The start to that forgetfulness is a clean, friendly user interface that allows instructors to setup a course quickly.  Coursekit is banking on its easy to use interface trumping the complexity of other learning management systems, like Blackboard, in order to persuade individual faculty to use it instead. Coursekit is free and doesn’t require institutional cooperation for instructors to use it with their courses, meaning instructors can choose to use it without encountering any institutional barriers.  To start, instructors create a new course, create an account, and send invitations to their students through email.

Creating a Coursekit site is quick and easy.

After creating a new Coursekit site, instructors can set up meeting times for their courses, upload syllabi, create assignments, and provide information about supplemental and required course resources. The site is definitely inspired by the Facebook news feed, as the “Stream” view creates a timeline of comments, questions, and links posted by both the instructors and students.

A variety of methods of interaction between students and instructors are available in Coursekit, including assignments, questions, links, and blog entries.

While teaching faculty will most likely represent the majority of users creating Coursekit sites, I do see an opportunity for libraries without for-credit information literacy courses to take advantage of a LMS like this as well. Because Coursekit is not tied to an institution’s profile, it allows individuals to create non-credit, self-paced courses (fake courses, some might say) for their users. Libraries could use this system to not only structure their information literacy program in a meaningful, incremental fashion throughout a student’s college career, but they could create the learning blocks that coincide with those steps in a self-paced course using Coursekit.

Perhaps library Coursekits could be set up for each year of a typical individuals academic career (e.g. LIB100, LIB200, LIB300, and LIB400). Assignments, tutorials, and resources that represent the important content at each stage of learning could be added to the site. Librarians could monitor new students posts and “assignment” submissions and give feedback to students. Will all students follow the course from beginning to end? Probably not, but the research skills would be presented incrementally and students could be pointed to particular materials within the site for help with certain concepts. Coursekit could be a good tool for planning how to stage info lit concepts throughout a student’s college career.

So take a look at Coursekit, explore its features, recommend it to faculty who are unimpressed with their current LMS choices, but most of all, consider how your library can use it to extend and stage your IL instruction efforts.

• Administration (organizational charts, project and workflow management)
• Instruction (venn diagrams, mind maps)
• Technology (database/ dataflow diagrams, website wireframes)
• Research (data representation, presentations)

Examples of Creately Diagrams

Creately tools are available through a variety of ways including a web based program, a downloadable program, as a Google App, or as a plugin through JIRA, FogBugz and Confluence.  I looked at the web based version.  The web based program has several pricing options including a limited free version.  The free version allows a user to have any 5 diagrams saved online with a maximum number of 3 collaborators.   The web based Creately prices are listed here: http://creately.com/plans.  When contacting the company, I was told that there was a 50% educational discount for all of their products.  To receive the discount email: edu@creately.com.

What it does

Like canaries for your website, BinaryCanary keeps track of the status of your website and notifies you if it can’t make a connection to your site (i.e. your site is down). It’s as simple as that. You can receive notifications via either text or email. When your website goes down, you’ll be notified that BinaryCanary was unable to connect; when the site becomes available again BinaryCanary will send another notification.

An email will be sent when the website appears to be down.

A follow-up email will be sent when service is restored.

Obviously not all of us are managing websites, but this service could still be beneficial to those who are not. Libraries provide access to numerous online resources, and we need to be fairly diligent about making sure these resources are always available to our patrons. BinaryCanary could be used to monitor the availability of your OPAC or databases that your students use frequently.

As an example, Towson uses WorldCat Local for the book search function on the library website’s home page. I can monitor the availability of our WorldCat Local site by clicking Add Monitor in BinaryCanary and providing the URL for our instance of WorldCat Local* (http://towsonuniversity.worldcat.org).

Adding websites to monitor is simple. Just click 'Add Monitor' in the menu on the left and enter the URL for the site you wish to monitor.

While there may or may not be something you can do to bring the site back up, it is helpful to at least know that it’s down without one of your patrons having to tell you.

Other Features

There are several different fee-based plans for BinaryCanary, but a free account gets you quite a bit. You can monitor up to five sites (depending on how you set things up). You can add contact information for multiple individuals so several people who might be responsible for a particular website can be contacted. A workflow called an Escalation Profile can be created to determine who gets called when. BinaryCanary also keeps track of the website’s history, so you can analyze when and how often it failed to load during a particular period of time.

The reporting features in BinaryCanary can help you analyze your server's/website's availability history.

So, continue the legend of the canary and give BinaryCanary a try. If you use another program to monitor the status of servers/websites, I’d be interested to know how it’s worked for you. Leave a comment on this post!

This page has some nice info and photos about the use of canaries in coal mines: http://www.msha.gov/century/canary/canary.asp.

*OCLC will be happy to know that in the month we have been monitoring WorldCat Local they have 100% up-time.

