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April 29, 2008
Meme: Passion Quilt
There is a very nice meme going through the blogosphere. It's called the Passion Quilt Meme.
The rules are simple:
3 Simple Meme Rules:
"1. Post a picture from a source like FlickrCC or Flickr Creative Commons or make/take your own that captures what YOU are most passionate about for kids to learn about...and give your picture a short title.
2. Title your blog post "Meme: Passion Quilt" and link back to this blog entry.
3. Include links to 5 folks in your professional learning network or whom you follow on Twitter/Pownce."
Here's mine:
I tag Steven Cohen, Jane Dysart, Rebecca Jones, Sarah Houghton-Jan and The Annoyed Librarian (grin)
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 10:42 AM | Comments (0)
April 28, 2008
Commoncraft: Explanations in Plain English
The Commoncraft videos are just the best. And you can use them internally under license through their website store.
Here's a list of what's there right now. Definitely worth subscribing to their blog and staying updated!
Social Media Six Pack
*NEW* Podcasting in Plain English
RSS in Plain English
Wikis in Plain English
Blogs in Plain English
Social Networking in Plain English
Social Bookmarking in Plain English
CFL Lightbulbs in Plain English
Photo Sharing in Plain English
Twitter in Plain English
Zombies in Plain English
Sometimes I think everyone knows about these great resources and then I find out I should have blogged it so that there's a simple link.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 2:24 PM | Comments (2)
Children's Book Podcasts
Given the important role of family reading and great children's books in a happy, healthy childhood, you may be happy to learn of the successful made-in-Canada Children's Book Podcast, Just One More Book ! -- a podcast about the children's books we love and why we love them, recorded in our favourite coffee shop. 345 plus podcast episodes later, it is worth checking out www.JustOneMoreBook.com
The price is right too, free.
"Just One More Book!" is a thrice-weekly podcast which promotes and celebrates literacy and great children's books. Each weekday morning, we take a few minutes out of our morning coffee ritual to discuss one of our many favourite children's books. We also feature weekly interviews with authors, illustrators and experts and enthusiasts in the areas of children's literature and literacy as well as listener-submitted book reviews.
Through this podcast and website, we are building a lively, interactive community linking children's book authors, illustrators, readers (parents, children, librarians, teachers and literacy activists) and publishers.
Busy parents and educators can now discover great read-aloud children's books while they are busy doing the many tasks that would otherwise rob them of the opportunity to research great children's books in more traditional ways.
Our guests have included celebrity authors such as Sheree Fitch, Rachna Gilmore, Jack Prelutsky, Daniel Pinkwater, Eve Bunting, Eva Ibbotson, Henry Winkler and Mary Ann Hoberman. We have also aimed the spotlight at interesting and lesser known and illustrators.
Episodes range in length from 5 to 25 minutes and can be played directly from our web page or downloaded to a portable mp3 player, such as an iPod, for listening on the go.
This podcast is powered by passion. We have no advertisers or sponsors. Our goals are to link children with great books and to help create happy memories for children and the adults that read to them…and to have fun!
The Just One More Book! Podcast has been recommended by the American Library Association as one of its 2007 American Library Association (ALA) - Great web sites for kids and has been featured in Canadian Living Magazine and such prestigious literary publications as School Library Journal, Books for Keeps and Publishers Weekly. We are also regular contributors to ChildsLife, The Edge of the Forest and Parent Source online newsletters. Watch for us this spring in Parenting and Canadian Parents magazines.
--
www.JustOneMoreBook.com
"A podcast about the children's books we love and why we love them -- recorded in our favourite coffee shop" "
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 2:17 PM | Comments (2)
Who blogs?
Picked up from the OCLC newsletter.
BIGresearch’s SIMM 11 Profiles Bloggers: They are Younger and
Higher Percentages are Hispanic & African American Than the General Population
More Democrats Than Republicans are Blogging, but Libertarians are #1 and Bloggers More Likely to Give Advice
COLUMBUS, OH – (MARKET WIRE) – 2/12/08 – The art of blogging is no longer reserved for the college student with too much to say or the unemployed, self proclaimed “computer-nerd,” according to BIGresearch’s (http://www.bigresearch.com) most recent Simultaneous Media Survey (SIMM 11) of 15,727 participants. 26% of all adults say they regularly or occasionally blog. Of those, 53.7% are male and almost half (44.7%) are married. 28.4% hold a professional or managerial position, while only one in 10 (10.4%) are students.
Bloggers tend to be younger, averaging 37.6 years old, compared to 44.8 for adults 18+. Ethnically, 69.7% of Bloggers are White/Caucasian (vs. 76.1%), 12.2% are African American/Black (vs. 11.4%) and 3.7% are Asian (vs. 2.0%). 20% of Bloggers are Hispanic, compared to 14.8% of adults 18+. In addition, Bloggers report a lower income ($55,819 vs. $56,811) and are better educated (14.3 years of education vs. 14.2).
In the blogosphere, political blogs are becoming increasingly common, especially in an election year. 24.6% of registered voters say they regularly or occasionally blog. 37.6% of Libertarians regularly/occasionally blog, followed by Democrats (26.9%), Independents (25.7%) and Republicans (22.9%).
“Bloggers are a diverse group and not who you would expect,” said Gary Drenik, President of BIGresearch. “This diversity provides political Bloggers with a forum to discuss issues or maybe be influenced by others, while Candidates have an opportunity to reach interested voters.”
Another point of interest from the analysis of the Blogger shows that they are using most forms of new media significantly more than the average market.
Regular/Occasional New Media Usage (Top 5)
Regular/Occasional Bloggers Adults18+
Cell Phone 93.0% 87.5%
Instant Messaging 75.3% 49.3%
Download/Access Video/TV Content 72.2% 45.0%
Video Gaming 66.9% 47.5%
Text Messaging 65.5% 45.2%
Source: BIGresearch SIMM 11, Jan 08, N=15,727
More Bloggers regularly seek advice from others before purchasing products or services (21.3% vs. 16.8% of adults 18+). They are also more likely to give advice with 38.3% saying they regularly give advice about products / services they have purchased (compared to 29.4% of adults 18+).
Although Bloggers are more likely to use new media, the analysis finds that more conventional forms of media trigger their Internet searches. Magazines, at 51.6%, rank highest; followed by reading an article (48.8%), broadcast TV (46.1%), cable TV (44.5%), face-to-face communication (42.5%) and the newspaper (39.7%).
To receive a recap of the key findings, click http://info.bigresearch.com/.
About BIGresearch
BIGresearch is a consumer intelligence firm providing solution-based insights of consumer behavior, present and future, in areas of products and services, retail, financial services, automotive and media. BIGresearch conducts the Simultaneous Media Survey (SIMM) bi-annually and the Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey (CIA) monthly. More information is available at http://www.bigresearch.com.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Contact:
Chrissy Wissinger
BIGresearch
450 West Wilson Bridge Road
Suite 370
Worthington, Ohio 43085
(614) 846-0146
chrissy@bigresearch.com
Posted by stephen at 2:11 PM | Comments (0)
The Top 100 Lamest Excuses for Not Innovating
This post from Mitch Ditkoff at the Heart of innovation blog posts his list of The Top 100 Lamest Excuses for Not Innovating.
