# 34 Online Answer Sites

I found the articles about the future of the library reference desk really interesting. Currently I work in a junior high so we don't have a typical reference desk. We work with individual students when the need arises but also work with whole classes teaching research skills.
The article that hit home was “The Future of the Reference Desk”. It gave the problems and benefits of our current situation. I think that the online answer websites have a place. Just like any information on the web you need to look for bias. I looked at yahooanswers and found some good information and some junk as well. Some of the other websites asked questions but also seemed to ask the opinion of the answerers.
We should try to design our media programs to offer the user an easy way to find the answers to their questions. This could be done in email, in person, by phone or in a live chat form. I see this area of service changing a lot as technology changes.

#33 Travel 2.0

These travel sites are a great resource for people trying to get multiple perspectives before taking a trip. We used some of the travel site for students who were taking a Spanish class and needed to plan a pretend trip to Spain. I think using these sites were not only more motivating to the students but also made them feel more in control. The students felt they were getting better information. With any open site you need to remind students of bias. The hotel may be creating comments and one bad review by a negative customer should be kept in perspective.

#32 Google Maps and Mashups

Wow, there are so many mashups for google maps. If you can think of it there is a mashup for it. One thing I noticed is the applications are only as powerful as the information entered. For example I went on safe2pee.org and looked up my city and there were no bathrooms found safe 2 pee in. Now I know there are safe bathrooms but it just means that we need to be aware of the limitations of these sites and teach our students the limitations. That said I can see so many possibilities for use in the classroom. One site I found showed Barack Obama's road to the White House following him all over the world since birth. It had information on the Google map and had a timeline with additional information. How cool would this be for a student doing a report?
I created my own map for a girl's weekend that I am going on.

# 31 More Twitter

I have been using and checking twitter several times a day since we explored it on #27. I added the badge on my blogger page so visitors to my site can see my latest update. I follow several news reporters and see their updates. I also follow Minnesota Public Radio. I am a news junkie so this has been a new and quick way for me to get my fix.
I have made twitter part of my social networking plan. I do find there are things I like more about it than facebook. I added an app on my iPod touch which allows me to update my facebook and twitter in one step.