"Upskill?" "Free CPD"
"Reflect.. blog"
"Finished!"
(almost - just need to write this post;-)
This programme has given me the incentive to try out several tools, some that I knew of and others I did not. It has also caused me to reflect on my experiences, relationship to the profession, etc. I started CPD23 as a means of filling gaps I had identified in my experience, such as blogging, and an awareness of the lack of recent formal PD, having been contracting.
Although I am blogging, I am still not comfortable making my personal thoughts public. I am much happier publishing information about research, services, etc.
Immediate short term goal: to develop better use of my family history society's library. I may need to further develop my negotiation and marketing skills to achieve this in my existing volunteer role. Longer term I would love a role using my interest and experience in genealogy, but initial investigation shows that it is probably not feasible to earn my living as a genealogist!
I modified my long term aim and have developed a Plan, but do not want to make it public.
Developing the plan involved looking for job adverts and role descriptions. I then identified how I could gain the missing experience and skills and looked for opportunities such as courses and volunteering. I have previously been through the same process in formal annual reviews.
I have enjoyed this course. I have enjoyed reading blogs of some of the other participants but regret missing the face to face and real time networking opportunities. It has given me a real chance for some training when I have a zero training budget (ie only short term contracts). I will certainly be following through some of the things I have learnt. If there is another course, I'll probably be there!
Tuesday 29 November 2011
Thing 22: Volunteering
My first library role was as a volunteer for my local Playcentre that I attended with my children. I hadn't even thought of it as a career step, just something I could and would enjoy doing. It was followed by another role for the regional library, for which I received an honorarium and lost my dining room table to piles of books I'd taken home to prepare and write out catalogue cards (remember the labour required to add another subject heading?).
The roles stood me in good stead when I applied for my first salaried role as a library assistant before starting the MLIS. Probably my experience and qualifications as a Playcentre supervisor working as a volunteer with young children also helped me win the role in a school library with much older children.
Post-qualification, to my surprise, I went into a senior librarian role. Admittedly, alongside my volunteer and library assistant experience I also had an IT background and website management experience when it was not so common.
Playcentre is an organisation of volunteers so the roles did not compete with paid staff and could not devalue the profession. I suppose the small honorarium in my second role was a recognition that the role was important and perhaps counts as paid work. The other regional volunteer librarian was a qualified librarian, also receiving a small honorarium.
I think a volunteer role for a specific project within an organisation that does have paid staff may be a good way to get experience without devaluing our profession in the current economic climate. Volunteering for a charity would not devalue the role of professional staff either unless the charity had many other paid staff.
I am investigating local volunteer opportunities either to get more recent and different face to face library experience as my latest contracts have not been in a library, or for something to move my career in another direction entirely as funding for library services is reduced...
The roles stood me in good stead when I applied for my first salaried role as a library assistant before starting the MLIS. Probably my experience and qualifications as a Playcentre supervisor working as a volunteer with young children also helped me win the role in a school library with much older children.
Post-qualification, to my surprise, I went into a senior librarian role. Admittedly, alongside my volunteer and library assistant experience I also had an IT background and website management experience when it was not so common.
Playcentre is an organisation of volunteers so the roles did not compete with paid staff and could not devalue the profession. I suppose the small honorarium in my second role was a recognition that the role was important and perhaps counts as paid work. The other regional volunteer librarian was a qualified librarian, also receiving a small honorarium.
I think a volunteer role for a specific project within an organisation that does have paid staff may be a good way to get experience without devaluing our profession in the current economic climate. Volunteering for a charity would not devalue the role of professional staff either unless the charity had many other paid staff.
I am investigating local volunteer opportunities either to get more recent and different face to face library experience as my latest contracts have not been in a library, or for something to move my career in another direction entirely as funding for library services is reduced...
Thing 21: Promoting yourself in job applications and at interview
I've done a few job applications and interviews recently as I've been contracting. I took some time off to travel then started to look for a new job at the beginning of the year. My CV is up to date, but I have stepped back to look at whether my activities, interests and priorities have changed.
Throughout the last few months I have spent a lot of time questioning what I want in a job, what skills I have etc before applying for roles. Reviewing my new list of activities/interests that I like/dislike shows me that my priorities may have changed a little. It would be fun to be able to use my interest in researching genealogy in paid work, but I suspect I would need some further qualifications. Something to investigate.
I always try to prepare well for interviews and had to give a presentation with slides at a recent one, resulting in even more preparation. I have added the list of questions from Wikiman to my set of interview preparation guides ready for my next interview. I am also taking on board the advice to address the criteria behind the question and to act as though the panel has not read your CV.
Throughout the last few months I have spent a lot of time questioning what I want in a job, what skills I have etc before applying for roles. Reviewing my new list of activities/interests that I like/dislike shows me that my priorities may have changed a little. It would be fun to be able to use my interest in researching genealogy in paid work, but I suspect I would need some further qualifications. Something to investigate.
I am able to get shortlisted for a fair proportion of my applications but don't seem to do so well in the interview. Admittedly not everyone interviewed can get the job and the job market is a bit tight. Also my experience over the last 4 years, since I left a permanent job in New Zealand, has gaps between contracts and I would also now perfer a permanent role.
I always try to prepare well for interviews and had to give a presentation with slides at a recent one, resulting in even more preparation. I have added the list of questions from Wikiman to my set of interview preparation guides ready for my next interview. I am also taking on board the advice to address the criteria behind the question and to act as though the panel has not read your CV.
Monday 28 November 2011
Thing 20: The Library Routes Project
I've added a link to my Thing 10: experiences as a librarian so far to the Library Routes project wiki, but will change it to this page. I enjoyed reading about the variety of other routes and backgrounds other people have taken to become a librarian.
