For folks in California

I don’t normally promote workshops but this is an interesting one sinnce it is from BiblioCommons and Califa. Along with SirsiDynix, they are doing some of the best research and thinking about social technolgies and libraries. I did some sessions for Califa this year too.
Check the workshop out here.

Introduction to Social Discovery and the Library Catalog
In making everyday decisions, we depend on the judgment and insights of others. Web 2.0 features such as tags, comments, and wikis are neither a frill nor a fad; when implemented in conjunction with the library catalog, social tools capture the judgment and insights of others in order to improve findability, discovery, and reader’s advisory services.
Califa is proud to announce a half-day seminar on “Introduction to Social Discovery and the Library Catalog” presented by staff from BiblioCommons, a company that has developed a unique product that embeds social tools into the library catalog.
Monday, October 27, 2008
10am-12:30pm
San Diego County Library Headquarters
Register here for the San Diego event
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
10am-12:30pm
Burbank Public Library, Buena Vista Branch
Register here for the Burbank event
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
10am-12:30pm
San Mateo Public Library, Main Library
Register here for the San Mateo event
Cost: $35/registrant
Event Agenda
Social Discovery for Libraries:
Not just an OPAC add-on–
but essential to delivering on the Public Library’s mission in a wired world.
Public Libraries everywhere have been struggling to determine an appropriate response to the socialization of the online experience: “Web 2.0”. Most have experimented with various “social networking” tools —blogs, discussion forums, podcasts, Facebook widgets, etc. But to this point, these efforts have largely remained fragmented, and outside the normal flow of patron library interaction, with relatively low levels of participation and engagement. The reason? The vast majority a Public Library’s web traffic is directed to the OPAC, yet the bulk of our efforts in creating engaging web content lie outside of it, with few links in.
BiblioCommons has developed a unique product offering that embeds these social tools, including librarian-contributed content, into the OPAC itself. In the BiblioCommons environment, social is not an “add-on” but integral to delivering on the central function of Public Libraries – helping guide users to the information and cultural content they’re looking for. Each session of the agenda will highlight concrete examples from a live BiblioCommons environment at Oakville Public Library of how the next generation of OPAC can be used to address some of the most central challenges of the Public Library today, in an increasingly competitive information environment.
10:00-10:20
An introduction to Social Discovery: Beyond “A Better OPAC”
The agenda will start with a brief overview of the extensive user research that has guided the development of BiblioCommons’ product offering to this point – and a survey of trends and best practices for community-assisted information discovery outside library environments today.
10:20 – 10:40
Readers’ Advisory 2.0:
Using social discovery to avoid the bestseller trap – and to reach young, reluctant readers
Speaker: Beth Jefferson
Bestseller Lists are featured prominently on OPACs everywhere. But click through on any of the current lists, and you’re sure to get dozens, if not hundreds of holds.
The result: user perception that libraries never have the titles I want – all the while libraries are spending more and more of our collection development dollars on titles that are in high demand today, but that will sit idle on the shelves tomorrow. And the library’s influence in directing attention through casual recommendations, Readers’ Advisory and “Staff Picks” all but disappears…
It doesn’t have to be this way! Yes, users need direction and ideas. But bestsellers are by no means the only acceptable alternative to users – and perhaps not even the most satisfying.
Drawing on user research, and best practices from the retailing industry – online and off — BiblioCommons creates user experiences which aim to distribute attention more broadly across the full breadth of the Library’s Collections. This overview will provide concrete examples of Readers’ Advisory 2.0 in action.
Beth will also discuss opportunities for “social discovery” to connect with even the most reluctant of readers – and to engage younger audiences in new ways. “Youth literacy” was where BiblioCommons began – and functionality that supports a culture of reading among teen and pre-teen audiences remains core to the vision.
10:40-11:00
Health 2.0: The library’s OPAC as community resource hub
Speaker: Tomi Poutanen
Health information has always been an important part of the Public Library’s service offerings. In addition to our collections, Public Libraries spend millions on databases which feature access to authoritative health information – but which are frequently underutilized.
Meanwhile, use of the internet as a first stop for health information has grown dramatically. And online, The Pew Internet research foundation has documented what it sees an irreversible trend toward “participatory medicine” – a strong value attached to sources “created and maintained by their peers, not by credentialed experts”. For health information seekers, these environments frequently provide not only valuable information, but also important therapeutic benefits for their connection to a community.
