The North Wing

Last Thursday, the campus was treated to a wonderful presentation by Jill Hurst-Wahl about online communities and tools to network with others.  She told us that it was the online version of the water cooler or a “virtual coffee pot.”  People gather for a variety of reasons including information sharing, problem solving, collaboration, and to support one another regardless of distance and regardles of which device we carry.

 The trend towards online social networking will continue, says Hurst, and there are several trends:

• Social Networking Tools (SNTs) will be everywhere.  In the course management software, in the library catalog, in our office productivity software.
• Everyone will be hyperconnected–connected in multiple ways.  As people find their preferred method of connectivity, they will meet online, learn about each other and then build trust.  After that, they will work together.
• Intellectual property concerns will continue to be prevalent.  Trademarks, copyright, creative commons will all be part of the future.   In the action of sharing, we run the risk of losing something we really want to own.
• Views on privacy will continue to change.  Online, we are willing to disclose more and to live more transparently.  People don’t always consider the unintended consequences and negative impact to such online disclosures.
• Virtual worlds will become more common, specialized to companies/interests; they will be more interoperable–available on more devices.  Online virtual worlds will be less resource intensive, won’t take up a lot of computer memory etc.

Second Life is such a virtual world. 

SUNY Cortland has an island on Second Life and some faculty and students are teaching and learning there.  For more information, please contact Tera Doty-Blance in the Technology Training Center.

Yesterday, Information Resources had a professional development retreat on campus.   After unit reports (not your usual talking heads!) in video, our guest speaker was Frank Pastizzo; a motivational speaker.

Through stories, jokes, and music, Frank talked about how people view work.  He had us visualize our favorite place to go and then he asked us, “how many chose work.”  No one raised their hands.  Shocking, isn’t it!  Most chose something near the water and many chose a place with palm trees.  His point was that most people at work are there because they have to be not because they choose to be.  Because of that, work can be a difficult place to be.  It doesn’t have to be, he saide, we can make our work environment a place where it’s safe to be human. 

Human beings make mistakes.  Whate everyone needs is a sense of belonging, a sense of freedom, a sense of power and a sence of fun.  If misery loves company, he said, then joy also loves company.  If you connect with the human spirit within the other person before you get down to business, you create a sense of community and belonging. 

He pointed out that all of us work in human services.  We are humans providing a service to other humans.  And the best way to provide service is not the golden rule (do unto others as you would have them do unto you), but rather to treat people the way they would like to be treated.

This concept sets everything into a different perspective and provides a lot of food for thought.  And as I continue to think about that, it also brings to mind some of the other points he made.  As we get mired in our jobs, it absorbs us and we get into the flow.  One of the dangers of this “intoxication of momentum” is that we forget to look around and see new ideas and explore new ways of doing and being.  We always go to what we know for a sense of safety. 

To learn, we have to move out of this momentum into a new energy, a new flow.  That can be scary.

For an interesting post on this topic of social networking tools and their use in libraries, see Paula Warnken’s blog on November 14th from which this quote is excerpted:

“What do those findings mean for those of us who invest heavily in online library resources?  How do we reach our students who feel self-sufficient in their online research skills and often circumvent library resources? They don’t necessarily use the library Web pages that we often design as a result of our own usability studies. There are no clear answers as we traverse the online information world and explore the implications and opportunities of Library 2.0. Librarians must be willing to question current practices and be open to new and different service venues, both real and virtual. We must all accept and embrace change. As OCLC’s report concludes, “The new Web is a very different thing. Libraries need to be very different, too.””

There are lots of exciting things happening in the library these days.   Students are spending a good deal of time in the library, flocking in to study together, use the services, eat at the cafe and for quiet study.  We got new furniture in the Late Night Reading Room and it took the staff a couple of days to actually see what it looked like because students and faculty were so busy sitting, studying, eating, and talking!

The Learning Commons is in full swing with full research services avalable as well collaboration with Service Learning and Advisement and Transition as well as providing assistance with technology.  As a matter of fact, the opinion article in EQ:  Educause Quarterly talks about the second generation of the Commons initiatives as Commons 2.0.  We continue to change in response to the needs of students and faculty and to fulfill our vision “to be where the questions are.”

