Technorati

I seemed to get the same number of hits for the search and the advanced search. I could see that this could perhaps be used to promote a particular program at the library. A small business could also possible use this to promote themselves and their blog.

del.icio.us

I think social bookmarking with del.icio.us will work very well in the library situation especially when working on information desk. Often at home, or whilst working at different branches you find excellent sites that would be useful for helping clients e.g. recommended books, HSC sites, dictionaries etc. . It would be great to carry your bookmarks with you as well as being able to share them. To be able to tag them and make them searchable is an added feature.

Embedding videos

I realized that to actually embed the 'picture start-up' of the video was a different process from just copying and pasting the url. When pasting the url you still have click to get the picture up - an interesting excercise.

Youtube and Google video

I can see applications for these tools could be very helpful in a library situation.

Oral history, book reviews as well online tours of the library could work well. I think it would also be handy for new staff to watch as an orientation to the library with such things included as fire drill procedures and emergency evacuations. These of course could be followed up later in real time.

Sesame Street Library

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJlkplvYdgA

Wikis

The lesson on Wikis shows they can certainly be used in a number of ways in a library environment.
I thought the first question and answer on Princeton Public Library BookLovers Summer Reading FAQ page was very relevant when it asked –
‘Why a Wiki?
Technology is advancing at a crazy pace. Blogging, wikis, RSS feeds, podcasting – it’s getting hard to keep all these things straight, but what better way to hone our technology skills than by creating, and inviting our community to participate in, a wiki for the library. The Book Lovers Wiki is a place for the people of Princeton to talk (or write) about what they are reading. Our Summer Reading Programs is an old, but GREAT, program and we wanted to give it a modern twist.’


This could be one area where the application of Wikis would work very well.

Antioch University’s Policy and Procedure Manual is another excellent example. It would be very useful for staff as wikis are easy to access and are searchable in such an easy format. Information on general procedures would be most helpful in a busy library environment with instructions as diverse as how to import and compress photos for email or web to opening and closing library procedures.

RSS was quite a challenge. Not sure if I did it in the correct way but somehow it worked. I found it easier to work from my Favourites folder and the History folder to cut and paste the blogs in.

I could see RSS working well in a library situation in the future if this technology becomes mainstream and say blogs were set up in different genres for library patrons to subscribe to e.g. Fantasy, Science Fiction etc.