This topic has been percolating for a long time, so I was psyched when Michelle contacted me with an invitation to participate in the BIGWIG Social Software Showcase. (Blogs, Wikis, Social Software Interest Group = BEST library acronym to date.) The idea, as I understand it, is to get some folks to produce some multimedia presentation to post to their wiki and then to host a discussion of those presentations at ALA. I think it’s a brilliant idea and wish that I could have done something fancier with the presentation… but that’s okay, some others did a terrific job.

I don’t think it’s fully brewed yet - but essentially, through talking with local folks about social software it’s become clear to me that even those with a good handle on what it is are not so clear about why it’s appropriate in libraries. Fair enough question, if you ask me. But, in my mind, if your mission is clear, then it’s no longer a question.

Libraries provide two things that other information sources do not.

#1: LIBRARIANS - when I say librarian, I mean the smiling face that I encounter in public libraries in NH. The kindly woman (I know, but it IS usually a woman) who doesn’t just fork encyclopedias; she HELPS. She sits next to me to discuss the direction of my research be it a recipe, knitting pattern, or the demographics of developing countries and the impact on quality of life in their neighbors.

#2: CONTEXT - Because libraries have such central roles in our physical communities, they also have the opportunity to deliver the unique richness of that community to disembodied and ungrounded, but highly active community, of the internet. And as more people carry on their life on the web that is an essential service to deliver to both constituencies.

I’ve had the pleasure of watching how these two worlds can complement each other on a local level via the first public library installation of Scriblio. And speaking of Scriblio, BIGWIG is also the venue for our small steps announcement. Stayed tuned for updates on that and other cool stuff.

Many kudos to the BIGWIG team for an innovative idea and I’m flattered to be included among the august. I sure wish I could be in DC with everyone, perhaps I’ll see you in the fall in Monterey…

Tags: ala2007, bigwigshowcase07, community, Libraries, Services, and Librarians, library2.0, presentations, scriblio, social software, talks, web2.0

This entry was posted on Friday, June 22nd, 2007 at 10:33 am and is filed under Libraries, Services, and Librarians. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.