Library Day in the Life, 2010: Day 1

Our library and community is a very small rural community... We do it all, none of us have MLSs, and we are all part time - including our director.

I do a lot from home.... Today, that's where I am! So, you'll also be hearing some of the other things I do during the day while I work from home - MAJOR multi-tasking!

Morning Email Reading and Responding

Second Life SLL Promotion - LibNet and Alliance Library Google group

Sent out a letter from the Parents Committee of the school

Talked on the phone to my sister and mother

Made some oatmeal and watched Monsters vs. Aliens with Mr. 3.

Worked on our HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning)system's remote connection. I and two other staff members log into the system computer each day to check for any alerts within the entire building system. We need to do this each day for the first year of operation of our new green library building.

Wrote and submitted Library News article to our local paper, Mancos Times.

Spoke with the Snow Shoveling team we hired to clean the 3 feet of snow from our rooftop and garage.

Made up weekly menu and created a grocery shopping list.

Began presentation background work for CLiC Spring Workshops. Sent email to my three other co-presenters. (4 presenters!? Yes, sounds like a lot, but we're doing a half-day session in a computer lab... Our very hands-on session will provide 4 avenues for our attendees to learn!) We will be presenting on the new Colorado Libraries 2.0 Project - which is a new state-wide program to teach librarians how to use and teach their patrons about web 2.0 tools (similar to Helene Blowers' 23 Things.)

IMd in Facebook with a patron, and answered their questions about posting pics in FB.

Picked up Mr. 5 from preschool and went grocery shopping.

After that, I was pretty much in family and Mama mode...

CALCON09 Session Notes: Presentation - Matt Hamilton of Boulder Public Library

Matt Hamilton - Cloud Computing... Web-Scale... Oh my! Will OCLC Eat Me?

OCLC wants to get all libraries across the us on a the same server system to make things easily accessible. e.g. it's easier for google to add a server to their conglomorate, as opposed to a single library adding a complete system for the same effect.

Spending a lot of money trying to reconcile disparate forms of data. Cloud computing can be done on a local level, but mainly global. We want to have open data standards. For the use of soa, to wrap these pieces of data in metadata, so that it is easily recognizable.

Cloud Computing can be compared to a lump of clay or playdoh; break off a small piece, do your thing. If you need a larger piece, break that off. When you're done, put it back in larger lump so that it's readily available for the next project.

Nick Carr - "The Big Switch", book

Cloud computing is instantly scalable. You expand, and just pay for what you use. In the future, we hope to only pay for the variable costs.

Amazon has web services (AWS). Securely bridge your IT infrastructure to the AWS cloud. Cloud sites, cloud files, cloud servers. Koha ils system, LibraryThing, already using amazon's services.

http://www.opencloudmanifesto.org/

OCLC = Facebook, We and our catalogue/data = Lil Green Patch

OCLC Web-Scale Management Services
cataloging and aurthority control
worldcat local
worldcat local quick start (free if you already have a subscription to another oclc product)
inventory control (circ, license management, acquisitions, reporting/business intelligence)

CALCON09 Session Notes I: Keynote - Lee Raine of the Pew Institute

Lee Raine - New Information Ecology

Friday, 20 Nov 09 - Opening Keynote

Talked about Twitter

"Tweckle" - to abuse a speaker only to twitter followers

2000

46% adults use internet

5% get broadband @ home

50% use cell

0% connect wirelessly

<10%>

= slow stationary connections built around my computer

2009

77-79% adults use Internet

63% get broadband @ home

85% use cell

54-56% connect wirelessly

2/3 of all use cloud

=fast mobile connections built around outside servers and storage

47% adults own laptops - up from 30% in '06

How digital tech has changed things for your patrons and their networking behaviour

• Variety of information and sources of information grow
• Velocity of information increases and smart mobs emerge (Howard Rheingold, Clay Shirky)
• Venues of intersecting with information and people multiply and the availability of information expands to all hours of the day and all places we are (nielsen company)
• People's Vigilance for information changes in two directions 1. attention is truncated (Linda Stone) 2. attention is elongated (Andrew Keen; Terry Fisher) (Andrew Keen: The Cult of the Amateur - book)
• The Vibrance and immersive qualitites of media environments makes them more compelling places to hang out and interact - metaverse roadmap project 1. virtual worlds, 2. mirror worlds. 3. augmented reality (most vitality right now)
• Valence (relevance) of information improves - search and customization
• The Voice of information democratizes and the visibility of new creators is enhanced. Identitiy and privacy change

31% of adult internet users have rated a person product or service online

social networks become more vivid and meaningful. Media-making is part of social networking. 'Networked Individualism' takes hold. Barry Wellman

A Virtual Meeting for Colorado Association of Libraries

CAL SLIG will be holding a meeting at its new Second Life location on Etopia Prime Island next Tuesday, 8 September at 8pm. We will be discussing future events/meetings/programs, as well as what needs to be done in preparation for the CAL Annual Conference.

After the meeting, the owner of the Etopia Islands (who happens to reside in Boulder in RL!) will be giving us a tour of the islands and a bit of history and the purpose of this vibrant, green sustainable community.

So, put on your avatar, and come join the fun at CAL's Sustainable Living Library! SLurl: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Etopia%20Prime/69/181/24 (Note: Log into Second Life before using the SLurl).

MPL is Moving!

It has been hectic at my library, to say the least, for the last couple of months. Construction of our new library has been wrapping up, and we've been in this whirlwind of excitement; final touches such as organizing the new coffee station, ordering a parking sign for hybrid cars, deciding where artwork is to be hung, and realizing that the drop-down screen in the meeting room was not installed, have been up and forefront in all our minds.

