Method 12 Last Dance: Reflection and Evaluation

It only took me three years to finish this second round by the Texas State Library…but I have finished! Again, it was a wonderful chance to learn about a variety of web tools and how libraries can use them. Some of my favorite sections were the ones about e-readers and making a 30-second movie with Animoto.
 

There were a lot of programs to learn about, even though some were not imperative to know or to use in my current position. This time around, I did not particularly like or need certain modules, and I found myself less excited about certain topics. That could be attributed to several factors, including the long time I took to do all the exercises and then broken links I encountered. My enthusiasm would wane and occasionally it was a struggle to get through some exercises, not discerning how I would need or use it at work.

As a result, I did not embellish my blog posts much with either words or photos this time around nor was I eager to try the extra exercises. But, I perked up with interesting and interacting topics when I could create something.

Our current culture produces so many new web, app, and software tools, they can be overwhelming as well as quickly obsolete. This was expressed in one method where a public library jumped on service but found patrons did not generally use it much. This could become costly to library budgets if such programs were expensive. With the rush and abundance of so many new tools, it must be difficult for libraries to know whether something will endure or become passé. How can they decide which to use or offer? Popularity or longevity? I imagine those choices will become more prevalent and more confounding.

Method 11, Survey Says!

This module was about online survey tools. There are many out there, ranging to the cheap and limited to the expensive and powerful.

Although my eyes started to glaze over, which I tend to do with mindless statistics, once I saw a nice screencast tutorial about how you can create your own form this discovery lesson became more interesting. There can be a lot of prep work creating the right kind of questions as well as making sense of the responses after. There are helping hands to guide in both directions with many online articles and screencasts.

Looking around our online page, my library has a basic “how are we doing/please send feedback” form on the main home page. The campus often solicits responses to how a department or service is performing and to seek input to a proposed change. I have participated in a few over the last several years but have not been involved in either creating or analyzing them. In the library administration office, where I initially worked upon entering employment here, I have noticed they now use online forms to count those attending holiday luncheons. There was also an instant polls conducted after our annual new student library orientation; again, I was not involved but perhaps the first year students were able to answer with not only library computers but also their smart phones. So, there are a number of survey possibilities with various degrees of sophistication and application for each specific need. No more paper questionnaire routed by inter-department envelopes!

 

Method 10, Meet You Online

Again, many of the links were old and did not work. It is interesting how obsolete our online culture becomes after several years. Yet, YouTube videos seem forever.

One working blog post was about a library using Skype, a computer-to-computer video conference program, in Reference. But it ultimately failed since most patrons were more interested in multi-tasking and having to focus one-on-one was not something most wanted to do. Yet, it was a hit with international patrons who could check in with relatives, both sides having signed up for the free account, as well as families connecting with military personnel serving overseas. Skype and other similar programs require both sending and receiving sides to purchase a small video camera and a headphone/speaker if both are not included on both computers. 

There was YouTube interview with the librarian who set up a “Skype An Author” program. Another showed elementary students visiting with a writer whose book the class was reading. Similar YouTube suggestions on the right side of the site is valid testimony that other writers have jumped on that particular bandwagon. This is a great way for a writer to not only promote their work but also a chance for them to connect with readers. Another link showed a Skype kiosk just past the front doors in a public library, with a helpful menu on how to use it. 

This type of cost-effective technology could also save time. Although I have not used any online meeting or conferencing tools myself, it sounds like a convenient way to connect across the miles. If travel budgets are cut, this would be a good alternative from everything from information sessions with campus health insurance representatives to tutorials with library software companies.

Method 9, Tell a (Digital) Story

This discovery lesson was about telling a story using photos, music, and text. I created a 30 second video project with Animoto. You can view it on the right side of the blog.

Even though I have used Windows Movie maker (see previous post here), this was a bit different. To get the free Animoto account, I could only use that short format and was limited to only a few photos and text. There was slots for both and you could re-arrange them until you were happy. I wanted to look through more of the music options but ended up choosing the default since it seemed to go with my theme.

The theme I chose, "Leave the Library" was an imaginary prompt for weary students to push aside their studies and get out of the building and get a breath of fresh air. A break with a change of scenery can refresh your mind. Using photos I had taken on the nearby walking trail, I linked photos and text together.

