LIS 9763 was a wonderful whirlwind tour through social media. Through weekly platform additions I have gained at least 20 new passwords and a much larger digital footprint than I had thirteen weeks ago! I enjoyed learning about the various social media applications visited. The tasks and questions posed in weekly lessons were informative and provoked focused and thoughtful consideration of the technology from a library perspective. While I learned a great deal from each week’s lessons, three social media application stood out: cloud computing and libraries, libraries and on-line gaming, and social networking.
1) Cloud computing- I loved the vision and promise of World Cat online Catalogue, the gathering of data sets ( amazon, google, librarything, library opacs, etcetera) and innovative apps presented through a single user interface to create a very useful catalogue for the benefit of users and administrators. The tools and information afforded by the larger collective and cost and labour efficiencies for library budgets and administration were compelling. I am looking forward to the realization of this vision.
2) The on-line gaming lesson that introduced us to Twitch TV, on-line gaming platforms and the NYPL gaming site (providing gaming reference and advisor) was a revelation for me. I can see the enormous potential for the library to extend its reach through gaming. The genuine enthusiasm for the genre demonstrated the importance for gaming’s inclusion in libraries. The launch of a successful library gaming program requires the support of a library staff member with a specific interest and skill set.
3) The community building and community engagement potential of social networking was inspirational. I enjoyed learning about the specialized communities and networks facilitating connections between people of like mind and similar interests. Ravelry for knitters, Econs.com a social network site for the boomer crowd, and Disaboom a site for people with disabilities are examples of successful community building forces online. The social networking tools ought to be used by the library to engage, extend and participate in conversations with the community it serves.
The concepts and information presented in the course are essential for future librarians. The readings and assigned tasks shed light on the role of social media in changing the daily business of the library. The extraordinary adoption, growth and acceptance of social media by the community cannot be ignored by libraries and library administration. Each of the lessons in this course delivered a better understanding of the potential uses of social media, deepening my understanding of its role in public library service.
I look forward to applying the information delivered by this course.
clehnen 