I enjoyed playing with the 23 Things, although I did not learn anything earth shattering. Many of them I was already familiar with, and the ones that I was not were generally not too hard to figure out. I did appreciate the opportunity to play around hone my skills. 🙂
That being said, I really haven’t changed my overall feelings about Web 2.0: the tools are useful, and it should be part of my professional development to be aware of and comfortable with these things, but Web 2.0 is not the salvation of libraries. Yes, the tools can be used to enhance what a library has to offer, but if the content isn’t already there, nothing can disguise that fact.
Hopefully my library can incorporate some of these Things into our programming. Some of these have great potential for connecting with teens and tweens, and others could be used to enhance what we offer adults. However, anything I would want to use would have to be cleared from the top down; I understand why this is the way it is, but it can be frustrating.
My favorite Things were ones I already play with: LibraryThing, YouTube, social networking, and all of the image/photo sharing. These are the ones I use personally, and the ones that our patrons seem to use the most. Well, those and gaming. But I’m not really a big gamer, so that’s no help.
Some of my least favorite Things were the ones that I don’t really foresee using in my library. I work in a public library, so the time management tools really aren’t something my average patron is interested in. If I am helping someone with a database, I try and point out the features that are helpful. While the wikis and networks could be useful for staff, I run into management approval again.
If 23 More Things were offered, I would participate again. I like the self-paced learning, and this is a quick and painless way to keep abreast of new(ish) web tools.
Final answer: I had fun, even though I’m not on Team 2.0.
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