Mobile & Social, and Google+ Hangouts

The last few years have seen a good amount of focus and research on mobile in libraries and education in general. In the last couple of years social in libraries and education has also been picking up steam.

I'm including a couple of my presentations from 2012 below on these two topics.

What I'm especially excited about of late is Google+ Hangouts, (see slide 24-36 in presentation below). What may be of specific interest to librarians/educators like myself, who work with students and colleagues in ways other than face-to-face, is referenced in slides 29-33. (For those not familiar with Google+ Hangouts, it is arguably the most popular feature of Google+, Google's social networking platform and more.)

Bottom line, in the same way that twitter has become my single most valuable professional development tool over the years, though I was skeptical at first, I'm hopeful that Google+ Hangouts will make certain aspects of my job a little easier. At the same time I hope to be able to provide superior research help to students online using this tool.

Tomorrow I lead a reference tips session at our weekly librarian's meeting on the main campus, which will be all about Hangouts. This Saturday I'll be teaching my second library research class to students in another state via Google+ Hangouts (you can read about my first session here, from back when it was named G+ Hangouts with Extras). A week ago I joined our librarian's meeting on the main campus for the first time from my Portland office with positive results and will continue to attend at least one meeting a month using this tool. There'll be another blog post here soon focused on Google+ and Hangouts with some entertaining screenshots so stay tuned if this topic is of interest.

Handheld Librarian 7 Online Conference - August 15, 2012 from Robin Ashford

State of the Mobile Landscape: Mobile Literacy and What It Means for Libraries from Robin Ashford

Are you using Google+ or G+ Hangouts at your library? Are you an educator using Google+ Hangouts for office hours or in any other way? I'd love to hear about what others are doing with mobile and/or social, feel free to share in comments.

I'll end with a quote that resonates with me as I continue to follow mobile and emerging technologies "The most important thing we can do is to ensure that when the technology matures, we are ready to deliver content to it."  -Jason Griffey, Head of Library Information Technology at the University of Tennessee and author of Mobile Technologies and Libraries.

Teaching Library Research On An iPad

I recently taught my third library research class on an iPad and here’s what I learned.

     First, you may be wondering why a librarian would teach with an iPad rather than a laptop. In my case the answer is simple: GFU students who enroll in the Master's Degree in Teaching (MAT) and Adult Degree Programs are given new iPads. Professors from those programs felt it would be helpful to the students if I used the library's iPad to demonstrate how to access and download library resources. 

The equipment:
     Along with an iPad 2 or the New iPad (3rd gen), you need a VGA Adapter to connect the iPad to the classroom projector, and some kind of laser pointer since you will have no cursor. The picture above shows what I used: an iPad 2 with a smart cover (for easier viewing and typing during demo), my iPhone battery charger with built-in laser pointer, the VGA adapter, and a case for carrying the iPad and accessories. 


Class design, learning outcomes: 
     My one-hour library research session consisted of a brief overview of the library website, followed by demos of how to get articles from our subscription databases, how to find and request books, and how to use library e-books.  I also introduced them to their course-specific research guide (LibGuide), and used that for parts of the demo.

How things went in the classroom - (learn from my mistakes):
     Even though I had practiced in my office, the first class was a little rough. I did not have a laser pointer, and I hadn't realized that without a cursor students would not be able to follow along as I referred to links and various parts of pages on the projector screen. The students were quick to point this out, and now I always take a laser pointer with me.
     In addition, these students were in a new cohort, and had been handed their iPads at orientation only hours beforehand. Most were unfamiliar with the device, and this brought additional challenges. Fortunately many owned smartphones and were familiar with touch screens, mobile browsers and apps. Still, I needed to move more slowly than I had anticipated. Halfway through the class I realized I needed to focus more on exact steps so the new users could follow along.
     The two subsequent classes involved sessions with students who had been using their iPads for a few months. These graduate teacher education students were very adept at using the device. They easily followed along and even got ahead of me more than once (i.e., some began downloading e-books while I was demonstrating using e-books in the browser). 
     For the most part these classes went smoothly and felt more like teaching on a laptop. Nonethless, when on an iPad there are regular reminders that you are using an Apple mobile operating system (iOS) throughout. When pointing to anything built on Flash there will be either an empty space in the page or a small “broken link” icon. In the case of our library tutorials, we made sure everything had been uploaded to our YouTube channel so those on iOS devices could access them too.
     Another consideration is that many sites will detect your mobile OS and ask if you would like to go to the mobile version of the site. In some cases there is no choice and it will simply redirect you. It's important to test the sites beforehand to know which way to direct users when there is a choice. Most libraries now have a mobile site to accommodate smartphones. That may not be the best choice for iPad users, though, who could benefit from having access to the full website.

