THING 15 - SOCIAL NETWORKING

After reading several articles on social networking, it is evident that today's teens are very connected to the internet and social networking. Social networking has the potential to be a great marketing tool to promote programs and services offered by VBPL. To keep up with today's world and reach those who don't physically come into the library, you have to go where they go.

I don't think that I personally would create a MySpace or FaceBook account and probably would never check it even if I did. But it is a way for teens to connect with each other and that is important. It is also a way to get information out to those you want to get information to. In April after the tragedy at Virginia Tech I know that FaceBook was a very important tool for many - even those on campus used FaceBook to check on friends they could not get in touch with. Locally, a couple of people told me their kids had gone on FaceBook to check on friends of theirs from high school who were at Virginia Tech.

THING 13

Reading about wikis was interesting and I'm sure the possibilities for use in the library are endless. Every wiki I looked at had something of interest. I really enjoyed the Book Lovers Wiki (Princeton Public Library) and found several books I want to read and also enjoyed the Subject Guides (St. Jospeh County Public Library).

THING 12 - IM

I think IM is a great tool for VBPL to offer its customers and the public. It is a great way to reach those who cannot or will not come in to the library. Its popularity and usage should only continue to grow.

THING 11

THING 11



I think IM is a great tool for VBPL. It is another way to offer services to the public and with IM becoming so popular IM reference will surely grow in popularity. With the fast pace of today's world, it is a way for people to quickly find information. It can also be a great tool for staff, saving time and increasing productivity.

THING 10

I tried several times to get into Feedster without success. I liked Topix.net the best - I liked being able to see information on Virginia Beach or any other location in particular.

THING 9

I had never used RSS feeds and found this to be a wonderful tool. It is not very often that I have the time to go to all my favorite web sites and this tool has already made it so much easier for me to review information from various sites and concentrate on what I am really interested in and have time for.

THING 8

7 1/2 Habits of Lifelong Learners

After viewing the tutorial, selecting the easiest and hardest habit was easy. For me 'Begin with the end in mind' is the easiest. From gardening to household problems to travel to any other situation that arises, my first instinct is to find out information as possible (in the library, online and/or from others). The hardest one for me is 'View problems as challenges.' Habits, frustratation and time constraints make it difficult to look at a problem as anything but a problem.