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Plays Well With IT

January 25, 2012 By 3 Comments

In the 15 years I’ve worked in libraries, I’ve been in many IT-related roles. A couple of them were even within an IT department. This has been a great vantage point from which to witness the challenging if not ghastly relationships librarians often have with IT.

I’ve been seeing a lot lately about technology training competencies for librarians. Yet something I rarely see mentioned in this context is relating well with IT departments.

As trainers, we have so much need for technology to support our training initiatives, and technology is often in the domain of IT. With this in mind, I thought I’d throw out an additional competency when it comes to technology training.

Competency: Plays Well with IT

Associated Skills and Knowledge:

1) Trainer befriends the Head of IT (substitute equivalent in your organization)

Ask the Head of IT to join you for lunch or coffee. More than once. This allows a human connection to grow between you. They’ll learn that you’re a competent professional, with your own set of skills and your own valid point of view within the organization. You will learn the same. Maybe you’ll end up on the radar when IT plans are being made that have the potential to impact you. You may be told about things going on in the organization that you wouldn’t otherwise know. Cultivate this relationship.

2) Trainer involves IT in planning

Let IT in on your training program plans. If your objectives and needs are understood, especially as they fit in to the larger direction of the organization, it’ll be much easier to get support for your initiatives. True or not, trainers (and many other librarians) have a reputation in IT for following the next shiny thing. It may not be so obvious to IT why everyone in the organization needs to learn social media, or why wikis and blogs are essential for your training program. Make sure your well-thought-out initiatives that involve technology are understood, and not seen as trivial.

3) Trainer folds IT into the product evaluation process

I once worked in a library where the public services management selected and went into a contract for a federated search product, without involving IT in the process. There were considerable implications for IT infrastructure and workload that weren’t planned for. Needless to say, this wasn’t awesome for the relationship between these departments.

Can your current IT infrastructure run the training software you’re evaluating? Host the files it puts out? Letting IT know about a product you want to purchase is a really good idea. Not only will you head off problems, you’ll be able to budget for additional hardware, software and IT staff time you may not have known you need.

4) Before the End Run, Trainer communicates

Sometimes, letting IT know what we’re planning and purchasing results in NO, or some level of control over our program so we’re not able to meet objectives. This is often due to lack of resources, but the bottom line for trainers can be that we’re held back from innovating and doing our jobs. This often leads us to take the proverbial End Run, leveraging the many possibilities for hosting material in the cloud, or using web services that are affordable and don’t involve our IT infrastructure.

If you decide on the End Run, let IT know in advance. They’re going to find out anyway. After the communication attempts you’ve already made, this is your last effort to understand any unanticipated impact.

There may be political or personal fallout from the End Run, and you’ll need to manage it. Sometimes, it’s only the End Run that allows IT to understand what you need. Sometimes, IT is even happy about the outcome.

5) After the End Run, Trainer befriends the Head of IT

See 1) above.

Do you have other ideas or experiences to share about working well with IT? Please feel free to offer them in the comments below.

Mary Beth Faccioli

Mary Beth Faccioli, MLIS is the Instructional Design and Technology Senior Consultant at the Colorado State Library.

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E-readers: step into your patron’s shoes

February 21, 2011 By

My best preparation for helping others adapt to this new technology has been to own and operate my own e-reader. I will hereby truly confess that I was not instantly savvy and suave with the gadget of my choice. No, I definitely had a learning curve to climb. Even if you had no moments of confusion or missteps, put yourself in the shoes of your patrons. Imagine helping your not-so-computer-slick grandmother who doesn’t care about keeping up with the tech-savvy Joneses but just wants to read on a device that will allow her to adjust the font size to her liking.

The following are some of the assumptions I bumped up against while getting acquainted with my e-reader. Your patrons may be coming to the library to be disabused of similar assumptions.

1. I know how my device works.
Gadgets don’t come with detailed instruction manuals these days. No, I don’t believe it is the responsibility of library staff to be a walking instruction manual to educate patrons in the use of their devices; just be prepared for some level of ignorance about the features and functionality.