I don't think I really said why I became a librarian in Thing 10. Briefly, every family at Playcentre in New Zealand helps to run the early childhood education centre and a few months after I started the librarian's eldest child was moving on to school. As a child I had organised my books so perhaps I'd always wanted to run a library and so I took it on.
I enjoyed the role, encouraging parents to read about their role in their children's education as well as encouraging everyone to read to the children (not difficult). When I moved on to look after the regional library together with a qualified librarian, I moved through other roles in my own Playcentre, including Information officer and Education officer.
I enjoyed helping other people and the roles seemed quite different from my previous career as a very technical computer programmer so I decided to try to get a job as a library assistant and was fortunate to get a school library role where my Computer Science background was viewed as helpful for maintaining the LMS and the library network. After a while I wanted to learn how to catalogue 'properly' so enrolled part time for the MLIS.
For more on my career see Thing 10: experiences as a librarian so far.
I don't think I really said why I became a librarian in Thing 10. Briefly, every family at Playcentre in New Zealand helps to run the early childhood education centre and a few months after I started the librarian's eldest child was moving on to school. As a child I had organised my books so perhaps I'd always wanted to run a library and so I took it on.
I enjoyed the role, encouraging parents to read about their role in their children's education as well as encouraging everyone to read to the children (not difficult). When I moved on to look after the regional library together with a qualified librarian, I moved through other roles in my own Playcentre, including Information officer and Education officer.
I enjoyed helping other people and the roles seemed quite different from my previous career as a very technical computer programmer so I decided to try to get a job as a library assistant and was fortunate to get a school library role where my Computer Science background was viewed as helpful for maintaining the LMS and the library network. After a while I wanted to learn how to catalogue 'properly' so enrolled part time for the MLIS.
For more on my career see Thing 10: experiences as a librarian so far.
Sunday 27 November 2011
Thing 17: Prezi etc
Some Prezi examples look like a good idea, eg as a learning object to be used independently. I like the way it can all be seen and navigation can move in a different order if necessary. It would save having that moment in a Powerpoint presentation when I try to remember where to find the slide I want to return to.
I've never been a fan of the flying objects school of death-by-Powerpoint and actually find the zooming around makes me feel a bit car- (or sea-) sick.
With that in mind I've created my first Prezi, Winter storage. I'm afraid it is linear as I haven't yet thought of a more complex example.
I've been inspired by many Slideshare presentations in the past as a quick way of learning some basic information about topics I'm interested in.
I thought the resume was an interesting idea, but am not keen to try it myself. For my roles I think it would never totally replace the paper version. Agencies wouldn't like it (won't store in their system) and I really need a basic text CV to draw on for the application processes that require me to rewrite my CV into an online form.
If I have something worthwhile to share in future I'll add it to Slideshare. Unless, that is, I've used Prezi!
I've never been a fan of the flying objects school of death-by-Powerpoint and actually find the zooming around makes me feel a bit car- (or sea-) sick.
With that in mind I've created my first Prezi, Winter storage. I'm afraid it is linear as I haven't yet thought of a more complex example.
I've been inspired by many Slideshare presentations in the past as a quick way of learning some basic information about topics I'm interested in.
I thought the resume was an interesting idea, but am not keen to try it myself. For my roles I think it would never totally replace the paper version. Agencies wouldn't like it (won't store in their system) and I really need a basic text CV to draw on for the application processes that require me to rewrite my CV into an online form.
If I have something worthwhile to share in future I'll add it to Slideshare. Unless, that is, I've used Prezi!
Thing 19: Catch up on integrating
This is a good time to reflect on my earlier posts, although as I've had a couple of non-librarian contracts I am not reflecting after using the tools for work, apart from considering them for my volunteer role.
I am now using LinkedIn and find it useful for keeping in touch with former colleagues and possible job opportunities. To increase its value as a marketing tool I need to add detail about each role to illustrate my skills. I sometimes follow alerts from LinkedIn groups in my email. I continue to use Facebook for friends and family and also pick up CILIP group posts.
Branding: After a brief experiment for this course I am not Tweeting. I thought about deactivating my Twitter account since it is high in search results for my name and is not really wanted as part of my image at present. LinkedIn at no. 4 is just below Twitter at 3, so I would like them reversed. A disadvantage of deactivating is that I then couldn't follow others in Twitter. I will certainly consider blogging and tweeting for any future information related roles I am in.
I still read RSS feeds on a daily basis - but I was doing that before this course. I read a few more blog articles and tweets too but continue to get some information from email lists
I am now using LinkedIn and find it useful for keeping in touch with former colleagues and possible job opportunities. To increase its value as a marketing tool I need to add detail about each role to illustrate my skills. I sometimes follow alerts from LinkedIn groups in my email. I continue to use Facebook for friends and family and also pick up CILIP group posts.
Branding: After a brief experiment for this course I am not Tweeting. I thought about deactivating my Twitter account since it is high in search results for my name and is not really wanted as part of my image at present. LinkedIn at no. 4 is just below Twitter at 3, so I would like them reversed. A disadvantage of deactivating is that I then couldn't follow others in Twitter. I will certainly consider blogging and tweeting for any future information related roles I am in.
I still read RSS feeds on a daily basis - but I was doing that before this course. I read a few more blog articles and tweets too but continue to get some information from email lists
Saturday 26 November 2011
Thing 18: Jing / screen capture/ Audacity / podcasts
I can see I'll have to smooth my mouse movements to capture video using Jing. I've had a few attempts which I'm not keen to publish! The mouse movements are improving.
