Mobile Impact - Libraries & Higher Education

The ECAR (EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research) Study of Undergraduate Students and Information Technology, 2010 was released in October along with the Key Findings (PDF bottom left).

“The ECAR Study of Undergraduate Students and Information Technology, 2010 is a longitudinal extension of the annual 2004 through 2009 studies. It is based on quantitative data from a spring 2010 survey of 36,950 freshmen and seniors at 100 four-year institutions and students at 27 two-year institutions; student focus groups that included input from 84 students at 4 institutions; and review of qualitative data from written responses to open-ended questions.”

In preparation for two upcoming presentations related to mobile technologies in libraries, I've been following statistics on cell phones, feature phones, smartphones, and other handheld devices (i.e., iPod Touch, etc.) in the US and abroad. Page five of the ECAR Study Key Findings contains "Figure 2. Internet-Capable Handheld Device Users, 2009 and 2010," and the statistics clearly indicate exponential growth.

In viewing the charts in Figure 2 of the Key Findings, I found it significant that the percentage of those in the study who own Internet-capable devices jumped from 51.2% in 2009 to 62.7% in 2010. However, what really grabbed my attention were the stats that show the change in how students are using these devices, with 33.1% who own and use the Internet on their device in 2009 to 48.8% in 2010. That 15.7% increase in Internet use, with almost half the students using their handheld devices to access the Internet (likely over 50% by now), is what is bringing us in higher education and libraries to a tipping point. And the momentum is clearly growing outside of higher education as well (see yesterday’s report from Financial Times on smartphone growth).

Every student I’ve asked recently has said they will probably purchase a mobile device with Internet access soon (or have the data plan on their existing phone turned on) because it is finally becoming affordable (along with the allure of apps-see video below). With the fierce competition amongst carriers, data plans are dropping (T-Mobile is aggressively marketing fast 4G and “entry-level data plans that start at $10”). If costs remains low, my guess is that the number of students accessing the Internet on their handheld devices in next year’s ECAR report will show an even greater percentage of increase.

What does this men? What kind of impact will mobile devices have in higher education? I’m still not sure, but I’m paying close attention. As an academic librarian I’m interested in learning how we can leverage the technology available to us to better serve our students with computers in their pockets. As the proliferation of Internet accessible mobile devices continues (remember most US college campuses are completely wireless, and those who can’t afford data plans are often able to purchase the iPod Touch, which on wireless almost equates to an iPhone), I want to be ready.

Forward looking librarians are already on it. Take a look at the upcoming Handheld Librarian Online Conference IV. View the topics and issues being covered, and the ways in which innovative librarians are working to serve their mobile constituents. The program includes trends in mobile technology and features many ways librarians are utilizing mobile, everything from SMS and mobile instruction, to QR codes, augmented reality and more.

I hope to learn a great deal while attending the Handheld Librarian IV conference. Librarian roles are changing, and whether in public or academic libraries, I believe mobile technology and librarians who understand mobile user needs, will become increasingly more important.

Lastly, below is an amazing entertaining video that drives home the fact that indeed “The Times They Are A-Changin”

QR Codes in Libraries

QR Codes are appearing more frequently in the U.S., though the technology is still largely unknown to the majority and mainstream adoption will take time. Recent developments are raising awareness of QR codes in the country (UPDATE 7/29 more major QR code exposure), and librarians in libraries everywhere are busy experimenting, learning from each other and sharing results.

I created  an introductory flier to share with students and faculty as we continue to research and brainstorm ways to utilize QR codes in the library and on campus.

The Portland Center of my university, where I work as a reference librarian, serves primarily graduate and doctoral students. They are busy adults, many with families working full-time jobs while attending graduate school. Any new technology that is introduced must have enough value to warrant their time and effort. Because QR Code technology is very simple to use, I think there is a good chance of seeing this technology utilized IF doing so makes their lives easier (i.e., QR codes on study room doors to take users directly to the room reservation online form can save time and effort). The main undergraduate campus library has also introduced QR codes and it will be interesting to observe usage between the different groups.

The Journal of Information Literacy recently published an article by Andrew Walsh titled, "QR Codes – using mobile phones to deliver library instruction and help at the point of need." From the Abstract:

This article outlines the practical uses we have found for QR codes, gives preliminary results of how those have been received by our library users in our pilot study and highlights the reluctance of many students to engage with this technology, which may need further investigation.

It's a worthwhile read from which we can learn a great deal, but keep in mind the research was done close to a year ago and there have been significant changes since that time. Many of the same challenges exist today, especially in the U.S. where we are lagging in the use of QR codes and other mobile technologies. However, awareness of QR codes is growing in the US, and QR code technology has developed greatly the last few months in both quantity and quality of apps. I've personally culled a number of apps as better apps have been made available (no longer is taking a picture necessary on some devices as newer apps quickly and accurately scan the codes).

