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Facebook

Steven Bell points to an article in the Christian Science Monitor. It reports on efforts in academia to react, respond, or get involved with the social networking site phenomenon.
“Facebook: A campus fad becomes a campus fact: The social-networking website isn’t growing like it once did, but only because almost every US student is already on it”
It shows that, after nearly four years, campuses are waking up to the fact that social networking sites are here to stay, and they have powerful impacts on campus life and politics. Another one ot review is Academici, a social site desigjned for academic R&D networks.
How many academic librarians have personal sites on Facebook? How many Facebook Groups are set up for libraries or research groups? I’ve asked this question a number of times in academic settings and have gotten a range of responses. I’ve met many academic librarians who have their own site and use it as a learning opportunity. Some expose it to other colleagues and even users. Generally there are fewer sites than in the user space. Some tell me they have a committee investigating it and they’re visiting the site to see it or starting to formulate policies. (Why do we so often jump to policy before experience? Why do we lob off our own learning to another committee?) Some tell me that it’s a fad and not worth the time. This is usually said by someone who hasn’t used the service (yes, I ask, and sometimes their knowledge is second and third hand and they haven’t taken a tour. ) so it’s basically an uninformed opinion. Some point out the kids are leaving MySpace so they can ignore it. Unfortunately for that opinion, MySpace sign-ups are up to over 300,000/day after a small drop when the kids went to school in September and did more face-to-face networking. Kids also seem to migrate to Facebook and off MySpace as they pass through higher education, but not always.
It sure is a useful way to promote the information pros and librarians skills and competencies (and publications and websites) as individuals instead of just the collections, services, buildings and databases. The staff are one of the library’s most important assets and, in my opinion, are underpromoted.
It’s great to see some of the early experiments with Facebook, especially now that it allows groups as well as non-academic folks to participate. It reminds me of what was happening with MySpace in the public library space a year ago.
Stephen

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Posted on: December 14, 2006, 8:57 am Category: Uncategorized

2 Responses

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  1. Dear Stephen,
    thanks for this comment which I can only support. When I set up academici over a year ago – people thought it is a waste of time, because you would not get librarians, academics and R&D people to network. And indeed, I have learned a lesson: There is a big difference between social networking and professional networking. academici has somehow started off the latter one. And it seems to hit a nail on its head. Of course within different parameters. Not the masses count, but the quality of profiles, comments, interactions. Despite this, we are still talking about thousands of members on academici. And, it was only the beginning. For the past few weeks members of academici have started to set up their own professional networks – which they now can run on the same software that academici is going to use, and we have reacted and set up our own software distribution channel: http://www.space2bee.net (the new software is already running: http://www.academici.net and, for example, http://www.directorsnet.net or http://www.purchasingnet.net …) – all separate networks, but all interlinking with each other (which will be made even more comfortable over the next weeks). And I was not surprised when a few weeks ago, CURL, the Consortium of University Research Libraries in Britain, set up its first workshop on “e-research”, I was asked to present “academici” and their white label networks as one of the promising solutions for Research Libraries, their staff and their users.
    Yours Markus

  2. Dear Stephen,
    Thank you for this post. I have a facebook entry and have found it quite useful. It is an opportunity for me to engage students where they are. I have heard some criticism from some librarians about facebook and library entries as “invading student space”. I find that reaction quite odd. Students who have added me as their “friend” have done so of their own accord. I do not force the issue – only provide it as another avenue for communication. Your reaction? Have you heard similar criticisms?