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السلام عليكم
أساتذتي الكرام
لو سمحتم أريد مقالة علمية محكمة باللغة الانجليزية تتعلق بالمكتبات.

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يمكنك الدخول الى قاعدة بيانات للدوريات والقواعد كثيرة مثل ابسكو وغيرها المجلات المحكمة كثيرة جدا فقط بامكانك استعراض الاعداد السابقة

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Mapping the Irish biblioblogosphere; Use and perceptions of library weblogs by Irish librarians
Caitríona M. Lee, Jessica A. Bates. The Electronic Library. Oxford: 2007. Vol. 25, Iss. 6; pg. 648

Abstract (Summary)
Purpose - The purpose of this empirical study is to investigate the use of, and perception of, weblogs in the Irish library and information profession, in order to ascertain the extent weblog technology is used by Irish librarians, and what factors promote or discourage the use of weblogs. Design/methodology/approach - The research questions answered in the study were: "What types of library/librarian weblogs exist in the Irish library community?"; "Does the Irish librarian community use weblogs and other social communication technologies?"; "What factors affect the uptake of blogging technologies by Irish librarians?". The methodology employed in the study combined quantitative and qualitative techniques, and involved content analysis of existing Irish library and librarian weblogs; a survey of Irish librarians concerning weblogs and other social communication technologies; and interviews with Irish librarians who maintain weblogs. Findings - The study found that a high proportion of Irish librarians read weblogs, but weblogs are not extensively used as an information resource or communication method, and e-mail and websites are preferred. The professional use of weblogs was found to be associated with simplicity of use, and a proactive attitude to technology and to library users. Constraining factors included time concerns, fear of misuse of the weblog, the limitations of the linear nature of weblogs and the newness of the technology. Interest in weblog technology is growing and its uptake will ultimately depend on the interest of the librarian and the perceived and actual needs of the library users. Originality/value - This study analyzes, for the first time, the Irish biblioblogosphere and contributes to the emergent body of knowledge concerning librarians' use of weblogs.
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Copyright Emerald Group Publishing Limited 2007
Introduction
The origins of weblogs
While the first weblog is generally considered to have been created by Sir Tim Berners-Lee in 1992 (an archived version is available at [5] Berners-Lee, 1992) ([48] Winer, 2001), the term "weblog" was not used until 1997 by Jorn Barger ([3] Barger, 1997). The term "blog" was coined in 1999 by Peter Merholtz ([36] Merholtz, 1999) who decided to pronounce "weblog" as "wee-blog", later shortened to "blog". Also in 1999, a number of blogging tools, such as Blogger, Pitas, Groksoup, Edit This Page and Velocinews ([7] Blood, 2000), were released. These allowed the general public to self-publish on the internet. At first, uptake was slow but it has increased steadily since then: Technorati reports show that the blogosphere doubles approximately every six months (Technorati, cited in [42] Sifry, 2006) and as of 4 February 2007, Technorati was tracking 66.6 million weblogs ([43] Technorati, 2007).
Definitions
Definitions of weblogs are usually based on a description of the technical and structural features of weblogs, the purpose of the weblog or a combination of both. [44] Walker (2003) defines a weblog as "a frequently updated website consisting of dated entries arranged in reverse chronological order so the most recent post appears first". The Merriam-Webster Online definition places more emphasis on the content of the weblog than its technical features, where the word "blog" is defined as "a Web site that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer" ([37] Merriam-Webster Online, 2007). According to [30] Kelleher and Miller (2006), the main characteristics of weblogs are that they are frequently updated; entries are in reverse chronological order; personal journal material is included; readers may add comments; and hyperlinks are included. Rebecca Blood points out that the original weblogs were link-driven sites ([7] Blood, 2000), but weblogs have since diversified into online diaries, news filters and knowledge logs. While most weblogs are text-based at present, multimedia weblogs such as photoblogs, audioblogs and videoblogs are also growing in number.
Weblogs and librarians
The term "biblioblogosphere" was coined to describe the world of library and librarian weblogs ([40] Schneider, 2005). According to [26] Hane (2001), weblogs are a natural tool for librarians, but individual interest has not translated to the organizational level as [14] Clyde (2004a) notes that "blogs do not seem to be so natural for libraries" (p. 183). In Clyde's study, only 57 library weblogs were located, and these were based in the USA, the UK, and Canada ([14] Clyde, 2004a).
The use of weblogs and RSS has been portrayed positively in library and information journals ([2] Angeles, 2003; [4] Bell, 2005; [6] Bhatt, 2005; [15] Clyde, 2004b; [18] Curling, 2001; [20] Estep and Gelfand, 2003; [23] Goans and Vogel, 2003; [33] Lippincott, 2005; [34] Maxymuk, 2005; [35] McDermott, 2005; [40] Schneider, 2005; [25] Gordon and Stephens, 2006; [49] Wusteman, 2004), but is this opinion reflected in actual patterns of weblog use by librarians? The results of Clyde's study would suggest not, but in 2003 the weblog phenomenon was only beginning to take hold. After all the publicity accorded to weblogs and blogging, do librarians now consider weblogs as a useful professional tool, or are other types of electronic communication technologies preferred for transmission of information? It is of interest to establish the patterns involved in the uptake of this technology in order to ascertain whether weblogs can be further exploited as a resource by the library community and to remove any obstacles to their use, for example, by providing training where there is an interest in such technology.
The analysis of the rise and spread of weblog usage in the librarian community is of interest sociologically but it is also of interest professionally to monitor how communication methods are used in libraries and by librarians and how the management of information flows can be improved in the library context. This study reflects a global interest in the professional use of weblogs and allows for the comparison of patterns of use of library and librarian weblogs in Ireland with the results of international studies on librarian weblogs.
The research questions
The significance of weblogs in the Irish library context was the focus of this empirical study, which examined the existence of and use of Irish library and librarian weblogs. Three research questions were established to investigate this subject:
What types of library/librarian weblogs exist in the Irish librarian community?
Does the Irish librarian community use weblogs and other social communication technologies?
What factors affect the uptake of blogging technologies by Irish librarians?
Literature review
Types of weblogs and weblog usage
While the original weblogs were link-driven sites, weblogs have since diversified into a number of types, which have been categorized in a number of ways. Rebecca [8] Blood (2002) names three types of weblog:
filters;
personal journals; and
notebooks.
Krishnamurthy also identifies different types of weblogs, which are:
- online diaries;
- support group weblogs;
- enhanced column weblogs; and
- collaborative content creation weblogs (Krishnamurthy, cited in [28] Herring et al. , 2004a).
Weblogs have been described as a "bridging" communication genre tool, lying between multimedia HTML documents and text-based computer-mediated communication ([28] Herring et al. , 2004a). The four weblog types outlined by [28], [29] Herring et al. (2004a, b) are:
filter;
journal;
knowledge-log (k-log); and
mixed weblogs.
The Pew Internet and American Life Project found that 8 per cent of adult internet users in America maintain a weblog, while 39 per cent read weblogs ([38] Pew Internet and American Life Project, 2006). In the Pew Internet and American Life Project survey, the main weblog topics included the blogger's life and experience (37 per cent), business topics (5 per cent) and technology-related issues (4 per cent). In that survey, sharing practical knowledge or skills with others was cited as a major reason for maintaining a weblog by 34 per cent, and as a minor reason by 30 per cent of respondents ([38] Pew Internet and American Life Project, 2006). [29] Herring et al. (2004a, b) found the most common type of weblog was the online diary weblog.
Weblogs as knowledge management tools
Along with their other uses as diaries, or as an alternative media/journalism outlet, weblogs are gradually being recognized as being useful information management tools. The informal nature of the weblog lends itself well to the communication of tacit knowledge within a company or organization. This is knowledge that may not be formally written down in training manuals but may instead be passed on by word-of-mouth. This type of knowledge can be seen (in filter or knowledge log format) in the weblogs of Jessamyn West, Meredith Farkas, Rebecca Blood and Jill Walker. If not passed on in written format, it can be difficult to measure the value of this knowledge and also difficult to know just how accurately it has been communicated. [10] Boese (2004) notes that the "contingent knowledge" passed on through both internal and more public weblogs creates a type of "knowledge commodity that exists outside conventional economic systems of value". This type of commodity can be of great value to any workplace, but especially to information workers. And to further help information workers, an interesting discussion of how a blog around the ALIA Click06 conference in Perth, Australia was initiated and used by the University of Sydney library staff has been written up by [24] Goodfellow and Graham (2007).
Reasons for librarians to maintain a weblog
Weblogs may be interesting as a phenomenon but why should librarians use them? [31] Lavallée-Welch (2005) synopsizes the main reasons for librarians to try their hand at blogging:
To distribute up-to-the-minute news to users without concerns for space, time of publication or information overload for the patrons, to offer library-related services in a new way, to destroy stereotypes of libraries/librarians by showing a technology-savvy image, to build credibility, to help the library staff keep current with the events occurring in their environment, on an internal weblog, to enable better communication among library employees, to build communities of interest and to advocate, share thoughts and opinions.
In recent years, articles have regularly been published in the library journals recommending that librarians investigate weblogs and RSS or advising on how to maintain a library weblog ([4] Bell, 2005; [6] Bhatt, 2005; [18] Curling, 2001; [22] Fichter, 2003; [34] Maxymuk, 2005; [35] McDermott, 2005; [25] Gordon and Stephens, 2006; [49] Wusteman, 2004).
Libraries and weblogs
While there may be many reasons that libraries should use weblogs, the actual uptake of this technology by libraries has been assessed by Laurel Clyde. Content analysis was effectively used by Clyde to investigate the features of library web pages ([13] Clyde, 1996), and she subsequently used a similar technique to reveal the characteristics of library weblogs ([14], [16] Clyde, 2004a, c). Her study on library weblogs revealed that the majority of these weblogs were based in the USA (83.6 per cent), with some representation by Canada and the UK. Clyde notes, however, that this does not necessarily mean that librarians in other countries are not blogging, but rather that the weblogs may not easily located using local search engines and professional websites. No Irish library weblogs were observed in her study.
