Posted By Elise on February 24, 2009
I’m reading this article for a paper I’m writing and one statement has burned itself in my brain already.
Farkas (2006) reminds us that there is no point in just “being where our patrons are”; what is necessary is “being useful to our patrons in where they are”, by providing immediate access to resources interactive reference services etc. (Farkas, M.G. (2007) Social software in libraries. Medford NJ: Information Today.)
Farkas has a great point: What is the point of the library being on facebook or myspace or second life? Are libraries invading their patrons’ social networks with a purpose other than staying visible in mind? I’ve got a few libraries on my facebook and BCR and they don’t do much. Messages here and there, some announcements for an activity for the community. What’s the point?
Call me old fashioned. Call me a misfit Millennial. I don’t think libraries should be everywhere and anywhere unless they are being useful. This speaks to my hatred for useless things. The library is still useful to communities, but is this the way to stay “relevant”? What do libraries hope to achieve by being on second life? This is an honest question, I’ve yet to feel the need to access second life. I’m busy enough with school and life, there’s no need to add more.
To all the libraries out there who are on facebook, myspace, and whatever the next social network will be, ask yourselves: Why are you there?
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Posted By Elise on February 20, 2009
Unacceptable.
Right now, libraries do not release any records to the police. We do not give a list of what books or DVDs a person has checked out or what sites a person has visited. That is no one’s business but your own what you borrow from the library and every library director out there will explain this policy to the police. This bill would like to reverse that. It seems any wifi access point will keep a list of where a person has been online. That’s right, any. Including the wifi network I’m currently using in my own home.
Exactly how is this going to work, anyway? On the occasion I use a coffee house wifi connection, I’m one of hundreds of nameless customers the baristas see each day. I take my own laptop to the library. I don’t like using a public computer so I avoid it.
Big Brother watches you surf. Best not type in any address incorrectly.
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Posted By Elise on February 16, 2009
To everyone who has asked me why I need a Masters to be a librarian, I invite you to read this article and watch this video. I won’t be an elementary school librarian but the general idea is relevant.
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Posted By Elise on February 15, 2009
Last night, while trying to fall asleep, I began thinking about information overload and how I usually do this to myself. In my current sleep-deprived state, even just a little bit of information is too much. I can’t hold it in my head. Most likely, it will leak out of my ear.
The only way to control the flow of information right now is to be selective. Rather than pour over my news rss feeds and read every single blog I find, I’m down to skimming the news to stay sort of up to date, while focusing on homework.
One of my classes is about the global information infrastructure. Essentially, this hypothetical infrastucture will allow anyone who wishes to access whatever information he or she likes. I can’t being to imagine what this infrastructure would look like. Think of the sheer mass of information! This infrastructure would include every bit of information that people have discovered and created. That’s pretty intimidating! I like to think that things like twitter and facebook wouldn’t be included, though there’s information found there. That information is usually shared from a news site. Facebook statuses don’t hold much stature in my mind.
I try to think of the form the global information infrastructure might take. The internet is a poor example of what it might be, but not everyone in the world has access to a computer, let alone the internet. There’s giant populations who are illiterate or might not have a written language. I think we are years away from the global information infrastructure and pondering its form and importance might be too heavy for my overworked brain right now.
Category: Classes |
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Posted By Elise on February 7, 2009
Last night in my web design class, some classmates asked about capstone, our final class. Capstone is basically making a portfolio highlighting some projects and what we have learned in the last six semesters at Emporia.
I began thinking of more changes I’m going to make to this website to make it work for capstone. Instead of linking to projects on the sidebar, I’m going to create a new page for them. I’ve got six semesters of projects to wade through to find my best work, the projects that are applicable to the practice of library science. That means very little of my theory classes will make it to this page.
All in all, look out for some changes in the coming weeks! I’m learning CSS in web design so although I didn’t create this layout, I can tweak it to meet my needs. That’s really all I can ask for!
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Posted By Elise on February 3, 2009
I’ve been volunteering at Wyoming State Archives in Cheyenne for close to a year. In this time, I’ve worked on all sorts of projects: Description and organization of new photo collections, scanning photos for the online database, reassembling a collection, and labeling research prints.
My least favorite project was scanning in aerial photos of the Cheyenne area. It felt like I scanned in a few thousand maps, especially when I had to scan the same map several times due to masking tape. Whoever thought masking tape on photos as a way to create a panoramic view was a good idea should have to scan in those maps as punishment.
Yesterday, I saw the fruits of this labor. Disable your pop-up blocker for a few minutes and go here. Enter the user name ‘public’ and password ‘public’. Select Aerial Photos from the drop down menu and poke around the 196 photos I scanned. I also assisted in the description of these photos. If you have some time to kill, you can use the section and directions to create your very own map of Cheyenne, Wyoming, and surrounding areas circa 1950s.
Category: Archives |
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Posted By Elise on February 3, 2009
Pardon the mess, we are redecorating!
Welcome to the blog of Elise Blas, future librarian. Here I will write about the last semester of my graduate school experience, current projects, and anything else that pops into my mind.
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