More MeeboMe Ideas

Wow - there have been lots of comments on the MeeboMe widget. Great! Some other libraries are trying it out - check the comments on my original post and on Jenny Levine’s post titled Mashing on the Library, Part I to find them. Others have been emailing me, asking for details.
Now, let’s take this one [...]

Fun With our Meebo Widget and the Library Catalog

Update: I’m getting some questions on how we did this, so… We have a Horizon system - look for the searchinput.xsl page in your XSL folder. Then find the appropriate chunk of code where the “nothing found” message and table appears, and add the meebome widget there.
And if you have more questions, feel free to [...]

Topeka Has IM

My library has just started two things, really:

IM reference! (Yippie!)
Using the Meebo Me widget

We have wanted to begin IM reference for over a year at least. One of the cool things about being the Digital Branch Manager at this library is that the library as a whole is excited about new ways to reach out [...]

Casa Grande Library System is Twittering!

Casa Grande Library System is twittering (at http://twitter.com/cglibrary)! Looks like they’re dumping news from their RSS feeds into their twitter account.
This is the first actual library system I’ve heard of that’s twittering… anyone else know of a twittering library (ok - I realize that sounds funny…)?
twitter

Kansas Tri-Conference: Day 1 - IM (Instant Messaging): 101

Kristin Whitehair (K-State)
Gave history of IM
Gave a couple of examples of IM reference questions at K State
IM in Libraries

our users are using it
42% of all online users use IM - Pew
90% of teens using IM (AOL IM Trends)
all age groups are using IM

IM is:

immediate
real time 
point of need (answer question when customer needs the answer)
interactive

Virtual Reference [...]

Mobile Instant Messaging and ebuddy

I just finished playing around with ebuddy, at ebuddy.com. It’s a web-based IM service, like meebo. But the thing I was interested in is this - they offer a mobile version of their ebuddy service!
I haven’t wanted to actually PAY for IM on my treo, which I could do through services like VeriChat or Mundu [...]

Actual Reference (not virtual)

Aaron Schmidt at walking paper posted about IM yesterday, and made some points that actually relate, in a way, to what I was saying yesterday about the website as a destination.
Aaron’s post focused on IM reference - how IM reference is still very much a reference question, just like someone walking up to the desk, [...]

Cell Phones and Rock Concerts

I just attended Kansas City’s Rock the Light VI concert - it was fun! Some highlights:

The bands on the main stage - they rocked
The satellite stage bands (I was in one of them) Go here for more pics of my day
Getting free tickets (complimentary tickets for bands playing on the satellite stages)
The venue - Starlight [...]

More on The Web as Communication

I posted this yesterday, and received some good comments. So this post will focus on those comments:
Comment #1:
Add patience to that list From SkaGirlie (make sure to read her way-hip blog, by the way). Sorta tongue-in-cheek, sorta not. My three solutions for what to do with staff that don’t want to accept the web [...]

Fun Way to Market IM Reference

From the Library Marketing blog - UNC-Chapel Hill Libraries is marketing their IM reference service in a fun way. They have created stickers with the library’s IM name that are passed out to students during new student orientations and instruction sessions.
Thay are seeing students stick these stickers on their notebooks and laptops - how cool [...]

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