IUG Conference - Innovations from the Library World

At the recent IUG Conference in Washington D.C. the eLGAR team picked up some exciting tidbits of innovation and initiative happening in libraries around the world. Here is a summary of the best.

New Kids Catalogue – Mid-Hudson Library Consortium
Mid-Hudson a large consortium in New York State, has developed a unique kids' catalogue designed for children to navigate using a highly graphic presentation and results display.

This Kids' Catalogue was the first place winner in the WebPac category of the Be Innovative Awards. Check it out on http://gigcat.midhudson.org:90/search~S2. Note: some library firewalls block this url but it is well worth taking a look at from your home computer.

Wiki Site for Staff Competencies
West Palm Beach a Florida based local library, has produced a wiki-based skills programme for staff.

The wiki provides training materials and tracks progress on core Millennium competencies. It has been so successful that there are expansion plans to cover other areas of library technology use.

Events Calendar using Patron API
Hong Kong Baptist University has come up with a clever way of using the Innovative Patron API to enable notification of due dates and reserve pickups etc to be sent direct to patron's web calendars or Outlook style diaries. They can also be advised of library events or programmes and register online without logging in to the library website. eLGAR currently uses the Patron API for Pay online.

American libraries particularly public, seem to be very programme focussed. There are a few quite interesting developments in proactive event marketing. Innovative have a Programme Registration module and there are a few other options using various Web 2.0 features like RSS and Atom feeds to alert customers to what’s on at their library.

Innovative have made several enhancements to its Programme Registration module making it one option for eLGAR however several other third party products also exist.

Facebook Library Search Application
Ryerson in Toronto, Canada is one of the larger Millennium universities. Facebook is absolutely pervasive in the U.S. university world as it was originally created by students to keep track of friends. On the basis of going where your audience already is, many libraries have catalogue search functions on Facebook but Ryerson has extended their functionality to render the results within Facebook rather than linking out to the OPAC in separate browser windows.

The Future of On-Line Browsing

There must be a better way for us to show off the collections in the OPAC, especially for the person at home that we are looking to deliver items to in the future. I had a really "thats it" moment when I saw zoomii.com.

Built to interface with Amazon books, zoomii shows you virtual bookshelves to browse online, just like you would in a bookshop or library. It just seemed right to me. You can interact with the "books" by zooming in & out in a way that feels natural.

If you look at the site, and I recommend you do, you can watch a video about zoomii. Then just imagine LibraryThing and zoomii-type browsing together in our OPAC.

Rivkah Sass - Visiting American Library Speaker

Welcome all to the eLGAR - 3M Innovation Award visit of American guest conference speaker Rivkah Sass to Auckland.

Rivkah is the dynamic Director of the Omaha Public Library, noted for risk-taking when named by the Library Journal as Librarian of the Year 2006. A great believer in technology where it combines to improve service to customers and make the life of a librarian easier, she is an advocate for progress. Rivkah is passionate about connecting with our communities to form strong partnerships and she is an energetic campaigner promoting libraries in a competitive world.

eLGAR is using prize money from the 3M Innovation Award to bring you five opportunities to attend a talk by this international guest. All staff are welcome and those applying for LIANZA Professional Registration may wish to include this as part of their continued update of professional knowledge.

Wednesday 2 April Orewa Community Centre, Moana Court, Orewa, 11.30am-1.00pm
Wednesday 2 April Takapuna Library, The Strand, Takapuna, 5.30-7.00pm
Thursday 3 April Howick Little Theatre, Lloyd Elsmore Park, Pakuranga, 11.00am-12.30pm
Thursday 3 April Lecture Theatre 510-B007, UNITEC Campus, Ratanui St, Henderson, 5.30-7.00pm
Friday 4 April Waitemata Conference Room, Auckland Central Library, Lorne St, 10.30am-12.00pm

In order not to miss out on this opportunity RSVP to your local contact:
Kris Wehipeihana - Rodney
Myrna Contreras - North Shore
Rachael Stevens - Manukau
Winnie Noronha d'Costa - Waitakere
Louise Anderson - Auckland