3D Thursday!

I got a 3D camera as a birthday present from my husband. I collect View-Master reels and viewers. And I’ve always wanted to get into making personal view-master reels but the barrier for entry has been too high. Until now.

Since I’ve taken so many 3D pics I thought I’d share them here on a semi-regular basis. In order to put them on the web, I had to convert them to red/blue shift “anaglyph” images. You’ll need a pair of groovy 3D glasses to appreciate them. Friends, family, clients, and fans (ha!) can just ask me for a pair. I’ll be happy to send you a set. I bought a bunch on eBay and have already dropped a few in the mail.

The Village Booksmith
The Village Booksmith in Baraboo, Wisconsin

Click on the image to go full size. I think this is one of my favorite images so far!

Grad School Reflection Paper for e-portfolio

Rebecca Kilbreath

E-Portfolio Reflection Paper

3 March 2012

At the dawn of my graduate school career I was considering a career change. After a decade in publishing I thought I might prefer a dramatic shift toward library science with, perhaps, an emphasis in archives.

That was my intention in my first semester. The early artifacts in my portfolio reflect that sincere interest in archives and preservation, particularly the paper I wrote, On the Society of American Archivists and the Future of Archiving; the pathfinder I compiled, View-Master Viewers and Reels (a hobby that I was interested in “practicing” my new archiving skills on); and my research on the archives at the Frank Lloyd Wright Home & Studio that resulted in a poster presentation and display.

My portfolio reflects the changing nature of my interests in information science.

While I still find archives an important and interesting field of study, my emphasis changed as my personal and professional life evolved. I was laid off from my publishing job in the middle of my graduate school journey and found myself at a crossroads—I could jump into library science or continue to look for publishing work. As luck would have it, I found a strange place in between.

I took LIS 770 and enjoyed it much more than I was expecting. It was the best of the core classes, in my opinion. I discovered a world beyond archiving and public libraries. I enjoyed thinking about the big picture in terms of organizations and information. I switched tracks and decided to pursue a knowledge management certificate. This was prompted in part by my success and interest in LIS 770 but also by the fact that I was picking up clients and starting my own freelance editing business. Clients were interested in technology, content management systems, web development, and big picture thinking. And, it turned out, so was I.

During LIS 770 I wrote Managing Green: Library Management, Environmentalism, and Economic Reality Collide in Public Libraries. It was a turning point in my education. It combined my background—writing about architecture and green building—with my interest in change management and the future of public spaces.

From there, I took what was for me the best class at Dominican: LIS/GSB 624, Organizational Analysis with Molly Burke. I learned a great deal about the way organizations work. Among the projects I completed for the class was a case study on Proctor and Gamble. I would never look at organizations and corporate culture from the same perspective again.

I also took LIS 880, Knowledge Management. We reviewed numerous case studies and relevant literature that culminated in a long “journal” totaling over 40 pages of analysis and reflection on knowledge management. Having nearly all of my thoughts on a given topic in a single file allowed me to consider all I’d learned and the ways in which those lessons might apply to my burgeoning freelance editing and consulting career.

During the time that my interest had turned to the business and theory end of library science, I was also immersed in learning new skills to add to my resume, including HTML, CSS, content management administration, and much more. I created two websites that are not beautiful but are functional and are stepping stones to greater technical skill and knowledge. Given the skills I brought to the table when I began this journey, they are singular accomplishments despite their seemingly rudimentary nature. I made a personal website for my business, www.rebeccakilbreath.com, and then I made a more advanced website on the same topic: http://786s07.learningdoingsharing.com.

I learned basic HTML, built on that with CSS, and learned a little PHP. From there, I learned about Drupal (a content management system) and content modules and website design and evaluation.

These skills contributed directly to advancements in my career as one of my clients has made me their web editor, responsible for utilizing knowledge management skills in maximizing their website content and traffic. I also inferface with Drupal’s main competitor—Joomla—on a daily basis. I use my content management system skills to improve the frequency of updates and therefore the freshness of my client’s website. I was part of a team that launched their new website, did troubleshooting for them, and continues to de-bug the site on an ongoing basis in addition to posting new content regularly. Because of my success in those areas, the company has also made me a project manager, spearheading webinars and other web-based activities.

The evolution of my interest in information science is evident in my portfolio, and reflects the real-world work opportunities I am encountering.

I hope to continue to employ the knowledge I have gained at Dominican with clients in the future. I would love to start a community of practice in a future position. The paper I wrote, Communities of Practice: A Knowledge Management Power Tool, provides an overview of what a community of practice is, sample case studies, and criticisms related to communities of practice. This is an area that is still ripe for development and I look forward to employing this tool in the future. It’s one of the strongest pieces in my portfolio, I believe.

