thoughts on social networking

Beware of twitter spam

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 06:23:00 +0000

I like many aspects of Twitter, in particular the serendipitous flow of knowledge; however I don't like the flow of spam... though it can be amusing.

My Twitter bio title was "Knowledge Gardener" until I got fed up with followers from gardening companies and other unrelated tweeters. Below is a screenshot of a tweet in response to these followers...

I changed my bio, but still get the occasional horticultural follower, the most recent being @CultivateColo a gardening company in Colorado.

Apart from systematically blocking and reporting spam the following articles offer some additional tips:

Some useful anti spamming tools:

True Twit (a validation tool)
TwitBlock
TwitCleaner

INF506 Evaluative Report: Part A

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Tue, 24 May 2011 09:28:00 +0000

An evaluative statement using three experiences documented in your online learning journal (OLJ) as evidence of meeting the learning objectives of the subject (@ 750 words).

OLJ entries selected for evaluative report:

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According to a Nielsen Company 2010 report, growth in online social networking (OSN) has increased, with Australia leading the average time spent per person on social media sites (1). New social applications and tools and improved ICT infrastructure have enabled this growth; however with a different way of communicating and interacting online comes challenges. A key challenge is not about ‘getting online’ but issues around implementation and operationalisation within a framework that embraces concepts of Web 2.0 and OSN, as well as realising organisational strategic value. The three OLJ entries indicated above have been selected because they represent complex issues. Additionally, exploration of these issues by the author demonstrate the author’s understanding of the interplay between people, culture, content, process and technology.

Privacy and safety in online social networks highlights cyber-security issues associated with privacy and safety, and reasons why many people, even though they realise the importance of privacy, continue to engage in potentially risky online behaviour.

Drawing attention to the reasons for engaging in risky behaviour and the impact of these behaviours can help improve privacy and safety awareness and limit risks. For information professionals this knowledge can be used in a personal capacity to protect personal and professional information, identity and reputation (2), and in a service capacity to develop relevant literacy programs and resources that encourage online participation while mitigating privacy and safety risks. Additionally, with more information services using OSN and social media, information professionals can advocate for privacy and security feature improvements.

Despite the positive benefits associated with OSN, there is a requirement to address the risks of privacy and safety in both practice and policy (3), which is of importance when considering the ‘public’ versus ‘private’ nature of online interactions.

The blurring of lines between personal, work or educational use of OSN and social media has meant that organisations need to provide guidance in the appropriate use of these services and tools. This need has been highlighted by the increase in cases of employees being fired for inappropriate online behavior (4), which may be inadvertent or deliberate. One could therefore assume that many organisations would have, or be in the process of developing policies/guidelines; however a 2010 study indicates that only one in seven companies have formal processes associated with adopting OSN and one in five have policies concerning the use of OSN technologies (5).

While it is noted that different sectors (corporate, not-for-profit, government, education, health) will have specific issues that need addressing, the five policies/guidelines listed in a Social media policies and guidelines... a taster can be used as resources to inform the development of a social media policy or guideline.

Each resource was selected based on the ‘product’ being user-centred, jargon-free, readable and accessible (6). Additionally, these resources have not been developed in isolation; they refer to associated material including: related policies, guidelines and other documentation; training resources; communications to encourage employee engagement with and take up of the new policy/guideline; and guides for use of social media tools.

As Web 2.0, in particular OSN and social media encourages collaboration, conversation, community, content creation and co-creation, and crowdsourcing (7) policies and guidelines need to balance individuals’ right to privacy and freedom of speech with encouraging social participation and mitigating risks for individuals and the organisation (8); aspects which are highlighted in the five selected policy/guidelines.

Many policies/guidelines include good practices for online engagement. Of interest is ‘add value’ or ‘give added value to content’, which result from active user participation; a core component of Web 2.0 (9). Content generation in Web 2.0 is across multiple platforms (blogs, wikis, micro-blogs, social bookmarking, multimedia) and takes a variety of forms such as, individual thoughts, crowdsourced ideas, comments and tags. For some, ‘Web 2.0 grey content’ is considered a critical source of professional information (10), others use the insights gleaned from user-generated content (UGC) to inform their business (11), or to incorporate into learning case studies (12); while microblogging content at conferences is used as a means of co-creating knowledge (13).

This varied nature of UGC makes it hard to define and evaluate its quality and credibility. Redefining content authenticity in a connected world explores these issues. In this exploration, an area identified where information professionals can impact on the emerging field of “social construction of meaning via diverse media” (14) is by providing metaliteracy training/education, which includes traditional areas of critical thinking and information literacy as well digital, media, visual and technology literacy framed within the social constructs of emerging technologies (15).

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Endnotes

Led by Facebook, 2010.
Graham, Faix & Hartman, 2009, p. 234, para. 4.
Third, Richardson, Collins, Rahilly, & Bolzan, 2010, p. 8, para. 2.
Grensing-Pohal, 2010, p. 1, para. 2.
Cisco, 2010, 'The need for more governance and IT involvement in social media efforts' section, paras. 1-2.
Junco, 2011, p. 61, para. 5.
Hay & Wallis, 2011, 'What is Library 2.0?' section, para. 1.
Gevertz & Greenwood, 2010.
Levey, 2007, p. 122, para. 4.
Bank, 2010, p. 220, para. 3.
Ghinn, 2010.
Kane, Robinson-Combre, & Berge, 2010, p. 64, para. 6f.
Ross, Terras, Warick & Welsh, 2011, p.231, para. 5f.
Ipri, 2010, p. 567, para. 1.
Mackey & Trudi, 2011.

References

Bank, M. (2010). Blog posts and tweets: the next frontier for grey literature. In D. Farace & J. Schöpfel (Eds.) Grey literature in library and information studies, pp. 227-238. [Adobe Digital Electronic versions]. doi: 10.1515/9783598441493. Available from: http://www.alia.eblib.com.au

Cisco. (2010, January 13). Global study reveals proliferation of consumer-based social networking enterprise and a growing need for governance and IT involvement [Press release]. News@Cisco. Retrieved 2011, May 20 from Cisco website: http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/2010/prod_011310.html

Gevertz, D. & Greenwood, G. (2010). Crafting an effective social media policy for healthcare employees. Health Lawyer, 22(6), 28-33. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.

Ghinn, D. (2010, January 5). Pharmaceutical industry: a discovery-led approach to social media. FUMSI. Retrieved from FUMSI website: http://web.fumsi.com/go/article/use/4436

Graham, J.M., Faix, A., & Hartman, L. (2009). Crashing the Facebook party. One library's experiences in the student's domain. Library Review, 58(3), 228-236. doi:10.1108/00242530910942072

Grensing-Pophal, L. (2010). The new social media guidelines. Information Today, 27(3), 1, 46-48. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.

Hay, L. & Wallis, J. (2011). Library 2.0 and participatory library services.
What is Library 2.0? [INF506, Module 3.1]. Retrieved May 20, 2011 from Charles Sturt University Website: http://interact.csu.edu.au/portal/tool/26d2b18e-4584-45cd-0045-a63fefd27c80

Ipri, T. (2010). Introducing transliteracy. What does it mean to academic libraries? College & Research Libraries News, 71(10), 532-533, 567. Retrieved from http://crln.acrl.org/content/71/10/532.full

Junco, R. (2011). The need for student social media policy. Educause Review, January/February, 60-61. Retrieved from Educause website: http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ERM1118.pdf

Kane, K., Robinson-Combre, & Berge, Z. L. (2010). Tapping into social networking: Collaborating enhances both knowledge management and e-learning. Vine, 40(1), 62-70. doi:10.1108/03055721011024928

Led by Facebook, Twitter, global time spent on social media sites up 82% year over year. (2010, January 22). Nielsenwire. Retrieved May 20, 2011from: http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/global/led-by-facebook-twitter-global-time-spent-on-social-media-sites-up-82-year-over-year

Levy, M. (2007). Web 2.0 implications on knowledge management. Journal of Knowledge Management, 13(1), 120-134. doi:10.1108/13673270910931215.

Mackey, T.P. & Jacobson, T.E. (2011). Reframing information literacy as metaliteracy. College & Research Libraries.72(1), 62-78. Retrieved from http://crl.acrl.org/content/72/1/62.full.pdf+html

Ross, C., Terras, M., Warwick, C., & Welsh, A. (2011). Enabled backchannel: conference Twitter use by digital humanists. Journal of Documentation, 67(2), 214-237. doi: 10.1108/00220411111109449.

