Wednesday, December 07, 2005

Life Hacking

“Meet the Life Hackers” by Clive Thompson New York Times Magazine, October 15, 2005  (retrieved from LexisNexis Academic December 6, 2005)

We have all become like it or not—multitaskers.  How many times a day are we interrupted by cell phones, e-mails, IMs, etc.?  Thompson interviews some social scientists who have completed some studies on how we handle multitasking in the workplace.

Some interesting observations from these studies:
  • It takes on an average 25 minutes to return to the original task

  • Interruptions have become our work

  • Our jobs are “interruption driven”

  • We spend an average of 11 minutes on a project before interruption occurs

  • Each 11 minute session is divided into several 3 minute smaller tasks

  • We are so busy keeping an eye on everything, we can never focus on anything

Solutions suggested:
  • Multiple computer monitors (up to three)

  • Larger monitors (45 inch!)

  • “to do” lists in Word

My solution was a mini whiteboard that I kept on my desk like an easel.  I had my “to do” list there with the tasks prioritized. This way I could always see my list and try to keep focused.  It’s low-tech, but it works.

Because I am easily bored, I enjoy being interrupted.  I wouldn’t want to work any other way.

Saturday, December 03, 2005

Morphed Librarian





Many older librarians have found that their jobs have changed since they graduated from library school many ages ago....When I was getting my degree the Internet was not available to us. We had computer access by creating a query using punched cards or tape (telex machine). We've come along way and it's been fun for me to be a part of it.

In 1980 or so, I purchased an Atari 800 and signed on to the Source, CompuServe, and other online resources. It was a great way to educate myself and keep up with changes in the profession. Since then I've tinkered with the major operating systems and now have a wireless LAN at home.

My jobs have changed over time: reference assistant, young adult librarian, interlibrary loan assistant, head of reference, technology trainer, and virtual reference librarian.

I love showing people how to use technology to educate themselves and locate quality information. It's been a great journey!

I'll be posting information on what I've been trying and reading as far as using technology in libraries goes.

I recently returned from the VRD Conference in San Francisco and am raring to go with some of the ideas I brought back: librarians on location, using tablet pcs while roaming, IM the Librarian, etc.

Stay tuned for updates on how we implement these ideas!