Week 4 Readings:
I loved the ideas expressed in the YouTube and Libraries article. Utilizing YouTube would not only be a way to help patrons find things but also a way to show that we are embracing new technologies. I liked the example of one library using video to show a patron how to find the reference desk. People may not feel comfortable asking that type of question. In my undergrad we had to attend an in-library class to go over research methods specific to our class's needs. A YouTube video could be used in place of this and students could watch it if they encountered research problems.
The "Imaging Pittsburgh" article was also interesting. I appreciated that the author posted problems that they had encountered. It is nice to be able to peek behind the curtains to see how much work is really put into things. I also thought it was a great idea that one question is sent out goes to a few different people so that it is answered swiftly and by the best suited person.
The readings on data compression were interesting. The Data Compression Basics was easier for me to understand, although I do like wikipedia. It is interesting to think about how much work really goes into images, videos, and sound recordings. I really liked how it showed the compression of colors with the example picture of the little girl drinking. It was easier to understand with the visualization.
I agree with you, Sarah. YouTube is a fantastic tool to use as a customer service tool for libraries! I don't know if you've taken LIS 2000, but when I took that class our teacher discussed with us ways to keep libraries from becoming extinct. With new technology such as Google and other Internet search engines now a part of our every day lives, our professor argued that libraries will have to find interesting ways to accomodate customers or face extinction. Utilizing YouTube as a customer service tool is a great idea, and it sounds like exactly what my professor was talking about.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you about the "Imaging Pittsburgh" article. It was great to get some behind the scenes information. It was also nice to learn that even they did not have all the answers when entering into their digitization project, and that collaboration was key to their success on this project.
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