Director's Doings

Thing #23 The End!

2008-02-11T15:09:00.000-08:00

Eureka! The knowledge that so many of you participated and made it through the program gave me a huge push to finish even though I will not participate in the laptop drawing. Thanks to everyone for their effort in getting through this. I'm so impressed by your energy and stick-to-it-ness and I'm fascinated by some of the cool things you learned and accomplished.

This program was challenging for me. I attend conferences and workshops on this stuff and read about it all the time, but I rarely make the time to actually try out some of the technologies. Humbling for sure, but extremely valuable and instructive in that it gives me new understanding and appreciation for all that library staff do as you, my colleagues, take some risks and try new things.

Thing #22 Pass It On

2008-02-11T15:06:00.000-08:00

A few days ago I was telling my husband about this self-paced program we were offering and he was really interested in some of the explorations I had accomplished. He was particularly interested in del.icio.us as a great way for his work group to share articles and information. I shared the 23 Things project with him so he could play with some of the technologies and he's starting to create some items in del.icio.us for his colleagues.

Thing #21Podcasts, Smodcasts

2008-02-11T15:03:00.000-08:00

It was eye opening to explore some of the directories. I mostly ended up in NPR sites and particularly enjoyed the News letter with Jim Lehrer and a discussion of why read by several authors. I also added a feed to my Bloglines account for some classical music.

Thing #20 YouTube

2008-02-11T14:25:00.000-08:00

YouTube is a great resource for travel sites. I spent some time getting excited about my trip to Cabo. While there is some quality stuff here, there is also some bad home movie stuff. Previously, I've seen a wide variety of library applications with some quite good. It certainly can be less expensive than using the Media Center if you are doing something short and quick. It might also be an alternative to some of the screencasts or it could be effective as a short introduction to library services. This is a very popular application among our students so they may enjoy a few YouTube creations on the library's website.

Thing #19 Best of the Web 2.0 Tools

2008-02-11T14:11:00.000-08:00

Owning a home, I like to look at real estate listings. When I checked the Short list, I found Zillow that I am very familiar with, but then I found 2 others I didn't know about. I spent some time in HousingMaps.com and searched for apartments where I grew up. It was fun to see what the prices were and then check Google maps for the exact locations. I found an apartment I used to pass every day on my walk to HS. It was fun to see the street names of my home and it made for some pleasant memories.

Thing #18 Web based Apps

2008-02-11T13:59:00.000-08:00

I first learned about Google Docs at a library workshop last spring. I was really excited about it when a faculty member told me how useful it was to her work with colleagues in Third World countries that don't have the resources to purchase MS Office. I use MS Word and track changes to share documents, but they really fill up my mailbox quickly. I can see how this could facilitate sharing documents and keep a neater mailbox.

Thing #17 PB wiki

2008-02-11T13:43:00.000-08:00

I added my link to my blog in the SandBox. After taking a look at some of the blogs, I can see how information can be shared quite easily and updated. The reference staff seems to be making good use of their wiki and I look forward to it being extended to other departments.

Thing #16 Wikis

2008-02-11T13:10:00.000-08:00

When looking at some of the wikis, I came across the sequel to Learning 2.0. I had seen the update many months ago but couldn't put my finger on it, so I was delighted to find it in a wiki. For those who might be interested, visit http://explorediscoverplay.blogspot.com/2007/02/adventure-continues.html for THings 24-49!

Princeton's wiki got me thinking about a book review wiki--perhaps focusing on our New Books and Popular Collection (including audiobooks). There's a faculty book club that might want to contribute reviews of their readings. I'm reading a book that a faculty member mentioned to another librarian as great and I'm enjoying it although I probably wouldn't have picked it up without her recommendation. Sometimes I pass the New Books area and a faculty member tells me that just read a particular title and really enjoyed it. You probably have had the same experience. I know many library staff are great readers. This might be a great way to create community and promote our resources.

Thing # 15 Library 2.0

2008-02-11T12:34:00.000-08:00

I read OCLC's NEXT all the time and particularly like their visionary articles. Library 2.0, etc. is bandied about all the time but it was good to see the differentiation between Library 1.0 and Library 4.0 in these articles and particularly in Wendy Schultz's article in http://www.oclc.org/nextspace/002/6.htm.
We are at the Librarians 2.0 stage and this is particularly timely after our staff retreat.

