Task Force on Social Networking Software

Last year many MLA members learned the basics of social networking software by participating in the course “Web 2.0 101: Introduction to Second Generation Web Tools”.  Now it’s time to take a closer look.  The Social Networking Software Task force invites MLA members to participate in the free course, Dig Deeper with Social Media: short courses on emerging online tools.  In this course members can pick and choose the topics of interest to them, as each short course will be offered a la carte.

MLA member feedback told us what topics were of greatest interest to the membership. Each short course is designed to take a more advanced look into a topic and may require a greater comfort level with Web 2.0 technology.  Graduates from last years course and intermediate computer users will feel right at home with the new material.

The schedule will be as follows:

January 19th - 25th
Media Sharing
2 CE Credits

February 16th - 22nd
Web Collaboration Tools ( Registration required by Feb 9th)
2 CE Credits

March 9th - 15th
Wikis
2 CE Credits

April 20th -26th
Blogs
2 CE Credits

No registration is required except for the Web Collaboration Tools course, which involves group work. To participate in a short course and earn CE credit, simply complete the course work and submit your progress. All course work, important dates, and links to support can be found at the course Website http://sns.mlanet.org/snsce_advanced/. On the course site you can also join the course mailing list and we will send you email reminders for upcoming short courses, deadlines, and other helpful information. CE credits will be awarded to 2009 MLA members only. Institutional members may only have one person complete each short course for CE credit.

Disclaimer
Access to a computer with Internet on an unrestricted network is required to fully participate in the course. If you work within a restricted network, check with your workplace network administrator concerning access issues to the Web 2.0 tools utilized in the course.  Participants who work on restricted networks will need to access websites from computers outside of these networks to participate fully in the course.

If you have an questions please contact Bart Ragon at bart@virginia.edu.

Roz Dudden from the Tucker Medical Library contacted me to let me know that she has replicated the Web 2.0 101: Introduction to Second Generation Web Tools for her library.  Very cool.  We are leaving the course site online for the time being.  Much like original Learning 2.0 course we encourage anyone to use the content, customize it, or modify it for your library.

I left out the link to the site. Added 06.27.2008 and Roz added in comments below.
http://tuckerlibrary.wordpress.com/

Bart

Can’t get to the MLA Annual meeting this year but still want the dish? David Rothman has put together an RSS feed of the official conference bloggers, so you can get your scoop without leaving the desk.

Now head on over to his blog and give him a pat on the back, and check out the list of official conference bloggers as well.

PS: Want to make a fancy RSS feed too? Check out the Yahoo Pipes application & aggregate, manipulate, and mashup content of your own from around the web.

A search for “Web 2.0″ on the MLA’s online program planner yields 107 results. Which means chances are good: if you throw a rock at the conference, it’s bound to hit some type of new media. So here’s the deal: to make things easier for you, I’ve tried to organize & filter these results by the topics we covered in our recently concluded Web 2.0 101: Introduction to Second Generation Web Tools CE. Just click the link below to view.

Incidentally, the SNSTF is having an Open Forum on Tuesday, May 20th from 3:30-4:30 (Regency Ballroom B) to discuss what we’ve done so far. Please attend & join in the discussion!

(Of course, if I’ve left out a ‘must see’, let us know in the comments.)

(Read on …)

It’s time to put those social networking software skills to use!

If you’re going to MLA’s 2008 annual meeting in Chicago in May, and you have a blog, consider applying for one of 15 “Official MLA Conference Blogger” spots. If selected, you’ll get free wireless access at the conference hotel and the opportunity to share your insights and experiences at the conference, officially, with the MLA community.

Deadline for application is May 1st, according to this MLA Conference Blog post about it.

Link to entry form

This is a post to follow up on a comment from December 17th while I was out of town.   I’m creating a new post for those readers who do not subscribe to the comments via RSS. Thanks Lisa in Australia for letting us know!

The survey similar to one administered by the Social Networking Task Force in the fall.  As in the TF survey, I see results I expect as well as some that are surprising.

Check out the  results from down under.

Bart

Currently AHIP applicants can earn up to 20 AHIP points per year (http://www.mlanet.org/academy/pointindex.html) for editing a Section, Chapter, Regional or State newsletter.   A number of MLA groups are exploring the use of blogs and wikis, and considering using them instead of newsletters.  Web 2.0 technologies can be helpful with issues regarding communication and workflow that come up in Section, Chapter, State or Regional professional development activities where members are geographically dispersed.

 

Should AHIP benefits be extended to applicants that maintain blogs or wikis for these same groups?  I think they should, as all that is changing is the method for communicating the information.  What feedback could we provide to the MLA Credentialing Committee to help them consider making this change?  I’m working on a statement to the Credentialing Committee and I’d like to hear thoughts from others about why AHIP points should, or should not, be awarded to people that maintain blogs, wikis or other 2.0 technology for professional development.