[Publib] RE: Library blog

Sat Jan 7 17:32:05 EST 2006

I think I have commented too many times on this list about library blogs but here is my 2 cents again.

I think that library blogs can be very useful.  I have a very simple bog using a company that has made the whole process simple and gives great help with anything.  For a number of reasons we were having a hard time setting up a decent website so, when reading about blogs, I thought I would see if it was something I could do and have it not be too time consuming to learn how to do it.  It was!

One nice thing is the automatic RSS.  I think that it is because of this that there were over 20,000 hits on our blog last month.

I plan on putting a website, kind of behind the blog, up when the state library is ready to let us tie in to their new set up for making it easy for all of our libraries to set up a website using plone, their server, etc.  

I use our blog as a running list of events in libraries around the county.  I post our Board minutes, budget information, and other pieces from libraries as well.  As soon as I build up my nerve, in the very near future, I am also going to use the blog for podcasting.

This does not reach everyone in the community but it is amazing how many do use it.  Despite the heavy use there have been very few comments.  I have only deleted one comment, not because of language or anything like that but because it had absolutely nothing to do with libraries, library materials, interests in libraries of any kind.

I have set up a separate library blog for a small community library and use it as a way to send out community information, not just library events or comments.  It has also been very well used.  Again, the blog has had very few comments and none that were a problem.

I can do more to illustrate blog postings and change the design then I have but that all takes more time than I have to put into it.  I have started adding some book jacket illustrations for book group and author events.  

The biggest drawback is the time it takes to post to the blog but the major time is one or two days a month.  For the smaller blog it really does not take more than an hour or hour and a half a month.  The other takes considerably more time but is for 6 libraries and our office.  I was not sure if it would be worth it at first but now I think it is an excellent communication tool.  And, I think use of blogs is only growing as more and more people learn how to use them to keep up to date with things that interest them.

Believe me, I do not have the skills that someone like Karen has in this area but even I was able to set this up with very little trouble.  And who cares if it is a great blog.  It is being read and that is what we want.

http://lcld.library-blogs.net
http://siletz.library-blogs.net

Oh, I should add one more thing.  Whenever I stumble across some place that people might look to find out about our area, our libraries, etc. and they list local sites I request that they add ours.  I think this helps spread the word.

--
Diedre Conkling

  Lincoln County Library District
  P.O. Box 2027, Newport, OR  97365
  Phone & Fax:  541-265-3066
  http://lcld.library-blogs.net/
  Work:  diedre at beachbooks.org
  Home:  diedrec at charter.net

---- Chantal Walvoord <chantalw at plano.gov> wrote: 

=============
Hi all,

Thank you, Meghan for the information about Topeka and Shawnees County's Public Library blog, Papercuts. Just wondering how many other libraries have library blogs. 

Is there one person or several who update it? Do you ever have a problem with belligerent posts? I didn't see any of that on Papercuts. 

Does the blog take the place of the library's newsletter? It seems like it could since there's a way to subscribe to the blog and receive updates about programming and other topics.

I appreciate your help,
Chantal Walvoord
ChantalW at plano.gov 

-----Original Message-----
From: Fiction_L at maillist.webrary.org [mailto:Fiction_L at maillist.webrary.org] On Behalf Of Meghan Fryett
Sent: Wednesday, January 04, 2006 10:53 AM
To: Fiction_L
Subject: Library blog

Hello FictionLers-

I would like to announce my library's new blog: PaperCuts: Cutting Edge Library News, Reviews and Events.
http://papercuts.tscpl.org/ 

We've been working very hard on it, trying to make it a valuable resource for our patrons as well as readers worldwide. Please check it out, subscribe, leave comments and let us know how we can improve it!

Meghan Fryett
Adult Services Paraprofessional
Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library
www.tscpl.org 

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