Differences in Online Communities

Posted in Uncategorized with tags , on December 15, 2009 by Gary

To this point, I’ve tended to side with the idea that social media facilitates a sense of community for small cultural institutions, but that things like blogs, Twitter, Facebook, etc. aren’t communities unto themselves (as they affect cultural heritage institutions, that is). My thinking is changing, but it comes with conditions.

For example, I follow a few fan pages on Facebook. Mostly what I find on these pages is a pushing of content from the page creator, but I see little true engagement with other fans of the page. This seems to be true of most institutions that have Facebook fan pages and Twitter identities. Lots of content being pushed, but little engagement with the fans and followers.

On the other hand, I see relatively more engagement with fans and followers in cases where an original physical place of gathering (e.g. an actual museum) did not previously exist. From the American Association of Museums, for example, content tends to come in the form of exchanging ideas. Individual institutions, on the other hand, tend to use their blogs, Facebook fan pages, and Twitter identities to push news of events and activities that are taking place at their respective physical locations.

Why the difference? Perhaps it is because people join associations and other ”non-physical” gathering places to do just that, exchange ideas. By comparison, social media has been a boon for libraries and museums. Social media provides a free and effective way to spread news of events.

Has anyone else noticed these trends? I’m especially interested in the exceptions to and disagreements with what I’ve described here.

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The Internet of Things

Posted in Uncategorized with tags , on December 6, 2009 by Gary

I hate the grocery store.

Maybe I would like grocery shopping more if I was a foodie and I enjoyed browsing, but I find the whole experience of going in, finding what I need, and getting out of there a little exasperating. Matters are made somewhat worse by Erin’s penchant for unusual ingredients. I find myself searching the same aisle three or four times for certain items (please don’t ask why I don’t just get help from a store employee. Everyone knows that’s a problem all males have).

The grocery store makes me look forward to the emergence of the internet of things. The internet of things consists of a greatly increased number of inanimate objects that are connected to the web. Refrigerators are an oft cited example of how the internet of things work – your fridge keeps track of how much milk, beer, or whatever you’re using and automatically produces a grocery list when you’re ready to go to the store. Or better yet, the fridge sends an email to your local grocery store saying you need a quart of milk and the grocery store delivers it to your front door. 

Perhaps saying that I hate the grocery store isn’t quite accurate. I actually like walking around in them. It’s the not-finding-what-I-need part that makes me nuts. The way I understand it, the internet of things would have the capability to produce a map of the grocery store and guide me through the aisles via the shortest route and tell me exactly where everything is via RFID and GPS tagging. I could enjoy my walk and find what I came for right away. That, my friends, would rock.

I know many people feel the same way about libraries as I do about grocery stores. I’m curious how the internet of things will affect libraries and museums. Many libraries already employ RFID tagging, but I believe their use is restricted mainly to inventory and anti-theft purposes. I hope this new extension of the internet will facilitate browsing and provide tools for researchers, too.

Does anyone know of any cultural institutions that are really flexing the muscles of this technology? I would love to hear about them.

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Wilderness as Something to Save

Posted in Uncategorized with tags , on December 1, 2009 by Gary

My brother and I went on a short backpacking trip in October, and it got me thinking about why I like wilderness. As much outdoor stuff as I do, I’m really a city boy at heart. I like being comfortable and I like having my stuff around me all the time.

In some way, my natural inclination toward the city demonstrates the spiritual power of wilderness. Wilderness is where the din and static of everyday life melts away. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t appreciate the beauty, quiet, and solitude nature affords. Which, of course, doesn’t necessarily mean you like swarms of mosquitoes at dusk without your Deet.

The more I venture into designated wilderness areas, the more my gratitude for the folks who made the effort to make these areas so grows. In Colorado, designated wilderness means no machinery is allowed. That means cars, trucks, dirt bikes, snowmobiles, chainsaws, and mountain bikes, to name a few. These places are set aside purely for the preservation of their respective ecosystems and to enjoy them on foot.  Campsites are spread far apart, and because you have to pack everything in, it’s unlikely your neighbor dragged in his 2,000-watt home stereo for your listening (dis)pleasure. 