You might recognize a few if you review the list! I often talk in my speeches about the difference between an excuse and a reason. Mitch's process for moving beyond excuses is at the end of the post and here:
"1. Make a list of your three most bothersome excuses.
2. Turn each excuse into a powerful question, starting with the words "How can I?" or "How can we?" (For example, if your excuse is "That's R&D's job," you might ask "How can I make innovation my job?" or "How can I help my team take more responsibility for innovating?"
3. Brainstorm each question -- alone and with your team."
It was a cathartic process for me to review the list!
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 1:23 PM | Comments (0)
Web 2.0 Tools for Teachers and Teacher-Librarians
This is a cool site for all you K-12 folks out there:
"This wiki was created for school library media specialists by Dr. Donna Baumbach and Dr. Judy Lee, University of Central Florida. The purpose is to provide information about some of the new web-based tools (Web 2.0) and how they can be used and are being used by school library media specialists and their students and teachers. Much of the information--including identifying a need for this kind of information--is the result of a survey conducted in 2008 of over 600 school library media specialists about their knowledge and use of web-based tools in library media programs.
Because WebTools4U2Use is a wiki, you can add information to any page. We encourage you to do so! Add or edit anything that you think will help other library media specialists learn more about Web 2.0 tools and use them creatively and productively in their programs. We've also created special pages for each category of tool so you can share other tools or show others how you and your colleagues are using the tools in your programs, or you can use the "discussion" link at the top of any page."
The headings include:
Audio & Podcasting
Blogs
Calendars, Task Management, & ToDo Lists
Drawing
Photo & Photo Sharing
Portal & WebPage starting tools
Presentation Tools
Quiz & Polling tools
RSS & Aggregators
Social Bookmarking
Social Networks
etc.
Another useful and collaborative tool for encouraging web 2.0 stuff in the classroom and learning. It even includes a few downloadable flyers to promote the wiki.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 12:34 PM | Comments (1)
New Hitwise & Morgan Stanley Social Networking Reports
Sometimes I find it useful to see what other sectors are thinking about something I'm interested in studying. So, here are two things about social networking - one from the perspective of advertising and marketing and one from an investment perspective.
ONE: Hitwise
Hitwise US Social Networking ReportMarch 2008
Driving Opportunities Through Participatory Marketing [16 page PDF]
by Heather Hopkins, Hitwise UK Analyst, Hitwise Asia Pacific
Heather Dougherty, Director of Research, Hitwise
Marc Fanelli, SVP, Decision Sciences, Experian Marketing Services
Contents
Introduction
The Social Networking Landscape
- What are social networks?
- The growth of social networks
The Social Networking Audience
The Impact of Social Networking
- Taking Advantage of Social Networks
Key Findings from Behavioral Trends
Social Media Marketing in 2008
- Increased social media diversifi cation
- The emergence of the ‘super’ brand advocate
- Using a value scorecard to direct social media spend
About Hitwise
About Experian
About the Authors
TWO: Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley’s March Internet Trends Report: Social Applications Dominating (From TechCrunch)
"Key takeaways:
YouTube + Facebook page views > Google or Yahoo page views (and may be bigger than both combined)
6/10 top internet sites are social (youtube, live.com, facebook, hi5, wikipedia, orkut); none were on the list in 2005
YouTube has 258 million users, 50% visit weekly or more
>50% of Facebook users log in daily, 95% of Facebook users have used at least one third party application
Skype revenue is $1.67/user/year, up 9% Y/Y
14 million photos uploaded daily on Facebook
Google + Yahoo = 61% of U.S. Online Ad Revenue
Google: $4.4b ad revenue in Q4, paid out $1.4 billion to partners
Yahoo: $1.6 billion in ad revenue in Q4, paid out $429 million to partners "
Hey, we don't live in a vacuum!
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 12:19 PM | Comments (0)
10 Most Disruptive Technologies
Jane Dysart's blog reports on an IT World Canada article on the 10 Most Disruptive Technologies.
10. DVD’s + Entertainment on Demand
9. YouTube + Cheap Digital Cameras & Camcorders
8. Open Source + Web Tools
7. MP3 + Napster
6. Blogs + Google Ads
5. Cheap Storage + Portable Memory
4. Cloud Computing + Always-on Devices
3. Broadband + Wireless Networks
2. The Web + Graphical Browsers
1. Cell Phones + Wireless Internet Access
Interesting list. Read the whole article and post for more.
Now, how so we disrupt DRM, spam, blog spam, splogs, mobile spam, spim, viruses, popup ads, video ads on blogs, pop-unders, pollution, global warming, evil, any more?
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 12:09 PM | Comments (0)
Top 100 Tools for e-Learning
This is an annual thing that Jane's E-Learning Pick of The Day facilitates. It's a great thing too.
The free Summary PDF is now available to download:
Top 100 Tools Spring 2008 Summary PDF [15 pages]
Table of Contents
About the Top 100 Tools for Learning activity
Top 100 Tools for Learning Spring 2008
A Core Toolset for Learning 2008
25 Tools: A Free Toolset for Learning 2008
A very useful and current list. Also, remember thatlearning isn't just eductaion. Learning is the only way information becomes knowledge, so these tools apply very broadly.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 12:03 PM | Comments (0)
April 24, 2008
China now has most Internet users
Thu Apr 24, 6:17 AM ET
China becomes world's largest Internet population
"BEIJING (Reuters) - China has surpassed the United States to become the world's largest Internet-using population, reaching 221 million by the end of February, state media said on Thursday."
It's still just raw numbers larger and not in terms of penetration to the household, but . . . it is enough to change the web as we know it. I think wathcing the Olympics in Beijing this summer will tell us a lot about the direction the Internet and Web are moving in.
There, see, I just justified watching the 2008 Summer Olympics on TV as research!
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 12:27 PM | Comments (0)
New Pew Report on Teens and Writing Released Today
Teens do not consider a lot of their electronic texts as writing
"They see considerable benefits to using technology in their school and non-school writing and say they would welcome even more writing instruction
4/24/2008 | Release
View the free report "Writing, Technology and Teens" [PDF] here.
WASHINGTON – The state of writing among teens today is marked by an interesting paradox: While teens are heavily embedded in a tech-rich world and craft a significant amount of electronic text, they see a fundamental distinction between their electronic social communications and the more formal writing they do for school or for personal reasons.
- 87% of youth ages 12-17 engage at least occasionally in some form of electronic personal communication, which includes text messaging, sending email or instant messages, or posting comments on social networking sites.
- 60% of teens do not think of these electronic texts as "writing."
Teens are utilitarian in their approach to technology and writing, using both computers and longhand depending on circumstances. Their use of computers for school and personal writing is often tied to the convenience of being able to edit easily. And while they do not think their use of computers or their text-based communications with friends influences their formal writing, many do admit that the informal styles that characterize their e-communications do occasionally bleed into their schoolwork.
- 57% of teens say they revise and edit more when they write using a computer.
- 63% of teens say using computers to write makes no difference in the quality of the writing they produce.
- 73% of teens say their personal electronic communications (email, IM, text messaging) have no impact on the writing they do for school, and 77% said they have no impact on the writing they do for themselves.
