When you say Web 2.0...

I started this blog as part of an assignment for a class. Two years ago, I started another blog when I originally tried to take this class. Unfortunately my section was dropped and I abandoned my blog to catch up on all the recreational reading I missed out on during the semester. My first and what would turn out to be my only post was filled with the excitement I felt upon discovering web 2.0. I dreamed of all the ways I could apply what I was reading in articles and blogs and watching in vodcasts to help my library. My knowledge was still mostly theoretical and not so much practical.

Now I find that excitement is tempered by time and experience learning that even if it sounds like a good idea, it’s not always feasible. You have to take into account budgetary concerns, training, and getting buy in from fellow staff and administrators. At the end of the day, a great idea may just remain a idea. That being said, I have noticed an increase in the acceptance of web 2.0 in libraries. There is of course the use of social media like twitter, facebook, or social bookmarking sites to get in touch with users. Chat is another big addition to library homepages. Check out the chat function for Odum Library. Libraries have used wikis to help users or other librarians. Library Success: A Best Practices Wiki is a great example of the latter. I expect to blog more on that soonish.

Both personally and professionally (I do a lot of OPAC searching in ILL), I appreciate the updating of OPACs. Here is an example from a record in Georgia State University’s catalog:

Georgia State University Library

Here you’ll find the traditional information of author, title, publisher, year, and location. There are also a couple of new features. Now I have the option to interact with the record and whoever else looks at it by adding tags or my comments. I can look at reviews or the Table of Contents of the item. There are even a number of options to save the record including adding it to my favorites. The similar items section in the right sidebar has been especially useful in finding items students might find useful for their research. A lot of these features appeared in websites like Amazon.com years ago. I’m glad to see them making their way into library OPACs.