Amanda Etches-Johnson

User Experience Librarian, McMaster University

email + MSN: amanda AT etches-johnson DOT com

AIM: torontolibrarian

Presentation Slides

Intro to Blogging

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Blogs in Plain English, Common Craft

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Academic Blogging

Stuff we don't cover

Blog software

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Blogger

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Wordpress.com (hosted)

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Wordpress.org (installed on your own server)

Picking the right software for your library

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WeblogMatrix (compare different blog software tools to figure out which best meets your needs)

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How to Choose In-House Blogging Software, Michelle V. Rafter

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Starting Your Own Blog: How to Choose the Right Blogging Tool for You, Molly Holzschlag

Blogging Usability & Ethics

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Weblog Usability: Top Ten Design Mistakes in Blogs, Jakob Nielsen

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The Ethical Blogger, Karen Schneider

Links to things we do cover

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The quintessential example of a library blog: Ann Arbor District Library

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For more on RSS: RSS in Plain English

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Great example of a solid mission statement: Scholarly Communication at Duke (about page)

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Need help defining your mission? Check out what other libraries are doing with blogs at the Blogging Libraries Wiki

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Good example of a page explaining RSS: What is RSS and How Might it Assist Your Research?

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Check out this post for an excellent example of posting as yourself (not as the library): Of Poetry and Angels, on SJCPL blog

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Share blog authorship and display your authors proudly:

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Neat example of engaging with users in comments: Blogging for a Good Book

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Why not let your community moderate comments/content themselves? Here's a non-library example we can draw from: My Starbucks Idea

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If you see an idea you like on another blog, use it! For example, NYPL Labs

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A cool example of using other media (like pictures and movies) in your blog posts to make them more interesting: Lamson Library at Plymouth State University