The author also mentions that QR codes are "an easier alternative to full augmented reality," and I agree. However, augmented reality is another technology that has seen significant development over the past few months. I've been experimenting with augmented reality (AR) apps, which I hope to utilize for library tours and other purposes (blog post to come - done and here). At the moment (until the next new technology) I feel that both QR codes and AR will have a place in the library and the university. This post on augmented reality and handheld devices from a year ago highlights the different amazing apps at that time and I expect to continue to see gains in AR and QR code development.

Lastly, this past Friday I discovered (via a tweet to a flickr screen shot) that Alexander Street Press (ASP) had made QR codes available in their Music Online database. I immediately logged into our subscription database, picked an album, found the code, scanned it and was listening to music via a beautiful ASP player on my iPhone 4 in less than two seconds. Below is a screen shot I took to share (with an expired QR code (explanation below), so no legal worries :) ).



I was in my office on our university's wireless system at the time I had logged-in and assumed the music would stop working on my iPhone once I left the office, but that was not the case. After arriving home, I found that I could still listen to the music on my iPhone and at that point I was perplexed as this music was from a subscription database. I continued to experiment with the music database QR codes throughout the weekend.

On Sunday I was searching for information on how the Music Online codes worked when I came upon this Library Journal post"Alexander Street Press, Mobile Streaming Audio, and QR Codes" The article explains that a specific collection of music was being made freely available to all until August 15h. However, the music I chose was not from the free collection and though the article was indeed great exciting news, it did not answer my questions on how/why I could access the subscription databases on my phone without being logged in.

After further searching I found this Alexander Street Press link to a page titled "Using Your Mobile Device" from their Music Online database. Included here is the statement "Mobile shortlinks (used to create the QR code) allow you to listen even when outside of institution network, allowing you to listen from your own home. Please note that shortlinks cannot be used outside of your institution network after 48 hours, but will still be usable within it." I verified today that all the links to music I had bookmarked on my iPhone on Friday have indeed expired. I was also able to easily login as a remote user from my home yesterday and once again added a number of album selections to my IPhone.

I'm very pleased and believe that what Alexander Street Press has done with Music Online and QR codes is the type of development that will drive mainstream adoption in libraries. I'm looking forward to what publishers and database vendors and others (including librarians!) will be doing to help make using library content on the go even more feasible and exciting.

How is your library using QR codes? Comments are welcome.

BTW - The QR Code generator I've been using is Kaywa and my current favorite free QR code reader app for iPhone, iPod Touch, Android devices and many more is the i-nigma reader.

Why I Want An iPad Anyway

I was both excited and disappointed when I watched the Steve Jobs iPad demonstration along with zillions of others via live blogs and tweets. I thought they were mistaken when I first heard "no flash" and then "no camera" on a live blog. I tweeted "no flash, did I understand that correctly?" and several others said they were sure that couldn't be and were trying to confirm.

It didn't take long to figure out this gorgeous device was primarily for consuming content. As an educator I found this especially disturbing. Surely everyone knows we're a participatory culture now (no, not everyone, actually) - how will we upload our videos to YouTube?!

Since then I've followed the iPad hype on twitter, read many articles and blog posts, and watched plenty of videos about the iPad and iPad content. People are definitely passionate about this device. Some reviews have been critical, others say it's going to change the world.

After stepping back from my self and my personal technology habits, I'm in the camp that this device will be a game changer. I see it as the beginning of a new era. A move from files and folders to apps and the cloud. This makes sense to me as I've had most of my data in the cloud since the first Google Apps existed and I'm a believer. And the Apps! iPhone apps have been blowing my mind lately, I can only imagine the amazing developments to come in new iPad apps within the year.

PCMag: Apple iPad video review from PCMag.com Reviews on Vimeo.

It's not yet an ideal device for someone like myself, not a techie but an early adopter who likes to create, but a game changer nonetheless.

I'm planning to wait until V2 of the iPad for myself, when I'm pretty sure the camera situation and a few other things will have changed (ability to create and edit google docs please!). I'll have plenty of opportunities to get my hands on iPads before then, and I believe I've convinced my library director to let me pick one up to run e-book tests on very soon. BTW - the iBook demo in the video is nice and I expect there will be some truly innovative apps developed along these lines: iPad iMagineering-Penguin Books-DK Yep, exciting times ahead.

