Here a blog, there a blog, what about the library blog

114  Download (0)

Full text

(1)

!

Here a blog, there a blog,

what about the library blog?

By

Megan J. Ingle

Submitted to the School of Information Management,

Victoria University of Wellington

in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree

of

Master of Library and Information Studies

October 2006

(2)

Table of contents

Abstract 1 Keywords 1 1.0 Significance of Study 2 2.0 Research Outcomes 3 2.1 Research Questions 3 2.2 Research Objectives 3 3.0 Definition of terms 4

4.0 Background information about blogs 7

4.1 What is a blog? 7 4.2 Blogging software 10 4.3 The Global Blogosphere 12

5.0 Literature Review 16 5.1 General literature 16 5.2 Library Literature 17

6.0 Methodology 22 6.1 Delimitations and limitations of the research study 23

6.1.1 Delimitations 23 6.1.2 Limitations 23 6.2 Sample population 24

6.2.1 Location of blogs 24 6.2.2 Removal of duplicate listings and non-library blogs 27

6.2.3 Clarification of library type 28 6.2.4 Re-categorisation of library blogs 28 6.2.5 Removal of inactive and discontinued blogs 29

6.2.6 Researcher anonymity 31 6.3 Method of data analysis 31

(3)

6.3.1 Content analysis 31 6.3.2 Print-out of blog front page 34

6.4 Coding of data 37 6.5 Determination of purpose(s) and/or use(s) 37

6.6 Collation of data 38

7.0 Results and Discussion 39

7.1 Demographics 39 7.1.1 Total number of library blogs 39

7.1.2 Location of library blogs 40 7.1.3 Library blogs by library type 40 7.1.4 Identification of geographical information 41

7.1.5 Global diversity of library blog creation 42 7.1.6 Creation and maintenance of library blogs 43

7.1.7 Currency of content 47

7.2 Features 48 7.2.1 Contextualisation of library blog 49

7.2.2 Identification of geographical location of the library 52

7.2.3 Content creation 53 7.2.4 Blog posts 54 7.2.5 Credit for information sources 57

7.2.6 Links to other library services and products 58

7.2.7 Blog links 59 7.2.8 Keeping blog readers in touch and up-to-date 61

7.2.9 Intellectual property, policies and procedures 62

7.2.10 Measurement of blog usage 63

7.2.11 Site navigation 64 7.2.12 Finding information 64 7.2.13 Enabling access for all blog readers 65

7.2.14 Social software 66 7.2.15 Multimedia experimentation 67

(4)

8.0 Conclusion 72 8.1 Changes in the library blogosphere from 2003 to 2006 72

8.2 Other issues raised 78 8.3 Further research 81

Acknowledgements 86

Appendices 87 Bibliography 101

(5)

List of tables

1 Active vs. inactive blogs 39 2 Successful strategies for finding library blogs 40

3 Types of libraries using blogs 40

4 Library location details 41 5 Country of origin 42 6 Blogging software 43 7 Type of blogging software used 46

8 Blog update timeframe 47 9 Cumulative blog update timeframe 47

10 Blog and library identification 49 11 Information about blog and/or library 50

12 Association with parent institution 51 13 Identification of physical library location 52 14 Information about blog author and/or library staff 53

15 Information about blog posts and archives 54 16 Acknowledgement of information sources 57 17 Connection with other library services and products 58

18 Links with other blogs 59 19 Methods of ongoing contact with blog content 61

20 Library blog policies and procedures 62 21 Statistical information about library blog 63

22 Navigation aids 64 23 Search options 64 24 Accessibility options 65 25 Inclusion of social software in library blogs 66

26 Non-textual information in library blogs 67

(6)

Abstract

This small-scale research project investigated publicly accessible library blogs

published in English in mid-2006. A total o f 457 active library blogs from 11 countries

were located using a variety o f online resources and search techniques.

Content analysis was selected as the method of data analysis, and was applied to

print-outs o f the front page of each library blog. This data was coded to determine library

blog demographics, to compile a comprehensive list o f blog features and to establish the

purpose(s) and use(s) o f these library blogs. Results from the 2006 sample population

were contrasted and compared with the most recent research into library blogs, which

was conducted in 2003 (see Clyde, 2004a).

The findings o f the 2006 research indicate that library blogs numbers have

definitely increased since 2003, that there is a wide range o f features demonstrated on

library blogs and that the purposes and uses of library blogs are numerous and varied.

