Social Networking Awards from Mashable.com

Having trouble keeping track of all those new social networking services? Well, Mashable.com has put together a handy guide as part of their "2006 Social Networking Awards".

The list reads like a Who's Who of social networking services with everyone from MySpace and YouTube to Flickr and Digg having made the grade. There are also popular picks ("people's choice") and best bets for the coming year.

Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays from Klein & Friends to you and yours!

Bob, Regie & Leo: At the salade stage of the meal.

Aaron & Mr. Levitz at our dinner in Chicago.

Adobe Icon Controversy

Nothing like a graphic design controversy to brighten up the day!

If you look at the Mac taskbar above and can figure out the difference between 'Lr', 'Ps', 'Ai' and 'Id', maybe you'll have no problems with the application icons in Adobe's new Creative Suite 3 currently in Beta.

For many designers however it's been thumbs-down.

Dave Shea has a wonderful analysis of the icons called 'Icont'. His reasoning reads like a basic lesson in graphic design:

They fail because there is no shape variation. Every icon is contained within an identical square. Nothing breaks the silhouette, the only shape variation occurs inside the square, in the form of the letters. But using a common typeface, stroke weight, and posture across every icon means the various letters have more in common with each other than they differ, and at a glance they all blend together. Since this is the sole shape differentiator, it’s a big, big problem.

Comments by designer Jason Santa Maria also merit a read.

I guess for me the bottom line is, the icons are pretty generic and drab. I'm not a great fan of the current icons but frankly, when I saw a shot of them all together, I had abolutely no idea what they were for. They looked like a bunch of Color Samples for choosing a bucket of paint.

You'd think Adobe could do better.

Current Cites for December 2006

Current Cites for December 2006 is out. I've got three citations. You can find the issue here...

Browser War Redux

I spose I'm showing my age by using 'Redux' instead of '2.0' but, boys and girls, I remember the first round of browser wars as if it were yesterday!

Essentially Internet Explorer booted Netscape off the face of the planet not because of any particular advantage it had over the competition but simply because it was part of the Windows OS and lock-in trumped all.

The Gift to Be Simple

It had to happen.

First there was the period of experimentation on the Web. Websites were meant to be "explored" we were told -- even the more mundane ones. When that didn't seem to work out, the pendulum swung the other way in favor of clean and simple design. The search screen of Google comes to mind.

Now the question is, are we experiencing a backlash to the backlash?

First, there's the article by noted design theorist Don Norman entitled, 'Simplicity Is Highly Overrated', which concludes:

Yes, we want simplicity, but we don’t want to give up any of those cool features. Simplicity is highly overrated.

Next we have Joel on Software arguing that simplicity "will not work as a good long term strategy". I'm reminded of the librarian discussing his new website who said users only understood the search box on every page when there were three search boxes to choose from.

Don Norman asks us rhetorically,

"Haven’t you ever compared two products side by side, comparing the features of each, preferring the one that did more? Why shame on you, you are behaving, well, behaving like a normal person.

I admit it. I'm looking for a phone at the moment that does everything but light up the driveway when I get home. I love features as much as the next guy.

But it's important to realize a simple fact: people want the features but they don't want the complexity. Furthermore, they'll prove extremely reluctant to try out a site, if in order to accomplish their goals they've got to master every feature on the thing. If this weren't the case, 'Advance Search' would be the first stop of even our most neophyte users.

FireBug : Geek Tool of the Month

Here's something that just made the life of anyone involved with CSS or Javascript a whole lot easier. FireBug is an "extention" for the Firefox Browser that allows you to see the CSS of a web page and change it in real-time.

ChillingEffects.org

While googling for pictures of failed technologies for my post on eBooks, I came across a strange note at the bottom of Google's search results. It read:

"In response to a complaint we received under the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act, we have removed 2 result(s) from this page. If you wish, you may read the DMCA complaint that caused the removal(s) at ChillingEffects.org."

eBooks are from the Department of Bad Ideas

Someone asked about eBooks on one of the library lists I'm on. They wanted to know what the prospects were. I responded on the list but I thought I'd share my opinion here as well.

