What is Web 2.0?

Web 2.0 is an application that users use to communicate via the computer and other digital devices. It is a way to stay in touch and collaborate with others. Library staff as well as patrons benefit from the use of Web 2.0

Blogs, Wikis, and RSS

Many people are unfamiliar with the term ‘blog’, so I will like to define the word “blog.” The term Blog is a contraction of web-log. A blog can be compared to a personal diary. But, while a personal diary is kept locked in a drawer, the Blog can be read by everyone because it is published online (Zanin-Yost, 2010). Blogs can be used by libraries to offer information on services, new purchases and events. Libraries have begun using blogs to improve their proficiency in many ways. An example is that the Ross-Blakley Law Library Blog at the University of Arizona allows customers to search for news by categories. A Blog can also be used to provide specialized information. An example is that the public library of Allen County in Indiana has a blog dedicated just for young people. A blog can be used to reach out to patrons, especially if the blog is offered in other languages. An example is the Sacramento Public Library which offers the blog both in English and Spanish. The Blog also allows patrons to have a voice and speak their opinions. In the case of the Blog at Cornell University, questions about the library can be answered by anyone. The best example of how a library uses blogs to enhance its efficiency happened at the Ann Arbor District Library. The library integrated the blog into its library’s homepage and information was posted regularly. The blog allows individuals to write their responses informally. A wiki is a website where individuals can collaborate with each other. A wiki is different from a blog because a person can not only add information, but can change what already has been published. Librarians can use wikis as well as blogs to inform patrons about library products and services. The main difference between a Wiki and a blog is that the information within a wiki is subject to change. Wikis are useful in libraries because it allows people to work on projects. An example is that the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) engineering and science libraries created a Wiki where they could discuss what type of services of offer their patrons. Libraries also use Wikis to create spaces where librarians can easily update their research guides and communicate internally. Wikis also allow organizations to communicate and collaborate internally. Libraries can use wikis to enhance their productivity by keeping library personnel informed of what is happening in their systems, or to update manuals and documents that are used in libraries (Zanin-Yost, 2010). ReallySimpleSyndication or RSS is one of the tools that library use because they save time. Libraries can also inform others of exhibitions or other events that are occurring in the libraries. The needs of library patrons have changed, therefore the library must change to accommodate patrons’ needs. If not people will look at libraries as obsolete, and find other means to get their needs met. The technology that is used in libraries should only be used for the real needs of the library and its users.

Social networking and facebook

Students as well as adults visit libraries to use facebook. Facebook is a popular social networking Web site. Librarians use Facebook as a way of providing outreach to campus communities, while also promoting and marketing library services (Ganster, 2009). This allows a place for patrons to interact with librarians by becoming a part of an online community. Because of Facebook, libraries are now able to develop an outreach presence and information center within this online community. An example of how one library is using Facebook to enhance its efficiency is that in December 2007, librarians at the State University of New York at Buffalo began exploring ways to use Facebook Pages as a virtual tool to reach out to patrons and market library services. The library conducted a survey and based on users’ responses found that the use of Facebook Pages provided a welcome extension of services and a different form of outreach that not only reached out to campus community but reached beyond the campus community. Ganster and Schumacher (2009) list some of the third-party applications that Facebook developers have created to enhance their pages. One example includes a JSTOR application that allows users to search the JSTOR database through facebook. Another example is that the University at Buffalo Libraries Page uses the photo upload capability to create albums of the various libraries and key units, including circulation, reference, interlibrary loans, etc. Library patrons can view the library environment virtually. The library has included video tutorials where patrons have the capabilities to collaborate with the libraries by adding their own photos and videos. Another Facebook application that is useful to libraries is the Facebook Static Facebook Markup Language application. The University at Buffalo used this application to provide links to their library hours and also provided links to their subject guides, Instant Librarian-which is a chat reference, library exhibits, students frequently asked questions, and subject librarian Web pages.