Jing would be very useful for a short training video to demostrate how to use a database or piece of software. In order to produce something adequate it is going to be essential for me to write a script and to practise a few times to eliminate non-essential mouse movements.
Using Jing as image capture software, I like the ability to add texboxes, highlighting and arrows. I usually capture screenshots for presentations as it gives certainty that there is something visible rather than relying only on live internet connections. Jing makes annotating the screenshots really easy and I will definitely be using it in future.
I have already used Audacity to edit/manage format changes of sound files. Today I used it to record a short podcast about this course. I need a script or to practise in the same way as I normally prepare to give a presentation. I am not yet ready to publish my podcasts!
Jing would be very useful for a short training video to demostrate how to use a database or piece of software. In order to produce something adequate it is going to be essential for me to write a script and to practise a few times to eliminate non-essential mouse movements.
Using Jing as image capture software, I like the ability to add texboxes, highlighting and arrows. I usually capture screenshots for presentations as it gives certainty that there is something visible rather than relying only on live internet connections. Jing makes annotating the screenshots really easy and I will definitely be using it in future.
I have already used Audacity to edit/manage format changes of sound files. Today I used it to record a short podcast about this course. I need a script or to practise in the same way as I normally prepare to give a presentation. I am not yet ready to publish my podcasts!
Tuesday 22 November 2011
Thing 16: Advocacy, activism for the profession
Well - after a career gap I'm back to finish what I started. That's gap as in I had paid work with associated hours commuting and a lot of other things going on in my life.
Advocacy activity: I need to do more to publicise and get my voluntary society library used. If I don't, there's not much point in having the library apart from ensuring preservation of our own journal and some out of print and hard to find books.
I need to review the (currently unworkable) lending policy and get something workable through a committee meeting or devise other ways that members can get better access to information we hold. I could also write some articles for our journal to promote the resources we have and encourage others to review books that we hold.
Advocacy is potentially a part of every librarian's role - as a public face of your own library to friends and others you meet outside the library.
Advocacy activity: I need to do more to publicise and get my voluntary society library used. If I don't, there's not much point in having the library apart from ensuring preservation of our own journal and some out of print and hard to find books.
I need to review the (currently unworkable) lending policy and get something workable through a committee meeting or devise other ways that members can get better access to information we hold. I could also write some articles for our journal to promote the resources we have and encourage others to review books that we hold.
Advocacy is potentially a part of every librarian's role - as a public face of your own library to friends and others you meet outside the library.
Wednesday 7 September 2011
Thing 15: seminars, conferences and other events
This is timely for me to reflect on since I got a lot out of going to the UKEIG AGM last week and hearing Charles Oppenheim talking about the Hargreaves copyright review. It is a little daunting going to an event where you don't know anyone, and starting up a conversation, but I met some of the people whose work I've read, and had interesting conversations with other people from different backgrounds.
I've been to LIANZA conferences and also the Australian Information Online and all have been great for learning and networking. It pays to get involved, go to the events like formal and impromptu dinners, meet the vendors, talk over lunch and go to smaller poster sessions. If you are in a large library, conferences are also good for getting to know other staff members you don't normally work with.
A few years ago I gave a mini presentation at a special interest group meeting held during a LIANZA conference. The preparation made me realise what I did know and specialised in that others might find useful. I also learnt from the questions and gained more confidence in speaking.
I was able to make use of a presentation technique I'd been taught. The method uses a kind of mindmap and I find it works really well for me. The diagram is used to plan the structure of the talk and is then used as the 'notes' as you give the talk. I wish I could remember who gave the course and whether the technique has a name.
I'd like to go to a major UK conference once I'm back into a permanent role. I'd like it to be relevant to developing or inspiring me further in the role, so I'm not choosing at the moment.
If I gave a presentation I could talk about topics related to my last permanent role but would like to look to my future role for inspiration.
I've been to LIANZA conferences and also the Australian Information Online and all have been great for learning and networking. It pays to get involved, go to the events like formal and impromptu dinners, meet the vendors, talk over lunch and go to smaller poster sessions. If you are in a large library, conferences are also good for getting to know other staff members you don't normally work with.
A few years ago I gave a mini presentation at a special interest group meeting held during a LIANZA conference. The preparation made me realise what I did know and specialised in that others might find useful. I also learnt from the questions and gained more confidence in speaking.
I was able to make use of a presentation technique I'd been taught. The method uses a kind of mindmap and I find it works really well for me. The diagram is used to plan the structure of the talk and is then used as the 'notes' as you give the talk. I wish I could remember who gave the course and whether the technique has a name.
I'd like to go to a major UK conference once I'm back into a permanent role. I'd like it to be relevant to developing or inspiring me further in the role, so I'm not choosing at the moment.
If I gave a presentation I could talk about topics related to my last permanent role but would like to look to my future role for inspiration.
Tuesday 6 September 2011
Thing 14: Zotero / Mendeley / citeulike
During my MLIS, I remember the relief of discovering Endnote after spending several hours checking the position of commas and full stops in my references. Absolute magic in pulling my citations into the appropriate places in each paper! It was probably the best way to appreciate the value of reference management software, and it still pays to use knowledge of the target citation style to inspect the output for quality.
Since then, Endnote has gained an online version, which seems a little weaker to me in terms of managing the fields, but I have used it for sharing references.
I now have Zotero and find that the requirement for Firefox is a bit limiting. I've not yet experimented with Mendeley, am aware it does not have all citation styles that might be needed, although they can be edited. citeulike has a different use - for sharing references with colleagues.
