Information has become the ultimate commodity. We just have to make certain that our libraries continue to supply it in a way that competes with other mediums. We need to stay ahead of the information curve while trying to steer clear of temporary fads.

Libraries have been known for books and materials for years. We have a "brand". We just have to capitalize on that branding by constantly updating our materials while maintaining our place as a community gathering site.

The future is an exciting place. I look forward to seeing how libraries will embrace that change. I really believe "Library 2.0" is in its infancy. We have not even begun to see the versatility that future generations will take for granted. We need to all be futurists. I often think of ourselves as the ultimate search engine, but even that will go away as programing improves. Right now, Google is amazing, but something better always comes along.

We have value because we provide value. We provide materials that people want for no cost. We provide resources, activities, and opportunities in a very accessible way. If we could peek twenty years into the future, I'm not even sure we would recognize ourselves. I am, however, hopeful that we'll be proud of what we've become.

Bloglines

I just discovered that Bloglines is shutting down as of 10/1/2010. I feel like this represents the transitory nature of the Internet, and it one of the pitfalls of relying on internet tools for archiving information.

Google Docs and Zoho Writer

I've used Google Docs for a variety of applications, but I have never heard of Zoho Writer. I think I am going to explore Zoho Writer at a later time, because it looks like it might emulate Microsoft Word more than Google Docs.

Social Bookmarking

I don't particularly care for the social bookmarking tools, but I can see that they might provide a useful way to organize a series of websites in a way that is unique.

SPLS 2.2 Learning

I resurrected this blog in order to further my training. I have posted comments on sharepoint about many of the early learning tools, but I thought it would be a good idea to post to this site about some of my exploration of Internet 2.0 tools.
I found the information about podcasting very interesting. I find myself interested in listening to some podcasts on my mp3 player when I'm in my car instead of always finding new audio books. I might be able to learn a new subject if I follow a podcast by some of my favorite science subjects.

Learning 2.0 evaluation

I have to say that before this I always thought that I was pretty technically savvy, and now I really know how much I don't really know. There is so much out there and I think I have taken a fairly good tour of the current realm of the social Internet, but I still have so much to do before I become really truly comfortable with it.

Some of the things here are fun, some are useful, and some I think will fall by the wayside as the years progress, but I think it's good to have a greater familiarity with it all. I think I won't really be sure what tools I'll use the most until some time passes, but I think I might really like Library thing, pod casts, and of course I love Overdrive. I can't wait until we have even more titles in that format.

It's been a great journey, but I can't help but feel that I've only just taken the very first step.

Parkour your way to the Library