Finally got it working - between code from three different people I’ve got a search box for the NULS OPAC working. I inserted a demo in my MySpace page. For those of you who wish to add it to your webpages here is the source code (use ‘view source’ to pick it up) http://www.myspace.com/virgh
Just finished watching “An Inconvenient Truth” - wow, amazing how they got the evidence together in a compelling format.
HOWEVER, I must say I was terribly disappointed that there was way more emphasis on the science and not so much on how to fix the problem. I went to the website listed at the end of the film (www.climatecrisis.net, 2007), and here are tips from their pages on what you can do to help solve the problem:
AT HOME
AT MEALS
TRANSPORTATION
So many students who are about to begin their thesis don’t get enough information on the process itself of thesis writing. Here are the tips I’ve learned along the way of both writing my own and helping others in the Library.
1. Start with Chapter 2 (Literature Review) so you know what is out there on your topic area. Then you can fill in Chapter 1 (Introduction) and figure out specifically what question you want to research.
2. Learn what your word processor can do for you automatically. Did you know that the Table of Contents can be done automatically? That you can sort the references automatically? Do you know how to set it automatically to display roman numerals on the first few pages and Arabic numbers on the rest?
3. For each article that you read, create a 3×5 card (or a 4×6 card) with the last name of the first author, the year, and BRIEF notes about how the article relates to your topic. Then, when you’re ready to organize your literature review, you can shuffle the cards and not the banker’s box of journal articles that you have collected (yes, you will probably have that many!).
4. Decide on a logical set of divisions for your Chapter 2 (Literature review). Does this topic fit into past/present/future? Would it make more sense to divide it by three major concepts within the discipline? Should it be divided geographically into regions (US, Europe, Asia, etc.)?
5. Have at least one person you can truly count on to read over your paper and look for grammar, spelling, or logic errors. This person should be someone OTHER than your professor, so you don’t wear them out with re-readings.
6. Pick a topic you love because by the end of the process you’ll be sick of it.
7. Know that when you ‘finish’ writing it, and give it to your prof., they’re going to give it back to you with corrections to make. Don’t cry - just know that it’s like a boomerang and will keep coming back to you for a while, even when you think it’s all finished.
8. I didn’t listen (hindsight) to my wonderful friend who very correctly said that human subjects make it take MUCH longer than if you avoid trying to do it with original human subject research. Sigh. (Don’t get me wrong - I like doing original research - but it has taken me a year to finish this one thing rather than one semester as I had hoped for.) Why does it take longer? Approvals and permission slips, and ‘recruiting’ participants is much more difficult than it sounds.
9. Thesis grades are pass/fail, but some of us get wrapped up in wanting to ‘publish’ our findings. Here’s a thought: you’re writing the thesis for the professor & committee. Get them what they need, get your grade, graduate, and then you can spend more time fluffing up your work to your liking, if you’re more of a perfectionist than is needed to ‘pass’ the thesis.
10. Do the abstract LAST - it’s a summary of everything, including your findings, so there’s no way you can write a good abstract first even though it will be one of the first pages in your document.
PURL stands for Persistent Uniform Resource Locator, also known as a persistent URL. URL is the address you type on the internet to access a webpage. We’re testing PURL with our online catalog, and I’m excited about it because for the last three years no one knew how to do it and this is totally useful for us.
Yahoo! had a piece on this recently - fascinating stuff - using technology to line up humans behind the screen. Much like in the ‘Wizard of Oz’, except you know there’s someone behind the curtain.
They highlighted ‘mechanical turk’ - a venture by Amazon to “complete simple tasks that people do better than computers. And, get paid for it.” They call each of these tasks a “HIT” which stands for Human Intelligence Task.
There’s also a search engine out there - ChaCha - that combines brainpower with bandwidth. Their ‘Search with a Guide’ will “get the few exact results you want, not the millions of results you don’t.” Sounds like a librarian to me! 
Check out this list of ‘bests’ for Web 2.0: http://realsoftwaredevelopment.com/2006/10/best_of_the_bes.html
They say they’re updating it daily based on user feedback, so watch for new innovations too.
Wow! This is truly the power of an online community. Catalog and review your own library of books, and share that info with others!
Do you do the Library Thing?
VOIP stands for Voice Over Internet Protocol, and what it means is you can use your computer like a telephone. Many VOIP services are ‘free’ - all you need is an internet connection. Some have minimal charges for special services.
Skype is one example of a VOIP software. Here at the university, iLinc is our VOIP software for classes that meet online.
I’m looking forward to the day when there will no longer be an old-fashioned “telephone” on my desk - technology has made it redundant. All I need is my computer with a microphone headset and I can talk to anyone for ‘free’ - is this the end of ‘long distance’ and ‘roaming’ charges? (I’m not holding my breath, but it’s good for now.)
Social networks like MySpace and facebook gather thousands of new users each week. Are we (libraries) gathering thousands of new users each week? People are beginning to create sustainable social networks online that go beyond participating in high school or college groups.
The idea is that libraries need to go where the people are. To be part of those groups, we can make our own page in these environments, and also enable others to save our online library catalog (OPAC) into their own page as well.
The biggest draw is that these services combine a lot of Web 2.0 functions into one place. Interactive events, blogs, publishing, communication, photos, avatars, etc. are available to members.
Should University Libraries have a presence in these online communities?
Avatars - what are they? They are a visual representation that you use for yourself in the online world. They can be cartoons, photos, drawings, a logo, etc.
The importance of visualization in the Web 2.0 environment was discussed by Stephen Abram in his recent podcast on technology in libraries. He believes this is how people are going to be using the web in the future.
Like colors on a map, patterns can be seen visually that convey information without words. Retrievers will be used to draw and prioritize pictures that match up with your drawing - a visual search tool that will give the ability to find pictures without metadata and without words.
Do you have an avatar? Have you found any retriever tools online yet?