INF206

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Welcome to my blog

an image of the author

Dear Reader,

my name is Adam McCarthy. I have been studying for 5 years part-time while working full-time. As a qualified Library Technician, I have worked in libraries for the past 20 years, collecting experiences in academic, research, and government libraries. Currently, I work at the University of Queensland Library with the Digital, Data, Learning and Publishing team as a Digital Learning Officer. My substantive role is working at the front desk of the Library as a Client Service Officer. Once I have finished my Bachelor of Library and Information Science, I hope to work either as a Librarian or a Learning Designer. During the last 5 years, I have attended many ALIA 1-day conferences and online training and webinars.

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(Icon credit: coffeebeanworks)

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Reflective Statement

How my views on social networking have changed

On reflection, my experience using Social Media prior to starting the INF206 subject involved interactions between personal usage and work-related projects. The main platforms I had used before starting the Bachelor of Information Science revolved around the use of Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest and WordPress. The main reasoning behind such a limited repertoire of platforms was to keep a contained online presence and profile. This was structured mostly around Facebook as being my personal presence while LinkedIn represented my professional online representation.

My most recent experience with social media platforms was my involvement in a work-based project looking to enhance the digital literacy skills of students coming into an academic environment for the first time.  There is an inaccurate assumption the students coming into academic studies from high school are “Digital Natives” and have the capacity to thrive due to their enhanced online knowledge (Stevenson & Lindberg, 2010).

Since commencing the course I have begun to branch out into a variety of new experiences, the first of which was joining and using the INF206 202030 Facebook groups component for the subject.

I do not think I could have chosen a more interesting time to be doing the subject for personal exploration as well as assisting staff utilising new technology online for the first time and utilising tools outside the normal course related structure to engage and enhance student learning and communication.

Continue reading →

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Thoughts for the future

Technology column: Is there a drone in your library’s future?

The use of drones, also known as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in a library environment might seem unheard of yet looking back so too was the use of 3D printers up until recently.Their usage is a unique opportunity for library staff in term of gaining new knowledge and skills, collaborating with different parts of the community.

Similar to libraries themselves, drones comes in a variety of types specialising in different requirements depending on the user and the proposed function required. Some of the common features discussed by Fernandez are:

  • The agricultural industry in the assistance of monitoring crops, distributing pesticide and feed drop and potentially scare off larger pests to protect crops and livestock.
  • Military and law enforcement usages for surveillance and defencive capacities
  • Entertainment industry where they provide new and previously unattainable angles for filmmakers and directors and location scouts.
  • Educational or STEM groups seeking to engage students with robotic, engineering or coding elements involved with the development or construction of drones.(Fernandez, 2016).

It is perhaps the last point where academic libraries have the most potential to enhance people’s experience, knowledge and potential first use of handling a drone. Providing courses through local libraries in partnership with local employment agencies could allow for greater employment for people seeking employment with Livestock monitoring in real time local forestry tree counting or geological observation for the mining industry (ABC News, 2016).

The potential importance of drones for delivering information of physical library resources to patrons with movement restrictions or mobility issues. If this can be incorporated with technology such as facial recognition on drones to identify patrons to assist in remote borrowing or returning of items or equipment to assist patrons help stay connected with their local library (Anonymous, 2016).

As seen with the current Covid 19 pandemic, libraries have risen to the occasion by providing activities such as online trivia, book and movie clubs and reading challenges online for patrons to participate (Australian Library and Information Association, 2020).

If future situations rise again and libraries are forced to their physical collections would it be feasible to consider the use of drones for physical delivery or inter library loans. Is there a potential for use for patrons to use a drone for remotely viewing the stack of a collection. Previously the thought of patrons being able to stream movies in their own home via their local library would have been unheard of.  Libraries continue to embrace new technology, it will be of interest to see how our profession embraces drone technology and moves forward with it in the immediate future.

drone flying near a lighthouse

Image Credit Pxfuel

References

ABC news, (2016). Agricultural drone jobs taking off in northern Australia. Retrieved from https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2016-12-13/agricultural-drone-jobs-taking-off-in-northern-australia/8103834

Australian Library and Information Association, (2020). COVID-19 and Australian public libraries: interim report 30 April. Retrieved from https://read.alia.org.au/file/1354/download?token=a5rDrE9C

Fernandez, P. (2016). “Through the looking glass: Envisioning new library technologies” Drones. Library Hi Tech News, 33(7), 1-5.

Anonymous. (2016). Emerging Tech Trends Require Change Management. Library Administrator’s Digest, 51(5), 3-4.

