#15 (Week 6) Future of Web 2.0

I am still grappling with trying to define Library 2.0. I found the different perspectives and the Wikipedia definition to be very helpful with getting a grasp on this term. After reading the articles the key idea that I came away with was a sense of a user-centered library where the focus is on providing an interactive structure that enables users to access information and services when and where they need them. I can see that the Web 2.0 tools can provide an environment that allows for increased interaction from users. My goal is to harness some of this energy and use it to actively involve my students in our library. One of the articles mentioned the concept that the library is not in a community, it is a community within itself. I like this notion and would like to build on it. Another factor that I am constantly wrestling with was mentioned in the Horizon Report- the ability of students to use new 2.0 tools continues to outpace the ability of faculty. I find this is true of both my students and the younger teachers. I have to push myself to learn new tools that are second nature for them! Luckily, I love a challenge!

#14 Technorati (Week 6)

I found this tool a bit overwhelming. I can see how tags are being utilized, but didn't see any practical application for my personal use or for use with students in the library.

#13 Delicious (WEEK 6)

I am constantly amazed at the number of tools that are evolving in 2.o. I had never even heard of Delicious before! An interesting tool. I think it definitely has some possible uses with students in terms of creating a shared site that they can use to access websites that have been selected and saved for research. I am already able to do this on our library portal page, but this might be a nice extension. I especially like the ability to tag sites and search for similar sites. It creates an online community of shared resources that are easy to access. I will share this tool with some of the teachers at my school who like to provide websites to parents for use at home with students. This would make it easy to put everything in one place and the ability to annotate makes it even more useful.
I was able to use the tags to explore 'information literacy' and found an interesting blog entry from Joyce Valenza about being a 21st century librarian. You can find it on my Delicious bookmarks if you're interested.