During my time at Dominican, I have come to appreciate many aspects of library science and librarianship that I had not given much thought to previously. I am looking forward to graduating and pursuing a career track that is not exactly typical of library students but I will continue to support public libraries in any way I can, including volunteering my time and energy.

One of the ways I plan to extend information science in my personal realm is in advocacy and education. I educate my clients on how they can better communicate to their audience, either online or in print. I provide concise and clear social media representation, and I find the best way to provide access to information is via clear communication. It’s our job to create a bridge from information to individuals in our communities.

The first paper I wrote for graduate school was a response to the article “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” The concept of new technology providing access to information but not necessarily knowledge has been a theme throughout my graduate school education. The fact of the matter is that people are barraged with information on a daily basis and it’s our job as information science professionals to help weed out the noise, provide clear pathways to information, operate with informational integrity, and do it all with a strong sense of service and purpose.

That is what I will take from my time at Dominican.

The Seven Objectives–Grad School Porfolio

Below you will find artifacts from my graduate school experience and how it relates to one of the seven Dominican MLIS program objectives.

Articulating and applying a philosophy of service that incorporates an awareness of the legacy of libraries and information centers within our culture.

  • Marketing References Services. For this assignment, I worked in a group setting to explore an area of concern in reference services. We opted to explore ways that academic reference services could better market themselves and their services. The PowerPoint and attendant notes demonstrate how the service-based reference librarians found creative and unique ways to reach out to their community of users and beyond in order to improve their visibility and better serve the community.
  • On the Society of American Archivists and the Future of Archiving. In this paper, I consider the history and future of the Society of American Archivists. In particular I highlight two recent calls by archivists to push the boundaries of archiving to better serve current patrons as well as a call to consider the long-term ramifications of being an archivist and what that means for our collective society. 
  • Knowledge Management Cumulative Journal Assignment. In this 40-plus page journal, I review major literature throughout the history of Knowledge Management (KM) studies, carefully consider case studies in KM techniques, and weigh in with my opinions on which methodologies seem to be most effective and show the most promise for future implementation in information centers. 

Promoting the professional values of ethical responsibility, intellectual freedom, and universal access to information.

  • On the Society of American Archivists and the Future of Archiving. In this paper, I consider the importance of archivists, how they influence scholarship in the future and what that means for archivists ethically and professionally. 
  • A series of blog posts on Cloud Computing, Global Access Issues and Broadband, and Intellectual Property. For LIS 753, I kept a blog on technology issues related to librarianship and information access. In the posts I’ve linked here, I consider the complicated future of cloud computing (and what it means for access to information), concerns about access for rural and poor Americans (and how libraries can help create a bridge to modern technology for those people), and intellectual property and freedom of expression. 

Identifying and analyzing information needs and opportunities of individuals and organizations, both within the traditional information service areas and the broader information sector.

  • P&G Case Study. As part of LIS/GSB624, Organizational Analysis, I worked in a student group to review a case study related to Proctor & Gamble. We were tasked with coming up with a solution of what the organization should do about a particular business unit that did not fit within their corporate model. We analyzed the relevant readings and identified a solution to P&G’s problem. We wrote a paper on it (linked) and also did a presentation to the class on our findings. 
  • Special Libraries Pathfinder. As a new LIS student I was surprised at the lack of information in the program on alternative librarianship pathways. Most of the core classes seemed to focus on public and academic libraries so I took it upon myself to create a pathfinder on “Special Libraries” in order to identify those pathways and analyze and assess the materials available. 
  • Knowledge Management Cumulative Journal Assignment. In this 40-plus page journal, I reviewed numerous case studies and theoretical articles related to Knowledge Management practices. In the final journal entry on page 39 I utilize all of the theories and practices I learned during the course of the class to identify and analyze the information needs of one of my clients in order to create information solutions for them within a knowledge management framework. 

Developing creative solutions to information problems by integrating relevant models, theories, research, and practice.

  •  Marketing References Services. In this PowerPoint presentation (as well as in the notes I’ve included at the link) my group from LIS 704 explored creative solutions to marketing available reference services in both public and academic library settings. My examples included unusual marketing efforts and creative collaborations to improve the visibility of the reference desk. 
  • Communities of Practice: A Knowledge Management Power Tool. In this paper, I explored the knowledge management solution known as “communities of practice.” This solution to improve information and knowledge sharing involves setting up a formal way in which knowledge transfer can occur. The paper considers the history, case studies, detractors and current thinking on this methodology. 

Designing, implementing, and evaluating systems, technologies, services, and products that connect users with information.