Third, A., Richardson, I., Collins, P., Rahilly, K., & Bolzan, N. (2011). Intergenerational attitudes towards social networking and cybersafety. A living lab. [Research report]. Melbourne: Cooperative Research Centre for Young People, Technology and Wellbeing. Retreived from http://www.interactivemediarelease.com/download.php?f=5fouxy_FINAL_Living_Lab_Report.pdf&fc=FINAL_Living_Lab_Report.pdf

In text links were made to the following OLJ blog posts

Hayward-Wright, N. (2011, May 17). A visual framework for social media implementation. Modified 2001, May 24 [blog post]. Available from: http://on-socialnetworking.blogspot.com/2011/05/framework-for-social-media.html

Hayward-Wright, N. (2011, May 17). Social media policies and guidelines… a taster [blog post]. Available from: http://on-socialnetworking.blogspot.com/2011/05/social-media-policies-and-guidelines.html

Hayward-Wright, N. (2011, May 14). Privacy and safety in online social networks [blog post]. Available from: http://on-socialnetworking.blogspot.com/2011/05/privacy-and-safety-in-online-social.html

Hayward-Wright, N. (2011, May 14). Redefining content authenticity in a connected world [blog post]. Available from: http://on-socialnetworking.blogspot.com/2011/05/redefining-content-authenticity-in.html

Hayward-Wright, N. (2011, May 11). Information policy… or is it a guideline or standard? [blog post]. Available from: http://on-socialnetworking.blogspot.com/2011/05/information-policy.html

INF506 Evaluative Report: Part B

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Tue, 24 May 2011 09:28:00 +0000

A reflective statement on your development as a social networker as a result of studying INF506, and the implications for your development as an information professional (@ 750 words).

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In reflecting on my development as a social networker I refer to the list of online social networking (OSN) technologies I used prior to IN506. While the number of OSN sites has not grown, my depth of understanding about features and limitations of these services has. For example Twitter: usage as a medium to share my thoughts, pick up new ideas and links to resources has increased; my ability to write value statements in 140 characters has improved; managing connections and security has developed; and I have implemented an aggregation tool (Yoono) which combines feeds from various OSN services. As my use of Twitter has grown so has my exploration into its role as a tool for mobilising people for crisis/disaster management (1, 2). Another example is RSS, which I thought I use extensively, however now appreciate the level of complexity that can be achieved through RSS (3) and its use as a push technology for distribution of social capital (4).

Serendipitous discoveries of useful resources has assisted in my development as a social networker and information professional. Through tweets I noticed references to paper.li which aggregates your tweeter feed into a newspaper format. As a consequence, I have created OnSocialNetworking Weekly which I also use as a topic archive. Another useful discovery occurred via INF506 Facebook group, which resulted in the use of Storify to create, on behalf of a community of practice, Gamification, a curated archive of tweets and presentation from a community event.

In exploring and selecting tools and technologies I am congnisant of the need to have a strategy (5); however prior to INF506 I had not translated this into my personal/professional online environment. I now taken time to ask myself the following questions before engaging in a network (and retrospectively): what do I hope to achieve and what are the success factors, risks, and time and resource commitment? (6). Additionally, I have reframed my social networking experience within the context of a personal learning network supported by a personal learning environment (applications and tools) which will both vary depending on context. Importantly, these strategies have helped me to (try to) achieve a “balance between learning and living” (7).

An expectation from this course was to better understand the online communication ecology. I know I have more to learn with regard to online behaviour and identity across multiple communication channels; however there are some insights I have gleaned from undertaking the INF506 project (setup and online facilitation of Yammer for a community of practice) and online interactions within INF506 Facebook group:

New communication channels, such as OSN, supplement rather than replace existing communication channels (8).
Initial technology adoption is usually for an explicit purpose, however continued use is driven by interpersonal connections (9).
Greater connectedness can be achieved by creating multiple points of contact (10), such as linking with fellow students via Facebook, commenting on student blogs, and following/responding on Twitter.
Greater connectedness can be achieved by rich, meaningful, ‘of value’ and frequent communication; behavioural aspects of interpersonal trust (11).
Greater connectedness can be achieved through reciprocity (not only taking but also giving, no matter the size of the contribution); a key mechanism for ‘bridging social capital’ (12).
A level of emotional intelligence (intrapersonal and interpersonal skill) is required for effective positive online communication (13).
Lurking, with ambient presence, is a valid form of legitimate peripheral participation (14); however real personal value comes when you move from passive to active participation.

The above have guided my development as a social networker and enriched my professional knowledge, specifically in the area of facilitation of communities/networks. Additionally, the process of validating observations through literature has provided an evidence base for future practice.

In considering various course readings on ‘2.0’, I would posit that beyond the ‘movers and shakers’ (15) are librarians and information professionals, myself included, who have a ‘2.0 mindset’ to run with the ‘groundswell’ offered by social technologies (16); however we are often impeded by organisational structures, systems and culture (17). For me, spending time developing social networking skills, experimenting (and having fun) with new applications and tools (such as adding a QR code and voki to my OLJ blog), scanning the horizon for new and emerging technologies, and understanding the implications of digital trends (18) has placed me in a good position to shape an organisation’s or community’s strategic planning, influence culture and support development of structures and systems that underpin the social aspects of 2.0 (19) to mobilise knowledge.

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Endnotes

Briggs, 2011.
Huang, Chan & Hyder, 2010.
Hayward-Wright, 2011, May 8a.
Li & Bernoff, 2008, pp. 31-34.
Hayward-Wright, 2011, May 17.
Bermis-Dougherty, 2010, p. 46, para. 7.
Utech, 2008, para. 8.
Turner, Qvarfordt, Biehl, Golovchinsky, Back, 2010, p. 848, para. 11.
Turner et al., p. 849, para. 7.
Smith & Trayner, 2005, p. 1, paras. 2-3.
Abrams, Cross, Lesser & Levin, 2003, p. 65, para 6.
Steinfield, DiMicco, Ellison & Lampe, 2010, p. 245, paras. 4-5, 246, para. 1.
Hansen, Grange & Prosser, 2009, p. 10, para. 5.
MacDonald et al., 2003, p. 4, ‘The value of lurking’ section, para. 1.
Movers and shakers such as Meredith Farkas (course reading: Building Academic Library 2.0).
Groundswell is a term coined by Li & Bernoff, 2008.
Bennett, 2010, p. 143, para. 2.
Hayward-Wright, 2011, May 8b.
Hayward-Wright, 2011, May 6, ‘Social (people) underpinnings of 2.0’ list.

References

Bennett, J. (2010). Workplace impact of social networking. Property Management, 28(3), 138-148. doi:10.1108/02637471011051282

Bermis-Dougherty, A. (2010). Professionalism and social networking. PT in Motion, 2(5), 40-47. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.

Briggs, G. (2011). The twitter revolution. The Big Issue, 357,1-14 March, 15-19.

Farkas, M. (2007, November). Building academic library 2.0 [webcast]. Keynote paper presented at Academic Library 2.0, sponsored by the Librarians Association of the University of California, Berkeley Division. Retrieved from http://webcast.berkeley.edu/event_details.php?webcastid=21207

Hansen, G., Grange, L., & Prosser, C. (2010). An investigation of emotional intelligence and the use of online social media tools in organisations [White paper]. Retrieved from Knowledge Solutions website: http://www.knowledge-solutions.com.au/attachments/147_EISM_Report.pdf

Hayward-Wright, N. (2011, May 6). Librarian 2.0, or librarian in a web 2.0 environment? [blog post]. Retrieved from http://on-socialnetworking.blogspot.com/2011/04/librarian-20-or-librarian-in-web-20.html

Hayward-Wright, N. (2011, May 8a). The simplicity and power of RSS [blog post]. Retrieved from http://on-socialnetworking.blogspot.com/2011/05/simplicity-and-power-of-rss.html

Hayward-Wright, N. (2011, May 8b). Digital trends and digital behaviour [blog post]. Retrieved from http://on-socialnetworking.blogspot.com/2011/05/did-you-know-4.html

Hayward-Wright, N. (2011, May 17). A visual framework for social media implementation. [blog post]. Modified 2011, May 24. Retrieved from http://on-socialnetworking.blogspot.com/2011/05/connecting-with-your-clients-social.html

Huang, C., Chan, E. & Hyder, A.A. (2010). Web 2.0 and internet social networking: A new tool for disaster management? – Lessons from Taiwan. BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making, 10(57), doi:10.1186/147269471057

Li, C. & Bernoff, J. (2008). Groundswell. Winning in a world transformed by social technologies. Boston, Mass: Harvard Business.

