During one of our first chat sessions someone mentioned that blogs can be viewed as a kind of a knowledge database. I am beginning to realise the truth of it. Blogs on this site extensively reflect on various aspects of the materials we view, read and discuss throughout the week and this way collect the best ideas on social software by some 40 really smart and engaged people. For me, these blogs are a way to verbalise my thinking, unfinished as it may be, on what social software may mean for our imperfect library. (Maybe in the end I will just have to search the blog and the final project will simply emerge from the collected contents?!)

Although I had heard about blogging and RSS feeds before I had never taken time to try them out for myself. While getting immersed in Bloglines and Goodle Reader last week I discover I just love it.

I especially liked the second part of the assignment where I created an RSS subscription list for my husband. When he looked through the blogs collected in the feed he found the announcement that his long term mentor and colleague with whom he hadn’t kept in contact very well had just died a day ago. It would have taken a long while till he would have found out this news through his traditional information channels. And although the death in itself was sad news, finding out early enough helped him to reconnect with previous friends and colleagues and this way be included in the grieving and support process.

Ahoj from Prague.

We are still waiting for the winter to come. It has been very warm so far, with only one snow calamity, and those who like skiing are not too happy about it. But, as the saying goes, if the spring comes in November winter will come in March.

I am Head Librarian at a theological seminary and at the moment anything connected to electronic databases and technology falls into my responsibility. I am excited about it because I enjoy discovering new ideas, new software, connecting with new people and learning how to improve things in our library.

That's why when I saw the announcement on the Five Weeks course on the Web4Lib listserv I jumped onto this opportunity without second thoughts. It will be tough timewise, because I became Head Librarian only a few weeks ago and am still confusedly wading through all the administration and orientation, but I want to make the best of it.