- 64% of teens admit that they incorporate, often accidentally, at least some informal writing styles used in personal electronic communication into their writing for school. (Some 25% have used emoticons in their school writing; 50% have used informal punctuation and grammar; 38% have used text shortcuts such as "LOL" meaning "laugh out loud.")
All of this matters more than ever because teenagers and their parents uniformly believe that good writing is a bedrock for future success. Eight in ten parents believe that good writing skills are more important now than they were 20 years ago, and 86% of teens believe that good writing ability is an important component of guaranteeing success later in life.
Recognizing this, 82% of teens say they think their writing would improve if teachers had them spend more class time doing writing. Blacks and those from lower-income households are the most ardent believers in the importance of writing and in the likely payoff of more class time devoted to it.
These are among the key findings in a national phone survey of 700 youth ages 12-17 and their parents conducted by the Pew Internet & American Life Project and the National Commission on Writing. The survey was completed in mid-November and has a margin of error of plus or minus 5 percentage points. The report also contains findings from eight focus groups in four U.S. cities conducted in the summer of 2007.
"There is a raging national debate about the state of writing and how high-tech communication by teens might be affecting their ability to think and write," noted Amanda Lenhart, a senior research specialist at Pew who co-authored a report on the findings titled Writing, Technology and Teens. "Those on both sides of the issue will see supporting data here. There is clearly a big gap in the minds of teenagers between the 'real' writing they do for school and the texts they compose for their friends. Yet, it is also clear that writing holds a central place in the lives of teens and in their vision about the skills they need for the future."
Adds Richard Sterling, chair of the advisory board for the National Commission on Writing, executive director emeritus of the National Writing Project and senior fellow at the College Board: "We think these findings point to a critical strategy question for all educators: How can we connect the enthusiasm of young people for informal, technology-based writing with classroom experiences that illuminate the power of well-organized, well-reasoned writing?"
This survey finds that, apart from their text-based electronic communications, teens write with some frequency inside and outside of the school environment. All teens do at least some writing for school, and 93% write for themselves outside of school at least on occasion.
Writing is a common activity within the school environment, as 50% of teens say that they write something for school every day. However, most writing assignments are short: 82% of teens say their typical writing assignment is a paragraph to one page in length.
Beyond using technology to facilitate their writing, teens also use the internet to research their school writing projects; 94% of teens use the internet at least occasionally to do research for their school assignments. Nearly half (48%) of teens say they use the internet to research something for school once a week or more often.
In our focus groups, teens outlined what motivates and inspires them to write. They appreciated the opportunity to choose topics relevant to their own lives and experiences, and the chance to write for teachers and other adults who challenge them. Teens feel encouraged by opportunities to write creatively, and spoke of the motivation of having an audience for their work.
"Today's teens know that writing is important, and know that they need to learn the skills to write well to ensure a productive future for themselves," said Sousan Arafeh, of Research Images, and head of the focus group project. "Teens understand that learning to write well is a growth process, even if sometimes it feels like the educational equivalent of 'eating your vegetables.'"
About The Pew Internet Project: The Project is an initiative of the Pew Research Center, a nonprofit "fact tank" that provides information on the issues, attitudes and trends shaping America and the world. Pew Internet explores the impact of the internet on children, families, communities, the work place, schools, health care and civic/political life. The Project is nonpartisan and takes no position on policy issues. Support for the project is provided by The Pew Charitable Trusts. The Project's Web site: http://www.pewinternet.org
About the National Commission on Writing for America’s Families, Schools and Colleges: In an effort to focus national attention on the teaching and learning of writing, the College Board established the National Commission on Writing for America's Families, Schools, and Colleges in September 2002. The decision to create the Commission was animated in part by the Board's plans to offer a writing assessment in 2005 as part of the new SAT®, but the larger motivation lay in the growing concern within the education, business, and policy-making communities that the level of writing in the United States is not what it should be."
As always, the Pew gives us interesting gifts.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 12:04 PM | Comments (0)
April 23, 2008
7 Things You Should Know About . . .
I think everyone probably knows about these cool free reports from Educause, but just in case, I thought I'd make a list to see if there's anything we might have missed:
7 Things You Should Know About...
"The EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative's (ELI's) "7 Things You Should Know About..." series provides concise information on emerging learning technologies and related practices - these pieces provide quick, no-jargon overviews of emerging technologies and related practices that have demonstrated or may demonstrate positive learning impacts.. Each brief focuses on a single technology or practice and describes:
What it is
How it works
Where it is going
Why it matters to teaching and learning"
Ning, April 2008
Google Apps, March 2008
Flickr, February 2008
Lulu, January 2008
Skype, December 2007
Citizen Journalism, November 2007
Data Visualization, October 2007
Haptics, September 2007
Cyberinfrastructure, August 2007
Twitter, July 2007
Wikipedia, June 2007
Facebook II, May 2007
RSS, April 2007
Creative Commons, March 2007
Open Journaling, February 2007
Digital Storytelling, January 2007
E-Books, November 2006
Google Earth, October 2006
YouTube, September 2006
Facebook, August 2006
Mapping Mashups, July 2006
Virtual Worlds, June 2006
Google Jockeying, May 2006
Remote Instrumentation, April 2006
Screencasting, March 2006
Virtual Meetings, February 2006
Grid Computing, January 2006
Collaborative Editing, December 2005
Instant Messaging, November 2005
Augmented Reality, September 2005
Blogs, August 2005
Video Blogging, August 2005
Wikis, July 2005
Podcasting, June 2005
Clickers, May 2005
Social Bookmarking, May 2005
Get the full PDF reports here.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 10:56 PM | Comments (0)
April 22, 2008
Australian Innovation
I am really looking forward to a trip to Australia in September for ALIA as well as side trips to some major cities and Tasmania before heading to New Zealand.
After previous trips and ever since I discovered Inside a Dog I've watched some great innovations taking place in Australian libaries. The latest is this one:
The State Library of Victoria has just launched a new information literacy and resources site for secondary students and teachers.
http://www.slv.vic.gov.au/ergo
The site includes:
- easy to follow guides to research, essay writing and study skills
- over 500 digitised resources from the State Library's collections
- worked examples available at point of need, illustrating bias in primary sources, how to
understand an essay question and much more
- video interviews with prominent authors, historians and artists including Helen Garner and
Nobel Laureate, Peter Doherty
- teacher and student resources with a focus on critical literacy and thinking processes
For information about professional development programs, email ergo@slv.vic.gov.au
Some good feedback from teachers, such as:
"This site is fantastic - I have taught across many areas and in many different contexts and see uses for this site in all of them! Thanks for creating a humanities based resouce that is skills rich not just content driven. I admire all the work that has gone into this. Congratulations!"
And if you don't recall Inside a Dog:
This is a website for young people about books. Here you can:
read and write reviews
meet our online author-in-residence
win stuff
preview upcoming titles
read interviews with authors
keep up to date with all the latest bookish news
listen to podcasts and audio Chapter Ones
talk about books on the forum
Inside a Dog has had over 650,000 visits by the end of March 2008. Cool. It's some great State Library innovation.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:05 PM | Comments (0)
Happy Earth Day
I am rather happy to be involved in this initiative at SLA. We're also going greener at the conference and headquarters. Getting better every year at saving more than trees.
