#Ask4stuff via twitter from WorldCat

From Bill Drew, writing at Baby Boomer Librarian, I learned this morning about a new Twitter-based service that queries the WorldCat database (see #Ask4stuff via twitter from WorldCat. Sending tweets with the tag #Ask4stuff followed by one or several search terms will return a link to results in WorldCat. You can also specify that the results come from a WorldCat Local instance. This has some real possibilities.

Library 2.0? Come again?

You can hardly turn around in the world of library technology without running into mention of Library 2.0 and its impact on today's libraries and their services. I thought I'd put a brief post together linking you to a lengthy definition and a shorter interpretation of it, and an interesting meme map that brings together many of the concepts behind Library 2.0 in a single diagram (my thanks to David Rothman and Meredith Farkas for posting these links to the Web4lib discussion group). Of course, here is also the link to an evolving definition of Library 2.0 at Wikipedia.

Sneakily, I have failed to offer my own sense of Library 2.0. I am still working on that and will share my thoughts here as they coalesce. And, for truth in advertising, the term "Library 2.0" does not appear in my book, but I would say that a lot of the concepts and technologies wrapped up in the term are addressed quite well in three of my chapters (and piecemeal elsewhere). Chapters 9 ("A is for Amazon, G is for Google: The Internet’s Impact on Finding Information"), 10 ("Universal Design and Adaptive/Assistive Technology: Meeting and Supporting Patron Technology Needs"), and 11 ("Virtual Reference, Blogs, and Usability: Library Web Sites and Web Services").

Digital Divide: The Three Stages (Jakob Nielsen's Alertbox)

A very interesting discussion (and recasting) of the digital divide (which I cover in Chapter 10) by Jakob Nielsen - usability and web design guru. He brings in further issues that separate people from using computers and the Internet at all, or even if they have access, from using them fully. Aside from the economic and usability barriers, his comments on empowerment and individuals' lack of intiative to fully participate in the digital world are worthwhile to consider. Check it out!

Read more at www.useit.com/alertbox/...