Web 2.0 Technology Application to Libraries

Joint, N. (2009).  The Web.20 challenge to libraries.  Library Review, 58(3), 168-178.

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Abstract of the Article:

  Joint (2009) gives an overview and more importantly caveats of the effect of Web 2.0 to libraries. Initially, he describes Web 2.0 as having “heightened functionality” compared to Web 1.0 as offering only “passive text describing library services and hyperlinks to information sources”.   As he has observed, it is the reference service that foremost benefited from the proliferation of Web 2.0 applications such as RSS feeds, blogs, wikis, instant messaging, social networking, and podcasting.  According to Joint (2009), this development has widened the reach of libraries; however he is quick to warn that one must have an integrated purpose in using these applications. In other words, Web 2.0 applications are simply tools of established objectives.  Another caveat is the long-term difficulty of using external platforms for various library services such as acquisition, cataloging, and circulation.  For Joint (2009), building the institutional services of a library on an “external, non-institutional server” can lead to legal and technical problems, viz ownership and security.  In the end, the utility of Web 2.0 applications cannot be undermined; it’s just that libraries must be critical in employing it.

3 Things I learned:

1.       The distinction between Web 1.0 and Web 2.0. The former offer only “passive text” and “hyperlinks to information sources” while the latter is characterized by more interactive applications.

2.       The development of Web 2.0 paved the way for digital libraries to have an increase and enhanced web presence; thus extending its reach but also placing it in a relatively vulnerable position.

3.       The popularity of Web 2.0 applications can be attributed not just to its interactive trait but also to the sense of personal control it gives to individual users.

Application / Implication:

   Developing a portal for the OGCC Library, which will utilize Web 2.0 applications, should not be seen as a harebrained idea.  In fact, I should be considering it as one expected output from my proposed study of redefining the role of the OGCC Library in the government corporate sector (LIS 299).  Now that’s another step albeit a single one in the long winding road towards a pro-active OGCC Library. May the force be with me.