I was surprised how limiting even choosing text was. But, I discovered how to add sub-text and shorten my narrative to get my message across. And, I was dissappointed how the program cropped my photos without mercy.

Then, it didn't take too long to embed it on this blog. In the layout menu, I selected a gadget that accepted the html copied code. Ta-da!

Method 8 Capture Your Computer Screen

 

This module was about screencasting. And because I’m doing this three years later, some of the article links don’t work.

But, I get the gist of the idea. Screencasting can become a teaching tool by using your computer screen to go through the steps, highlighting your every mouse move. The courses at Lynda.com use this technique in their many instructional subjects.

Looking around our academic library web page, I couldn’t see any screencasting either for a newbie or experienced student or faculty but I did find an audio recording of a conference presentation by a librarian who  demonstrated the power of a software program. It did look somewhat like a screencast but without any fancy presentation of areas highlighted as described in this discovery exercise.

I can see where this would be beneficial to have librarians use screencasting either geared to general information or tailored to specific courses. Reference staff might also use it to illuminate and explain those same questions they are asked over and over.

Method 7 - Next Gen Presentations

This method boldly went to the newest presentation programs. Forget Power Point. That’s old school.

 

First up is Prezi, a pretzel-twisting experience that will suck in your audience or leave them spinning and dizzy. It has its proponents and opponents. But, if done without too many swirling and sweeping curves can create excitement and intrigue. Reminds me of a new device television and movies used that was first dizzying and confounding—the rapid sped-up showing of multiple still shots or photographs so fast you could not discern individual photos; yet, it is commonplace now.

 

It would be easier to have a drop-down menu of some question you have rather than having to see the whole range in the Prezi program. But, it has lots of visuals and a swooping in and out like a movie camera so maybe it will be a hit with library patrons.

 

Since I’m doing this exercise much later after the initial offering, many of the links on Method 7 page don’t work anymore. But, I see Google Docs mentioned and present day has caught up; our library and campus already uses Google Docs routinely.

Method 6 eBooks & eReaders and Libraries

Last fall, I skipped ahead to read this Method 6 about eReaders. I was so curious about them but never thought I’d want one.

But guess what I’ve had for almost seven months now and really enjoy? Yup, an eReader. Kindle Fire, to be exact. I had promised myself I’d think about one if they came out in color—no black and white for me. When Barnes & Noble and Amazon both as well as Wi-Fi compatible models, I wanted to see them in person. Keep in mind I don’t have a smart phone or other fancy mobile device…more of a simple pay-as-you-go cellular phone. So, these little devices were wonders to me.

But now I’m much more comfortable reading or sending send e-mails, updating or commenting on Facebook, surfing other art blogs, conducting Google Searches, playing card games, and even—gasp!—buying and reading books on my Kindle Fire.

But, it sounds like eReaders aren’t quite so fun for libraries. On one of the links, there was a podcast on YouTube called “Libraries are Screwed.” In these techno times, the codex—the book, the monograph—is in an outmoded form. Digital is all the rage. But copywrite and library loan of digital books is cumbersome if not confusing and inconsistent. Most publishers won’t allow digital sharing since they want their piece of eBook sales. DRM (Digital Rights Management), the restriction of "one copy, one user" inhibits wide-spread circulation of a title.

That isn’t to say that there will not be a software breakthrough in the future or some agreement between libraries and eReader distributors across the many and varied device platforms. Project Gutenberg offers thousands of free e-books because the copyright has expired. I searched for Walden by Henry David Thoreau http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/205. The HTML version could be read online but the text was blocky, single spaced, and without paragraph lines.

Searching our local public library, I found they have eBooks powered by OverDrive and good help through their online pages. For my Kindle Fire, I found this site: http://help.overdrive.com/article/0430/How-to-read-eBooks-borrowed-from-the-library-with-Kindle-devices-or-Kindle-reading-apps

Looks like you can download books directly to your Kindle Fire once you download appropriate software. Here is the Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html/?nodeId=200747550

But many titles were “checked-out” since only one copy is available. Older classics with no restrictions on copy or availability would be quicker to download.

Once today’s problems between eBooks and libraries are solved, more patrons can enjoy the range, accessibility, and downright fun eReaders promise.