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Northwest Interlibrary Loan and
Resource Sharing ConferenceCommunication in the ILL Community
Joe Anderson, WJ Content Manager
September 20, 2007
What is WebJunction?
• A highly successful online community for library staff– ~30,000 members– 70,000+ unique visitors per month– 13 state library subscribers…and more on the way
• Roots in the public library community• Expanding reach into academic library community• Launched 2003• Initial funding: Gates Foundation• Parent organization: OCLC
Some areas of focus
• Public access computing• E-learning• Virtual interest groups (Communities of
Practice)• Partnerships with library organizations
– State libraries– Grant-funded organizations– More on the way
ResourcesPatron services
Management
Technology
Weekly tips
Combines 4 previous WJ sections
CoursesCourse Catalog and Clearinghouse
E-Learning Institute Resources for library trainers and
administrators implementing e-learning.
Live SpaceWJ’s web conferencing solution
CommunityForums
Features
Volunteer activities
Access to WJ services
• Most services are freely accessible
• Free registration required for posting to discussions and taking courses
• Courses are free to members in partner states
• Some projects are limited to particular groups
Course Catalog
• Over 250 courses • Course providers including MindLeaders,
University of North Texas, OCLC Western/OCLC CAPCON, WebJunction
• Wide variety of topics• Continuing to add courses • Access to courses is available one year from
purchase• Typical course price = $25 - $50• Bulk purchase discounts available
WJ E-Learning Institute:Publications
– Trends in E-Learning for Library Staff
– Blended Learning Guide
WebJunction Communities of Practice
• Online groups of practitioners in particular library disciplines
• A growing suite of available tools for building community
• A cohort of community builders sharing best practices
• Visibility within the WebJunction site
Community of Practice features
Rich content
RSS
Threaded discussions
Courses
Community connectionsPeople
Virtual meetings
Face-to-face meetings
Other tools available
• Blogs
• Wikis
• Web conferencing tools
• Bulk email tools
• Listservs
• Calendaring
“WebJunction 2.0”
• New funding from the Gates Foundation to improve the flexibility, functionality and ease of use of the site
WJ 2.0 Highlights
• Emphasis on:– user-contributed content– social communication tools
• Built on open-source platform designed for community-generated extensions
• Based on knowhow from four+ years of operation as an online community
WJ 2.0 Highlights
• Currently defining product offerings, pricing, support
• Currently evaluating potential beta participants
• Beta spring ‘08, launch summer ’08
• Long-term plans to broaden our reach
Questions about WJ?
What we’ve learned about building online communities
It’s about people, not tools
• Start with strong program managers
• Recruit early adopters to help
• Provide incentives and programs for followers
• Reach out to latecomers
• Not everyone will get on board
Balancing content, community, and learning
• Web 2.0 tools help you:– Build a shared professional knowledge base
• Searching and browsing are very efficient
– Build professional connections• Peer to peer• Mentoring and getting help
– Build skills• Career development• Organizational development
Manage each tool appropriately
• Each medium has its own techniques– File sharing– Wikis– Blogs– Discussions– Mailing lists– Social interaction tools
Integrate the in-person element
• Nothing beats face time
• Face time takes time
• Use online tools to extend,enhance, deepen F2Finteraction
• WJ Blended Learning Guidetells all
Use the tools to get Real Stuff done
• Don’t underestimate the power of connection…
• …but everyone’s busy!
• Focus on projects that address real problems