Stephen
Contact:
Cara Schatz
P : 703.647.4917
cara@sla.org
SLA Announces Citation to Honor “Knowledge to Go Green” Champions
President Abram Seeks to Reward SLA Members and Units that Embody
Environmentally Sound Principles in Day-to-Day Work
Alexandria, Virginia, 22 April, Earth Day, 2008 – In recognition of Earth Day, Special Libraries Association (SLA) President Stephen Abram today announced that he is accepting nominations for a special Presidential Citation honoring SLA “Knowledge to Go Green” Champions. Recipients will be announced at the SLA Leadership Summit in January 2009 to mark the inaugural year of SLA’s Knowledge to Go Green initiative.
Abram will accept nominations from individual SLA members as well as SLA Units (chapters, divisions, caucuses, committees and councils) that have implemented green policies, or made significant changes to the manner in which business is conducted, with an eye toward reducing the impact on the environment.
The deadline to apply or nominate for the Green Champion presidential citation is 15 November 2008.
“The SLA Knowledge to Go Green initiative at the association level is a first step, but in order to make a bigger difference we need to truly embrace and apply a green philosophy at the chapter, division and personal level. The implementation of greener practices is unbelievably important for the future of the planet, but also for the profession and the association,” said Abram. “Making an impact with this initiative requires innovation, dedication, and willingness to change from each and every one of us. I created this citation because I want to reward those members and leaders who embody the Knowledge to Go Green mentality and have put a priority on greening the way they work, live, learn, and play. We all have it in us to change and become Green Champions, and I seek to recognize those inspirational early adapters already making a difference,” said Abram.
Abram is asking for nominations in two categories for the Knowledge to Go Green Champion Citation:
SLA Members: Green Champion citations will be awarded to individual(s) that have applied green principles and made changes to the way they do their work on a day to day basis. Applicants should be able to demonstrate the introduction of new green policies, education programs or major changes within their library or at their place of employment.
SLA Units: Green Champion citations will be awarded to SLA Unit(s) that have applied green principles to the manner in which SLA events and programs are conducted. Applicants should be able to demonstrate considerable changes to the way in which SLA meetings, communications, promotions or annual conference programs are conducted at the chapter, division, or caucus level.
In January 2008 the SLA Board of Directors implemented a new policy for the nomination and awarding of SLA Presidential Citations. In past years the presidential citations followed the same schedule as other association level-awards, with a brief nomination cycle at the end of the calendar year. The new policy allows the president to accept nominations and reward exceptional service to the association year-round. Citations are granted at the pleasure of the current SLA president for whatever reason they deem worthy of recognition. The Green Champion Citation is a special category created by Abram in recognition of the association’s commitment to green practices through the Knowledge to Go Green initiative.
Members can submit nominations for the presidential citations, including the Green Champion Citation, via the form found on the SLA Web site awards page here: http://www.sla.org/content/SLA/awardsrecognition/index.cfm
About SLA
The Special Libraries Association (SLA) is a nonprofit global organization for innovative information professionals and their strategic partners. SLA serves more than 11,000 members in 65 countries in the information profession, including corporate, academic, and government information specialists. SLA promotes and strengthens its members through learning, advocacy, and networking initiatives. For more information, visit us on the Web at www.sla.org
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Posted by stephen at 4:01 PM | Comments (0)
April 21, 2008
5 Ways to Establish Yourself as an Expert
I like this blog posting over at the Newly Corporate blog. (A pretty neat blog for new professionals of any type)
5 Ways to Establish Yourself as an Expert
He lists and discusses 5 ways to get your name out there as an expert:
1. Provide answers.
2. Get published.
3. Get a patent.
4. Print it and hang it on the wall.
5. Learn the market.
Looks easy enough for any librarian and number one is a slam dunk!
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 11:52 AM | Comments (0)
Libraries in Facebook
Check out this posting in RSS4Lib blog.
OK, I'll wait.
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There, interesting eh?
I think it shows that libraries do deserve to play, invite and be aware of trends inside social networking tools. We don't know the right answer(s) yet but we can't afford to ignore the space.
Anyway, I saw the above at the same time as this little survey from Portals and KM.
"89% have access to Facebook at school or work
44% are on Facebook several times a day
81% also belong to LinkedIn, 53% are on You Tube, and 41% are on MySpace
91% use a real photo of themselves
90% mix personal and professional contacts and 17% have more than 100 Facebook friends.
77% have use Facebook for business relationships
80% were professional of some type and not students"
It's biased but still shows that Facebook is heading beyond students fast. I think that you might find takinig the survey educational. I was surprised that I am so open on Facebook. Try it here. You can be anonymous and check out the results on the fly at the end.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 11:21 AM | Comments (0)
All Search Engines Up
SearchEnginesWatch reports that comScore released their March 2008 Search Engine Rankings
Of course, Google continues to dominate "search". Most of the time we see market share numbers whihc tend to make it look like the other seach engines are shrinking. Of course they aren't. Here's the growth:
Google – 6.4 billion, 10% increase
Yahoo – 2.3 billion, 7% increase
MSN – 1 billion, 6% increase
AOL – 521 million, 7% increase
Ask – 503 million, 12% increase
No start counting up in your head what the post merger, cross licensed world will look like soon. Then imagine the ad world when it is domoinated by ads in the cloud.
I'll bet that if we could aggregate the total number of searches done on library sites of all types we'd see better growth and higher growth. A third way!
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 11:16 AM | Comments (0)
State by State Home Internet Usage
The Pew has posted some links to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) recently released new state-by-state home internet usage figures based on the Census Bureau's October 2007 Current Population Survey.
I hear a great deal of interest in this kind of data. So now you can see how your state stacks up with the rest of the country. Just remember that this is 'home' internet usage. In order to get the big picture, recall that people also may have access to the internet at work, school, their club or the library.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 11:05 AM | Comments (0)
Zotero Whitepaper
Ellyssa points to a great whitepaper on one of my favourite 2.0 type services. I have spoken about my opinion that Zotero, the scrapbooking or citation management tool, should be taught in every higher ed information literacy class. If everyone used something like this they'd have proof of their research path and easy access to their electronic footnotes etc.
To learn more about Zotero, visit their website or read the new whitepaper, 7 Things You Need to Know About Zotero.
"Zotero (http://www.zotero.org/) is a Firefox plug-in which allows users to capture and record bibliographic information about Web pages, images, and online journal articles, and export them as both a formatted bibliography or a text file suitable for EndNote import. Unlike other bibliographic tools, Zotero can extract key metadata from Web pages and insert them into citations. Zotero has also been developing plug-ins for additional applications such as Microsoft Word and OpenOffice."
As Martha Stewart says, "It's a good thing."
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 10:44 AM | Comments (0)
April 16, 2008
Executive Track Results
The folks who particicipated in the SirsiDynix SuperConference Executive Track round table discussions have asked for the PPT's of their summaries. Here they are. If you weren't there they'll be a bit out of context. Be sure to attend next year!
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 7:12 PM | Comments (0)
April 15, 2008
Another "Did you know . . ." video
This is another fantastic "Did you know . . ." video that is aimed at Teachers. You can view it on TeacherTube here. It is called:
It runs about 7.5 minutes.