To help researchers manage their references, I think libraries should offer information about these free tools rather than limiting information to those, such as Endnote, that are supplied by the institution.
Since then, Endnote has gained an online version, which seems a little weaker to me in terms of managing the fields, but I have used it for sharing references.
I now have Zotero and find that the requirement for Firefox is a bit limiting. I've not yet experimented with Mendeley, am aware it does not have all citation styles that might be needed, although they can be edited. citeulike has a different use - for sharing references with colleagues.
To help researchers manage their references, I think libraries should offer information about these free tools rather than limiting information to those, such as Endnote, that are supplied by the institution.
Friday 2 September 2011
Thing 13: Google Docs, Wikis and Dropbox
Some tools for sharing and collaboration that could be useful this week, but after assessing them I'm not going to use any immediately. I've recorded my impressions for future reference.
I've now tried Googledocs. I first became aware of collaborative tools a few years ago in relation to community ICT. I've also collaborated on documents at work within a document management system - all changes tracked and no need to let Google have your documents. If you are collaborating outside your organisation then Googledocs could be the answer provided the other people also have Googledocs.
I'm beginning to be a little spooked by Google, Yahoo or Facebook identifying me, knowing what I am doing and what they think I like (very broad interests, so probably wrong). Over-personalisation. I use another browser, not logged in, when I want a more anonymous, less tailored view/presence.
If I have no document management system and want access from multiple computers or to share files the Dropbox would work but I think I'll skip it for the moment. So many logins to remember...
A few years ago we set up a Wiki for LIANZA ITSIG - so that we and other librarians could experiment. I haven't uploaded to another Wiki but will remember the free PBWorks for library staff collaborative Wikis. The ITSIG Wiki had spam so whatever tool I use would have to allow password access for updates.
I've now tried Googledocs. I first became aware of collaborative tools a few years ago in relation to community ICT. I've also collaborated on documents at work within a document management system - all changes tracked and no need to let Google have your documents. If you are collaborating outside your organisation then Googledocs could be the answer provided the other people also have Googledocs.
I'm beginning to be a little spooked by Google, Yahoo or Facebook identifying me, knowing what I am doing and what they think I like (very broad interests, so probably wrong). Over-personalisation. I use another browser, not logged in, when I want a more anonymous, less tailored view/presence.
If I have no document management system and want access from multiple computers or to share files the Dropbox would work but I think I'll skip it for the moment. So many logins to remember...
A few years ago we set up a Wiki for LIANZA ITSIG - so that we and other librarians could experiment. I haven't uploaded to another Wiki but will remember the free PBWorks for library staff collaborative Wikis. The ITSIG Wiki had spam so whatever tool I use would have to allow password access for updates.
Tuesday 30 August 2011
Thing 12: Social media
I discovered CPD23 fairly early, but through an email list, not social media. I've now started using social media for professional purposes, having previously used Facebook for family and friends.
Over the last week I've got going on LinkedIn, with 11 confirmed contacts and more under way. It'll be interesting to see how it goes, but it has enabled me to see what previous colleagues are now doing and assess any areas where current interests might overlap. It'll then be easy to contact them.
I've also joined some LinkedIn groups, but suspect they may feel too big and impersonal.
My Twitter page now tops Google search results for my name, but LinkedIn is only 10th, providing I use quotes around my name, otherwise it's ranked much lower. I'd prefer Twitter to be way down since it's experimental as part of this course. This looks like a disadvantage at the moment - especially when job-hunting!
Recently my family history society started using Facebook as a new channel for communicating between current and prospective members. I am the society's librarian so it's sort of a professional network. It does seem to be fostering a sense of community, but is not the best platform for answering research queries, which can be quite complex. The publicly archived email list is better, I think, as the answers can be found in Google searches by anyone with the same question in future.
While developing new networks and other sources, I still monitor my RSS feeds and email lists. With all these new channels to monitor, I will have to develop better techniques! I'll keep working at it.
Over the last week I've got going on LinkedIn, with 11 confirmed contacts and more under way. It'll be interesting to see how it goes, but it has enabled me to see what previous colleagues are now doing and assess any areas where current interests might overlap. It'll then be easy to contact them.
I've also joined some LinkedIn groups, but suspect they may feel too big and impersonal.
My Twitter page now tops Google search results for my name, but LinkedIn is only 10th, providing I use quotes around my name, otherwise it's ranked much lower. I'd prefer Twitter to be way down since it's experimental as part of this course. This looks like a disadvantage at the moment - especially when job-hunting!
Recently my family history society started using Facebook as a new channel for communicating between current and prospective members. I am the society's librarian so it's sort of a professional network. It does seem to be fostering a sense of community, but is not the best platform for answering research queries, which can be quite complex. The publicly archived email list is better, I think, as the answers can be found in Google searches by anyone with the same question in future.
While developing new networks and other sources, I still monitor my RSS feeds and email lists. With all these new channels to monitor, I will have to develop better techniques! I'll keep working at it.
Wednesday 24 August 2011
Thing 11: Mentoring
Well I've left this one brewing for over a week and still don't have a lot to say.
I don't have a mentor and do not feel comfortable about approaching anyone to be a mentor for me at the moment. It's something that I will keep in mind for the future.
On the other side, I was asked a few years ago to mentor someone studying part time in an area of my expertise. I'm not sure how useful I was to her as the relationship did not continue beyond that particular course unit, but I did learn a little myself from her.
I don't have a mentor and do not feel comfortable about approaching anyone to be a mentor for me at the moment. It's something that I will keep in mind for the future.