I've never really understood the rationale behind these devices. I mean, I already have something that reads "electronic books" -- it's called a laptop. If I wanted something even more mobile, I'd get a smaller laptop -- or maybe use my PDA. The advantages of using my laptop -- besides the fact that I already own it -- is that I can play most formats on it, and not just one.

Furthermore, my laptop can do more than just "read" the thing -- I can cut out parts, re-use it, send it to friends and colleagues. I can link to the file, 'digg it', list it on del.icio.us. In other words, I can do everything I've become accustomed to do on a computer in a networked environment. Why would I want something that could do anything less?

I think if the sole purpose of a device is simply to serve as a platform for a proprietary format, it's doomed. This kind of "lock-in" is not popular with consumers. Just ask Sony how its own version of the iPod is doing.

Hallmark of Failed Technology: Sony Memory Stick Walkman (NW-MS7)

Sony launched this unit amid much fanfare and expectations on the auspicious occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Walkman. Forget the iPod, which didn't even exist at this point, this player was supposed to be the successor to the fabled Walkman. Unfortunately because it only played Sony's proprietary format and showed more innovation in Digital Rights Management than Features for the users, it never got off the ground.

Sony showed it hadn't learned anything when four years later it released the Network Walkman NW-HD1, its 'iPod Killer' that also failed to gain any market acceptance.

Zillow Has A Wiki

It's always interesting to see how other organizations apply technology. It can often be a source of ideas. Here's an example of the popular real estate site, Zillow, deploying a Wiki. (h/t TechCrunch)

Current Cites for November 2006

The belated issue of Current Cites for November 2006 is now available. You can find it here...

Wonderful World of Widgets

Widgets (also called 'badges') are like small windows of information about you and your institution that people can put on their own sites.

The information can be about anything: events, news, hours of operation -- anything that you can pull from a database and list on people's sites so long as they embed the pieces of your code in their HTML.

The Widget featured here (actually a screenshot) comes from a company called "ChipIn". It shows a realtime progress bar for a fundrasing campaign along with a link for site visitors to donate or "ChipIn!" themselves. Anyone can go to ChipIn and create one of these things. Up to $9,999 in contributions and there's no fee. Payments are handled through PayPal. (More on Widgetbox...)

Is Library Culture an Obstacle to Change?

When harshly criticized for the huge disconnect between his words and actions, Charles II defended himself by saying that the actions were his ministers's and that only the words were his own.

I was reminded of that quote when reading "Disconnects Between Library Culture and Millennial Generation Values" by Robert H. McDonald and Chuck Thomas" (Educause Quarterly, 23:4). The authors harshly criticize research libraries for not meeting the needs of their users due in part to a rigid adherence to "old values". This in turn leads to "fundamental disconnects" between libraries and their users in the areas of "technology, policy, and unexploited opportunities".

Site of the Month: Queens Borough Public Library

The Queens Borough Library Website is so good that it made me want to do this review. It practically cried out for it. The developers have done a fantastic job. They've taken features we routinely find on other sites -- features like creating accounts, specifying preferences and grouping information -- and applied them to a library context.

In so doing, they've upped the standard of what a library website can do -- and what the public can expect from one. They've also provided a good model for other libraries to follow.

OVERALL DESIGN AND LOOK-AND-FEEL

This is a bright, colorful, well-designed site. The overall presentation is busy without being cluttered. Everything has its place. Even the foreign language options -- all six of them -- are comfortably parked near the top of the page.

Also near the top are two items, 'My Account" and "My Queens Library" that work very much like people have come to expect on other sites. They're built into the system and not part of some vendor-provided separate utility. More on these later.

The navigation is clean, easy to use and robust. Materials are listed on the tabs on top while all other information including user-groups and services is on the left. This left navigation expands and contracts revealing subcategories in an easy-to-use, consistent manner. Running along the bottom is more "institutional" information such as "About Us", "Contact Us", etc.

DYNAMIC, INTEGRATED INFORMATION AND SERVICES

Probably the most noticeable aspect of the site once we get beyond the graphics and layout, is just how dynamic and integrated the information is. We don't have separate applications running various aspects of the site -- one system for web pages and another for events. Rather they're integrated into a common interface and can be arranged in any number of powerful ways.

