De.licio.us Tagging

I like the idea of a more free-form method of organization- tagging feels very organic for to me. The tag swarms on de.licio.us crack me up, because that's pretty much how my apartment is organized- nothing looks like it's in order, but I know where everything is. Most of the time. It's nice to see a links system online that's non-linear and organic. I see websites like de.licio.us working very well for research purposes, like http://www.refworks.com/.

Library Wikis

I am insanely jealous of Albany County Public Library's staff wiki. The thing that I really like about wikis vs blogs is that each user contributes to a coherent document, instead of posting stand-alone blurbs with strings of comments attached to them. Wikis are much more readable, in my opinion. I also like the idea of library procedures being documented as a work in progress. Wikis provide a much more democratic form of knowledge than a traditional encyclopedia or manual.

I made changes to the Minnewiki post on The Kitty Cat Klub, the comfiest bar in town. You can read it at http://minnewiki.publicradio.org/index.php/Kitty_Cat_Klub.

Google Docs & Zoho Writer

I think that these programs are long overdue, especially for collaborative projects, both at work and at school. Sometimes meeting up to work on a document isn't feasible, and forwarding a file around via e-mail gets messy. I like that Zoho Writer lets you select who you share your work with, and they can edit it only if you give them permission. I see this working well for both virtual and face-to-face writers groups, not to mention long-distance learning programs.

my database doesn't even pretend to be comprehensive

Those of you who live in Minneapolis are probably familiar with the coffeeshop chain Dunn Bros. I'm thoroughly addicted to their lattes (half-caf, because I'm a caffeine wimp). And so my little baby database, http://lazybase.com/dunnbrosfreak/ , is devoted to reviewing the various Dunn Bros outposts. More Dunn Bros reviews coming soon.

I found lazybase.com to be very easy to use- and a nice tool, even if it's just for your own personal use. Given that I can be organizationally challenged, having a database that can be accessed from anywhere might be helpful. As far as use in libraries goes, I think this would work really well for book recommendations, research topics, and the like. It would be fun to have one of these set up for my library that patrons could access to recommend books to each other.

Library 2.0 Tools

1. E-mail. Definitely a time drain. The 5 Fast E-mail Productivity Tips were all things that I practice- except for the 5th one, which addresses that silent nagging guilt that comes from facing ancient e-mails from distant acquaintances. Hm. I'm a little two german protestant to let go of guilt that easily, but I'll consider it.

2 & 3. IM and SMS. I don't use IM anymore, and text only rarely. After a bout of serious tendonitis in my forearms during college, I'm careful to not type all day every day. I only get one set of hands!! :) As for IM at work, I can see how it would be useful in a larger library, but I work in a very small neighborhood branch with a staff of 3, so if I need to talk with a colleague I just turn around.

4. Webinars. I think that OPAL is a great way to expand the reach of the public library to those who are housebound, don't live close to a branch, are at home with small children, etc. Since a lot of people spend a lot of their waking lives on the internet these days, I'm all for offering people an alternative to World of Warcraft.