The Ubiquitous Librarian (Brian Mathews)

Is there a librarian in the vicinity? Geosocial Reference Services

I have been dabbling with two apps on my phone: Loopt and WhosHere. These programs allow you to create a profile and then see other people who are nearby and have the software installed on their phones too. I created a very librarian-centric profile and put it out there to see what would happen.

In two weeks I received four messages:

1. One was from someone unaffiliated with the school asking me to explain the Dewey System. He was joking around. DDS seems to be a favorite comedic theme for non-librarians. We then spoke (texted) about the “death” of print newspapers for about 15 minutes.
2. One was from a student asking me why the library closed on Saturday night.
3. One was from a student asking why he had to log-in all the time to get eJournals, even though he was on the campus wireless connection.
4. One was from a random person asking me “what’s up?”

All and all, not terribly successful, yet not a total bust. Two weeks isn’t really enough time to judge this little experiment. If anything, it shows that people are willing to contact a librarian who pops up on their screen. They might not be asking about tracking down citations but comments about service hours and proxy access are valuable. It’s a good start.

Geosocial networking or location-based networking services are on the rise. I read about them years ago in Europe and Japan. They seem to be very dating-driven right now in the US-- just like Friendster & Myspace started out-- people looking for companionship, but the potential for wider social interactions is possible. It is too early to tell if they are worthwhile for librarians. They have not caught on wildly yet with students, at least Georgia Tech students; the most that I’ve seen online during the day have been 10 students, but what happens when/if that number grows to 100 or 1,000? We’re heading into Spring Break next week, but I’m going to continue using these services through the rest of the semester. We’ll see if anyone else takes notices of the librarian among them.

10 things your web team should talk about and oh yeah, Library 2.1

I noticed that I get a lot of readers whenever I post about “web stuff’ so here you go. A peek at a few of the things I’ve been working on:

 

Web Design Matters: Ten essentials for any library site

Library Journal, 2.15.09

 

Looking for what’s next: Is it time to start talking about Library 2.1? (preprint)

Journal of Web Librarianship, v 3(2)

 

Note: LJ contacted me about writing the "10 things" article. If you think I missed something or want to suggest #11, go for it in the comments, just be nice.

 

Oh yeah, and Shaq still has it!

iPhone Apps and the Library (if you can’t build one, join one)

I think it would be cool to design and develop an iPhone app.  However I know I am biased because I love my iPhone. Leaving my personal thoughts aside, it is not a priority for my library right now.  I think DCPL and WorldCat are doing interesting work and I am content to live vicariously through them.

However, that doesn’t exclude me for reaching users via their iPhones. At Georgia Tech a group of students built an app designed for the GT community. The core feature is that the app makes it easy to login to the campus wireless system. The normal way is a pain, but the GT app makes it very convenient. It also provides functional links to things like the real-time bus schedule, campus email, a campus map and the course management system. In short it is gives students the tools they need/want all in one spot.

I emailed the developers and asked them to considering adding the library’s computer availability map. Within two weeks it was there. This adds real value because now a student leaving class can check the status of computers in the library.

It is easy for us (as librarians) to complain that we don’t have money or staff to develop cool things—but sometimes that’s ok, because maybe we can partner with those who are (doing cool things) and get our materials and resources included in their work. Instead of investing our time in “a library app” we can attach ourselves to an already popular and successful  app and gain a wider audience. It would be nice to work with them to develop an easy way to scan journal articles or to search for books. I am sure that NCSU is working on the definitive iPhone app right now anyway and that we will all copy them, but in the meantime, see if others in your community are working on something that you can be a part of. That’s the ubiquitous approach.

   

Updated: 2.11.09
What about the Stanford iPhone App?

I think their app is beautiful. It’s filled with lots of great tools. It’s top notch.

But…

It was created by a design firm. It has a very “institutionalized” vibe. Pay your fees, registrar for classes, follow the sports teams, look someone up. I think every tech-centric campus should definitely consider an iPhone app, but what I really admire about the GT app is that it is for-students by-students. It has a much more gritty, genuine, start-up feel about it. It is more organic and approachable.

Where can I find this book? Floor plan maps in the catalog

It is always fun helping a friend at another school find information via their library’s website.  I guess it would be like visiting England or Australia where they speak the same language, but the accent is just a bit different. Anyway, I discovered a very cool finding aid to help users locate items in the stacks.

Check it out. Go to FSU’s Library site  and search for something.  Cloning is always my default keyword.

You’ll see something like this:

When you click on “map” you get this:

It’s a great concept. Maybe all the catalogs are doing this these days—I have not been following the talk about 2.0 OPACs but this helps with a common challenge: finding books in the stacks. So I commend FSU for this. However, I tried to use their “texting” feature and after 2 hours it still has not arrived.  