For a related, yet opposite purpose to print out web pages, check out http://www.printwhatyoulike.com/. Unlike Web2PDFCovert.com, this tool is not meant to archive a page as it is displayed, instead, it is meant to modify the way a website is printed so you can just “print what you like”. The tool allows you to highlight aspects of the page and delete or modify for better printing. This is great for removing ads on that online article or to highlight certain parts of a page for instructional purposes. The altered webpage images can be saved as html or PDF files so they can be emailed easily in addition to printed.

So go on, print out the web.

I give each student a number at the beginning of class. The number is the row they use to fill in the information from the above column. (Trust me when I say that things can get very complicated if you skip this step.)  I always pre-fill the second row with model answers. I created a best practice top ten list you can follow if you would like to create one. I could go on, but let me just say, that it’s super easy to do and I believe best learned by doing. Here’s an example of one of the first classes I conducted. I’ve tailored my instruction to accommodate what I’ve seen from the results. I encourage you to try it just once to see its merits. Enjoy!


Shannon Simpson is a 2009 graduate of Kent State with a Master in Library and Information Science. She spent a year and a half in a Residency at Towson University’s Cook Library, and was offered and accepted the hybrid position of Research Instruction and Special Collections Librarian in January 2011. She is the Art+Design liaison and while teaching instruction classes for various art classes is also working on building an oral history project for a Baltimore city neighborhood. Shannon blogs regularly at The Baltimore Bookie.

As mobile devices become more ubiquitous, more tools are available to help you develop your mobile initiatives. For web apps (i.e. mobile websites), several mobile frameworks have emerged to ease the development process. As the phrase indicates, mobile frameworks provide the framework for building mobile websites, allowing you to focus on the content and navigation. Most mobile frameworks are built to work on a wide variety of devices and provide a similar look/feel to native apps (i.e. apps that are built for a specific device).

While there are many mobile frameworks available, I have found the jQuery Mobile Framework to be both easy to use and well-documented (very important!). Additionally, the jQuery framework is compatible with a wide variety of devices and degrades nicely for those devices that are not quite as smart (see a list of supported platforms here). One of the benefits to web apps is the ability to create one site that works for any mobile device. Thus, choosing a mobile framework that helps you accomplish this makes sense.

So what does jQuery Mobile do?

Before I get into that, it’s important to state that jQuery Mobile does not eliminate the need to know how to create a website using HTML. In fact, to use it most effectively, it helps to have a solid understanding of HTML, as well as web programming languages like PHP or Coldfusion. What it does do for you is turn your basic HTML code into a mobile-friendly user interface by providing pre-defined Javascript interactions and CSS styling. All you have to do is add a few hooks (that’s what I call them) so that jQuery Mobile knows what to do.

Unformatted hyperlink

So, by changing this line of code:

<a href=”http://www.google.com”>Google</a>

into this:

<a href=”http://www.google.com” data-role=”button”>Google</a>

hyperlink with the data-role="button" code added

I turn a small unfriendly link (for a smartphone at least) into a graphical, user-friendly button that is consistent with the mobile interface experience to which your mobile users are accustomed.

Put it to the test

Using the jQuery Mobile Framework, I was able to turn my library’s basic text-based mobile website into a smartphone-friendly experience within a matter of hours: http://cooklibrary.towson.edu/m/smart.

Using jQuery Mobile I was able to turn our text-based mobile website into a smartphone-friendly site within a matter of days.

The documentation and demos that are provided on the site (http://jquerymobile.com/demos/1.0b1/) were extremely helpful for getting started.  They provide a basic template to start with, and there are plenty of tutorials and samples around the web as well. There are several different CSS themes to choose from, and, of course, you could always customize the themes to match your school colors, etc.

For anyone who relies on Dreamweaver for building web pages, it appears that the newest version of Dreamweaver (CS5.5) integrates the jQuery Mobile Framework (http://www.adobe.com/newsletters/edge/january2011/articles/article4/index.html), making it even easier to create mobile-friendly websites. (There really is no excuse not to have a mobile site now!)

If your library hasn’t yet ventured into the mobile frontier, or even if you already have a basic mobile site, save yourself some time and ensure that your mobile site is compatible with a variety of devices by using jQuery Mobile. If you’re not responsible for your mobile site or if someone else is doing the coding, suggest that they look into jQuery Mobile or one of the other mobile frameworks that are out there.

I’d be interested to hear how others are addressing their mobile presence. What frameworks are you using? Are you building native apps or web apps? Feel free to leave a comment below about what your library is doing.

Note: In order to make your site display correctly on an iPhone, you’ll need to add the following line of code inside the <head></head> tags of your pages:

<meta name=”viewport” content=”width=device-width,user-scalable=no” />

This takes away the ability to zoom in and out on a page, but will make your site more friendly to iPhones. (This took me awhile to figure out.)

