Think about your own library for a moment. Perhaps everyone from your library participated in this program. Perhaps you are the only one. Regardless, write a paragraph about how you could adapt this program to increase the technology skill level among the staff at your library. Even if all staff at your library has gone through this program, there is so much more to be learned.
We seem to have good participation from our reference staff, and even a few people in tech services, like me, also participated. The 23 Things is a good, brief introduction to Web 2.0 technology, but much of it I was already familiar with from just being a citizen with an internet connection who already pays some attention to what is going on. But as discussed at TLA this past year, it's important for librarians to take time out of their work week to review blogs and take the pulse of what's happening in technology and information; not only from ALA sources but also places like Wired.com or BoingBoing.net, for example. I recently subscribed to the print edition of Wired Magazine using my "Coke Rewards" points, an online customer loyalty program created by the Coca Cola Bottling Company where users can input a code and rack up "points" which they can apply to various rewards great and small. One of these awards was the subscription to Wired Magazine. I normally wouldn't shell out the cash for it, but since I had plenty of points to spare and not much interest in most of the smaller awards on offer, I decided to go for it. I also got some coupons for free movies at Blockbuster (rent one, get one free and also a stand alone free movie offer). I don't use Blockbuster very often anymore, since I mostly watch Japanese anime via Netflix for my primary entertainment, but I do use Blockbuster to watch some of the newest Hollywood releases that I didn't see on the big screen.
Wired Magazine is great, but Wired.com is better for fast-breaking news, obviously. I also get an email alert from the Dallas Morning News's computers & technology column. I also get local headlines via email from the Denton Record Chronicle. I try to stay at least nominally aware of what's going on in the community and the world at large. During the run up to the Iraq War and the initial American invasion, I was definitely an internet news junkie, relying heavily on foreign sources and alternative news to get a fuller understanding of what was going on beyond the accounts given by mainstream TV news and PBS/NPR. I still am a news junkie to some degree, but not quite as intensely as when I was in library school.
The NT23 Things is a good way to introduce technology to library staff, and to encourage "technological literacy" among staff members. The most important factor for success, I think, is commitment and follow through beyond the initial "Gee whiz" enthusiasm. Otherwise you end up with lots of sizzle and no steak. A library blog can be a good way to disseminate information, but if it is seldom updated, users will ignore it and forget about it. Beyond internet technology, we are looking at using Digital Picture frames to display library info (fines, hours open, etc) in a dynamic fashion that will be more eye-catching.
Keeping abreast of current technology is essential to being an effective librarian, whether one works in Reference or Tech Services, Acquisitions or Cataloging, ILL or circulation. Technology impacts us all, and we have to help patrons mediate technology to fulfill their information needs.
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