Thursday, August 16, 2007

Week 6 Things 13, 14 &15

Thing # 13
Del.ici.ous is not only a great personal bookmarking tool but it allows connection to others. Research, results and reading lists are shared on a variety of topics. I especially like that there's an RSS feeder link to transport your bookmarks to your bloglines account. There's nothing like going to one page to access all of my favorite resources ! In addition, the site reveals the most popular articles per tag including number of saved "bookmarks". This feature alerts users to possible value of content and serves to filter less popular resources. This would definitely be a useful site for avid researchers and readers.

Thing #14
Technorati the "blog" search engine gave multiple results when searching "Learning 2.0 " via keywords, tags and the directory. Searching the blog directory resulted in the fewest hits, a whopping 197 blogs. The next runner up was searching by keyword (exact phrase), this resulted in 4, 031 posts. The winner of the challenge was the tag search, producing over 22,000 blogs including visual media. Although the results increased there was alot more to weed through, it was similar to a google search without the quotes. As for the top favorite blogs it wasn't a surprise that technology and money were involved. I liked the Boing Boing Directory of Wonderful things. The comet picture was awesome :) As for the top searches, google and you tube were not surprising but Britney Spears and Paris Hilton ????? Ok, moving on...

Thing # 15
After reading several perspectives on Web 2.0 and the library's future, I decided to respond to the article, "To A Temporary Place in time..." . I agree with the author in that it is inevitable that libraries and librarian's roles will evolve but some things should not be left behind. I also see the future as perfect blend of technology, unlimited resources , humanity and last but not least community. As technology excels so should the library's data, including access to resources and updated formats/ vessels of information. Librarians will still be stewards of knowledge but this knowledge will continually grow and may be delivered and perceived entirely different then it is today, i.e. virtual graphics. Librarians must be educated and trained sufficiently to serve and guide our patrons in the age of information. Not everyone these days is computer savvy and I believe there will still be a need for human intervention and guidance. I acknowlede that the Library's infrastructure and role in society may change, but I hope that our servitude and connection to eachother remains. The author spoke of a future retreat, a place one goes to think, learn, rest and reconnect. Who's to say that one can't keep up with the fast- paced world of information while reclining on a leather sofa and sipping Starbucks at their local library:)

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