Web Part Two, We Love You?!

Paul Anderson (2007). “All that Glisters Is Not Gold-Web 2.0 and the Librarian” Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Vol 39, No. 4, 195-198.

In a fascinating editorial on Web 2.0, Paul Anderson delves into the history of what Web 2.0 is, and where it is going. Web 2.0 is a term coined by Dale Dougherty a Vice President of O’Reilly Media, Inc. Rather than the term insinuating that there was a whole new revolution in the web, Mr. Doughtery and his company was seeking to show that despite the dot-com bust, the web was still relevant and stronger than ever. Mr. Anderson went on to discuss in his article there should be a framework set up to analyze web 2.0 and the roles that it could play. This framework focused on three different items that make up the backbone of web 2.0, first the “surface” applications (i.e. blogs, wikis, etc), then the “six big ideas” as identified in Tim O’Reilly’s paper, and finally the web technologies and standards (i.e. XML). The second component of this paper focused on the relationship between web 2.0 and the library. Anderson argues that there is no definition for what Library 2.0 is, but believes that it is high time for librarians to start harnessing the power of web 2.0, and provide feedback on how to make the framework even stronger. Which I tend to agree with!
I will admit right now at the beginning of my feedback, that I am very behind the times in understanding the forward movement of the web. This concept of Web 2.0, I really didn’t get. I mean, I guess I didn’t understand how there could be a revolution in the web, I thought it just existed and kept reinventing itself. Needless to say, this article was very helpful to me, in understanding what the term meant, and how it came to being. There were a couple of things that stood out to me in this article, and were helpful in the research I needed for my paper. I really appreciated the information provided on this history of Web 2.0, it helped me to see that those “dot-coms” that survived the 1990s made the web stronger and more relevant. The other component of the article that stood out to me was the idea that librarians need to play a role in the development of Web 2.0. I sincerely agree. Librarians are the ultimate resource in working with people, they must know from a variety of perspectives what the end user is looking for, and can provide valuable input in helping to develop practices for new Web 2.0, and Library Web 2.0 services. The question that I come to then is what role have librarians played thus far in the development of Web 2.0, and has their input actually been helpful?

Maness, J. (2006). “Library 2.0 Theory: Web 2.0 and Its Implications for Libraries.” Webology, 3(2), Article 25.

While I acknowledge that all of the articles for this week had a similar theme, clearly around Web 2.0, I don’t know if I could have chosen a better set of two articles to read, and the order with which I read them. This second article was almost exclusively about the concept of Library 2.0, this idea was introduced in my last article. Their purpose in writing this piece was an attempt to resolve some of the controversy about what Library 2.0 is. The authors here suggest that Library 2.0 is a term used to describe the application of interactive, collaborative, and multi-media web-based technologies to web-based library services and collections. They believe that Library 2.0 has four essential elements: being user centered, providing a multi-media experience, being socially rich, and being communally innovative. The article goes on to detail different technologies that are already present in libraries, though they might be considered from Web 1.0. These technologies include synchronous messaging, streaming media, blogs and wikis and most importantly social networks. In conclusion the authors restate their believe that Library 2.0, is really a perfect marriage with Web 2.0, and that it is now the role of librarians to enable their users to share information, create online library communities, and focus on finding rather than searching.
I have to say this article was very helpful in my understanding of Library 2.0. It helped to define Library 2.0, and applies the idea of Web 2.0 to libraries. In all honesty the two ideas that stood out most to me were the concept of IM in the libraries, and enablement. Enablement is exactly what being a librarian is about, and by using the concepts presented in Web 2.0, librarians can help to create a community of users online. Librarians can encourage user created content, and cataloging, the web itself can become a whole new library not previously envisioned. This process has already started through the use of instant messaging with librarians. I love the idea that somehow in the future a librarian will be able to see that I am struggling in my online search in the OPAC and will be able to jump in and offer assistance, from afar! My question then, based on all this information, is how do we help people to redefine what libraries are, and what role will we play as librarians? Furthermore, what type of virtual set up can we create to have a library in a virtual world, and is that even necessary?