PBS Frontline presents Digital Nation: Life on the Virtual Frontier

Below is the trailer to an important film. "The film is the product of a unique collaboration with visitors to the Digital Nation Web site, who for the past year have been able to react to the work in progress and post their own stories online." The film is available online and will also be aired Feb 2nd. From the press release:

In Digital Nation: Life on the Virtual Frontier, airing Tuesday, Feb. 2, from 9 to 10:30 P.M. ET on PBS (check local listings), FRONTLINE presents an in-depth exploration of what it means to be human in a 21st-century digital world. Continuing a line of investigation she began with the 2008 FRONTLINE report Growing Up Online, award-winning producer Rachel Dretzin embarks on a journey to understand the implications of living in a world consumed by technology and the impact that this constant connectivity may have on future generations.

The full press release is worth reading. I know there are challenges; technology can consume us and we must find balance. The film addresses the topic of schools and institutions of higher education using technology for learning. Parents and educators are challenged to keep children safe and to find ways to utilize technologies that are truly beneficial. Many believe those challenges must be addressed because there is so much potential for learning about ourselves and our world.

It's obvious to educators that technology is transforming us and the way we learn. There is little doubt that technology can and should be used to further learning in schools and in institutions of higher education (how, is less known). This post by a UK educator is an example of how easily children adopt and benefit from new technologies "What happens when you give a class of 8 year old children an iPod touch each?" And this post by Abby, a 4th grader, who recently posted on pandas, which her father, an educator himself, tweeted about to share. They were pleasantly surprised as comments from around the world were submitted on her blog.

Can you imagine children like Abby and the 8-year-olds in the UK post video and others like them in high-school or college? Will sitting and listening to lectures, writing papers and taking tests meet their expectation for learning? They are already creators of content, they are participators in a globally connected world. Can our education system build on that? Would society benefit if it did?

As an academic librarian I believe it's important that institutions of higher education understand that most college/university students of the near future will have grown up immersed in technology. And though there are challenges, the expectation for learning with these tools should be understood and technologies utilized when and where appropriate. I'm hopeful this program will help us understand the pros and cons of this digital revolution so we can better prepare. Again, one can view the program online here.

Update 3/2010: I'm including a link to a blog post that many feel is a fair criticism of the Digital Nation program speaking primarily to the segment on Second Life.

Lastly, a twitter buddy, @raymondpirouz, wrote a short blog post and alerted me to a response video by educators who felt that "Digital Nation" left out much of the incredible work related to education in Second Life. I agree (fairly typical of SL media reports) and am embedding the short response video below.

An Early Adopter Librarian's "New Technology for Higher Education" Post

I've been wanting to write a post that looks back on some of the technologies I've been following and involved with the past year. This week my university's CIO, Greg Smith, sent out this invitation to a Google Wave:

New Technology for Higher Education:
I am starting a new Wave to gain feedback for my upcoming Lunch & Learn presentation on what is new in Technology. A side benefit of this Wave will be to give a quick glimpse of what Google Wave is. So please respond with your short lists of what you think is important or innovative Technology in Higher Education.

I figured this would work for both purposes. I enjoyed participating in that Wave (seemed a good practical use of Wave) and was hoping to easily embed that in my blog but alas Google Wave, which I think has great potential, is still in the early stages of development. The options for embedding into this blog are not currently very simple, instead I will copy and paste what I wrote, including my short intro, and redo the links and embeded videos below:

Remember I'm not a techie, just an early adopter (and a librarian) who often finds herself in over her head. Also Greg, you state to list what we think is "important or innovative," you didn't state necessarily practical or useful at the moment. Since I tend to feel most passionate about newer technologies that may or may not make it into the mainstream, I'll focus some on those as well (don't worry, I'll leave the really "out there" things out for now).

My practical happening now list:

* ebooks (we've been purchasing and leasing thousands at the GFU library)
* eReaders and, more importantly, ebook reading software for any/every device
* mobile (handheld device) access to everything
* video, video, and more video! And streaming live video like Ustream, Mogulus, etc.
* screencasts
* google apps and all things google
* web-based everything
* our work is in the cloud
* digital repositories
* open access, open source, open education, open content of all kinds
* social networks of all kinds (though these have been around a long time, there are new networks being created regularly and older networks are still evolving. It does appear facebook is used most in higher ed but seems to me more for social purposes than educational. The social network that has been most impactful for me is twitter, though like many things, it's all in how you use the tool.)