MacDonald, J., Atkin, W., Daugherity, F., Fox, H., MacGillivray, A., Reeves-Lipscomb, D., & Uthailertaroon, P. (2003). Let’s get more positive about the term ‘lurker’. CPsquare Foundations of Communities of Practice Workshop. Retrieved from CPsquare website: http://cpsquare.org/2003/08/lets-get-more-positive-about-the-term-lurker

Smith, J.D. & Trayner, B. (2005). Weaving together online and face-to-face learning: A design from a communities of practice perspective. In G. Richards (Ed.), Proceedings of World Conference on E-Learning in Corporate, Government, Healthcare, and Higher Education 2005, 1113-1118. Chesapeake, VA: AACE. Retrieved from http://www.editlib.org/p/21337

Steinfield, C., DiMicco, J.M., Ellison, N.B. & Lampe, C. (2009). Bowling online: Social networking and social capital within the organization. Proceedings of the Fourth
International Conference on Communities and Technologies, 245-254. doi:10.1145/1556460.1556496

Turner, T., Qvarfordt, P., Biehl, J.T., Golovchinsky, G., & Back, M. (2010). Exploring the workplace communication ecology. Proceedings of the 28th International Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, 841-850. doi:10.1145/1753326.1753449

Utecht, J. (2008, April 3). Stages of PLN adoption [blog post]. Retrieved 2011, May 7 from: http://www.thethinkingstick.com/stages-of-pln-adoption

Related OLJ blog post

Hayward-Wright, N. (2011, March 19). Online learning journal INF506 – Assessment item 1 [blog post]. Available from: http://on-socialnetworking.blogspot.com/2011/03/online-learning-journal-inf506.html

Social media examples created by author during course

OnSocial Networking Weekly. (changes weekly); Available from: http://paper.li/NickyHW Also available from: http://on-socialnetworking.blogspot.com/p/onsocialnetworking-weekly.html

Gamification. (last updated 2011, May 5). Available from: http://storify.com/nickyhw/gamification

Widgets added to OLJ blog during course (subsequent to initial blog creation)

OnSocialNetworking blog QR code: http://bit.ly/mm2g2T

OnSocialNetworking blog voki: http://bit.ly/kSmVbJ

Social media tools cited in post

paper.li: http://paper.li

Storify: http://storify.com

Yoono: http://www.yoono.com

A visual framework for social media implementation

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Sun, 15 May 2011 01:03:00 +0000

Know your people

source: http://forrester.typepad.com/.a/6a00d8341c50bf53ef0120a932b364970b-pi

Segment and profile your audience

Develop different strategies for each segment

Have a strategy

source: http://forrester.typepad.com/groundswell/2007/12/the-post-method.html

Your strategy provides a framework for conversation, discussion and critical thinking

Your strategy is about people and relationships

Technology is an enabler

Be engaged and dynamic

source: http://www.personalizemedia.com/the-future-of-social-media-entertainment-slides

INVOLVE – live the social web, understand it, lurk, listen

CREATE – create relevant content for communities

DISCUSS – engage in two way conversation

PROMOTE – actively, respectfully, promote the content into the networks

MEASURE – monitor (audience, engagement, loyalty, influence, action)

ITERATE - iteratively develop; it's a continuous cycle

Cohesively tie your efforts together

Source: http://www.rossdawsonblog.com/SocialMediaStrategyFrameworkv2.pdf

Sources

Dawson, R. (n.d.). Social media strategy framework (Beta version 2). Retrieved from http://www.rossdawsonblog.com/SocialMediaStrategyFrameworkv2.pdf

Bernoff, J. (2009, January 19). Social technographics: Conversationalists get onto the ladder [blog post]. Retrieved from http://forrester.typepad.com/groundswell/2010/01/conversationalists-get-onto-the-ladder.html

Bernoff, J. (2007, December 11). The POST Method: A systematic approach to social strategy [blog post]. Retrieved from http://forrester.typepad.com/groundswell/2007/12/the-post-method.html

Hayes, G. (2008, October 26). Future of social media entertainment [blog post]. Retrieved from http://www.personalizemedia.com/the-future-of-social-media-entertainment-slides/

Li, C. & Bernoff, J. (2008). Chapter 3. The social technographics profile In Groundswell. Winning a world transformed by social technologies. Boston, Mass.: Harvard Business Press. Excerpt available from http://www.forrester.com/groundswell/assets/groundswell_excerpt.pdf

Saddington, J. (2010, April 15). Using POST method to craft a social media strategy for ministry [blog post]. Retrieved from http://churchm.ag/using-the-post-method-to-craft-a-social-media-strategy-for-ministry

updated: 2011, May 24

Social media policies and guidelines... a taster

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Sat, 14 May 2011 08:49:00 +0000

When developing a social media policy consulting relevant polices and guidelines is good practice to inform your knowledge. Depending on your organisation and sector, the following resources may be useful.

Social Media Policy
Victorian Department of Justice | 24 March 2011 | Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License | web page

A good example of a well constructed policy as it includes scope, compliance, definitions, related policies, references, status and review process.

Social Media policy includes: overview/ principle, general responsibilities as a public sector employee, compliance, identifying inappropriate use, definitions (social media tools), statement of policy (professional and personal use), guidance for navigating legal issues.

Also includes an excellent 4:20 min YouTube to promote the policy and engage employees.

Social Media Guidelines
NSW Department of Education & Training | 15 March 2011 | 4 page PDF

A concise and well written policy. First page recognises importance of online conversations and the social voice, while promoting responsible engagement in social media activities. There are 12 social media rules of engagement which are listed in a one page summary. A more detailed explanation of each rule is provided over the next two pages.

This Guideline is also supported by a Social Media Policy (28 March 2011) which provides standards of use when engaging in online conversations.

For DET staff additional internal support material is available: “Online Social Media and Technology Guide for staff” and Intranet section on “Communication Planning and Management”.

Social Media Action Plan – Part 1: Policy
Victorian Department of Health | Final Version 1.0, 2010 | Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 2.5 Australia Licence | web page and 14 page PDF

An example of a well constructed policy. The Forward, Introduction and Scope contextually frame the policy and clearly define how and when the policy applies. The next section details the Department’s Social Media Register for Departmental Web 2.0 initiative, including conduct guidelines for social media engagement. The final sections cover social media engagement for business purposes and for personal purposes. Finally roles and responsibilities are clearly identified.

The Policy forms a 3 part series in a social media action plan, which also includes Part 2: Staff toolkit (guidelines and templates for implementing social media) and Part 3: Reference guide (description and tips for usage of major social media platforms and tools)

Social Media - Telstra’s 3 Rs of Social Media Engagement
Telstra | 14 April 2009 (?) | 6 page PDF

Having stated the intent and application of the document, the focus is on the 3 R’s of Telstra’s social media engagement: representation, responsibility and respect, which are framed against social media engagement for business purposes and other uses of social media platforms. The policy also highlights consequences of breach of policy and indicates related policies.

Read what a Telstra employee says about the policy. Also see the excellent supporting Online Training Module for and read associated Telstra news release with embedded YouTube.

Social media guidelines for IFRC staff
Internal Federation of Red Crescent Societies | October 2009 | 8 page PDF

A visually well presented and constructed document, with citation of other documents used in the development of the guideline. The introduction is one page and notably includes a section which highlights “why personal and private are not the same” on the web. The next section details 12 best practices when using social media and is interspersed with examples. The last section covers existing rules and obligations and their application to social media.

Also see IFRC related blog post and another post with comments about why create a guideline and an approach to implementation.

Social Media Policies and Guidelines Meta Lists

Social Media Policies list
Compiled by Social Media Biz (update unverified)
Categories: corporations, news organisaions, nonprofits, government, hospitals and health sector, additional resources.

Policies database
Compiled and updated by Chris Boudreaux, Social Media Governance
Categories: Agencies (advertising, PR, marketing), business products or services, consumer products or services, healthcare, government or non-profit, general guidelines and templates.