Follow-up:
So on a hunch I looked at several other Florida universities since I know they use the same catalog. Here are more examples of map/floor plan layouts that are linked out via the catalog: UF, USF, FGCU,FAU, UNF, UWF, UCF

You’ll find a lot of variation, but… FSU trumps them all with their low-tech image simply because it provides an indication of where the book can be found.  99% of the time I side with form over function, but this is one of those rare cases where 1% wins out. I like their map because it shows me where about on the floor I can find the book.

A few more thoughts on library websites

With the last post I offered a handful of library websites that admire. I would not go as far at to say that they are best designs, but simply that they are great examples of what I have found to be helpful for starting a conversation about redesigns.

Here are a few more I'd like to share.

Duke

I can't recall about their old design but I know that I didn't like it—however their current design is great. It is very clean and friendly. When I talk with students about library sites intimidation is a theme that comes up a lot— I feel that Duke has done very well to reduce that fear. Some (many) of us try and cram so much onto our front-page that it becomes a blur-- I like the balanced design of Duke.

Buffalo State

I mentioned Buffalo in my original post, but I'd like to draw your attention to their cross town rivals Buffalo State . This site also has a “new design” feel to it. The colors bother me, and in fact, the whole page feels compacted—but what I really like is their Information Common page. This is of personal interest because our Commons page must have 100 links on it—I like BSU's approach because while there is a lot of information it is elegant in its simplicity. I like their “quick computing guide” and the icons they use beside the links. I really like the toggle button between faculty and students—this is great feature because we know that we need to highlight different services and use different language with these segments.

Ville de Saint-Herblain

My intent with this was to showcase sites that I find inspiring, so let's go global. This site was very recently brought to my attention and I have to say that it is my favorite right now. It is a French library and it feels like it was designed by Dali, Sartre, and David Lynch. It is so bizarre and fascinating. It is an incredible work of art. I'll include a few screens shots, but I strongly encourage you to experience it yourself. It is beautiful, which is a strange thing to say about a library site. The only flaw is that it is Flash which doesn't work with my iPhone.

 

 

 

Two Trends

I follow academic library websites quite regularly. Once a year I go through the ARL list to see what is new. I also have about ten non-ARL's that I follow regularly as well.

The biggest trend over the last 5 years has been the movement to the column or the box layout, typically with a sidebar filled with news, events, announcements, and spotlights. We use this ourselves at GT. It is easy but conservative. What I like about Duke, Buffalo State , and the French library is that they break the mold. They don't trap themselves in the category mentality but have flexible, even playful designs. I commend any library that breaks out from this pattern!

Another mega trend is the tabbed search tool. I am not sure who did it first--- libraries are very cannibalistic stealing from each other constantly—but the design has run rampant.

 

The Google Scholar API and the widespread adoption of federated searching have led to this. I often hear (from old timers) about the library's battle with Google and the belief that these types of tools will distinguish us. Personally I like this design element, the turn-of-the-century Amazon inspired tabbed searching, but the critics say that students often don't know what they are looking for and the tabs make it confusing.

The next big thing will be the one box that searches everything at once. And after that it will be customized library websites (a la myspace) where everyone has access to the same core features and services, but also the ability to customize the look and the suite of services they want to use. Imagine a set of dynamic themes or templates based on the users experience level or their disciplines/assignment. Beyond content, users could also choose or customize the visual style they prefer-- but that my readers, is a post for another day.

5 Library Website Designs Worth Talking About

A friend of mine is in the initial stages of a website redesign. Her team is looking at a handful of other library homepages to begin their discussions. She sent me the list and they are all decent, but none really seemed aspirational. In my attempt to be like Cramer, here are five that I suggested. These are the sites that inspire me.

• UNC – Chapel Hill
  I have been a fan of UNC’s website for several years. It has recently changed a little, but the core design is still there. It is a little busy, but I really like it.  Icons work for me.
• Brown
  Personally, I’m not so into this design… but students love it. I’ve tested it in focus groups as well as in a usability class and the students all gravitate toward this layout. It just seems to work. I had a friend at another college test it as well with the same result. There is something we can all learn here.
• Buffalo
  I discovered this site not too long ago—I believe they just completed the design this summer. I like the composition—it’s simple yet warm. I do suggest scaling the big image a bit so I don’t have to scroll down. Also, I’d like to see tabs in the area with “news & alerts” maybe something like else, like “events” or whatever. But overall this one has good style.
• Indiana
  IU is quickly becoming one of my favorite libraries. Their marketing is inventive and I just have good vibes about them. Their site is different than most library homepages—at first I didn’t get it, but it grows on you. I look forward to testing it on students in the Spring. It’s weird, but go with it—talk it out.
• Oregon
  I have mixed feeling about Oregon’s site. I love the tabbed search bar and the twitter-like news ticker, but I don’t like the bottom half columns. I feel the top part is well produced, but then it just becomes a bit lackluster. Like a song with a great melody but no catchy chorus. Good potential though

Ok, so there you have it. Those are five designs that I find interesting.  Please share others with me.  What are some academic library sites that I’m missing? What else should I be looking at? Where are the creative, slick, imaginative designs?