iPads and library e-books:
     The GFU library's two major e-book vendors, ebrary and EBL, are probably mostly used in the browser. They also allow e-books to be downloaded for offline reading, which may be attractive for iPad users. Digital Rights Management (DRM) ensures that these downloads expire after a certain amount of time, and limits their use in various ways. Consequently, the user must have a free Adobe Digital Editions (ADE) account, and will be prompted to create one if need be at the point of download.  In the case of ebrary, the user must also create a free personal ebrary account before downloading an e-book. Both accounts can be created on an iPad. However, Adobe Digital Editions is Flash-based and can not be installed on iOS devices. Instead the user must install the Bluefire app, which uses their ADE account. 
     Bluefire can be used for both vendors’ DRM-protected ebooks, but ebrary offers an app of their own, and there are some benefits to using it. I recommend installing both and authorizing them with the same ADE ID account.
     If you don't have time to walk students through creating ADE accounts, it may be best to simply demonstrate how to use these books in Safari—one can still search, highlight, take notes and more in this environment.  You could then point them to a link on the library website that will explain how to create an ADE account and download the ebrary and Bluefire apps. 

What I learned: 
1) Before teaching with an iPad the first time, practice in a room with your iPad hooked up to a projector

2) Always bring a laser pointer
3) Mobile sites are often not the best choice on iPads, since the screen size permits handling the full-content site.  However, sometimes there is no choice; be prepared and test beforehand (especially with e-books).
4) Be aware and prepared for workarounds when running into Flash on the iPad.
5) If a learning outcome is to have students successfully download a library e-book, have them create a free Adobe Digital Editions account before class.
6) If students are new to the iPad prepare a simpler presentation that covers less territory.
7) When working with students who are adept at using the iPad, relax and let them teach you a few tricks. 

     

     Finally, I'm noticing that students who own 2nd and 3rd generation iPads are beginning to use them as their primary devices. I have confirmed this with a show of hands whenever I work with students in our MAT program. Most eventually invest in some kind of case with keyboard so they can type as quickly and easily as with a laptop. They may have access to a desktop or laptop as well, but the tablet becomes their go-to device once they're comfortable with it.  See Forrester blog post from April 23, 2012 - Why Tablets Will Become Our Primary Computing Device 

"The Next Generation of Digital Books"

Earlier this month, I discovered Our Choice by Push Pop Press, Inc. and found it to be a pretty remarkable book. My past experience with book-apps came when the Vook was first released. I purchased the "The Breakaway Japanese Kitchen" by Eric Gower and was impressed. I enjoy vooks on my iPhone though, to me, a vook can seem a bit more like a website with embedded video in an app. "Our Choice" is a multimedia e-book that feels more like reading a slick print book with useful media added throughout.

As The New York Times Technology writer, David Pogue stated about Push Pop Press "...it didn’t create just “Our Choice.” It simultaneously created a platform, a technology, that will permit them and others to publish subsequent immersive book-apps much faster and more easily." That's what has me excited about this book-app.

Though "Our Choice" is without features available with less interactive ebooks (search, highlight, annotate, share, hyperlink, etc.), it's engaging and had me quickly engrossed. And I can only see the work being done by Push Pop Press, Inc. and others improving.

Learn more about the "Our Choice" book-app by watching the short 4min TED Talks below by Push Pop Press co-founder, Mike Matas. Then scroll down to view the 2min "Our Choice" video trailer and see what you think.

I'm not sure how popular books in apps like this will become, it seems they're best suited for certain types of books, but it should be interesting to follow as they and other e-books evolve.



