Fall 09 SILS Projects January 12, 2010
Posted by Lisa Philpotts in Uncategorized.Tags: aged, collection development, consumer health, Health, information behavior, information seeking, library school, presentations, SILS
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As I mentioned in my previous post, the thing I like about most projects I’ve been given in library school is that I can tailor them to my interests. Here’s a summary of what I did first semester. Class names are in bold.
Info Tools
1) I was quite competent with the Microsoft Office suite before, but now.. NOW I am a Microsoft Office wizard. In all seriousness, the best part of that is now I can say I know how to use Microsoft Access, which I have been asked about in past library job interviews.
2) The other major part of the course was creating a simple (emphasis on simple) website. Mine was a basic pathfinder on nutrition resources for North Carolina teenagers, which you can view here.
Human Info Interactions
1) Read a lot of literature, kept a journal of my thoughts regarding the literature. Probably the reason I was not blogging for leisure all too much, since I was occupied with that journal. Journaling is fun!
2) The other product of this course is my pride and joy, a lit review on the information behavior of a population of my choice. My term paper was on the consumer health information seeking behaviors of the aged. After we completed the review, we had to sum up our findings in a PowerPoint:
I’m afraid the slides have far too much text due to format restrictions since the content of the powerpoint was graded for an online class, but I think there’s a lot of valuable information there. *wink* View it in fullscreen mode or read the notes on slideshare to actually make the text legible. A list of my cited references can be found here.
Resources Selection and Evaluation (SILS version of “collection development” class)
1) Our first project was writing a resource/book review, which isn’t as easy as it sounds. I should say that writing a useful, compelling book review isn’t as easy as it sounds. I wrote mine on Paul Offit’s Autism’s False Prophets. That particular book is nonfiction, but I did want to point out one reading I found especially helpful on writing reviews of fiction books: Saricks, Joyce G. “Articulating a Book’s Appeal.” Chap. 3 in Readers’ Advisory Services in the Public Library (3rd ed.). Chicago: American Library Association, 2005
2) After that we had to do a needs assessment and compose a list of suggested resources for people in a setting of our choice. My group chose a prison as our setting, specifically the North Carolina Correction Institution for Women. I have to give kudos to the members of the PRISON-L listserv, Ms. Gill at the Polk Correctional Institute in Butner, and Ms. Brooks (Coordinator of Library Services for the NC prison system), who were kind enough to answer questions about prison libraries I thought of while working on this project.
3) Last of all, I had to analyze and compare two different collection development policies. I wanted to compare two specialized health libraries, and ended up choosing Alzheimer’s Australia NSW and NHS Evidence – Stroke.
Making the Most Out of Library School January 12, 2010
Posted by Lisa Philpotts in Uncategorized.Tags: library school, SILS, unc
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I’ve been a complete blogging failure for a while. Since I last posted, I finished up my first semester of library school, and enjoyed a lovely month of just working full time. I’ve been able to spend some much needed time with my family and partner, as well as do things that I enjoy that aren’t work/school related. Classes start again this week, and though I’m not exactly rearing to go, I’ll say that I’m ready for the second round. Bring it.
One of my SILS buddies, Brian, recently posted a lament on his blog concerning people’s negatives attitudes towards library school. I feel that I was certainly a bit guilty of that last semester. To sum it up, my whingeing has been about how oh em gee I wish I was at work right now, I learn so much when I’m actually out in the field, less theory more practice, etc.
However, when it was all said and done, I was actually quite pleased with the products of my semester. Most of the projects I had included an open ended aspect, and I could tailor them to my interests. You can read more about them here. I’ve been quite happy with the instructors I’ve had, and I do like the camaraderie of my classmates. Most of all, I really appreciate the opportunities to connect with librarians in the real world that I’ve gotten through SILS. We’ve had some really interesting extracurricular activities (and I just don’t mean the happy hours *wink*) that have let me learn about library settings I haven’t worked in myself.. namely a prison library tour and a careers in federal libraries seminar.
