What do other libraries do?

As I began thinking about the essential information about the Bodleian Law Library and ways to organise it, I began to wonder about other libraries.  In particular other university libraries and what they have in terms of a frequently asked questions or essential information section online.

I picked some university libraries, mostly at random and investigated how they present information about thier services to thier readers via websites.

Here are the results: A review of library FAQ’s.

Tags: FAQ, other libraries, project ideas, research

What are the other trainees up to?

I don’t really know what most people are doing for thier projects, nor whether other trainees have started or how far into them they may be as it isn’t something that’s been discussed much.  However Charlotte from the SBS has posted an update on the trainee blog about her project and progress so far.  We seem to be working on projects with similar elements so I’m keen to follow her progress and see how she gets on.

We have a training session about project management this afternoon so perhaps there will be an opportunity to discuss our own projects.  It would be good to find out what others are working on!

Tags: other trainees, project ideas

FAQ Podlets Plan – Computers

Here is the plan for my podlet covering the computing facilities offered by the library:  Computers FAQ plan

Tags: computing facilities, FAQ, Planning, storyboards

FAQ Podlets Plan – Law Reserve

I have been working on the first FAQ podlet plan.  Decided to start with the Law Reserve as the information required for this is quite straight forward and unlikely to change.  Essentially this podlet will be a quick guide to the law reserve covering the questions of what and how, informing readers of what the reserve collection is and how they can use it.

I’ve done the plan as a flowchart/storyboard to work out both the form and content of the podlet.

Here is the plan: Law Reserve FAQ plan

Tags: FAQ, law reserve, Planning, storyboards

Mind Mapping My Initial Ideas

A mind map diagram of inital project ideas…

Initial Ideas diagram

Tags: initial ideas, mind mapping, project ideas

Initial Ideas and Planning

I have begun to compile a list of key topic areas, questions and issues that might be included in an FAQ for the Bodleian Law Library.   As I won’t have time to cover every topic area over the course of the project, I have made this list of initial ideas to act as a starting point.  Included are brief annotations for each idea, commenting on things such as possible format as well as initial reasons for and against covering the topic as part of my FAQ.

Ideas for FAQ

The next step is to work out which topics from the list to work on, the priority order in which to complete them and the content of each topic.  I think it is important to establish an order for working through completing each topic, partly because some are more priority, whilst others need to be held back for now but also because of the time constraints of the project. I need to set targets within a time frame for delivery of each topic in order to meet a final project deadline.  Of course I also need to think about how each topic will be brought together on the website, I’m hoping to create a single page where each tutorial/answer is located however this can be decided upon later in the project when the content and form of the topics is more concrete.

Tags: initial ideas, Planning, project ideas

The beginning…

I’m just starting my project; thanks to helpful input of the Bodleian Law Library webteam and Margaret my supervisor I have an idea to work with.  There are a few places to go with the project so the final aim is still unclear and the final output is still not completely decided upon.  So I’m still at the thinking stage right now but hopefully I will move into the  project planning stage shortly. Planning will involve thinking about aims, objectives, methods, timescales and anticipated outcomes, which at the moment seems like a lot to consider.   This blog will act as a record of my progress and allow others to follow my progress.  It will also act as a platform for others to contribute with suggestions and feedback through comments.  It’s a place to jot down ideas, test things out and document my process.  Now that I have created the blog, a task which was going to be a precursor to my plan I can use it as a virtual file of my work.

So the project?  The idea is to create a series of short audio/video clips that will then be put together on the Bodleian Law Library website as a frequently asked questions page as well as uploaded to facebook and other web2.0 tools that the library uses.

I have put together a draft plan,  its my first attempt at planning documentation so I’ve adapted the document given to me by Linda Needham of the Bodliean to help me out.

Tags: introduction, Planning, project ideas