"The Next Generation of Digital Books" from Push Pop Press, Inc.:

Our Choice will change the way we read books. And quite possibly change the world. In this interactive app, Al Gore surveys the causes of global warming and presents groundbreaking insights and solutions already under study and underway that can help stop the unfolding disaster of global warming. Our Choice melds the vice president's narrative with photography, interactive graphics, animations, and more than an hour of engrossing documentary footage. A new, groundbreaking multi-touch interface allows you to experience that content seamlessly. Pick up and explore anything you see in the book; zoom out to the visual table of contents and quickly browse though the chapters; reach in and explore data-rich interactive graphics.

Below is the Vimeo video trailer for "Our Choice"

Al Gore's Our Choice from Push Pop Press on Vimeo.

QR Codes and The Academy

(click image for clarity)

A while back I read a post titled "QR Codes Everywhere But Higher Ed?" by Mike Richwalsky (@mrichwalsky). I noticed Mr. Richwalsky also wrote a post back in February 2009 titled "QR Codes: Is it Time?" so he's been tracking these codes for a while.

I've had similar thoughts about QR Codes. And, like others, we've been slowly implementing the codes in our university library. Recently our marketing department created a nice promotional card for our new mobile library site, which included a QR Code for easy access (incl in flickr set below). Overall, higher ed has been slow to adopt QR codes, but based on the number of conferences and presentations featuring this simple technology, that may be changing.

I've seen QR codes in our Best Buy and a few other stores, and there is a definite increase in our local newspapers and mailers, but QR codes are still not a mainstream technology in Portland, Oregon USA. I'm not sure why, though I have some theories (another post). And the majority of people I know (other than early adopter librarians and techies) still don't know what they are.

At times I wonder if QR codes will ever mainstream in North America, and lately I've decided that for some purposes, I don't think that it matters.

Institutions of higher education and libraries (public and academic) are places that I believe can benefit from using QR codes even if they never mainstream, at least for now. Simply put, they are a low threshold technology that provide a lot of bang for the buck. In some cases I think we could ask ourselves why we wouldn't use a QR code. I'm not saying let's start blanketing our libraries and campuses with QR codes, but a QR code on a mobile website promotional card, in a university brochure, and various other places just makes sense to me.

I've embedded my most recent presentation on QR codes below. The presentation includes examples of how QR codes are being used in libraries, with publishers, vendors, retailers, and popular culture.

QR Codes: What, Why, How & Where

View more presentations from Robin Ashford

An article titled "7 ways higher education can use QR codes to connect with current and prospective students" has ideas to assist those in higher ed in getting started.

The Arboretum - Next Generation of Learning blog from the University of Oregon has a number of QR code posts worth reading by Robert Hill Long (who recently found and kindly posted my QR code article). Mr. Long has some great ideas for implementing QR codes in higher ed, and I suspect there will be more posts to come.

Below is a YouTube video on QR Codes at the University of Guelph:


I've embedded a new flickr set dedicated to QR codes and the academy which I'll be adding to as I discover more:


And finally, A press release on the journal NEUROSURGERY® titled "Medical Journal Using QR Codes to Link Print and Digital Video" includes a QR code (which is also on the cover of their April 2011, Vol 68, issue 4 publication). When scanned or photographed, that particular QR code takes users to one of the clearest QR Code tutorials I've seen yet. For those who don't yet use QR codes, I'll include the youtube video of the tutorial below:


I'd love to gather more examples of QR codes related to higher education. Please feel free to recommend links to information or images in comments.

An Interview with UIUC GSLIS Student on Librarians and Second Life

A UIUC graduate student, Sue Bergren (Sue Karillion in SL), wrote yesterday asking if she could interview me for a paper she was writing as part of a practicum in SL this semester. She explained that she had attended my online presentation at the Virtual Librarian Conference , was reading my blog and had some questions. I was glad to answer as it caused me to reflect on what I've been doing and where I'm headed. Thanks, Sue!

How can librarians provide value in a virtual world? - As a librarian, what do you do in SL? - Would you give me some examples of what you do?
I think we need to keep our eyes on the mission of our libraries and work to that end while in Second Life (SL), and by doing so we will provide value.

