I had to set up a Bloglines account last semester. It is pretty  ccol the way you can create your own personal news page or at least that is the way I look at it. Personally I don’t about you all, but my problem is I am an info junkie and I tend to add so many feeds from other places that I overwhem my brain. Information overload! No, I can’t possibly read everything I add. So some days I remove than later add them back, really tediously, mindlessly waste of time. I just can’t what I really want to keep up with… Blogs about my field, tech journals, science mags, art journals, political and social journals, alternative news sites, on and on… Yeah, I really to learn to filter. Is there RSS filter out there that can say, hey, you have too much and this is all you are going to get now? Probably, not so I’ll keep overwhelming myself with information. Oh, well…

Getting Web 2.0 started in one’s library begins with a change of thinking, but many libraries are beginning to make those changes. Our library has already begun making changes including allowing users to write their own reviews to titles that appear in the online catalog to setting up a wiki with government resources. There are other changes afoot as well. The libraries presented from the Infopeople site had some great ideas. I like how the Charlotte and Mecklenberg County library system has RSS feeds set up so uses can be updated on programming in the library, like Children’s storytime hours and events. I also really dug how Ann Arbor District library has a number of RSS feeds and easy categorization of the topics covered in their library blog.

So what about my library? What can we do that we haven’t done yet? Should we follow the path that others have set or develop new ideas to launch us forward? Do I have any suggestions to add to this mix? Good question, let me put on my thinking hat and toss out a few thoughts.

First off I really like the idea of RSS feeds letting the public know about what programming or services are available. Secondly, I believe our website already has the ability for individual branches to set up blogs letting the public know what is going on at their local library or recommended reads, so I think we should develop this further because it is an untouched resource, just sitting there not being used. I know this means someone on staff, maybe more than one person, would need to update the blog. We could easily post services, events or changes on the move in the local library. In addition, staff members could post their reading picks for the month and place on the blog.

One thing our website lacks is a handy guide to using the catalog, for like placing holds and stuff, so adding a FAQ Wiki might be a nice touch, as would having a place where patrons could post their comments, ideas and suggestions and feedback from staff. Further, creating IM referencing for patrons might be a nice addition for helping students looking for help as they work on a project from home or somewhere else. Well, I know not much ideas, but it is a start to get the wheels turning. Anyone, got any other suggestions let me know.

Okay, enough on this for now. I think libraries are really starting to change and I really wonder what the library will be like 20 years from now…

Okay, I know I am really going at a snail’s pace, but here goes…

Mashups… Everyone is talking about mashups, most of the tech journals I read go on about them. Everything now seems to be a mashup from music, to applications on the web, probably even the way someone dresses is considered a mashup in some circles. Apparently it is a big buzz word. Many of the mashups I hear about are through using Google Maps. Google recently announced that they are going to help others to create their own mashups by giving out the information to the open code for their Google Maps. Possibly set up a manual of what to do, if I recall correctly, course I may have what I heard a bit jumbled, so don’t jump to any conclusion…

Flickr mashups as the name implies is using the Flickr photosharing app altered or combined with some other application to create something new entirely, whether a different way of tagging the images, presenting them or some other groovy thing using Flickr. My favorite is the Spell with Flickr. It was a nice time waster seeing what words I could spell using images from Flickr.
Check this out.

Pretty cool… You want to create your collage word using Flickr, check out Spell with Flickr. Side note, though, make sure you have Flash Player 8 enabled.

Anyhoo that is my rundown about mashups. Go out and explore yourself some more Flickr mashups, Michael Calore, has compiled a list to make it easy. Allright I’m outta here!