Web 2.0 and Libraries

The Web 2.0 question for libraries is an interesting one. First, I highly recommend this article What is Web 2.0: Design Patterns and Business Models for the Next Generation of Software by Tim O’Reilly. Tim O’Reilly is one of the folks that coined the term Web 2.0. In my reading of this article, Web 2.0 is a service using a web platform, which allows users to share their own created content in a mixable, scalable way, where the collective action of an increasing number of users adds value to the service. Here is an interesting graphic from that article that illustrates the key concepts.(O'Reilly, 2005)

Now, in what ways have Web 2.0 services been integrated into library offerings? I would have to say in very minor ways but in my experience, more effectively internally than externally. For our patrons, my library has a Facebook page, a Myspace page, we have Blog a book where patrons can blog about their latest great reads. We have a social book network: My Next Good Book. We have the capability to push RSS feeds on various book searches so folks can keep track of new books that we receive according to their interests. Are any of these things well utilized? In a word, no. Internally we have probably 10 or 15 wikis. One of these, the Childrens Services wiki, is a great success and we were cited by pbwiki as a model. The Childrens Librarians use this wiki to coordinate programming, planning for the Summer Reading Program, sharing booklists, etc. It really cut down on email and made us much more effective as a group.

What is the difference between internal offerings and external offerings? First and foremost, the Childrens Services wiki tapped into a fairly vibrant, established community and gave more global access to activities that they were doing anyway. In the book, What would Google do? by Jeff Jarvis, there is an interesting story about a meeting between Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, and the head of a large news organization. The publisher wanted to know how he could start a community like Facebook, and Zuckerberg replied, “You can’t.” He said, that the publisher was asking the wrong question. “You don’t start communities, he said. Communities already exist. They’re already doing what they want to do. The question you should ask is how you can help them to do it better.”(Jarvis, 2009, p.48)

The libraries that I know want to put out blogs and Facebook sites, etc and expect users to do all the work without giving them any benefits. It was evident in the Glazer article that he put quite a bit of effort into the library’s Facebook activities. And, he was working on developing the community in other ways than through Facebook. A better approach, I think, is Penn State’s Tools and Widgets, where a student can place catalog searching and “Ask a librarian” chat widgets right on their Facebook page. Now that is a benefit! The Penn State library is starting to ask the question, “How can I help them do it better.” And the more things that the library provides that the patron can integrate into their daily lives, be greater the barriers to your competition. As O’Reilly indicated, Amazon started with a data dump from its vendors—the same data that its competitors like Barnes and Noble received. However, they have continually enhanced their database, with help from their users, creating a new database that cannot be matched by the competition. This is what libraries need to strive for to really adopt Web 2.0.

References

Jarvis, J. (2009). What would Google do?. New York: HarperCollins.

O'Reilly, T. (2005). What is Web 2.0: Design patterns and business models for the next generation of software.Retrieved 1/29/2009, 2009, from http://www.oreillynet.com/lpt/a/6228