Social software lets libraries show a human face online, helping them communicate, educate, and interact with their communities. This nuts-and-bolts guide provides librarians with the information and skills necessary to implement the most popular and effective social software technologies: blogs, RSS, wikis, social networking software, screencasting, photo-sharing, podcasting, instant messaging, gaming, and more. Success stories and interviews highlight these tools ease-of-use and tremendous impact.

The new generation of internet technologies and web applications is seeing a growth in social software and networking, as well as other communications tools. This infrastructure of social interaction and collaboration has provided an increase in more dynamic user participation and expertise in knowledge of contents and facts traditionally only held by experts. Social Software and the Evolution of User Expertise: Future Trends in Knowledge Creation and Dissemination examines the vital role that social software applications play in regards to the cultural definitions of experts and challenges the reader to consider how recent changes in this area influence how we create and distribute knowledge. This collection brings together scholars and practitioners from various disciplines and professions to project a new kind of thinking about the understanding of the major changes in many professions.

"This book explores the origin, structure, purpose, and function of socially interactive technologies known as social software"--Provided by publisher.

Creating and Promoting Lifelong Learning in Public Libraries: Tools and Tips For Practitioners is the sequel to Lifelong Learning in Public Libraries: Principles, Programs, and People. On the one hand, Lifelong Learning in Public Libraries focuses on the information needs and the developmental and psychological characteristics of diverse library users of all ages. It endorses the use of ILI to promote lifelong learning in public libraries, both by borrowing techniques from academic and school libraries and by building on existing public library traditions of programming and outreach. This book also compares lifelong learning in public libraries to informal and nonformal education in museums, community organizations and agencies, places of worship, and other organizations. In addition, Lifelong Learnng in Public Libraries describes basic steps that librarians can execute in order to get started. On the other hand, Creating and Promoting Lifelong Learning in Public Libraries focuses much more on how public librarians can specifically plan and implement their instruction with chapters on planning for instruction, using teaching methodologies, teaching with and about technology, and bringing ILI together with more traditional public library services, programming, and activities, such as reference and Readers’ Advisory services, bibliotherapy, and cultural and literacy programming. Changes in ILI standards and comparisons of ILI with basic reading, media, digital, and cultural literacies are also described. Both books together should act as basic manuals for public librarians who promote lifelong learning. Creating and Promoting Lifelong Learning in Public Libraries also have helpful teaching hints for all librarians and other professionals who teach in a variety of settings.

"This book provides tools to complement an organization's burgeoning information treasuries, exploring new frontiers by looking at social and economic aspects of digital libraries and their sustainability"--Provided by publisher.

The introduction of social media has given many communities the opportunity to connect and communicate with each other at a higher level than ever before. Many organizations, from businesses to governments, have taken advantage of this important tool to conduct research and enhance efficiency. Libraries and educational institutions have also made use of social media to enhance educational marketing, engage with learning communities, adapt educational tools, and more. The Research Anthology on Applying Social Networking Strategies to Classrooms and Libraries describes the applications, tools, and opportunities provided by the intersection of education and social media. It also considers the ways in which social media encourages learner engagement and community participation. Covering topics such as data collection, online professional learning networks, and reinforcement learning, this major reference work is a dynamic resource for pre-service teachers, teacher educators, faculty and administrators of both K-12 and higher education, librarians, archivists, government officials, researchers, and academicians.

Uncovers the growing and expanding phenomenon of human behavior, social constructs, and communication in online environments.

The rise of social media technologies has created new ways to seek and share information for millions of users worldwide, but also has presented new challenges for libraries in meeting users where they are within social spaces. From social networking sites such as Facebook and Google+, and microblogging platforms such as Twitter and Tumblr to the image and video sites of YouTube, Flickr, Instagram, and to geotagging sites such as Foursquare, libraries have responded by establishing footholds within a variety of social media platforms and seeking new ways of engaging with online users in social spaces. Libraries are also responding to new social review sites such as Yelp and Tripadvisor, awareness sites including StumbleUpon, Pinterest, Goodreads, and Reddit, and social question-and-answer (Q&A) sites such as Yahoo! Answers—sites which engage social media users in functions similar to traditional library content curation, readers' advisory, information and referral, and reference services. Establishing a social media presence extends the library's physical manifestation into virtual space and increases the library's visibility, reach, and impact. However, beyond simply establishing a social presence for the library, a greater challenge is building effective and engaging social media sites that successfully adapt a library's visibility, voice, and presence to the unique contexts, audiences, and cultures within diverse social media sites. This lecture examines the research and theory on social media and libraries, providing an overview of what is known and what is not yet known about libraries and social media. Chapter 1 focuses on the social media environments within which libraries are establishing a presence, including how social media sites differ from each other, yet work together within a social ecosphere. Chapter 2 examines how libraries are engaging with users across a variety of social media platforms and the extent to which libraries are involved in using these different social media platforms, as well as the activities of libraries in presenting a social "self," sharing information, and interacting with users via social media. Chapter 3 explores metrics and measures for assessing the impact of the library's activity in social media sites. The book concludes with Chapter 4 on evolving directions for libraries and social media, including potential implications of new and emerging technologies for libraries in social spaces. Table of Contents: Preface / The Social Media Environment / Libraries and Social Media / Assessing Social Media Sites and Services / Evolving Directions in Social Libraries / Bibliography / Author Biography

This edited collection is drawn from the seventh Libraries Without Walls Conference, held in 2007. From their beginnings in 1995, the Libraries Without Walls conferences have mapped a major change in the practice of librarianship. While library services are still concerned to provide users with physical access to their buildings, electronic access - often from remote locations - is becoming ever more dominant. Library services are being integrated into virtual learning, research and personal environments. In 2007 CERLIM wished to encourage the widest possible range of papers to reflect the diverse current developments in library service delivery. These covered: New kinds of service, especially those that open up new paradigms of 'library' - perhaps the library equivalent of YouTube or MySpace The library's role within new models of scholarly publishing, including experience of developing services based on institutional or other repositories, and the responsibility of the library for digital curation Service delivery in challenging environments, especially where the infrastructure may be sub-optimal, as in some developing countries, or where the user group represents particular challenges New technological solutions and the impact on users of the improved services they make possible Delivery and assessment of information skills/literacies, especially where this is achieved through electronic environments. These state-of-the-art papers are designed to increase understanding of the role and importance of information in the learning process, and to enable information professionals and course developers to keep abreast of the latest developments in this vital area.