Kathleen McEvoy of EBSCO commented on my social database mockup with a link to an informational page about EBSCO’s redesign/ next product called EBSCOhost® 2.0.

Just so I’m not accused of constantly bashing library product vendors, I’ll tell you straightaway that despite the fact that “2.0″ appears 17 times on the informational page, the actual interface looks much, *much* nicer. I haven’t used the product yet but from the demo it looks like the default interface is just one search box.

There’s a nifty slider for limiting the date range of search results. The citation tool looks really easy to use with a one click copy to clipboard feature. Adding articles to a folder to save them takes one click. Deleting them is as simple as X-ing them out. These things make me happy.

It’s a bit strange to be praising a company for doing the things that should have been standard all along, but I’ll highlight the effort regardless. I haven’t actually used it yet, but EBSCOhost® 2.0 seems to have addressed some usability issues. This is good. Now they’re free to facilitate interaction and make it social. When I get to actually use the interface I’ll report any additional thoughts.

I’m glad Kathleen commented on the post. This is a *good* example of a library vendor being responsive to the conversations that are taking place.

…

Ok, one more little gripe, not really related to their redesign. Just me being a logo nerd. Why is the “host” in EBSCOhost® in italics when it is text, but not when it is in their logo?

Hey, the powers of RSS. It is just after 9pm PST on the 10th of February and I just got a news release from the future. I guess it just passed midnight on their server.

Anyway, I really like this WCCLS Photo Content. What a great way to let WCCLS customers shine. They’d get an entry from me, but:

“Officers, employees and representatives of WCCLS, the fourteen WCCLS member libraries and their immediate families, employees of any sponsor and their immediate families are ineligible to participate“

and that makes sense. I like that that this type of interaction and relationship development is coming from the library system level. Not only does it make their website more interesting, it is good leadership from which member libraries can learn.

Here’s an old picture of the lobby of the MLK Library in Washington, DC. I would be a happy person being in that room for 8 hours per day circulating items or providing information. I’m really into Bauhaus architecture and still can’t get over walking around the building. It was designed by Mies van der Rohe and contains a surprising amount of original furniture and fixtures. You might notice the Barcelona pieces in the foreground. Someone may very well be sitting in one of those chairs right now. The fact that the stuff has never been replaced is amazing, and the fact that some of it has lasted this long is also amazing.

DCPL has received a severe amount of neglect, and not just the MLK library. The good news is that it is going though a for real transformation and with these changes, a rebranding process. I’ll be working in DC a bit this year to help plan and evangelize the web aspects of this transformation. We’re first going to do damage control on the current site and fix some of the user hostile things there. I’ve also done a tiny bit of window dressing since its so easy [check out the neighborhood libraries displayed as sets and the info listed on a specific library’ page] , but the larger project is akin to building an entire house. We’ll likely go beyond doing a redesign of the current site and make a leap to an entirely new, great one. Even more than the whiz-bang cool stuff that might end up on the site, perhaps the most interesting part of this process for me will be acting as the bridge between the librarians and IT/web team. Among other things this will include the challenge of developing a workflow that will enable and encourage librarians to contribute content to the website, providing real people with which the public can interact. Hot stuff.

Here’s a current picture from close to the same spot. I couldn’t get the exact same perspective because there’s a bookstore/giftshop where the original sitting area was (and I don’t have that wide of a lens either). I’m sure the librarians wouldn’t have appreciated me climbing on one of the walls to get the shot.

In my last post, late night wifi, an opportunity for libraries?, Eric Frierson comments that he liked the idea, but also that he’s

…not sure why it should be a *library* venture if the purpose is to provide coffee, free wifi, and non-circulating magazines.

The more I think about it the more I’m convinced that the concept of a cafe branch is a great idea. Libraries are doing the reverse and putting coffee shops in libraries, why not go all the way and put a library in a coffee shop? The idea doesn’t seem that radical to me. Here are some characteristics of my hypothetical cafe library branch:

→ provides access to information
→ has some computers available
→ provides help finding things (if asked)
→ provides access to content (magazines, newspapers, some books strewn about)
→ is a community gathering place
→ holds some special events
→ has reservable group study space

Pretty traditional stuff, right? People might bristle at this idea not because of the traditional services it would provide, but what it would lack. In particular, a collection of books.

Now before anyone gets bent out of shape, let me be clear. I’m not saying that all libraries should be like this, just that this model is an option. Libraries can certainly be much more than what I’m describing here, and they should be. However, libraries don’t always have to strive to be their full incarnation 100% of the time. Just like a small neighborhood branch probably doesn’t have an extensive collection of periodical back issues, so my hypothetical cafe library could shed some library baggage to free it to explore new territory. The geographical language is appropriate. Without large collections to house, the relatively small cafe library can fit into spaces that other branches couldn’t. (Wouldn’t it be great to have space for picking up and returning holds though?) This might allow it to be located in vital and busy areas with tons of foot traffic.

I know you didn’t get a Masters degree to serve coffee. No big deal, it wouldn’t be part of your job. The “shift supervisor” could be a “for real librarian,” managing staff and doing other librarian work like monitoring the library’s IM reference service.

I’m not convinced this idea would work in every context or community, but sitting here in Little Beirut where many people are fueled by their neighborhood coffee shops, I can think of a number of cities where this would work.

This library cafe branch would not just be a means to the end of getting people to use other library resources. It would be legitimate on its own, but wouldn’t it do a good job marketing the larger library too? Among the locally made art on display there would be adverts for relevant library events. Each time someone logs into the wifi network they’d be greeted with list of library resources and be authenticated into library databases. Oh, and how about this? People don’t need a library card to access the wifi, but customers get a 50% discount on coffee and food when they sign up for one. And a 10% discount on each transaction when they present the card.

