Conference Bloggers

Thursday, February 08, 2007

Information Online 2007 Day One


Tuesday 30th January observations and highlights.

Opening address:

Gary Nairn, MP. Special Minister of State.

Interested to see libraries making things happen! Reflected on Australians communicating through blogs and websites that offer interaction and participation.

He highlighted the e-government strategy via this portal which is the gateway to all Federal government websites. He predicted that the current figure of 13% of people dealing with the government online will increase in the near future.


Opening Keynote Address

Presented by Ross Ackland, Director of the Australian office of the W3C and CSIRO ICT Centre. He spoke on where the Web is heading, which is challenging and possibly daunting!

He noted that within a single year we capture more information than has been captured in the history of mankind!

The W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) long term goals are:

Web for everyone: regardless of geographic location.

Web on everything: phones, pdas, another way of delivering the information….the mobile web.

A Knowledge base: including the Semantic Web where the meaning of information is understood by machines, making searching more successful. A lot of groundwork is going on working with XML, ontologies etc.

Trust and confidence: collaboration, security, confidence and confidentiality.

He talked about the Sensor Web and its role in the home, using devices for sprinkler systems, security and surveillance, personal monitoring (aged).

Ross also spoke on the water crisis and the role the Internet has to play.

70% of our water is used by irrigators so water metering, particularly in the agricultural environment will be necessary to protect this valuable asset, and he predicted that one day wars may be fought over water!

The Bureau of Meteorology will be expanding to provide data and statistics to ensure accurate forecasting. Currently lots of disparate information collected by over 100 agencies.

The Burdekin catchment area’s information on salt water intrusion is fed through a wireless network directly to the local water board for monitoring.

Checking dam levels throughout Australia can now be done via:

http://wron.net.au/

Using tools like Google Maps and special widgets to highlight a single resource.

http://wron.net.au/DemosII/DamData/DamMap.aspx

He predicted that the mobile will become equal to the desktop and Web 2.0 will see traditional library websites make way for web applications that anyone can build!

Seek and ye shall find sessions:

Another view on Meta searching Dennis Warren, Latrobe University.

Libxplore

Latrobe’s metasearch. This subject gateway searches up to 10 electronic resources simultaneously and links to full text articles including transcripts from TV programs like 60 Minutes, The 7.30 Report and the Movie Show.

LibXplore is available through La Trobe University Library's participation in the AARLIN consortium.

Intranets as business tools: James Robertson, Step Two Designs.

An entertaining presentation highlighting the need for Intranets to be a core part of any business. He went through the evolution of the intranet and the common problems associated with keeping the Intranet fresh and vital. Highlighting:

Useability testing focusing on understanding the needs of staff using consultation, using workplace interviews, one on one interviews, workplace observations.

He predicted that the Intranet will prosper when it is relevant to people’s day to day work.

Obstacles include:

Dealing with content creators.

Promotion of the Intranet.

Freshness and regular redesign, he suggested use of the Version system which prevents the ‘standing still’ scenario, always working toward the new version.

Afternoon Keynote Address:

The Changing face of service by Dr David Lankes, Information Institute of Syracuse.


Our websites are our newest branches. Most users see our systems not necessarily us!

Knowledge is created through conversation! Libraries are in the knowledge business!

Our purpose is to be guides, stewards, facilitators and promote constant innovation.

He suggested ‘Catalogues stink’! when you make comparisions to Amazon and others. Places where you can use tagging allowing comments and reviews.

We need to LEAD the information industry, be nimble agile organizations, get in on the grassroots level of creating content. Change, Innovate and to gain respect we need to Participate and not be just keepers of artifacts.

Christine was invited to talk about our Learning 2.0 Program and she spoke to a large crowd in the main auditorium. She had no sooner stepped down from the dais before she was surrounded by people eager to find out more about our experience. 'You Go Gals! was taken as a compliment on our efforts in maintaining the program.

The Customer is always right session.

Why once is never enough: a case study of iterative usability testing of a library’s online services:
Cathy Slaven, QUT.

Queensland University of Technology conducted research into the usability of their website. They recruited student volunteers, offering a $25 gift voucher to participate. They chose undergraduate volunteers who had only had limited use of the website. They set up a lab type studio with a computer for the volunteer and chairs for observers, they used Camtasia studio software

They gained permission from the volunteers to use the recordings for training, conferences etc.

The volunteers were asked to use the website to access: opening hours, borrowing limits, finding journal articles etc. about 10 tasks to complete.

Observers noted that most students were unable to find journal articles and the one that did find it, just guessed! Students had no idea what an ISSN was! Students identified with common wording eg. ‘On the shelf’

The interface on the QUT website was modified as difficulties were detected and design changes have been a significant improvement. The paper outlined how QUT has commenced embedding iterative design and evaluation into the ongoing development and maintenance of the Library’s Online Services.


THUS ENDED DAY 1 !! PHEW!

Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Apologies from Information Online 2007

Hello from Sydney and the Online Conference.

Apologies to all who are eagerly awaiting our comments during Online. Unfortunately Blogger decided we needed to migrate all blogs across at this time and we were unable to access our blog for a few days.
This Blog will be updated with ALL the highlights of Online 2007 in a few days......and there have been Plenty of highlights!

Once again apologies, but these things happen folks!!
Cheers
Denise and Lynette

Friday, November 24, 2006

Who are we?


Lynette Lewis, Online Delivery Co-ordinator, and Denise McLarty. Resource Discovery Officer.

We are part of the Online Delivery Team at the Yarra Plenty Regional Library, who are leading the charge in Learning 2.0 in Libraries in Australia.

Yarra Plenty staff are following the '23 Things' program created by Helene Blowers from the Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenberg County, NC, USA.

We are looking forward to Online in 2007 and hope to share our experiences with our 'Learning 2.0' savvy staff through this Blog.

Tuesday, October 31, 2006

Information Online 2007


Registration is done, flights are booked, accommodation sorted! Information Online 2007, Sydney here we come!

This Blog has been set up to Blog our thoughts during the Information Online Conference in Sydney, 30th January-1st February, 2007.

Denise McLarty and Lynette Lewis.
Yarra Plenty Regional Library
Melbourne,
Australia.