Behavioural and etiquette guidelines for organisations
Compiled by Laurel Papworth, 24 April 2009
40 listed resources. Also includes useful flow charts from US Airforce on assessing blog interactions.

Web 2.0 Governance Polices and Best Practice
Compiled and updated by US Federal Web Manager’s Council.
Grouped by public and private sector, and general and specific.

Social Media Policies
Complied and updated by Health Libraries Wiki Canada
Categories: Australia, General policies (Archives, libraries and museums), Health sector and hospitals (Public sector, University resources, State resources, Private sector, Policy tools and best practice), Best Practices Toolkit and References.

Icon used in this post sourced from http://www.davaowebdesign.com

Redefining content authenticity in a connected world

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Sat, 14 May 2011 01:42:00 +0000

Two main attributes are taken into consideration when evaluating the authenticity of information: quality and credibility (1). However, with the availability of vast quantities of user-generated content in multiple formats, these attributes are becoming harder to easily validate. Furthermore, as Web 2.0 encourages a participatory and collaborative environment of information generation, seeking and use, consideration needs to be given to how authenticity is depicted in relation to the traditional method of peer-review (2).

Wikipedia, created through crowdsourcing of third party resources (3), is a primary source for many information seekers (4, 5). While Wikipedia has policies and procedures relating to verifiability of sources and presentation of a neutral point of view (6), there is debate about the quality of Wikipedia content, which ranges from something comparable to an encyclopedia entry, to a veritable mishmash of ideas which can also lack citations (7). Additionally, as Wikipedia allows author anonymity, it is difficult for information seekers to verify the credibility of an entry (8, 9).

Increasingly there is a shift to break down barriers between the traditional arbitrators of quality content (academia, publishers, libraries) and the wider community (10), which in turn “calls into question standard notions of what constitutes authority, [hence authenticity], by emphasizing the benefits of knowledge sharing via social networks” (11).

User generated content from websites, wikis, blogs, micro blogs, multimedia sources (presentations, podcasts and vodcasts) and feedback elements in information sources, such as comments and tags, is being used to inform information seekers for a variety of purposes, including health decision making to educational and research purposes. For example, a personal experience added to a photograph can inform academic research (12), or tweets about scholarly issues may lead to concepts that can be incorporated into the research process (13).

However, information sources located in these participatory online sites tend to be more opinion based (14), therefore the information seeker needs to critically review this dynamic content in order to distinguish between fact and opinion “before incorporating these ideas into his or her own knowledge” (15). Additionally, information seekers must be prepared to create an information context when evaluating resources which integrates multiple formats (16); that is, the information seeker must not only evaluate an online site for credibility, but each entry within that site (17) and the content within the entry.

Two key messages:

The traditional peer-review quality control model of authenticity needs to be reconsidered in light of the participatory culture of Web 2.0.
Critical thinking skills and information literacy need to be combined with other literacy skills (digital, media, visual and technology) in order to encompass the varied user generated content and contexts of Web 2.0.

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Endnotes

O’Grady et al., 2009, para. Content.
Wittenberg, 2007, para. 5.
A pillar of Wikipedea is “No original thought”. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability#Original_research
Garfinkel, 2009, p. 84, paras. 1-2.
Lorenzo, 2007, p. 8, paras. 4-6.
See Wikipedia: Verifiablity http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability Neutral Point of View http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Neutral_point_of_view
Lorenzo, 2007, p. 8, paras. 8-9.
Wittenberg, 2007, para. 7.
CZ:Why Citizendium? Real names are better (last modified 2011, March 12). Retrieved from http://en.citizendium.org/wiki/CZ:Why_Citizendium%3F
Mackey & Jacobson, 2011, p. 73, para. 1.
Ipri, 2010, p. 533, para. 5.
Ipri, 2010, p. 533, para. 7.
Mackey & Jacobson, 2011, p. 73, para. 2.
Mackey & Jacobson, 2011, p. 73, para. 3.
Mackey & Jacobson, 2011, p. 74, para. 1.
Mackey & Jacobson, 2011, p. 69, para 1, p. 70, para. 3f.
O’Grady et al., 2009, para. Content.

References

O’Grady, L., Witterman, H., Bender, J. L., Urowitz, S., Wijer, D., & Jadad, A. R. (2009). Measuring the impact of a moving target: towards a dynamic framework for evaluating collaborative adaptive interactive technologies. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 11(2), e20. doi: 10.2196/jmir.1058

Garfinkel, S. (2008). Wikipedia and the meaning of truth. Technology Review, 111(6), 84-86. Retrieved from Ebsco MasterFILE Premier database.

Ipri, T. (2010). Introducing transliteracy. What does it mean to academic libraries? College & Research Libraries News, 71(10), 532-533, 567. Retrieved from http://crln.acrl.org/content/71/10/532.full

Lorenzo, G. (2007). Catalysts for change: Information fluency, Web 2.0, Library 2.0, and the new education culture. Clarence Center, NY: Lorenzo Associates. Retrieved from http://www.edpath.com/images/IFReport2.pdf

Mackey, T.P. & Jacobson, T.E. (2011). Reframing information literacy as metaliteracy. College & Research Libraries,72(1), 62-78. Retrieved from http://crl.acrl.org/content/72/1/62.full.pdf+html

Wittenberg, K. (2007). Credibility of content and the future of research, learning, and publishing in the digital environment. Journal of Electronic Publishing, 10(1). doi:10.3998/3336451.0010.101

Related blog post

Hayward-Wright, N. (2011, March 19) Preservation of online user generated content [blog post] Available from: http://on-socialnetworking.blogspot.com/2011/03/preservation-of-online-user-generated.html

Privacy and safety in online social networks

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Fri, 13 May 2011 12:01:00 +0000

The literature (1,2) indicates that despite the importance people place on online privacy (3), they continue to disclose personal information that can expose them to possible risks such as: identity theft, malicious online behavior, online stalking and associated offline criminal activity, damage to reputation (4) and loss of job or insurance claims (5).

The main reasons cited include:

Technological confidence in navigating the privacy settings (6) coupled with poor interface design (7), the complex and often undisclosed nature of flows between third party applications (8), and privacy and safety information being hard to find (9).
When users are presented with the relevant information, such as a privacy policy, the majority do not read it (10), which can be partly due to the complexity of the privacy policy (11).
An assumption by members that their social networking site is taking care of their privacy and safety (12).
Lack of social cues in the online environment which assist people to assess the level of trust accorded to individuals they interact with (13).
Lack of understanding of the extent of their online network, including the very tenuous weak ties (14).
Inadequate understanding and ability to assess the long term consequences of publishing certain types of information (15,16).
Lack of individual control over shared content, such as photos, tagging and comments (17,18).
Inability to recongnise false identity (19).

An additional consideration is the nature of Web 2.0, in particular online social networks (OSNs) which encourage conversations and connections. Within this communication ecology people will trade off a certain level of privacy for a perceived benefit (20,21), including feeling part of a group and getting positive feedback (22). For others however, participation in OSNs will be limited until they know their privacy can be managed (23); privacy practices and security of technology (24).

While the literature (25) indicates that many individuals, in particular younger people, are more concerned about protecting and controlling access to personal information which can be used to cause social discomfort (social privacy), than the use of their personal information by social networking site and partner organisations for purposes such as social marketing (institutional privacy), due consideration needs to be given to both areas of privacy vulnerability to improve privacy awareness and limit privacy risks.

Even with individuals taking steps to reduce privacy risks, in particular changing default privacy settings to give a deeper and broader level of security and privacy, OSNs need to be better designed for improved security and safety. The following areas for improvement are indicated in the literature (26):

Improved privacy control to make members aware of what is being shared with whom.
Provision of network visualisation tools that show a member’s complete social network including proximity indicators.
Mechanisms to encourage an individual to adopt better practice, such as displaying common privacy controls.
Applications that scan for fake user profiles.
Enhancement of mechanisms for managing shared content, in particular allowing a finer granularity of control.
A site architecture that preserves privacy during information exchange with third party applications, which would also include assured anonymisation of data.

It is also suggested that OSNs should be treated not only as an information service, but also as data controllers. This change in status would impose additional regulations on OSNs to ensure privacy, security and safety (27).