"Librarians 2.0 plans for their users. This librarian bases all planning and proposals for services, materials and outreach on user needs and wants. User-centered libraries breakdown barriers and allow users access wherever they are: home, work, commuting, school, or at the library. This involves users from the get go in planning and launching services based on their needs. This librarian asks what new technologies or new materials users need."

I found the comments on 3.0 interesting. I hadn't thought of us as being librarian superstars.

Library 3.0
"Who’s the best librarian avatar? How many Amazon stars has your avatar collected from satisfied customers? This could create librarian “superstars” based on buzz and customer ratings. People will collect librarians rather than books—the ability not just to organise, but also to annotate and compare books and other information sources, from a variety of useful perspectives."

And I haven't thought of the library as a "knowledge spa" as noted by Library 4.0.

Thing # 14 Technorati

2008-02-08T13:18:00.000-08:00

My mind is spinning from the amazing # of blogs out there. By using the Advanced Search, I found how to look for blog posts, tags and the blogs directory. The hits were quite different for each.

Thing # 13 Tagging

2008-02-08T11:21:00.000-08:00

I continued my Cabo theme and discovered many more interesting sites. The tag cloud is cool and the tags really pop out. I found the DNL report. The Web Committee uses del.icio.us for sharing materials. It keeps our mailboxes free from links and attached articles.

Thing #12 Rollyo

2008-02-07T14:03:00.000-08:00

I created an account and set up a searchroll for my upcoming vacation. http://rollyo.com/search.html?q=cabo+san+lucas&sid=10802

It pulled together so many sites that I wouldn't have thought of before I knew about this. I looked at several flickr sites and now I'm really looking forward to my trip after seeing the local sights chronicled by other tourists.

Thing #11 Library Thing

2008-02-07T13:24:00.000-08:00

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I created an account and set up a library of 6 titles. It was fun to see how many other people chose some of my titles. I was also interested in the display choices. I thought I was creating a widget and see the text code in my "compose" but it doesn't appear in my post.

http://www.librarything.com/catalog/jtoverfield. Here's the link to my library.

Thing #10

2008-02-07T08:53:00.000-08:00

You may recognize this as the daylight picture of the front of DNL. I used the warholizer http://bighugelabs.com/flickr/warholizer.php.

http://www.oreillymaker.com/link/12214/crabs-in-the-workplace/
I made a book cover in an image generator.

I also made some glitter signs at http://www.glitterizer.com/?allow=102306480&text=Library+Glitz&sparkle=americas-gold&color=coral&fontsize=40&font=Joy&moveh=&movew=

People are watching

2007-12-20T09:33:00.000-08:00

So many times we take what we do for granted and don't think about its impact. Some formal feedback arrives via evaluation forms for library workshops or classes and that is useful for assessment. The true gifts are those that come in casual conversations or unsolicited notes of appreciation like the 2 I just received about the Today@Fairfield posting Do Students Study for Exams. After yesterday's post about holiday reading and the new audio books, 3 immediately circulated (and not to library staff!). Each one of us can help to keep the library at the center of campus intellectual life by mentioning some of the great things going on here when chatting with others on campus--or beyond.

Thing #9 Feeds

2007-12-20T09:26:00.000-08:00

I used Topix.net to add a feed about Fairfield U news. It was easy to do and worked on my first attempt. I wanted to use feedster.com but it appears to be down for new improvements. Technorati was chock full of info and somewhat overwhelming.Syndic8 was so slow in responding that I gave up. Probably not a good site to search at the heavy traffic noon hour.

Thing #8 Blogs, RSS

2007-12-20T08:26:00.000-08:00

I looked at the suggested feeds and some are ones I am familiar with but I didn't know about the cartoons! I look at my Chronicle of HEd feed when I fall behind on the newspaper and want to be sure I didn't miss any pertinent news. I find checking my blog a hard habit to add to my daily routine. I use it more as a back up plan.

In the near future a new library home page will be launched and it will use an RSS feed from the DNL blog to populate the News section. This saves time by writing the news once on the blog and then having it automatically appear on the library's home page.

I am very pleased to read that 15 people are working on the 23 Things program. I'm so proud of each of you who are taking the risk of exploring new technologies.

Thing #7

2007-12-14T08:33:00.000-08:00

I find myself getting lost in some new applications! There are so many to explore that are very cool. Of course, I am particularly looking for applications to connect with library users and expand service areas. Some of the things I tried were pretty easy, while others were definitely vexing and it was good to work with a partner and figure it out together.

