Transcript CyberTour: Blogging Basics - University Library

October 23, 2004
Using Weblogs to Spread the Word
About Libraries
Darlene Fichter
University of
Saskatchewan
[email protected]
Overview
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What are weblogs?
How you can use them?
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Focus is on library/organizational blogs
Choosing blogging software
Getting started
What is it?
Blog / Weblog is
 A web page containing brief entries
arranged chronologically
 Can be a a journal or diary, ‘What’s
New’ page or links to other web
sites
“To me, the blog concept is about three things:
Frequency, Brevity, and Personality.”
Evan Williams (creator of Blogger)
Weblogs are more
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They have been called personal web
publishing communities*
Weblogs don’t stand alone
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Relate/link to other blogs and the world
Connect people together with a
common interest
“Social software” buzz
Dave Winer
http://newhome.weblogs.com/personalWebPublishingCommunities
Two views
Light Weight
Content
Management
Tool
Community&
Knowledge
Sharing Tool
Terminology
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Blogger – person who maintains a blog
Blogging – the act of creating a blog
Blogrolling – moving form blog to blog
Blogrolodex – a listing of other blogs
Blawgs, Klogs, Trackback, Ping,
Permalink, Blogorrhea…
Blogging explosion
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2000-2003
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Tools that made it easy to publish
No need to know HTML
No need to know FTP
Add / edit content anywhere, anytime
Dozens of features – dynamic, quick
and easy to develop
Millions?? worldwide
Can you guess what South American
country is a hotbed for blogs?
Library Blog
Blog Name
Date of Entry
Title and
description
Blogs and RSS
are in the limelight
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Lots of media hype
Google bought Blogger
Tripod, the Web publishing unit of Terra
Lycos
Blogging conferences
Presentations at law and library
conferences
How easy is it to publish?
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Let’s take a look at how easy it is to
publish content with blogging
software
Blogger.com
1. Login to an account on
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www.blogger.com
2. Create a new entry.
3. “Post and publish”
4. Display the entries in a “news”
column on a subject directory
1. Login
2. Choose the blog
3. Add a new entry
4. Post and publish
View your web site
Blog as part of page
Exploring weblog features
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Let’s take a look
Data Library Intranet Blog
Up close and personal
Title
Description
Author
Topics Comments
Post
Posting Time
Permanent Link
Side menu
Search
Archives: Date
Archives: Topic
More options
Monthly Archives
Headlines
Links to Other Sites
Headlines in XML
Features recap
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Time stamp
Permanent link
Categories
Search
RSS feeds
Other features
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Draft mode or offline editing
Timed release
Long entries
Spellchecking
Multiple blogs
Track back
Email subscriptions
Features
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Bookmarklet or browser tool bar button for
quick posts
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TypePad
Integrated news reader/posting
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Radio Userland
Pluses
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Timely
Get to the point
Quick to skim
“Human filter”
Contextualized
What’s “Hot”
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www.daypop.com
Minuses
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ROT
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Redundant
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Obsolete
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Links expire
Best before date!
Trivial
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All posting the same stuff
“my cat coughed up a fluff ball”
Misinformation
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Rigor of validating information (rumor) varies
greatly
Bias
Tour: Libraries using
weblogs for marketing
News
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Recommend internet sites & tools
If one blog is good, how
about four?
Promote library resources
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Promote library events and
programs
Promote new materials
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New Books
New Videos
Let visitors subscribe via email
Distribute headlines (RSS)
What about: Announce new videos,
link to trailers, reviews
Subject experts blog
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Several blogs
Easy updating of the library web
site
Examples
Bryant Library Teen Blog –
Library news for teens
Get interactive
Talk back
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Books you like
Let users post reviews and comments
Library consortia collaborative space
Teen blog - discuss news
and events
Brampton Public Library
Build Community - share
knowledge
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Be a leader in your community
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University of Minnesota just rolled out
blogging tools for anyone to use on their
campus
Spread the word beyond the
Library Web Site: Use RSS
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Use a blog to maintain your ‘what’s
new’ page
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Syndicate your content with RSS to
the portal, other web sites, news
sites
RSS feed
Campus portal
Steps to starting a library
weblog
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Carefully consider your marketing
strategy
Who are you trying to reach –
what audience?