How branch library information is presented is just one example.

Most large metropolitan areas have branch libraries. So how the information about them is presented and accessed is an important consideration. At the Queens Borough Library site, you select a branch from a dropdown menu that's part of the left navigation. Once you've done this, the information below the menu immediately changes to that particular branch's hours and location -- and the system remembers your selection as you move from page to page! There's also a link for more extensive information about the branch below the hours and location.

But what if you don't know which branch to pick? In that case, you can search for one using a map or zip code. A particularly nice touch is the "Open Late Tonight" link which lists all branches open late according to what day it is. A feature like this would be unthinkable in the days of hand-coded library websites.

We've come a long way, baby!

Even more impressive is how events are handled. The function is completely integrated into the site. You can look events up by date, branch or user group. Each branch has its own calendar which is a subset of the larger institution-wide calendar. Once you've found an event to your liking, you can add it to your "My Events" list and sign up for weekly email reminders listing the events you've selected.

Presto!

PERSONALIZATION

The "My Events" feature is just one example of personalization. The first thing you notice about it is how easy it is to set up. It's just like setting up an account at just about any other website on the face of the planet. You don't need to come from Queens or even have a Queens Borough Library card!

You just enter your username, password and email and that's it. From there, you can begin making your own list of events, designate your "home" branch library and do a number of other things that on other library sites -- if at all possible -- might require pulling out ye olde library card and typing in a long string of numbers.

Of course, you'll eventually need to enter those numbers if you want to take advantage of borrower services, including remote use of subscription databases, but the first step is entirely painless. What's more, once you've set up the preliminary account, called a "Web Membership', you can link it to your library card number.

Also well integrated into the site are suggested reading lists on about a dozen different topics (e.g. Biography, Fiction). Each topic has its own newsletter which people can subscribe to online. The library also offers various other forms of recommended materials (music, movies, etc.) all of which link directly to holding information in the OPAC. Bookmarks for this kind of material would be a logical future extension.

Integration with the OPAC itself is a bit quirky. At least on my copy of Firefox 1.5 running on Mac OS X, text and navigation near the top of each record was smooshed together.

Nevertheless, the initial search box that figures so prominently on each and every page managed to pass my "Treasure Island" test: type "Treasure Island" in the search box and hope that a book by that name actually turns up on the first page of results (not always a given, believe me).

Design-wise, the OPAC carries over the color scheme and navigation of the site as a whole. That's important. No reason to step into an entirely different interface just because the function, in this case finding books and other materials, has changed.

BUGS? COMPLAINTS?

And yes, there are bugs. On occasion, I'd clicked on a link and this caused a database exception of one kind or another (read: ugly error page). The whole system looks like it was homebuilt and that's a good thing because all the pieces work in an amazing way, but on occasion there are loose strings that need to be fixed.

Besides that, there's not much to gripe about -- other than the aforementioned minor formatting glitches due to OPAC integration.

CONCLUSION

In the early days, you'd look at a library website and wonder exactly want kind of ramshackle organization put it together. The sites in no way reflected the role, oftentimes enormous, that the institution actually played in the community.

This is no longer the case. Increasingly we're getting websites that compare favorably with the competition at every level be it graphic design or functionality. The Queens Borough Library web site is an excellent example of this. We don't have to be first on the block with every new feature but it makes sense eventually to incorporate good ideas when we can.

Slightly Less Than Mature Reaction to Inclement Weather in Chicago

 Yippie! It's Snowing!!! (For more shots, check out the Flickr feed...)

US GAO Report: No Competition in ISPs

 

Competition in the area of Internet Service Providers? Fugeddaboutit!

That's basically the conclusion of the Government Accountability Office (GAO) in its new report entitled, "FCC Needs to Improve Its Ability to Monitor and Determine the Extent of Competition in Dedicated Access Services".

Drupal 5.0 Beta

I've been doodling around with the latest beta of Drupal 5.0.

I was thinking of implementing it here [on earlier website] but it's just not far enough along for me to use. Also, most of the modules, which are the true glory of Drupal, haven't been updated yet. (This site's running 4.7.)