Mary Beth is the Instructional Design & Technology Consultant at the State Library. See her profile at LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/mbfaccioli
This posting is about Search Engine Optimization. It’s a techie term and usually of concern to marketing people and web developers, often in the for-profit sector. But I think it needs to concern all of us in libraries, even if we’re a small library without a lot of resources for marketing or for our website. And that’s because, in these difficult times for libraries and for our communities, it would be really beneficial if our relevant resources, programs and services were easy for people to find via Google.
Continue reading ‘Why Libraries Should Care about Search Engine Optimization’
Many of us are now on Facebook, and use it for a variety of purposes. Some in the library world use Facebook primarily for professional purposes, to build relationships with colleagues or as a way to promote ourselves professionally. Many others use Facebook to keep in touch with family and friends. I’m in this latter group, though I do have many colleagues as Facebook friends as well. My life isn’t particularly scandalous but I still appreciate having boundaries between the personal and professional. Facebook privacy settings help me set and maintain these boundaries.
This basic tutorial shows those unfamiliar with Facebook privacy and other settings how to control the content seen by different friends on your Facebook pages.
Continue reading ‘Facebook Privacy – TechTuts from CSL’
As I’ve worked with several libraries on the development of their web presence and in particular on approaches to building community online, the question of moderating, and even allowing, public comments on blog postings and other content items often comes up.
“Should we keep our blog/content closed to comments?”
“How do we handle negative or inappropriate comments if we keep it open?”
“Have you seen the kind of thing that gets posted to [whatever news site]?!”
Last week, David Lee King posted a great piece on his blog about his library’s approach to comments, which came into play recently when the library decided to start charging late fees. In “Dealing with Comments on your Website,” he notes that allowing comments is taking control the conversation – by correcting misinformation, responding directly to people if appropriate, and hosting the conversation rather than having it take place somewhere else. Good ideas are also included in comments left by other librarians about their own experiences, policies and more.
If this is an issue you’ve considered at your library, or on your own personal blog or website, I recommend taking a quick read through David Lee King’s post.
We’d like to announce the first edition of Colorado Connections, The Colorado State Library Video Blog! This is a new bi-monthly (or thereabouts) communication channel that the State Library will use to introduce you to some of our staff, and focus attention on current projects.
We hope the video blog will not only help you know more about the Colorado State Library, but will also be useful for other audiences, such as your public library board of directors or other staff, who may not be as familiar with the State Library and what we’re working on.
Continue reading ‘Colorado Connections, the new video blog from the State Library’
At the beginning of the year, I read a few blog postings that described the enormous growth in online video viewing (e.g., Stephen’s Lighthouse, NewTeeVee) – U.S. Internet users are watching 40% more video online than they did a year ago. And of more than 12.5 million videos watched online in November 2008, more than 40% were viewed on YouTube. It seems smart that libraries would be promoting our programs, services and resources on YouTube and other online video-sharing sites.
Continue reading ‘Getting in on Video’
Every year at the ALA Midwinter Conference, a popular event is held by the Library and Information Technology Association (LITA). It’s the Top Tech Trends Roundtable, and it’s typically a standing-room-only event. This year there were various ways to follow the conversation even if one wasn’t attending the conference. Continue reading ‘Top Tech Trends – without leaving home!’
Back in the late 90s, my employer began offering “just-in-time” self-paced online training from a company called Element K. Element K gave me my first taste with online learning, and I was quickly hooked. I hunkered down and took tutorials on web development, database design, a variety of programming languages and more. Fortunately, my boss at the time supported this, at one point saying, “I’m not sure what you’re doing over there… but it certainly seems good.” I was able to quickly apply what I was learning to my job, and everyone benefitted.
After leaving that position, I looked for a way to continue taking learning and professional development into my own hands. That’s when I came across lynda.com, and I’ve been using it ever since.
lynda.com is a website that provides quality, thorough online tutorials on a broad range of software and technology-related topics. Individuals can subscribe for $25/month (same price I’ve paid since 2003), and you can start and stop your subscription as often as you’d like. Volume discounts for organizations are available. The tutorials are Quicktime movies delivered in short files – a few minutes long each – making them easy to take at your own pace. The trainers are often rock stars in a particular area: for example, you can learn CSS from Eric Meyer or Molly Holzschlag. Continue reading ‘Learning online with lynda.com’
In my new role here at the State Library, I’ll be working with audio and video, online learning, intranet development, content management and more. I spent a great afternoon Friday with several staff in the Web Information Services Department at Denver Public Library, learning about their approach to similar projects.
I got to see their setup with iMovie that they use to create videos posted to their YouTube and Vimeo accounts. Continue reading ‘A visit to Denver Public Library’
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