Clyde analyzed the characteristics of the weblogs included in the study. Public and academic libraries accounted for the majority (43.9 per cent and 40.3 per cent, respectively) of the library weblogs in Clyde's study ([14], [16] Clyde, 2004a, c). The provision of news or information for users and the provision of links to recommended internet resources were the most frequently stated aims of the library weblogs. Some of the main features included in the weblogs were the name of the weblog (98.2 per cent), the name of the library (96.4 per cent), the date and time of posting of the items (96.4 per cent), short articles or news items (70.9 per cent) and links to sources of articles or news items (70.9 per cent), while 63.6 per cent included information about internet resources. Almost half the study weblogs (45.5 per cent) employed RSS feeds, and the provision of this feature is seen by Clyde as "an indicator of intent to provide a serious service via a weblog, and of commitment to a weblog" ([16] Clyde, 2004c, p. 101).
As the number of weblogs found for the study was low, Clyde also considered reasons for the limited uptake of weblogs by libraries. She observed that as blogging technology is generally cheap or free and is easy to use, neither cost nor skill level were limiting factors. One factor that may limit uptake is the presence of institutional barriers to the development of library weblogs, due to doubts about using informal information sources.
Clyde emphasizes the significance of the user's needs in developing a weblog: time is needed to research relevant material for inclusion in the weblog, to develop an awareness of the reader's needs and to regularly update the weblog. She recommends that bloggers should investigate how well their weblogs correspond to their readers' needs, that users should be made aware (via promotion of the weblog) of the weblog and its features and that weblogs should be regularly updated as the strength of a weblog "lies in its ability to draw attention to current information" ([14] Clyde, 2004a, p. 188). Clyde concludes that the requirements of users of library weblogs have not been fully understood but that more people may begin to use and interact with library weblogs as they become more familiar with weblog technology.
Methodology
The research questions were answered using a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods:
- content analysis of existing Irish library and librarian weblogs;
- a survey of the Irish librarian community on the subject of weblogs; and
- interviews with Irish librarian bloggers.
Content analysis was used to analyze the various types of library weblogs that exist in the Irish biblioblogosphere, the purpose of the survey of librarians was to collect data on the use and non-use of weblogs, RSS and other social communication technologies by Irish librarians, while the interviews with bloggers were to gain an insight into the factors which promote or limit the use and usefulness of library weblogs.
Content analysis of weblogs
Weblogs for content analysis were located using a variety of search tools. These included:
- Google's Blog Search facility (blogsearch.google.com);
- Blogger (www.blogger.com);
- Irish Blogs (www.irishblogs.ie);
- Google's main search facility (www.google.com);
- The Open Directory (dmoz.org/Reference/Libraries/Library_and_Information_Science/Weblogs);
- Blogdigger (www.blogdigger.com);
- Technorati (www.technorati.com);
- The Eatonweb Portal (portal.eatonweb.com);
- IceRocket Blog Search (www.icerocket.com);
- Blogarama (www.blogarama.com); and
- Bloogz (www.bloogz.com).
Searches were carried out using the terms "Librar*', "Library", "Librarian", "Ireland", "Irish", "Leabharlann" (the Irish word for "library"), "Leabharlannaí" (the Irish word for librarian), "Blog" and "Weblog", both alone and in different combinations. Only weblogs based in the Republic of Ireland were included. The Irish library and librarian weblogs included in the study were:
- The Dundalk Institute of Technology (DIT) Library Weblog (dundalkinstitute.library-blogs.net);
- Science @ UCD Library (ucdscience.blogspot.com);
- The Galway Public Library Weblog (galwaylibrary.blogspot.com);
- The READiscover Weblog (www.library.ie/blog), maintained by An Chomhairle Leabharlanna;
- The Library Association of Ireland (LAI) Weblog (www2.libraryassociation.ie);
- Lex Ferenda (www.lexferenda.com);
- The University College Dublin (UCD) Library Weblog (webstrat.blogspot.com); and
- The University of Limerick (UL) Library Weblog (ullb.blogspot.com).
During July and August 2006 the structural and functional features of these eight weblogs were analyzed using a number of coding characteristics, relating to "overall identification", "weblog author(s)", "history and activity level of weblog", "technical features", "overall content", "current entry", "comments" and "library". A detailed breakdown of the coding categories used is available from the authors.
Survey
Irish librarians were surveyed on the subject of their use of and opinions of weblogs and other social communication technologies. The questionnaire was uploaded to and accessed though the SurveyMonkey online survey package (www.surveymonkey.com). The questionnaire contained ten sections:
introduction;
background information;
personal information;
internet sources of information;
weblogs;
library weblogs;
your library weblog;
reasons for not maintaining a weblog;
other methods of communicating with customers; and
conclusion.
Respondents for the survey were selected using the Directory of Library and Information Services in Ireland (Library Association of Ireland). In addition, the Health Service Executive's online Directory of Libraries and the Library.ie website ([1] An Chomhairle Leabharlanna, 2006) were used as supplemental resources. Libraries were categorized according to their type:
- academic;
- commercial;
- medical;
- national and government;
- professional;
- public;
- school;
- special; and
- university libraries.
A stratified, random sample of 50 per cent of the population of each category was employed. A randomized sample of 50 per cent of the population was taken from each of the nine categories of library using an online random number generator. Head librarians and chief information officers received an e-mail containing a link to the survey hosted on the SurveyMonkey website.
The survey was open from mid-July to the end of August 2006. While the response for school libraries was low (as expected due to the closure of schools for summer holidays), the response rates for all other categories were adequate (Table I [Figure omitted. See Article Image.]).
Interviews
Semi-structured face-to-face interviews were carried out with three librarians who maintained library-related weblogs. The main purpose of the interviews was to explore the factors affecting the uptake of blogging in the Irish librarian community and to establish some of the current uses of library weblogs in Ireland. Several themes and topics were explored, including motivation to begin a library weblog, types of material included and the time spent researching material, the connection of the weblog with the main library site, technical details on what type of software package used, the most positive and negative aspects of maintaining a library weblog, the feedback received from users and from other librarians and the use of other weblogs by the blogger. Other topics were also explored as they occurred naturally. Interviews were recorded using the voice recording function of an MP3 recorder and subsequently uploaded to a computer and transcribed.
Results
Of the three methodologies used in the present study, the content analysis of weblogs was intended to answer the first research question ("What types of library and librarian weblogs exist in Ireland?"), the survey was intended to answer the second and, in part, the third research questions ("Does the Irish librarian community use weblogs and other social communication technologies?" and "What factors affect the uptake of blogging by Irish librarians?", respectively), and the interviews were intended to answer the second and third questions.
Irish library and librarian weblogs
The main characteristics of Irish library and librarian weblogs were examined under the headings of overall identification, weblog type, weblog author, weblog history and activity level, technical features, overall content, current entry, comments, and library. Overall identification referred to the URL and name of the weblog, which were recorded as the weblog was discovered.
The four weblog types (filter, journal, knowledge-log (k-log) and mixed weblog) identified by [28], [29] Herring et al. (2004a, b) were used as a basis for categorization for the present study. A filter weblog was considered to be a weblog in which the blogger provides links to external material, with some discussion or commentary on them. Journal weblogs are online diaries of mainly personal content. K-logs have been defined as weblogs used by knowledge workers for sharing company knowledge and used internally on company intranets as company communication systems (Wikipedia). However, it was found necessary to extend this categorization to adequately describe the weblogs analyzed in this study. As the library weblogs in this study included both k-logs directed at the library or organizational staff and k-logs intended to deliver news and information to the library users, these two types of k-log were described as internal and external k-logs, respectively.
There were four types of weblog observed in this study (Table II [Figure omitted. See Article Image.]). While some journal-type weblogs by Irish librarians were observed, these were deemed to contain insufficient library content to render them relevant to the present study. The least frequently observed weblog type was the filter type (12.5 per cent). The other three weblog types observed were the external knowledge log or k-log (25 per cent), the internal k-log (37.5 per cent) and the mixed filter/external k-log (25 per cent).
Differing levels of information about the author(s) were contained in the weblogs. Both multi- and single-author weblogs were observed. Where gender of the blogger was known, more bloggers were male (69.2 per cent) than female (30.8 per cent). With respect to the weblog history, the majority of weblogs were initially created in the spring of 2006, with the oldest weblog begun in 2004. Mixed filter/external k-log and filter weblogs had higher average numbers of postings compared with internal k-logs (Figure 1 [Figure omitted. See Article Image.]). To be effective, internal k-logs should remain focused and uncluttered, while filter weblogs should be updated frequently to keep readers interested. In this study, the activity of external k-logs was relatively low.
The content of the weblogs varied, with a greater average number of words, paragraphs, sentences, images and links in the current entry body for mixed and filter weblogs than for internal and external k-logs. With regard to the technical features of weblogs, the most common software used was Blogger. The number of readers' comments was low. RSS feed was used for all weblogs. Library-related features were included to various degrees by all weblogs (Table III [Figure omitted. See Article Image.]).
Views and experiences of the Irish library community
The survey of Irish librarians revealed some interesting results. The most commonly and widely used sources of information were e-mail (81.39 per cent), newsletters (81.39 per cent), word-of-mouth (71.09 per cent), conferences (66.28 per cent), print journals (60.47 per cent) and online journals (50 per cent). With respect to electronic sources of information only, the most commonly used facility was e-mail (86.05 per cent) while specific websites (77.91 per cent) were used by most respondents, and listservs (41.86 per cent), bulletin boards (22.09 per cent), weblogs (16.28 per cent) and RSS (11.63 per cent) were also used to a lesser extent.
