Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Week 9, Thing #20: YouTube and Your Library

YouTube was one the web 2.0 things that I was familiar with before I even heard and understood the words "web 2.0" It was introduced to me as a site purely for entertainment purposes, and I had not considered it as an educational tool until this year. Indeed, all the tutorials I viewed are all on YouTube and there is quality educational content on the site. It is difficult, however, to easily find these videos. Even if you go to the "Education" videos, links to irrelevant and inappropriate videos are displayed. When you do an advanced search for videos, you can choose to "filter videos that may not be suitable for minors," which may be helpful in excluding inappropriate videos from your search.

I do like how when you do find a video that you like, YouTube has a section for related videos and even suggests them to you after the video is finished. After a while of viewing a whole bunch of videos, I chose this one:



I like this video because it was created by and for teens to promote the public library. My favorite line is "The-Books-Only-Library?!" and I like how the teens mentioned Chris Brown, namedropping the popular R&B singer to get them to the library. This video is an example of how video projects and events in the library can now be shared online through YouTube. Sharing videos on library websites can be informative and create a buzz of interest that will inspire more of the public to check out their libraries.

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