Yes, I’ll still probably complain, because (without delving into my personal life) there are things I desire that I can’t have in the moment because I’m in school. I’ll still find “real life” far more exciting than the lecture hall because I love working directly with patrons. But know that under my crabby exterior, I do appreciate the opportunity I’ve been given to go to school. I’m learning new things and meeting new people, and it’s pretty groovy. ; )
RefWorks Lecture Materials November 22, 2009
Posted by Lisa Philpotts in Uncategorized.Tags: bibliographic software, refworks, SILS, teaching, unc
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Here are materials from the guest lecture I gave on RefWorks for INLS 461-001. Along with the normal how-tos, I tried to talk about some frequently asked questions I get from patrons regarding Refworks. Kudos to Lisa Speaker for sending me teaching materials that I adapted for this lecture:
RefWorks Fundamentals for SILS Students, the PowerPoint I used during class:
Refworks Lecture Notes: An outline of the points discussed and the tasks demonstrated.
Refworks Activity: A hands on activity for those wanting more practice.
Bonus Materials
Using the Output Style Editor: I mentioned that advanced users may want to edit the output styles to suit their needs. This Refworks help guide will tell you how to do so.
Installing Write-n-Cite on a Mac: Sometimes I assist Mac users, which can be tricky since I use a PC at work – screenshots from my desktop aren’t terribly helpful in their case! This tutorial on installing Write-n-Cite from ASU has been useful to me since it includes Mac screenshots. Of course, one would replace ASU’s proxy info with UNC’s (http://libproxy.lib.unc.edu/login?url=https://www.refworks.com/Refworks/).
RefWorks: Guide from UNC Libraries
RefWorks: Guide from the UNC Health Sciences Library
Library Work Obsession October 30, 2009
Posted by Lisa Philpotts in Uncategorized.Tags: Humor, imaging, information visualization, poster design
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Perhaps I’m a little too into library work, since my partner said this to me:
“I’m afraid you will have a life-long love affair with things that organize information.”
Ha! This was in response to me sending him a link to Many Eyes. It’s a data visualization website that I thought was super cool. Oh, the things I find “cool” these days. *nerd*
Most data visualizations (or information visualizations: you’ll hear people call these types of things by different names) are easy to create and are a lot more effective at communicating a message about a data set to a passerby than say, a big chart crammed full of numbers. Of course, Excel can create fun little graphs for you, but there are tools on the web available that let you do some creative things too. An example of one of these is Wordle, which is a site that lets you create word clouds.
Recently a few of my colleagues used Wordle to design a word cloud for one of their scholarly posters:
If you’re interested to see how they incorporated it into their finished poster, you can access it from Mellanye Lackey’s Meet Your Librarian page. The title of the poster is Surveying the Global Health Efforts of Health Sciences Libraries.
Sharing Screencaps and Videos with Jing October 8, 2009
Posted by Lisa Philpotts in Technology.Tags: instruction, jing, multimedia, reference, screencapture, Technology, tools, virtual library services, web applications
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At our library, we provide reference services through IM and e-mail through our Ask a Librarian website, something that’s fairly common nowadays. We definitely receive more queries online than through our traditional reference desk, which is fantastic, but it does pose a few challenges. As I’ve mentioned before, one of my roles at the library is serving as a RefWorks specialist of sorts, and it’s always trickier to talk a person through working with the software through online chat or e-mail than it is in person. Sometimes the most effective way to teach is to demonstrate to the patron what you’re doing instead of trying to describe the procedure with written instructions.
Enter Jing, a software application that allows you to easily make screencapped images and video and upload the said screencaps to the web instantly. From there, you can copy and paste the link to your video or image to whomever you want to share it with. What I like about Jing is that it’s simple and there’s no extra bulk, and quite frankly it takes much less time for me to upload a video of me performing a task in Refworks than it does to try to write out the procedure for the task. Anything that saves me time is good in my book.