The majority of librarians (61.63 per cent) had previously read weblogs. However, it was found that the proportions of respondents who read weblogs frequently or sometimes (10.47 per cent and 16.28 per cent, respectively) were lower than for those who read weblogs seldom or never (32.56 per cent and 36.05 per cent, respectively). Quite a high proportion of respondents had not read library-related weblogs (53.5 per cent), and very few stated that they read these weblogs often (4.7 per cent).
Respondents were asked to state which library-related weblogs they read. A variety of Irish and international weblogs were mentioned, including those by Lorcan Dempsey, the Galway Public Library, Phil Bradley, Tom Roper, the Connecting Librarian, and The Shifted Librarian.
The maintenance of weblogs by libraries was also investigated and it was found that libraries were much more likely to maintain a web page (81.39 per cent) than a weblog (5.81 per cent). Only five respondents stated that their library maintained a weblog and of these, three were related to third-level institutions. The purposes of these weblogs were "sharing and dissemination of information", the provision of "an overview of Irish and international news/publications in the area of drugs and alcohol research" and "communications and interaction", respectively.
The positive and negative aspects to maintaining a library weblog were also explored. Positive elements included that "the act of sourcing news items/publications means staff are by default keeping up to date with news and information in the field" and that a library weblog should be regarded as "another tool" which "needs to be managed by someone who believes in interaction". It was noted that library weblogs could also be used as a marketing tool. The negative issues mentioned included the "serious time commitment for staff to source relevant/interesting news and publications" and the "pressure to get information up quickly, despite other work loads". The main reasons given to explain why the libraries of the respondents did not maintain library weblogs are given in Table IV [Figure omitted. See Article Image.].
The preferred forms of communication with users by libraries were stated to be websites (50 per cent), e-mail (40.7 per cent), newsletters (16.28 per cent) and leaflets/pamphlets/handouts/flyers (13.95 per cent). Other methods used included posters (10.46 per cent), intranet (10.46 per cent), library notice-boards/notices (9.3 per cent), letters (5.81 per cent) and word-of-mouth (4.65 per cent).
Experiences and views of bloggers
Various points of interest relating to library weblogs were brought up during the interviews with the three bloggers. These related to the origins, purpose and content of the weblogs, the time issues involved in maintaining a weblog, the software used, the links between the main library site and the weblog, the use of blogging teams and the positive and negative aspects of maintaining a weblog. Also discussed were the issue of feedback from users, the use of weblog promotion, experience of other weblogs and library weblogs, and the use of information technology by librarians.
For two of the interviewees, the creation of the library weblog came about from an existing interest in information technology, and the wish to explore the usefulness of weblogs for the library. For the other interviewee, the library weblog was created out of necessity, as other methods to establish an online presence for the library were unsatisfactory. Each of the three weblogs was intended for a different target audience. These were the library users, the library staff and both library staff users, and other people interested in library issues, respectively. The third weblog was intended also to be a training tool and a method of conveying the ethos of the library service. Weblog content varied, from resources for students to information for staff relating to changes to the library website. The time required to update the weblog varied, depending on the content of the weblog, and included the time taken to research issues as well as the time needed to upload photos or other material. All three interviewees used Blogger as their weblog software but local hosting is the intended option for two of the weblogs. The effectiveness of using a blogging team (rather than one blogger being responsible for all content) was mentioned. This system reduces the pressure on each blogger to produce regular content for the weblog.
Blogging was associated with both personal and professional benefits - the blogger can have a feeling of satisfaction and autonomy at self-publishing as well as a sense of pride in the creation of the weblog. The creativity involved in maintaining a weblog was also mentioned. Professionally, the simplicity of maintaining a weblog was seen as an advantage and the potential of weblogs for increasing the professional profile of a library was recognized. However, the feeling of pressure to produce new material for the weblog, the problem of reaching the target audience of the weblog (especially when e-mail is so commonly used), and the limitations of the linear structure of the weblog were considered as negative aspects of blogging.
With respect to the target audience, positive feedback has been received by one interviewee but the general lack of comments by readers was mentioned. However, one interviewee highlighted the pointlessness of leaving irrelevant comments and another interviewee mentioned receiving nonsense comments. The importance of the promotion of the weblogs, by various methods such as posters, information skills tutorials, library road-shows, flat-screen television advertising and e-mails, in order to reach the target audience was mentioned by all interviewees.
The awareness of other weblogs, including library weblogs, was greatest in those interviewees whose work or interest involved technological issues. An interesting point raised was the effect weblogs have on the acquisition of information - where previously one would read original documents, the use of weblogs means that one reads summaries of the ideas contained in those original documents, produced by a third party, and thus become more reliant on other people to predigest the information. It was also observed that some librarians might be resistant to new technologies and their potential role in libraries, which would limit their interest in weblogs. The lack of a "proactive" approach to reach the library's potential users (rather than passively expecting users to find what they need) was mentioned as being associated with a lack in an interest in using weblogs and other new technologies to bring information to users and this interviewee suggested a willingness to explore new technologies was a positive step for librarians.
Some of the recommendations made by the interviewees included the use of teams to maintain a library weblog, rather than placing all the pressure and time constraints on one individual, the use of library weblogs for very focused purposes to maximize their effectiveness, the regular updating of the weblog to keep it active, the assessment of the actual need for a weblog and the evaluation of where to draw the boundaries on the use of new social technologies.
Conclusions and recommendations
The results of this study demonstrate that an emergent biblioblogosphere currently exists in Ireland, involving a small number of weblogs by library, librarian and librarian organizations. The categories of weblog employed by [28], [29] Herring et al. (2004a, b), namely, filter, journal, knowledge-log (k-log) and mixed weblog, were expanded to include both internal and external k-logs in this study to accurately represent the Irish biblioblogosphere.
The activity levels of the weblogs varied; however, the actual number of weblogs is low and the majority of weblogs were only approximately six months old at the time of analysis. It may be that significant patterns may emerge over a longer timeframe. Hyperlinks from the library/organization webpage to the weblogs were only observed for two of the eight weblogs. The greater use of such hyperlinks could provide increased visibility for the weblogs and facilitate the expansion of the weblog readership.
Although the proportion of Irish librarians who read weblogs is greater than the respective proportion of the general public, weblogs are not used to a great extent by librarians as an information resource. The preferred information resources were found to be older technologies such as e-mail and websites. As one blogger noted, weblogs may remain a niche product which are best used for specific projects.
The principal reason for not utilizing weblogs was that librarians did not consider weblogs as professional tools, while other factors included that other methods of communication were preferred and that too much staff time would be required to maintain the weblog, and unfamiliarity with weblog technology. The apparent low profile of weblogs as a professional tool may change, given that the professional use of weblogs was raised as a topic in recent Irish library seminars, such as the seminar on "Perspectives on Online Information" by the Irish Academic and National Library Training Co-operative in July 2006 ([12] Clark, 2006), and was the subject of a course by the Irish Health Sciences Libraries Group, also in July 2006. In the survey, several respondents stated an interest in obtaining training on the creation and use of weblogs. However, it is the needs of the users that will determine the extent of weblog uptake and use.
The creation of weblogs was associated with several positive aspects, including the satisfaction of self-publication and of reaching the weblog readership, the autonomy associated with publishing at will rather than going through an IT intermediary, and the sense of pride associated with having created a library weblog. The reputation of the library is also enhanced by the use of new technology. However, weblog maintenance is also associated with some negative aspects, such as the pressure to constantly produce new weblog content, the difficulty of reaching the intended readers, and the problem of external versus local site hosting. The linear structure of the weblog itself may limit the potential uses of the weblog. The use of weblogs by librarians may be associated with a willingness to explore the usefulness of new technologies and with a proactive attitude towards bringing information and resources to the library users rather than passively waiting for the users to find what the library can offer.
While this study gives an initial overview of the Irish biblioblogosphere, further exploration of various aspects of this topic is warranted. The professional use of electronic communication technologies, such as e-mail, websites, weblogs, listservs and bulletin boards by Irish librarians should be further investigated. The experiences of Irish librarian bloggers should be explored to a greater extent, by interview and perhaps also by the construction of a librarian weblog by the investigators themselves. An exploration of these topics should be of use in identifying areas for further training for librarians, and in highlighting underutilized resources that could be developed to a greater extent. It could also reveal aspects of how information moves through a library community and to what extent, if any, electronic communication methods can facilitate a sense of community among librarians and can offer an outlet for both professional and personal creativity. As the number of library/librarian weblogs in Ireland is likely to increase in the future, the present study can be used as a baseline study from which to explore the growth and development of the Irish biblioblogosphere. Furthermore, this study will provide useful comparative data for studies undertaken elsewhere, and the themes and issues raised are relevant to the wider library and information world.