On the other side, I was asked a few years ago to mentor someone studying part time in an area of my expertise. I'm not sure how useful I was to her as the relationship did not continue beyond that particular course unit, but I did learn a little myself from her.
Friday 12 August 2011
Thing 10: experiences as a librarian so far
I became a librarian in New Zealand after a career as a programmer. My first library role was as a volunteer in Playcentre, which I attended with my young children. I moved on to a bigger Playcentre regional library before becoming a library assistant in an intermediate school (years 7-8) - without a librarian, but with other library assistants. I had also become webspinner for a voluntary national organisation with a major sponsor, so had become HTML and writing-for-the-web literate.
I started the MLIS as a part time, mature student, face to face as I was in Wellington - the only MLIS course in New Zealand. I found that my hands on experience in 3 libraries and a website across a wide range of activities (plus general life skills), was excellent preparation for the seminars where I was able to make useful contributions to the discussions. I joined LIANZA as a student and paricipated in the Wellington activities.
After completing the MLIS I became Collection Development Librarian Electronic at the National Library of New Zealand, a senior librarian role that I hadn't thought to apply for until invited to do so. I really enjoyed the changing role for 5 years before returning to Britain for a while (still here). The National Library was an excellent place for professional development as it was at the cutting edge of electronic legal deposit, web archiving and other developments. Seminars, international visitors, courses etc help develop the potential of the large number of librarians and other staff.
In LIANZA we had meetings to discuss introducing professional registration, but it was finally set up after I left for Britain. Since arriving here I have taken a variety of temporary roles in two university libraries, a government organisation's portal and contract website work. My MLIS is recognised by CILIP but I would like to charter. However I feel I need to move into a permanent job to do this.
If anyone reads this and would like to help by offering me a job...
I started the MLIS as a part time, mature student, face to face as I was in Wellington - the only MLIS course in New Zealand. I found that my hands on experience in 3 libraries and a website across a wide range of activities (plus general life skills), was excellent preparation for the seminars where I was able to make useful contributions to the discussions. I joined LIANZA as a student and paricipated in the Wellington activities.
After completing the MLIS I became Collection Development Librarian Electronic at the National Library of New Zealand, a senior librarian role that I hadn't thought to apply for until invited to do so. I really enjoyed the changing role for 5 years before returning to Britain for a while (still here). The National Library was an excellent place for professional development as it was at the cutting edge of electronic legal deposit, web archiving and other developments. Seminars, international visitors, courses etc help develop the potential of the large number of librarians and other staff.
In LIANZA we had meetings to discuss introducing professional registration, but it was finally set up after I left for Britain. Since arriving here I have taken a variety of temporary roles in two university libraries, a government organisation's portal and contract website work. My MLIS is recognised by CILIP but I would like to charter. However I feel I need to move into a permanent job to do this.
If anyone reads this and would like to help by offering me a job...
Thing 9: Evernote
I've installed Evernote and had a little play but time will tell. I think I may be able to remember to use it when moving between computers.
What I most need to get to grips with at the moment is something to pull together blog, Twitter, Facebook, etc. I installed Tweetdeck a couple of months ago but now may be the time for me to integrate it into my daily life alongside my RSS feeds that I monitor on my browser toolbar each day.
Alternatively I may need something else that pulls the RSS feeds alongside Twitter, Facebook, blog, Pushnote, Evernote,...
What I most need to get to grips with at the moment is something to pull together blog, Twitter, Facebook, etc. I installed Tweetdeck a couple of months ago but now may be the time for me to integrate it into my daily life alongside my RSS feeds that I monitor on my browser toolbar each day.
Alternatively I may need something else that pulls the RSS feeds alongside Twitter, Facebook, blog, Pushnote, Evernote,...
Thursday 4 August 2011
Slowing down.. Thing 8: Google calendar
I now have Google calendar with my holiday in it. I have a tailored alert so I get off my PC in time to go. Nothing amazing and it seems to behave like calendars should.
After following up the 2 further readings I can see how it would be useful embedded into a library or other website. I'm now following yet another blog in case there are any more useful musings.
After following up the 2 further readings I can see how it would be useful embedded into a library or other website. I'm now following yet another blog in case there are any more useful musings.
Tuesday 26 July 2011
Thing 7: Face-to-face networks and professional organisations
I was disappointed (and frustrated) that I did not get to my f2f networking event last Thursday at CILIP due to an M25 traffic jam. This may be why it's taken me so long to get around to writing up last week's activities.
I'm a second career librarian and joined LIANZA while completing my MLIS. I found the face to face events in Wellington region very good for developing contacts. Also the annual conference provided opportunities to meet others and even to get to know people working for the same (large) organisation better.
Later I joined the committee of my special interest group, ITSIG, which gave me closer (mostly phone conference) contact with some key movers and shakers. The direct contacts were very useful when I needed to find out how others had already done something that I needed to do. Especially since I worked at the National Library and we were not exactly encouraged to publicly post our queries on email lists.
Since coming back to Britain I've joined CILIP and had several temporary contracts. The formal publications are my main benefit as I haven't yet been to a regional event although I'd like to. My library contracts are in London, but I commute in from a different region, so that took a while to sort out.
I haven't taken up the benefit of CILIP training as with gaps between my contracts I have no budget to spend. A big change after working for a national library that sent me on courses, organised in-house courses and also had regular talks from staff and international experts.
I would like to gain and maintain professional registration. I had 5 years post MLIS experience by the time I left New Zealand, but LIANZA introduced professional registration just after I left. My MLIS is accredited by CILIP but it seems difficult to qualify to register while I have only sporadic short term contracts (which may be website rather than library work). Probably my best route is to get a permanent role and get started on registration straight away.
