Week 5: Wikis

Well, I am playing catch up after the Easter break.

Have just finished reading a lot of material about Wikis. I found the Library Success Best Practices wiki very helpful and relatively easy to follow. I have looked at all the examples and can see they all have a lot in common, with a number being set up in a very similar way. The Wikipedia/ Library Success/ Blogging libraries wikis all have the same basic format, so this version of 2.0 obviously works in much the same way as Blogs - you find the template that suits your needs and off you go.

In my case, I could imagine myself using a Wiki for the Information Services newsletter which I write quarterly for library staff. At the moment I write it in Publisher and distribute it in hard copy, although staff can access it electronically though the Council intranet.I have already discovered that using templates and logos for the sections which I repeatedly write, like the LIAC update, latest Cheatsheets and New Reference resources etc., saves me time and is helpful in alerting the staff to the various sections. I have often wished I could index the newsletter easily, and it seems as if a wiki would allow me to do this. It would also obviously be a forum for the staff to interact with the information and provide feedback. I sometimes wonder how many people read it and if the information meets their needs.

But, I have more to learn, so back to "Explore".

Killarney

This photo reminds me of a wonderful few days spent in Killarney, Ireland.





PS Week 4 - RSS
Have realised I did not blog about RSS in Week 4, although I did join Bloglines and add SMH headlines to this blog. I must say I have enjoyed catching up with the news as I have been doing my learning 2.0 work each week. It amazes me that the headlines change each day. The other sites I added to Bloglines were ABS blog for librarians, the NSW RISG blog, the Powerhouse Museum photo and the Readers Advisory blog. I did not add these to the blog - I thought it would take up too much room.
* I like the way the RSS feeds continually update without any assistance. This would be a great advantage on a library web site - keeping library clients up-to-date with whatever you please.
* They certainly help me keep up to date with my professional reading - which I pass on to other staff that I train in reference services. May 2008