[Reference]

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2. Angeles, M. (2003), "K-logging: supporting KM with web logs", Library Journal, 15 April, available at: www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA286642.html (accessed 17 February 2007).

3. Barger, J. (1997), Robot Wisdom WebLog for December 1997, available at: www.robotwisdom.com/log1997m12.html (accessed 17 February 2007).

4. Bell, S. (2005), "Where the readers are", Library Journal, 15 October, available at: www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6269278.html (accessed 17 February 2007).

5. Berners-Lee, T. (1992), "What's new in '92", available at: www.w3.org/History/19921103-hypertext/hypertext/WWW/News/9201.html (accessed 17 February 2007).

6. Bhatt, J. (2005), "Blogging as a tool: innovative approaches to information access", Library Hi Tech News, Vol. 22 No. 9, pp. 28-32.

7. Blood, R. (2000), "Weblogs: a history and perspective", available at: www.rebeccablood.net/essays/weblog_history.html (accessed 17 February 2007).

8. Blood, R. (2002), The Weblog Handbook: Practical Advice on Creating and Maintaining Your Blog, Perseus Publishing, Cambridge, MA.

10. Boese, C. (2004), "The spirit of Paulo Freire in blogland: struggling for a knowledge-log revolution", in Gurak, L.J., Antonijevic, S., Johnson, L., Ratliff, C. and Reyman, J. (Eds), Into the Blogosphere: Rhetoric, Community and Culture of Weblogs, available at: http://blog.lib.umn.edu/blogosphere/...lo_freire.html (accessed 17 February 2007).

12. Clark, J. (2006), "Libraries and the blogosphere: blogs as communication tools for academic librarians", Powerpoint presentation at the "Perspectives on Online Information" Seminar, hosted by the Academic and National Library Training Co-Operative (ANLTC), NUI Galway, 27 July, available at: www.anltc.ie/events/200606slides/1430JC.ppt (accessed 17 February 2007).

13. Clyde, L.A. (1996), "The library as information provider: the home page", The Electronic Library, Vol. 14 No. 6, pp. 549-58.

14. Clyde, L.A. (2004a), "Library weblogs", Library Management, Vol. 25 Nos 4/5, pp. 183-9.

15. Clyde, L.A. (2004b), "Weblogs - are you serious?", The Electronic Library, Vol. 22 No. 5, pp. 390-2.

16. Clyde, L.A. (2004c), Weblogs and Libraries, Chandos Publishing, Oxford.

18. Curling, C. (2001), "A closer look at Weblogs", Law Library Resource Xchange LLC, 15 October, available at: www.llrx.com/columns/notes46.htm (accessed 17 February 2007).

20. Estep, E.S. and Gelfand, J. (2003), "Weblogs", Library Hi-Tech News, Vol. 20 No. 5.

22. Fichter, D. (2003), "Why and how to use blogs to promote your library's service", Marketing Library Services, Vol. 17 No. 6, available at: www.infotoday.com/mls/nov03/fichter.shtml (accessed 17 February 2007).

23. Goans, D. and Vogel, T.M. (2003), "Building a home for library news with a BLOG", Computers in Libraries, Vol. 23 No. 10, available at: www.infotoday.com/cilmag/nov03/goans_vogel.shtml (accessed 17 February 2007).

24. Goodfellow, T. and Graham, S. (2007), "The blog as a high-impact institutional communication tool", The Electronic Library, Vol. 25 No. 4, pp. 395-400.

25. Gordon, R.S. and Stephens, M. (2006), "How and why to try a blog for staff communication", Computers in Libraries, Vol. 26 No. 2, pp. 50-1.

26. Hane, P.J. (2001), "Blogs are a natural for librarians", NewsLink, No. 24, available at: www.infotoday.com/newslink/newslink0110.htm. (accessed 18 February 2007).

28. Herring, S., Scheidt, L.A., Bonus, S. and Wright, E. (2004a), "Bridging the gap: a genre analysis of weblogs", available at: www.blogninja.com/DDGDD04.doc (accessed 17 February 2007).

29. Herring, S.C., Kouper, I., Scheidt, L.A. and Wright, E. (2004b), "Women and children last: the discursive construction of weblogs", in Gurak, L.J., Antonijevic, S., Johnson, L., Ratliff, C. and Reyman, J. (Eds), Into the Blogosphere: Rhetoric, Community and Culture of Weblogs, available at: http://blog.lib.umn.edu/blogosphere/..._children.html (accessed 17 February 2007).

30. Kelleher, T. and Miller, B.M. (2006), "Organizational blogs and the human voice: relational strategies and relational outcomes", Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, Vol. 11 No. 2, article 1, available at: http://jcmc.indiana.edu/vol11/issue2/kelleher.html (accessed 17 February 2007).

31. Lavallée-Welch, C. (2005), "Jumping on the blogwagon: a librarian's perspective", Powerpoint presentation at the Southern Atlantic Regional Conference (SARC) III, Williamsburg, VA, USA, 29 September, available at: www.sla.org/conf/conf_sar/Presentations/051103_0919%20(D)/Lavallee-Welch%20-%20blogwagon.pdf (accessed 18 February 2007).

33. Lippincott, J.K. (2005), "Where learners go", Library Journal, 1 October, available at: www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6261428.html (accessed 17 February 2007).

34. Maxymuk, J. (2005), "Blogs", The Bottom Line: Managing Library Finances, Vol. 18 No. 1, pp. 43-5.

35. McDermott, I.E. (2005), "The passion of the blog", Searcher, Vol. 13 No. 4, pp. 8-13.

36. Merholtz, P. (1999), "Petermemes", October, available at: http://web.archive.org/web/199910130...com/index.html (accessed 17 February 2007).

37. Merriam-Webster Online (2007), "Blog", available at: www.m-w.com/dictionary/blog (accessed 17 February 2007).

38. Pew Internet and American Life Project (2006), "Bloggers: a portrait of the internet's new storytellers", available at: www.pewinternet.org/pdfs/PIP%20Bloggers%20Report%20July%2019%202006.pdf (accessed 17 February 2007).

40. Schneider, K. (2005), "The ethical blogger", Library Journal, 15 April, available at: www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA515805.html (accessed 17 February 2007).

42. Sifry, D. (2006), "Sifry's Alerts", available at: www.sifry.com/alerts/archives/000432.html (accessed 17 February 2007).

43. Technorati (2007), "About Technorati", available at: www.technorati.com/about/ (accessed 4 February 2007).

44. Walker, J. (2003), "jill/txt: final version of weblog definition", available at: http://jilltxt.net/archives/blog_the...efinition.html (accessed 17 February 2007).

48. Winer, D. (2001), "The history of weblogs", available at: www.userland.com/theHistoryOfWeblogs (accessed 17 February 2007).