I like the look of LIKE: The London Information and Knowledge Exchange. It appears to give more networking opportunities than are available to me with CILIP so I am now taking their RSS feed and will go to an event (although I'm still trying to go to a CILIP one).
I'm not convinced that I need the US-centric The Library Society of the World. I may check out their professional development opportunities a bit more, but the link to an insurance site that bought the domain name for Umbrella 2007 does not bode well for my desire for high quality, current information.
I'm a second career librarian and joined LIANZA while completing my MLIS. I found the face to face events in Wellington region very good for developing contacts. Also the annual conference provided opportunities to meet others and even to get to know people working for the same (large) organisation better.
Later I joined the committee of my special interest group, ITSIG, which gave me closer (mostly phone conference) contact with some key movers and shakers. The direct contacts were very useful when I needed to find out how others had already done something that I needed to do. Especially since I worked at the National Library and we were not exactly encouraged to publicly post our queries on email lists.
Since coming back to Britain I've joined CILIP and had several temporary contracts. The formal publications are my main benefit as I haven't yet been to a regional event although I'd like to. My library contracts are in London, but I commute in from a different region, so that took a while to sort out.
I haven't taken up the benefit of CILIP training as with gaps between my contracts I have no budget to spend. A big change after working for a national library that sent me on courses, organised in-house courses and also had regular talks from staff and international experts.
I would like to gain and maintain professional registration. I had 5 years post MLIS experience by the time I left New Zealand, but LIANZA introduced professional registration just after I left. My MLIS is accredited by CILIP but it seems difficult to qualify to register while I have only sporadic short term contracts (which may be website rather than library work). Probably my best route is to get a permanent role and get started on registration straight away.
I like the look of LIKE: The London Information and Knowledge Exchange. It appears to give more networking opportunities than are available to me with CILIP so I am now taking their RSS feed and will go to an event (although I'm still trying to go to a CILIP one).
I'm not convinced that I need the US-centric The Library Society of the World. I may check out their professional development opportunities a bit more, but the link to an insurance site that bought the domain name for Umbrella 2007 does not bode well for my desire for high quality, current information.
Thing 6: Online networks
I've slipped further behind so will keep this short.
I find Facebook very useful to keep or get back in touch with family and friends, but not for building work-related networks. I've enjoyed my daughter's photos very much and recently started posting my own as a quick way to share what I've been doing. It's also a good way to write to other family members for whom you don't have an email address.
In the course of my work I've looked at public profiles on LinkedIn, but as a non-member my access was restricted. LinkedIn should prove very useful once I carefully set up my profile. I've had temporary contracts since coming back to Britain from New Zealand so may find that I have a few people to network with. I've resolved that by the end of this week I will be set up on LinkedIn.
LISNPN has some interesting discussion publicly available and would be good if I was a new professional, and may be worthwhile for me to join as a relatively recent returnee to Britain.
Librarians as Teachers - appears to be useful for those who teach. I'll remember this if my next or a future role involves teaching.
CILIP Communities: another one for me to join by the end of the week. Despite joining CILIP when I returned to the UK, I haven't got involved. This looks like something I need to do.
I'm also a member of LIANZA and was on the ITSIG committee that set up a Wiki in 2003. Not exactly a community, but a resource supposed to be edited by the community, but takeup was slow and there have only been 4 edits in 2011. There are some groups on the redeveloped LIANZA website, but it looks as if discussion still takes place in the email lists. I've just signed up to see if more becomes visible.
I personally do not want to use yet another social network from Google. For many years I also have had free limited membership of Friends Reunited, a means of finding people I was at school with and being notified about reunions, but I have not paid to join and do not visit often. I regards it as arms length contact rather than the closer contact of Facebook.
I find Facebook very useful to keep or get back in touch with family and friends, but not for building work-related networks. I've enjoyed my daughter's photos very much and recently started posting my own as a quick way to share what I've been doing. It's also a good way to write to other family members for whom you don't have an email address.
In the course of my work I've looked at public profiles on LinkedIn, but as a non-member my access was restricted. LinkedIn should prove very useful once I carefully set up my profile. I've had temporary contracts since coming back to Britain from New Zealand so may find that I have a few people to network with. I've resolved that by the end of this week I will be set up on LinkedIn.
LISNPN has some interesting discussion publicly available and would be good if I was a new professional, and may be worthwhile for me to join as a relatively recent returnee to Britain.
Librarians as Teachers - appears to be useful for those who teach. I'll remember this if my next or a future role involves teaching.
CILIP Communities: another one for me to join by the end of the week. Despite joining CILIP when I returned to the UK, I haven't got involved. This looks like something I need to do.
I'm also a member of LIANZA and was on the ITSIG committee that set up a Wiki in 2003. Not exactly a community, but a resource supposed to be edited by the community, but takeup was slow and there have only been 4 edits in 2011. There are some groups on the redeveloped LIANZA website, but it looks as if discussion still takes place in the email lists. I've just signed up to see if more becomes visible.
I personally do not want to use yet another social network from Google. For many years I also have had free limited membership of Friends Reunited, a means of finding people I was at school with and being notified about reunions, but I have not paid to join and do not visit often. I regards it as arms length contact rather than the closer contact of Facebook.
Wednesday 20 July 2011
Thing 5: Reflective practice
I'm reflecting on where I've come from, what I decided to do, what has happened so far and how that was in relation to my expectations. I try to reflect each week on the topic but sometimes you need to take a longer look back.
I needed to get more experience in using social media. As well as library roles (electronic, repository, etc) I also do contract website work and many sites are now using social media to direct traffic towards the site.
