1. Key Issues and Applications of Social Networking Technologies in Libraries Meredith Farkas September 12, 2007

2. What is social software? My definition: To be defined as social software, a tool must meet at least two of the following conditions: 1. It allows people to communicate, collaborate and build community online 2. It can be syndicated, shared, reused or remixed, or it facilitates syndication 3. It allows people to easily learn from and capitalize on the behavior or knowledge of others

3. Examples Blogs RSS Wikis Social networking sites (MySpace/Facebook, etc.) Social bookmarking sites Other online communities Instant messaging/VoIP/Webconfere ncing Podcasting Video blogging/screencasting Multi-user virtual environments and games

4. What can social software do for the library internally?

5. Share timely information

6. Capitalize on the collective intelligence of your colleagues

8. What can social software do for our patrons?

9. Disseminate Information

13. Highlight Collections

15. Get Feedback! Start a Conversation!

18. Build Community

20. Provide Services to Remote Users

21. Making Learning Engaging

23. Provide Services Where our Users Are

28. Capitalize on the Collective Intelligence of our Users

33. Issues in Implementing Social Software

34. Avoid technolust

35. Will it improve library services?

36. Involve staff at all levels in planning

37. Encourage staff to play (kick the tires!)

38. Consider barriers to use and break them down

40. Seek out strategic partnerships

41. Consider maintenance and sustainability

42. Must be able to integrate into staff workflow

43. Training for staff and patrons

44. In marketing focus on the functionality

45. Be willing to experiment

46. Start small and keep it simple

47. Questions? Just Ask! mgfarkas@gmail.com AIM: librarianmer