Mashups

The British Library initiative of using Google Maps together with their own incredible maps of London through the centuries to create a Mashup giving the viewer a virtual exhibition of London over a number of time periods is something we could do in relation to our maps of Sydney. For example i was able to click on a map pin and bring up a map of St James Palace and Park in 1710. Truely impressive! and a wonderful way to share map collections with the public.

Maybe not slammin...

I'm not sure answering questions on "slamming the boards" will reap many rewards for our library. It may raise our profile to some degree but wouldn't it be a better use of staff time and reap better rewards for our clients if we focused our energy and resources on our own web site resources and our core services such as our information request service?

Podcasts

Podcasts are a great way to introduce new clients to the library. An entertaining and informative snapshot about the library could inspire someone to visit our library. They could also be incorporated into our online guides eg. providing genealogy tutorials for the beginner. I noticed from browsing through podcasts that libraries use them to broaden access to their collections and programs. Lectures about items held in collections, guest speakers at special events and children's programs seemed to be popular uses for podcasts. I enjoyed listening to the audio podcast on the British Library web site on Anne Boleyn's Book of Hours. I think a podcast can enable you to feel more connected to the item that interests you. Some of our Rare Books and iconic realia could be featured in a well presented podcast. The State Library of Queensland has a large number of webcasts on various topics on their web site. I'm not sure what the difference is between a podcast and a webcast?