Another plus to Jing is that the video or screencaps you create stay in your free Screencast.com account, so you can always access them later. I recently was working with one of our distance education students who happens to be in Hong Kong, and our schedules never lined up thanks to the time difference. She sent me an e-mail with questions about working with Refworks, and I was able to answer them by demonstrating the tasks she wanted to do, uploading the screencaptures to Jing, and sending her the link so she could view my instructions on her own time. She was really appreciative, and I felt great that I could assist one of our patrons that lives on the other side of the globe. Really exciting stuff, and I just think that it’s so cool that technology allows us to reach out to people that might not have utilized library services otherwise.
In closing, definitely check out Jing if you provide virtual instruction or reference services. Also, big props to my coworker Bob Ladd, who turned me onto this application in the first place. He has created some brief videos about Jing that will show you the software in action.
Five Second Usability Test October 2, 2009
Posted by Lisa Philpotts in Technology.Tags: usability, web design
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We’ve actually started talking about web design in my Info Tools class now, and usability goes hand in hand with that. Coincidentally, HSL is getting closer and closer to launching a redesigned website, which is all the more exciting if you’re familiar with the way our website looks right now (insert comical wah wah waaaah noise here).
Anyway, a coworker turned me onto this website, fivesecondtest, which is exactly what it sounds like – a site that allows one to post or take five second usability tests. I actually find taking the tests kind of fun because I’m a huge nerd. They really only do take a few seconds, and I think users would be more likely to give feedback using this tool than one of those irritating pop up surveys you see on some websites. I also (by chance) tested a couple of library websites, but there are webpages of all kinds on there (not all in English, either). Neat!
Go ahead, take a five second test for yourself!
I Live On Campus September 10, 2009
Posted by Lisa Philpotts in Uncategorized.Tags: evernote, library school, organization, Technology, unc
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Ok, so I don’t really live on campus, but I might as well with the amount of time I spend there. My attempt at working full time and going to school full time is working out alright. I’m perpetually reading mounds of scholarly articles, which actually isn’t too bad. Nursing school prepared me well to handle rigorous workloads, so I’m not feeling stressed.
Theory
Since starting classes, I’ve realized that at some point in the past few years I lost much of my interest in the theoretical. Once upon a time, I considered minoring in philosophy. Now I find myself aching for the practical, and I think nursing school + work may have influenced this attitude shift. However, I’m trying my best to keep an open mind. I know that one should be knowledgeable about foundation that their profession is built upon, so I shan’t be completely bullheaded. *wink*
Instruction
One interesting turn of events is that I’m going to be teaching a Refworks workshop to one section of the Info Tools course. The way the lecturer put it is that I’ll be a “guest lecturer,” but that sounds terribly fancy to me. A guest lecturer shows up in a tweed jacket with leather patches on the elbows and delivers a brilliant, thought provoking speech of some sort. A Lisa shows up and will probably not blow your mind, but can teach you how to use reference management software. As for a title, instructor sounds less intimidating.. it’s more my style.
Technology
In one of my classes we all take a turn at presenting a starter. It’s like show and tell in elementary school, except for MSLS students. The subject of our starter should be tech oriented, but other than that we’re free to do what we want. I liked the one presented today by my classmate, Tyler. He showed us an application he’s been using called Evernote. It’s sort of like a virtual three ring binder.. that’s SEARCHABLE. Ooo, ahh. You can save text, webpages, pictures, and make notes using the web, desktop, or mobile application. I thought the coolest feature was that you can take a snapshot of something with your phone (like a flyer, business card, ticket to a show, whiteboard in your class, whatevs), and then Evernote will save it to your account and convert any text in the photo to a searchable format. Check it out:
Prepping for the School Year August 23, 2009
Posted by Lisa Philpotts in Uncategorized.Tags: budget, HSL, libraries, library school, mds, multimedia, SILS, unc, user services, web 2.0
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With the first day of class almost upon us, things have become significantly more busy at work. I’m not sure if this is the norm. Sure, with the start of a new year you’re going to have a batch of new students approaching the desk, orientation classes to teach (or assist, in my case), and late course reserve submissions to process, but I think the thing that’s making me busier are changes related to the budget cuts.
