Thing 12 &13

I know I am behind and when I have time I will try to add a few tidbits of my personal life to this thing. It's been a wonderfully busy month and another has just begun. Today was my first class of the fall semester, I am a month into my new job as a graduate assistant at the NYS Library, and I am still slowly planning my wedding. It's going to be an interesting few months...now let's start a game of ketchup!

Thing 12 Putting the Social into Social Media

 image by Fred Cavazza taken from Flickr

• are there any other advantages to social networking in the context of professional development than those already outlined above?

It's easier for students to attend. As I student I really appreciate being able to participate in something like cdp23. Besides the benefits mentioned in the cdp23 post there are other practical advantages:

1. It's cheap! Money is tight I can't currently afford to pay for more classes or travel to attend conferences.
2. It's flexible! I am a full time student and now have a part time job, I can participate on my own time.

• can you think of any disadvantages?

With over 700 participants the cdp23 has the advantage of bringing many types of viewpoints and professions. However, there is something to be said for a smaller community. It's an overwhelming task to read and comment on so many blogs. Sometimes it can be overwhelming to be part of such a large thing. I would like to try a program like this on a smaller scale...I am hoping that the Capital District Library Coucil (CLDC) will host another program so that I may compare the experiences. 

• has CPD23 helped you to make contact with others that you would not have had contact with normally?

Yes, I have made contact with two UAlbany alumni and an ex-journalist. I wish I had time to make contact with more.

• did you already use social media for your career development before starting CPD23? Will you keep using it after the programme has finished?

I never have but I intend to from now on. I have found blogging to be a great learning experience and I have learned a lot from reading the blogs of others. While I have yet to use my Linked In 

account and my Twitter for any "real" profession development purposes I hope to in the future.

• in your opinion does social networking really help to foster a sense of community?

Yes and No, like any professional development workshop you get what you put into it. If you want to learn and create connections and work to do so...you can help to create a sense of community. 

Thing 13: Google Docs, Wiki, Dropbox

I am all for cloud computing. While its a little frightening to know that people have the ability to hack and data mine your information, I like that I can access my school papers anywhere (and honestly if you want to hack into my account and read them have fun :) . However, I am not a fan of Google docs. I enjoy Google's email services, its blogging platform, its RSS reader, and its search engine but I find Google docs cumbersome. I think this is because I tend to use Microsoft office materials. Sometimes when I use Google docs and Microsoft office tools in conjunction the formatting gets screwed up. While I think this error is mostly due to Microsoft programming I can't afford my papers and presentations being marred or lost.

 Therefore I highly recommend Dropbox. I used a Dropbox account to write a few group papers for one of my classes last semester. Most of my classmates used Macs. I used a PC. Despite the different OS were still able to access and edit Word documents and PDFs with out conflict. 

I love wikis! They make something like a proposal or report interesting and interactive. In order to do something different and show off my wiki-skills I created a wiki page to show off my resume information. Let me know what you think? 

While you can pay for some fancy wiki programs and services. I highly recommend the free options that are available. So far I have used pbworks, wikispaces, and mediawiki. I have decided to create a little chart so you can easily compare the three...but if I had to pick on pbworks is my wiki of choice. ^.^ 

Super Scientific Star Scale * - BOO!! ** - not good *** - GOOD **** - i like **** - <3 !	WikiSpaces	PBworks	MediaWiki
Usability	***	****	**
	Can’t really complain. It’s pretty simple to use.	It’s very easy to format this page however…all functions may not be a readily apparent as with the other wiki services. However once you get the hang out it everything becomes self-explanatory. I find PBworks the easiest to use.	Adding and editing text is easy. But formatting is more cumbersome because you must remember a series of codes to format.  With the other services you have RTF with just a click of a button. It must simpler to make things bold vs. “’bold’”…and bullet listing is just obnoxious
Guidance	***	**	***
	A helpful blog	Not a much support on site the other two but there are helpful videos and blogs abound!	Great tutorials…but I don’t think it makes up for the cumbersome style
Attractiveness	***	****	*
	Not as smooth and attractive as PBworks but still neat and professional without being an eyesore.	Smooth, neat, attractive, but the side bars and top tabs can be a little overwhelming.	If you don’t have programming skills… UGLY!
Free Amenities	***	***	****
	·2 GB Storage ·Unlimited users and pages ·10mb per file limit ·Few privacy options	·  Limited number of color options ·  More security options than wikispaces but you must pay more to be able to limit security on an individual page level ·  Unlimited pages and users ·  Can add larger files (big pictures and pdfs)	Everything! MediWiki is opensource so it’s basically what you make it…if you’re a newb you may want to try one of the other services because they have more built in features
Total Stars:	12	13 WIN!	10
What I Like Most about it?	It’s simple! Not as overwhelming with the weird codes like MediaWiki and easier to understand on your own than PBworks.	The Organization and the Look! I like that it has a backend that you can organize and a front end that looks smooth and clean.	It’s allows Creativity! Because this is open source the creative possibilities are endless.

sorry it's so small

Infographics! information consolidation superheroes to the rescue!

   So remember when you were in grade school (British translation: primary school) and your teachers kept emphasizing how important it was to be able to read charts and graphs?... no? Well in my early education they certainly did. Over and over again we were asked relatively simple questions about graphs and charts. Rabid math and science teachers tried to convince me and my young gum-chewing, nose-picking peers of their value. "Look!" they said, drooling, "see how amazing it is that you can display lots of information in simple visual way?!". My fellow classmates and I would stare at them in unamused silence. Years later, I left school vowing never to be involved in a profession that relied heavily on math and promptly forgot my teachers well-intentioned words of wisdom. Until now!

