Thing 21. Beyond MySpace: Other Social Networks

View my page on 23 Things on a Stick


It wasn't too long after I joined FaceBook that I was introduced to another social networking site -- www.wearevikingsfans.com. One of the things I enjoy the most about going to football games is the camaraderie among the fans. Now, I can enjoy that year round on-line. A sub-group on this social network is creating all kinds of events to go along with the big draft party at Winter Park at the end of the month. I digress, this is supposed to be about library work....

Anyway, it is obvious from my Viking fan experience of the value of a hobby or interest social network in addition to a general one. I have used it with enthusiasm. I enjoyed being introduced to other such interest sites. I am also going to see that the gather site gets added to our Library's home page as a resource for book lovers. I am also going to further investigate the use of the video sites and evaluate their usefulness for collection development purposes.

In addition to Library Thing, I have experimented with a variety of book based applications on social networking sites. They all have value -- it just depends upon what you are most comfortable with and what the people that you want to interact with are using.

After unsuccessfully trying to maintain about 3 different types of book applications, I abandoned all but Library Thing and now add RSS feeds for my Library Thing account on my FaceBook.]

As librarians, we have to use these tools. There is so much potential her for marketing, sharing the rich resources and continued relevance of the library and to maintain technical credibility with our users.

P.S. I enjoyed Ning and liked how easy it was to create your one social networking site. I see opportunities for this in other areas of my life.