As profoundly as I feel it, I’m not really sure how to express the importance of saving wilderness. As I said earlier, I’m a city boy. I like my stuff and I am uncomfortably aware of the exploited resources and displaced wildlife that stuff costs. So I look for a balance.

I encourage you to visit a designated wilderness in your area. Just walk in far enough to close out the outside world. Take your kids. I don’t think you’ll walk back out as quite the same person.

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Getting Things Done

Posted in Uncategorized with tags , on November 11, 2009 by Gary

I have a project list for the library that is seven pages long.

Seven pages.

In most ways, having such a list is quite helpful. Beth and I use it to track everything that needs to get done. For each project, we list all the tasks that need to be addressed so we can complete each project. Beth and I get together once per month to go over the list to check in and see how we’re doing. Lots of tasks get crossed off and many more get added to the project list. I then update the project list in a Word document, send it to Beth for her review, and then to my boss so he knows what’s going on as well. It’s a system that works pretty well and tasks generally get done in a timely manner.

The one problem with this kind of list is that it encourages me to look only at the details. The big picture has a tendency to get lost. I realized this today when I met with my boss to go over the list. Seven pages of projects and their corresponding tasks is really too much to be working on. All we can ever do with a list that size is jump from one project to another. As a result, actually completing any one project becomes hard.

So, I’ve made a monthly appointment with myself to look at the library’s project from a strategic viewpoint. To only look only at the projects and compare them with the organization’s overall plan. The trick will be to not look at the actual tasks to complete each project. It also means deferring some entire projects to a later date.

How do you keep your eye on the big picture?

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Fundraising in Five Minutes

Posted in Uncategorized with tags , on November 4, 2009 by Gary

Over the last several months, I’ve been fortunate enough to have been asked to participate in a number of panel discussions at the University of Denver. Each time the topic has been on some aspect of nonprofit fundraising. I just wanted to pass along two points I found interesting in those discussions.

1. All of the panelists (including me) agreed that cultivating new donors is a process. Those relationships are about getting to know the donor as an individual and finding if/how the donor is connected to your organization’s mission. The point is to find out if there is something about your organization that makes the donor feel good.

It is quite possible that a year or more will go by before you ask a new donor for financial support. And it may be that you won’t even have to ask the donor for money – if you’ve taken the time to build a genuine relationship, s/he may offer to fund a special project before you even ask.  Raising money without ever overtly asking for it is what I’ve found to be the most fun and interesting part about fundraising. It is certainly among the most artful ways to build support.

2. Keep your donor database updated. I cannot stress enough the importance of having a good piece of software and implementing processes with your staff to ensure the database stays updated. Record all of your interactions with donors with the greatest possible detail.

I knew a development officer at one organization who took a donor out to a nice restaurant. Turned out that the donor didn’t like nice restaurants at all. He was a pizza and beer kind of guy (peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, too). If the development officer had read the database notes left by the previous development manager about that donor, she would have avoided making an embarrassing mistake. Don’t assume anything about your donors.

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Loomings

Posted in Uncategorized with tags on August 3, 2009 by Gary

I caught part of a story today on NPR about the Amazon Kindle and the effects the device is having on the publishing industry. The main thrust of the story was on a different topic related to the Kindle, but what I found especially interesting was the discussion about how the most dyed-in-the-wool lovers of the printed page are increasingly turning to the Kindle as their preferred choice of reading medium.

I don’t yet own a Kindle, but I’m certainly intrigued by it both as a consumer and as someone who is trying to bring a library into the “21st century.” In fact, I’m intrigued in the same way I’m interested in MP3 technology.  These technologies allow for a portability of information never before possible, and their potential to mash up content breathes new life into books and music that I previously thought I would never return to again in my life.

