Faced with budget cuts, MIT Libraries have put up a webpage explaining their response – a nice way to communicate with users and to promote their services to the budget decision-makers.

The World Wide Web in Plain English (YouTube video; or with subtitles) provides “A short explanation of what makes the World Wide Web work: browsers, packets, servers addresses and links.”

Doing a 15 Minute Presentation in 10 Easy Steps sets out an easy way to create an effective powerpoint show without that “Death by Bulletpoint” effect.

Has anyone seen an image like the one above? I’ve just started seeing them appear on movie posters. It’s called a QR code, and the idea is that people can take a photo of it with their mobile phones and a piece of software in the phone will decode the image and follow its instructions – eg link to a website with more information. University of Bath Library is already using it in their catalogue (see a blog post and an image of what it looks like). Educause have written 7 Things You Should Know About QR Codes (pdf) and QR Codes made an appearance on CSI (YouTube).

This is very much emerging technology – but I wouldn’t be surprised if it emerges very quickly. Once it catches on it could become as fundamental as clicking a link on a webpage. How could it be useful in libraries? Other than the catalogue example, it could be used:

• on displays, to take users to a webpage with more information
• on books in new book displays, so users can request a book without having to hunt it down in the catalogue
• on a map, taking users to a video tour of the library
• advertising in Canta, so people can go straight from the ad to our website
• anywhere else we want to link some physical object to some online information.

Deborah