Brenda Hough's blog

At the MaintainIT Project, we're always working to find new and useful ways to communicate about library technology, so when I recently encountered the Reelfoot Regional Library System's Reel Wiki, I asked Joyce Gunnels if she would share some information about it with me. Luckily, she agreed and here are her responses.

Faithful followers of content on the MaintainIT site may have noticed a shiny new chapter now available on the Cookbooks page. It's a sneak peek at the forthcoming Cookbook - a chapter on Communicating with Techies and Non-Techies. And it's here just in time to complement the 30-minute webinar we're hosting over at WebJunction on Wednesday.

Thank you to everyone who attended this month's train-the-trainer webinar! We discussed ideas for using MaintainIT resources in training. I highlighted resources that are available, talked about examples of trainings that are taking place, and asked the participants for ideas, too.

On Friday, August 1st, I attended and presented at the Northeast Kansas Library System's annual Tech Day. Michael Porter, AKA Libraryman, kicked the day off with an inspiring and engaging presentation about "gadgets". It was exciting to hear about technologies that will be impacting us not only in the future, but also right now.

Every month, MaintainIT hosts an online book club discussion. We select a chapter from one of the Cookboks, invite people to read it, and then meet to discuss. Earlier this week a group gathered to discuss Meal Plan 5 from Recipes for a 5-Star Library, which is all about PC Reservation/Time Management Software.

How do you handle computer reservations and time limits at your library?
A. We don't. First come, first serve. No time limits.
B. We use paper sign-in sheets.
C. We use PC Reservation software.

I just attended David Lee King's SirsiDynix Institute webinar, "Video on the Web: A Primer." Like most librarians, I'm a word lover. Reading them. Writing them. Being surrounded by them. For this reason, blogging has been a natural fit for me and I've been doing it for years. As a reader of blogs and websites, however, I have become more and more aware of the story-telling power of the visual.

 Bobbi Newman, Librarian by Day, sparked interesting conversation and action with her recent blog entry, encouraging librarians to describe a day in their professional life. Lori Reed and others have taken off with this idea and have created a wiki to help track the activities. Some people have already posted a log of their daily activity.

Thank you to everyone who attended today's first MaintainIT book club. We discussed "Meal Plan 1: Setting Up a Wireless Network" from Recipes for a 5-Star Library. 18 people from around the country participated in the discussion. Topics ranged from basic wireless set-up to filtering to splash pages. 

Just attended the 30-minute webinar, "Notes on setting up wireless at your library," featuring Sharon Moreland and Liz Rea from the Northeast Kansas Library System (my old stomping grounds!). I feel the same way I did after the other 30-minute webinars: "Wow! I cannot believe we covered that much in that short amount of time!" I like the quick, practical approach and think it suits the busy life of a librarian well.