Instead of simply counting questions, Gimlet can easily be set up to track a variety of data points including question duration and type, patron type, format, and location of question. While these main categories are static, the selections within the categories can be edited. The back end portal set up extremely easily and anyone with basic Internet skills can do it.  Once the category selections are chosen, it is easy to add users to the portal by simply inviting them via the website.

Gimlet is web based so it can be accessed from anywhere with an Internet connection.  After users have been invited to join the site, they will set up a password and then can start recording questions, answers, and various aspects of the interaction.  Tags can also be used to better identify common topics of questions.

As mentioned, Gimlet does more than just track questions for future reports; it also sets up a knowledge base of questions and answers and can be searched via keyword or tag and can include date limits.

Because I only had a free trial when trying out Gimlet, I could not see the variety of reporting options.  However, a recent Charleston Advisor article (Breitbach 2011), mentions several of the reporting tools.  In addition to basic line graphs showing the various data points, Breitbach says, “…details statistics allow users to run pivot tables (cross tabulations)…For example, users wanting to compare “question type” with “format” (in-person, phone, IM, etc.) or any other variable entered into the system…in a matter of seconds.”

Overall, I think any library that does not currently have an automated reference statistics system should seriously consider this product.  For those of us that already use an in house system or use another product such as Libstats, we may want to do some comparisons.  With the very low cost, the ease of customization, and the advanced reporting, Gimlet might win over many other systems currently in place.

Breitbach, W. (2011, April). Gimlet. The Charleston Advisor, 12 (4), 36-38.

“I usually just use Google Docs for that”

Dropbox can integrate with your other files and folders, appearing right alongside them.

And that’s fine. Google Docs is still a better solution if you’re looking to do synchronous collaboration on a report or presentation, but Dropbox can function just like a folder on your computer, making it more integrated into the workflows to which you’re already accustomed.

It might be possible that your organization has a networked drive or intranet that you use for sharing files (we have both here at Towson). These are both reasonable solutions to this, but both can be difficult if you need to access something at home, as many block access from off-campus. This also causes issues if you’re collaborating and sharing files with someone outside your organization. You might also run into storage and file size limitations with both of these solutions. Dropbox does have a limit of 2GB for free accounts (a subscription can get you up to 100GB). Our entire network drive is 10GB so 2GB for your own use is not so bad.

“Okay, you’ve convinced me. Now what?”

Getting a Dropbox account is easy, as is installing it on your computer. (There’s also a web interface for computers on which you can’t install or haven’t installed it.) To create an account, click the Login option in the upper-right corner and choose ‘Create an account’. Enter your info and voila!

Click 'Login' and then 'Create an account' to setup your account. Click the 'Download Dropbox' button to install it on your computer.

Click the ‘Download Dropbox’ button to install the Dropbox folder on your computer. (You’ll need admin permissions for this.)  This will download the install file to your computer. Double-click the file to start the install process. Dropbox will ask you where you would like the folder to be located (e.g. on your desktop, inside another folder, etc.).

Once everything is installed, you’ll notice the Dropbox folder (at whatever location you assigned it) and an icon in your taskbar.

Both of these will give you access to a variety of Dropbox functions.

Several Dropbox functions can be accessed from the taskbar icon.

The taskbar icon provides a shortcut to your Dropbox folder (either on your computer or on their website), a menu of recently changed files, and options to change your preferences, including moving the Dropbox folder to a new location.

Right-clicking on files and folders within the Dropbox folder will bring up your usual menu of options with the addition of a Dropbox option. From here, you can manage the sharing permissions of individual files. For any files that are in your ‘Public’ folder, you can also get a URL, which you can send to those who aren’t privy to the wonderful world of Dropbox.

What do I use it for, you ask?

I have two primary uses for Dropbox at the moment. First, as a person who constantly finds myself working at home (not recommended), I often use Remote Desktop to access my work computer. This is great, but there are times that I really need my work files on my home computer to print them or listen to them, etc. I used to email these to myself, which was a hassle and unnecessarily clutter my Inbox. Now I simply drag the needed file to Dropbox on my work computer and (almost) instantly have access to it on my home computer.

Second, I am currently serving on two work groups with members outside my organization that require files to be shared. We’re not collaborating on any documents necessarily, but a certain amount of file sharing is needed. One group is sharing video recordings, PowerPoint slides, and PDF reports. The reports and slides contain links to the video recordings. (One of the nice things about using the Dropbox folder is that your file structure stays in tact, so links to other content in the folder should still work.)  The other group is dispersing several Word documents amongst members of the group to facilitate a peer review process. The group coordinators have access to all files and the reviewers see only those files that they are reviewing.

