Contra Costa County Library: QR (quick response) Mobile Application

Emerging Technologies Specialist Susan Kantor posted an announcement on the CALIX listserv about "Snap & Go!", a Contra Costa County Library mobile patron support system to support QR (Quick Response) codes. I first heard about QR or "2D Bar Codes" for retailer loyalty marketing from a March 2010 Bloomsberg Business Week article. I learned more about QR codes a few months ago at a print industry conference, PINC (now Visual Media Alliance), in San Francisco. It is good to see a California library moving ahead with this and other customer service tools. Kudos to the CCCL and Cathy Sanford's technology team

Susan says the California public library system expanded its "services to people on-the-go by providing mobile access to downloadable audio eBooks, podcasts, reading recommendations, library catalog and account information, and more through QR codes and a new mobile website. The website is part of the Snap & Go project which links customers with cell phones to library services and information." The Contra Costa County Library used funding from a $60,000 BALIS (Bay Area Library & Information Service) Innovation grant to work with Quipu Group to develop a mobile patron support system for pushing new and existing library content and services into the hands of the growing number of people who want to access library services on the go. See the library's press release.

Free E-Books from Internet Archives

The Wall Street Journal carried a 6/29/10 news item about the Internet Archives and several public libraries offering free ebooks. The article is "Libraries Have a Novel Idea:Lenders Join Forces to Let Patrons Check Out Digital Scans of Shelved Book Collections" by Geoffrey Fowler.

A video news program also covers the OpenLibraries announcement.

hive.

Text Messaging Services by Libraries - Research Grant

San Jose State University Graduate School of Information and Library Science received an IMLS grant to study role of text messaging in Reference Services. Here is the SJSU GSIS announcement:

Use of text messaging is skyrocketing, and our nation’s libraries are starting to explore new ways to tap into this increasingly popular communication platform to connect with their patrons.

Dr. Lili Luo, an assistant professor with the San Jose School of Library and Information Science, will conduct the first in-depth research regarding how libraries can meet their patron’s information-seeking needs via text messaging. Thanks to a $122,683 grant award from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, Luo will conduct a two-year study of how libraries can use text messaging as a platform for providing virtual reference services, as well as how they can collaboratively deliver services and expand their ability to meet patron needs during challenging economic times.

Engaging a New Generation of Library Users: Exploring a Multi-Library Collaborative Model to Deliver Text Reference Service will investigate how text reference service is different from other types of virtual reference services (such as email and instant messaging) and how it can fulfill users’ information needs. Luo will also study whether text reference provides an opportunity for libraries to engage new users, including our nation’s teens — the fastest growing group of individuals using text messaging. Luo will study the rich pool of data available via InfoQuest, the nation’s first large-scale collaboration by numerous libraries to provide text reference services. Launched in July 2009 by Alliance Library System, today more than 60 libraries from multiple states participate in InfoQuest. They include a wide array of library types, including urban, suburban, and rural libraries, small and large libraries, and public, academic, school, and law libraries.

The project’s goal is to learn from InfoQuest’s innovative national model, gleaning new knowledge regarding how to implement, manage, and assess a collaborative text reference service model, as well as factors libraries should consider when deciding whether or not to participate in a text reference collaboration. Results will establish a solid understanding of the text reference user community and provide a roadmap for libraries interested in adopting texting to meet patrons’ information needs.

The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), the primary source of federal support for the nation’s libraries and museums, announced the award on June 15, 2010.

Wireless Mobility Applications for Libraries

The American Library Association Office of Information Technology Policy has created an 18-page document on mobile technology and libraries for distribution and discussion at the ALA annual conference in Washington, DC. in June 2010. See below.

OITP brief explores mobile technology and libraries
There’s an App for That! Libraries and Mobile Technology: An Introduction to Public Policy Considerations (PDF file), released June 16 by the ALA Office for Information Technology Policy, takes a look at how the adoption of mobile technology alters the traditional relationships between libraries and their users. Authored by OITP Consultant Timothy Vollmer, the brief explores reader privacy, access to information, digital rights management, and accessibility....
District Dispatch, June 16

2010 HORIZON REPORT for K-12

The annual HORIZON Report for higher education is now available for K-12 eduction, thanks to a grant by HP. The 2010 HORIZON Report: The K-12 Edition is arranged in the same format, with executive summary, trends, challenges, short-term horizon (1-2 yrs), mid-term (3-5 yrs), and longer-term (5 yrs).

Here are the top five trends identified for the 2010-2015 time period:

1. Technology is increasingly a means for empowering students, a method for communication and socializing, and a ubiquitous, transparent part of their lives.
2. Technology continues to profoundly affect the way we work, collaborate, communicate, and succeed. Information technologies impact how people work, play, learn, socialize, and collaborate.
   
3. The perceived value of innovation and creativity is increasing. Innovation is valued at the highest levels of business and must be embraced in schools if students are to succeed beyond their formal education.
   
4. There is increasing interest in just-in-time, alternate, or non-formal avenues of education, such as online learning, mentoring, and independent study.
   
5. The way we think of learning environments is changing.
   

Critical Challenges to K-12 use of new technology:
To this list, I would add California's K-12 financial meltdown.

1. Digital media literacy continues its rise in importance as a key skill in every discipline and profession.
2. Students are different, but educational practice and the materials that support it are changing only slowly.
3. Many policy makers and educators believe that deep reform is needed, but at the same time, there is little agreement as to what a new model of education might look like.
4. A key challenge is the fundamental structure of the K-12 education establishment.

Digital Pop-Up Book - Library Annual Report

Topeka and Shawnee County (Kansas) Public Library's Creative Staff created an online annual report, presented as a digital pop-up book. Very cool. See article by Mark Hall of CJOnline.

A how-to workshop and template would do well at any library conference! It is a great way to communicate what your library does, did, and is capable of doing. Very nice! Love the visualization. Are the Creative Staff from TSCPL.org going to share? What's next from Michael Perkins, the library's digital services supervisor?

Birth of a Classic: Online Companion

The worlds foremost math handbook for nearly 50 years and the most cited publication in the history of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) now has a fresh look, updated data and a new digital companion. The Handbook of Mathematical Functions has been updated and available online as the National Digital Library of Mathematical Functions. See the video below.



Looks excellent and long-overdue. Is this tool useful for high school students, too?

Summer 2.0 Fun - Intro to Web 2.0

The California School Library Association (CSLA) is celebrating its 4th Summer of 2.0 Fun. Four years of offering educators a free, online web 2.0 tutorial with curriculum connections and an opportunity to explore new media in a relevant and meaningful way. Within a school, teachers teach. Outside of a school, they talk about students, books, education issues. Often, there is no time within a school day or school year to learn how to effectively and creatively use new tools. Summer vacation is an ideal time to learn.

CSLA says:

• This is a great way to get you, your library and your profession visible! See more at Summer 2.0 Fun
• If you have already completed the course, good for you! You are way ahead of the pack. This is a good time to do outreach and get others at your school to learn the new media. Please pass this invitation along to administrators, professional development and ed tech directors, local schools of education, and other associations you belong to. Post about it. Tweet about it. BRAG about it.
  

Summer 2.0 Fun runs from June 1-September 1. CSLA encourages all educators to participate in one way or another in order to move California and the nation's schools ahead -- no need to wait or hope for any stimulus money or budgets. Just do it. This course has no quizzes or exams.

That's the spirit! After all, most large corporate employers only offer online training and professional development. We can do it too!