Resource Review #1

http://sites.google.com/site/whytwitterstls/home

This small website was the first resource I found for my project, and thus far I would still say it is the most helpful. It apparently was compiled by librarian Bill Drew, and dates from October 1, 2009. Thus it's an extremely recent resource, unlike some of the others I've found so far; in a rapidly developing field like social networking, a blog post from 2007 could certainly be very dated by now.

Drew's site is geared specifically toward public libraries and offers a simple, straightforward explanation of what Twitter is and how libraries can use it. Each section of the site is kept quite short; thus, it would be helpful but not overwhelming for librarians (or others) who are just being introduced to Twitter for the first time. Most pages of the site consist of lists of ideas or of links to other resources. I find many of these lists very useful; again, they are extensive, but not exhaustive or overwhelming. They also seem to be chosen with the beginner in mind. For instance, "Twitter Vocabulary and Abbreviations" is crucial information for a beginning Twitter user. And the lists in several sections of public libraries, librarians, and other people and organizations currently on Twitter offer an excellent base of feeds for new users to begin following. "Twitter Resources" gave me some helpful leads to follow in terms of finding more resources for this project; it provides many links that would be of use to public libraries just starting out on Twitter.

The site also provides a few amusing features like comics and a YouTube video about the general, not library-specific, uses of Twitter. I do find that the video tries a little too hard to "sell" Twitter. Perhaps I'm still just uncomfortable with the obsessive need to keep the world updated about mundane details of one's everyday life.

Preliminary Explorations in the Twitterverse

So, I've signed up for my Twitter account, and it's a crazy world out there. I've decided not to start tweeting (I still think that's a very silly word...) at the moment, as it would just become to much of a time drain for me. However, I've been following several public libraries' Twitter feeds, as well as some other interesting things I've come across, like library job announcement services and the Twitter feeds of Library Journal and ALA Booklist.

It looks to me like Twitter certainly has the potential to be a wonderful tool and resource for public libraries and librarians, but I wouldn't say that it's being used to its full potential yet. It seems that many libraries are using Twitter primarily to make announcements that could also be made, and probably are also being made, through other media; I can't say whether the Twitter posts are actually reaching a different audience. It seems, from my admittedly limited observations, that large metropolitan public libraries, like the New York Public Library or the Hennepin County Library, currently have a greater Twitter presence than small libraries. Since Twitter and other social networking sites are typically free, they shoudl theoretically be available for use in the same way by all libraries, but I suppose it's a question of staff time and availabilty. Perhaps larger libraries are also just more likely to be on top of trends like this one.

Resource reviews to follow shortly.

My Topic: Twitter and Libraries

I am going to be gathering and annotating resources about libraries' use of Twitter. I am particularly interested in public libraries, though I may also include some resources about academic, school, or special libraries. I'm interested in learning how libraries' use of Twitter may differ from their use of other social networking and Web 2.0 tools; how libraries' use of Twitter has changed and developed in the few years since this social networking tool was created; whether libraries primarily use Twitter as an attempt to reach out to teens and younger adults, and whether this is successful; what problems or complications may arise from libraries' use of Twitter; and other related issues.