A Librarian’s Guide to Creating 2.0 Subject Guides

The New Web has brought with it some amazing tools for creating online subject guides. These tools offer the addition of multimedia and multi-format elements such as photos, videos, social bookmarks, RSS feeds, and widgets to traditional resource guides, as well as an interactive dimension which makes them particularly 2.0. Here are a few tools for creating your own 2.0 guides. Got any other ideas for subject guides? Please share them in the comments!

Squidoo

Experts in any field are welcome to create subject guides which are referred to here as “lenses”. Lensmasters are able to add narrative sections, link to websites, online articles, blogs, RSS feeds and much more including pulling in multimedia and external content such as images from Flickr, bookmarks from del.icio.us, videos from You Tube, books from Amazon, and even inserting Google maps. Lenses can be made interactive by inserting user polls, enabling user voting on recommended resources, inviting users to add to resource lists, and allowing reader feedback.
Already being used by libraries & librarians?
Yes, check out these examples:
Using Web 2.0 Principles to Become Librarian 2.0
Library 2.0 Reading List
Resources for LIS753

Libguides

LibGuides is a white-label subscription service which enables libraries to create a branded community of librarian-created subject guides or portals for their users. These subject guides, or libguides can incorporate all kinds of content including pulling in RSS feeds, embedding videos and podcasts, pulling in del.icio.us tag clouds, uploading documents, and running user polls, etc. These guides are very widget-friendly - I was able to insert a Rollyo search box with my custom-made search engines, and libguides can be shared through a Facebook application. Libguides creators - librarians - get their own individual profiles which aggregate all of their guides and contact information, and they can even embed a live IM chat widget.
Already being used by libraries & librarians?
Yes, it’s currently being used by over 30 libraries, here are a few examples:
Dalhousie University Libraries
Boston College University Libraries
Utah State University Libraries

Koonji

Hindi for “key”, a koonji is a how-to or resource guide for a particular subject which is broken down into steps. Each step describes a process and can include narrative, recommended links lists, tips, videos, and images. Users can add and recommend links, vote for and add tips, discuss guides in forums, and rate koonji guides.
Already being used by libraries & librarians? No, not yet, be the first! For now, see these interesting guides:
How to get your book published
Fortune telling with Turkish coffee
How to sell your house

Library Subject Guides using del.icio.us

Here is a resource guide and a technique for using the linkrolls feature of del.icio.us combined with an RSS feed service such as Feed2JS in order to output a dynamic list of resources onto any website. This guide will let you know how to get started with creating your own subject guides utilizing your del.icio.us bookmarks. This technique is perfect for those who want to keep their existing subject guides, with their formatting, on their own websites, etc. but want to be able to offer fresh content regularly without the hassle of updating pages.
Already being used by libraries & librarians?
Yes, by a few so far, check out these examples:
Chelmsford Public Library
Hilton C. Buley Library

This entry was posted on Monday, October 1st, 2007 at 12:22 pm and is filed under Change & Innovation, Creativity, Library 2.0, Social Software, Web 2.0. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.