My shoes: I bought my e-reader at a big box electronic equipment store. After waiting 10 minutes for someone “knowledgeable” about e-readers to show up, I was not told anything more than the information I had arrived with and did not even have the opportunity to operate a test device. I learned later while reading reviews of my model that it has a stylus (so sleekly embedded that it was invisible to me) and the capability of writing and drawing note pages—cool!

2. Checking out an e-book from the library is as easy and familiar as checking out any other item.
It is super-easy to purchase a book from the brand’s online store with a wifi-enabled device. Simply locate the object of reading desire, supply your payment info, click purchase and the e-book pops onto the home screen rarin’ to be read. The commercial entities are good at creating a user-friendly process. This sets up a consumer expectation that the process will be equally seamless for a library download. Not so much.

My shoes: As I navigated to the special “digital books” section on my library website (not the regular catalog), I did diligently read the fine print, the list of compatible devices and the instructions for installing the special software to my computer (not my e-reader) that would allow me to download a book many steps later. I managed to download the desired book but then became confused about how to transfer it to my e-reader. I called tech support and received immediate assistance—yay!

3. I won’t have to wait on a hold list for the electronic version of a popular book.
Wrong.  Don’t be surprised if you are confronted by disappointed patrons. With the surge in popularity of e-readers, the waiting lists will only lengthen.

My shoes: If I had stopped to think about licensing restrictions on electronic content, I would have realized that, of course, there would be limited distribution of digital copies. But in spite of my insider library knowledge, I was caught by surprise to find that a book I wanted had 3 copies available and 8 people ahead of me. I’ve been waiting over two weeks so far …

Enough assumptions for now. I’ll close with a success story for my library: Seattle Public Library. This is actually my husband’s story. He was attempting to download his first library e-book and ran into a similar problem to the one I had encountered. Only it was 2:00 in the morning. He called the tech support number listed on the SPL “digital books” page. Someone answered the call! My husband was so pleased with the immediate help he received that he asked how he could donate to the library. The tech support person helped him navigate to the online donation form and the library was subsequently $50 better off.

Moral of the story: if your library is proud of its e-book tech support, why not place a “Donate Now!” button right next to the “help” button?

Betha Gutsche

Betha Gutsche has been a virtual librarian ever since receiving her MLIS from the University of Washington Information School. Immersed in the online community of WebJunction, she has cultivated community connections through forums, live online events, and writing stories about the library community. She has delved into e-learning design, curriculum development, needs assessment, and all things connected to social learning in the online world. Betha is the editor-in-chief of the Competency Index for the Library Field. She is now the manager of Project Compass, a program working with public libraries to augment their service to communities impacted by tough times. Underneath it all, Betha is an artist and loves to raise awareness of visual literacy and introduce people to the power of image.

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Filed Under: Cool Tools, Learning Styles, Technology Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Learn more, do nothing

August 29, 2010 By

Learning in Action (cc 2.0 http://www.flickr.com/photos/wisemandarine/2411122894/)

The New York Times reported this week that researchers at the University of California, San Francisco have found that rats don’t learn from experience until they take a break from the experience.  The break gives them time to process and create persistent memories.  Furthermore, the researchers believe that their findings almost certainly apply to the way humans learn. Uh oh…

Why uh oh?  Because many humans are increasingly connected to our ipads, blackberrys, smartphones, and laptops, keeping our brains engaged continually throughout the day.  And while all of that ubiquitous connectivity offers us the possibility of reaching heretofore unreachable levels of efficiency and productivity it seems that it might come at a price:  The Times reports that “when people keep their brains busy with digital input, they are forfeiting downtime that could allow them to better learn and remember information, or come up with new ideas. ”

Having recently started a new job, I can attest to the fact that there’s nothing like a silent drive or a brief nap to process and organize a great deal of new information.  My 45 minute commute home might be the most productive part of my day, as that’s where all of the sense-making is happening.  Strange as it may seem, sleeping has also been incredibly productive as I awake many mornings with a number of ideas synthesized from the previous day’s conversations, observations, and readings.