______________

Endnotes

Williams, 2010, p. 42, para. 7.
O’Murchu et al., 2004, section 3.5.
“Privacy involves keeping information in its intended scope. Such a scope is defined by the size of the audience (breadth), by extent of usage allowed (depth), and duration (lifetime). When information is moved beyond its intended scope (be it accidentally or maliciously), privacy is breached. A breach can occur when information is shared with a party for whom it was not intended (disclosure). It can also happen when information is abused for a different purpose than was intended, or when information is accessed after its intended lifetime.” (Beye et al., 2010, p. 7, para. 2)
James, 2010, p. 1.
Williams, 2010, p. 42, para. 3.2.
OFCOM, 2008, p. 8
Williams, 2010. p. 43, para. 3.2.2.
Williams, 2010, p. 43, paras. 3.3.5-3.3.7
OFCOM, 2008, p. 9.
O’Murchu et al., 2004, section 3.5.
Williams, 2010, p. 44, para. 3.38.
OFCOM, 2008, p. 8.
Williams, 2010, p. 43, para. 3.2.1.
Williams, 2010, p. 43, para. 3.3.1.
OFCOM, 2008, p. 57, para. 3.
Williams, 2010, p. 43f, para. 3.3.4.
Raynes-Golden, section Understanding new privacy concerns, para. 3.
Williams, 2010, p. 44, para. 3.3.10.
O’Murchu et al., 2004, section 3.5, Fakesters.
Raynes-Goldie, 2010, section Social costs and benefit
Williams, 2010, p. 42, para. 3.1.
OFCOM, 2008, p. 37, para. 5.
Wenger, et al., 2009, p. 90, Table 6.7.
Wenger et al., 2009, p. 106, para. 2.
Raynes-Goldie, 2010, section Understanding new privacy concerns
Williams, 2010, pp. 47-48
Beye et al., 2010, para. 3.1.

References

Beye, M., Jeckmans, A., Erkin, Z., Hartel, P., Lagendijk, R., & Tang, Q. (2010). Literature overview - Privacy in online social networks. [Technical Report TR-CTIT-10-36] Centre for Telematics and Information Technology, University of Twente,Enschede. Retrieved from http://eprints.eemcs.utwente.nl/18648/

James, M. L. (2010). Cyber crime 2.0 versus the Twittering classes. [Briefing Note 2009-10]. Australian Parliamentary Library. Retrieved from http://www.aph.gov.au/Library/pubs/bn/sci/Cybercrime.pdf

O’Murchu, I., Breslin, J.G., & Decker, S. (2004). Online social and business networking communities. DERI Technical Report 2004-08-11. Retrieved from http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.99.4055&rep=rep1&type=pdf

OFCOM. (2008). Social networking: A quantitative and qualitative research report into attitudes, behaviours and use. [Research Document]. April 2, 2008. London: Office of Communication. Retrieved from OFCOM website: http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/market-data-research/media-literacy/medlitpub/medlitpubrss/socialnetworking/

Raynes-Goldie, K. (2010). Aliases, creeping, and wall cleaning: Understanding privacy in the age of Facebook. First Monday, 15(1). Retrieved from http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/2775/2432

Wenger, E., White, N. & Smith, J.D. (2009). Digital habitats: stewarding technology for communities. Portland, OR: CPsquare.

Williams, J. (2010). Social networking applications in health care: threats to the privacy and security of health information. Proceedings of ACM/IEEE 32nd International Conference on Software Engineering, 39-49. doi:10.1145/1809085.1809091

Additional references

Australian Government initiative Stay Smart Online http://www.staysmartonline.gov.au/

Australian Government initiative Cybersmart http://www.cybersmart.gov.au/

Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association Cybersafety http://www.amta.org.au/pages/Cybersafety

Gate, G. (2010). Facebook privacy: a bewildering tangle of options [graphic]. The New York Times, 12 May 2010. Available from http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/05/12/business/facebook-privacy.html

Information policy... or is it a guideline or standard?

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Wed, 11 May 2011 05:43:00 +0000

I have found that the meaning and usage of the terms ‘policy’, ‘standard’ and ‘guidelines’ is variable and interchangeable; however Bryson (1) provides the following definitions which give some clarity:

Policy: is a high level statement that guides the decision making process and course of action to be taken. Policies usually are mandatory.
Policy statement: describes the policy and may be supplemented by additional statements covering: policy objective and scope; responsibility for implementation, review and audit; background issues and implementation strategies.
Standard: provides rules about the choice and management of information and its supporting technologies, such as: protocols, data capture and transfer standards; metadata and taxonomy standards; data quality; standards for record keeping; and service levels. Compliance is recommended and often required in the case of legislative standards.
Guideline: is usually practice based and address implementation and operational issues associated with policies and standards. Guidelines are an analysis and synthesis of related policies and standards. Guidelines inform the development of processes and procedures.

The following table provides a summary of the various features that distinguish policy, standard and guideline from each other.

	Policy	Standard	Guideline
Purpose	High level statement guiding decision making process and course of action (1)	Rules about the choice and management of information and its supporting technologies (1)	Practical guide to addressing implementation and operational issues associated with policies and standards (1) Informs development of processes and procedures
Document inclusions	Statement covering purpose, objectives, responsibility, related documents etc. (1)	Statement covering purpose, objectives, responsibility, related documents etc. (1)	Statement covering purpose, audience, scope, background, related documents. Implementation and operational practices.
Level of compliance	Mandatory – high level of compliance required (2)	Compliance recommended or required (2, 4) Can have an associated performance measurement (1, 3)	Optional but recommended (2, 4) Flexibility in interpretation (3, 4)
Lifespan	Relatively long life span; i.e. 5 years (3)	Variable life span due to changes environment, such as legislation (2)	Life span depend on associated policies and standards
Example	QGEA Policy: Information Policy	QG Information Security (IS18)	QGEA Guideline: Information Management Work Plan Guide

An information policy can also be guided by an organisation's information principles, for example Queensland Government Enterprise Architecture & Strategy Unit (QGEA) has produced Information principles, which “are a set of ambitions or values that departments should aspire to when making decisions regarding their information and its overall management” (2). Furthermore, information policy is set within an information framework which “is not only concerned with carefully defined legal rights or restrictions on the circulation and dissemination of information… [and] the provision of a legal and regulatory framework within which information can be stored and disseminated”, but takes into consideration technological changes and issues that impact on the development of an information literate society (6).

References:

Bryson, J. (2007). Managing information services: A transformational approach. Burlington, Vt.: Ashgate. [Adobe Digital Editions], pp. 129-130.
Creeson, C. (2005). Information security policies: Distinct from guidelines and standards. Excerpt from Chapter 2 In Information security policies made easy, Version 10 [online]. Retrieved from http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/feature/Information-security-policies-Distinct-from-guidelines-and-standards
Battista, R., Hodge, M.J., & Vineis, P. (1995). Medicine, practice and guidelines: The uneasy juncture of science and art. Journal of Clinical Epidemilogy, 48(7), 875-880. Retrieved from Science Direct
Hendricks, H.J.M., Bekkering, G.E., van Ettekoven, H., Brandsma, J.W., van der Wees, P.J., & de Bie, R.A. (2000) Development and implementation of national practice guidelines: A prospect for continuous quality improvement in Physiotherapy. Physiotherapy, 86(10), 535-547. Retrieved from Science Direct.
Enterprise Architecture and Strategy Unit. (2009). Information principles. (2009, September, v 1.0.0). Queensland Government Enterprise Architecture Principles. Queensland Government Chief Information Office. Retrieved from http://www.qgcio.qld.gov.au/SiteCollectionDocuments/Architecture%20and%20Standards/QGEA%202.0/Information%20Management/Information%20principles.pdf, p. 4, point 2
Dearnley, J., & Feather, J. (2001). Information policy. The wired world: An introduction to the theory and practice of the information society (pp. 60-93). London: Library Association. [CSU Reserve], p. 85, para. 4

Digital trends and digital behaviour

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Sun, 08 May 2011 02:22:00 +0000

"Did You Know?” (4.0), produced for the Economist's Third Annual Media Convergence Forum in New York City on October 20–21, 2009, focuses on the convergence of technology and how it has changed the media landscape.