Part of the apparent magic of the Kindle is its so-called “electronic paper.” One interviewee on the NPR story claimed that the Kindle perfectly mimics printed paper. That combined with the book-like size and heft of the Kindle so emulates the experience of traditional reading that the same interviewee said she keeps reaching up to the right-hand corner of the device to turn the page.

Much of the rest of the story was about the Kindle’s obvious effects on the publishing industry. The “will people still be reading printed books in 50 years”-type of discussion was a central theme.

I love technology and I would like to see the Kindle truly revolutionize the book industry. I have to admit that some of that enthusiasm stems from my being a bit of a tree hugger, and I hate contemplating the natural resources that are destroyed every year to create traditional books, newspapers, magazines, and other types of printed material.

But I also love books and I always will. I like that you can mark them up, and well-used copies sometimes give me a sense of companionship that I find missing in other inanimate objects. After all, I found books compelling enough to spend a lot of money on for a library degree and a lot of headache to change careers for.

And that’s where I found the slant of the story to be just a bit of a turn-off. I would like to hear more about how the publishing industry is seeking to increase the popularity and marketability of both the Kindle AND the printed book. In this particular case, squashing one technology to pump up another seems less dynamic and interesting than does leveraging the strengths of both to create a better-than-ever world of reading and of readers.  But perhaps that slant doesn’t really exist, in which case I’m disappointed.

I see the Kindle and the traditional book as tools with distinct aims of purpose. I, for one, prefer having more tools at my disposal without being forced to choose one piece of gear over another. That became clear to me again the other day when I had to use a screwdriver handle for a hammer. It kind of worked, but not really.

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When You’re the Boss

Posted in Uncategorized with tags on May 16, 2009 by Gary

Being a boss has been one of the more peculiar aspects to my job.

Some of that peculiarity stems from my not having been a boss before, but after 2.5 years into this experiment, I’ve learned a few things.  I’ve learned that I’m not a visionary or an authoritarian – two things I originally thought were required to be a boss.

I knew before I became a boss that I didn’t have those qualities, but I believed I might develop them once I was at the helm. It was a bleak stretch of time for me when I saw it wasn’t going to happen. I tried to at times, but the result was clumsy and ineffective. I think others could see that as well.

But I’m good at some things I believe to be more important than being the visionary or the driver. I understand and am sensitive to what those in my charge need to do their jobs. I understand that a lot more is going to get done if I surround myself with people who know more than I do. I understand about getting the right people on the bus and the wrong people off the bus. I understand that the workplace is a healthier, happier, and more productive environment if I simply give people what they need and then get out of their way.

I also understand there is little point in trying to fix the chinks in my armor. That it’s a lot of energy invested for not much return.  Instead, I try to spend my efforts in maximizing my strengths.

That’s what this boss has to offer.

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Saying “Thank You”

Posted in Uncategorized with tags , on April 20, 2009 by Gary

Writing thank you letters is probably the single most important aspect of donor relations.

I spent about half a day last week streamlining my process for getting these important pieces of mail out the door as quickly as possible. Now I have a template that’s easily customizable, in addition to a system to track letters I have sent and those I haven’t. My goal is to get them out within two days of the donation. I’m not quite there yet, but I’m close.

Whether it’s for a $10,000 gift or a single book, I spend some time thinking about why each donor might be giving to our institution and work those thoughts into my letter. Approaching correspondence in this way also gives me a point from which to start my next conversation with that person. The whole point is to build a relationship, which means taking a genuine interest in our donors. It not only ensures future gifts, but it also gives me a chance to get to know our donors as people. The latter is what I find the most meaningful and fun.

And few things are more satisfying than printing the letter on thick stock letterhead, signing my name, and dropping the envelope in the mail. There’s a tangibility to those acts that gives my day a sense of accomplishment and purpose.

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The Tudors as History

Posted in Uncategorized with tags on April 16, 2009 by Gary
The Main Event: King Henry VIII and Queen Anne Boleyn in The Tudors Image courtesy of Showtime

The Main Event: King Henry VIII and Queen Anne Boleyn in The Tudors Image courtesy of Showtime

Erin and I finished watching the second season of the Showtime drama The Tudors. So far, I’ve loved it. The story, the actors, the costumes, the sets, and the cinematography are nothing short of magnificent.

