Ask a Tech Librarian

For the Florida Library Association Conference 2017 I again wanted to present a practical session on library technology.  Rather than presenting alone, I proposed a panel presentation to get a broader view.  My co-presenter for last year’s Code For Every Librarian session, Cheryl Wolfe, quickly joined the panel and then we recruited two more technical librarians.  The final panel consisted of:

James M. Day, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Cheryl Wolfe, Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library
Guy Cicinelli, Florida Gulf Coast University
Jessica Zairo, ByWater Solutions

During our Ask a Tech Librarian: What They Don’t Teach You About Technology in Library School session (on May 10, 2017 from 4:00 pm to 5:00 pm) each panelist spent about ten minutes discussing technology that we use in our jobs and technology that we thought all librarians should know. We covered specific skills such as code (HTML, CSS, and JavaScript), Microsoft Excel, file sharing, photo and video editing, open source software, Slack, Trello, and more.  We also gave some resources we use to keep up with library technology including blogs, listservs, Slack communities, Feedly, and Twitter.  Finally, we took questions from the attendees.

Ask a Tech Librarian Panel

Code For Every Librarian

FLA Conference 2016 - Code For Every Librarian Presentation

On June 12, 2015 I gave a short presentation titled Code Every Librarian Should Know at the NEFLIN Library Technology Conference 2015.  For the Florida Library Association Conference 2016 I decided to submit a proposal for a longer version of that talk and possibly another on library intranet best practices.  Then last Fall I was contacted by Cheryl Wolfe, Web Services Administrator, Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library about collaborating with her on a presentation.  I told her about my two ideas and she liked the one teaching code.  She renamed the presentation to a friendlier-sounding Code For Every Librarian and our proposal was accepted!

During our Code For Every Librarian session (on March 2, 2016 from 2:15 pm to 3:15 pm) Cheryl and I taught some very basic HTML, CSS, and JavaScript code using examples from library catalogs and websites, blogs, Summon, and Springshare services.  The session was well-attended with several people standing in the room and doorway of the admittedly-small meeting room. Continue reading Code For Every Librarian