This research report provides a detailed discussion o f the methods and results o f this

small-scale research study.

Keywords

(7)

1.0 Significance of research study

Although blogging by both librarians and libraries has been promoted in the

library literature since 2001 (see Crawford, 2001; Curling, 2001; Hane, 2001), and is still

regularly advocated (see Balas, 2003; Fitcher, 2003; Huwe, 2003; Kenney and Stephens,

2005; Schwartz, 2005a), there has been litde scholarly investigation o f librarian and/or

library blogs. While some researchers have recendy started to examine the librarian

blogosphere, that is, blogs maintained by librarians in a non-work capacity, (see Bar-Ilan,

2005; Crawford, 2005; Farkas, 2005; Laning et al, 2005; Weibrands, 2006), research

undertaken in late 2003 by Clyde (see Clyde, 2004a) remains the only overall study o f the

library blogosphere, that is, blogs maintained as part o f a library in a work context.

Given that the global blogosphere has significantly expanded since the debut o f

freely available and easy-to-use blogging software in 1999, and continues to evolve at a

phenomenal pace (see Sifry, 2006a), it is highly likely that the library blogosphere has

grown and changed since Clyde's 2003 examination of library blogs.

This research study investigated the global library blog environment in 2006,

focussing on publicly accessible, active library blogs published in English. The results

provide an update on the state of the library blogosphere, identifying current library blog

demographics, the types of features used in library blogs, and reveal how and why library

blogs are being used in 2006. These results have been compared with Clyde's 2003

findings to illustrate how the 2006 library blogosphere has evolved. The research findings

provide a timely update of the library blogosphere and will potentially enable libraries to

actively determine which criteria, for example, software features and/or overall purpose,

(8)

2.0 Research Outcomes

2.1 Research Questions

1. What are the demographics o f library blogs in 2006?

2. What features appear on library blogs in 2006?

3. How and for what purposes are libraries using blogs in 2006?

4. How have library blogs changed since 2003?

2.2 Research Objectives

1. Identify the total number of active library blogs in 2006.

2. Establish the types o f libraries using blogs in 2006.

3. Determine the country of origin o f library blogs in 2006.

4. Ascertain the types o f software used to maintain library blogs.

5. Compile a list o f library blog features.

6. Investigate the use(s) and purpose(s) o f library blogs in 2006.

(9)

3.0 Definition of terms

Many of these terms relate to recent developments in the online environment

and as such have been not yet been defined in official dictionaries, such as the Oxford

English Dictionary. Hence some of the definitions have been sourced from World Wide

Web resources, for example Wikipedia.

blog (n) shortened form of weblog1.

blog (v) to write or maintain a blog2.

blogger (n) the author of a blog3.

Blogger (n) brand of software used to create blogs4.

blawg (n) a blog with emphasis on the law and/or legal related issues

and concerns, often maintained by an individual who studies, practices or otherwise works in the legal field5.

•TM (n) annual online awards, started in 2001 by Nikolai Nolan,

whereby web users vote for the best blog in a variety of categories6.

blogarian (n) a librarian or information professional who invests

significant time and effort into creating and mamtaining a high quality blog .

blogosphere (n) sum total of all blogs; the community of blogs8.

blogroll (n) a collection of links to other blogs9.

edu-blog (n) an education related blog1".

1 OED Online 2006. Blog (n) 2 OED Online 2006. Blog (v) 3 OED Online 2006. Blogger (n)

4 Available at http://www.blogger.com/ [accessed 26 April, 2006]. 5 Gratsch, 2005.

6 Available at http://www.fairvue.com/bloggies/ [accessed 26 April, 2006]. 7 Bar-Hat, 2005:128.

8 Stone, 2004:230.

9 Available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blogroll [accessed 2 August 2006]. 1 0 Stone, 2004:232.

(10)

HTML (n) metadata (n) moblog (n) podcast (n) post (n) pundit blog (n)

acronym for Hyper Text Markup Language, a non-proprietary format based on Standard Generalised Markup Language (SGML) which uses tags to structure text into headings, paragraphs, links, lists, and links1 1.

descriptive data about an information system or an information object1 2.

contraction of mobile and weblog; type of blog where content is posted via mobile technology, such as a cell phone or a personal digital assistant (PDA)1 3.

method of distributing multimedia files, such as audio or video programs, over the Internet using syndication feeds, for playback on mobile devices and personal computers 4.

an entry on a blog1 5.

a blog focussed on mostiy news and national affairs in the media1 6.

