Mixing it Up: The Mashed Up Library

I was obviously not one of those folks blogging live from ALA. That's way more then I'm ready for at this point (I really don't want to lug a laptop around and I'm not willing to type on a tiny phone keypad). I do find that I take notes differently now that I know I'll be blogging upon my return - it's probably been quite good for me. Friday at ALA. Got in, met up with Vince Mariner, formerly of SWFLN, and headed to lunch, catching up and then on to the OCLC Symposium. They were taping the session so I'm hoping it will show up sometime soon on the OCLC Video Site Map if you want to hear the full session since I found myself listening and not writing so much (and I couldn't stay until the end.) Developing new library services can now mean mixing data and functionality from several sources into “mash-ups” to provide a unique and powerful user experience. Some librarians have discovered how to use Web applications to adapt or create new services. Others are investigating this trend and looking for further guidance. Still others have found creative ways to deliver traditional programs to new populations. Keynote speaker, Michael Schrage, author of Shared Minds—The New Technologies of Collaboration and columnist for CIO and MIT’s Technology Review, started things off. I thought there was a lot to his comment, "The staff will change or the staff will change," especially as libraries begin to investigate Library 2.0 as a means of providing services where the patrons are. He encouraged folks to take a look at the PLA Program, "Dangerous Ideas" on Slideshare and then went on to define innovation as the conversion of 'novelty' into 'value' the means to an end, and it isn't what innovators offer, it's what customers/clients/users adopt The idea of innovation was quite interesting. He went on to talk about actions speak louder then words and that we should learn from our 'lead users,' seriously think about with whom we want to collaborate to create value, and establish liberatories (that a combination of library and laboratory) that attract talent and inspire hypotheses. The final thought I took from Schrage's presentation was "the more it's used, the more value it has, the better it gets." OCLC provided a fun break of ice cream and then we switched to a panel discussion moderated by Andrew Pace, Executive Director of Networked Library Services at OCLC. David Lee King, Digital Branch & Services Manager, Topeka & Shawnee County (KS) Public Library talked about 'thinking outside the box' and offered some neat ideas for library mash ups. google maps and bookmobile stops meebo and Ask-a services from your 'no results found' screens youtube and claymation - workshop to video ego searching (actually creating alerts) so you know what people are saying about your library and you can respond to it I missed the final panelists (Mary Beth Sancomb-Moran, Librarian, University of Minnesota, Rochester and Susan Gibbons, Associate Dean, Public Services & Collection Development, University of Rochester (NY) River Campus Libraries) and the discussion but from talking to folks apparently the discussion was quite good. You can see some follow-up to it at - David Lee King's blog post Answering the What Do I Have to Stop Doing Question OCLC part 1 OCLC part 2 OCLC part 3 - David Lee King Ended the day with the WebJunction reception. Brad seemed to enjoy himself with Danny Hales and Sheila Hiss watching me receive the Member Award. I came home with a lovely blue boa and spread feathers all throughout Anaheim. A great start to the conference. Got my gears churning and ready to go for three more days of this...