Past innovations I use regularly (some considered mainstream and some still not and maybe never will be but still quite useful to me):

* blogs and wikis
* google apps & all things google (google docs, gmail, Sites, analytics, iGoogle, Calendar, YouTube, Wave, mobile, alerts, etc.)
* virtual worlds
* aggregators of all kinds (from social networking aggregators like FriendFeed to RSS news feeds, to iGoogle, netvibe, etc.)
* delicious, diigo or other kinds of social bookmarking sites

The Future (some near, some not too soon and some maybe never :) )

* augmented reality (AR) (already happening but more useful educational application still to come).
Here's a concept video I like on this:


* augmented reality and handheld devices - here's a blog post I wrote on that with several video examples (back before Apple allowed AR apps on their devices, many more avail. now) titled, "Augmented Reality and Handheld Devices-Finally Ready for Mainstream?"
* QR Codes - I believe QR (quick response) codes will soon take off in the USA though they've had a slow start. (Look for QR codes in the library this summer. Here's a photo of a QR code I generated for use in the library to give an idea of just one way these codes can be used (there are many amazing ways, really). This short video on google favorite places shows another use.
* Mixed reality
* browser based virtual worlds for adults (happening now but just barely)
* immersive learning environments of all kinds
* gesture recognition systems (some like project natal below will work on handhelds like Xbox 360)
* project natal (be sure to meet milo if you haven't already)


* spimes and "The Internet of Things (IoT)"
Here's a ReadWriteWeb article on this "IBM and The Internet of Things"
And here's a recent set of posts by RWW tagged with IoT

* And something and someone to watch as this sort of technology if/when developed could turn everything upside down:


All for now but much more to come because we're in the midst of a digital revolution! Exciting times :)

Libraries of the Future-Debate, Discussions, Podcasts, Videos & More

"'Libraries of the Future' is all about debate and involvement, and JISC invites you to take part - both online and in person – in events and debates, to read and respond to publications, podcasts, sponsored supplements, and much more."

The Libraries of the Future site is a wonderful resource, one that librarians and administrators in the USA can harvest to learn and help spur discussions as we, too, work to understand the changing needs of our students, faculty and staff.

It's an exciting time to be an academic librarian. I'm not sure what the academic library will look like 10 years from now but I'm optimistic. The technologies that challenge us will also continue to help us to connect and grow in new ways.

In April I had the privilege to attend the Library of the Future Debate as it was streamed live into Second Life (SL), (which enabled me to participate and view with others from around the globe) from Martin Wood Lecture Theatre, Oxford University, Oxford.

The Libraries of the Future short documentary was recently released and "showcases interviews with leaders from JISC, Oxford University and LSE as well as students and academics who discuss what the library of the future will look like."


The Libraries of the Future publication below "explores the issues surrounding Libraries of the Future, showcases the events and activities of the campaign and looks forward to some possible solutions."

JISC - Libraries of the Future

Second Life and iPhone - Gotta Get One of These!

Well I was really wanting to wait until Android devices were released so I could check them out before I went out and bought an iPhone. And especially when I found out here that the brand new iPhone will still not allow copy and pasting of links, and still does not allow one to edit Google docs. What kind of Blackberry killer is that if it won't do those basics tasks?

But now...now it's going to be difficult to hold out much longer. Unless I hear of a great Android device being released by this weekend, I may very well have to head to my favorite Apple store and purchase an iPhone. Because today I found out that Second Life (SL) runs nicely on the iPhone using a new Teleport app made available recently through iTunes. And it's no longer just a prototype thing I saw a few months ago, it appears to be the real deal.

Check out Dr. Barbara McLain, Professor University of Hawaii-Manoa blog post on this from yesterday complete with photos.

Not only that, I just watched this YouTube video (not best quality and dry, but it's informative) on how the app works to remotely connect and access your desktop anywhere via WiFi or EDGE/3G. It appears I can access everything on my desktop using this app because it's a VNC client! Can't wait to see what other amazing apps are developed for that thing. I think Google really blew it by taking too long to get Android devices on the market...too bad, really.

The Future of the Internet - Lawrence Lessig, Joichi Ito and Phil Rosedale

This video is not the best quality. However, there are some important topics being discussed in this 19 minute clip. I have heard all three of these men before and respect their opinions and find them knowledgeable in their fields. In this video they discuss things like copyright, Creative Commons, Second life, Virtual worlds, 3D, mobile devices, government, the Patriot Act, spectrum, etc.

I decided to post it because these topics are tied together in so many ways and are definitely important to the future of the Internet. Since watching I have a somewhat better understanding of the big picture than I did before. It also left me feeling a bit more unsettled about the future of the Internet.

And I am still fuzzy on the whole wireless spectrum topic and not sure I will ever understand even though I've read many articles. It's a bit too geeky for me. For this topic, I would have liked each person to have had a little more time to speak and provide more in-depth explanations.