49. Wusteman, J. (2004), "RSS: the latest feed", Library Hi Tech, Vol. 22 No. 4, pp. 404-13.


Further Reading
9. Blood, R. (2007), "Rebecca's pocket", available at: www.rebeccablood.net (accessed 17 February 2007).

11. Bradley, P. (2007), "Phil Bradley's Blog", available at: www.philb.com/blog/blogger.html (accessed 20 February 2007).

17. Connecting Librarian (2007), available at: www.connectinglibrarian.blogspot.com/ (accessed 20 February 2007).

19. Dempsey, L. (2007), "Lorcan Dempsey's Weblog", available at: http://orweblog.oclc.org/ (accessed 20 February 2007).

21. Farkas, M. (2007), "Information wants to be free", available at: meredith.wolfwater.com/wordpress/index.php (accessed 17 February 2007).

27. Health Service Executive (200), "Directory of Libraries", HSE Libraries Online, available at: www.hselibrary.ie/?q=library_directory (accessed 18 February 2007).

32. Library Association of Ireland (n.d.), "Directory of Library and Information Services in Ireland", available at: www.libraryassociation.ie/directory/index.tmpl (accessed 17 February 2007).

39. Roper, T. (2007), "Tom Roper's Weblog", available at: http://tomroper.typepad.com/ (accessed 20 February 2007).

41. Shifted Librarian (2007), available at: www.theshiftedlibrarian.com/ (accessed 20 February 2007).

45. Walker, J. (2007), "jill/txt", available at: http://jilltxt.net (accessed 17 February 2007).

46. West, J. (2007), available at: www.librarian.net (accessed 17 February 2007).

47. Wikipedia (2007), "List of blogging terms", available at: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_blogging_terms (accessed 17 February 2007).

[Appendix]

About the authors
Caitríona M. Lee (BSc, Grad Dip, MLIS), received a Master's in Library and Information Science from University College Dublin, Ireland in 2007. She has experience of working in both public and academic libraries in Ireland, and as a medical information specialist. Her research interests include the use of social software in libraries, and in particular, use of blogging tools by libraries and librarians.
Jessica A. Bates (BSocSc, MA (Information Studies)), is a Lecturer at the School of Information and Library Studies, University College Dublin, Ireland. She currently teaches modules in information behaviour, information and society, and information design and DTP. Her research interests include human information behaviour; public information provision and use; and issues relating to use of ICTs, information poverty and social inclusion. Jessica A. Bates can be contacted at: jess.bates@ucd.ie

[Author Affiliation]

Caitríona M. Lee, School of Information and Library Studies, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland

Jessica A. Bates, School of Information and Library Studies, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland

[Illustration]

Figure 1: Average posts per day for the four weblog types

Table I: Number of libraries and response rates

Table II: Weblog type

Table III: Library-related features of library weblogs ( n =5)

Table IV: Reasons for not maintaining a library/organizational weblog







Indexing (document details)

Subjects:

Weblogs, Studies, Libraries, Librarians, Journals
Locations:
Ireland
Author(s):
Caitríona M. Lee, Jessica A. Bates
Author Affiliation:
Caitríona M. Lee, School of Information and Library Studies, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland

Jessica A. Bates, School of Information and Library Studies, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
Document types:
Feature
Publication title:
The Electronic Library. Oxford: 2007. Vol. 25, Iss. 6; pg. 648
Source type:
Periodical
ISSN:
02640473
ProQuest document ID:
1388081121
Text Word Count
6418
DOI:
10.1108/02640470710837092
Document URL:
http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1388081121&sid=2&Fmt=3&clientId=74507&R QT=309&VName=PQD

[ابراهيم محمد الفيومي]

يمكنك الدخول الى قاعدة بيانات للدوريات والقواعد كثيرة مثل ابسكو وغيرها المجلات المحكمة كثيرة جدا فقط بامكانك استعراض الاعداد السابقة

انظر

Mapping the Irish biblioblogosphere; Use and perceptions of library weblogs by Irish librarians
Caitríona M. Lee, Jessica A. Bates. The Electronic Library. Oxford: 2007. Vol. 25, Iss. 6; pg. 648

Abstract (Summary)
Purpose - The purpose of this empirical study is to investigate the use of, and perception of, weblogs in the Irish library and information profession, in order to ascertain the extent weblog technology is used by Irish librarians, and what factors promote or discourage the use of weblogs. Design/methodology/approach - The research questions answered in the study were: "What types of library/librarian weblogs exist in the Irish library community?"; "Does the Irish librarian community use weblogs and other social communication technologies?"; "What factors affect the uptake of blogging technologies by Irish librarians?". The methodology employed in the study combined quantitative and qualitative techniques, and involved content analysis of existing Irish library and librarian weblogs; a survey of Irish librarians concerning weblogs and other social communication technologies; and interviews with Irish librarians who maintain weblogs. Findings - The study found that a high proportion of Irish librarians read weblogs, but weblogs are not extensively used as an information resource or communication method, and e-mail and websites are preferred. The professional use of weblogs was found to be associated with simplicity of use, and a proactive attitude to technology and to library users. Constraining factors included time concerns, fear of misuse of the weblog, the limitations of the linear nature of weblogs and the newness of the technology. Interest in weblog technology is growing and its uptake will ultimately depend on the interest of the librarian and the perceived and actual needs of the library users. Originality/value - This study analyzes, for the first time, the Irish biblioblogosphere and contributes to the emergent body of knowledge concerning librarians' use of weblogs.
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Full Text (6418 words)