It's Really Happening!

What we kinda forgot is that we're really moving! And I have a feeling that it won't feel very real until next week, when our current location has closed.

Our last day is the 6th of June, which makes me very happy to be the head staff person on Saturdays. We are hoping to have patrons, volunteers, and staff members to stop into the library to say goodbye and to remember the good times we've had in the building.

Saturday is also our last day of 'life as we know it'. The three weeks that we will be closed are already planned out and packed full of transitional duties. We will be moving all the items over, of course; we'll also be re-arranging furniture, organizing new workflows, and adjusting to all the change.

The 'Transition Team'

For this, we've created a 'Transitional Plan' of sorts. The first week we will be packing up, and formulating further plans for any new things that arise. The second week will kick off with a Community Moving Party - including our District's people in the process (and also giving them a 'sneak peek' of the new building).

For most of the staff, the rest of the second week will be a frenzy of deciding what to put where; for me personally, I will be learning our new technology infrastructure, installing new hardware and software, and creating new systems. My position, with regards to individual workstations, will essentially double.

During this week, we will also be conducting personal interviews with all staff members, essentially gathering information on any ideas they may have, as well as documenting any concerns or struggles that they may have with the moving process. The 'Transition Team', the Director and two staff members, will review these interviews and respond to staff individually.

The last week of the closure will focus on training and settling in. We will be going over any new procedures that will be created as a result of being in a brand-spanking-new building.

Mancos Public Library will reopen at it's new location on Tuesday, 30 June.

It Doesn't End Here

And, according to our conversations with other librarians that have moved to new libraries, the hecticness and insanity that accompanies any building project will not end that Tuesday; it will just change to a different level. We'll all be discovering all the changes that come along with anything 'new'.

So, the 'Transition Team' will not disband the moment of opening. We will be talking with staff throughout the first year, or as long as it takes, and responding to any fear or anxiety that may come along with working in a new place.

We're hoping that by creating a dedicated team for the transition will revitalize the staff and help them to know that they are valued members of our overall MPL team.

How have your libraries handled transition?

Photo: Staff and Family Signature Beam
Credit: Jack Stuart, Jaynes Corporation

Virtual Program Streamed Live into Real Life

I am excited to say that CAL's Sustainable Living Library, located in the virtual world Second Life, is hosting a green workshop on Photovoltaics - and I'll be able to extend this great program to MPL patrons!

The workshop will focus on the basics of solar electricity and how it applies to reversing the damage done to our environment due to human activity. The presenter, Phil Friedman of Solar Energy International (SEI), has been working in the solar electricity field for years, and is currently an online instructor for SEI.

You can find out more information about the program on the Sustainable Living Library's blog here.

While attending the program, helping with any technical difficulties, and answering questions about CAL's Second Life Library, I will also be streaming the program live to the Mancos Public Library's patrons in Real Life.

This is a perfect example of the benefits that virtual worlds have to offer. To learn about the ins and outs of Photovoltaics from a respected green industry worker and instructor, we won't have to drive the 350 miles to Denver - we'll be able to enjoy and learn in our small, rural area.

Photo: Patrons in CAL's Sustainable Living Library in Second Life
Credit: Plautia Corvale

Tech Tuesdays - Personalization and Connections

For about six months or so, I've been spending one hour a week with patrons and their technology questions. Technology Office Hour, a one-on-one session, was developed in an effort to customize, streamline, and personalize the learning process. In the past, I had struggled with some computer classes, and how to 'deliver' information that was well-paced, personal, and relevant to each individual. Classes were small, and attended by such a variety of ages and ability; it seemed that no matter how I described the session content, the attendees were so disparate that I wondered if I was really helping them as much as I was able.

The Power of Personalization

One thing that all my students have in common is the desire to learn through doing. Many times classes evolved into purely question and answer sessions, and I realized the value of a question that is answered specifically - seeing someone's eyes light up with understanding and excitement always won out over any doubts I may have had over class format.

The Beginning

During a normal workweek, part of what I do is answer 'short' questions from patrons. While I was able to help most of the time, there were many times that I wished I could just drop what I was doing, and devote more time to what they needed.

I discussed this feeling with my Director, Patsy Smith, and she gave me the go-ahead to 'set up shop' at our special use computer, and start giving weekly, personalized, one-on-one sessions. Patrons were then able to come in and ask any computer or Internet question, and I would do my best to help.

Not knowing what to expect, I did no publicizing, except for a notice in our weekly paper and word of mouth. I expected patrons to come in on a first-come-first-served basis, but it quickly evolved into people calling ahead for reservations.

Recently, I have expanded the program to two 45 minute sessions per week, and am booked on average about two weeks in advance.

It Works Both Ways

The benefit really is in the personal attention I give and receive from my students. I've found that they are less intimidated by the computer when I sit next to them and interact as we go. I've had a huge range of questions and abilities walk through the door; some are hardly familiar with the mouse, and most of the session consists of gently reminding them how many times they are to click on something and general navigation. Others that have questions about specific websites or software have been the most fun for me, as oftentimes I am hearing about a product that I was unaware of in the past.

But both types are teaching me as well. I am beginning to sense what types of learning styles people have, as well as how hard or lightly I need to push students to learn more.

Connections

I know that I will continue to learn and to be challenged by my students. It is truly enjoyable to see someone 'get it'; but this has evolved into something deeper. While I am still able show my passion for technology and helping people, my students have opened up to me, and can reveal their passions as well. Learning, sharing experiences, connecting with each other's excitement - it doesn't get any better.


Photo: Thank you, Perfecto Insecto.