Revisiting libraries on Facebook
Last week David Lee King wrote an excellent blog post on academic libraries and Facebook, and it forced me to rethink some of the assumptions I made a year ago in a blog post on the same subject. At that time, I felt that Facebook was far more useful for networking with other professionals and staying in touch than it was for institutions, but some of the newer features on Facebook have really changed the landscape.
The single biggest change as far as institutions are concerned is that Fanpages can now post updates and have them automatically appear in the Newsfeed of their fans. This was implemented in the spring of 2009 and it allows libraries to create a far more active relationship with their fans. This simple but key difference means that instead of the user needing to visit and revisit the fan page in order to interact with the library, all they have to do is sign up as a fan and the news will come to them. Instead of fans having to post on the wall of the fanpage, they can post comments right on each update, creating a dialog.
That is, as long as the library remembers to post news. And that was the biggest element of King’s post. If libraries want to gain fans and have relevant fanpages, they can’t just set up a page and walk away. They need to keep a frequent stream of updates relevant to their institution, invite their fans to events using Facebook’s Event feature, and add photos and videos, much like an individual uses their personal Facebook page.
I can imagine a few groans now. Who has the time to keep posting these things on Facebook when the library is busy and (likely) understaffed? Well, it’s worth remembering that the library is already creating all this content. It already hosts events. It already publishes guides and pathfinders to its website. Perhaps it already has a blog. All of these things can be fed through Facebook updates with just a few clicks. If the library also has a Twitter feed, the tweets can be linked to the fanpage account and be posted simultaneously in both places.
I’d like to add one point to King’s. Ultimately, a library (or any institutional fanpage) will be most successful if they spread the responsibility between staffmembers. I heard this from two different colleagues in the last week - one my former Technology Tools professor, and the other a former SLIS classmate - and the reasons why are pretty obvious. If only one person is keeping the Facebook page going, any time they go on vacation or get too busy the Facebook page withers away. Instead, if several people are involved it is easier to maintain momentum and vary the content.
Does anyone know of any particularly good library Facebook pages to recommend?
Diptych: Sad
Normally, a photo should be able to stand on its own merits, without need for explanation. But I do think that this week’s diptych - or at least my half of it - benefits from a bit of explanation. I was reminded again this morning of the interesting things you see and the interesting encounters you have when you take the time to walk about the City.
First, the subject of my photograph (the second image below) was suggested to me by a transient man who noticed me taking “arty” pictures of a weathered signpost. He told me if I wanted a really good picture, I should go across the street and look up, look for a sign high on the wall of the crêpe place on the corner.
Now, I actually knew what he was talking about because I had grown up in that same neighborhood, back when The Other was in its late 70’s and 1980s heyday, when it was the greatest underground comedy club in America. But I had forgotten about it, just as the City did when the club died at the end of that decade. “Entertainment nightly” indeed. Once upon a time.
Once again my gratitude goes out to @uncola for her contribution. About it, she said, “Note that on top of the sort of slow-destruction-of-childhood-whimsy-in-the-harsh-realities-of-the-environment thing, ‘where’ is spelled wrong.” Indeed.
On Feather Cloaks and Cannibals
I’ve made another contribution to the California Academy of Sciences library blog From the Stacks. It’s about pioneering ichthyologist and first Superintendent of the Steinhart Aquarium Alvin Seale and his adventure memoir Quest for the Golden Cloak. The book is the account of his turn of the century exploration of the South Seas in search of a feather cloak to rival King Kamehameha I’s, and to determine if cannibalism still held sway upon any remote or forgotten island.
To quote my post on From the Stacks, “in his adventures he also came across high cliffside caves strewn with ancestral bones, went diving on a forgotten island searching for oysters with golden pearls, and even had a chance to shoot the devil himself.”
If that whets your appetite, read more here.
Diptych: Fresh
As always, original credit for this project is due Kellee Pigeon and Miss Grace. Check out their rendition of “Fresh” yonder. Here is my collaboration with @uncola:
Diptych: Play
Unfortunately the posting of last Wednesday’s “Diptych” was delayed due to some interminable computer hardware issues. But! Here it is in all of its playful(?) glory, thanks to some timely help from my partner in photography @uncola. Enjoy, and peruse other offerings on the subject via Miss Grace.
Hopefully our next offering, on the subject of “Fresh”, will be freshly posted this Wednesday.
Check out “From the Stacks”
In addition to the digital archiving I’m working on for the California Academy of Sciences, my new job also entails various other services - including the occasional addition to the Research Library’s blog, “From the Stacks“.
I recently wrote a post about Fur Seals, San Francisco and exploring the Bering Sea - the subject of an exhibit I curated in the C.A.S. Library Reading Room during my internship. Please go check it out, and while you’re there, take a look at all the other excellent Academy blogs - there is a lot going on at one of San Francisco’s great institutions!