Digital trends identified:

digital books
online media (newspapers)
online multimedia (TV, radio, videos)
digital advertising
user generated online content
crowd sourcing (Wikipedia)
online social networks
leveraging of online social networks
mobilising of social networks

These digital trends can have an impact on how an individual behaves as a digital citizen. The following six digital activities and associated behaviours have been identified:

Access to vast quantities of mediated and unmediated information anytime anywhere will require digital literacy.
Ability to quickly upload self created content and multimedia will require awareness of intellectual property and copyright.
Ability to easily reuse and remix digital content will require awareness of intellectual property and copyright.
Leveraging of online networks will require an awareness of privacy, disclosure and online safety.
Technologies such as Twitter, that help to mobilise people into action will require an awareness of acceptable use and online safety.
Personal and work digital environments converging will require an understanding of acceptable use.

The video states: "Convergence is everywhere. It is easier than ever before to reach a large audience, but harder than ever to really connect with it." Technology is only an enabler, people make the connections, therefore people need to take responsibility for the digital behaviour.

The simplicity and power of RSS

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Sat, 07 May 2011 22:37:00 +0000

In a previous post I briefly discussed what RSS was and how simple it is to use. This post will explore how this simplicity can be harnessed for use by libraries and information agencies?

What does RSS do for the content producer and content aggregator?

From the content producers perspective RSS is considered a push technology for the dissemination of information (1). RSS alerts can range from the macro; whole of site, to the micro; discrete site elements such as changes in library opening hours or new library acquisitions (2).

Some content producers allow tailoring of RSS feeds; for example PubMed allows users to create an RSS feed of their search strategy, which is shown in the YouTube below. These tailored search feeds can then be incorporated into a relevant page on a library website.

RSS also allows content syndication or web syndication, which is a form of remixing and republishing of someone else's material onto your websites. For example, The German Central Medical Library provides on their home page, a news feed which is merged from syndicated scientific and medical web based content from across Germany (3). Another example is the creation of RSS lists for journal table of contents (4).

On step further in RSS aggregation is the remixing and mashup of data offered by Yahoo Pipes (5).

It should be noted that the use of external content to create RSS feed requires filtering, evaluation and organisation and therefore appropriate resources (skilled staff and time) are required.

These RSS services (granulation, tailoring, remixing) creates a relationship with the consumer and promotes the continued use of the information service.

What does RSS do for the content consumer

The provision of RSS feed by information services, such as those indicated below allows consumers to keep up to date on 'selective' content. The use of content aggregators, such as Google Readers, further allow users to customise different content streams (6) which can save time and reduce information overload.

RSS feed examples

updates on library services or projects
upcoming library events such as training programs
new acquisitions (can be broken down by format and topic)
featured resources
latest resources catalogued
library blogs
current awareness services
guideline updates
library user notifications (eg: loans date due)
table of contents service
employment
aggregation of external feeds

______________________________________

Endnotes

Hart, 2007, Abstract.
Wusterman, 2004, p. 404, para. 2.
Obst, 2009, p. 35, para. 1.
Napolitan, 2009. p.9, para. 1.
Examples of library pipes are available at http://pipes.yahoo.com/pipes/search?q=library&x=0&y=0
Constantinides, 2008, p. 233, 235.

References

Constantinides, E., & Fountain, S.J. (2008). Web 2.0: conceptual foundations and marketing issues. Journal of Direct, Data and Digital Marketing Practice 9(3), 231–244. doi:10.1057/palgrave.dddmp.4350098.

Hart, L. G. (2007). Library 2.0: RSS feeds dynamic uses for Special Libraries. Retrieved from http://www.sla.org/pdfs/sla2007/hartrssfeeds.pdf

Napolitan, F. (2009). RSS feed applications to libraries: a brief note. Journal of the European Association of Health Libraries, 5(2), 8-9. Retrieved from http://www.eahil.net/journal

Obst, O. (2009). RSS – The Swiss Army knife of the Internet. Journal of the European Association of Health Libraries, 5(1), 33-35. Retrieved from http://www.eahil.net/journal

Wusterman, J. (2004). RSS. The latest feed. Library Hi Tech 22(4), 404-414. doi:10.1108/07378830410570511. Also available from http://www.ucd.ie/wusteman/lht/wusteman-rss.html

Connecting with your clients - social media applications and tools in libraries

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Sat, 07 May 2011 08:18:00 +0000

Andy Burkard (2009) lists four reasons libraries should be on social media:

Social media allows you to communicate in a medium that your clients use.
Social media builds customer relationship, as social tools allow you to gainer feedback (positive and negative) and then respond appropriately.
Social media allows you to market you services in a social way.
Social media allows you to understand your clients better as it “allows conversations with your users, and these conversations often reveal important insights.”

What are the social media tools and applications that enable two way conversations and client engagement?

Social Website
Open source web design programs
Use of social tools on website to encourage interaction, such as
VoiceThread
Social tagging
Commenting and discussing
Like-ometers
Integration of social applications into website, such as
Photo sharing (Flickr)
Podcasts and vodcasts (YouTube)
Use of tools that allow easy sharing of site content, such as
Bookmarking / Add this

Social Networking Site to complement main website
Facebook, MySpace and other social networking sites

Delivery of information and marketing of services
Simple and complex RSS feeds
Library related widgets (e.g. loan due date)
Mobile access to OPAC and other applications
Podcasts
Twitter
Skype, online chat, text message, Twitter used for service contact and virtual reference

Collaboration
Collaboration tools and applications for internal and cross organisation collaboration

Community engagement and building
Online book reading and sharing communities
Crowdsourcing
Exploration of 3D worlds and augmented reality

The above is not merely about putting in technology. For an organisation to embrace the fundamentals of social networking and social media (connecting, contributing, conversing, collaborating) there has to be a shift in the mindset of staff and the organisation towards the use of social tools, which includes:

the development of processes so insights from conversations do not fall on deaf ears;
an appropriate level of staffing to support social technology based services; and
adequate training for staff in the maintenance and use of social tools and applications.

NCSU Libraries Mobile Web

References

Brown, L. (2010, December 21). Social media and library trends 2011 [blog post]. Retrieved from http://socialnetworkinglibrarian.com/2010/12/21/social-media-and-library-trends-for-2011 Also refer to trends list for 2009 and 2010.

Greene, C. (2010, October 26). Social media trends: Applications for higher education professionals [SlideShare]. Retrieved from http://www.slideshare.net/colleengreene/social-media-trends-applications-for-higher-education-professionals

Hayward-Wright. N. (2011, April 25). Website design [blog post]. Retrieved from http://on-socialnetworking.blogspot.com/2011/04/website-design.html

Johnson, L., Smith, R., Willis, H., Levine, A., and Haywood, K., (2011). The 2011 Horizon Report. Austin, Texas: The New Media Consortium. Retrieved from http://wp.nmc.org/horizon2011 Also refer to Horizon Report 2010

Rogers, C.R. (2010) Social media, libraries, and Web 2.0: How American libraries are using new tools for public relations and to attract new users - Third survey, November 2010. Columbia, SC: South Carolina State Library. Retrieved from http://www.statelibrary.sc.gov/docs/pr/201012_pr_social_media_survey.pdf

A brief explanation of RSS

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Sat, 07 May 2011 00:56:00 +0000

What is RSS?

RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication (less commonly Rich Site Summary).

RSS uses a web feed format or protocol, Extreme Mark Up Language (XML). The RSS feed file includes metadata (author, title, tags) about a website, blog, wiki, podcast, etc. as well as full or summarised text, which is then published as a text file.

The RSS text file is picked up by a content reader / aggregator, such as Google Reader and is presented to the content subscriber in an easy to read format, such as what is displayed in the image below.

Many websites, blog and wiki platforms already come with XML in built, so as a site creator, you don't have worry about creating an RSS feed. However, for a more detailed explanation of how RSS feeds work, read An Explanation Of Real Simple Syndication and Creating An Optimized RSS Feed For Your Web Site.

As a content consumer, why use RSS?

Watch the Common Craft YouTube for a plain English and fun explanation of why you, a content consumer, should use RSS to keep up to date with your favourite sites, news and other web content...

Librarian 2.0 or a Librarian in the Web 2.0 environment?

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 08:49:00 +0000

A spin off from Web 2.0, is the label 2.0, which is now used across many sectors such as library, health, gov and education.

While some say 2.0 is hype and a fad, it appears that 2.0 is becoming more mainstream. What is important however, is the shift from 2.0 being technology driven to an understanding that technology is an enabler of the social aspects of 2.0.

