HA! I only have to read the article article by Thomas Vander Wal on the origin of the word “folksonomy” and the role he played in coining the term...I don't have to blog about it! Yay!
...and I've officially reached my exclamation point quota for today...
Discovery Exercise 2:
Silly me, I tried searching vespa again. The tag cloud was predictably small, and a bit odd (community colleges , japanese, public welfare, and secret service, huh?). Not very effective in this instance. Since I obviously have a one-track mind as of recent, I decided my next search would be on wasps. Vespa is Italian (I think) for wasp, and the Vespa scooter was thus named because of its likeness in shape to wasps, the buzzing, flying, stinging, insect that is ever so abundant in my office during the summer months. This tag cloud was much more interesting, and I can definitely see how it could help a student narrow down (or broaden out) to the specific information he/she seeks. For example, the tag cloud produced by searching wasps would allow a student who was looking for the insect to pinpoint that information, while also allowing a student seeking more information on the Women Airforce Service Pilots (the Freshman First Year Book, Mercury 13, includes some interesting footnotes about this group) or White Anglo Saxon Protestants to pinpoint that information.
I don't teach classes...yet. I can imagine that this would be an interesting way for students to discover and dig deeper into a topic of interest (or a topic forced upon them by an instructor).
Discovery Exercise 3:
del.icio.us could definitely be a useful tool. Personally, I spend my time at no fewer than four computers (1-3 at work, one desktop at home, one laptop at home, one desktop at my parents, and any number of computers on UK's campus). Being able to access all my favorites from any of these computers, not having that information tied to one, physical locale? Well, that seems like a great idea. Of course, while I have played with del.icio.us, I have not REALLY put it (or my use of it) to the test, yet. We'll see how things go...will I or won't I use it? Only time will tell.
For teaching a class? Well, see my comments on how it benefits me personally, and change those personal sites to class/subject related sites that I trust and frequent, often depending on the class/subject at hand. Now those sites are not tied to my laptop (which could go on the fritz or have a low battery) or the classroom computer...any computer with a connection will suffice. Plus, I can share that information with my students. My students can share sites with each other if they are working on a group project/paper. So, yeah, I guess it could be useful. Of course, I don't teach...yet.
As for how it benefits the library...if it benefits our patrons, the chances are good that it will benefit us. Granted, the idea and the way our patrons use it may not be library-specific, but why not let them know it's available and that it is an easy way that they can check all their favorite sites from any computer, home, dorm, lab, library, etc...
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