DavisS401

Hi everyone, My name is John Davis and I am in my first semester of the MLS program. I currently use social media applications such as blogs, videos, and chat to stay current in the library profession. I regularly read library related blogs and enjoy the comments provided by librarians from across the country. Many times these posts provide unique perspectives on problems that are common in the library. I also use video resources such as You Tube for clarification on technical questions or applications. In addition I have used the chat format to ask librarians questions and have also used it for tech support through UITS. I am excited about the possibilities that have been created by social media in the library. I think the blog is an excellent tool to gain valuable feedback from the community regarding everything from collection development to programs and services. I also think that library commercials on You Tube are a great idea to promote the materials and services already offered. Finally, the library can provide a chat application where users get immediate advice from a librarian. I believe the library must embrace these new tools in order to stay viable in today’s society.

I found the following useful library related websites that use social media to share information: [] - “Will Unwound” is an entertaining, and informative blog by Will Manley. Will is a retired librarian who has written nine books on librarianship. The posts and comments from librarians around the country offer an array of solutions to problems faced by today’s librarians. [] - David King writes this excellent blog about library websites and specifically about how to manage, market, experiment, use, and plan them. He also covers digital trends such as videoblogging and web/library 2.0. [] - Stephen Abram, vice-president of SirsiDynix, writes this blog about industry trends, technology and innovation, and library information. [] - “The Dewey Blog” covers everything you ever wanted to know about the Dewey Decimal Classification system. [] - LISNews covers many current topics in the area of library science including articles, videos, links, and reviews.

All of these sites discuss current topics affecting librarians. These sites are extremely useful for library professionals to stay current with library trends, topics, and technology. I used Google Reader to subscribe to these sites and I was pleasantly surprised. I was able to get an account fairly easily and then went to each website for the RSS feed. I thought the overall process was user friendly and offered two main advantages. First, all the current library news I want is available on one website. Second, the format is nice because it breaks the site down to the important text and links. I will definitely continue to use Google Reader and try other feed readers as well.