Web 2.0 and What it means to libraries
Lee Rainie, Director of Pew Internet & American Life Project
Lee notes that he “adores librarians.”
Web 2.0 is the web as a platform.
6 Hallmarks of the the Web 2.0 that matter to libraries
- The internet has become the computer
- The number of people who access the Internet at libraries has doubled in the last four years
- broadband has turned the web into a destination for fun and entertainment
- a lot more people are using the internet every single day
- the experience of the internet has become more social
- Lots of people are creating content online
- social networking sites are the big ones here, Facebook, MySpace
- people are posting more content online.
- 33 % of college students have blogs
- 12 % of online adults have a blog
- 19% of online young adults have created an avatar and interacted with others online.
- Even more internet users are accessing the content created by others
- 44% of young adults seek information on Wikipedia
- heaviest users of wikipedia have high levels of education, or are college students in the process of getting an education
- Many are sharing what they know and what they feel online
- RatemyProfessors.com as an example
- Amazon book reviews
- 1/3 or online adults have tagged content online
- 25% of younger Internet users have commented on videos, and they also comment of blogs and photos
- Tens of thousands are contributing knowledge to an online commons
- 10k-30k active developers in the global open source movement
- 40% participate in peer to peer exchanges
- Americans are customizing their content
5 issues libraries must address
- navigation–transitioning from linear to nonlinear format
- context—learning to see connections
- focus–practicing reflection & deep thinking
- skepticism–learning to evaluate information
- ethical behavior–understanding the rules of cyberspace