It’s not that more work is being pushed upon me, but rather that we’re trying to change the way we work and the services we provide in order to be more effective. I’m positive this will be a good thing in the long run to both us and our patrons, but transitions always take a bit of extra flexibility and effort on the part of staff.
I’m especially involved with the HSL Media Design Studio. We’re in the middle of trying to clarify what kind of services we should provide, and in the coming months we should be going out to the schools we serve to find out what our patrons want. Web 2.0 tools and media design sound interesting enough to us librarian folk, but do our patrons actually need or want to learn about such things? That remains to be seen, but with the importance of communication and information transfer in the health care field, I think we may have a demand for our classes. *fingers crossed* This semester I’m already slated to teach some poster design classes to the Allied Health students, which I’m excited about. I worked with some of the Allied Health students at the end of spring semester, and they’re a great group. It’s always exciting to watch them go from the planning stages of their projects to the creation of an end product.
Speaking of classes, I’ll be taking some myself since I’m going to start working on my MSLS at SILS. I’m planning to continue to work full time and take three classes, because I’m a workaholic like that. If I feel like I can’t handle it, I’ll drop a class, but I’ve heard it’s doable, so I at least want to give it a go. You never know what you’re capable of until you try it, right? Here are my classes for the semester, along with descriptions from the course catalog:
INLS 461: Information Tools
Tools and concepts for information use. Information literacy, microcomputer software use and maintenance, microcomputer applications, and networked information systems.
The textbook for my particular section is about web design, which excites me. Web design skills are incredibly useful to have when you work in a library. I’ve had to frequently update webpages both at Rex and here at HSL.
INLS 500: Human Information Interactions
The behavioral and cognitive activities of those who interact with information, with emphasis on the role of information mediators. How information needs are recognized and resolved; use and dissemination of information.
This is my online class. I have no clue what it will be like.
INLS 513: Resource Selection and Evaluation
Identification, provision, and evaluation of resources to meet primary needs of clientele in different institutional environments.
This is essentially collection development. This is something I have very little experience in, so I’m hoping this class will fill in the gaps in knowledge I have in that area. The class will be discussion based, which I find much more interesting than straight lecture classes.
Anyway, time to get some rest. I’ll be opening HSL and working for 3 hours, and then going off to SILS orientation for the rest of the day. Here’s hoping it will go well!
A Jounal for Rejected Papers August 7, 2009
Posted by Lisa Philpotts in Uncategorized.Tags: Humor, mathematics, publishing
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Librarian Cynthia Kahn posted this to the MEDLIB-L listserv yesterday, and I just had to share. Even if math doesn’t particularly intrigue you, it’s still interesting (and occasionally amusing) to read the rationales the authors recieved as to why their articles were rejected from various journals.
The Economist reports, “A good, rejected paper…is by no means an oxymoron. And that observation is the basis of Rejecta Mathematica, an open-source academic journal that recently went online. As its name suggests, the new journal publishes only papers that…have been previously submitted to, and rejected by, others.” All articles “come with an ‘open letter’ in which the paper’s author outlines in lay terms why the work was rejected (extra points awarded for bitterness), what has been done since and why it still has merit.”
Here’s the Economist article:
Improving scientific publishing: Huddled maths
And here’s the journal itself:
Rejecta Mathematica
Consumer Health Websites: Which Are Best? July 24, 2009
Posted by Lisa Philpotts in General Health, Medical/Health Science Libraries.Tags: consumer health, health science libraries, resources
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The other day I noticed a blog post by LibrarianInBlack that pointed out the healthfinder.gov tour. I normally use MedlinePlus or NCHealthInfo for consumer health information, so I was wondering what makes healthfinder different. After all, both MedlinePlus and healthfinder.gov are federally run consumer health websites.. why do we need both?
Well, thank you, blogosphere, for the answer. A quick search revealed a post by ETechLib entitled “MedlinePlus vs healthfinder: Must We Choose?” Not only does the post compare and contrast MedlinePlus and healthfinder, but it also includes a slideshow by Patricia that lists common types of patron questions and the most appropriate consumer health websites to use for each kind. The slideshow is from 2007, but still contains plenty of useful information.
