Blogs & Wikis, what's the difference?

An intoduction to two important Library 2.0 applications

What is a blog?

A blog (a fusion of web log) is a website where entries are commonly displayed in reverse chronological order. "Blog" can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog.

Weblogs...or just blogs (blahgs)

Weblogs are: Often described as online diariesAre personalAre chronologicalAre current; posts are usually about what has just happenedGreat forums to offer readers the ability to respond because there is always a link for comments.Usually focused on a subject.Disseminate and archive information. The new listserv?Library Revolution

Some examples of Great Blogs for Library Staff

Walking Paper is Aaron Schmidt's Blog. Aaron is the Library Director for North Plains Public Library in Oregon. The subject is technology in libraries. Wired Magazine This blog gives the reader a heads up on the technology. The subject is technology & gadgets. What I Learned Today is presented by Nicole C. Engard and covers blogs, rss, wikis and more as they relate to libraries.

Tame the Web is presented by Michael Stephens, a librarian, technology trainer and writer living in Northern Indiana. He covers technology and libraries.

Librarian in Black by Sara Houghton Jan covers librarianship, technology, and webmastery. Sara describes herself as 100% goth on the inside and most of the time wears black on the outside.

An example of a bad blog

SuffolkSlo

This did not work as a blog because it turned into a collaborative effort. The result? SuffolkSlo became a wiki.

Blogging software choices

Blogging software falls into two basic categories, hosted and non-hosted:

Hosted blogging software is the simplest as the software resides on the blog hosting software provider. You access the blogging software over the Internet. Popular hosted choices include the free Blogger.com and WordPress.com, and inexpensive Typepad.com and Radio UserLand. Hosted solutions tend to be less flexible than non-hosted solutions.

Blogging Software Choices (con't)

Nonhosted blogging software is software you download and install on a Web server. Popular nonhosted blogging software include free WordPress.org, Expression Engine which has free and paid versions, and Movable Type. It is more complicated as you need to install and set it up, but it tends to be much more flexible.

From "Blogging for Business"

Blog Software Comparison Chart

How Libraries Use Blogs to Communicate with Their PatronsOld Bridge Public Library Weblog

A regularly updated listing of news and events for patrons at the Old Bridge, NJ Public Library.

Notice the chronological organization and the ease of editing.Ancestor Research Log

News and Information of Interest to Local Genealogists

Genealogical information that can be easily and quickly updated without adding work to the webmaster's generally heavy load.

How Libraries Use Blogs to Communicate with Their Patrons (con't)

Southlake Public Library

Library news, events, links, and book reviews

John Jermain Memorial Library

Library news by department

Ann Arbor District Library

Entire web page is a series of blogs

What is a wiki?

A wiki is software that allows users to create, edit, and link web pages easily.

Wikis are often used to create collaborative websites and to power

community websites.From Wikipedia

Wikis, what's it all about

ABOUT

Collective intelligence -some of our best ideas come from brainstorming

Sharing ideas with ease -more comfortable

Trust -can become less intimidating to share

Old School

Cramped & Bored?Sharing equally?

Pros & Cons

PROSTrustNot staticCollaboration Easy, especially with new

WYSIWYG editors(what you see is what you get)

CONSTrust, you give up alot of control.Permanence, wikis can come and go.Vandalism

Some examples of Wikis for Librarians

Library Success This wiki was created to be a one-stop shop for great ideas and information for all types of librarians. ra2point0 is a discussion wiki on the subject of providing traditional reader's advisory services using Web 2.0 and social software tools. suffolklibraries a wiki set up to show Suffolk libraries web 2.0 in action.

Wikis for Librarians Con't

Language Learning Software

This is our online space where we can discuss alternative language learning software to replace Rosetta Stone.

Check out the cool widget!

Library wikis for patrons

Research Guides from Norwich University's Kreitzberg Library

Subject guide for students behind a firewall

BookLoversWiki

Princeton Public Library's summer reading club for adults.

The Big V

Vandalism is a problem.See Wikipedia's Most Vandalized Pages Spam as vandalism -If spam and/or vandalism occurtoo often steps may be taken to curb this before the fact.

The Solution

Monitor-Since wikis are collaborative,the entire community canmonitor and correct badbehavior (and spelling).

PasswordsWikis can remain private.Wikis can live behind the firewallHost blocking

Choosing Wiki Software

A great place to start is WikiMatrix

WikiMatrix guides you through the process of selecting software based on your needs and preferences.

creative commons http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/deed.en

How to keep track of all those blogs and wikis?

Bloglines

Google Reader PbWiki helps you keep track of all the wikis that you create and collaborate in PbWiki with "my PbWiki" page.

Blogs & Wikis

BlogsPerfect for disseminating

information

Give an individual a voice

Respond to events

WikisPerfect for collaborating

on projects

Allow individuals thechance to share their

ideas within a group settingWikis Create

http://docs.google.com/Presentation?docid=dgvfwtn6_5hkptdjfp&hl=en