Week 7, Thing 17: Library 2.0

I really like how libraries have gotten on board with Web 2.0. Libraries are one public institution that can really benefit from all that Web 2.0 has to offer. They are being really vocal about the importance of and need for collaborative, intuitive, and fun web services.

One of the main facets of Library 2.0 is the idea that libraries should offer services to users in their preferred workspaces - libraries need to go to their users. The Whitby Public Library, for example, does this by maintaining Facebook and Twitter accounts. They also have an extremely user-friendly website.

Wendy Schultz says in her brief article about the infinite futures of libraries, that people have to be at the centre of any library's concerns. The transient and dynamic nature of Library and Web 2.0 means that libraries have to be ready to adapt but it is important to remember that users come first and this might mean adopting strange (at first) and different techniques to serve the public.