Thing #2

Blast! 3 dogs has over taken me! What a crushing blow to my delicate ego! I'll get you 3 Dogs, and you little dogs too! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! (Actually, I won't so if anything happens to 3 dogs or 3 dogs' dogs, it wasn't me. Send to cops elsewhere)

Okay, Library 2.0. I dig this stuff, I do. I really do. I just want to say that now. I think the importance of Web 2.0 technologies is overstated. Which is fine. I'm down with hyperbole, but some times I feel that the skewed and overly enthusiastic rhetoric causes quite the backlash. And, oh, how sick I am of phrases like "Obviously, the milleninels won't think or care about libraries if libraries aren't using (fill in the blank with IM, RSS, Wiki, MySpace really whatever you'd like)". Which is quite odd considering everything I've read about Gen Y says if they want something they'll take it any way they can get it. Also, in looking at the numbers, here at RPL at least, every year our circ goes up. I see plenty of milleniels walking through the doors too. I know I'm starting to sound crumudgeonly, and I apologize, I don't mean to. I guess the bottom line for me the the customer service part of the Library 2.0 philosophy. I believe that is the most important part of the library 2.0 movement. That being said I don't think that customer service is a fundemental shift in what we're already doing.

I think web 2.0 stuff is cool and fun. I don't think it's life changing. I think the 23 things training is great because it introduces people to web 2.0 stuff. Also, It lets folks know that things change. I think learning to embrace change, no matter what that change is, is far more valuable than checking out MySpace. And I think 23 things is a great way to show people some cool stuff and hopefully show they why it's important to stay flexible.

Does anyone remember Friendster? It was sort of pre-MySpace social networking. Web 2.0 stuff will change. Change is inevitable.

Also, I think marketing and letting people know the value of a public library is more important than having a blog. I think libray folks forget that not everyone is aware of everything libraries do.

I know, I'm ranting but that's what blogs are for, right?