Technology Tuesday Webcast Series: March 9, 2004 Presenter: Lori Bowen Ayre [email protected] Want To Go Blogging?

Technology Tuesday Webcast Series:

March 9, 2004

Presenter: Lori Bowen Ayre

[email protected]

Want To Go Blogging?

Agenda

What are Blogs and Bloggers?

Blogging and Libraries

Planning Your Library Blog

Best Practices

Reading Blogs and RSS Feeds

Where to Learn More

Bloggers

Residents of Planet Blogistanor

Web + Logs

In The Beginning…All Blogs Were “Personal”

chronological lists of links to stuff that interests the author (blogger), interspersed with information, editorializing and personal asides

often impassioned and sometimes sloppy; they frequently surprise and just as frequently lose focus

-Rosenberg (1999)

Today, Web Logs Are…

also a tool to do what we've always done: collect, categorize, and make information accessible. After all, adding a blog to your library's site is free and easy. It is also a quick way for you and your staff to communicate information to your public and, if you choose, to provide a forum for your public to join the

discussion.

-Blake Carver (2003)

Library “Organizational” Blogs news about the library or community new arrivals: books, VCRs, CDs, DVDs list of upcoming events staff picks for the week most circulated/requested books new in the children’s department teen book club

Blogging and Libraries

Why do I care?

How Public Blogs Benefit the Library

1. website can be a destination for library and community news

2. can be responsive to patron feedback

3. can quickly respond to current events

4. can allow for interaction between patrons and library using comments

5. more involvement with website by multiple staff members

Escondido Public Library

Library Provides Online BookClubFor Kids

http://bloggerbookclub.blogspot.com/

Library’s Genealogy Blog “Enriching Lives with Ancestral Ties”

http://www2.sls.lib.il.us/mt/enriching/

Redwood City Liblog

Planning Your Library Blog

Components of a Blog

sequential entries most recent on top updated frequently

informal feeling clear theme or purpose available for syndication

Marin County Free Library Blog

Blog Planning Steps define purpose of blog set expectations

who will post entries? are comments from public allowed?

if so, what is policy on deleting posts?

how often will blog be updated?

define style and accessibility guidelines define how posts will be archived consider getting help with set-up

easier to “blog” than set up a “blog”

Purpose of Blog who is it for

the community your patrons other librarians

what kind of information can visitors count on finding acquisitions news readers’ advisories news about events at the library / in the community / in

the library world book reviews opinions and editorials

Expectations of Bloggers

decide who will be the authors define topics/events for each author schedule how often does each person posts provide guidelines for length of posts decide if links will launch in same window or

new one -- make sure authors know how to do it if using images, make sure authors know how to

upload

Expectations of Public

provide mission statement purpose theme frequency of updates

can public provide feedback? comments email

Archiving Blog Entries

old entries always available by date

can also be available by topic

define topic categories before starting should relate to mission limit number of topics to

10 or less

Source: http://homepage.mac.com/mstephens7/B143020931/

“Tame the Web:Libraries and Technology”

Archive Categories

Choosing the Right Technology

can you answer “yes” to following questions? we have a server that can be used for our blog we have a person who can download and configure blogging

software we have a person who can integrate our existing website with

new blogging page so blog page has the same look and feel and we have links between home page and blog page

if you can, you can install blogging software if you cannot, you should use a hosted service

Blogging Software

Movable Type http://www.movabletype.org/ desktop blogging software free for non-commercial use MT provides installation services too

Typepad http://www.typepad.com/site/features/ desktop blogging software -

inexpensive but not free Pmachine

http://www.pmachine.com/ content management software or

available as hosted service iBlog

http://www.lifli.com/Products/iBlog/main.htm

desktop software for Max OS X

Hosted Blog Services

Blogger.com http://www.blogger.com/ yourname.blogger.com or you can host blog on your own

domain Blogspot.com

http://www.blogger.com/blogspot-admin/ yourname.blogspot.com

tBLOG http://www.tblog.com/ yourname.tblog.com

Xanga http://www.xanga.com/ xanga.com/you

…for more see http://www.lights.com/weblogs/hosting.html

Advantages & Disadvantages of Hosted Service advantages

no setup anyone with login can

contribute great way to try it out

disadvantages templates are

restrictive URL not on your

domain (usually) free services are

limited

Best Practices

Each blog entry should….

have a title be dated

be signed by author optional: visitors can

post comments

Source: http://www.theshiftedlibrarian.com/

Most Recent Entries are Always At Top of Page

Source: http://www.lessig.org/blog/

Archived Entries Available by Date and Topic

Source: http://www.workingfaster.com/sitelines/

Frequent Postings

blogs should be updated 2 or 3 times per week

the more frequent the updates, the more likely people are to return

Available for RSS Readers

an RSS reader (or news aggregator) is software that allows user to collect all new blog entries (RSS feeds) in one place rather than visiting each web log sequentially

a blog is “syndicated” when it can be read by RSS readers

formats that can be read by RSS readers are: XML RSS 1.0 RSS 2.0 RDF

the blogging software usually makes “syndicating” very easy to do

Reading Blogs

Staying in the loop with RSS Feeds and Blogrolls

Benefits of Reading Blogs

increase awareness of library issues networking opportunities venting

“…weblogs have become an outlet for the average librarian to connect with others around the world, exchange ideas, and belong to a group.”

• Steven M. Cohen’s November 9, 2003 Library Stuff post entitled “The ‘New Breed’ of Library Weblogs”

Steven M. Cohen on RSS feeds:In order to keep current, like many librarians I had all of the web sites that I visited daily bookmarked (about 50) in my browser at work and I would painstakingly visit each site throughout the day [….]

Now, I get almost all of the content I want from all of these sites delivered to one place as soon as the site is updated, saving precious time.

The most amazing part is that I am notified when any of the sites I subscribe to are updated within minutes. And I didn't have to be an experienced techie to set-it-up.

Subscribing to an RSS Feed

copy the link

paste in “subscribe” box of your RSS Reader

A Peek at an RSS Feeder: Bloglines

Blogrolling

definition: (noun) The section of a weblog that lists the sites that the blogger reads on a regular basis.  This is usually located on the side of a blogger's frontpage, or on a separate page linked off of the frontpage.

Source: http://www.microcontentnews.com/resources/glossary/

benefitsgreat way to share RSS feeds the new “bookmarks” or “favorites”

How to Learn More

Online Course: “The Beginner’s Guide to Weblogs and RSS”

Steven Cohen online course via Learning Times

4-week course - live online session once per week sessions: April 6, April 13, April 20, and April 27, 2004

from 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm EDT (GMT -4) $150 http://www.learningtimes.com/rss115.shtm

Good Books on Blogging

Essential Blogging by Powers, Doctorow, Dornfest, et al. O’Reilly & Associates, 2002. $29.95 http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/essblogging/

We Blog: Publishing Online with Web Logs by Bausch, Haughey & Hourihan. John Wiley & Sons, 2002. $29.95.