As someone who appreciates history, I’ve wondered how accurately The Tudors interprets Henry VIII and his time.  The series is absolutely soaked in sex and violence, which naturally increases The Tudors appeal in a culture like ours.  Though historians have debated how many affairs Henry VIII really had, the show’s producers decided that he was a full-blown sex addict. And I never knew there were so many ways to torture and kill people. The Tower of London may be a cool place to visit today, but you didn’t want to be anywhere near it in 16th-century England.

Because of its focus on entertainment, it doesn’t surprise me that the great cultural and societal changes that happened during King Henry’s reign are of secondary importance in the show. The Tudors portrays Henry as supremely self-absorbed,  dragging literally everyone in England through unimaginable convolutions and misery to satisfy his own whims.

I have a friend who says this kind of history is dangerous – namely, history repackaged as entertainment. I disagree. Whether accurate or not, The Tudors has piqued my interest in the time of Henry, Anne, Mary, and Elizabeth. I’ve had great fun dabbling around in various resources to learn more about these historic figures and how they affected (and continue to do so) not just English and European culture, but American as well.

Shakespeare wrote his own histories for much the same reason as the makers of The Tudors.  Shakespeare has survived and thrived because of his immense literary contribution, but his histories are often not valued for their accuracy. But they reflect the agendas and values of his own time, which therefore makes them important historic documents. The Tudors is significant for this same reason.

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A Fresh Start

Posted in Uncategorized on April 10, 2009 by Gary

A few days ago, I was talking to my co-workers Beth and Chris when we got on the topic of blogging. If we blog, why we blog, do we even like blogging, how do we get people to read our blogs, do we care whether or not people read our blogs, and so on. After our conversation, I was clear about one thing: I needed a new blog.

Not really a new blog, but a new angle. When my friend Amy encouraged me two years ago to start a blog, I did so mainly for personal reasons. But as time went on, I became less interested in writing on personal topics. For a while, I tried mixing it up by blogging about both personal and professional matters, but in the end I had just become tired of that blog.

My decision to retire my old blog and start a new one stems from two developments. One is my career. With each passing month, my career becomes more complex and interesting to me (a good thing since I went through hell and a whole lot of money to get here), so my preference to focus what energy I do have for writing is usually on issues related to the stewardship of cultural resources.

The second reason is Facebook. Facebook is perfect for the brand of personal expression I mostly used my old blog for. It’s fun, fast, and easy. When I first signed up last fall, my old blog quickly became obsolete. Nicely done, Mr. Zuckerberg. You deserve to be a rich man.

I suppose there is a third reason – I’ve come to prefer WordPress over Blogger. WordPress has cooler templates and I really like that you can add pages. I’m well aware one can do a lot on any blogging platform if one is markup language savvy, but I’m not. Nor can I afford to pay someone to build a bitchen website for me, so I’ll just have to make do in the meantime.

But do not weep, dear ones. I’m not ditching the old stuff entirely. I’ve imported my old blog so all of that outstanding content I created over the last two years is not lost. And because I’m a firm believer in digital preservation, I’m not deleting my old blog. That same content in all of its vexing beauty will be forever held in its original context (unless someone nukes the server it lives on in Bhutan or wherever). I’ve even established a link on the sidebar for those of you who might want to visit New Spectrum’s grave from time to time. I am sensitive to the fact that we must all grieve in our own ways.

At any rate, it’s quite conceivable that this blog will turn out to be no different than the old. When I want to blog about personal stuff, I’ll blog about personal stuff. My old pattern of blogging once every six to eight weeks is likely to continue as well. So you can take comfort in that.

Also, the name of this blog will be something of a misnomer until I can figure out how to change the domain name over. Please be patient.

Time to move on. As my man Captain Picard on Star Trek: The Next Generation always said, “Engage.”

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