The Virtual Library Branch

I enjoyed delving into our library website and finding a lot of helpful information including board reports, book discussion websites, computer class listings and more! It was interesting to see other library websites and there are surely a lot of good ones out there. Featuring events on our homepage seems to be one way we really shine.

Downloading a book was relatively easy but I still prefer to read printed material. As far as what we can do to enhance our web presence I think that a blog or two might be of interest to our patrons. I look forward to all the new developements to our site.

Thank you 10 things team for designing a program where it was easy to learn and fun to do so!

Google Tools

I am amazed that Google has so many tools for the public to use. I looked at many of these services including groups, translate, alerts, blog search, book search, catalogs, page creator and calendar. Out of this list translate will be the most useful in my work as I can show computer class patrons how to view webpages in their native language. Also, after trying Google Docs I was pleasantly suprised to see it appear when looking at a slide presentation of a Tuesday Tech Talk. I will certainly continue to explore more of what Google has to offer!

Wikis

I have used Wikipedia to look up author's biographies for the past two years and find the information complete and reliable. Adding to the SPL wiki was easy and I can imagine how wiki's may be of use to us in the future. The idea of radical trust is certainly a concept worth thinking about furthur.

Podcasting

I listened to podcasts of the Cheshire Public Library and the Muskingum College Library. These were fun and informative. I also subscribed to a Start Cooking Video Podcast. I think that podcasting would be a very useful tool for the Skokie Public Library. Other libraries seem to be using them successfully and I think that we could as well. Teens might enjoy producing podcasts for their portion of the website. Podcasts of author visits, programs about technology and even tours of the library would also be interesting.

Social Bookmarking

I can see how social bookmarking on del.icio.us can be very useful for organizing websites. After posting my favorite wesite about barn dancing in Chicago I found that it had already been tagged by six other people! I visited their networks and found other interesting sites. I am not sure how this could be used by libraries but it will certainly be helpful to me.

Flickr

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Originally uploaded by theskokieten

I like finding photos on flickr and I can see how the library's photos could enhance it's Internet prescence. Tags such as computer classes, book discussions and programs would be useful.

Social Networking

Signing up for Facebook was easy and I find the site interesting and straightforward. I have added a co-worker as a friend and have found a former classmate that I will keep in touch with as well. With more experimentation I think that this will be a good way for me to keep in contact with people. It will certainly make me appreciate the ways that patrons, especially our younger patrons, connect while using the Internet.