Apparently students are recommending this video to their teachers...
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 6:17 PM | Comments (0)
ALA releases The State of America's Libraries
Here's a major report released April 14, 2008 ready to be distributed and digested. It covers school, public and academic libraries. Highlights are in the executive summary but do go download the full report. The price is right.
Stephen
The State of America's Libraries
Executive Summary
"Libraries are engines of learning, literacy, and economic development
Libraries of all kinds continue to play an expanding role in American communities, serving the needs of patrons of all ages and reaching out to those who have been underserved. In this Report on the State of America’s Libraries 2008, the American Library Association finds that:
School library media centers were in the public eye, but even as their value was ever more widely acknowledged, funding for them continued to lag — and people organized to win support for them.
Americans acknowledged the proven connection between school library media centers and the kind of education that is essential to success in a global society. Studies in 19 states have shown that a strong school library media program helps students learn more and score higher on standardized tests than peers in schools without such programs.1 And it’s clear that students themselves understand this: They make 1.5 billion visits to school library media centers each year, according to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES).
For the first time ever, funding for school libraries and the school library media specialists who staff them is declining. Nationally, library expenditures per pupil decreased to $13.67 in 2003-2004 from $19.14 in 1999-2000, a drop of almost 30 percent, according to the NCES. They have since dropped to $11.24, according to a 2007 survey.
In Washington state, where only about half the school library media centers have a full-time paid teacher librarian,2 three determined Spokane mothers led a year-long grassroots campaign to secure state funding for school libraries, which currently are funded locally. As the nation’s library officials and legislators watched, the campaign held an all-day summit conference and rally on Feb. 1, 2008, in the state capital. Due in part to their efforts, the state legislature has passed a bill that would institute state funding for school libraries.
Libraries and their supporters rallied behind the Strengthening Kids’ Interest in Learning and Libraries (SKILLs) Act, introduced in both houses of Congress as a part of the reauthorization of No Child Left Behind. The SKILLs Act stipulates that every school must have a school library staffed by a state-certified school library media specialist.
The library community also sharpened its focus in 2007 on outreach to underserved and/or isolated populations. A study conducted for the ALA Office for Research & Statistics showed, among other things, that:
Spanish is far and away the most supported non-English language in U.S. public libraries.
The majority of libraries serving non-English speakers are in communities with fewer than 100,000 residents.
Literacy and lack of knowledge of library services are significant barriers for non-English speakers.
Seventy-eight percent of the survey respondents said Spanish was the top-priority non-English language to which they devote services and programs, followed by Asian languages at 29 percent. The ALA Office for Literacy and Outreach Services, Office for Diversity, Public Programs Office, and Public Information Office will use the study data to develop advocacy and training tools for librarians.
Other noteworthy trends in 2007 included:
Americans continue to check out more than 2 billion items each year from their public libraries, and more and more people make use of libraries’ educational and social resources. The average user takes out seven-plus books a year, but patrons also go to their libraries to borrow DVDs, learn new computer skills, conduct job searches, and participate in the activities of local community organizations. Average bill to the taxpayer for this remarkable range of public services: $31 a year, about the cost of one hardcover book.
New studies also offered more detailed data on public libraries as engines of economic growth, highlighting ways in which library programming in early literacy, employment services, and small-business development contributes to local economic development in urban areas. Other studies show that libraries provide an excellent return on investment, have a measurable positive impact on the local economy, and contribute to the stability, safety, and quality of life of their neighborhoods.
Teenagers — far from confining themselves to their school library media centers — are also regular users of public library services. Almost all the nation’s public libraries now offer programs tailored to the needs and interests of young adults, and more than half employ at least one full-time staff equivalent in this area, a sharp increase in the past decade.
Computer and online games have become part of the mix at many public libraries, and some use gaming to attract new patrons. “Libraries’ response to gaming is just another indication that the profession is alert to the needs and desires of its patrons and is aware of the ways in which this interest interconnects with more traditional services, now and in the future,” said ALA President Loriene Roy.
Going to the library is more and more often a virtual outing rather than an actual visit, and growing patron enthusiasm for the computer and Internet services offered by public libraries has stretched existing Internet bandwidth, computer availability, and building infrastructure to capacity. Budgets have not kept up with demand, and many libraries cannot provide enough computers or fast-enough connection speeds to meet patron needs.
E-books continued to emerge as a regular feature of libraries of all types, and the world tried to figure out ways to read them on something handier than a PC or a notebook. Amazon’s pricey Kindle, launched in November, had mixed reviews — and strong sales.
Construction and renovation of libraries not only kept pace with their evolving and expanding needs but provided many structures that are both functional and beautiful.6
Library supporters won an important victory in 2007 when the president signed a bill ordering the Environmental Protection Agency to re-open many of the libraries it had closed in the past year. EPA administrators had said that online functions met the information needs of agency staff, researchers, and the public, but scientists, librarians, EPA staff, and, ultimately, Congress did not agree.
In another important victory, librarians were instrumental in seeing the National Institutes of Health Public Access Policy become mandatory through Congressional action in late December. Taxpayers invest $28 billion annually in the NIH to fund a wide variety of research in health, scientific, and other fields, resulting in more than 60,000 peer-reviewed articles per year. Now, wide, rapid, and easy access to the results of this research will help everyone in community college, college, and university libraries who wishes to apply it or build on it, advancing research and serving the public good.
College and research libraries continue to play a central role in the life of their institutions and to find innovative new ways to meet the rapidly evolving needs of the academy. Academic librarians see an opportunity to serve the emerging and unmet needs of students and faculty that arise in the changing environment of higher education. All types and sizes of academic libraries are major players in the design of economic and efficient business models in support of new educational initiatives such as hybrid classes, community-based partnerships, support for distributed learning, and creation of digital destinations in support of using social networking in the academy.
Finally, libraries and librarians of all stripes continue to stand up for the First Amendment rights of all Americans, responding in public discourse and in court to unconstitutional snooping and aspiring book-banners. The right to read — freely and in private — remains a core value of the profession.
This report presents some of the highlights of 2007 and a summary of where we stand in 2008 as stewards of a venerable and vital American institution — the library."
Check out the State of America's Libraries report at
http://www.ala.org/ala/pio/presscentera/piopresskits/2008statereport/2008statehome.cfm
Posted by stephen at 4:51 PM | Comments (0)
Children Flock to Social Networks
Phil Bradley points to a very interesting article from the BBC.
Children flock to social networks
By Darren Waters, Technology editor, BBC News website
Phil has some nice highlights at his post. I found these interesting:
"More than a quarter of eight to 11-year-olds who are online in the UK have a profile on a social network"
"Most sites, such as Bebo, MySpace and Facebook, set a minimum age of between 13 and 14 to create a profile but none actively enforce the age limit."
"Ofcom's survey of 5,000 adults and 3,000 children found 49% of those aged between eight and 17 have a profile."
Ofcom research shows:
"49% of children 8-17 have an online profile
22% of 16+ have an online profile
On average adults have profiles on 1.6 sites
63% of 8 to 17-year-olds with a profile use Bebo
37% of 8 to 17-year-olds with profile use MySpace
18% of 8 to 17-year-olds with a profile use Facebook
59% of 8 to 17-year-olds use social networks to make new friends
16% of parents do not know if their child's profile is visible to all
33% of parents say they set no rules for their children's use of social networks
43% of children say their parents set no rules for use of social networks
"Forty-one per cent of children had set their profile so that it was visible to anyone, according to the report. But 16% of parents admitted they did not know if their child's profile could be seen or not by strangers."