I am an academic librarian and according to my library's mission statement we are "to support the instructional programs and research activities of our institutions by providing access to information in a variety of formats, and to provide instruction in the use of traditional and new information resources and technologies." I see SL as many things, including another format of information. Most everything I do as a librarian in SL lines up with my library's mission statement.

As a librarian I do a variety of things in SL. This past summer I assisted a professor from my institution in teaching his first class in SL. I researched the best resources for helping his students to get started in SL and then included those in a wiki we developed for his class. I was given a skydeck to develop above some land we leased and went about setting up an office building with resources I felt would be helpful for his students. I created tutorial posters and an informational display on education in SL. Most importantly, I assisted students with their information needs in much the same way I assist students needing help with library databases. I met with students and the professor inworld when requested and built strong relationships with all.

Finally, I collaborate with other librarians inworld and volunteer on the reference desk at Info Island International once per week. The professional development and networking potential (global networking at that!) was something I did not immediately value and which I now find to be incredibley valuable. A whole new world has opened up for me. I've always wanted to travel and meet others from around the country and the world. Not only do I do that in SL, but we share and collaborate in ways that simply are not possible in 1st life. I attend information literacy discussions 2-3 times a month on Infolit iSchool Island hosted by Univ of Sheffield faculty/lecturer, Sheila Webber. I attend professional association meetings without putting a dent in my university's travel budget. I meet, work and play with librarians and educators from around the world on a regular basis. Sometimes when I leave these meetings I walk away (well...fly or teleport usually) and think about events I've attended in 1st life. Events/conferences for which I spent money for travel and paid to attend, and I marvel that my experiences attending events inworld tend to be as good and many times better. I learn and grow in Second Life.
(Click the small square w/arrows in right corner to enlarge & see descriptive info and again to go back.)

How long have you been using SL? - Why did you choose SL over some of the other virtual worlds?
I have been in SL since June 2006, but was not very active at all during my first year. SL was less developed at that time, there were fewer orientation options, and I struggled with learning the technology. I did, however, see the potential and as an early adopter I kept going back until I eventually became comfortable.

I chose SL over other virtual worlds because it is currently the most developed, especially in the area of education. This may change with the many VWs in development. I explore other VWs at times and work to keep abreast of VW developments.

What are your plans for the future?
Now that I'm known at my university as the "SLibrarian," I am the go-to person for anyone who has questions on SL from profs to students to administrators. I will continue to do my best to assist with any questions/needs they may have regarding this newer technology.

I am also working in SL with other librarians on ways we can best work to serve others and each other in SL. I belong to the American Librarian Association (ALA) group in SL as well as the Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL) group in SL.

I am currently working on a project that involves creating inworld educational subject guides using an inworld/outworld tool called Sloog. In the same way that librarians create subject guides for web resources, there is a growing need for such guides inworld. I hope to share about this project at an ACRL in SL meeting in the near future and recently lead a discussion on Infolit iSchool Island on this topic.

Lastly, I am working on a couple of other non-profit ventures in SL. There are so many opportunities to be involved inworld, I find it can be difficult to say no to some of them. SL is an excellent way for early adopter librarians to keep abreast of emerging technologies and to take a lead role in the brave new vitual worlds of our future.

The ALA, Libraries and Second Life

The American Library Association Virtual Communities and Libraries Membership Initiative Group (ALA VCL MIG) is pleased to announce its first ALA SLymposium to be held in the virtual world of Second Life(SL) on ALA island on Saturday November 8. There is no charge for the event. I'm posting here to encourage library workers to register and attend.

The recent growth and development by the global public and education community in SL means that our roles as library workers may be evolving. There are information needs in virtual worlds (VWs) that parallel those needs in real life. As an academic librarian, who is active in SL by both supporting faculty from my university who teach in SL as well as volunteering weekly on the Info Island International reference desk, I feel I benefit greatly from my involvement (as do those I serve). Here is a link to the ALA in Virtual Worlds wiki which includes additional links to information.

In future blog posts I'll also be writing on the activities of the ACRL (Association of College & Research Libraries) in SL Group, of which I am a member.