I’ve also used this occasionally to gather content from clients and family for whom I do website development. If you ever find yourself in a situation where you’re emailing large files back and forth to someone, Dropbox can help you keep your Inbox clean and prevent potential confusion over the newest version of a file.

I’m sure that many other uses for Dropbox exist, and I’d love to hear how you’re using it (or would like to use it). What other cloud storage services are you using, and how do they stack up to Dropbox?

Prezi is primarily a zooming presentation tool.  Users can combine text, images, video and more to create a compelling big picture which is navigated by zooming in on various details.  After signing up for an account, you can start with a blank slate or you can copy the presentations which are public and insert your own content.  The simple ability to move into and back out of your presentation holds the potential to be eye catching as well as nauseating.  Friendly help tips will pop up to show you how to use the Prezi controls and there are numerous videos and example Prezis which highlight various facets of Prezi and provide how-to instructions on simple to complex issues.

The key to making a good Prezi is to have a good presentation.  The zooming capabilities should highlight your keypoints, take your audience through a story, keep them engaged and prime them for discussion.  My favorite example of this is below (click to view the Prezi):

The overall goal of this Prezi is to present information on the connections between learning and playing.  This is clear from the title and the initial large image of a game board.  You then zoom into the board and follow through various key points on each square.  Both the visual image and the content of the presentation are engaging.  Of course, everyone is not going to have the time or the artistic ability to plan, implement and draw a graphic which epitomizes their learning outcome.  However, Prezi will allow you to load powerpoint or keynote slides and you can simply use the zoom and path features to move between slides and emphasize various points.  With a little more work however you can breakdown your presentation contents and build a memorable presentation that your audience members can come back to on their own time.

Credit: Sara Nixon, Towson University, Albert S. Cook Library

Practical application of a Prezi for a library can come in many ways.  I have seen some “prezumes” aka Prezi Resumes as a way to showcase your work and could be a consideration for the librarians out there job hunting.  However, as attention grabbing as a prezume might be among numerous applications, impractical organization of your information might be a turn off to a search committee.  Prezi is best used as a presentation tool. Teaching a library information session with a Prezi can do more than guide students through your points.  The ability to move and rotate your screen, side to side, up and down, in and out, etc allows you to express more than a linear relationship.  For example, basic research cycles could be presented in Prezi as a large graphic, and as you teach the steps the Prezi can follow along, moving back and forth to emphasize how information is refined as we research.  Because the presentation is available online, students can move through the presentation at their own pace, rather than being a passive observer they can interact with your presentation.

The downside of Prezi comes from the lack of certain features many of us have come to expect in presentation tools.  For instance, you cannot hyperlink text in Prezi, instead you must type out an entire URL.  Also, the freedom to zoom can hinder you as you are trying to make consistently sized points because there is no defined font size.  Additionally, a certain time commitment is required if you are dedicated enough to make a Prezi worthwhile.  It will take time to learn the new technology, and time to make the visual aspects appealing and effective.

In the end, you’ll hopefully have a presentation that takes you and your audience through a story, keeps everyone engaged, makes your content memorable and sparks a discussion.  Keep an eye out for interesting presentations and start building your own ideas for what can improve your digital library display!  Hopefully some of you will be catching quite a few soon at ALA 2011 in New Orleans!

Laksamee Putnam is a new Research & Instruction Librarian at Towson University, Albert S. Cook Library.  She is specifically liaison to the Fisher College of Science and Mathematics.  Laksamee holds a Masters in Library and Information Science from the University of Illinois Champaign Urbana.  Her research interests focus on the use of emerging technologies and social media in science.   Find out more about her here or follow her on Twitter!

Poll Everywhere has a variety of pricing options from free to $1400 a month (http://www.polleverywhere.com/plans).  Their free version includes up to 30 responses per poll which could work for some classroom settings.  For $15 a month you can bring that up to 50 responses.  Both versions require participants to text in a number rather than a keyword, which could get confusing.  For $65 a month, instructors can choose the keywords that students text for their answers.

In general, I think Poll Everywhere could be a great (possibly free) alternative to clickers in the classroom setting.  My only concern would be the cost to students.  While many of our students have unlimited text message plans, some do not.  Poll Everywhere does have one workaround;  students can choose to vote via a website instead.  This would, of course, only work in computer classrooms or for those who have unlimited data plans on their phones.    I think that as long as the activity is not required, it could be a great tool for any kind of classroom or even presentation setting.

Andy Burkhardt at Champlain College wrote on his experience using Poll Everywhere for library instruction back in October on his blog.  Check it out here: http://andyburkhardt.com/2010/10/25/poll-everywhere-in-library-instruction/

Hope to see/ meet many of you at the ACRL conference this week!

-Carissa