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/technology/7325019.stm
I expect that there are similar trends in North America. The prevalance of WebKinz and Club Penguin among youngsters I know is high. Either way, it is evidence of an opportunity for libraries of all stripes to participate in the teaching of presence management and information literacy skills.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:40 PM | Comments (0)
SirsiDynix SuperConference Executive Track
I also got to open the SirsiDynix SuperConference Executive Track with the theme "Open Libraries". This year we explored what it means to be truly open to ideas, our communities, to learning, and more. Here are my slides:
The SirsiDynix SuperConference Executive Track is one of my favourite things to do every year with my colleagues. This year we had amazing presentations from Lee Rainie, Deb Jacobs, Terri Fredericka, Lesley Boughton, and SD executives. We also had some great discussions about new and improved strategies.
I can hardly wait until we do it up even bigger in Dallas next year.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 3:53 PM | Comments (0)
SirsiDynix SuperConference Endnote
Also last week, I did the endnote for the SirsiDynix SuperConference in Detroit.
It was just before the conference-wide party and dance so I tried to end on time. (grin) Here are the slides, as promised.
Libraries That Learn: Keeping Up & Building Capacity for Change
A few folks asked for the link to the 23 Things summaries on my blog so here it is:
The 23 Things / Learning 2.0http://stephenslighthouse.sirsidynix.com/archives/2008/02/the_23_things_l.html
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 3:49 PM | Comments (0)
Montana Library Association Conference
last week, I had a wonderful visit to Great Falls Montana for the Montana Library Association Annual Conference. They were remarkably hospitable! We even played Jeopardy and I was auctioned off for charity in the game. I toured the new university library and we went to a club where mermaids were swimming in a tank too. Lots of fun. Real image busters for libraries and Montana!
Anyway, while there I gave two sessions that were roughly the same (same slides - maybe different words). Here's the talk:
Top 5 or 10 Strategies for Library Success
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 3:44 PM | Comments (0)
Wisconsin SAE
I had a nice visit with the Wisconsin Society of Association Executives in early April.
Here's the presenation:
15 Technologies That Are Transforming Our Associations
It comes out of some of the thinking I did as president of OLA, CLA and SLA.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 3:41 PM | Comments (0)
April 13, 2008
Special Library PSA's on YouTube
These are two funny and effective PSA's about special libraries.
The PSAs have been uploaded to YouTube. You are encouraged to place links to these videos on your library intranet and extranet.
Special segment: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1d8Rx526NI
Academic segment: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFV5mAeiFKo
Good work!
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 9:58 PM | Comments (0)
The Information Opportunity
Finally got around to reviewing the Capgemini UK report on The Information Opportunity. Seems to be some interesting strategic thinking.
"Failure to exploit information loses UK economy £67 billion a year
3 March 2008
Capgemini UK plc today released ‘The Information Opportunity’ a report highlighting the estimated annual costs associated with frustrated decision making across UK businesses and public sector organisations. The report, based on in-depth interviews with senior leaders from the FTSE350 and UK public sector organisations, finds that a broken information culture – that is, the values and behaviours associated with how they collect, use, manage and share information – is endemic in the UK and is believed to suppress performance by an average of 29 per cent. This equates to an annual £46 billion missed opportunity for private sector profits, and £21 billion in administrative costs across the public sector.
Ramesh Harji, Head of Information Exploitation at Capgemini UK, commented: “We found C-level executives freely admitting failings in their organisational information culture. Failure to properly exploit information is keeping Britain’s bosses in the dark and affecting our international competitiveness.”
Three key factors are identified in the report as suppressing business performance:
Frustrated decision making – 63 per cent of survey respondents faced making crucial business decisions without the correct information on a daily basis, whilst 28 per cent experienced this frustration up to five times a day. This is predicted to get worse as 93 per cent of those interviewed report a significant increase over the last five years in the number of critical business decisions they are being asked to make.
Information islands – Organisations face growing volumes of information on which to base decisions, 36 per cent of respondents report a doubling in the volume of information available to them over the past five years. Executives agree that a failure to share this mounting information include financial losses (46 per cent of respondents) and increased operational costs (also 46 per cent).
Fragmented truths – Failure to obtain a single version of the “truth” was identified by 46% of respondents as a key reason for an organisation’s failure to innovate, with many firms holding multiple versions of the same data often within the same departments.
Collectively this “information frustration” results in a 29 per cent hit to British organisational performance with business decision makers highlighting increased operational costs (47 per cent of those interviewed), financial losses (43 per cent), reputation damage (40 per cent) and loss of customers (38 per cent) as the major consequences.
Harji added: “Organisations are generating increasing volumes of information, but this simply isn’t reaching decision makers in time. The UK must begin to value information as a business asset and in doing so ensure that any investments in IT solutions are not just quick fixes, but actively enhance and improve the information culture.”
80 per cent of business decision makers see addressing the “Information Opportunity” as a crucial driver of business performance, with 55 per cent of respondents listing it as one of their top three priorities for their organisations. Encouragingly 85 per cent of those questioned felt that investment in information culture was already delivering value for money and the report recommends three priority areas for further investment:
Staff skills – Organisations must establish information exploitation as a critical skill for their employees. This change is vital with the report attributing information “silos” to staff mindsets that “knowledge is power”. Just under a third (31 per cent) of those questioned identified staff skills and organisational policies as key barriers to effective information exploitation.
Corporate Asset – The report recommends that organisations treat information as a strategic corporate asset and invest accordingly. Delivery of an effective information culture should be driven by the business, throughout the business. Interestingly, 9 out the top 10 barriers to information exploitation were non-systems related. Major non-systems related barriers identified included: information quality (36 per cent), policies and procedures (32 per cent), information security (31 per cent), staff skills (31 per cent) and user culture (30 per cent).
Leadership – The creation and maintenance of an effective information culture must be led from the top, with CEOs instilling a more disciplined approach to managing business critical information in their workforces. A significant minority of decision makers reported a lack of leadership (23 per cent) and clear roles and responsibilities (18 per cent) in managing information within their organisations.
About Capgemini
Capgemini, one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services, enables its clients to transform and perform through technologies. Capgemini provides its clients with insights and capabilities that boost their freedom to achieve superior results through a unique way of working - the Collaborative Business Experience - and through a global delivery model called Rightshore®, which aims to offer the right resources in the right location at competitive cost. Present in 36 countries, Capgemini reported 2007 global revenues of EUR 8.7 billion and employs over 83,000 people worldwide.
More information is available at www.uk.capgemini.com"
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 9:53 PM | Comments (0)
Household use of libraries and bookstores
The Gypsy Librarian has posted an 'Article Note': On use of public libraries and large bookstores:
Hemmeter, Jeffrey A. "Household use of public libraries and large bookstores." Library and Information Science Research 28 (2006): 595-616.
