Thing 23: The end of the beginning

The summer has gone away as quickly as it arrived, my time in Cambridge is coming to an end, and what better way to round it off than with a bit of reflection about our rerunning of the Cambridge 23 Things programme.

I have greatly enjoyed blogging on a regular basis; it has helped keep me writing and reflecting in my post-graduation period and I hope I will manage to keep it up during the years to come, even if the focus of the posts might shift a bit. 

My blog, in Wordle format! Created using http://www.wordle.net/

There is no doubt that a lot of the Things which I have learnt about in the programme will come in handy in the years to come, though admittedly, some will see greater use than others - I'm going to start my reflection with the less successful Things (but only so I can end on the good ones!)

Bottom of the class

• LibraryThing was an unmitigated disappointment for me. The design was poor, the interface complicated, and the results inaccurate at best. A great idea wasted, in my humble opinion.
• Google+. I know this wasn't a "Thing", but it popped up during the programme and again, promised so much but delivered...not a lot. It claimed to be "the" successor to Facebook and 101 other media tools but frankly (FB's new update and all), it really has to step up to compete with existing applications, not to mention taking a good hard look at its privacy policy...

by  rich115

My Cam23Things end of term report

Must try harder
(N.B. It's really me that should try harder, rather than the applications...)

• RSS feeds are a fantastic idea and I am using them in a small way via my Netvibes homepage. However, I am yet to find a reader/streaming program that really works for me, but I'm sure there is one out there.
• Evernote is a great resource, but I've yet to make it a real part of my online routine. Initially I used it for links, but Delicious overtook it. I have saved some images to it but I'd rather just keep them all in the "My Pictures" folder on my PC. I really like the idea and the design of Evernote but is it really useful to me? The jury's out.
• I need to get into the habit of using Creative Commons licensing tags because a) it's far more professional, b) provides more information for people who might see my reuse of stuff and c) it's an excellent idea that needs promoting! The problem is getting the formatting to match up to the picture, but once I get to grips with Ange's very useful workaround, I will develop better CC-tagging habits (see above for my first attempt!)

Gold stars all round

• Lightshot - lauded by all, so I won't bore you with any more hyperbole about the incredibly easy-to-use, superb, immensely useful and all-round Best App in the World Ever. 
• Prezi's popularity is attested to by its prominent position in the Wordle cloud above, which was unexpected...but then I really did enjoy all the neat tricks and formats it provides (to be used in moderation, of course)
• The Thing I use with the most regularity is probably Delicious - so much clearer than browser favourites and accessible from everywhere, it's simple but superb.
• I'm ready to hang my head in shame as I admit that Twitter is the second most used Thing that I have used in this programme. I only use it during work hours but as a medium for sharing professional information and engaging with others in the profession, it's unparallelled. I have also benefited from it in a personal capacity in terms of hearing about culturally exciting things (the Short Story Tweetathon, for one) and understanding certain issues better (mental illness, for example).
• Finally, all the amazing Cam23 bloggers, who have brought their own take on the Things offered and presented them in their individual and inimitable styles - it has been a privilege to read so many interesting things by interesting people that I had never heard of before.

On that note I'm going to finish with an homage to on of the other participants, my fabulously supportive boss Lyn, who has inspired me with her fantastic final post from last year's programme:

Blogging 'bout Things
Like a Doodle or two
Things
Like iGoogle for you
Things
(Things?) Like a Wordle cloud
Turn that podcast right up loud

Things that Flickr makes so pretty
Things that make a blog so witty
Screencasting for all the world to see
Though wikis may not be the Thing for me

Read about Things
On an RSS feed
Things
On Delicious to read
Things
Filed in Zotero
(Oh Oh) Reflecting on the Things you know

Things
Like the Lightshot feather
Things
That Link(ed) us In together
Twitter is the Thing we're talking through
And Facebook is one Thing we like to do.
(You can find Bobby Darin's somewhat more lyrical original "Things" here)

Thanks for the good times.