The ALA island was developed in 2007 and there are events and discussions held regularly. The photo included here is from a recent discussion on ALA Island. Oberon Octagon, ALA Island Manager (the tiger avatar in the closeup photo), talked about ALA Island and what it can do for us. One new project the ALA is working on involves assisting those library workers who are new to SL with orientation needs. Proper SL orientation is important for all newcomers and I was glad to hear this.

For those who may be wondering how committed ALA is to SL, here is info I copied from the ALA Staff in SL Group Charter

The American Library Association is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with more than 65,000 members. Its mission is to promote the highest quality library and information services and public access to information.

Our presence in Second Life marks a commitment to virtual membership by the members of ALA Staff.

This island was made possible through a donation by San Jose State University School of Library and Information Science.

I'm glad to see the ALA is following the virtual worlds movement and willing to support library workers on the cutting edge. Time will tell just how successful SL will be. For now it is by far the most developed VW with the largest presence of library workers. As more library workers become involved in SL, more ALA staff involvement/support will be supplied. Attend the ALA Slymposium if you possibly can and see for yourself what is happening with libraries/library staff and Second Life.

I'm An Official Second Life Librarian!

On May 11, 2008, I began serving as volunteer reference librarian for the Information Island International reference desk in Second Life. I serve there on Sundays from 7-9:00 A.M.

My first week's shift was pretty quiet. I had a great helper- a veteran on the Info Island ref desk, a nice guy, and major techie from the UK, Karl Nostram.
The next week was busier and quite a learning experience for me. I was on my own most of the first hour and it was pretty quiet. Karl stopped by to see how I was doing and we were having a nice chat when suddenly we had three visitors all with challenging questions. I started working with the first person, an academic from the UK looking for government and non- profit organizations in SL. Karl worked with the second person who had a SL technical question. Karl eventually sent out an IM to our Alliance Library Staff group to get help with a question. In no time at all three more librarians arrived to help. The questions were soon answered, we all visited a bit, and it was time to go.

By the end of my 2nd shift I realized that I have a lot to learn about working with this challenging global population. Working and learning in Second Life has already been a great experience. And quite different from my real life reference librarian experiences. Volunteering here and spending time in SL in general, has motivated me to learn more about the people with whom we share our world. And I know my abilities and understanding in SL will improve as I seek to answer challenging questions.

Stop by and see me if you're ever in-world! I'm Robin Mochi, the tall blue man :-) It really is a whole new virtual world - come join us!

My Flickr, Library of Congress, Web 2.0 Video

I just uploaded the short one minute video clip below to YouTube. I'm impressed with this pilot project, as are many others according to the Wired Campus Chronicle post. The Library of Congress' photos on Flickr has been a huge hit, more so than had been anticipated. I expect "The Commons" will continue to develop and will serve as a wonderful resource for educators and general users everywhere.

FYI - All photos used in the video were from the Library of Congress' photos and the tag clouds were created by using the OCLC TagCloud builder and checking the box to cloud a Web page and then inserting the flickr URL for each invidividual photo. I was just experimenting with the technology here. I realize that using only relevant tags would have been better (though more time consuming).

Flickr, Library of Congress, Web 2.0

Great news from the Library of Congress (LOC) Blog. The article "My Friend Flickr: A Match Made in Photo Heaven" is about a brand-new pilot project between Flickr and the Library of Congress, and people. People everywhere will tag, comment and make notes on the LOC images. This will be a huge benefit to both the community and the collections.

The added value of Web 2.0 and the wisdom of crowds is being more fully understood and it's wonderful to see the implementation of this collaborative project.

Here is the LOC new Flickr page which will include only images for which no copyright restrictions are known to exist.
And that's not all. In addition, The Commons, was also announced:

We’re also very excited that, as part of this pilot, Flickr has created a new publication model for publicly held photographic collections called "The Commons." Flickr hopes—as do we—that the project will eventually capture the imagination and involvement of other public institutions, as well.

I have had great fun tagging the photos, give it a try yourself! What a great resource, kudos to Flickr and the LOC - makes me proud to be a librarian.