Diptych: Water
Diptych:
1. Anything folded, so as to have two leaves; esp. a two-leaved, hinged tablet of metal, ivory or wood, having its inner surfaces covered with wax, used by the ancients for writing with the stylus.
b. spec. (in pl.) Applied to the artistically wrought tablets distributed by the consuls, etc. of the later Empire to commemorate their tenure of office; hence transferred to a list of magistrates.
2. Eccl. (in pl.) Tablets on which were recorded the names of those of the orthodox, living and dead, who were commemorated by the early Church at the celebration of the eucharist. Hence, The list or register of such names; the intercessions in the course of which the names were introduced.
3. An altar-piece or other painting composed of two leaves which close like a book.
–Oxford English Dictionary
In art and photography, the diptych is the juxtaposition of two images or works together, by the same artist, with the hope that one illuminates the other (the triptych is the same concept rendered in threes). Photographers and bloggers Kellee Pigeon and Miss Grace have created a weekly challenge in which they collaborate on the creation of a photographic diptych. Each takes one photo independent of the other but on the the same general theme - light one week, paper another…once it was green. They then post the images paired together on each of their blogs. The original project description can be found on the blog Not So Small Things.
They have invited other bloggers to follow suit, and I am happy to say that @uncola - photographer, archivist, and author of .intense.drama - has agreed to partner with me.
Our first subject is water. Her image is the second one.
Be sure to visit Miss Grace’s Disgrace to see their take on the same concept, and find links to other bloggers taking part in the challenge.
Confessions of a Lurker
Apparently today is “delurk” day in the blogosphere, as lurking readers are encouraged to actually comment on their favorite blogs that they normally read in secrecy. I admit to being guilty of lurking on a number of blogs; either I have nothing to add or say in reply, or I’m shy because I don’t know the blogger personally and feel out of place commenting, or it’s a really popular blog and I see no point in adding my two cents when there are hundreds of other comments. I should know better - I certainly appreciate the small handful of comments I get here and on my feed on facebook, and I’d bet the blogs I read (particularly the “smaller” ones) would in turn appreciate the attention themselves.
So I thought I’d highlight a handful of my favorite blogs to lurk, some widely read, others not. Don’t be offended if your blog didn’t make my list…this is just a small sampling from my Reader, and I probably don’t consider myself a lurker on yours!
Blogs by librarians:
- Carolyn the Librarian: This blog is written by a friend and former classmate of mine. She’s an academic reference librarian and one of the most organized, cogent and sharp colleagues I’ve had. Her blog is serious-minded, as she is, focusing on evaluating the library services she takes part in, and analyzing changing trends in academic librarianship. I read it regularly (or as regularly as she posts), and her blog has always featured in my “friends” blogroll at left, but I’ve only commented a couple times.
- Silversprite: This blog is authored by John Kirriemuir, a library consultant who resides in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland (an area of the world recently featured in an evocative National Geographic piece). He travels extensively and blogs about the libraries and library services he witnesses in his journeys.
- The Cataloguing Librarian: I’m not a cataloger, but I might be some day – it’s hard to know what direction my career might take. I have taken courses in the subject and done some archival cataloging during my recent internship, so I know the basics. Reading Laurel Tarulli’s blog, a frequently published Canadian cataloging librarian, keeps me up on many of the bigger questions in cataloging, thus helping me remain informed should I find cataloging a part of my job duties some day. Plus, she writes well and keeps what might be a dry subject pretty interesting. I think I’ve commented once.
- Librarian in Black: Sarah Houghton-Jan’s blog on library web services is one of the gold standards on the subject - widely read, influential, and positive about the possibilities in library services. Reading Librarian in Black is a great way to stay informed about the technological possibilities out there (along with the occasional horror story).
- The Travelin’ Librarian: This interesting blog is a hodgepodge mix of professional observation, personal musings and interesting links (not unlike my own, but generally better written!). The author is veteran librarian Michael Sauers of Lincoln, Nebraska.
Plus a music blog:
- Dust Sleeve. I love, love, love this music blog, though I’ve only commented on it a couple times. I first found it googling for reviews of a Wolf Parade album (anyone who knows me understands I am a fanatic) but kept reading it due to the well-written reviews, the entertaining song mixes, and links provided by writer Erin Fox. After reading her blog for nearly a year, I can definitely say I trust her taste in music. And unlike some music blogs, she writes without pretension.
Now, I suppose I ought to go out and delurk on each of these blogs by posting some comments…in the meantime, I suggest you check them out!
And of course, I’m always happy to get comments here on The Pinakes. No need to be shy. Perhaps you can tell me your favorite blogs to lurk?
