Saturday, April 19, 2008

Week twelve - Wrap up and social networks

Isn't that map from LeMonde interesting? I wonder why some countries are dominated with particular social networking sites - Russia seems to be the only big user of Live Journal, whereas Australia is 'totally' MySpace, as is the U.S.A. - product marketing I suspect! I thought Australia was more a Facebook user, for no particular reason.

The article referred to by the Powerhouse Museum, looking at how corporations might use social media, gave me the impression that for 'not for profit' service industries it's not a comfortable transition to social networking - to me it feels somewhat forced and awkward as though trying too hard to 'fit in' with the cool kids on the block. Perhaps it's just the next move on from becoming comfortable with using blogs.

The social networking examples have a great cross-section of styles and uses, and a range of possibilities for using social media as part of library practice. My preference is for the more dynamic examples, such as the Animanga Club and Beyond the Hype, which had lots of active content. Similarly, the Rotorua Public Library has heaps of photos and 'friends' which is the type of content that appeals to young people, whereas British Library takes a more conservative approach.
I just can't get enthusiastic about Second Life. It seems a bit creepy to be living another life digitally...but hey, don't let me stop anyone!

It's been a great journey discovering new web 2.0 stuff and becoming more familiar with some of the sites and tools that are now available. It is important for libraries to continue their integration into the online world as it's just another part of the world of information that we can use to help our clients. Not only can we integrate, but looking at the projects and activities that libraries are involved with demonstrates effective implementation of such a range of web 2.0 applications - congratulations to us!

Thanks Ellen and Mylee and the rest of the team for putting together such a fantastic program and providing the opportunity for us to really explore and learn.

Now it's over to the feedback survey...

2 comments:

pls@slnsw said...

I am really glad you enjoyed the course and found it useful.

I will be interested to read your ideas about where we can go from here.

Ellen

byodbuzz03 said...

The importance of social networking sites in today's world is immense. Indeed, the above mentioned websites are best, however there is also a latest Social Networking site MyworldGo , where you can connect with others. We are also available on iOS and android.