Becky :)

Thing 18: Cam23 2.0 - useful stuff in abundance

A stunning reflection on
Indianapolis Central Library.
Photo by Serge Melki

A little late maybe, but there's a lot to reflect upon. In fact, I think there's more to think about this week than last time, as this second block of 'Things' has seen me try a lot more new stuff than in the first.

The most useful Thing so far has to be Delicious. As I said at the time, I was dubious as to how useful it would be, considering the implicit panning it took in the first Cam23 programme, but it has turned out to be a gem. At work I move between three different computers, and of course my laptop at home makes 4, and being able to access all the interesting stuff I've come across in any of those 4 places is a boon. The tagging system took a while to get used to, in terms of the punctuation and in terms of working out the most efficient naming method for my purposes, but it's now doing exactly what I want it to do, with little added things popping up all the time, for example the ability to make notes on bookmarks for future references.

Transcribing poorly-handwritten Greek. All in day's work for
a librarian.
Photo by lemurph, manuscript at Trinity Hall, Cantab.

The other Thing seeing more use than I could have imagined is Twitter. I only use it at work, as the vast majority of tweets that come through relate to libraries (with the odd whimsical aside to keep me smiling during the long vac!), but it's already proved its worth : lots of people helped me with my research for this week's list-making app post, and a Twitter plea from lemurph about a strange Greek character* was answered using yfrog, a JRF and an Honorary Citizen of Sparta (who happened to be knocking about the library at the time).

It's not over just yet though. I have only just embarked on my Prezi journey but I can definitely see legs on that one, I've yet to perfect either of the reference management tools that we're looking at this week, and whilst I'm greatly enjoying Cam23 2.0, I will be putting in the effort after the programme has finished to try and continue to blog solo...I hope I can manage that!

*Character in the orthographic, rather than idiosyncratic person sense, of course. And if you're at all interested, it was a quote from Galen taking a dig at "the followers of Moses and Christ". Nothing to do with a moose's upper echelons at all, Helen and Katie...

Thing 16: Flickr'ing in and out of focus

A suitably reflective AND classical image,
from Flickr. Who could ask for more?
Photo by nerissa's ring

Yes, yet again, I'm using reflection week to catch up on all the Things that just keep coming...but at least this promises to be a very pretty post, peppered with the pickings from this week's tool: Flickr.

The idea of Flickr is an excellent one, and to have access to the work of so many enthusiastic artists, both amateur and professional, in one place is a boon for would-be library marketers and bloggers alike.

Practically, however, I have to admit that I didn't find Flickr immediately easy to use. I find it cumbersome to have to go onto advanced search to find CC images, when another little drop-down box next to a simple search box would be so easy. In fact, something like that appears when you initially click on "search", allowing you to limit your search to "The Commons", which turns out not to be anything to do with Creative Commons, as far as I can tell (The Commons is very limited and has very little modern material in it...I'm still yet to discover what it actually is!)

Best. Bookend. Ever. Photo by Enokson

In any case, the lovely Annie helped me via Twitter, and I've been liberally splattering Flickr images on my blog since. I also like the way that some people use Flickr as a kind of photo blog, particularly some librarians such as Enokson, whose cheerful and incredibly creative library displays have probably inspired many a school (or even academic) librarian. The advantages of using Flickr rather than a photo blog are that you can set clear restrictions and stipulations on your creations, and that you can organise the photos into "sets" and "collections" in a more coherent manner. Admittedly you could tag images in a photo blog, but the way in which Flickr more closely resembles a photo album feels somehow more professional.

I shall leave you, not with any kind of reflection by myself whatsoever, but with something far more eloquent; a scene taken in the city of Nagasaki by my very talented, Japan-loving, Assam-drinking friend, Moe.

An eye-catching reflection in Nagasaki.
Image (reproduced with permission) by Zebra Love 79

Thing 13: LibraryThing (with a diversionary comment on Narcissism, if you'll forgive my self-indulgence...)

Thing 13 was one that I awaited with sceptical anticipation. I am, admittedly, a little bit of a geek and I do have a fairly extensive book collection, so I thought that LibraryThing might be a fun toy to play with.

