WebJunction

With so many excellent questions coming into the discussion boards AND with the members' huge knowledge base to answer these questions, we've started a new weekly feature: Question of the Week!

This topic will direct you to the featured question of the week and serve as a spot for you to highlight or ask your own question of the week.

This week's question comes from member ms.lameane: "Does anyone provide [url /forums/thread.jspa?threadID=7481&tstart=0]programs especially for teen parents?[/url]" Go to the post to see more about the question and to share your suggestions.

Looking forward to seeing your answers AND questions!

Get more ammunition from OCLC latest report "Sharing, Privacy and Trust in Our Networked World" - OCLC 2007

“On the social Web, the library brand must go from institutional to personal. For example, many libraries have initiated broadcast services on their Web sites; RSS feeds and blogs are among the most common. No doubt, these are useful services. But if our goal is to create a social library, focusing on these broadcast services is likely leading us in the wrong direction—perpetuating the traditional concept (brand) of the library as a supplier of information, an institution, not a place for idea generation and exchange. Some very simple techniques are creating a personal brand promise for online commercial sites. A quarter of survey respondents told us they establish a “my favorites or wish list” on commercial sites. No such service exists on most library sites. While this simple application is no doubt a relatively useful service for consumers, it is an invaluable brand endorsement for the vendor. It creates a partnership into the future, a sense of joint ownership of the Web experience and provides users with a personal reason to return. By inviting participation, the connection between the customer and the supplier, or the user and the library, changes. And so do the perceptions.” Sharing, Privacy and Trust in Our Networked World - OCLC 2007

This report to the OCLC membership summarizes the findings from an international study on online social spaces, including social networking attitudes and habits of both end users and librarians. http://www.oclc.org/reports/sharing/default.htm

Here's the question for this week from gefitz: [url /forums/thread.jspa?threadID=7663&tstart=0]With little budget and no staff time, how can we build a good website?[/url]

There's a lot more to the question, so check it out and add your answer to the discussion or as a comment in [url http://blog.webjunctionworks.org/index.php/2007/11/09/question-of-the-week-redesign-on-a-shoestring/]BlogJunction[/url].

See this week's question from changedc about [url /forums/thread.jspa?threadID=7760&tstart=0] Requiring Picture identification for library cards and its impact on immigration[/url].

Here's this week's question: [url /forums/thread.jspa?threadID=8032&tstart=0]Have you been through the experience of moving your entire data center/server room to a new building?[/url]

Post your comments with the question in either the discussion topic above or in [url http://blog.webjunctionworks.org/index.php/2007/12/21/question-of-the-week-moving-a-server/]BlogJunction[/url]

Here's this week's question: [url /forums/message.jspa?messageID=41635#41635] My library is also in process of circulating laptops. I am also curious to find out circulating polices for laptops in public libraries?[/url]

Post your comments with the question in either the discussion topic above or in [url http://blog.webjunctionworks.org/index.php/2008/01/28/question-of-the-week-circulating-laptop-program/]the blog[/url]

This week's question comes from [url http://webjunction.org/forums/profile.jspa?userID=24208]amberdevo[/url], who's faced with an IT department that is challenging an RSS implementation as a [url http://www.webjunction.org/forums/thread.jspa?threadID=8401&tstart=0#49012]"security risk."[/url]

I think this plays into a larger issue of how library staff can get IT folks on board with the Library 2.0 initiatives we hope to deliver to our patrons.

Please share your tips, war stories, and suggestions in the [url http://www.webjunction.org/forums/thread.jspa?threadID=8401&tstart=0#49012] original thread.[/url]

This week's question is part of an ongoing discussion started by WebJunction member [url http://www.webjunction.org/forums/profile.jspa?userID=2698]janieh[/url]:

[url http://www.webjunction.org/forums/thread.jspa?forumID=64&threadID=6971#50133#49012]Does your library have a Staff Development Day where you close the library (or system if you part of a county library) for an entire day? If so, what do you do? Also, what time of year do you hold it?[/url]

Please post your comments with the question in original message [url http://www.webjunction.org/forums/thread.jspa?forumID=64&threadID=6971#50133#49012]thread[/url].

<i>The question of the week for March 11-17 didn't get published in this thread. I'm including it here for future reference</i>.

Member [url http://www.webjunction.org/forums/profile.jspa?userID=23236]stolson[/url] asks a number of questions about how libraries deal with borrower ID requirements, especially:

[url http://www.webjunction.org/forums/thread.jspa?threadID=8701&tstart=0#50133_49012]"What do you do when the wife seeks borrowing privileges, but her last name is different (Lopez) from her husband’s last name (Garcia) and all bills mailed to the home show only the husband’s last name?"[/url]

We encourage your thoughts. Please respond in the [url http://www.webjunction.org/forums/thread.jspa?threadID=8701&tstart=0#50133_49012] original discussion[/url].

Message was edited by:
timking

This week's question, from WebJunction member [url http://www.webjunction.org/forums/profile.jspa?userID=1900] phenley[/url], is a technology question with a practical bent. How can a library allow patrons access to hardware like scanners:

[url http://www.webjunction.org/forums/thread.jspa?forumID=37&threadID=8831#50133_49012]If you offer scanning for the public, does staff do it, or is the scanner out and available for anyone to use? Do people seem to be able to manage, or does staff usually have to help?[/url]

Please post your responses in the [url http://www.webjunction.org/forums/thread.jspa?forumID=37&threadID=8831#50133_49012]original [/url] discussion thread.