This "thing" had some new information, and some not-so-new information. One of the frustrations with a lot of these Web 2.0 tools is the restrictions on the computers at work. We are not allowed to download any new program, and have to always make sure our computers are unfiltered. This is somewhat limiting to the different things we can do.
One of the blog prompts was to talk about how e-mail has improved productivity, and I guess I'm unable to answer that question. Since I've been here, email has been a very important way to communicate. I think it often makes reference work easier than over the phone, because there's not the pressure of someone on the other line, waiting for you to find the answer. Instead, you can find the answer and then get back to the person without feeling quite so rushed. I don't know what I would do without email, in my personal life or at work. There are so many people I'm able to keep in touch with that I wouldn't have probably been able to before, and at work it does save a lot of time.
One thing I really thought was interesting about this Thing was the potential of text messaging and library service. I think it would be great for people to get text messages when their requests are ready to pick up; it's quick, and if they're not at home or near a computer, they would still be able to stop in at the library to pick up their materials because they would know they were there. I think the limited character count SMS allows also makes it an ideal medium for notifications.
I also like the idea of a library catalog accessible through SMS, but I'm not as convinced that something like that would be as effective as would SMS notifications for patrons.
Web conferencing is interesting; I'm not sure it would be my preferred way of learning, but when participants are geographically far apart from each other, it seems like the most interactive way to 'meet.'
The IM video that was part of this Thing was difficult for me to understand, and I used to be a fairly proficient IM'er. I think that would be a problem and many librarians would probably need an IM dictionary to know what all the abbreviations stood for; I know I would.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment