Reflection (Thing 23)

I just completed the last Thing and completed the survey! I learned a tremendous amount of information on social media (in a short amount of time) through 23 Things. I thought I was some what knowledgeable when it came to technology and social media but this definitely proved me wrong.

Here is a list of social media I had never used before 23 Things. (Please don't judge me.)
RSS Feeds, Wikis, Tiny URL, Google Docs, LibraryThing or GoodReads, Delicious, Tagging, and Digg

I used these things before I started 23 Things:
You Send It, Google Maps, Facebook, Linked In, Instant Messaging, Twitter, Blogs, and Picture Sharing

I think social media in libraries is extremely important and will become even more important in the future. Libraries can use social media to communicate with their current patrons and to reach out to gain new patrons. I think FPL is doing a great job using social media like twitter, blogs, Facebook, and You Tube. I know it takes a lot of time, committees, meetings, and behind the scene work to get it in place and rolling. I have really enjoyed doing my very small part in writing several blog posts for the new FPL Parent blog. Speaking of blog posts, I have one to write now!

Thank you Adam and Elizabeth for putting this together. It was definitely worth all of your time and effort!

Podcasting (Thing 20)

My only experience with podcasts are listening to sermons I have missed at church when I teach the 4/5 year old Sunday School class. We only have one service at our church right now so thankfully through the podcasts that they post on our church website, I don't have to miss the message on the Sundays that I teach.

I listened to Chapter 12 of Alice in Wonderland through the Contra Costa County Library story time/chapter-a-week podcast. The audio quality was fine but the narration was very dull. It definitely did not keep my attention long enough to listen to the entire chapter. It makes you wonder if these are the same librarians reading at their story time. I listened to A Big Quiet House read by Denver Public Library. The sound quality was good and they made the listening a little more interesting by using two people to read the book. Last, I listened to several of the teen podcasts on the Los Angeles Public Library website. They do a pretty good job of mixing up there podcast topics by including podcasts book reviews, poetry readings, commercials, news and announcements, and read the book - see the movie reviews. It looks like the story time/chapter-a-week podcasts are a popular theme that some of the local libraries are now offering on their websites.

I looked on our FPL website and I didn't see any podcasts available. I don't know if this is something the library has tried in the past or not. I think podcasts could definitely be useful to our customers if the right selection and topics were offered. It would be great if we could offer a podcast on the Dr. Jim Thomas workshops that are currently running here at the library. I wanted to attend one of his workshops but I couldn't make it work with my schedule. We could also possibly podcast the computer classes that are held by Adult Services. This could be useful for our patrons who need the computer instruction but can't make it to the class times that we offer. After listening to several of the podcasts from the link provided, I believe the presentation and recording needs to be professional and first class for it to draw an audience.

Hulu (Thing 19)

I have heard about Hulu but I have never been to the website until now. I caught the first night of The Voice on tv a few weeks ago and really liked it. I forgot to DVR the show and missed all the following episodes so I watched the beginning of the 2nd episode on Hulu. Pretty neat! It's amazing they don't charge a small subscription fee to watch it but if you are watching it from home you are already paying a monthly Internet access fee.

I know our youth DVD collection is extremely popular (I'm not sure about the adult collection), but I don't think Hulu and its other competitors will have a negative impact on our DVD collections in the near future. I think a lot of parents check out DVD's for their kids to watch in the car (this includes myself) or on the big screen at home rather than putting their (younger) kids in front of the home computer to watch a movie or show on Hulu. Children also like to come and look at the DVD choices to make their OWN selections. It makes them feel very grown up - just like when they get to pick out their own books.

User Choice (Thing 22)

I chose social media site Wufoo which is a site to use when making forms or surveys. I made a library tour survey and it was super easy and fast. Wufoo allows you to create an online form so you can have others access the form and input information. Wufoo then stores the data and provides reports.

Wikis (Thing 21)

I have used Wikipedia in the past, but I have never made my own wiki page. I chose Mattitos on the practice site and added information under the general headers since they were blank: http://wiki23things.wiki.zoho.com/Mattitos-1.html
I posted a comment under the Babe's page. Last, I created a page for In-N-Out Burgers that is supposed to open May 11th in Frisco.

You Tube (Thing 18)

I don't visit You Tube much but it has been useful when the children's performances at church have been recorded and posted on You Tube. I can email the link to friends and family and they see Austin and Alivia perform.

You Tube is a great marketing tool for libraries to use to show off their services, librarians, programs, collections. I watched the The Adventures of Super Librarian,  Super Librarian, A Librarian’s 2.0 Manifesto, and Allen County Public Library Channel videos. The first two videos promoting librarian services were a little cheesy. I wasn't overly impressed with either one but they get the point across. I enjoyed the Librarian's 2.0 Manifesto even though it was a little long. The pictures were pretty amazing and the librarian's message was received: Excel in the advancement of technology to provide excellent library services. The Allen Public Library's video would make for a good commercial and came across much more professional than the 'super' librarian videos.

Cindy just recently sent us a link to Plano Library's video with puppets Eugene and Charlotte promoting Deborah Underwood's books: http://kidsbrain.wordpress.com/2011/04/27/introducing-eugene-and-charlotte/ Cute idea!

I know FPL has used You Tube in the past to promote its special events like the Summer Reading Club and the Storytelling Festival.  I searched Frisco Library on You Tube and found a Storytelling Festival video/teaser from 2009. I also found the Summer Promo video that was recently recorded in Mayra's backyard using the Dig Up a Good Book theme. Nicely done!

Music Streaming and Sharing (Thing 17)

I don't have a lot of experience with music streaming so I decided to try out Last.fm. It was super easy to set up a free account and I really like the recommended station feature. I typed in several artists that I currently listen to and it made a recommended station. I also like how you can build multi-artist stations. With music listening/downloading so accessible from music streaming (user friendly) outlets such as Pandora and Last.fm, I think we will continue to see a decrease in cd checkouts here at the library.