IM for the Library: How Instant Messaging Can Connect the Librarian with Kids and Teens

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IM for the LibraryHow Instant Messaging Can
Connect the Librarian with Kids and Teens

• Sarah Houghton
• Information and Web Services Manager, San Mateo
  County Library
• Librarian in Black http//www.librarianinblack.ne
  t

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What is social software?

• Social software enables people to rendezvous,
  connect or collaborate through computer-mediated
  communication and to form online communities.
• --from Wikipedia entry, revised 04.25.06

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Examples of social software

• Instant messaging
• Internet forums
• Blogs / RSS / podcasting
• Wikis
• Social network services
• Social guides
• Social bookmarking
• Social citations
• Social libraries
• Virtual worlds and multiplayer online games

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Why should libraries care about SS?

• There is a great potential for new and enhanced
  services
• There are free marketing opportunities just
  waiting for us
• Our patrons are therewhere are we?

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What is instant messaging?

• Instantaneous, simultaneous text chat
• Add-ons like video, audio, file sharing

Transcript
Type here
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IM client software the holy trinity
Theyre all freeto you and users

• Other Software
• ICQ
• IRC
• Jabber
• Google Talk
• MySpace

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IM aggregator software

• Trillian http//www.ceruleanstudios.com/
• Gaim http//gaim.sourceforge.net/
• Both let you monitor multiple IM accounts (AOL,
  MSN, Yahoo!) through one interface.
• Oh yeahtheyre both free!

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Web-based IM with Meebo

• Completely web-basedno installations
• Sign in with multiple accounts at once
• Even if IM is blocked, this still works

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Principles of Virtual Reference

• We want to serve all users equally
• in-house and remote
• We want to attract and serve new users
• There is a user expectation of real-time online
  service from everyone, retail and community
• We want to be where our users are online (in
  whatever form that may take)

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Why use IM for reference?

• Traditional web-based chat has technical and
  service problems
• Slowness
• Stiff computer requirements, disconnects
• User privacy issues
• Non-local librarians
• Cost
• For many users, not having IM is like not having
  a phone.

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Your users are here already

• 75 of online teens IM
• 42 of online adults IM
• 50 of IMing teens (32 of all teens) IM every
  single day
• Undergrad students, techies, kids and teens,
  stay-at-home parents, people using IM at work
• Pew Internet and American Life Project. Teens
  and Technology. 07/27/2005.

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IM Benefits

• Easy to use for both the librarian and the user
• Youre right there on the users buddy list
• Features
• Document sharing
• Sending URLs, images, voice (w/ add-ons like
  Skype)
• Speeddont get me started on the speed
• Less demands on patron librarian computers
• Disconnects just dont happen
• Did I mention that everything is free?

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Concerns to address

• If user not already IMing, needs to download a
  small program
• Library needs to actively secure user information
  (not keeping transcripts, buddy lists)
• Commercial chat terms of service may include
  privacy concernswarn users
• No co-browsingyet
• No 24/7 availabilityyet

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Working with IT Staff

• Be enthusiastic
• Is IM banned or blocked?
• Why?
• The boogeyman of network security? Or its a
  time-waster?
• E-mail and web browsing cause many more security
  problems than IM.

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IM etiquette

• Be brief
• Use frequent shorter messages
• Capitalization and punctuation are optional
• Bad spelling happens
• Use smiley faces (emoticons) responsibly
• Dont type in ALL CAPS PLEASE!!!!!!!

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Abbreviations

• OMG, I was AFK and my SO gave me an EG! LOL!
  Oops, BRB!
• Oh my god, I was away from the keyboard and my
  significant other gave me an evil grin! Laugh
  out loud! Oops, be right back!
• Familiarize yourself with some basics
  http//www.netlingo.com/emailsh.cfm

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Whos using IM for reference?

• Library Success Wiki list http//www.libsuccess.o
  rg/index.php?titleOnline_Reference
• 79 librariesup from 43 only six months ago
• Public, academic, school, special
• Contact uswere happy to help!