RSS(p) a file format for messages and other information that is updated frequently, the documents written in these formats are called 'news feeds' or 'feeds'17.

social bookmarking (n) a web-based service, where lists of user-created Internet

bookmarks are displayed; content is generally organised by tags and inferences can be drawn from grouping and analysis of tags18.

splog (n) tag (n)

tag cloud (n) trackback (n)

spam blog, where articles and content are fake19.

a keyword or term used to classify content; typically chosen informally and personally by the creator of the item2".

a visual depiction of content tags used on a website21.

a form of remote commenting that links a blog post to a related post on another blog .

1 1 Available at http://www.netlingo.com/lookup.cfm?term=HTI\iL, [accessed 5 September 2006]. 1 2 Available at http://dublincore.org/documents/usagegmde/glossary.shtml#M [accessed 1 October,

2006]. See also http://dublincore.org/documents/usageguide/#whatismetadata

1 3 Available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moblog [accessed 5 May 2006]. 1 4 Available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podcast [ accessed 1 September 2006]. 1 5 Wibbels, 2006:165.

1 6 Stone, 2004:235. 1 7 Wittenbrink, 2005.

1 8 Available at http:/ /en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social bookmarking [accessed 1 October, 2006]. 1 9 Available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Splog [accessed 1 October, 2006].

2 0 Available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tag %28metadata%29 [accessed 1 October, 2006]. 2 1 Available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tag cloud [accessed 1 October, 2006].

(11)

v-log (n) contraction of video-blog; type of blog that combines

embedded video or a video link with supporting text and/or images23

XML (n) acronym for extensible Markup Language, which is a

programming specification based on Standard Generalised Markup Language (SGML) and enables web authors to create customised tags to provide greater functionality than other markup languages such as H T M L2 4.

warblog(n) a blog that emerged after September 11, 2001, to cover

reaction and related events such as terrorism, military action, and Middle East conflicts2 5.

weblog (n) a weblog, or blog, is a frequendy updated website

consisting of dated entries arranged in reverse chronological order so that the most recent post appears first26.

wiki (n) a type of collaboratively authored website which allows

users to add and edit content2 7.

2 3 Available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlog [accessed 5 September, 2006].

2 4 Available at http://www.nctlingo.com/lookup.cfm?tcrm=XML [accessed 5 September 2006]. 2 5 Stone, 2004:237.

2 b Walker, 2005.

(12)

4.0 Background information about blogs

4.1 What is a blog?

The term blog is a shortened version of weblog, which is itself a contraction of

web log. Although Peter Merholz is credited with coining the term blog in 1999 (Blood,

2002), the first use of weblog is attributed to Jorn Barger in December 1997 (Blood,

2002; O E D , 2006). Barger originally used weblog in reference to web pages that logged

the web, creating lists of hyperlinks to web sites of interest, which were sometimes

accompanied by annotations.

Early blogs were initially link-driven sites which collected, organised and shared

"pre-surfed" web sites of interest, often accompanied by "commentary, and personal

thoughts and essays" (Blood, 2000). However, with the release in mid-1999 of blogging

software, the blogging community expanded beyond its original closed community of

web developers and the blogosphere began to change. While early blogs had a

"web-at-large" focus, looking outwards for information and acting as a filter to the web, with new

easy-to-use blogging software, which required litde or no knowledge of programming

languages and offered free web-hosting, a new type of blog emerged, the online personal

journal, where an individual blogger shared personal thoughts about their immediate

world (Blood, 2000).

Herein lies the difficulty in defining a blog, because, as noted by

Etches-Johnson (2005:52), "[m]uch like the rest of the internet, a weblog is in fact different

things to different people, and that's what makes defining it so problematic". Beyond "a

(13)

considerable debate and a lack of consensus about how to define a blog (Clyde,

2004:391).

Walker (2005) provided the following definition for the weblog entry in the

Routledge Encyclopedia of Narrative Theory:

A weblog, or blog, is a frequendy updated website consisting o f dated entries

arranged in reverse chronological order so that the most recent post appears first.