The commentary is interesting (I liked it so much I felT like posting it again!) and the article is too.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 9:47 PM | Comments (0)
The Internet in 2020
In March 2007, Microsoft Research invited 45 leading researchers to discuss where HCI would be in 2020; a report summarizing their conclusions has now been made available.
Being Human: Human Computer Interaction in 2020
Ars Technica makes some comments too.
This would be a fun discussion piece. Some things sounds creepy now but will they be creepy then?
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 9:42 PM | Comments (0)
Can The Internet Die?
An interesting cautionary article in Gigaom.
How might the Internet as we know it die? Here are 10 possibilities
Someone subverts the Domain Name Service
Zombie networks attack!
Massive physical infrastructure failure
Death by a thousand fragments
A really good virus breaks the routers
Updates break how updates work
The Net stops being neutral
The lawyers get involved
Walled gardens
Humans take themselves out
Weirds me out!
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 9:36 PM | Comments (0)
New Harris Poll on Reading
"ROCHESTER, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--For years, people have been crying about the death of the book. While reading books may be declining, Americans are reading. Just one in ten (9%) say they typically read no books in an average year. About one-quarter (23%) read between 1 and 3 books, while one in five (19%) read between 4 and 6 books and 13 percent typically read between 7 and 10 books. And, over one-third (37%) of Americans say they read more then ten books in an average year."
Lots of interesting soundbites in the press. It covers reading and buying but neglects to note that borrowing is higher too.
I liked that 'independents' read so much more than those who are affiliated. Hmmm.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 8:39 PM | Comments (0)
April 9, 2008
InfoTubeys
Don't neglect to check out the 2008 InfoTubey Awards winners awarded last night at a big gala in Virginia/DC at Computers in Libraries.
I was a judge and it was so much fun to watch dozens of entries. It's a shame we couldn't award them all.
Find the videos here:
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 8:08 PM | Comments (0)
April 7, 2008
Fall 2007: Two months that shook our world
My Pipeline Column for Multimedia and Internet @ Schools for the Jan. / Feb. 2008 issue covers the massive changes we say in late 2007 in the world of technology and information:
Did You Hear that? The Internet Firmament is Shifting
Fall 2007: Two months that shook our world
My Pipeline columns have a 90 day embrago before I can post them here. I haven't seen the pace of change slow down any since I wrote this!
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 6:53 PM | Comments (0)
The April SirsiDynix Institute
We just heard Lee Rainie's excellent speech at the SirsiDynix Executive Session at SirsiDynix SuperConference here in Detroit. I can't wait for the SDI on April 18th and you're all invited. Sign up soon. It's free.
You are invited to attend the upcoming SirsiDynix Institute webinar – Friday, April 18, 2008 at 11 a.m. EST.
Please follow the link to register for this webinar:
http://www.sirsidynixinstitute.com/register.php
April 18, 2008 - 11 a.m. EST
Lee Rainie, Director, Pew Internet & American Life Project and Stephen Abram, SirsiDynix Vice President of Innovation
Maximizing the Power of the Web: Pew Internet & American Life Project's 2007 Findings
Lee Rainie will share with attendees the latest from his research into how individuals are using the internet and being affected by it. For library leaders seeking to maximize the power of the Web, Lee will bring to light valuable findings, theories, and arguable conclusions based on his project's research.
Attendees will no doubt be interested in discussing one of Pew's latest studies, which revealed just how much young adults and others in the U.S. continue to use public libraries for the Internet and also books. "The age of books isn't yet over," Rainie told the Associated Press. His project's study paid particular attention to the information-seeking activities of lower-income citizens and where libraries fit into their worlds.
During this session, Stephen Abram will interview Rainie about the year's findings, upcoming trends for libraries and Internet, and much more. Take this opportunity to listen on two of the luminaries in the library and technology communities discuss what's next for the library world.
About the Presenters:
Lee Rainie —Director Pew Internet & American Life Project
Lee Rainie is the founding Director of the Pew Internet & American Life Project. Since December 1999, the Washington D.C. research center has examined how people's Internet use affects their families, communities, health care, education, civic and political life, and work places.
The Project has issued more than 80 reports based on surveys and other research on these social issues and important public policy questions such as trust and privacy online, e-government, intellectual property, broadband adoption, and the digital divides.
Prior to receiving the grant, he was managing editor of U.S. News & World Report. He is a graduate of Harvard College and has a master's degree in political science from Long Island University.
Stephen Abram —VP of Innovation, SirsiDynix
Stephen Abram, MLS, is President 2008 of SLA and the past-President of the Canadian and Ontario Library Associations. He is Vice President Innovation for SirsiDynix and Chief Strategist for the SirsiDynix Institute. Stephen was listed by Library Journal as one of the top 50 people influencing the future of libraries. He has received numerous honours and speaks regularly internationally. His columns appear in Information Outlook and Multimedia and Internet @ Schools, and SirsiDynix OneSource and he is the author of ALA Editions bestselling Out Front with Stephen Abram.
Register today to receive your webinar log in information and to hear Lee and Stephen's presentation Friday, April 18!
I'll be calling in from Dallas where I am participating in the Great Debate at TxLA.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 9:47 AM | Comments (0)
April 4, 2008
Today in Geek History
As I head off to SirsiDynix Superconference. today in history, according to Wired:
April 4, 1975: Bill Gates, Paul Allen Form a Little Partnership
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 8:47 AM | Comments (0)
Friday Funny
It's the silly season in US election, it was April one and it's Friday. So have any libraries commented on the important post-election issues? Why Yes!
"Ohio's National First Ladies Library won't make a special place for Bill Clinton if Hillary Rodham Clinton is elected president.
Library president and founder Mary Regula says if former President Clinton or others become "first men," they'll have to "build their own thing," in her words."
Thanks Blake, you find the LOL's.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 8:34 AM | Comments (0)
Getting the Most Out of Facebook
My daughter has been experimenting with some sales of her ironic jewelery designs on Facebook. (Barbara Nillingsley pearls with bullets, guns and/or handcuffs...) I think that this post is interesting in that context and promoting libraries - "Jesse Stay is a social media guru. He is the co-author of I'm on Facebook--Now What???: How to Get Personal, Business, and Professional Value from Facebook with Jason Alba. This book helps individuals and business owners better manage their lives through Facebook. I asked him to provide ten Facebook power tips"
Read the book, read the tips.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 8:26 AM | Comments (0)
This sounds great
I once had wireless internet access on a 20 hour flight to China. It was great! Then never again.
So this will make my life easier:
FAA clears in-flight WiFi for takeoff on American Airlines
By Joel Hruska, April 03, 2008
American Airlines' plans to offer in-flight broadband access across certain transcontinental flights took a major step forward yesterday. Aircell, the airline's in-flight Internet access provider, has received two important approvals from the FAA, and is now cleared to begin rolling out its service."
I sure hope the Star Alliance follows quickly or I'll have to switch airline groups.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 8:18 AM | Comments (0)
April 3, 2008
Death of Digital Media
ResourceShelf points to a nice visual article that takes us on a tour of dead storage media.
Death of Digital Media
A storage device can become obsolete in less than two years, as this timeline shows.
14 pages.
Source: IEEE Spectrum
It's a good one to use when you're justifying those server upgrades, updated back-ups and the rest. Libraries only persist of the media does too.
