True Believer

Dali - The Persistence of Memory - photo by baffled king(Flickr)
Initially- although curious and keen to learn something new- I regarded the 2.0 learning project as an odyssey rather than a pleasant journey.
While I am still developing my skills, the world of blogging has become a pleasurable experience for me- I have a good foundation of 'blogging' memory to work from. I am on the look-out for ways to incorporate blogging into my work at the State Library. An example is that I can see the relevance of our team using google documents. Currently, we throw up ideas at meetings or jot them down on a white board. Google documents would allow our team to develop ideas and projects over a period of time and take into account the different styles within our team e.g. some prefer to verbalise their thoughts, others prefer to write them down.
We will also be discussing ways that blogs can contribute to our teams specialised areas i.e. Family History and Independent Learning.
My learning advocate has sent me Learning 2.1 so I'm intending to start on this course next. It's great though to be able to go back to previous postings to polish, add to and improve them.

The Art of Social Networking

A Sleuth of Bears - bears photo by born in 1945(Flickr)

The addition of social networks to the choices available to our clients opens up a number of options that would enhance the services we provide. For example, it would make it possible for our clients to support and help each other in an informal way - by sharing there experiences such as family history searches. It would provide both encouragement and links to useful resources within the library for clients who are undertaking similar searches.

It would also allow the library to gather information, insights and feedback about our services and collections. Some clients may feel that client interviews and feedback forms are too formal to participate in but a less formal site like a social network connected to the library website may garner responses from a wider range of clients from various age groups. Social networking could also provide opportunities to disseminate information about upcoming events and exhibitions and create avenues for attracting donations and volunteers to the library.

"The last 15 metres were very difficult" - Eric 'The Eel' Moussami.

As far as mashups go, I have a good '50 metres' I can improve on. However, I was pleased that I perservered and, after several attempts, was able to bring a mashup to my post.
Clearly, the use of mashups can enhance the presentation of signs, displays and information at the State Library. And it has the potential to bring a number of library resources together e.g. maps, text, pictures and visions- readily and on one page.
Visual impact can play an important role in drawing people's awareness to our collections, so I think it is exciting that a variety of options can be used to stimulate people's imaginations. For example, I liked the 'beading' option in Big Huge Labs.
Mashup Above - photo originally uploaded by Intocti (Photobucket)

Pods casting a luminous net

Dr Jane Goodall with Gregoire by jguisa (Flicker photo)
"Children can change the world. It’s awfully sad that with our clever brains, capable of taking us to the moon and developing all these sophisticated ways of communicating around the planet, that we seem to have lost wisdom; and that’s the wisdom of the indigenous people who would make a major decision based on how that decision would affect people seven generations ahead...." ( A quote by Dr Jane Goodall from the recent SLNSW Wisdom exhibition)
One of the privileges of working at the State Library of NSW is being able to visit the wonderful exhibitions not just once, but on a number of occasions. It was well worth missing my lunchtime jaunts to the Botanic Gardens to savour, over a few days, the beauty and imaginings of the recent 'Wisdom' exhibition.
So I was delighted to discover during my 2.0 learning this week that the library has made a 'Wisdom' podcast available. This is but one of the entertaining podcasts that can be found at the following link:http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/podcasts/events/index.html
Apart from podcasts relating to the exhibitions and talks given at the library , I think it would be useful for the library to develop podcasts connected to the collections such as the 'History of Our Nation'. Also, given the experience and knowledge that some of the SLNSW staff have acquired through a long association with the library, it would be fascinating listening to podcasts about their personal histories at the library.

Providing some answers

Above : 'Life's questions' by lo_rez_sky (Flickr)
Answer boards - I liked the way one librarian - who responded to a number of questions on the Answer Board Librarians wiki - also included a link to the library he works at; in my opinion, this adds some authority and depth to his responses.

The possibilities for using answer boards at the State Library of NSW are numerous in relation to collections, exhibitions and services. I think it would be useful to have responses from librarians, other library staff and the clients using the State Library - whether in person or through accessing the collections online.

In terms of rating responses, the star or thumbs up or down (or both) seem effective to me but it would be good also to allow for comment e.g. people may think part of a response is useful but the rest of it either unclear or misleading.

D'oh! Where's the link key?

D'oh! Guess who has a new job...
Originally uploaded by pochacco20

After a couple of frustrated attempts at finding a groove with bookmarks and tagging - and then linking them to my blog, I'm now finding my stride.
The benefits of blogs at work in the library are becoming clearer to me. For example, we are involved in ongoing projects within our teams and it is a useful way of keeping team members and collegues up-to-date about various projects. Also, blogs are a way of giving clients greater detail, including visual information, about the various collections and events at the library. The blog- delicious link is a great way for people to peruse related and additional resources.

Observatory Hill and S.H. Ervin Gallery

Observatory Hill
Originally uploaded by nathankaso(Flickr)
Observatory Hill by

stealthflower
The beauty of Sydney, old and new, at Observatory Hill - in my opinion one of the finest views in Sydney. It think it is often overlooked by the many people who gravitate towards The Rocks forgetting or unaware that a short stroll from the Rocks can lead you back in time through the old-world charm of Millers Point. And then the reward for climbing a few steps and a gentle hill, is the spectacular view captured above.

Nestled on the side of Observatory Hill is the wonderful E.H. Ervin Gallery which is housed in the National Trust Centre - currently on display is 'Timeless: The Art of Cressida Campbell' http://www.nsw.nationaltrust.org.au/properties/gallery/exhibitions/cressida/

I've been spending part of my flex day - and it's been fun- going back over some of the previous weeks' lessons. It was satisfying to be able to add a flickr image without prompts; I've also explored the functions on the blog post page and added a picture using the 'add image' button.