Social (people) underpinnings of 2.0

conversation
connection

collaboration

participation

engagement

sharing

networking

transparency
authenticity

distributed

user generated
content co creation

personalisation
user centered

Therefore, library 2.0 is about developing and delivering services and providing clients (and staff) with opportunities to engage with services and staff in a way that embraces the social aspects of 2.0.

The development of online services and technology driven applications which improve service delivery are a critical function of the library; however Juliet Eve in the YouTube Libraries and Library 2.0: Help or Hype? warns that technology is not the solution to all user needs and that non web based services offered by libraries are still important. Additionally, she asserts that many of the underpinnings of 2.0 have traditionally been used by libraries to develop and deliver services.

I would therefore, suggest that many of the competencies of a Librarian 2.0 are qualities already possessed by a good proportion of librarians and information professionals. It should also be remembered that within the library profession there are a variety of library roles which require different skills and competencies; therefore it is important not to expect all librarians to be literate across all forms of technology and computer science skills (such as XHTML, java scripting). Rather there should be an emphasis upon:

proactive and engaged staff who are competent in their field of expertise,continually learning and exploring opportunities, and
organisations providing support to staff to develop and deliver services based on human-centric approach, where service value is two way.

For the above to occur:

staff need to take personal responsibility and accountability, and
organisations need to embrace a culture that supports the social aspects of web 2.0 within the workplace.

John Blyberg, a self professed library geek, in his article Library 2.0 debased, aptly say: "The true pursuit of Library 2.0 involves a thorough recalibration of process, policy, physical spaces, staffing, and technology."

Website design

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 04:34:00 +0000

I’ve been reflecting on the paper that I wrote in 2008, Guidelines for the development of a blog-based current awareness news service. Since then there has been new web 2.0 tools and applications; however the following two quotes from the 2008 article are still relevant today:

Nielson (2005), Attwood (2006), Bustos (2007), and Kroski (2007) indicate that the ‘new web’ design should not throw away traditional web site design principles, but

1. focus more on simplicity of design, which presents a clean and simple interface for users and draws attention to what is important, and

2. provide options for users to connect and interact with each other, and with the site. (p. 414)

No matter what technology platform is used to develop a site, the development process should be based on a combination of evidence-based and ‘new web’ principles (Maness 2006; Cervone 2007; Kroski 2007; Saw 2007):

· Be informed by practice and evidence

· Involve all stakeholders and be communally innovative

· Be nimble when responding to changes in consumer needs

· Evolve by constant revision and adaption

· Try something new or different

· Use imagination. (p. 427)

So when asked to come up with 10 criterion to evaluate a library website, I have found the task nearly impossible. Especially, when you include the set readings on library website design (Matthews 2009), kids website design (Lazaris 2009), online library identity (McBurnie 2007) and web 2.0 architecture (Governor, Hinchcliffe & Nickull, 2009), plus other useful resources, such as Steve Krug’s books on website usability. What I have opted to do is identify key categories used to evaluate a website, which depending on the purpose of the site and intended audience(s) would be tailored.

Navigation

Use of terms and labels that are meaningful to your audience
Provide different pathways for finding information
Simple navigation with 'major' pathways/categories persistent on each page
Provide an easy way to ask for help

Search

Optimised search engine with a search box visible on each page
For libraries – a catalogue search box on front page
For libraries - federated search

Visual design

Visual cues such as images and icons that contribute to the content and meaning
Is written for the web (and intended audience)
Uses relevant website design techniques such as: strong colours to emphasise key concepts, and use of whitespace to provide a clean and open feeling and improve readability.
Is creative

Content

Relevant, current content
Added value content
Engaging content
User generated content

Accessibility

Ensure good speed of multimedia download
Is compliant with web accessibility guidelines and provides accessibility features, such as increase font size and alternative text for pictures.

Participation and engagement

Provide an option to comment (may or may not be moderated) for relevant section
Include a suite of social tools for relevant pages / sections such as re-tweet, bookmark, tagging, rating
Make it easier for the user to subscribe by offering syndication via email and or RSS

On the go

Mobile–friendly pages to ensure compatibility with a variety of screen sizes

Branding

Is appropriately branded for online identity

image source: http://www.nutwork.com.au/web-design-perth/

For more food for thought view the infographic by Kissmetrics on The Evolution of Website design

The A-Z of social networking for librarians remodelled

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 22:31:00 +0000

Based on the The A-Z of Social Networking for Libraries, which didn't quite resonate with me, I've taken some of the alphabet and condensed it to:

Strategy - have a Social Media and Social Networking Strategy to provide direction

Brand - have a Social Media / Networking Brand

Engage - engage with your community; no matter their age or background

Regularity - be active and regular in your social media conversations

Technology - use Open Source platforms (Joomla, Koha), ubiquitous technologies (Mobile), and other emerging tools (widgets)

Formats - provide new and emerging formats (ebook, podcasts)

Tools - push your services through a variety of SN tools (podcasts, blogs, slideshare, Ustream, YouTube, FaceBook, IM, text messaging)

Enthusiasm - staff are involved and engaged with the 'online' community

Content - provide content of value to clients

... I'm not even going to try and make an anagram

Information governance - getting started checklist

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 02:17:00 +0000

On 11 April 2011, I attended a workshop on information governance facilitated by Matt Moore (Innotecture) with support from Keith De La Rue (AcKnowledge Consulting).

Part of the session was run along similar lines to a world cafe. Two main themes discussed were "getting buy-in" and "getting started". Following are the key thoughts from the "getting started" conversations.

Getting started : an information governance checklist

þ Mandate

Ensure that a mandate for information governance is obtained from and endorsed by senior management.

þ Central support team
Create an information management central support team composed of people with a diversity of expertise and skills across information / data / knowledge / change / project management and subject matter knowledge and expertise.

þ Clearly defined responsibilities
Identify and charting responsibilities and ownership of information and information processes based around the RACI model
   R-responsible
   A-accountable
   C-consulted
   I- informed

þ Management, stewardship and curatorialship of information
Consider information management in the light of stewardship and curatorialship.

þ Identify champions
Identify and nurture early adopters, innovators and enthusiasts of good information practices. These are the people who will help embed good information practices across the organisation.

þ Communications strategy
Develop a robust, but flexible communications strategy based around:

audience / stakeholder (message based on segment)
format (vary depending on audience)
timing/phase (dependent on phase of project).

Also consider a communication to have three elements:

argument (the case) which is based on data, e.g. comparative website traffic stats
narratives (the story) which is based on the personal account, e.g. outcome of using quality information
reputation (credibility) achieved by using a champion or someone of credible standing to the audience being presented to.

þ Recognition program

Create a program that recognises the achievements of champions or people doing good practice. Add social tools, such as star ratings, to make it easy to engage a broad range of people with the recognition process. (Note: This program should not to be confused with a monetary rewards program.)

þ Align projects
Not only use a project management methodology for management of projects, but ensure that program management is occurring across the organisation and portfolio management is being undertaken by senior management.

þ Scalability and flexibility
Start small, but ensure your projects and programs are scalable and flexible.

þ The user is at the centre
Projects and programs, processes and practices are designed around the user and are modified according to the audience; remembering that not all users are the same (one size does not fit all).

This checklist is not exhaustive; however considering it emerged from two 15-20 minute discussions, it's pretty good!

engagement and action

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Sat, 26 Mar 2011 07:05:00 +0000

Some organisations have jumped on the Web 2.0 bandwagon without little understanding of the change that is required to move to a participatory environment.

In the emerging social ecosystem, conversations are two way and depending on the context, there is an expectation that the exchange will have an associated outcome or action.

A great example of two-way action orientated engagement is offered by Arizona State University Libraries in the following interactions between @ASULibraries and library users @os1123 and @SuperMo.

Social media used to create a social conversation

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 03:30:00 +0000

Yesterday (19 March 2010) I attended a Social Media (Marketing) Clinic at Hub Melbourne and gleaned a few points on telling your story via social media channels:

craft a story that has emotion
connect people to core values
invite participation
have notable content

The Big Conversation, through their YouTube clips provides a great example of the use of story to bring awareness to the community about a social issue, or capture the community's imagination to become involved.

The aim of The Big Conversation is to "start a broad dialogue, through small group conversations, on values in Australia - what they are currently, what we want them to be, and what we need to do to get there."

Your invitation to have a dialogue

The Big Conversation is happening

online social networking at the dinner table

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 04:21:00 +0000

Reflecting on my previous post about conversations I call to mind table etiquette at our house; shirt on, hats off and no mobile phones. The first two still occur, however no mobile phones is variable, which is indicative of how mobile technologies and online social networking (OSN) are pervading our life.