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Managing your digital identity

Managing your digital identity

Through the course we have looked at the many benefits that social media provide us as consumers. However, we need to look beyond this narrow field and look towards how these platforms can benefit us as individuals and for the companies we work for.  These platforms allow us to have a presence in an increasingly digital world, an ability to talk on a global scale to create a personal brand that opens opportunities never seen before.

Within this new frontier comes new problems as well and learning how to navigate the netiquette of things has never been more important. As mentioned in the YouTube clip by Equalman, “What happens in Vegas stays on YouTube” (Equalman, 2019).

As a tool for organisations and personal use there is no greater access to self-promotion or for a product for free than the signing up for a Facebook account. Yet what most people fail to recognise this is just the first step in a long journey. An online persona must be monitored, nurtured, and cultivated. When collaborating or sharing information with peers or clients online you must be aware of issues relating to ethics and the treatment of those you interact with. As Osborne points out “the data you leave behind when you go online” encourages us to tread carefully on social media and to consider what our online presence might reveal to a prospective employer (Osborne, 2016).

Another important issue to recognise is that not only can your data be monetised for profit, the content you publish online could be detrimental to your future employability.

It is important to know where to find your privacy settings, and how to know if the post or tweet is being sent to a local set of friends or to a public audience.

With this in mind, the use of social media groups on platforms such as Facebook can be an a tool for peer to peer learning. As discussed by Sutherland, academic students using university social media profiles are more likely to engage with the broader university community and potentially less likely to drop out within their first year of study (Sutherland, 2018).

This is just a small list of considerations when planning an online presence for either yourself or for your employer. In either case the shaping your online identity will require planning and continual work and a continuous regulation of the terms and conditions that are required of each platform.

References

Equalman, (2019, January 8). Digital transformation video [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6k_G_h41ZaQ

Facebook, (2020). Terms of service.  Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/terms.php

Karen Sutherland, Cindy Davis, Uwe Terton, & Irene Visser. (2018). University student social media use and its influence on offline engagement in higher educational communities. Student Success, 9(2), 13-24.

Osborne, N. (2016, December 2 ). What does your digital footprints say about you [Video  file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVX8ZSAR4OY

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The client experience

For the purposes of testing the three websites, I used an Android phone with Chrome’s mobile browser that supports responsive web design and investigated their collaboration and social networking elements.

University of Queensland Library (UQL)

The UQL website allows conversation with its patrons through the online chat option and a separate “Ask Us” link in the top navigation with contact information for phone, email and additional options. Other ways to connect with UQL are via:

  • Blog
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • YouTube

In terms of usability the mobile view displays the information in a single column presentation. This is important for clients with print, mobility or processing disabilities to focus the content of the page (W3C.org, 2017).

I question the positioning of the anchored chat element at the bottom right of the screen, the space which most right-handed users use to scroll. This could cause interference or accidental activation of the chat function.

ABC News

ABC News is easily accessible for users on mobile. Like the UQ website the mobile version is displayed in a single column view with the navigation options at the top of the page, making it easier for the user to read the content. There is no comment section on articles, but you can share through multiple social avenues. The following links to social media are at the bottom of the page:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube

Trove

The layout of Trove is not very responsive. To read the content, you need to zoom in which causes two-way scrolling (horizontal and vertical). Even landscape mode does not improve the readability of the page. Under the aforementioned W3C standards, the layout for this website would not pass Level A standard. It makes its content inaccessible, for example for a person with print disabilities and dexterity issues (W3C.org, 2017).

However, Trove offers multiple methods to communicate and collaborate, including links to Facebook and Twitter. Additionally, there are options to create content on community projects, such as tagging of images, revisions of the Optical Character Recognition of newspaper articles and an overview of recent comments (Trove, n.d.).

All three sites show different level of accessibility on a mobile device and the provision of access to their social media platforms, although the ABC and UQ Library’s homepage present their content more successfully than Trove. Trove’s strong point is the ways of collaborating with its user base. As illustrated by Decker, social networking applications can be a effective way to engage library users to collaborate as a community (Decker, 2019).

References

Decker, E. N. (2019). Twitter. In Verishagen, N. (2019). Social media : The academic library perspective. doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-102409-6.00007-9

Trove. (n.d.). Trove homepage. Retrieved from https://trove.nla.gov.au/

W3c.org. (2017). Reflow to single column. Retrieved from https://www.w3.org/WAI/GL/low-vision-a11y-tf/wiki/Reflow_to_Single_Column

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Virtual and augmented reality

When discussing Virtual reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) it is important to note the clear distinction that physical hard makes between the two. VR is dependent on use of assistive technology such as an Oculus Rift headset that enables a digitally simulated environment for the user to interact with, whereas AR is an interactive experience with real world surroundings superimposed with computer generated graphics (Green, 2018).

