users are, listen, find out what their information needs are, and respond to and collaborate with them accordingly.

According to OCLC’s research (De Rosa, et al., 2011), most, if not all, college students use social media and logon to social networking sites daily, while there is a decline in use of the library website among students aged above 25 years old. That is probably why the ASU Libraries set up the Library Channel, in addition to supplying information on their website, to reach out to their patrons, to introduce what services and resources the library is offering, to inform them of library talks and events, and updates of new library resources on the one hand, and solicit their comments and feedback, facilitated by the social media tools, on the other.

Hence, the ASU Libraries exploit the popular social media and social networking tools, namely YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, RSS, Instagram, Flickr, Vimeo, and iTunesU, to broadcast the Library Channel for mobile and PC access on both Windows and Macintosh to connect to an extensive audience.  Essentially, the textual information on the library website is transformed into videos and photos and presented in a more engaging way to its target group, particularly the visual learners.

Another asset of social media tools is that they facilitate collaboration. We have used Facebook in INF506 for meeting one another online, irrespective of locations, sharing useful information and discussions. 

I’ve explored Diigo and found it a handy tool for research, sharing and collaboration.  I can bookmark the articles I have found, highlight the text online, add notes and save them, or cache the webpage for reading later, add tags and share the resources with others through Facebook, Twitter, Google+, or email, together with my highlights and annotations. I can retrieve a document in my Diigo Library easily by searching in title, URL, annotations and tags. However, I cannot highlight the online PDF files, nor import the bookmarks I used to have on my browsers.  Besides, it is less popular than del.ico.us which is one of the options offered for direct export of records from academic librariess discovery tool. While I share my own bookmarks, I can also browse those created by others on the Diigo community. Moreover, I can create groups for colleagues for collaborative research projects and build our shared information repository.

Yet privacy is an issue for social media and networking tools. As I added the Diigo Web Collector to my Google Chrome browser, a warning message popped up, saying it can access my data on all websites and tabs and browsing activities. I was alarmed as I had installed the Diigo bookmarklet the previous week and had been using our Google Chrome browser for e-banking and online payments since then. Have our personal data been accessed by Diigo in the past week?

To safeguard our privacy when we use social media and networking tools, we have to customize our privacy settings carefully and read the privacy policies on their websites, checking for changes from time to time. It is advisable to create different accounts with different names to maintain separate personal and professional identities online, and be very cautious with whom to admit into our circles. We should also turn off any location features and public searching as necessary.  (Williams, 2012)

Hence, if an institution or library wants to integrate social media into their services, there has to be policies in place to protect data privacy for the benefit of both the institution and employees. Best practice guidelines and training on technical management and use should be given to support those involved in using the social media or social networking technologies. (Society for New Communications Research, n.d.)

There has to be an authorized representative of the department/unit responsible for setting up, operating and monitoring the social networking account on an ongoing basis. Details of the account and the contact information for the representative should be submitted to the administrators of the Communications Department and the Computer & Information Technology department. (Princeton University, 2011, pp.2-3)  Fairness of access and use have to be ensured. Attention should also be drawn to the risk of  releasing confidential information or proprietary information about the organisation and its members, as well as illegitimate use of institutional social networking platforms and respective penalties imposed. (Arendt, 2009)

[Statement] To conclude, social media and networking tools can help us reach out to a broader audience, engage and interact with them for collaboration and creation of new knowledge, but we’ve got to pay attention to the technical management issues involved and manage the risks of privacy and confidentiality.

References

Arendt, A.M. (2009). Social Media Tools and the Policies Associated with Them.  Best Practices in Policy Management Conference, Utah Valley University, November, 2009. http://works.bepress.com/anne_arendt/7

De Rosa, Cathy, et al. (2011). Perceptions of Libraries, 2010: Context and Community: a report to the OCLC membership. Dublin, Ohio: OCLC. Retrieved from http://www.oclc.org/content/dam/oclc/reports/2010perceptions/2010perceptions_all_singlepage.pdf

Lorenzo, G. (2007, March). Catalysts for Change: Information Fluency, Web 2.0, Library 2.0, and the New Education Culture. Clarence Center, NY: Lorenzo Associates, Inc. Retrieved from http://edpath.com/images/IFReport2.pdf.

Patridge, H., Lee, J., & Munro, C. (2010). Becoming "Librarian 2.0": The Skills, Knowledge, and Attributes Required by Library and Information Science Professionals in a Web 2.0 World (and Beyond). Library Trends, 59(1-2), 315-335.

Princeton University · Office of Communications (2011). Princeton University Social Media Policies. Retrieved from https://www.princeton.edu/communications/services/social-media/061611_Princeton_Social_Media_Policies.pdf

Society for New Communications Research. (n.d.). Best practices for developing a social media policy. Retrieved from http://socialmedia.biz/social-media-policies/best-practices-for-developing-a-social-media-policy/

Williams, L. Y. (2012) Who is the virtual you and do you know who’s watching you? In D. R. Neal (Ed.), Social media for academics : A practical guide, PP. 175-192. Oxford, UK: Chandos Pub.

[Statement]

I am only a novice in social networking, exploring, experimenting and familiarizing with the use of various social media and networking tools to enhance my knowledge and competence in serving our library patrons, for interaction with peers and patrons in the online environment as a community to create new knowledge, yet not forgetting the needs of those who do not belong to this sphere.