BiblioCommons functionality provides an opportunity for the library to combine the best of both worlds – for librarians, and community experts alike to create Health Pathfinders that include everything from OPAC resources to database links, “best-of-the web resources”, or pointers to available community resources…and to ensure that these pathfinders are findable where users are looking for them!
11:00-11:15
Break
11:15-11:35
Virtual Reference 2.0: The library’s role?
Speaker: Tomi Poutanen
A whole new segment of web activity has emerged in recent years – “Answers Market places” – that mirrors the traditional reference function of the Public Library, drawing on the contributions of the community at large. Yahoo! Answers alone now mediates answers to over 1 million questions daily — more than all public libraries reference transactions in the US combined – and is second only to Wikipedia as an “Information” destination.
This session will explore opportunities for public libraries to participate in this marketplace more fully – with unique services that play to our strengths.
Tomi was responsible for the initial design and launch of Yahoo! Answers and knows first-hand how valuable Librarian- and educator-contributed content was to the early success of the site. Here, Tomi will share his experiences, learning and describe how BiblioCommons has addressed issues and opportunities in the extension of its own “OPAC” services for libraries.
11:35-12:00
Advocacy 2.0: Using Social Discovery to Address OCLC’s Recommendations
Speaker: Beth Jefferson
One of the primary conclusions of OCLC’s June 2008 report, From Advocacy to Funding, posed a clear challenge for libraries:
“The library occupies a very clear position in people’s mind as a provider of practical information and answers. This is a very crowded space and to remain relevant in today’s information landscape, repositioning will be required.”
Where online visits now exceed in-person visits for many library systems, the library’s “OPAC” has the potential to play a huge role in this re-positioning effort – and to strengthen the bond between user and library at a far lower cost than advertising or branch renovations!
This session will provide an overview of how a social OPAC can fundamentally alter the “space” that the Public Library occupies in its users minds – with specific strategies for those segments that the OCLC report identified as particularly challenging to engage: “Just for Fun” and “Web is Better”.
12:00 – 12:30
Putting “Social” into Practice: Associated Legal Issues
Speaker: Mary Minow
There are many legal concerns that emerge with opening up the catalog to patron contributions, communication and sharing, including: safeguards for the participation of minors, privacy requirements, intellectual property rights considerations, and freedom of speech issues.
Mary has been overseeing Califa’s efforts to ensure that BiblioCommons functionality conforms to the highest standards and will share information on the legal framework governing participation.
About the Speakers
Beth Jefferson
Founder, BiblioCommons
Beth came to the library world by way of a non-profit youth literacy initiative, The perF!nk Project, which she founded in 2004 with the support of the Ontario Library Association, with the goal of enhancing the motivation to read by strengthening the social context for reading among teens and pre-teens. In earlier lives, Beth was responsible for Information Services & Analytics with one of the largest retail loyalty programs in North America, and worked as a strategy consultant with Monitory Company. Beth received a BA from the University of Toronto, and an MBA from Harvard Business School
Mary Minnow
Mary Minow is an attorney, a former librarian and library trustee, and a library law consultant with librarylaw.com. She has taught library law at the San Jose State School of Library Science. She received her B.A. from Brown University, her A.M.L.S. from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and her J.D. from Stanford University. She is currently writing a book with Tomas Lipinski on legal issues for librarians for the American Library Association.
Tomi Poutanen
Chief Operating Officer, BiblioCommons
From 2004-2007, Tomi was Senior Director, Social Search with Yahoo! — While at Yahoo!, Tomi was responsible for launching Yahoo! Answers and for integrating Delicious into the Yahoo portfolio. Prior to assuming responsibilities for social search, Tomi oversaw Yahoo! International search operations. Tomi holds a B.Sc. (Computer Engineering) from the University of Waterloo and M.Sc. and MBA from the University of Toronto.
…From the blogs of others:
…What Beth is doing is fascinating …if you ever have the chance to hear her speak, I highly recommend you go.
Jenny Levine, The Shifted Librarian
Beth Jefferson from Bibliocommons gave a great talk on her research with library end-users…. There was a great deal of interesting data and insights.
Stephen Abram
I was excited by my conversation with Beth Jefferson yesterday because the folks at Bibliocommons understand this dilemma and are finding real, practical ways to harness social networking concepts to transform the catalog… [it] made me start to think about how the online library catalog, rather than becoming obsolete, might be developed as a gateway into the social creation and sharing of information. Lots to think about – but really exciting!
Kathy Gould, Palos Verde Library District
I hope to see many folks in California next week at Internet Librarian – my absolute favouroite conference and I’ve been to every one of them.
Stephen