Sydney 12 October 2006

From Tom Goodfellow.

There were around 30 librarians crammed into a small room to hear from Stephen Abram, star of the biblioblogosphere and possessor of a highly impressive CV. The seminar covered a vast amount of ground – rather too much for our 3-hour timeslot, to be honest. I’ll try and cover the main points here, and Stephen promised the PowerPoint would be posted on his blog in a couple of weeks.

(Apologies for length – we covered a lot of ground!)

Google is Our Main Competitor

Most people are unaware of Google’s shortcomings, despite the fact that they define themselves as internet literate. 98% of users cannot identify ads on Google and 95% think Sponsored Links lead to better quality sites. Search Engine Optimisation techniques and sponsored links skew results. Most importantly, Google’s interests are purely driven by advertisers, not by end users – don’t trust them!

Librarians need to combat Google by:

1) Contextualising queries/improving the question i.e. ref interviews but also improving are current interfaces (especially the OPAC)
2) Concentrating on what we are good at – complex how/why questions
3) Advocating for the importance of libraries in as many places as possible

Our Patrons are Changing

Millennials are smarter and more demanding than previous generations. They have grown up with technology, and are completely comfortable with multi-tasking and problem mapping. They have high self-esteem and high expectations of our service. They expect instant information and are “format agnostic” – they don’t care whether their information comes from, and they only evaluate sources once the information has been located. They are less concerned about privacy than other generations.

Stephen has produced a fascinating piece of research on the 9 key characteristics of Millennials here.

Technology is Changing

The infrastructure is now ready for an explosion in internet activity. Storage and distribution costs are in a state of rapid perpetual decline (Toronto now has free wi-fi broadband access for everybody). eBooks will expand rapidly. The phone will be the medium of choice for most users.

Challenges for libraries include;
- providing format-friendly content
- organising objects such a podcasts, IM chats, phone conversations, YouTube clips

10 Key Questions

1) How do we address localisation of search?

Google/Yahoo/MSN can now detect our location by GIS tracking, providing services at a highly local level. MSN “Near me” function can locate the nearest Starbucks and direct you there with great precision. Kansas City now has an entirely localised Google service. Could Google impose a search interface on, say, a uni campus in order to optimise ad revenue?

2) How will libraries address scholarly searches?

Google could charge low prices for articles on Google Scholar in the iTunes model. Average cost of an ILL ($7) is higher than the average cost on the same used books on Amazon ($4)

3) How will we interoperate with blended learning initiatives?

Libraries need to enter learning at the lesson level, in the classroom, within WebCT/Blackboard modules, on FaceBook and YouTube. We must also ensure course designers are aware of the content and services that the institutional library offers.

4) How will libraries evolve to include next generation communications devices?

This was tackled as essentially a staffing issue – dedicated, tech-literate staff rather than covering, say, virtual reference as an add-on to other roles. We also need format-agnostic software – eBooks are set to explode.

5) When will libraries address the changes inherent in Millennials and post-Millennials?

See above. If you’re interested in this, you may also wish to check out this model (note powerpoint presentation).
6) When will libraries focus more on users and less on themselves?

On every project, ask “Whose pain is being assuaged?” Good user-centred initiatives include RSS, blogs, federated search, patron driven services, Amazon-like interactivity, virtual reference and OpenURL.

7) When will governance be properly addressed

I didn’t quite follow this one – we were all getting tired by now and time was running out. Stephen talked about relationships within an organisation (key links with HR, IT and then Web Team) and then the use of information-sharing tools such as wikis, del.icio.us, Fast, Meebo etc.

Where will we find the risk-takers?

Keep an eye out for what other libraries are doing online. Harvard and Yale are hooking up with YouTube, UT Austin has put it’s catalogue in MySpace and FaceBook, Eastern University is creating a library site that acts as a video game, Second Life now has a fully functioning library etc.

9) What are the benefits of Library 2.0?

Users can go where they like and do what they like, we need to be wherever they are offering services like ChaCha.com. We need to invest in productivity tolls such as RFID in order to free up staff time to deliver more effective services. Look at the Library 2.0 Matrix.

10) Where will we find the vision?

Librarian 2.0 plays with technology and thinks up uses for it. Libraries need to give all staff time to play, learn, discover and innovate.

Conclusion

The talk was interesting and I left with my brain in a bit of a whirl. I’m sure that a lot of these ideas will soon be mainstream in the internet as a whole, but the challenge will be to integrate them into current library services whilst retaining our core values.

There also seems to be a tension between excitement at the new technologies (“That’s cool!”) and fear of them (“Google are so powerful, they’ll kill libraries!”). Whatever happens, there are interesting times ahead…

(By the way, Stephen mentioned he hoped to visit Australia again next year and take in Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth – keep an eye out.)