In a certain sense, a cafe branch would be for a niche market. This is a good thing because we know that niche markets can become obsessively enthusiastic about their interests. Because they’re often concerned with trying to be many things to different people, libraries often miss out on capturing this passion. Last time I checked, we want people passionate and excited about libraries. Having a narrower focus might be one way to cultivate more use and zeal for the library.

In preperation for a workshop I’m facilitating at the PNLA conference I watched a DVD titled “Idaho Digital Natives Focus Groups 2007.” It is a selection of footage from work done by the Idaho Commission for Libraries through an IMLS grant.

The full report is available here: “Perceptions of Idaho’s Digital Natives on Public Libraries”[pdf]. I haven’t read it yet, but considering how blown away I was by the video, I’m looking forward to it.

It might be easy to look at this comment from one of the digital natives and think “Young kids LOL they don’t get it” but that wouldn’t be fair and it isn’t my intention. Knowledge about libraries isn’t something that people can just intuit. The existence of libraries is not an a priori truth, right? When people mistake Barnes & Noble for a library it says more about LibraryLand’s marketing efforts and people’s expectations than it does of their intelligence.

Expect some more great quotes as I delve a bit deeper into the video!

Last post I said I’d love to see a “People LOVE US on Yelp” sticker on a library door. My wish came true. Genesis Hansen, Web Services Librarian at the Newport Beach Public Library wrote me:

You said you’d love to see a yelp sign on a library, so here you go! This is the Newport Beach Public Library in Newport Beach, California. I was really stoked to get the letter and window cling from yelp, and so was my Director. All of our yelp reviews are 4 and 5 stars except one. Our 3-star reviewer complained about the poor wireless connection, but I sent him a message letting him know that we just upgraded our equipment, so I hope he’ll give us another try (can’t help him with the eye candy, though).

It’s great to get good (unsolicited) buzz from our customers, and it’s just one more way we can track how well we’re doing.

Agreed, and excellent work following up with the guy about your wifi. Way to be aware!

Flickr user Don and Kathy Gould also left me a comment on Flickr stating that the Palos Verdes Library District has one. Incidentally, when I checked out the PVLD website, the first thing I noticed was a nice, big MeeboMe widget. Then I noticed a link to their powered by Flickr 40 Families Project.

An inspiring evening. Thanks!

When walking past my neighborhood Powell’s bookstore the other day I got the meet a bunch of their customers.

It made me stop and look. I was interested in the recommendations and the concept of the display, and others stopped to read as well.

Some libraries have done great things letting their customers shine online. See Hennipin County Library’s BookSpace, and the Thomas Ford Memorial Library’s Thommy Ford Abroad. With this Powell’s example we see a physical world example.

What a great move on Powell’s part. It is promoting the organization by promoting the customers. Powell’s gets out of the way and lets customers provide authentic interactions.

This marketing campaign consists of simply providing a means for their customers to have a voice. It is great answer to the oft cited question “How can I help my users kick ass?”

This is the first time I’ve seen an organization at the system or consortial level put out an ad calling for a candidate to help with web presence and social software. Member libraries will benefit from this leadership! The folks at WCCLS are great, so if you fancy a move to the beautiful Pacific Northwest you should go for it.

[Emphasis mine]

Librarian II - Web Services Librarian

Take your career to a new level with Washington County’s Cooperative Library Services (WCCLS). We have a rewarding opportunity within a collegial environment to create original web content pages, user tools and pathfinders for our website, wccls.org. This new position will work collaboratively with public service librarians to customize and enhance the website, monitor and broaden the WCCLS web presence and web reach, manage internal content and training, and implement social interaction tools and other locally significant content for users. Successful candidates will possess related experience within library sciences, MLS preferred.

Washington County offers opportunities for professional growth and a comprehensive benefits package. Pay range is $3,975 - $4,833/month. For more information on this position and to apply on-line, please visit our Human Resources page at www.co.washington.or.us.

Washington County Human Resources
155 N. First Ave., Ste. 270
Hillsboro, OR 97124

http://www.pnla.org/jobs/j93.htm

I happed to be logged out of Gmail the other day and noticed a link to a YouTube (natch) video titled “What’s your Gmail story?” Interested to see what angle they are taking with this, I watched the video. It is overall your typically cute and well done advert for Google.

The last story they share is of a college student that was using Gmail to communicate with classmates about a group project. She logged into Gmail and noticed an ad related to her project. The Gmail engineer says, “This person was able to use Gmail ads to find something she couldn’t find anywhere else.”

Adverts disguised as useful information are nothing new. There are creepy “special advertising sections” in print magazines. Amazon has been doing it on the web for years with their “personalized recommendations.” What is new and different about this claim from Gmail is that it actively promoting an advert as useful information. Google wants to brand its ads as research tools.

Here’s the video.

Scott Jeffries, Reference Librarian at Dallas Baptist University writes,

For four afternoons in November, the Dallas Baptist University Vance Memorial Library hosted their Are You As Smart As A Freshman? event. Patterned after the popular game show Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader?, this event had 2nd-4th year students competing for prizes by answering questions that university freshman should be familiar with. They were able to use a panel of Freshmen as part of their “lifelines” as well as one of the library’s reference librarians …The intent of the event was to raise awareness of the library and its resources and to offer a fun outlet for students within the library’s facilities.

Gaming in libraries does not just mean video/computer games! Nice work!