Copyright Emerald Group Publishing Limited 2007
Introduction
The origins of weblogs
While the first weblog is generally considered to have been created by Sir Tim Berners-Lee in 1992 (an archived version is available at [5] Berners-Lee, 1992) ([48] Winer, 2001), the term "weblog" was not used until 1997 by Jorn Barger ([3] Barger, 1997). The term "blog" was coined in 1999 by Peter Merholtz ([36] Merholtz, 1999) who decided to pronounce "weblog" as "wee-blog", later shortened to "blog". Also in 1999, a number of blogging tools, such as Blogger, Pitas, Groksoup, Edit This Page and Velocinews ([7] Blood, 2000), were released. These allowed the general public to self-publish on the internet. At first, uptake was slow but it has increased steadily since then: Technorati reports show that the blogosphere doubles approximately every six months (Technorati, cited in [42] Sifry, 2006) and as of 4 February 2007, Technorati was tracking 66.6 million weblogs ([43] Technorati, 2007).
Definitions
Definitions of weblogs are usually based on a description of the technical and structural features of weblogs, the purpose of the weblog or a combination of both. [44] Walker (2003) defines a weblog as "a frequently updated website consisting of dated entries arranged in reverse chronological order so the most recent post appears first". The Merriam-Webster Online definition places more emphasis on the content of the weblog than its technical features, where the word "blog" is defined as "a Web site that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer" ([37] Merriam-Webster Online, 2007). According to [30] Kelleher and Miller (2006), the main characteristics of weblogs are that they are frequently updated; entries are in reverse chronological order; personal journal material is included; readers may add comments; and hyperlinks are included. Rebecca Blood points out that the original weblogs were link-driven sites ([7] Blood, 2000), but weblogs have since diversified into online diaries, news filters and knowledge logs. While most weblogs are text-based at present, multimedia weblogs such as photoblogs, audioblogs and videoblogs are also growing in number.
Weblogs and librarians
The term "biblioblogosphere" was coined to describe the world of library and librarian weblogs ([40] Schneider, 2005). According to [26] Hane (2001), weblogs are a natural tool for librarians, but individual interest has not translated to the organizational level as [14] Clyde (2004a) notes that "blogs do not seem to be so natural for libraries" (p. 183). In Clyde's study, only 57 library weblogs were located, and these were based in the USA, the UK, and Canada ([14] Clyde, 2004a).
The use of weblogs and RSS has been portrayed positively in library and information journals ([2] Angeles, 2003; [4] Bell, 2005; [6] Bhatt, 2005; [15] Clyde, 2004b; [18] Curling, 2001; [20] Estep and Gelfand, 2003; [23] Goans and Vogel, 2003; [33] Lippincott, 2005; [34] Maxymuk, 2005; [35] McDermott, 2005; [40] Schneider, 2005; [25] Gordon and Stephens, 2006; [49] Wusteman, 2004), but is this opinion reflected in actual patterns of weblog use by librarians? The results of Clyde's study would suggest not, but in 2003 the weblog phenomenon was only beginning to take hold. After all the publicity accorded to weblogs and blogging, do librarians now consider weblogs as a useful professional tool, or are other types of electronic communication technologies preferred for transmission of information? It is of interest to establish the patterns involved in the uptake of this technology in order to ascertain whether weblogs can be further exploited as a resource by the library community and to remove any obstacles to their use, for example, by providing training where there is an interest in such technology.
The analysis of the rise and spread of weblog usage in the librarian community is of interest sociologically but it is also of interest professionally to monitor how communication methods are used in libraries and by librarians and how the management of information flows can be improved in the library context. This study reflects a global interest in the professional use of weblogs and allows for the comparison of patterns of use of library and librarian weblogs in Ireland with the results of international studies on librarian weblogs.
The research questions
The significance of weblogs in the Irish library context was the focus of this empirical study, which examined the existence of and use of Irish library and librarian weblogs. Three research questions were established to investigate this subject:
What types of library/librarian weblogs exist in the Irish librarian community?
Does the Irish librarian community use weblogs and other social communication technologies?
What factors affect the uptake of blogging technologies by Irish librarians?
Literature review
Types of weblogs and weblog usage
While the original weblogs were link-driven sites, weblogs have since diversified into a number of types, which have been categorized in a number of ways. Rebecca [8] Blood (2002) names three types of weblog:
filters;
personal journals; and
notebooks.
Krishnamurthy also identifies different types of weblogs, which are:
- online diaries;
- support group weblogs;
- enhanced column weblogs; and
- collaborative content creation weblogs (Krishnamurthy, cited in [28] Herring et al. , 2004a).
Weblogs have been described as a "bridging" communication genre tool, lying between multimedia HTML documents and text-based computer-mediated communication ([28] Herring et al. , 2004a). The four weblog types outlined by [28], [29] Herring et al. (2004a, b) are:
filter;
journal;
knowledge-log (k-log); and
mixed weblogs.
The Pew Internet and American Life Project found that 8 per cent of adult internet users in America maintain a weblog, while 39 per cent read weblogs ([38] Pew Internet and American Life Project, 2006). In the Pew Internet and American Life Project survey, the main weblog topics included the blogger's life and experience (37 per cent), business topics (5 per cent) and technology-related issues (4 per cent). In that survey, sharing practical knowledge or skills with others was cited as a major reason for maintaining a weblog by 34 per cent, and as a minor reason by 30 per cent of respondents ([38] Pew Internet and American Life Project, 2006). [29] Herring et al. (2004a, b) found the most common type of weblog was the online diary weblog.
Weblogs as knowledge management tools
Along with their other uses as diaries, or as an alternative media/journalism outlet, weblogs are gradually being recognized as being useful information management tools. The informal nature of the weblog lends itself well to the communication of tacit knowledge within a company or organization. This is knowledge that may not be formally written down in training manuals but may instead be passed on by word-of-mouth. This type of knowledge can be seen (in filter or knowledge log format) in the weblogs of Jessamyn West, Meredith Farkas, Rebecca Blood and Jill Walker. If not passed on in written format, it can be difficult to measure the value of this knowledge and also difficult to know just how accurately it has been communicated. [10] Boese (2004) notes that the "contingent knowledge" passed on through both internal and more public weblogs creates a type of "knowledge commodity that exists outside conventional economic systems of value". This type of commodity can be of great value to any workplace, but especially to information workers. And to further help information workers, an interesting discussion of how a blog around the ALIA Click06 conference in Perth, Australia was initiated and used by the University of Sydney library staff has been written up by [24] Goodfellow and Graham (2007).
Reasons for librarians to maintain a weblog
Weblogs may be interesting as a phenomenon but why should librarians use them? [31] Lavallée-Welch (2005) synopsizes the main reasons for librarians to try their hand at blogging:
To distribute up-to-the-minute news to users without concerns for space, time of publication or information overload for the patrons, to offer library-related services in a new way, to destroy stereotypes of libraries/librarians by showing a technology-savvy image, to build credibility, to help the library staff keep current with the events occurring in their environment, on an internal weblog, to enable better communication among library employees, to build communities of interest and to advocate, share thoughts and opinions.
In recent years, articles have regularly been published in the library journals recommending that librarians investigate weblogs and RSS or advising on how to maintain a library weblog ([4] Bell, 2005; [6] Bhatt, 2005; [18] Curling, 2001; [22] Fichter, 2003; [34] Maxymuk, 2005; [35] McDermott, 2005; [25] Gordon and Stephens, 2006; [49] Wusteman, 2004).
Libraries and weblogs
While there may be many reasons that libraries should use weblogs, the actual uptake of this technology by libraries has been assessed by Laurel Clyde. Content analysis was effectively used by Clyde to investigate the features of library web pages ([13] Clyde, 1996), and she subsequently used a similar technique to reveal the characteristics of library weblogs ([14], [16] Clyde, 2004a, c). Her study on library weblogs revealed that the majority of these weblogs were based in the USA (83.6 per cent), with some representation by Canada and the UK. Clyde notes, however, that this does not necessarily mean that librarians in other countries are not blogging, but rather that the weblogs may not easily located using local search engines and professional websites. No Irish library weblogs were observed in her study.
Clyde analyzed the characteristics of the weblogs included in the study. Public and academic libraries accounted for the majority (43.9 per cent and 40.3 per cent, respectively) of the library weblogs in Clyde's study ([14], [16] Clyde, 2004a, c). The provision of news or information for users and the provision of links to recommended internet resources were the most frequently stated aims of the library weblogs. Some of the main features included in the weblogs were the name of the weblog (98.2 per cent), the name of the library (96.4 per cent), the date and time of posting of the items (96.4 per cent), short articles or news items (70.9 per cent) and links to sources of articles or news items (70.9 per cent), while 63.6 per cent included information about internet resources. Almost half the study weblogs (45.5 per cent) employed RSS feeds, and the provision of this feature is seen by Clyde as "an indicator of intent to provide a serious service via a weblog, and of commitment to a weblog" ([16] Clyde, 2004c, p. 101).
As the number of weblogs found for the study was low, Clyde also considered reasons for the limited uptake of weblogs by libraries. She observed that as blogging technology is generally cheap or free and is easy to use, neither cost nor skill level were limiting factors. One factor that may limit uptake is the presence of institutional barriers to the development of library weblogs, due to doubts about using informal information sources.
Clyde emphasizes the significance of the user's needs in developing a weblog: time is needed to research relevant material for inclusion in the weblog, to develop an awareness of the reader's needs and to regularly update the weblog. She recommends that bloggers should investigate how well their weblogs correspond to their readers' needs, that users should be made aware (via promotion of the weblog) of the weblog and its features and that weblogs should be regularly updated as the strength of a weblog "lies in its ability to draw attention to current information" ([14] Clyde, 2004a, p. 188). Clyde concludes that the requirements of users of library weblogs have not been fully understood but that more people may begin to use and interact with library weblogs as they become more familiar with weblog technology.
Methodology
The research questions were answered using a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods:
- content analysis of existing Irish library and librarian weblogs;
- a survey of the Irish librarian community on the subject of weblogs; and
- interviews with Irish librarian bloggers.
Content analysis was used to analyze the various types of library weblogs that exist in the Irish biblioblogosphere, the purpose of the survey of librarians was to collect data on the use and non-use of weblogs, RSS and other social communication technologies by Irish librarians, while the interviews with bloggers were to gain an insight into the factors which promote or limit the use and usefulness of library weblogs.
Content analysis of weblogs
Weblogs for content analysis were located using a variety of search tools. These included:
- Google's Blog Search facility (blogsearch.google.com);
- Blogger (www.blogger.com);
- Irish Blogs (www.irishblogs.ie);
- Google's main search facility (www.google.com);
- The Open Directory (dmoz.org/Reference/Libraries/Library_and_Information_Science/Weblogs);
- Blogdigger (www.blogdigger.com);
- Technorati (www.technorati.com);
- The Eatonweb Portal (portal.eatonweb.com);
- IceRocket Blog Search (www.icerocket.com);
- Blogarama (www.blogarama.com); and
- Bloogz (www.bloogz.com).
Searches were carried out using the terms "Librar*', "Library", "Librarian", "Ireland", "Irish", "Leabharlann" (the Irish word for "library"), "Leabharlannaí" (the Irish word for librarian), "Blog" and "Weblog", both alone and in different combinations. Only weblogs based in the Republic of Ireland were included. The Irish library and librarian weblogs included in the study were:
- The Dundalk Institute of Technology (DIT) Library Weblog (dundalkinstitute.library-blogs.net);
- Science @ UCD Library (ucdscience.blogspot.com);
- The Galway Public Library Weblog (galwaylibrary.blogspot.com);
- The READiscover Weblog (www.library.ie/blog), maintained by An Chomhairle Leabharlanna;
- The Library Association of Ireland (LAI) Weblog (www2.libraryassociation.ie);
- Lex Ferenda (www.lexferenda.com);
- The University College Dublin (UCD) Library Weblog (webstrat.blogspot.com); and
- The University of Limerick (UL) Library Weblog (ullb.blogspot.com).
During July and August 2006 the structural and functional features of these eight weblogs were analyzed using a number of coding characteristics, relating to "overall identification", "weblog author(s)", "history and activity level of weblog", "technical features", "overall content", "current entry", "comments" and "library". A detailed breakdown of the coding categories used is available from the authors.
Survey
Irish librarians were surveyed on the subject of their use of and opinions of weblogs and other social communication technologies. The questionnaire was uploaded to and accessed though the SurveyMonkey online survey package (www.surveymonkey.com). The questionnaire contained ten sections:
introduction;
background information;
personal information;
internet sources of information;
weblogs;
library weblogs;
your library weblog;
reasons for not maintaining a weblog;
other methods of communicating with customers; and
conclusion.
Respondents for the survey were selected using the Directory of Library and Information Services in Ireland (Library Association of Ireland). In addition, the Health Service Executive's online Directory of Libraries and the Library.ie website ([1] An Chomhairle Leabharlanna, 2006) were used as supplemental resources. Libraries were categorized according to their type:
- academic;
- commercial;
- medical;
- national and government;
- professional;
- public;
- school;
- special; and
- university libraries.
A stratified, random sample of 50 per cent of the population of each category was employed. A randomized sample of 50 per cent of the population was taken from each of the nine categories of library using an online random number generator. Head librarians and chief information officers received an e-mail containing a link to the survey hosted on the SurveyMonkey website.
The survey was open from mid-July to the end of August 2006. While the response for school libraries was low (as expected due to the closure of schools for summer holidays), the response rates for all other categories were adequate (Table I [Figure omitted. See Article Image.]).
Interviews
Semi-structured face-to-face interviews were carried out with three librarians who maintained library-related weblogs. The main purpose of the interviews was to explore the factors affecting the uptake of blogging in the Irish librarian community and to establish some of the current uses of library weblogs in Ireland. Several themes and topics were explored, including motivation to begin a library weblog, types of material included and the time spent researching material, the connection of the weblog with the main library site, technical details on what type of software package used, the most positive and negative aspects of maintaining a library weblog, the feedback received from users and from other librarians and the use of other weblogs by the blogger. Other topics were also explored as they occurred naturally. Interviews were recorded using the voice recording function of an MP3 recorder and subsequently uploaded to a computer and transcribed.