So as we come to the end of another summer and start getting geared up for the busier days of Fall let’s take a moment to remember:  There might be no better way to learn than by stopping, unplugging, and doing absolutely nothing.

Peter Bromberg

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Mind Maps for the Rest of Us

June 3, 2010 By

Sometimes, when I sit down to begin work on a project, it feels like there is a tornado whirling through my brain.  So many ideas begin to pour in that I’m afraid I’m not going to be able to remember them all!  I would have to say that ever since I became a mother a little over three years ago, this condition has definitely become more severe.

In the past, I have used the method of brain dumping to just get it all down on paper.  However, I found that when I wanted to bring all of the ideas together in some kind of logical order, it was difficult to do using a static list.  I can remember actually grabbing a pair of scissors and cutting each little line of thought from my notebook into a strip of paper and then spreading them out all over my office floor to create a flow for a user manual.

That lead me to my next endeavor – index cards.  I believe I was big into David Allen’s Getting Things Done philosophy at the time.  This was definitely better than small, hard to pick up slips of paper.  Still, I felt like I was left with a monumental stack of cards that just didn’t want to get into any kind of order for me.  And the environmentalist in me could not stand all of that waste of trees.

Enter the spreadsheet.  I would type each idea into a line in a spreadsheet and then cut / paste / click / drag my way into some kind of flow.  Again, a little too cumbersome for me.

A little buzz word was ringing in my ear periodically.  It would flit in and out saying “mind map… mind map… mind map…”.  I had seen mind maps here and there.  I actually attempted one on the whiteboard in my training room trying to mimic the way our Network Administrator would just let things flow through his marker.  Instead my whiteboard became a mass of erased and rewritten words.  By the time I was done with it, I felt like I had lost half of my ideas.  Plus, I then had to copy the whole thing to a piece of paper before my next class.

It’s truly amazing to see the works of art that others have put together.

You see, I’m not a very creative person.  It’s true; I admit it.  I am very mathematical and linear.  I always start my Basic Circulation classes with that fact when I hand out my test patron cards to the librarians to use during the training.  There are no funny, themed names like Sally Latefee (which in itself is no good, but I TOLD you, I’m NOT creative).  No, instead students will meet Test One, Test Two, all the way to the very exciting Test Fortyfive.  I always tell them that’s why THEY are the ones doing creative programming at their libraries and I’M the one teaching them how to use the computer!

Then, a glimmer of hope arose on the horizon this past week.  The name of this shiny gem…Mindmeister.  I actually looked at this a few years ago, but did not bother playing with it because remember, I’m not a creative-type.  I figured my brain just would not mesh with what I called in my head Mindmonster.  See where negative self-talk will get you?  I missed out on a few years of actually using this!

What was so painful to do on a whiteboard actually feels comfortable using this online interface.  It’s very easy to use.  The best part is that I can manipulate the information in any way I like.  I can add colors, change text size, bold items, even add icons to let my thoughts actually take shape.  Here’s their quick and simple tutorial:

A Tour of MindMeister from MindMeister on Vimeo.

Just for practice and to get familiar with how to use the software, I took my Circulation Manual and put it into mind map form. The red signifies the topics taught in Advanced Circ. Remember, I’m very new to this…

I’ve set up a new map where I’m brain dumping some ideas for a PC Troubleshooting class I’m developing. Each time I have a thought, I add it to the map. I’m currently sitting in on calls with our technicians to help me assess what needs to be covered in this class.

Then there’s this huge monster I’m creating for a Training Needs Assessment I’m working on. It’s just a place to gather all of the resources I’m pulling from as I work on my methodology for the assessment. It may look insane, but it is actually bringing me so much comfort to have all of the tornado down in software form. It makes sense to me and that’s all that really matters…

I’m hoping I get better at this over time. You can see a whole list of mind mapping software on Wikipedia. The Wild Apricot Blog also has a great post describing mind mapping and giving some how to instructions.