As with most modern technology a large testing board to long term successful implementation into everyday society is how it fairs with adaptation from the gaming community. The best examples of AR in a gaming environment would be the Pokemon GO application played on phones and tablets.  This popular  game allows users to catch monsters using players’ phones with real world backgrounds (pokemongolive.com, n.d.).

Similarly the computer game Minecraft has adapted the VR technology to enhance the open world crafting and exploration game to a new level by allowing players to now envelop themselves within a 3D environment (minecraft.net, 2020).

Child with virtual reality goggles

Image credit: Pxfuel.com

VR & VA in GLAM environment

Museums and libraries have adapted to use both of these technologies to enhance their user experiences and engagement.

The University of Newcastle has produced a fully immersive experience allowing users to tour three of the campus libraries to view specific area or to zoom out and view the different levels from a doll house perspective (newcastle.edu.au, 2020).

With the current Covid 19 situation there is no better time to be able to take a virtual tour of some of the best known museums of the world. From the British Museum in London to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, these informative interactive tours are perfect for both escaping the confines of your house as well as immersing yourself in the cultural history of another country (timeout.com, 2020).

The National Museum of Singapore currently has an exhibition of work by William Farquhar with the installation transforming his drawings into three dimensional animations (nhb.gov.sg, 2020).

The inclusion of such technology within the GLAM industry is an indicator of this technology staying for the long haul.  If the computing and technology industry that spawned this technology is anything to go by, it will be interesting to see how it evolves over the next decade.

References

Greene, D., & Groenendyk, M. (2018). Virtual and Augmented Reality as Library Services. Computers in Libraries, 38(1), 4-7.

Minecraft, (2020). Explore minecraft in VR. Retrieved from https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/vr/

National museum of Singapore, (2020). Story of the forest. Retrieved from https://www.nhb.gov.sg/nationalmuseum/our-exhibitions/exhibition-list/story-of-the-forest

Pokemongolive, (n.d.). Frequently asked questions. Retrieved from https://pokemongolive.com/en/faq/

University of Newcastle, (2020).  Virtual tours. Retrieved from

https://www.newcastle.edu.au/library/access/places-and-spaces/virtual-tours

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The influence of technology on society

How technology shapes society

From the first text based bulletin boards created by Ward Christensen and Randy Suess in 1978 to the massive platforms today such as Facebook and WeChat, it could be argued that social networking has had an irreversible effect on society.  It has become an insatiable tool and companion for many an estimated two and a half billion Facebook users alone at time of writing (internetlivestats.com, n.d.).

Socially and economically it has changed the way people communicate and retrieve information and entertainment and interact with one another.

Nowhere has the change been more evident in terms of its effect than within the galleries, libraries, archives, and museums (GLAM) industry. Libraries in particular have been quick to take on the new technology.

Enhancing the way we as professionals engage with our clients which allows them wider freedom to interact and access information and experience of connecting with their local library.

Libraries have embraced social networking technology such as Facebook, Twitter, blogs, Instagram and YouTube to enhance their online presence.

It has created a new avenue of providing new online training experiences and enhanced the information needs of the community of those in remote or socially disadvantaged areas. Additionally, it has opened opportunities for accessibility with the capacity of most social networks being compliant under the W3C Web Accessibility Initiative through providing audio transcripts, close captioning or tools like alternative image or audio descriptions as immediate examples (W3.org, 2018).

Social networking can not only be an effective communication tool, but also serves as a decisive business tool, especially in terms of employment.  As Segal discusses, over 70 percent of potential employers will review a person’s social media (Hhrm.org, 2020).

The flow on effect can also create a negative impact on the course of employment as seen in 2018 when director James Gunn was fired when old tweets resurfaced with alleged jokes of a highly offensive nature (ABC News, 2018).

