The beauty of the original 23 Things project created by Helene Blowers, technology director at the Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, is that it both teaches and reinforces many popular (and at this point widespread) social media outlets in addition to introducing some that are less well-known to many people. As a training exercise it is quite effective in bringing people up to speed on using social media technology by providing a concrete list of 23 must-try social media tools that have uses within a business, library, or academic context. As a personal exercise it is just plain fun to go into exploratory mode. As with all technologies, however, some of the items will or have already become a little passé. One needs only to think of the imminent shutdown of Delicious at the hands of Yahoo for a good example. Interestingly, the 2006 Delicious list of other libraries employing the 23 Things program rests prominently on the original webpage--a testament to how quickly pages or links on the Internet can become fragmented or irrelevant. This list is an export from a dying service and soon the headline will announce active links kept via a defunct social technology. Interesting reminder about how fast progress (or at least change) happens in a digital age.
The original 23 Things project, however, still holds purpose as an outreach tool. Of course, since technology marches forward the original list has some serious omissions. The use of virtual worlds, location-based services like Foursquare, mobil technology, and augmented reality are all elements that have taken greater hold in the time since the list was established. Even so, a surprising number of people are still unaware of many of the original social media trends covered. As a living document, it still holds considerable weight and purpose.
I have completed many of the original 23 Things items in the past. Others I have accomplished simply by virtue of being a tech savvy person. I follow blogs and keep one of my own; I actively use Twitter and Facebook, RSS feeds, contribute to YouTube, edit and share photos and videos, and so forth. Many of these same items appear in revamped lists by other organizations. However, the spirit of any of the 23 Things projects is about more than simply completing and checking off scripted exercises. It is about playfulness, adventure, learning, and exploration. It encourages growth and reflection. So in that spirit I am going to work through a new 23 Things with fresh eyes. I am going to explore the suggested resources of the 23 Things for Archivists and will probably add some of my own. I am going to approach this as an opportunity to learn new things about each and every one of the tools. The beauty of social media, after all, is that it changes and forces us to adapt and, sometimes, to reinvent.
I have taken my first step in creating a dedicated blog for this journey. I will pull items from the 23 Things and the Expanded Things for Archivists. I will learn and reflect-both on myself and on the applications of the technologies in a professional context-and I invite you to join me through discussion. This is, after all, a reflection on the use of social media tools, and what better way to put these to use than connecting right here.
23 Things for Archivists is a new program by the Reference, Access, and Outreach Section of the Society of American Archivists. It includes many of the original 23 Things, but expands them to include intermediate items, 24-46, and advanced things, 47-∞. It is still under development, so some of the advanced and intermediate items are not yet fully implemented. Still, it is a fresh take on the classic, and can be found here:
http://23thingsforarchivists.wordpress.com/advanced-things-47/
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