Here are some of my favorites that I’ve bookmarked over the years:

Non Profit Social Media ROI Mindmap

Robin Good’s Collaborative Map

Overdrive Interactive’s Social Media Map for Social Media Marketing

Overdrive Interactive’s Search Marketing Map

John Haydon’s The Shelf Life Of A Facebook Like Map

So what do YOU do to get ideas out of your head?  What process do you use?  If you use mind maps, would you be willing to share some with a newbie?

Stephanie Zimmerman

Stephanie Zimmerman is the Training Coordinator for the Library System of Lancaster County (Pennsylvania), a federated system with 14 member libraries, three branches and a bookmobile, which serves 490,562 residents. She designs and implements technology and development training and consulting to the member libraries. This includes training on Innovative’s Millennium Integrated Library System, Microsoft Office Applications, emerging technologies (i.e. social media) and various other areas. Her goal is to remove the fear of technology and help others to realize the amazing possibilities it provides. Teaching others to do things for themselves and see their excitement when they break through their barriers is her greatest reward. Stephanie has been a software trainer for 15 years. Her past employment involved training on federal and county government applications. She also worked for a private industry marketing company where she traveled across the country showing manufacturers and retailers in the consumer packaged goods industry how to use geodemographic targeting software. Always wanting to help others, Stephanie graduated from Millersville University (in Pennsylvania) cum laude with a BA in Social Work. She was also a student in the Computer Information Systems program at Harrisburg Area Community College. She is a member of ASTD (American Society of Training and Development). She is also a regular contributor to the T is for Training podcast which focuses on training in libraries. She was a trainer for WebJunction’s Spanish Language Outreach project and has done training for Commonwealth Libraries. She is grateful to have landed in the world of libraries. When she began her current job in January of 2004, there were no other library trainers in her immediate area. She turned to the social web to begin networking with other library trainers across the world and immediately realized her passion for social networking and social media. All of her continuing education has been done through these networks and she can’t help but push others to discover the immense opportunities available through online collaboration. Stephanie lives in Lancaster, Pennsylvania with her family which includes husband, Bill (a self-employed stay-at-home-dad) and two children (ages 2 and 4 months). When she’s not being Mommy, or working, you’ll most likely find her singing. Stephanie can be reached at szimmerman[at]lancasterlibraries.org.

Filed Under: Cool Tools, Free Stuff, The Training Life Tagged With: , , ,

Fighting for Attention: Engaging E-Learning Hacks

December 21, 2009 By

Designing e-learning is my creative passion. I get stoked at the prospect of authoring a course that is fun, engaging, and appealing to learners. As an erstwhile student and current professional, I’ve taken scores of self-paced e-learning courses over the years. I’m often astonished by how static and dull most of these presentations are. Granted, there are technical limitations (and in some cases, design standards) that dictate how much multimedia can be used in self-paced course modules. However, smart uses of multimedia in online courses can help capture attention, which is fundamental to facilitating the learning process. Below you’ll find some of my favorite hacks for adding pizzazz to online presentations. Be sure to adhere to the terms of service of each resource listed… and be a good librarian by respecting copyright.

Let’s Get Visual

If you are in need of fun photorealistic visuals, but you are not a Photoshop pro, check out 3dVia’s 3D Collage app. This neat Facebook application allows you to design hybrid 2D/3D images by using a photograph as a backdrop and importing 3D models into the scene. 3D Collage is fast, fun, and free. Simply upload your own 2D image into the program or snag one from Flickr, locate a 3D model from inside the app’s library, and then publish the output to your Facebook profile. Once the picture has been published, simply save a copy of it and paste it into your e-learning course. I’m currently working on a point-and-click adventure about customer experience, and I’ve used 3D Collage to develop all the in-game images.

Hit learners with a quick shot of fun and creativity by using any of these e-learning hacks.

Hit learners with a quick shot of fun and creativity by using any of these e-learning hacks.