Looking forward there are a three thing that will need to be considered for both organisation and individuals alike when engaging with social networking tools successfully:

  • Personal brand, which according to Peters, “everyone has the power to be their own brand and it is each person’s responsibility to promote their brand” (fast company.com, 1997).
  • Privacy, both for organisations as well as the individuals who they represent or use their products
  • Accessibility, in the rush to move forward we must be inclusive and not leave anyone behind

References

ABC News. (2018). Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn fired by Disney after tweets joking about rape, paedophilia resurface. Retrieved from https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-07-21/james-gunn-fired-from-guardians-of-the-galaxy-over-tweets/10020902

Internetlivestats.com. (n.d.). Number of Facebook users. Retrieved from https://www.internetlivestats.com/

Peters, T. (1997). The brand called you. Retrieved from https://www.fastcompany.com/28905/brand-called-you

Segal, J. (2020). Legal trends social media use in hiring:assessing the risks. Retrieved from https://www.shrm.org/hr-today/news/hr-magazine/pages/0914-social-media-hiring.aspx

W3.org. (2018). Accessibility. Retrieved from https://www.w3.org/standards/webdesign/accessibility

 

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Social media and society – Journal analysis

American Behavioral Scientist article analysis

“Should I stay or should I go” poses an interesting and timely reminder with the upcoming November elections in America. The discussion of the positives and negatives of using social media and a particular focus on Facebook is somewhat timely.

The article looks into the Cambridge Analytica scandal where a private company was able to harvest personal information from Facebook users without their permission and the effect it had on people deciding to delete their profile or not.

Brown investigates the initial reaction to the scandal by focusing on the reactions of users aged 18 to 29, looking at if their reliance on the connectivity of the social media platform is more important than that of their personal privacy.

I find the paper supportive of DeRosa’s definitions of social network platforms being supportive of facilitating interaction between users (DeRosa, 2007).

Caci identifies a similar finding in that highly extroverted people tend to engage and disclose greater amount of information than an introverted user who may share concerns about misuse of personal information from an external source (Caci, 2019)

Looking at the author’s methodology for conducting his research, they have taken a standard qualitative collection of data by conducting interviews with a mixed group of respondents. I agree with the method used; however, I feel the limited range of subjects and the use of only one university campus location does not provide a sufficient breadth for a definitive result.  Although the information gathered from the group is credible, the reliability due to the limited size of respondents questions the quality of the data considering the scale of the scandal.

I am supportive in the conclusion that most users are not aware of the lucrative business behind their online presence. As Rosenburg discussed the scandal affected an estimated 50 million users, and not only made the company a substantial amount of money, it also potentially affected the federal US election results (Rosenburg, 2018). I feel that there is strong potential for the article to lead to further investigation and peer reviewed literature to discuss the concerns of social media users and their understanding of privacy terms and conditions.

References

Caci, B., Cardaci, M., & Miceli, S. (2019). Development and Maintenance of Self-Disclosure on Facebook: The Role of Personality Traits. SAGE Open, 9(2), SAGE Open, June 2019, Vol.9(2).

De Rosa, C. (2007) OCLC xiv Sharing, privacy and trust in our networked world: a report to the OCLC Membership. Retrieved from https://www.oclc.org/content/dam/oclc/reports/pdfs/sharing.pdf

Rosenburg, M. &Confessore, N. & Cadwalladr, C. (2018, March 17). How Trump consultants exploited the Facebook data of millions. Retrieved from. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/17/us/politics/cambridge-analytica-trump-campaign.html

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Social networking

Social networking in the broader context for me means the ability to interact with people who share similar interests, be that a hobby, sport or employment-based commonality.  In the context of life in the early 21st century the meaning leans toward the finding of like minded peers within a digital space, through an online application or a website.

this is a decorative blog image of various social media platforms.

source: flickr.com

Currently I use a small number of different social networking platforms on a variety of devices.  Primarily I use these online tools as a means to communicate with friends and family both locally and overseas.  I find this as an easier method of communication, as I can keep the messages as short or as long as I need without the formality of a timed phone call or taking the time to write an email. 

With a few short words, a GIF or an emoji I can communicate with people on how I am feeling or what is going on in my life.

The multi-platform availability of social networking sites, like Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn, allows for quick connection and ease of use for anyone.

Facebook as my main social network for the discussed reasons, also allows me to follow student pages at my university to find specific pain points the students have with the library I work in, or to point them to information that may assist with their studies.

For work or employment based communication I use LinkedIn. The acquisition of Lynda.com by LinkedIn has proven advantageous, as I had previously used this platform for workplace training for rapidly gaining new skills through the online courses provided. Additionally, I have a twitter account, but I find it more comfortable to follow other people’s tweets than actually engaging at this point in time.

I hope to find out, through this subject, the different aspects of how people use social networking in the workplace and as a tool for communicating with clients and peers within the information industry.