Excercise 9 - Community Profiles

I live in Abbotsford, 9km from the CBD, and part of the Canada Bay municipality. Its median age is 38,  many with young families - the percentage of children aged under 19 is 15%, which is quite high. It is an affluent, middle/upper middle class community, with its real estate values coming 149th in Sydney for house prices out of all 948 suburbs. Over half the population is Catholic, and a very high percentage (12%) are Italian. In fact, in my apartment block of 10, only 2 families (mine included) are not Italian. The area also has a high rate of native-born Australians - 68%. We also have a high percentage of people over 60 (21%).



The annual Ferragosto Festival - Italian cars on display



The annual Ferragosto Festival - death by cannoli



The annual Ferragosto Festival

So what does this all mean for our local library service?

A good quarter of the square footage of Five Dock Library, 2km from where we live in Abbotsford, is given over to the childrens section. There is also an extensive Italian section, including fiction and non-fiction books written in Italian for both adults and children, as well as Italian grammar books. There is also a good-sized large-print section for seniors.

Five Dock Library

the children's section

Libri Italiani

Un sacco di libri Italiani!

Computer and study area, free and unlimited

My children, Samuel & Aurora, enjoying our library.

You can visit Canada Bay Council's website here: http://profile.id.com.au/canada-bay/about. or visit the library website directly at http://www.canadabay.nsw.gov.au/your_local_library/your_local_library.html.

Excercise 7 Podcasts

The State Library of NSW offers a wide range of podcasts. I chose one titled You Cant Always Get What You Want - an interview with Sam Cutler, interviewed by author Jeff Apter.

I spent an enjoyable hour listening to legendary tour manager, Sam Cutler. The very entertaining Cutler has worked with bands such as the Rolling Stones and the Grateful Dead, and is a natural raconteur. He recounts tales from the road (namely, touring America with the Stones) and shares fabulous tidbits of personal information about some infamous names in music. Who knew that Keith Richards is a bibliophile, with a stately library in his home containing over 30,000 books?

The podcast can be found here:

http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/podcasts/events/cutler_youcantalways.html

Excercise 6 - Social Bookmarking

I've often wished my local library provided its members with reviews as part of their catalogue (I'm still miffed as to why its called 'Social Bookmarking' and not just simply 'Reviews'). It would make my search for reading material quicker and simpler. Instead, I have to navigate away from the library's catalogue and onto external book review sites to get a feel for the book and work out if its what I want.

I used to run an art-house video store. I typed up little reviews on cards that I would prop next to the dvd rentals. The presence of these reviews often meant that tiny, small-release (but expensive to buy) movies, tv shows & documentaries got huge repeat rentals at my shop, just because I'd watched it and typed my opinion on a playing-card sized piece of cardboard.

As a librarian, I would offer this service without a doubt. It is hard to gauge the feel of a book by the jacket alone, especially as the reviews on offer usually have a bias. As a reader, either for myself or picking up something for my children, I want a concise and definitive snapshot of the book, then and there. (No I'm not lazy, I'm busy!)

I found the 2 reviews for the book about Martin Bryant - "Born or Bred" - very helpful. I can see how they would help a reader decide whether it was something they would want to read. The first reviewer thought to include an important feature of the book - that is, that the detailed events of the massacre are secured away ("quarantined") at the back of the book, and clearly marked, in case the reader is squeamish or sensitive to such details and wants to avoid them. Service!

Excercise 5 - Libraries Mixing it Up in Social Media

I'm inspired by the Facebook page "I'll Bet I Can Find 1,000,000 People Who Think Libraries Are Important" although its a shame only 314 of us have joined!

I'm all for libraries getting on board social media. These days, I don't think any business or organisation can afford not to use social media. Its where everybody else is hanging out, and if you want your organisation to thrive, be part of the community, and grow in general, you need to get in there, get amongst it.

Libraries can use social media to humanise themselves. Through it they can build and project their image, ideas, place in the community and accessibility. They can engage with every demographic of the community, and invite users to engage with them in return.

Suddenly, libraries aren't just a pile of bricks, quiet aisles of books and a membership card. They are an inviting, 24/7 accessible, living, breathing hub of the community where members can go to glean or share ideas with other members, access all manner of online information, or tune in to what's going on in their area.

Social Media is crucial to the future of public libraries. As the publishing world changes and the eBook industry flourishes, as information has become more accessible to individuals without the need to walk down to their local library, the focus of the public library has shifted. It has to offer more than books and audio-visual items in order to survive, otherwise it risks becoming redundant.

Excercise 4 - YouTube

An Interview with Nancy Pearl:

Excercise 3 - Flickr

Flickr is a treasure trove of amazing images!

I found a fabulous black and white photograph of a family of travellers, or gypsies, taken in County Cork, Ireland, in 1954. A traveller family, women and children, sit in their painted caravan.

The photograph, titled 'Travellers' Decorated Caravan', was contributed by the National Library of Ireland on the Commons. You can view the photograph here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/nlireland/6136023633/

Excercise 2 -Blogging

When I commenced exploring the three example blogs provided by Gary, I ran into a dead end with the first one (the site had been hacked), the second one was too dry for a Monday morning so I persevered with the final one: The Librarian in Back.

http://librarianinblack.net/librarianinblack/

The premise of The Librarian in Back is fun. Its a modern, sharp, Gen-Y feeling blog that eradicates the musty idea folks have of librarians of old.

I liked the post about Shit Librarians Say as I always enjoy the Shit the ____ Say memes. I look forward to checking back in on the competition to view the YouTube entries.

The eBooks article was interesting, and proved that the blogger, Sarah Houghton, knows the publishing industry well. That kind of know-how is a always a plus for the readers because it gives us confidence in the blogger.

However, by the time I finished the article, and started to read the next post, I was over Sarah Houghton. I got the feeling that she is her own biggest fan, and her writing style is just a bit too pointy and stabby (?) to enjoy. She rambles way too much which made reading her blog posts too much like hard work.

I guess there is a certain self-indulgence that comes with any blog - it almost always turns me off reading them.

Excercise 1 - Web & Library 2.0

So what exactly is Library 2.0?

It is a term used to describe the online, user-focussed development of library services, allowing library users to access and participate in their local library service. Public libraries have embraced modern-day technology, allowing its members to interact, keep up to date and contribute to their library. Through use of social media, libraries are able to target demographics and provide them with enriched, direct services and information.

Some Web 2.0 applications commonly used by librarians are:

Facebook
Flickr
Youtube