I started cpd23 as a means of pushing myself into places I wasn't going to go to without an incentive. I enjoy learning but wanted a means of focussing my learning.
Part of learning is linking new understanding to your prior knowledge. Trying out new tools probably means making mistakes and learning from them.
I realised straight away that I don't like publishing my inner thoughts and revealing my identity. Especially when I'm job-hunting as they will probably Google me. On reflection, my future employer does need to be able to work with me so if I keep it fairly professional it will only put off someone that I probably wouldn't have got on with anyway. Hope so!
Some others are much more open than me and have such good ideas and write in an interesting way. How can I make mine more interesting?
I learnt that my top Google result is a very old family history related post. Not what I really want. I'd rather have more recent ones at the top, but don't want to load my list posts with keywords that will be 'popular' at the expense of giving useful contributions. I do need to do something about this although I'm not keen on promoting myself. I prefer promoting my family history society or a library service.
I did decide to be more open about my identity and got my picture up. I'll be at the London cpd23 meet, but am not aware of who I might meet there.
I was already using RSS and it is still my favourite. I'm now following others through Twitter and can see that it is useful to me. I joined an SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) one and immediately got other followers (trying to boost their own rankings?).
I'm getting practical experience of other ways of connecting with people. These could be applied to information services. I need to carry on considering my branding and try embedding Twitter into daily use like I already use RSS.
I also need to become faster at doing CDP23 exercises. Perhaps shorter blog posts!
I needed to get more experience in using social media. As well as library roles (electronic, repository, etc) I also do contract website work and many sites are now using social media to direct traffic towards the site.
What I decided to do
I started cpd23 as a means of pushing myself into places I wasn't going to go to without an incentive. I enjoy learning but wanted a means of focussing my learning.
Part of learning is linking new understanding to your prior knowledge. Trying out new tools probably means making mistakes and learning from them.
What have I done and what do I now do differently?
Started this blog
I realised straight away that I don't like publishing my inner thoughts and revealing my identity. Especially when I'm job-hunting as they will probably Google me. On reflection, my future employer does need to be able to work with me so if I keep it fairly professional it will only put off someone that I probably wouldn't have got on with anyway. Hope so!
Looked at other blogs
Some others are much more open than me and have such good ideas and write in an interesting way. How can I make mine more interesting?
Branding
I learnt that my top Google result is a very old family history related post. Not what I really want. I'd rather have more recent ones at the top, but don't want to load my list posts with keywords that will be 'popular' at the expense of giving useful contributions. I do need to do something about this although I'm not keen on promoting myself. I prefer promoting my family history society or a library service.
I did decide to be more open about my identity and got my picture up. I'll be at the London cpd23 meet, but am not aware of who I might meet there.
Twitter, Pushnote
I was already using RSS and it is still my favourite. I'm now following others through Twitter and can see that it is useful to me. I joined an SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) one and immediately got other followers (trying to boost their own rankings?).
In conclusion
I'm getting practical experience of other ways of connecting with people. These could be applied to information services. I need to carry on considering my branding and try embedding Twitter into daily use like I already use RSS.
I also need to become faster at doing CDP23 exercises. Perhaps shorter blog posts!
Friday 15 July 2011
Thing 4: first tweets and an app
I've used RSS feeds for a long time - in my Firefox toolbar so that I can scan it without moving off the page I'm on. I like to track news, both here with the BBC and in New Zealand (Stuff and Radio NZ). I also have job feeds as I'm job-hunting, my daughter's blogs and a few other ones.
I've now set up Twitter and tweeted twice and am following some too. More open about my identity - my name seems to show alongside my nickname if I'm not logged in. Hmm.
I've rebranded my blog (the background is of puffins I photographed off Skomer in May). I added the same photo of myself to Facebook and Twitter). I discovered that Twitter cropped the top of my head, so had to reupload a squarer photo. In New Zealand heads are regarded as tapu by Maori and you should not display only part of a head. Nearly 30 years living there has given me a different cultural perspective from the one I grew up with in Britain.
I've also added Pushnote to my browser and boldly given it access to my Twitter and Facebook accounts. Perhaps I'll use it tomorrow. I am reminded that I also put Tweetdeck on my PC a couple of months ago when I started exploring social media. Now might be a good time to experiment with it. (Well, tomorrow as it's late)
I think that RSS really is the most useful of these tools so far (into my toolbar). Maybe because it is already embedded in my habits.
I can get my current affairs alongside my library and other blogs all feeding into something that is there without waiting for it to load when I take a break. However, it isn't interactive so I'll have to see how Twitter, etc go, perhaps compared with the interactivity of email lists and Facebook
I've now set up Twitter and tweeted twice and am following some too. More open about my identity - my name seems to show alongside my nickname if I'm not logged in. Hmm.
I've rebranded my blog (the background is of puffins I photographed off Skomer in May). I added the same photo of myself to Facebook and Twitter). I discovered that Twitter cropped the top of my head, so had to reupload a squarer photo. In New Zealand heads are regarded as tapu by Maori and you should not display only part of a head. Nearly 30 years living there has given me a different cultural perspective from the one I grew up with in Britain.
I've also added Pushnote to my browser and boldly given it access to my Twitter and Facebook accounts. Perhaps I'll use it tomorrow. I am reminded that I also put Tweetdeck on my PC a couple of months ago when I started exploring social media. Now might be a good time to experiment with it. (Well, tomorrow as it's late)
I think that RSS really is the most useful of these tools so far (into my toolbar). Maybe because it is already embedded in my habits.