Exploring Mashups--Thing #6

2007-12-14T08:20:00.000-08:00

I looked over some popular mashups and chose Yahoo's My Trip for my upcoming ski trip to Park City Utah. I was able to make a trip and gather info, maps and photos from trips by others. This gave me info about nearby restaurants, attractions and a visual on the map for locations.

Grand Stair again--Thing #5

2007-12-14T07:47:00.001-08:00

This is grabbing a picture in Flickr by starting in Blogger. The picture is larger because in Settings it was set to medium. The other setting was set to small. I have to remember to check the settings when uploading a picture.

Choice cover

2007-12-14T07:40:00.001-08:00

Choice cover
Originally uploaded by Overfido

Here's my first attempt to select a public photo in Flickr and move it to my blog.

Social Events

2007-12-06T10:52:00.001-08:00

It's been a busy week for social activities. Last Thursday night I had dinner with the students who live in Gonzaga, a freshman dorm. Each year each dorm has a special dinner in the Oak Room and faculty and administrators are invited to join the students. Most tables had 2 of us and 6 students per table. I learned a lot about dorm life and student activities. I met one young woman who is on the Equestrian Team (there are 17 women). The stable is in New Canaan where they ride 2X/week and compete every Sunday. Fr. Doody, University Chaplain, is the resident Jesuit in GNZ and he told me about when he was a student and the library was in CNS.

I attended Professor Bolger's memorial mass at the Chapel on Monday. Afterwards the family greeted friends and we shared a meal in the Oak Room (more chicken!). The mass was a beautiful tribute to Bob and his 51 years teaching math. Many of the retired faculty turned out and I chatted with them over lunch. It was a great opportunity to speak with Prof. Walter Petry about his Sandinista collection that he would like to donate to the library to support the Latin America and Caribbean Studies program.

Tonight is Fr. von Arx's Holiday Party for President's Circle members and Trustees. It's a great opportunity to talk with some Trustees about the library and with several faculty and key administrators. Tasty hors d'oeuvres and no chicken!

Students and Finals

2007-12-06T08:05:00.000-08:00

There are some plans underway for the library to help students over the next few weeks as we enter the exam period.

The Outreach Committee is holding a Wii De-Stress event on the first Reading Day (12/13). Jackie is lending us her own Wii gaming system and students can relax and have some fun in the Multimedia Viewing Room 101.

Each night before an exam day the library will be open 24/7. Public Safety officers will staff a desk near the door closest to the Circulation Desk and check IDs when our usual staff leaves (1 a.m. - 7:30 a.m.) They will also be able to view the security monitor to scan the building and make sure that everyone is safe. Of course, computer lab 250 and the cafe are open 24/7 as usual. We tried this for the first time last spring and over 600 students took advantage of our extended hours.

Beginning Friday, Dec. 14, the library is offering free tea and coffee daily at 4 and 8 p.m. in the cafe. I worked with the food service contract administrator, who supports our efforts, and the food service is providing this for us at cost which is a huge help in budgeting.

I work with a representative from FUSA who sits on their Academic Senate and they asked for both the coffee and the 24/7 access again. They consider both to be extremely valuable to students. That's in line with grateful comments students made to library and Public Safety staff.

The 7.5 habits

2007-12-06T07:39:00.000-08:00

Of the 7 habits, I found #3 to be the easiest and #6 is the hardest for me. I have a lot of intellectual curiosity and love to turn what some may think is a problem into a challenge. I work from the position of "there must be a good solution for this" and challenge myself to explore various options to find a solution. I actually enjoy working with the library's budget (and Banner) and consider it a exciting challenge to provide the most resources and services with the funds we have available or can obtain.

Habit #6 or "using technology to your advantage" is a huge challenge. There are so many wonderful tech tools and applications available, that I find it hard to make the time and explore as much as I'd like. I am excited about offering this 23 Things program at the library, because it gives all of us a chance to play with some new technologies at our own pace and when we have time available.

What's in this blog?

2007-12-06T07:26:00.000-08:00

Wondering what a library director does all day (and some evenings)? I'll be blogging about some of the meetings and events I attend, new projects or service enhancements in the planning stages or underway, and some university or professional information I want to pass along to my library staff colleagues.