Ugly, ugly, ugly. And there's a tag named "Zeitgeist". Ick.

How wrong I was. Anyone who reads this blog from time to time may think that I'm on a downward slide into pessimism, so negative have recent comments been, but LibraryThing really is plumbing new depths. The interface is confusing, ugly and incoherent; the records it offers are poor and usually not the actual book you have in hand (it's very USA-centric, using Amazon.com (!) as a default catalogue, and the Library of Congress catalogue takes ages to load anyway) and I frankly cannot see any use for it in a personal context whatsoever - I'll just go to my shelves to see what I have! It's not even much use to the most devoted but hard-up bibliophile, as you can only add 200 books before you're harassed for money. I quite like the fact that you can get early-release copies of books in return for writing a review, but most of these are in e-book format (I'm yet to bow to Kindle pressure) and, according to previous 23Thingers, it's easy to become black-balled if you fail to write even one review, which seems a little harsh! And, as a last whinge, I'm slightly freaked out by the fact that it knew I was in Cambridge, when all I'd given them was my gmail address. Is this based on the IP address? Not happy, about that, either way.

I hoped that I might be able to make use of it for the library, but the layout was still foxing me and I could not find a way to embed it in a useful place for our users. You can add it to your blog as a widget, but as the library does not yet have a blog and I seriously doubt that our readers would go to an external site just to see new purchases, it's a little pointless on the organisational level as well.

Rant over, but suffice to say I will not bothering with LibraryThing any more. But if you will now permit me a little wander off into the wider world of social media. The Telegraph published an article two days ago (i.e., two days into the England-wide rioting) about the increasing narcissism found amongst young people, which the author ascribed to overuse of social media. The negative effects of social media use include vain, aggressive and anti social behaviour, along with bouts of anxiety, depression and other psychological disorders. A negative effect on academic performance was also claimed by the psychologists in America who ran this study.

Image from beastoftraal.com

Obviously, it's difficult to say how widespread these supposed negative effects are, because the range and diversity of people who use social media is massive, and different platforms are used in a number of different ways. However, the biggest issue with these findings is that, as far as I can see, cause and effect have been muddled up a bit here - I would suggest that social networks have proliferated BECAUSE OF an increased sense of selfworth in our society, rather than creating vanity as a new phenomenon.

Since the advent of Pop Art and Warhol's idea of 15 minutes of fame, we have been bombarded from all angles with the message that if your name isn't known out there, then you don't exist. In a society where ever more groups in society feel disaffected, disconnected and apathetic, people depend upon their online identities and the subsequent feedback to feel as if they matter. If the only way to gain acceptance and worth is online through the interest of strangers, is it any wonder that we're anxious if no-one has "liked" our activity in the last 24 hours, or has commented on our latest tweet or blog post? I'm sure that even the most confident people still feel a little less confident if their contribution to the internet goes unnoticed.

Moreover, the importance and the power of social media has never been in clearer focus than in the aftermath (I hope I'm not too premature in saying that) of four nights of riots and public disorder across England. Blackberry Messenger and other networks were used to mobilise crowds of rioters. Youths across the country took the opportunity to voice their opinions via BBC reporters' microphones, an opportunity which came about purely because of the disaster they had caused. A lack of social cohesion has been blamed for causing the disaffection of thousands; this use of social media shows that we are ever social creatures, but that online networks are replacing the physical ones which have sadly been neglected for too long.

(Physical) Post-its pleading for peace in Peckham
Photo from BBC News

I believe that there is absolutely a place for social networks and social media, but only within the context of an otherwise healthy and balanced life, which includes regular face-to-face contact with family, friends and co-workers. After all, Twitter in particular was instrumental in mobilising wave upon wave of so-called "Riot Wombles" in London, Manchester, Birmingham and so on. The discourse now is mostly about spending cuts and how these have exacerbated ill-feeling and isolation; that is not in doubt, though the solution will be extremely difficult to work out. But politicians, and more than ever, parents have a responsibility to instil a sense of community, mutual respect and collective worth in young people, which seems to be so sadly lacking.