Results
Of the three methodologies used in the present study, the content analysis of weblogs was intended to answer the first research question ("What types of library and librarian weblogs exist in Ireland?"), the survey was intended to answer the second and, in part, the third research questions ("Does the Irish librarian community use weblogs and other social communication technologies?" and "What factors affect the uptake of blogging by Irish librarians?", respectively), and the interviews were intended to answer the second and third questions.
Irish library and librarian weblogs
The main characteristics of Irish library and librarian weblogs were examined under the headings of overall identification, weblog type, weblog author, weblog history and activity level, technical features, overall content, current entry, comments, and library. Overall identification referred to the URL and name of the weblog, which were recorded as the weblog was discovered.
The four weblog types (filter, journal, knowledge-log (k-log) and mixed weblog) identified by [28], [29] Herring et al. (2004a, b) were used as a basis for categorization for the present study. A filter weblog was considered to be a weblog in which the blogger provides links to external material, with some discussion or commentary on them. Journal weblogs are online diaries of mainly personal content. K-logs have been defined as weblogs used by knowledge workers for sharing company knowledge and used internally on company intranets as company communication systems (Wikipedia). However, it was found necessary to extend this categorization to adequately describe the weblogs analyzed in this study. As the library weblogs in this study included both k-logs directed at the library or organizational staff and k-logs intended to deliver news and information to the library users, these two types of k-log were described as internal and external k-logs, respectively.
There were four types of weblog observed in this study (Table II [Figure omitted. See Article Image.]). While some journal-type weblogs by Irish librarians were observed, these were deemed to contain insufficient library content to render them relevant to the present study. The least frequently observed weblog type was the filter type (12.5 per cent). The other three weblog types observed were the external knowledge log or k-log (25 per cent), the internal k-log (37.5 per cent) and the mixed filter/external k-log (25 per cent).
Differing levels of information about the author(s) were contained in the weblogs. Both multi- and single-author weblogs were observed. Where gender of the blogger was known, more bloggers were male (69.2 per cent) than female (30.8 per cent). With respect to the weblog history, the majority of weblogs were initially created in the spring of 2006, with the oldest weblog begun in 2004. Mixed filter/external k-log and filter weblogs had higher average numbers of postings compared with internal k-logs (Figure 1 [Figure omitted. See Article Image.]). To be effective, internal k-logs should remain focused and uncluttered, while filter weblogs should be updated frequently to keep readers interested. In this study, the activity of external k-logs was relatively low.
The content of the weblogs varied, with a greater average number of words, paragraphs, sentences, images and links in the current entry body for mixed and filter weblogs than for internal and external k-logs. With regard to the technical features of weblogs, the most common software used was Blogger. The number of readers' comments was low. RSS feed was used for all weblogs. Library-related features were included to various degrees by all weblogs (Table III [Figure omitted. See Article Image.]).
Views and experiences of the Irish library community
The survey of Irish librarians revealed some interesting results. The most commonly and widely used sources of information were e-mail (81.39 per cent), newsletters (81.39 per cent), word-of-mouth (71.09 per cent), conferences (66.28 per cent), print journals (60.47 per cent) and online journals (50 per cent). With respect to electronic sources of information only, the most commonly used facility was e-mail (86.05 per cent) while specific websites (77.91 per cent) were used by most respondents, and listservs (41.86 per cent), bulletin boards (22.09 per cent), weblogs (16.28 per cent) and RSS (11.63 per cent) were also used to a lesser extent.
The majority of librarians (61.63 per cent) had previously read weblogs. However, it was found that the proportions of respondents who read weblogs frequently or sometimes (10.47 per cent and 16.28 per cent, respectively) were lower than for those who read weblogs seldom or never (32.56 per cent and 36.05 per cent, respectively). Quite a high proportion of respondents had not read library-related weblogs (53.5 per cent), and very few stated that they read these weblogs often (4.7 per cent).
Respondents were asked to state which library-related weblogs they read. A variety of Irish and international weblogs were mentioned, including those by Lorcan Dempsey, the Galway Public Library, Phil Bradley, Tom Roper, the Connecting Librarian, and The Shifted Librarian.
The maintenance of weblogs by libraries was also investigated and it was found that libraries were much more likely to maintain a web page (81.39 per cent) than a weblog (5.81 per cent). Only five respondents stated that their library maintained a weblog and of these, three were related to third-level institutions. The purposes of these weblogs were "sharing and dissemination of information", the provision of "an overview of Irish and international news/publications in the area of drugs and alcohol research" and "communications and interaction", respectively.
The positive and negative aspects to maintaining a library weblog were also explored. Positive elements included that "the act of sourcing news items/publications means staff are by default keeping up to date with news and information in the field" and that a library weblog should be regarded as "another tool" which "needs to be managed by someone who believes in interaction". It was noted that library weblogs could also be used as a marketing tool. The negative issues mentioned included the "serious time commitment for staff to source relevant/interesting news and publications" and the "pressure to get information up quickly, despite other work loads". The main reasons given to explain why the libraries of the respondents did not maintain library weblogs are given in Table IV [Figure omitted. See Article Image.].
The preferred forms of communication with users by libraries were stated to be websites (50 per cent), e-mail (40.7 per cent), newsletters (16.28 per cent) and leaflets/pamphlets/handouts/flyers (13.95 per cent). Other methods used included posters (10.46 per cent), intranet (10.46 per cent), library notice-boards/notices (9.3 per cent), letters (5.81 per cent) and word-of-mouth (4.65 per cent).
Experiences and views of bloggers
Various points of interest relating to library weblogs were brought up during the interviews with the three bloggers. These related to the origins, purpose and content of the weblogs, the time issues involved in maintaining a weblog, the software used, the links between the main library site and the weblog, the use of blogging teams and the positive and negative aspects of maintaining a weblog. Also discussed were the issue of feedback from users, the use of weblog promotion, experience of other weblogs and library weblogs, and the use of information technology by librarians.
For two of the interviewees, the creation of the library weblog came about from an existing interest in information technology, and the wish to explore the usefulness of weblogs for the library. For the other interviewee, the library weblog was created out of necessity, as other methods to establish an online presence for the library were unsatisfactory. Each of the three weblogs was intended for a different target audience. These were the library users, the library staff and both library staff users, and other people interested in library issues, respectively. The third weblog was intended also to be a training tool and a method of conveying the ethos of the library service. Weblog content varied, from resources for students to information for staff relating to changes to the library website. The time required to update the weblog varied, depending on the content of the weblog, and included the time taken to research issues as well as the time needed to upload photos or other material. All three interviewees used Blogger as their weblog software but local hosting is the intended option for two of the weblogs. The effectiveness of using a blogging team (rather than one blogger being responsible for all content) was mentioned. This system reduces the pressure on each blogger to produce regular content for the weblog.
Blogging was associated with both personal and professional benefits - the blogger can have a feeling of satisfaction and autonomy at self-publishing as well as a sense of pride in the creation of the weblog. The creativity involved in maintaining a weblog was also mentioned. Professionally, the simplicity of maintaining a weblog was seen as an advantage and the potential of weblogs for increasing the professional profile of a library was recognized. However, the feeling of pressure to produce new material for the weblog, the problem of reaching the target audience of the weblog (especially when e-mail is so commonly used), and the limitations of the linear structure of the weblog were considered as negative aspects of blogging.
With respect to the target audience, positive feedback has been received by one interviewee but the general lack of comments by readers was mentioned. However, one interviewee highlighted the pointlessness of leaving irrelevant comments and another interviewee mentioned receiving nonsense comments. The importance of the promotion of the weblogs, by various methods such as posters, information skills tutorials, library road-shows, flat-screen television advertising and e-mails, in order to reach the target audience was mentioned by all interviewees.
The awareness of other weblogs, including library weblogs, was greatest in those interviewees whose work or interest involved technological issues. An interesting point raised was the effect weblogs have on the acquisition of information - where previously one would read original documents, the use of weblogs means that one reads summaries of the ideas contained in those original documents, produced by a third party, and thus become more reliant on other people to predigest the information. It was also observed that some librarians might be resistant to new technologies and their potential role in libraries, which would limit their interest in weblogs. The lack of a "proactive" approach to reach the library's potential users (rather than passively expecting users to find what they need) was mentioned as being associated with a lack in an interest in using weblogs and other new technologies to bring information to users and this interviewee suggested a willingness to explore new technologies was a positive step for librarians.
Some of the recommendations made by the interviewees included the use of teams to maintain a library weblog, rather than placing all the pressure and time constraints on one individual, the use of library weblogs for very focused purposes to maximize their effectiveness, the regular updating of the weblog to keep it active, the assessment of the actual need for a weblog and the evaluation of where to draw the boundaries on the use of new social technologies.
Conclusions and recommendations
The results of this study demonstrate that an emergent biblioblogosphere currently exists in Ireland, involving a small number of weblogs by library, librarian and librarian organizations. The categories of weblog employed by [28], [29] Herring et al. (2004a, b), namely, filter, journal, knowledge-log (k-log) and mixed weblog, were expanded to include both internal and external k-logs in this study to accurately represent the Irish biblioblogosphere.
The activity levels of the weblogs varied; however, the actual number of weblogs is low and the majority of weblogs were only approximately six months old at the time of analysis. It may be that significant patterns may emerge over a longer timeframe. Hyperlinks from the library/organization webpage to the weblogs were only observed for two of the eight weblogs. The greater use of such hyperlinks could provide increased visibility for the weblogs and facilitate the expansion of the weblog readership.
Although the proportion of Irish librarians who read weblogs is greater than the respective proportion of the general public, weblogs are not used to a great extent by librarians as an information resource. The preferred information resources were found to be older technologies such as e-mail and websites. As one blogger noted, weblogs may remain a niche product which are best used for specific projects.
The principal reason for not utilizing weblogs was that librarians did not consider weblogs as professional tools, while other factors included that other methods of communication were preferred and that too much staff time would be required to maintain the weblog, and unfamiliarity with weblog technology. The apparent low profile of weblogs as a professional tool may change, given that the professional use of weblogs was raised as a topic in recent Irish library seminars, such as the seminar on "Perspectives on Online Information" by the Irish Academic and National Library Training Co-operative in July 2006 ([12] Clark, 2006), and was the subject of a course by the Irish Health Sciences Libraries Group, also in July 2006. In the survey, several respondents stated an interest in obtaining training on the creation and use of weblogs. However, it is the needs of the users that will determine the extent of weblog uptake and use.
The creation of weblogs was associated with several positive aspects, including the satisfaction of self-publication and of reaching the weblog readership, the autonomy associated with publishing at will rather than going through an IT intermediary, and the sense of pride associated with having created a library weblog. The reputation of the library is also enhanced by the use of new technology. However, weblog maintenance is also associated with some negative aspects, such as the pressure to constantly produce new weblog content, the difficulty of reaching the intended readers, and the problem of external versus local site hosting. The linear structure of the weblog itself may limit the potential uses of the weblog. The use of weblogs by librarians may be associated with a willingness to explore the usefulness of new technologies and with a proactive attitude towards bringing information and resources to the library users rather than passively waiting for the users to find what the library can offer.
While this study gives an initial overview of the Irish biblioblogosphere, further exploration of various aspects of this topic is warranted. The professional use of electronic communication technologies, such as e-mail, websites, weblogs, listservs and bulletin boards by Irish librarians should be further investigated. The experiences of Irish librarian bloggers should be explored to a greater extent, by interview and perhaps also by the construction of a librarian weblog by the investigators themselves. An exploration of these topics should be of use in identifying areas for further training for librarians, and in highlighting underutilized resources that could be developed to a greater extent. It could also reveal aspects of how information moves through a library community and to what extent, if any, electronic communication methods can facilitate a sense of community among librarians and can offer an outlet for both professional and personal creativity. As the number of library/librarian weblogs in Ireland is likely to increase in the future, the present study can be used as a baseline study from which to explore the growth and development of the Irish biblioblogosphere. Furthermore, this study will provide useful comparative data for studies undertaken elsewhere, and the themes and issues raised are relevant to the wider library and information world.