Of course there are times when you may need to add video to your e-learning modules. Youtube is an excellent clearinghouse for finding video assets. Depending on your authoring tool, however, streaming videos can present a challenge. If you are using Adobe Captivate 4, there is an excellent Youtube widget that allows for streaming directly to your Captivate presentation. If you do not have Captivate 4, you can likely import the Youtube video as a Flash video file. To save Youtube video as FLV, simply go to KeepVid, enter the URL of the video you want snag, download the file, and then save it as an FLV. Voila! You should now be able to insert the Flash video into your presentation. This tip is useful for authoring tools like Articulate and the free online course builder, Udutu.

Another hack I commonly use is recording screencasts to demonstrate processes. Screencasts are digital recordings of computer screen output. You do not need anything expensive like the commercial version of Camtasia to record one. It’s possible to make a screencast directly from your browser by using Screencast-o-matic.com. Screencast-o-matic integrates with Youtube so that you have a place to host your screencasts for free, provided you have a Youtube account. After recording the screencast, simply upload it to YouTube from the Screencast-o-matic interface. You can link to the screencast, stream it during a course if you are using Captivate’s Youtube widget, or you can rip the FLV file using KeepVid.

It’s Not What You Say, but How You Say It

I prefer self-paced e-learning modules that have audio narration (with the option to mute in the event that the narrator is terrible!) When recording audio, course authors must be mindful of sound quality and audio level. A best practice that I recommend is to record the audio separately, using an editor like the freeware Audacity, and then optimize the audio before importing it into a course. This ensures that all slides have equal sound levels. You can also use Audacity for more creative purposes. Consider applying a voice filter to the narration of an objective slide for a change in pace. If you are using characters or agents in your e-learning, you can also apply filters to their voices for a bit of variety. Here are my three favorite custom filters for Audacity and directions for creating each.

Robot Voice Filter:
1. Record voice
2. Highlight selection
3. Go to Effect, then scroll down to Delay
4. Change the Decay amount 10
5. Change the Delay time to .009
6. Change the Number of Echoes to 30, then click OK
7. Go back to Effect, and repeat Delay four times.
8. Play your edited track

Chipmunk filter:
1. Record voice
2. Highlight selection
3. Go to Effect, then select Change Pitch
4. Modify the Percent Change to 117.50
5. Play your edited track

Walkie-Talkie Filter:
1. Record voice
2. Highlight selection
3. Go to Effect, then FFT Filter
4. Click on purple line and drag it up to the top (12db)
5. Click 10000Hz
6. Click OK
7. Click Effect, then High Pass Filter
8. Change Cutoff Frequency to 2000, then click OK
9. Repeat this process 2 times
10. Play your edited track

Have fun using these hacks, but resist the urge of inserting too many. There is no substitute to sound instructional design.

Jay Turner

Jay Turner, Training Manager at Gwinnett County Public Library in Georgia, is responsible for all aspects of learning and development for a staff of 300+ employees. He considers himself a lifelong student, and delights in sharing his passion for learning with anyone willing to listen (much to their chagrin!) He is a library lifer, who began working in libraries as a teen and has worn almost every conceivable public services hat since. Jay’s diversity of experience helps him develop and deliver solutions that are creative, practical, and effective. He is a self-proclaimed information and tech junkie, who gets his fix by playing in his “digital sandbox” with new tools and neat ideas to make learning more accessible, more flexible, and more fun across any medium. He can be reached at jayturner[at]comcast.net.

Filed Under: Asynchronous Learning, Cool Tools, E-Learning, Screencasting Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Staff Day Success: A Free Webinar

November 30, 2009 By

From InfoPeople:


Title: Staff Day Success!  Tips for Planning, Delivering, and Evaluating All-Staff Events


Date and time: Thursday, December 3, 2009, 12 pm – 1:00 pm Pacific Standard Time


This webinar will last approximately one hour. There is no charge for this webinar.  Pre-registration is not required.


For more information and to participate in the December 3 webinar, go to http://infopeople.org/training/webcasts/webcast_data/306/index.html


Are you involved with planning and implementing an all-staff event at your library? Thinking about a staff day and wondering about the next steps? A staff day may be a regularly scheduled opportunity for team building and morale boosting or may be a day specifically scheduled because of a building program, planning process or other shift in strategic directions.