  • Reference Desk Service Report. In this report for LIS 704, I visited a local reference desk to evaluate their systems and service. It was one of three reports we did that required us to closely consider service and implementation of systems to deliver said service during the semester. 
  • RebeccaKilbreath.com and Drupal Website Creation. Over the course of two classes I learned HTML, CSS, and content management system administration (among many other things). These two websites were the results of months of knowledge building. Ultimately, I designed and implemented the technology from the ground-up in order to better connect my clients with the services I offer. 
  • Collecting View-Master Viewers and Reels Pathfinder. This was the first pathfinder I created for LIS 701. I designed it and utilized research to create a topic-oriented pathfinder that would aid those interested in finding out more about any topic of my choice. I went with a topic I knew in order to focus on creating a thorough pathfinder that I knew would help connect users with the information they were seeking. A basic understanding of how to do that led me to create a Special Libraries Pathfinder the following semester.

Practicing a variety of management, communication, and organizational skills to facilitate appropriate change within libraries and communities.

  • Managing Green: Library Management, Environmentalism and Economic Reality Collide in Public Libraries. In this paper for LIS 770, I review the literature on change management as it applies to greening libraries. As a trade magazine writer I have written many stories about green building and sustainable building practices. I wondered how this applies to libraries and also how to implement changes in libraries from a management level that would improve the environment both within the library and for the community at large. 
  • Award-Winning Libraries. In this PowerPoint presentation, I worked with another student to research the qualities in common at award-winning libraries in North America. The award-winning libraries had similar goals for the end product and thus enjoyed some striking similarities (as well as differences). These case studies show how the libraries of the future should model themselves regardless of the budget–there are examples that all libraries can learn from.
  • The Frank Lloyd Wright Archives in Oak Park. In order to improve my visual communication skills, I worked to create a poster board presentation for LIS 775. As a writer and editor, I don’t often get called on to create visual, three-dimensional displays so I took my visit to the Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio archives and combined it with research and appealing visuals in order to share the experience with my peers. 

Teaching others to identify, analyze, organize, and use information.

  • Chapter 11 Outline for Teaching the Class. I prepared and used this outline as a means to “teach” my classmates in 703. Each week, a different group had to lead the class and teach a chapter from the textbook. I created an outline of the chapter, reviewed the pertinent points, and rehearsed the important elements repeatedly before getting up in front of the class and guiding them through the content. 
  • Communities of Practice: A Knowledge Management Power Tool. In this paper, I give a thorough review of the knowledge management tool known as “communities of practice.” I provide a history, case studies, and criticism in order to provide a primer on the methodology. 
  • Google Is Making Us Smarter. In this short paper, I create a counterpoint to a popular essay, “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” With research and clear language, I build a case for the opposite: access to information can create knowledge, and access to technology and social media make us all content creators, which exercises and expands our writing and reading abilities in profound ways.

 

Watching the Detectives

Everybody is always going on and on about how brills Mad Men is–and I think (after the first season) it got brills. But can we just talk about how (despite it’s missteps, of which there have been many) The Killing is kinda genius? I haven’t seen the original series but, clearly, the U.S. version is taking this one murder over two seasons (where I guess the Danish version does one murder per season, with each episode covering 24 hours).

The show started slow and feels like waaaaay too much has happened for it to be just three weeks. And I don’t really get Billy Crudup’s plot line at all. But still! I think the two leads are insanely good. Mireille Enos as Sarah Linden and Joel Kinnaman as her partner Holder are SO GENIUS it makes me feel unsettled.

Sarah Linden stalks about, continually shut down, closed off and all around messed up. She’s an awful mother but still sympathetic because she’s obviously grappling with a horrible childhood (that did not confer on her any sort of genius–unlike stupid Lisbeth Salander) and the troubles that plague her from it (presumably–there’s still a lot we don’t know about her). Holder is equally messed up and but he’s the opposite of Linden in many ways. He can talk to people, manipulate them with his uneven/skeezy charm, and is open in all the ways she is closed. Where she’s a long, angry scar? He’s a bleeding wound.

I could write long essays about why these two crazy kids need to go to couples therapy and work out their PTSD together! Slowly this show has risen in the ranks for me and I watch it right away while leaving Mad Men on the TiVo to stew.

The Future of Self-Publishing

I’m working on a 10-page paper for my Digital Copyright class that discusses the problem of e-book lending, public libraries, and The Big 6 publishing houses. It has me consumed with the idea of new publishing models and thinking about the inevitable demise of The Big 6 as we know it today.

This article on a group of  self-publishing romance authors gathering together under a banner called Rock*ItReads is so clearly the next phase in self-publishing. One of the key questions readers ask is how to separate the wheat from the chaff. This is the next step.

At a message board I frequent we’ve jokingly talked about starting an e-publishing company in order to get free books but, more importantly, to get higher quality books out there. I think we’ll see a flood of these types of collectives–I think agents might start their own e-publishing houses.

It’s pretty much the Wild West in publishing right now and I sort of love it. Maybe because I’m a freelance editor and my income is not dependent on any existing book publishing models.

I love editing romance. Maybe I’ll send them my résumé…