   Whether or not you study information science, it's clear to see that information is what controls our current lifestyle. Never before have we had access to some much at our fingertips. As I and countless others have mentioned before, information overload is an inevitable result of this boon. People want well organized information and as much of it as possible. Consolidation and Organization are in! Behold a world of databases, social tagging, and twitter! As much information, as organized and as easy to understand as possible!..thus the INFOGRAPHIC!

The infographic allow us to tame the dissonant information chaos around us and make POINT without shouting! . . . (imagine that)

But don't take my word for it. Let's listen to an expert...








Let me interrupt all this excitement with one quick caveat...As David McCandless mentioned whoever can manipulate the most information controls everything. So be a good little journalist and be sure to check the credibility of your sources.
(Corn Refiners Association & America's Natural Gas Alliance...I mean you!) 

case & point

Anyway, on the more happy stuff! So what does all this hubbub about infographics mean to a Web 2.0, interactive, semantic web, techie-buzzword world!? As you saw in the first video, infographics can become interactive...check out the example below for something that takes this to another level:






So want to design some infographics of your own?

• Check out this article this article about 10 of the best free inforgraphic tools. 

•  Lucidchart. It is not as dynamic as some of the other tools, but it still allows you to easily create flowcharts quickly, easily, and socially. Plus I am a sucker for the "Hey Jude" flow chart video.

• Prezi - those in cdp23 know it well...yes i know its more of a presentation tool but you can create infographics within it

Infographics Just for fun:

click the pic for an enlarged view

Also check out

Cool Inforgraphics.com: an awesome blog that posts interesting inforgraphics from all over the web

How to Apply for a Job at NYPL ~ Response

So in my last post three weeks ago I was wondering what it would take to get a job at the New York Public Library ...civil service exams, academic qualifications, etc. So I went to the NYPL website and Asked them. The library system has an "Ask NYPL" section on their website that allows you to call, email, or text them a reference question. I filled out the email form and got a prompt answer...(two days later).

This was their response:

"Thanks for your interest in working at The New York Public Library!

Here is The Library's Employment Opportunities Web page, which lists available positions and all necessary qualifications to apply. Using this, you can apply for jobs directly online. Note that none of NYPL's jobs (librarian or otherwise) require a civil service examination:
http://jobs-nypl.icims.com/jobs/intro

For information on job searching in general (not just in NYPL) be sure to visit the NYPL Job Search Assistance Web page:
http://www.nypl.org/help/getting-oriented/for-job-seekers

Also, the Science, Industry and Business Library keeps Job Search Central (http://www.nypl.org/locations/tid/65/node/40820):
188 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10016
e-mail: sibleref@nypl.org

We hope this helps and wish you all the best with your job search!"

 No Civil Service Exams?! How refreshing! Thanks NYPL! <3

Thing 10 (from a US/NY perspective) & 11

Thing 10: Graduate Traineeships, Master's Degrees, Chartership, Accreditation 


  Living in the United States... I felt a little left out by this section because I don't apply for chartership and there aren't trainee-ships. I took a look at the CILIP website. To earn chartership from the CILIP in UK you have to prepare a portfolio that details your plans, your experience, your hours of service, and your professional development skills. CILIP members must also have a mentor. As intimidating and tough as these qualifications look I really like how the UK holds their librarians up to a rigorous and standard professional guideline. I wish librarians in the US were held up to these types of standards....why? 2 Reasons:
   Reason 1.) I feel that many people in the United States think that any person off the street can be a librarian. A program like CILIP's would show people that Librarians work and train hard to be professionals at their job.
    Reason 2.) In the US every state has a different standard, different state testing & requirements to place for public library jobs, and different levels of schooling they require. A country wide standard would definitely make things less confusing. The ALA helps a little with this but there is still are a lot of different channels to go through.


Here's is what I have to do to become a qualified & hopefully successful public librarian in the state of New York:

• Earn a Master's Degree in Library and Information Science (LIS) or an Master's of Science in Information Science (MSIS) from an American Libraries Association (ALA) accredited program

• Become New York State Certified 
• (see New York Librarian Associations helpful wiki to find out how)

• Fill out the appropriate paperwork and pay a fee for each city and/or town, and/or county I wish to apply for work in ...the paper work is very similar for each but still tedious
• Since I live in Albany right now here is an example of the different forms I would have to fill out to work in Albany: 



NY Counties

• city form
• this form allows me to apply for jobs at any of the Albany Public Libraries
• county form   
• this form allows me to apply for jobs at Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk Community Library and the Bethlehem, Guilderland and Voorheesville Public Libraries

This makes me wonder how much paper work I will have to fill out to get a library job when I move to New York City...in a year or two.....?

Like a good MSIS student I decided to consult a librarian. I sent an email to the reference librarians at the New York Public Library.... I hope to post the response soon :)

Thing 11 Mentoring 
   Unlike the CILIP program, library students in NY are not required to find or build relationships with a mentor but it is encouraged. Personally, I try to learn from professors or supervisors at my internships or volunteer locations...but I am to shy too bluntly ask someone to be my mentor...If I knew someone who advertised themselves as one.. I'd like to think that I would grab the opportunity.

Last semester I went to an "Get a Job! Panel" held at my school where we could ask professionals about job hiring and experiences. I met a librarian there who offered me her email and told her I could talk to her if I had any questions. I plan to hold her to that. Also, there is a woman who works at the museum where I intern who I hope will teach me about grant writing.