I can get my current affairs alongside my library and other blogs all feeding into something that is there without waiting for it to load when I take a break. However, it isn't interactive so I'll have to see how Twitter, etc go, perhaps compared with the interactivity of email lists and Facebook
Wednesday 6 July 2011
Thing 3: branding or... bye-bye bluebell?
Vanity check
Googling myself doesn't really demonstrate my current CV profile:
"A background in libraries and IT, including managing electronic resources and proactive website management."
The first page of results for my (unique) name are family history related. Boring. But I guess that's ok, especially if I wanted to be a local studies librarian (don't think I'm qualified for this) or to showcase my research skills (fine).Why is the first result an archived 2002 email where I replied to someone else's post? Because the thread was about the Queen Mother? Not one I am particularly proud of.
There's a lot I can learn about Google's ranking algorithm just by studying these 10 results. An opportunity to upgrade my SEO skills as a spinoff?
All 8 list archive posts are dated 2000-2005, yet I last posted in May to one of the lists. Perhaps those older posts have been most frequently viewed because they have such valuable content ;-) and boosted their Google rank. The other two are on a family history society's website, so less surprising and ok.
The top of the 2nd results page reveals that I was on a LIANZA SIG committee. Something work related at last.
None of my profiles are public - no Google, Yahoo, Facebook, etc., hence no embarrassing details visible (I did find myself in Worldcat though via Pipl). Google reveals that the rest of my family are rather more open with their profiles.
As I'm job-hunting, and it's a while since my last temp library contract, I'm looking at other job options, so should do more to make myself and my professional qualities visible. Perhaps LinedIn, etc. Something to work on this week.
Name
I have been coy about my surname in my blog, and will change that if I can steel myself to do so. I was wary about hanging out my washing in public as I explore ideas, especially as I'm job-hunting at the moment.
Photo
Well, I think my bluebell photo looks pretty, but it won't identify me when people meet me. Will find a photo of myself.
Professional/personal identity
I think I'd already decided that they are merged as there's no way I can hide my family history list posts from potential employers and they've been visible for years. I've only added two work contacts to Facebook so far but have nothing against it.
Visual brand
Colours. My blog colour was chosen to go with the bluebells whereas really I'd prefer a warmer tone. That's what comes of creating the blog quickly. I think I'm about to rebrand.
Next steps
I've learnt that I need to be a bit more open, risk a little...
Tuesday 5 July 2011
Thing 2: other blogs
Well, I'm already behind on my cpd23 schedule but I have been busy brushing up my Excel 2007 skills instead. Vlookup or macro anyone? Now I just need a collection to develop, with associated statistics.. or something unrelated to library and information services.
There are now far more participants than when I started Thing 2. I've looked at several other cpd23 blogs, especially checking out the New Zealanders, "U" and unemployed. I was disappointed to find that the only NZ one tagged national was a bit odd and didn't seem to be being developed (in Wordpress). I was at the National Library of New Zealand for 5 years, although I've been in the UK for 4 years now. Oh well. I'll try it again in a couple of weeks. Other NZ ones were interesting to remind me of the NZ library environment.
Exploring other blogs, I've now found tags for unemployed and volunteer, so have asked for mine to have these tags so that my blog can be found. My voluntary library is a small family history society library I've recently taken on. The collection needs better access and use.
I realised I'm a bit wary of posting publicly. It's the same on Facebook - where I'm amazed at how much some people do say. Maybe it's because I've been involved with websites since 1998 and although they go away, there's often traces of them in places like the Internet Archive.
Now on to Thing 3, although I'll keep exploring and following other blogs.
There are now far more participants than when I started Thing 2. I've looked at several other cpd23 blogs, especially checking out the New Zealanders, "U" and unemployed. I was disappointed to find that the only NZ one tagged national was a bit odd and didn't seem to be being developed (in Wordpress). I was at the National Library of New Zealand for 5 years, although I've been in the UK for 4 years now. Oh well. I'll try it again in a couple of weeks. Other NZ ones were interesting to remind me of the NZ library environment.
Exploring other blogs, I've now found tags for unemployed and volunteer, so have asked for mine to have these tags so that my blog can be found. My voluntary library is a small family history society library I've recently taken on. The collection needs better access and use.
I realised I'm a bit wary of posting publicly. It's the same on Facebook - where I'm amazed at how much some people do say. Maybe it's because I've been involved with websites since 1998 and although they go away, there's often traces of them in places like the Internet Archive.
Now on to Thing 3, although I'll keep exploring and following other blogs.
Wednesday 22 June 2011
cpd23 Things
I've started this blog to aid my professional development (as a librarian / information professional). I'm following 23 Things for Professional Development and this is the first Thing.
I'd like this to give me the incentive to explore tools or topics I have not needed to go into yet. As I'm between jobs it's quite hard to get professional development such as conferences and courses due to cost, and yet in theory I should have plenty of time after I've read my email lists and journals.
I've worked in school, national and university libraries and have also maintained websites since 1998. (e.g. http://web.archive.org/web/20000603183833/http://www.netday.net.nz/ - that takes me back!). A more recent focus has been web accessibility.
I'm looking forward to exploring some web Things that I haven't yet used.
I'd like this to give me the incentive to explore tools or topics I have not needed to go into yet. As I'm between jobs it's quite hard to get professional development such as conferences and courses due to cost, and yet in theory I should have plenty of time after I've read my email lists and journals.
I've worked in school, national and university libraries and have also maintained websites since 1998. (e.g. http://web.archive.org/web/20000603183833/http://www.netday.net.nz/ - that takes me back!). A more recent focus has been web accessibility.
I'm looking forward to exploring some web Things that I haven't yet used.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)