Social networking tools

Social networking is a potent tool, not only for librarians but also for educators. I see it as a logical extension to online content probrams like Blackboard, because students have at their hands another method for communicating information related to assignments, study related networking and communication with faculty and fellow students.

Indeed libraries should have social networking pages, both as a general means of communicating and also for special projects. For instance, information literacy programs could benefit from a combination of blogs, wikis and social networking applications.

As with any internet based activity, security must be a concern. Use the same precautionary measures you would apply to any WEB based forum.

I was most impressed with the "democratization" of information access provided by social networking applications. With this new freedom comes both opportunities and risks (both obvious - greater access to information on the one hand and security issues on the other). The best precaution one can take is the judicial use of "computer # 1", your own common sense, when utilizing any of these resources.

The difference between a wiki and a blog

The difference between a blog and a wiki appears to be that a blog is half way between a traditional WEB site and a wiki. With a blog, the blog creator has more control over the content and guests are limited to offering discussion points on the creator's posts. A wiki, on the other hand, is more open. "Guests" , if provided access, may have the opportunity to actually "edit" post made by the creator. As a result, a wiki would have a greater potential to evolve (because more people are involved in the creation process). This raises a variety of issues, positive and negatives. Is this correct? The comments above about the "discussion" nature of wikis is valid. However, perhaps this is partly due to the nature of this course (we are all learning (:-) ). If theis wiki were on a totally separate topic, astronomy perhaps, entries could be more like mini-articles.

MLA wiki list

This is a list of wikis in the MLA course:

http://mlawikiclass.wetpaint.com/page/MLA+Web+2.0+101+Wikis

MLA blog list

This is a list of blogs in the MLA training course:

http://mlawikiclass.wetpaint.com/page/MLA+Web+2.0+101+Blogs

WIKI site

I have started a new WIKI "Informatics you can use". Check out the site: http://informaticsplus.wetpaint.com/

MLA WEB2.0 course report week of 031008

This was a great start to the course. For the course, I actually re-activated a blog I began some time ago as a means to introduce myself into blogs. I added two RSS feeds as requested. The short YouTube videos were an enjoyable experience. Kudos for including them! I look forward to the additional information we will get into during the following weeks. Cheers!!

Current Literature Search - Informatics education and librarians

1: Hersh W.
Who are the informaticians? What we know and should know.
J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2006 Mar-Apr;13(2):166-70. Epub 2005 Dec 15.
PMID: 16357354 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
2: Barnard A, Nash R, O'Brien M.
Information literacy: developing lifelong skills through nursing education.
J Nurs Educ. 2005 Nov;44(11):505-10. Review.
PMID: 16342632 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
3: Klem ML, Weiss PM.
Evidence-based resources and the role of librarians in developing evidence-based
practice curricula.
J Prof Nurs. 2005 Nov-Dec;21(6):380-7. Review.
PMID: 16311234 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
4: Murphy J, Adams A.
Exploring the benefits of user education: a review of three case studies.
Health Info Libr J. 2005 Sep;22 Suppl 1:45-58.
PMID: 16109027 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
5: Nicholson S.
Understanding the foundation: the state of generalist search education in library
schools as related to the needs of expert searchers in medical libraries.
J Med Libr Assoc. 2005 Jan;93(1):61-8.
PMID: 15685276 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
6: Helms AJ, Bradford KD, Warren NJ, Schwartz DG.
Bioinformatics opportunities for health sciences librarians and information
professionals.
J Med Libr Assoc. 2004 Oct;92(4):489-93. Review. No abstract available.
PMID: 15494764 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
7: Lyon J, Giuse NB, Williams A, Koonce T, Walden R.
A model for training the new bioinformationist.
J Med Libr Assoc. 2004 Apr;92(2):188-95.
PMID: 15098047 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
8: Brown JF, Nelson JL.
Integration of information literacy into a revised medical school curriculum.
Med Ref Serv Q. 2003 Fall;22(3):63-74.
PMID: 14527141 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
9: Plaice C, Kitch P.
Embedding knowledge management in the NHS south-west: pragmatic first steps for a
practical concept.
Health Info Libr J. 2003 Jun;20(2):75-85.
PMID: 12786906 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
10: Brettle A.
Information skills training: a systematic review of the literature.
Health Info Libr J. 2003 Jun;20 Suppl 1:3-9. Review.
PMID: 12757431 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
11: Dorsch JL, Jacobson S, Scherrer CS.
Teaching EBM teachers: a team approach.
Med Ref Serv Q. 2003 Summer;22(2):107-14.
PMID: 12723819 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
12: Morgen EB.
Implementing PDA technology in a medical library: experiences in a hospital
library and an academic medical center library.
Med Ref Serv Q. 2003 Spring;22(1):11-9.
PMID: 12627687 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
13: Crowell K, Shaw-Kokot J.
Extending the hand of knowledge: promoting mobile technologies.
Med Ref Serv Q. 2003 Spring;22(1):1-9.
PMID: 12627686 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
14: Smith CA, Detlefsen EG, Tannery NH.
Medical informatics: the Pittsburgh experience.
Med Ref Serv Q. 2002 Fall;21(3):97-105.
PMID: 12238020 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
15: Moore M.
Training opportunities for librarians sponsored by the National Library of
Medicine.
Med Ref Serv Q. 2001 Winter;20(4):73-7. No abstract available.
PMID: 11865765 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
16: Turman LU, Koste JL, Horne AS, Hoffman CE.
A new role for the clinical librarian as educator.
Med Ref Serv Q. 1997 Spring;16(1):15-23.
PMID: 10168342 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Greetings fellow MLAers and welcome to my blog!!

This is a blog I had been working on and, shame on me, let it lapse. it was an experiment born out of curiosity. However, with this course, it is taking on a new life. Visit my blog from time to time. Good luck with the course colleagues. Cheers!!