Thing 11: Who is that girl I see / Staring straight back at me?

A girl who knew all about reflection
Photo from fanpop.com

...As Mulan said. Now, I'm not saying that the effect of Cam23 2.0 on my life is as great as the changes she had to make, but it has been a formative experience work-wise, and has made me evaluate more closely the ways in which I work and the changes I may have to make before October.

Most of the Things in the programme have not been new to me, but through exploring them more closely I have come to use them in slightly different, and hopefully more efficient, ways. As an example, I was always aware of Google calendar and had used it at work from September, but now it has completely replaced my paper diary and has made things simpler in (an aspect of) my life outside of work, too.

Of the new Things, there are a couple which really have filled a gap: taking screenshots may not be a crucial part of my working life but Lightshot makes it infinitely easier; Netvibes and RSS feeds combined have allowed me to keep in touch with much more information from a wider sourcepool; and I think that my sporadic and disorganised bookmarking habits will gradually be replaced by a much better-looking and effective platform in Evernote.

Other Things have had less of an impact: Pushnote is definitely being consigned to Room 101, and whilst Twitter is growing on me (and produced a very amusing conversation yesterday about Koine Greek and mooses' upper echelons), I'm struggling to see how it will be truly useful once I leave the Cambridge library mafia (sad days ahead).

After being stuck in a bit of a bubble, I'm finally breaking out again
Photo from Wikipedia

And so to the wider application of the Things and the programme generally. I have realised that my organisational skills will be key in order to succeed (and stay sane) on my Masters course next year, and that it is OK to write things down in order to remember them! I have also learnt that, in order to get the most out of web 2.0 technologies, you have to be prepared to put in and keep putting in, even if you occasionally feel like you're shouting into the wind. Which leads me on to the thing (with a small 't') that I have most enjoyed: having the motivation and the material to get me writing again, not only because I needed to get back into the habit for academic reasons, but for the pure enjoyment of manipulating language, the self-imposed discipline of proofreading and revision, as well as becoming more aware of other people's styles and how writing needs to be adapted for different new media.

Thing 4: Follow, follow, follow, follow the Twittering horde...

Yup, Dorothy, that was the look on my face at my
first Twitter attempt too!
Image from winnipegcyclechick.com

This week I am Dorothy in the Land of Twitter, with the Cam23 2.0 team as my trusty companions (I'm not saying who would be the Cowardly Lion!) and the huge, overwhelming might of the Twittersphere as the scary Wizard.

I have had my reservations about Twitter for some time, as I could not (and really still cannot) see how you can say anything of real insight in 140 characters.

But through this programme, I have realised that that's not really the point. It seems that most people in librarianship use Twitter for professional purposes, which isn't something I'd considered as Twitter = Stephen Fry and Graeme Swann in my head. But professional it is, as all sorts of work queries and LISNPN events and so on... are advertised via retweets, Twitterfeeds (more on that later) and lots and lots of interested librarians keeping within the character limit.

Consequently, after an aborted attempt at tweeting back in the winter, I'm going to try a bit harder this time and avoid trying to be a comedian in such a short space. In fact, I felt the benefit of Twitter before even returning to it, as my most recent non-Cam23 blog post (see here) was advertised on Twitter by Annie and Katie, leaving me quite shocked to find last night that it had received 100 pageviews in less than half a day.

This Twitter thing is seriously effective, it seems! Well, it is certainly effective at directing people towards links and other documents of interest quickly. I am less convinced by its use as a way of following events and conferences at a distance in real-time, as the posts are so short the meaning is sometimes lost and I'd probably rather read a comprehensive, well-written blog post after the event.

However, I feel my negative attitudes towards Twitter may be on the turn - I even had a go at this week's extra thing by setting up a Twitterfeed from this blog and using bit.ly (I think my previous post's success may have gone to my head, but we'll see!) I'll make a concerted effort to keep the tweeting up as it could be useful for library-related queries in the future.