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Further Reading
9. Blood, R. (2007), "Rebecca's pocket", available at: www.rebeccablood.net (accessed 17 February 2007).

11. Bradley, P. (2007), "Phil Bradley's Blog", available at: www.philb.com/blog/blogger.html (accessed 20 February 2007).

17. Connecting Librarian (2007), available at: www.connectinglibrarian.blogspot.com/ (accessed 20 February 2007).

19. Dempsey, L. (2007), "Lorcan Dempsey's Weblog", available at: http://orweblog.oclc.org/ (accessed 20 February 2007).

21. Farkas, M. (2007), "Information wants to be free", available at: meredith.wolfwater.com/wordpress/index.php (accessed 17 February 2007).

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32. Library Association of Ireland (n.d.), "Directory of Library and Information Services in Ireland", available at: www.libraryassociation.ie/directory/index.tmpl (accessed 17 February 2007).

39. Roper, T. (2007), "Tom Roper's Weblog", available at: http://tomroper.typepad.com/ (accessed 20 February 2007).

41. Shifted Librarian (2007), available at: www.theshiftedlibrarian.com/ (accessed 20 February 2007).

45. Walker, J. (2007), "jill/txt", available at: http://jilltxt.net (accessed 17 February 2007).

46. West, J. (2007), available at: www.librarian.net (accessed 17 February 2007).

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[Appendix]

About the authors
Caitríona M. Lee (BSc, Grad Dip, MLIS), received a Master's in Library and Information Science from University College Dublin, Ireland in 2007. She has experience of working in both public and academic libraries in Ireland, and as a medical information specialist. Her research interests include the use of social software in libraries, and in particular, use of blogging tools by libraries and librarians.
Jessica A. Bates (BSocSc, MA (Information Studies)), is a Lecturer at the School of Information and Library Studies, University College Dublin, Ireland. She currently teaches modules in information behaviour, information and society, and information design and DTP. Her research interests include human information behaviour; public information provision and use; and issues relating to use of ICTs, information poverty and social inclusion. Jessica A. Bates can be contacted at: jess.bates@ucd.ie

[Author Affiliation]

Caitríona M. Lee, School of Information and Library Studies, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland

Jessica A. Bates, School of Information and Library Studies, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland

[Illustration]

Figure 1: Average posts per day for the four weblog types

Table I: Number of libraries and response rates

Table II: Weblog type

Table III: Library-related features of library weblogs ( n =5)

Table IV: Reasons for not maintaining a library/organizational weblog







Indexing (document details)

Subjects:

Weblogs, Studies, Libraries, Librarians, Journals
Locations:
Ireland
Author(s):
Caitríona M. Lee, Jessica A. Bates
Author Affiliation:
Caitríona M. Lee, School of Information and Library Studies, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland

Jessica A. Bates, School of Information and Library Studies, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
Document types:
Feature
Publication title:
The Electronic Library. Oxford: 2007. Vol. 25, Iss. 6; pg. 648
Source type:
Periodical
ISSN:
02640473
ProQuest document ID:
1388081121
Text Word Count
6418
DOI:
10.1108/02640470710837092
Document URL:
http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1388081121&sid=2&Fmt=3&clientId=74507&R QT=309&VName=PQD