Thing 21 Beyond My Space: Other Social Networks

Exploring Gather was my first foray into the world of other social networks. Since I'm working on a project involving public library services to children at the moment, I checked for groups interested in that topic. I found several groups but little useful information or leads. In one case, I found photos of a trip to Shanghai, of interest to me since I spent a few days there on a trip to China, but nothing pertinent to my work.

On to WebJunction which looks much friendlier and more streamlined in its new version. I created an account, mostly because MLA's Legislative Committee will use WebJunction for discussion of this year's platform planks and other legislative issues. The Committee tried this approach last year, too, but it did not work well as several members (including me) could not seem to get in. This year the path is much easier, and I believe the effort will succeed.

Also checked out the 23 Things Ning where I noticed the photo of a member from West St. Paul, the city where I work. Turns out she is a school library media specialist in a nearby high school, someone I have not yet met. I sent a comment and hope she will respond. That would be a first for me, meeting someone local through a social network!

I was able to add a 23 Things badge to my Facebook page but have not yet succeeeded in adding one to my blog despite several efforts. It's time to turn to my colleagues for advice.

Thing 20 Facebook and MySpace

I spent a fair amount of time on Facebook, less on MySpace. I set up a Facebook page where my first two friends are my son and daughter-in-law who have pages much more developed and interesting than mine. It's clear they use their pages actively, adding friends, tracking their travels, listing details in their profiles about music and reading preferences. In fact, I learned a few things about them I had not known before! I joined two groups, ALA and 23 Things on a Stick. and wrote several messages on my daughter-in-law's wall.

On MySpace I took a brief cruise of the site and looked at library pages for Denver Public and Hennepin County. The number of book ads in the form of thank yous posted by authors on both sites surprised me.

Of these two social networking sites, Facebook is the one I'd be more likely to use.