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Example of Library IM webpage
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Other social software for libraries

• Internet forums
• Blogs / RSS / podcasting
• Wikis
• Social network services
• Social bookmarking
• Social libraries

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Internet forums

• Website bulletin boards for discussion
• Feedback and recommendation engines
• Examples
• Google Groups http//groups.google.com/
• Reviews and ratings on Amazon
  http//www.amazon.com
• Gnooks.com http//www.gnooks.com
• Storycode http//www.storycode.com

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Sample Internet Forum Storycode
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Blogs

• Websites frequently updated with new content
• Examples
• Lansing Library Teen News Blog
  http//lansinglibraryteen.blogspot.com/
• St. Joseph County Public Library Game Blog
  http//www.libraryforlife.org/gameblog/
• Framingham Public Library Teen Blogomatic
  http//fplya.blogspot.com/
• Marin County Free Library - Whats New
  http//www.marincountyfreelibrary.blogspot.com/
• Waterboro Public Library H20boro
  http//www.waterborolibrary.org/blog.htm

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Sample blog H20boro
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RSS (Really Simple Syndication)

• RSS is more than just blogs
• New books and other items
• News at the library
• New content in subscription databases
• Examples
• EBSCO feeds for new articles (favorite searches)
• Hennepin County Library feeds for all types of
  things
• Edmonton Public Library feed for new teen books
• Seattle Public Library feeds for favorite authors
  and subjects
• FirstGov feeds for government information

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Sample RSS feeds Hennepin CL
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Podcasting Vidcasting

• Creating audio and video content and pushing it
  to users through an RSS feed
• Has nothing to do with iPods
• Examples
• Thomas Ford Memorial Library audio teen book
  reviews http//www.fordlibrary.org/yareviews/
• Manchester Public Library video book reviews
  http//feeds.feedburner.com/primesboxlive
• Cheshire Public Library - audio of local teen
  magazine http//www.cheshirelib.org/teens/cplpodc
  ast.htm
• University of Sheffield Library audio library
  tours http//www.lbasg.group.shef.ac.uk/downloads
  /mainlibrary.html

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Sample podcast Thomas Ford ML
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Wikis

• Collaborative resource creation
• Multiple authors, ongoing creation and revision
• Examples
• Wikipedia http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page
  
• Wiktionary http//en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Main_Pa
  ge
• St .Joseph County Librarys Subject Guides
  http//www.libraryforlife.org/subjectguides/index.
  php/Main_Page
• University of Minnesota Libraries Staff Website
  http//wiki.lib.umn.edu/

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Sample wiki St .Joseph CLs Subject Guides
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Social network services

• Places to meet people and communicate
• Examples
• Friendster, Dogster, MySpace, Facebook
• Libraries with MySpace accounts
• Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh (Teens)
• Denver Public Library
• Hennepin County Library
• Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library
• dozens of others

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Library MySpace Page Denver PL
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Social bookmarking

• Putting your favorite websites in a web directory
  to share with others
• Examples
• del.icio.us http//del.icio.us/
• furl http//www.furl.net/
• La Grange Public Librarys del.icio.us ref links
• Thomas Ford Memorial Librarys del.icio.us ref
  links
• San Mateo City Librarys del.icio.us ref links

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Library del.icio.us La Grange Park
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Social libraries

• Keep track of collections
• Often include recommendation engines
• Uses tagging, user-created metadata Folksonomies
• Examples
• Flickr.com for photographs
• discogs.com for music
• LibraryThing.com for books
• Stuffopolis.com for everything else

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Social library Reading PL on Flickr
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Againwhy should we care?

• Get our knowledge, helpfulness, and information
  expertise out there where the users are
• Get people to think of us as the go to resource
  for their information needs
• Make us findable in an online environment

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Questions? Contact Sarah any time E-mail
sarahfaery_at_hotmail.com IM LibrarianInBlack
(AOL, Yahoo!, MSN)