Whatever the goals for the day, it’s a day with high expectations that is often produced on a shoestring budget by those who are not professional event planners. Planning responsibilities may include finding speakers (often at low or no cost), arranging a venue, dealing with room setups and equipment, developing lunch plans, and ultimately creating a valuable learning experience for library staff.


Those attending the webinar will learn about:


A planning process that involves library leadership as well as employees in all parts of the library

  • Ideas for creative free or low-cost programs
  • The importance of “over-communication” and why branding is part of communication
  • How to evaluate and document the event to leave a legacy for future staff day planners


Join presenter Mary Ross – who has planned and implemented numerous all-staff events, as well as library-related conferences, workshops and training-as she shares tips, tricks and strategies for success. You’ll be able to tackle the challenges in planning and delivering an all-staff event, resulting in a day that is valuable to and celebrates the value of all employees.


Speaker: Mary Bucher Ross.  Mary Ross has over 25 years of experience working in public libraries and managed the staff training and development program at the Seattle Public Library for eight years. Under contract to the Washington State Library, she designed “Anytime, Anywhere Answers” and “The Virtual Reference Adventure,” online training programs for virtual reference providers. She has also designed courses for WebJunction and LibraryU. She is co-author of Virtual Reference Training: The Complete Guide to Providing Anytime, Anywhere Answers, published by ALA Editions in 2004. Currently continuing education coordinator for the Washington Library Association, she is also on the board of directors of the Continuing Library Education Network and Round Table (CLENERT) and was a delegate to ALA’s 2nd and 3rd Congresses on Professional Education.


If you are unable to attend the live event, you can access the archived version the day following the webinar.  Check our archive listing at:


http://www.infopeople.org/training/webcasts/list/archived


Webinar: Staff Day Success! Tips for Planning, Delivering, and Evaluating All-Staff Events

Date: Thursday, December 3, 2009

Time: 12pm – 1:00 pm Pacific Standard Time

Speaker: Mary Bucher Ross

Lori Reed

Lori Reed, Managing Editor of ALA Learning, has more than 15 years experience in training and is the Learning & Development Coordinator for the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library where she oversees the learning & development of a diverse group of staff at twenty libraries. Lori’s passions are performance consulting, learning strategies, and e-learning. Lori is coauthor, with Paul Signorelli, of Workplace Learning and Leadership: A Handbook for Library and Nonprofit Trainers. Lori also blogs at LoriReed.com and can be reached at lori[at]lorireed.com.

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Building the Digital Branch for the 21st Century: Free Webinar

September 3, 2009 By

From BlogJunction:

Webinar: Building the Digital Branch for the 21st Century

A search for “digital branch” on your favorite search engine proves that David Lee King is one of those responsible for inserting the term into our library lexicon and into the job titles of some of today’s most innovative library leaders. He’s the author of the recently published edition of Library Technology Reports focusing on the topic and also the presenter of our next WebJunction webinar.

Join us on September 15 for Building the Digital Branch: Guidelines to Transform Your Website for the 21st Century, a webinar brought to you in special collaboration with WebJunction-Kansas and ALA TechSource.

David will present on the process his web team used at Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library (KS) to transform their outdated website into a 21st century digital branch. He’ll address the differences between a website and a digital branch, and describe the redesign process – everything from the introductory planning stages of overhauling their website to the process of actually “doing stuff” at the new digital branch.


Lori Reed

Lori Reed, Managing Editor of ALA Learning, has more than 15 years experience in training and is the Learning & Development Coordinator for the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library where she oversees the learning & development of a diverse group of staff at twenty libraries. Lori’s passions are performance consulting, learning strategies, and e-learning. Lori is coauthor, with Paul Signorelli, of Workplace Learning and Leadership: A Handbook for Library and Nonprofit Trainers. Lori also blogs at LoriReed.com and can be reached at lori[at]lorireed.com.

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