What are the key messages?
What are your goals?
Is a blog the right tool for the job?
More examples
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Library Weblogs
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http://www.libdex.com/weblogs.html
(an index)
Libraries doing good things with
blogs (by type of library)
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http://www.blogwithoutalibrary.net/link
s.html
Your audience
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Are they online?
Will they be interested, and if so, in
what types of content?
Think about lawyer and librarian
blogs that have flourished
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Why?
Decide on the content and
scope of your blog
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Promote awareness of library
resources or tools
Promote new virtual services in the
library and on the web as the
neutral trusted community advisor
Avid readers
Interactivity with children and youth
Community comments
Tools - winnowing down
choices
1. Will your library want to install
blogging software locally on a
desktop or Web server?
2. What type of security is necessary?
Is the blog public or private? How
secure – behind a firewall?
3. What features are you looking for
in a blogging toolkit?
Weblog software
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Lots of choices
Most are free or less $200 USD
From simple to feature rich
More advice on choosing blogging software:
D.Fichter. Blogging Software for Intranet
Applications. ONLINE, January 2003
Solo or group of authors
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Will be blogging alone or with a
group?
How many blogs?
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Just one or dozens?
Where will the blog reside?
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Inside the firewall
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Need to install software
Server platform
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Unix or Windows or Mac
IT help
Scripting languages
Anywhere
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Public
Hosted blogs: considerations
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Reliability
Speed
Convenience – anytime, anywhere?
Longevity
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What if they go out of service?
Will you lose your data?
Local copy
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Can you export your entries
Can you ftp your blog back to your
server
Function
What features do
you need?
 Make your list:
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Search
 RSS feeds
 Timed release
 Categories
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Some popular blogging tools
Hosted
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Blogger
LiveJournal
TypePad
Local Server
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Movable Type
PMachine
B2
Community
 Geekblog
 Onclave (hosted)
 PHP Nuke
Others to Watch
WordPress
ExpressionEngine
Drupal
Market share
• Blog Census May 2003
• http://blogcensus.net/?page=tools
Tools to watch
Nested
Categories;
Feature rich
Drupal
OpenSource
Community
Modules
WordPress
+ multiple
authors / blogs
- one blog per
install
+ blogrolling
Blogging tips
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Have something to say
Have a strong, clear “voice”
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Objective, reporting the “facts”
Contextual, exploratory?
Chatty
Blogging tips
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Be predictable and trustworthy
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Be consistent (NB for group blogs)
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Frequency of posts
Consider the nature of your posts
Case in headlines, editorial rules for
acronyms, terms, linking
Check your links
Spellcheck - it’s quick!
Blogging tips
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Be consistent (NB for group blogs)
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Case in headlines, editorial rules for
acronyms, terms, linking
Check your links
Spellcheck - it’s quick!
Tips:
Treat it like a publication – for weblogs,
authored by a group, choose an editor.
Develop an editorial policy.
Your “voice” is your brand
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What is your personality?
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Helpful
Authoritative
Knowledgeable wayfinder
Reflect this in your posts
Summary
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Blogging software may be a great fit
for your library whether it’s
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Sharing information
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Database trials – open up comments
Reference desk staff sharing info
What’s new page
Publishing a newsletter
Finding out more
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Weblogs Compendium
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www.lights.ca/weblogs/
My home page
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http://library.usask.ca/~fichter/
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Blogging Software for Intranet
Applications. ONLINE, January 2003
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Why and How to Use Blogs to Promote
Your Library's Services, Marketing Library
Services, Nov/Dec 2003 [full text online]
Thank you!
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Darlene Fichter
University of Saskatchewan Library
[email protected]