Two Multimedia Studio Rooms are now in full operation.  In the past few weeks, the usage has been so heavy that there are lines waiting for the machines to become available.  The larger room has a new smart board for students to practice their presentations.

“Old technology” of books and print journals is alive and well at Memorial Library.  We are continuing our weeding project of multiple copies.  The library has a massive number of second, third, fourth and more copies of items.  To make it easier to find books, we are moving the unnecessary duplication of materials.  We then send them to Better World Books who sends our unneeded items to libraries who do need them.  The librarians are also beginning to study our print journal offerings to ensure that they still meet the needs of students and faculty in relationship to the electronic offerings.

During the last several monthes, the media (mainly DVDs and videos) was moved to the third floor Periodicals area, creating a Periodicals/Media service area.  This is now a full service circulation and reserve area with assistance available all the hours the library is open.  Use of that area has increased dramatically.  The library is also investigating streaming services–rather than buying the materials, to use a service that streams the video through the network.

As part of the Commons effort, the library has been training our student workers to answer technology questions accurately and quickly.  This program is in WebCT and is required for all library student workers.  Plans are being developed to do some training beyond basic technology.

The library has a technology internship program, with students from New Media and Professional Writing.  The students are available in the evenings to answer technology questions, assist in the Multimedia Studio Rooms and support the campus’ webcasting efforts.   This fall 2007 semester has been the pilot and we are currently looking at the program’s strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities.  One of the things we plan to do is take some of the most frequently asked questions and add additional training to the library’s student workers program.

For many years I did work with a librarian named Bob; and there was a librarian working at Memorial Library named Bob.  He now works in a law library.  At Memorial Library, librarians come with many non-Bob names and who wear many different hats, all aimed at helping faculty and students who walk through the doors!

• Lorraine Melita:  Teaching Materials Librarian and Circulation
• Dan Harms, Coordinator of Instruction
• Gretchen Herrmann, Social Sciences Bibliographer
• Amanda Hollister, Recreation Bibliographer and Web Services
• Jennifer Hoover, Physical Education, Kineseology Bibliographer and Electronic Resources
• Ellen McCabe, Humanities Bibliographer
• Ellen Paterson, Science Bibliographer
• David Ritchie, Systems Coordinator
• Gretchen Douglas, CAP Instructor and CAP Coordinator
• Ron Conklin, CAP Instructor
• Mark Connell, CAP Instructor

Each librarian has an area of responsibility and special interest; and all librarians work at reference handling questions that run the gamut from technology skills to intense research.

Some days the inspiritation flows like a river and other days it’s like navigating a stream full of beaver dams.  That’s when you need a good laugh.  A great parody of inspirational management drivel is at and their demotivator collection.  Full of words of wisdom for a random bad day.

Have you seen the READ posters throughout the library?  They are pictures of SUNY Cortland’s luminaries, all reading a favorite book.

The READ poster program was started by the American Library Association to promote reading in schools and libraries.  Many popular figures from entertainment and sport have graced the posters over the decades.  

A few years ago, ALA made the poster template available to libraries to create their own posters.  Memorial library has been doing that for a few years now.  Dawn Van Hall created the posters.  She also created a movie clip that can be viewed from YouTube.

Do you know where your poster is?

Isn’t this the grandest picture, and just you don’t feel this way sometimes?

The image comes for the AP Multimedia Archive, a database of images and audio files from the Associated Press.  It’s a fabulous recource offered to the students, faculty, and staff of SUNY Cortland.  These files are available for use in presentations, reprots and other work including academic webpages.  Unfortunately, according to the licensing agreement, these cannot be used in student newspapers, e-zines, or journals.

The library has one silmultaneous use which means if one person is searching, the next person will have to wait.  If the demand for this resource increases, it is likely that the library will expand the subscription.

To use this database, go to library.cortland.edu and Click on Find Articles–Databases–by Title and it will be on the first page.

Have a good day researching!