Back In My Day: Emory Professor Complains

We have a speaker scheduled this afternoon who exuberates elitism-- an English professor from Emory hyping his new book that complains about the kids today. You know the story, they don’t read books, texting has killed grammar, facebook has replaced real conversations, video games and TV are bad, and so forth.

I’m all for the open exchange of ideas and I think it fits with our desire to be a public forum, but I worry about the message. I think he is off-brand. Our goal is to empower students, not insult them. I mean, The Dumbest Generation, seriously? Looking at his work, he seems like a character out of conservative talk radio, or one of those traveling campus preachers crying out about how sex is sin. I actually feel sorry for the guy.

I thought about organizing a public response, something flash mob style where you fill the room with students and then ten minutes into his talk they all pull out their cell phones and start texting each other, but it takes a lot of energy and effort to pull off something like that; maybe I’m getting too old for such shenanigans? Besides it’s summer and there is no one here.

I can’t speak for Emory, but Georgia Tech students are wicked smart and wicked industrious. Dr. Bauerlein, don’t worry man, the kids are alright.

A side note:
Personally, I don’t see the library as being in the information business. In fact, I don’t see us in the service business anymore either. We’re in the inspiration business, and everything that we do should drive their success.

Playing with Thunder

 Today I got a peek at Thunder from Polyvision (Steel Case) – they spin it as a “real time global collaboration system” – it’s an interesting way to share and create information. It pushes the boundaries of the desktop and/or wall space.

Their brochure will probably explain it better than I can, but a few highlights:

• It’s like having multiple whiteboard/flipcharts -- except digital.
• It displays anything you have on a computer: web, video, software, etc — as well external devices, such as DVDs, cell phone or on a document camera.
• It removes the barrier of space—people can connect, share, and control remotely.
• It support voice—via phone, Skype, microphone
• It looks cool!

I saw a demo at their headquarters, but Miami University (in Ohio, not the Hurricanes) offers Thunder in their library: read about it here.

While it might be a bit much for a group study room setting, it definitely has potential for the distance learning marketplace. And if you opt out of the projection system, it could be an interesting (but pricey) collaboration tool for library staff or campus wide. Add it to the wish list.

  

The anatomy of an all-nighter

The transparent technologies of flickr and twitter offer tremendous assessment possibilities. We hear about students pulling all-nighters, but this is documented evidence.

4:56 PM
paper + pres due in 22 hours. tick tock. group members unite

6:51 PM
if I have to pull an allnighter to finish this proj I'll likely have to skip the gatech awards banquet luncheon thing and get my award later

7:55 PM
I just talked about epistemological connections in this CS paper. Do I get my cookie now or later?

09:23 PM
trying to explain color wars in this paper as a way of community-driven convention for subgroups. prof is going to think twitter is crazy.

10:17 PM
GT Parking is heartless.. giving parking tickets to students parked at the library this late. @flashmob needs to do something about it

11:15 PM
cramped between @jarryd and @hd_phones in the library near the collaborative computing section.

12:24 AM
@vending_machine: let me start a tab! you know I'm good for it. i need this caffeine. don't make @jarryd and i tilt you. you know we can.

2:10 AM
paper update: 7,400 words and probably 5 pages or so left. then lots of proof reading, bibliography, and then making a presentation. x_x

3:28 AM
just got a call from my connect. coffee is on the way. @ 8,100 words

5:30 AM
now at 8,700 words. just me and @jarryd in the library.

6:11 AM
~9,100 words and we haven't started on the presentation yet =/

3:04 PM
just got done presenting my twitter research paper. relaxing would be nice but alas i have more projects to do.

5:12 PM
back from rocky mtn pizza with @jarryd and @gomeler. now to regain the sleep I didn't get from crashing on the library floor this morning

A few thoughts about NCSU’s Website: icons & waitlists

The last two posts have been kind of ranty – so here is something positive.

I really like a subtle change that NCSU made yesterday by adding icons to their Learning Commons page. Earlier in the week I spoke with a web design class and we reviewed 5 websites. (I’ll post more on that later when I get copies of their assignments.) One of the themes that the class mentioned was that instead of just a list of products/services, to add small graphics/icons. An image makes a faster impression than text-- it is also more intuitive and attractive.

I received an email from someone in the class who mentioned that NCSU had added icons the following day and he felt as if his class had something to do with it. I didn’t tell him it was a coincidence because he seemed proud and inspired.

Additionally, we also talked a bit about ideal interactions and functionally of a library website. To use NCSU again, they loved the “availability of computers” feature, but wanted to see that concept embedded throughout the page. For example, on the pages describing the equipment (cameras, calculators, gps, etc) they wanted to know how many were available.

I know that we run into this problem from time to time in which all of our “gadgets” are checked out. This functionality would let students know that 2 cameras are available right now… or if they were all checked out, they wanted an online waitlist feature so that they could place a hold, just as they could with a book.

Most librarians only think of entering the classroom to teach information literacy, but going in as a guest lecturer can lead to real insights.