As I've grown accustomed to text message alerts my tolerance level for interruptions to the dinner conversation has improved. At the same time people are improving in their OSN table etiquette and interestingly, OSN is becoming part of the table conversation.

When I was recently out at a Japanese restaurant I noticed the number of mobile phones on tables (including ours). One conversations at a nearby table included checking out something (possibly a website) on an iphone in response to as a question. At our table I took a photo of the beautifully presented meal and sent to my son, who immediately responded with a request to be flown down to Melbourne to join us for dinner. This response was shared with the rest of the table and triggered quite an interesting and divergent conversation.

I still see antisocial dinner table behaviour; people in their own world listening to their ipod or playing a mobile gaming devise, but I take consolation in the fact that they may be socialising online.

What I still can't get used to is hats on at the diner table!

podcast on the impact of social media in your organisation

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 02:16:00 +0000

Charlene Li interviewed by Richard Wallis
Online Information Conference UK 2009
13 November 2009
Time: 42:30

The Impact of Social Media in your organisation

Reflections on the podcast

True dialogue without control (12:00)
The hard part is having a true dialogue. This means that you need to define the relationship that you (your organisation) has with clients, which also indicates that you need to understand who your clients are (client/market segmentation). What is even harder for most organisations is giving up control!

Social interaction for a purpose (13:20)
Social interactions will vary depending on the sector (and as previously indicated the audience/client/customer/market); however these interactions should be frequent and ongoing in order to enable key drivers for social engagement: sharing of information and knowledge for decision making, and improvement in organisational transparency.

Dialogue to mobilise action (15:00)
Governments are now focusing on encouraging dialogue to engage to constituents to take action, for example data.gov collaboration (24:30)

It’s not about giving up control (16:00)
Those in the field of academia who are questioning a demise in their authority haven’t grasped the notion that these tools aren’t about breaking down authority, but about having to teach and lead in a different way.

It’s also about a cultural change (18:00)
Change in technology facilitates sharing at scale, which brings about a cultural change which may be difficult to translate into the work environment where a particular culture already exists.
You need to understand and anticipate how internal change will occur through social media (and example is the changing role of market research (35:00) - what type of research, what qualifies as quality data; i.e. twitter responses? )

On sharing (20:00)
Sharing is happening in parallel with and driven by social networking

Orchestrated openness (21:00)
While tools such as Twitter speed up collaboration, people cooperating to produce solutions should be supported through orchestrated openness (rules, guidelines, etc.) as decision making and information sharing openness (metadata, standards, etc.) are not tool driven.

Social media as an enabler for change (26:00)
An example is the change in conference presentations by twittering. Twitter feedback allows presenter to better understand what interests audience, how they are interpreting speeches, allows adjustment by presenter (before and also for next presentation).

Three top tips (31: 20)
1. Know your audience to spark the right conversation >> where are they, what are they doing, how social are they, are they talking about same thing
2. Define your strategy >> learn, diagloue, innovate
3. Understand and anticipate how internal change will occur through social media

A new media business model (37:00)
The media business model is being challenged and is threatening the established craft; though there is opportunity to develop an respond to the new emerging journalism. A key is to understand the new business model which has shifted from a content business to an audience business.

An expectation of availability (40:00)
Social technology will become more and more pervasive and if these technologies are not where people are, people will question why, as there is an expectation of availability no matter the location.

a social media conversation

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 00:09:00 +0000

Social media fueling our conversations...

source: http://www.pamorama.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/artoflistening.jpg

What's next....

courtesy of http://www.savagechickens.com

Online Learning Journal INF506 - Assessment item 1

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 08:32:00 +0000

(a) What is social networking

Social networking is the interaction that occurs between a group or groups of people (social networks) who are connected through a shared purpose, ideas, interests or common activity.

With the ever improving information communication and technology landscape, in particular the emergence of online social networking services and social software tools (social media tools and collaborative software), social networking is occurring globally as well as locally, with online engagement being driven from the grass roots level.

This divergence from a traditional top down, controlled approach to technology, information and stakeholder engagement has slowly but pervasively triggered a (2.0) revolution in stakeholder-centric online engagement across enterprise, education, health, government and not-for-profit.

Online social networking is therefore emerging as not only a way to create, build and sustain an online presence within one or many online user-generated communities, but also as a means of providing formal and informal opportunities for two way engagement, collaboration and knowledge sharing by mobilising social capital.

(b) List what social networking technologies and sites you already use

I have used various social networking tools for both business and personal use.

Below I've listed the applications I currently use

Blogging: blogger

Wikis: zoho, wikimedia

Microblogging: Twitter, Yammer

Photosharing: FlickR, Picasa

Slidesharing: SlideSharing

Social bookmarking: del.cious, connotea, diigio

Social networks: Facebook, Plaxo

Business networks: LinkedIn, Yahoo Groups, Meetup, Yammer

I have experimented with or used other applications; for example, blogging platforms Word Press and EduBlog and Curls social bookmarking. I have also implemented and used various socialising widgets such as ratings, comments and discuss, geo-tagging, presence maps.

I hate to think what my 'lost' digital footprint is!

(c) Describe what you expect to learn from completing INF506

I am interested in exploring social networking and web 2.0 from the perspective of an enterprise (or community). I wish to better understand the communication ecology that has occurred because of the new and emerging social technologies, how these technologies can be utilized as business (or community) enablers and what individual, group or enterprise changes need to occur.

As a sideline to the above I would expect to learn about the opportunities (e.g. SNS and tools for disaster management) and issues (e.g. online identity rights, user-generated content ownership) associated with online social networking.

getting real on twitter for real offline engagement

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 08:32:00 +0000

Amanda Palmer (punk rocker) has a handle on how to use social media tools to engage and interact. In an interview on ABC Art Nation, Amanda talks about how Twitter revolutionised her online and offline engagement. While she has a blog, Facebook page, and website, the short, quick messaging offered by Twitter meant that she was able to instantly and virally let fans know where she was going to perform without the cost of major marketing. Additionally, Palmer indicates that authentic engagement is about speaking (tweeting) in your real voice rather than a 'branded voice'.

This new form of viral 'real' fan engagement is further discussed by Kevin Kelly in his post The stars of a 1,000 true fans; however he cautions about the longterm profitability associated with this type of marketing. On the flip side, Palmer says that without Twitter her life would be more predictable, more organised, but... not as much fun, nor as spontaneous.

An anthropological view of technology

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 07:44:00 +0000

Kevin Kelly's post Ethnic Technology, highlights the anthropological aspects of adoption, adaption and use of technologies; that is the interplay of the meaning that an individual and a community draw from technology interactions, the communities choice of technologies and an individual's personal technological preferences.

Kelly's view is helpful in analysing various aspects of online social networking and social media as it focuses on the behavioural and social aspects of interaction with a technology, rather than the technology itself. Kelly's view also sits well with the knowledge management perspective of technology as an enabler rather than the driver.

Mike Milley's comment on Kelly's post further highlights the behavioural aspects (social life) of social networking through "viral peer-to-peer encouragement" to assist with take up of social networking services and other technologies, especially when there is "adoption fatigue" of new products and user interfaces.

source: http://www.kk.org/thetechnium/clip_178_web.jpg

Preservation of online user generated content

noreply@blogger.com (Nicky Hayward-Wright) — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 05:14:00 +0000

An interesting point raised by Marcus Bank in Blog Posts and Tweets: the next frontier for grey literature is that that user-generated content created in web 2.0 applications such as blogs and microblogs are now a critical source of professional information (p. 220, para. 3) and as this form of realtime communication (as opposed to tradtional print publications which are often out of date once published) is increasing, there needs to be consideration around preserving web 2.0 content (p. 220, para. 5).

While there are proponents of preservtion (global and personal) of internet content, questions raised when Library of Congress acquired Twitter archives are worth considering as part of the preservation debate: (a) the quality and value of conent; (b) ownership and copyright; and (c) privacy.

Reference: Bank, M. (2010). Blog posts and tweets: the next frontier for grey literature In D. Farace & J. Schöpfel (Eds.) Grey literature in library and information studies, pp. 227-238. [Adobe Digital Electronic versions]. doi: 10.1515/9783598441493. Available from: http://www.alia.eblib.com.au/