Lot of copies keeps stuff safe.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 10:45 PM | Comments (0)
Virginia Beach Public Library Staff Day
One of the best organized public library staff days I've ever attended. They only do it every three years but it's a great event. The Hollywood theme was great fun too.
Here's my opening speech slides:
A Tech Forecast: Library 2.0 in the Real World
Virginia Beach Public Library, March 12, 2008
And the mayor was a real hoot. She loves the library. What a gem!
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:20 PM | Comments (0)
LIS School Visits
I love doing visits to LIS schools and talking to students and profs. I've had the good luck to do three student groups in the past few weeks.
McGill School of Information Studies in Montreal:
Reality 2.0: Developing Your Learning Strategy for Life After Grad School
University of Toronto, Faculty of Information
Reality 2.0: Developing Your Learning Strategy for Life After Grad School
Simmons in Boston
Reality 2.0: Developing Your Learning Strategy for Life After Grad School
It stokes your heart to meet and talk with these folks.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:14 PM | Comments (1)
SLA Eastern Canada Chapter Event
Here's the presentation fomr the night before SLA Boston for the SLA Eastern Canada Chapter in Montreal.
SLA: Transforming Ourselves and Our Association.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:12 PM | Comments (0)
SLA Boston Event
Well I am way behind in posting presentations. All my fault.
Here's the presentationj I did for the SLA Boston Chapter event on March 26.
SLA: Transforming Ourselves and Transforming Our Association.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:02 PM | Comments (0)
16 Things I Wish They Had Taught Me in School
How does someone get this wise at 28?! Read the full post:
16 Things I Wish They Had Taught Me in School
By Henrik Edberg
"So here are 16 things I wish they had taught me in school (or I just would like to have known about earlier):
1. The 80/20 rule.
2. Parkinson’s Law.
3. Batching.
4. First, give value. Then, get value. Not the other way around.
5. Be proactive. Not reactive.
6. Mistakes and failures are good.
7. Don’t beat yourself up.
8. Assume rapport.
9. Use your reticular activation system to your advantage.
10. Your attitude changes your reality.
11. Gratitude is a simple way to make yourself feel happy.
12. Don’t compare yourself to others.
13. 80-90% of what you fear will happen never really come into reality.
14. Don’t take things too seriously.
15. Write everything down.
16. There are opportunities in just about every experience."
I'm jealous and want to start over.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 12:32 PM | Comments (1)
April 2, 2008
The Top 10 Trends in Identity Management
This is an interesting post from the CTO Blog at CapGemini.
The Top 10 Trends in Identity Management
Lord knows we care about privacy and protecting our users. We worry about laws and copyright and stuff, but we also know we have to know who borrowed that book or DVD. We also know from personal and enterprise experience that it's just too hard to keep track of all of our web identities!
The trends identified are:
"1. Open ID, Infocards, CardSpace – in fact the whole concept of Identity 2.0
2. Governance, Risk management, Compliance – all forms of "cover" (which seems dangerously wide)
3. Modularity and openness instead of monolithic Suites
4. SOA and Identity Application Management grow together
5. Authenticating and authorizing in the context of the user (which can spectacularly go wrong by allowing a ‘Trojan’ to be placed between the two ends of the transaction)
6. Privacy and data security
7. More players and products in the market
8. Finally online Banking becomes safe
9. Information and identities are linked
10. Federation matures - even if only slowly"
Interesting and mutating space.
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 4:43 PM | Comments (0)
Outsell Sees Growth in Library Market
Despite being released on April 1st, this report shows signs of optimism! Outsell has been a great partner with SLA.
I know lots of large special libraries and vendors acquire the Outsell studies.
BURLINGAME, Calif. & LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Where have all the old-fashioned libraries gone?
Libraries are successfully changing their models to stay abreast of the new information world paradigm, according to Outsell’s “2008 Library Market Size, Share & Forecast Report”—the first to analyze the global market for information spending in all types of libraries, from traditional physical libraries to centralized information centers and content management functions. Outsell forecasts a 3.1 percent compound annual growth rate for content spending from 2007-2010, from $22.5 billion to $24.7 billion.
The report includes deep, rich data examining the global market for content among government, public, academic, school, corporate and other special libraries.
Among reported trends and findings:
-While overall library investments are increasing, the proportional share devoted to almost all content segments is shrinking. The one exception is education/training allocations, which have increased from 4 percent in 2004 to 11 percent in 2007.
-Self-publishing and syndication technologies are facilitating the rise of user-generated and institutionally generated content that, in many cases, displaces commercially published content. Libraries of all types are creating original content for their users.
-Today’s digital age is reflected in where libraries are putting their dollars. Most content spending—21 percent—is going toward scientific and technical content. That’s followed by educational information (11 percent), news (11 percent), and legal/tax/regulatory (10 percent). The remainder is distributed among such information types as HR, marketing and IT research, and credit and other business information.
Journalists who would like to talk with Outsell about the report should contact Dawn Ringel, Warner Communications, 781-449-8456 or dawn@warnerpr.com. Companies that would like to purchase it should go to http://outsellinc.com/store/products/719?refid=pr719.
ABOUT OUTSELL, INC.:
Outsell is a research and advisory firm focused on the publishing, information, and education industries. Our international team provides independent, fact-based analysis and actionable advice about competitors, markets, operational benchmarks, and best practices, so our clients thrive and grow in today's fast-changing digital and global environment. Outsell’s headquarters are in Burlingame, CA, US and London, UK. Visit us at www.outsellinc.com.
Posted by stephen at 4:17 PM | Comments (1)
My Favourite April Fool
My internet access at home was down all day April 1st (Darn you Bell Sympatico! The guy on the helpline was laughing so hard he was in tears. Couldn't fix it though.) but this is my favourite April Fool that I saw.
Overdrive is introduces a new product line: Large Print Audiobooks
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 3:35 PM | Comments (0)
Latest Issue of SirsiDynix OneSource
Part Two of my column is out in the latest issue of SirsiDynix OneSource which went out today.
Challenges to Innovation in Libraries, Part 2 (continued from March issue)
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 3:27 PM | Comments (0)
SirsiDynix SuperConference
Well I am packing for the big trip.
It's one of our big client conferences, the SirsiDynix SuperConference, and I am looking forward to it.
We're at the Marriott Renaissance in Detroit and it will be fun. For the first time we're accepting onsite registrations so this may be the biggest conference yet!
Kate Duval and I have prepared a pretty neat Executive Track for Saturday and Sunday. I'll open it and then we'll have some great clients sharing their innovations and insights as well as crowd favourites Lee Rainie from the Pew Internet and American Life Research Project and Peter Morville of Ambient Findabliity fame. I'll also do the endote on Tuesday before the big conference-wide party. This is the last SirsiDynix UUGI (Unicorn Users Group, including DRA, MultiLis and Symphony) conference. A lot of Dynix and Horizon folks will be there too. The first combined CODI and UUGI conference will be in April 2009 in Dallas. I'm looking forward to that too.
I'll head out from Detriot and make my first trip to Montana for the Montana LA conference in Great Falls. By the end of next week I'll only have two states left to cross off my life bucket list (South Dakota and West Virginia).
Stephen
Posted by stephen at 3:12 PM | Comments (0)