I had barely any experience of social networking before taking INF506. I have always wanted to have our library services to match with our user needs, but our daily contacts with our patrons are mainly on-site, via phone calls, and occasionally emails. Sometimes I try to find out about the research needs of our staff as I get to see them in the library looking for books or journals, and chatting with users at lunch. I feel that’s not enough. When we add more resources, post news on our library information network site, send patrons emails about the new services, the majority of our patrons are not aware of them. Something is missing.

Now I think I’ve got the answer: social networking. It is not simply about adopting the Web2.0 technology, there has to be a change in our mentality. (Davis, 2005) Our service to patrons should be egalitarian and user-focused. Librarians should proactively reach out to seek patrons, understand their information needs, interact and collaborate with them as a community in creation of new knowledge.

When Penner (2007) talked on the “Tasks and skills of theological librarians” at the Conference for Theological Librarians, she pointed out that the library, as one of the four primary centers of theological education, has to inform and serve the other three areas, i.e. the classroom, the chapel, and the field site, and should therefore be facilitating and participating in communication with them. Knowledge is created through conversation, interaction, and discussion of concepts. Hence, the library has to readjust and modify its tasks as conversational and participatory tools.

Theological libraries are generally more conservative and thus slower in adopting social software to enhance library services. I found some of the major US and British Christian university libraries and a few seminaries have already got their Facebook and Twitter accounts, and some offer chat reference service to interact with their members..

But the ASU Libraries’ Library Channel is eye-opening for me. I would say they are actually transforming textual information on the library website into lively, brief but engaging videos and images, communicating about library services and resources, guides to searching and research, news and events, and allowing user feedbacks with the various social networking tools employed. I think our library should likewise create our online presence in Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, iTunesU, and other popular social networking sites for reaching out to our patrons, engaging them in conversation with the library, not only to improve our service, but also create a sense of community and collaborate with them in knowledge creation.

I can start writing a reference librarian blog to interact with patrons, embed training instruction videos or powerpoint into the weblog using mashups like Bitty Browser (Bradley, 2007, p.184). We can add a chat box or instant messaging facility like Google hangouts for better service.

When students want to find information, they tend to start with Google or other search engines instead of using the library catalogs and databases. To help patrons find quality information, I would also like to explore if our library can create a search toolbar like the ASU Libraries Toolbar which patrons can install for themselves. Its integrated search box  provides options to search Google, the library catalog, the library’s online subject research guides, Google Scholar, Electronic Journal titles and Worldcat. (Arizona State University, ASU Libraries, 2009)

Moreover, I shall advocate the activation of tagging in our Aleph primo search to garner contribution from our patrons, though I understand that there has to be some monitoring on that. Besides, I can also create tags in primo to help gather information for patrons engaged in special projects. (Bradley, 2007, p.90)

In addition, the library can use Flickr to create a virtual library tour or exhibition and publicise special library collections and events. Besides, we can use tools like SurveyMonkey to collect user opinion on library services. Furthermore, we can use social media like wiki for collaborative research projects among staff and students.

On the other hand, there are so many social networking tools that I think I have to continue to explore and learn to use them as an information professional of the 21^st century. To keep myself updated, I set up RSS feeds to websites like the Social Media section on Mashable, Technorati, LibraryTechTalk, Info Tyrannosaur, etc. and institutions like the American Theological Library Association and their journal, and libraries of other theological schools. I use Liszen to search for library and related blogs (Bradley, p.36), and tried to identify people and institutions I want to learn from, subscribe to their blog feeds and follow experts like David Lee King, Phil Bradley, Tim O’Reilly, John Battelle and other academics.

To manage information overload, I use Netvibes to organize the information from these sources. It also provide access to my Facebook, Twitter, Flickr and email account in one place.

To bookmark useful information I find online, I use Diigo which allows me to annotate and highlight documents, save and add tags to them for sharing and collaborating with colleagues for research and others interested in the same subject.

For my research, I would save searches in our discovery tool primo, on databases and search engines like Google for alerts. I can also share my cached saved search results with highlights & annotations for future reference and sharing with others in Diigo,

To conclude, I feel I need to learn more about how to safeguard one’s social media accounts in terms of privacy and easier and reliable ways of spam detection. When I become proficient in using social media, I can recommend its use in our library to improve our interaction with patrons and promote the engagement of our staff and students.

References

Arizona State University. ASU Libraries. The Library Channel. (2009, August 20). ASU Libraries Toolbar Now Available! Retrieved from https://lib.asu.edu/librarychannel/2009/08/20/toolbar .

Bradley, P. (2007). How to use Web 2.0 in your library. London : Facet.

Davis, I. (2005, July 4). Talis, Web 2.0 and All That [blog]. Retrieved from http://blog.iandavis.com/2005/07/04/talis-web-2-0-and-all-that/

King, D. L. (2014, February 14). Social Media Skills for Librarians [blog]. Retrieved from http://www.davidleeking.com/2014/02/13/social-media-skills-for-librarians/#.Uwc7DmKSySo

LaGarde, J., & Whitehead, T. (2012). Power up your professional learning. Knowledge Quest, 41(2), 8-13. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1174108104?accountid=10344

Partridge, H., Lee, J, and Munro, C. Becoming “Librarian 2.0”: The Skills, Knowledge, and Attributes Required by Library and Information Science Professionals in a Web 2.0 World (and Beyond). Library Trends, 59(1-2), 315-335.

Stephens, W. (2012). Amplify your professional knowledge through RSS. Knowledge Quest, 41(2), 26.