[...] Typically, weblogs are published by individuals and their style is personal

and informal. [...] Though weblogs are primarily textual, experimentation with

sound, images, and videos has resulted in related genre such as photoblogs,

videoblogs, and audioblogs.

This definition encompasses the two consistently agreed-upon elements of

blogs: 1) frequent updates, and 2) time-and-date stamped entries published in reverse

chronological order (see Crawford, 2001; Thomsen, 2002; Harder and Reichardt, 2003;

Goans and Vogel, 2005).

However, Walker's definition is one of the few which does not place restrictions

on content or purpose. For example, some commentators segregate blogs by content,

such as blawgs, edu-blogs, warblogs and pundit blogs (see Bausch et al., 2002; Stone,

2004; Gratches, 2005), and others delineate blogs by purpose, such as "informational

(providing subject-specific information to the reader), personal (a personal diary), [or]

informational-personal (a mixture of both)" (Cohen, 2003:50) or "political blogs [...] fan

(14)

Walker's definition states that blogs are typically "published by individuals",

which is supported by a recent survey of American bloggers in which seven out of ten

respondents say that "they are the only author of their main blog" (Lenhart and Fox,

2006:10). However, it does not preclude other blog publishing permutations, such as

community, also referred to as collaborative or collective, blogs to which anyone can

contribute to a link or comment.

These multi-author blogs allow "a community of people with similar interests to

contribute to a collectively beneficial resource" (Schwartz, 2005a), and create "a

framework for social networking" (Hourihan, 2002). Although some collaborative blogs,

such as Slashdot.com, are moderated by a group of editors, most multiple-person blogs

encourage unedited posting. One of the most well known community blogs,

MetaFilter.com, states that it "exists to break down the barriers between people, to

extend a weblog beyond just one person, and to foster discussion among its members"

(MetaFilter, 2006). Cohen (2003) argues that collaborative blogs work better than

individually maintained blogs, as a collective blog is able to cope with absence, illness

and/or attrition of individual bloggers and is therefore more sustainable over the long

term.

Walker (2005) is also one of the few to make reference to non-textual blog

developments, such as image, audio and video blogs. Hence, blogs are no longer just lists

of links with short annotations, they may now take many different forms, such as "a

diary, a news service, a collection of links to Internet resources, a series of book reviews,

reports of activity on a project, the journal of an expedition, a photographic record of a

(15)

Therefore, Walker's definition encompasses the key elements of blogs, that is,

the frequent updates and the reverse chronological posting of entries, and is sufficiendy

broad to allow for the inevitable future expansion and further diversification of the

global blogosphere.

4.2 Blogging Software

28

In the early years, blogs were maintained only by people with knowledge of

H T M L , the programming language used to code web pages, as all blog entries, typically

referred to as posts, needed to be manually coded using H T M L (Blood, 2002). However

the release of freely-available, user-friendly blogging software by Pitas, Blogger,

Velocinews and Groksoup in mid-1999 significandy changed the weblog environment

(Yang, 2006).

This new type of blogging software allowed anyone to create and maintain a

blog without any knowledge or understanding of H T M L . This new technology was so

simple that it enabled anyone "to edit a web page without worrying about programming

or design issues" (Carver, 2003:30). As Blood (2002:5) suggests, "anyone who could type

and had access to the World Wide Web could create a weblog". Bloggers could choose a

pre-coded layout template, create blog posts by typing into a blank text box and add text

formatting and/or hyperlinks with the press of a button. Blogs were no longer just the

domain of web developers and computer programmers, the push-button publishing

revolution had begun.

Since 2000 there has been substantial growth in the number of blogging

software packages available, ranging from free or relatively inexpensive packages to

(16)

feature-rich commercial products. Most bloggers begin with a free hosted blogging

service, such as Blogger, where a new blog can be created within a matter of minutes and

blog maintenance is "fast, easy and usually free" (Fitcher and Cervone, 2005:67).

However, blog software differs gready in terms of functionality, and establishing which

features are critical to the blog may ultimately determine which type of blogging software

is selected (Fitcher and Cervone, 2005).

Deval (2003) outlines two main categories of blogging software, 1) end-user

blog software and 2) self-managed blog software. End-user software is geared towards

ease-of-use and simplicity for the user, and is typically included as part of a fully-hosted

blog service. Examples of this type of blog software include Blogger, Blog-City, Radio

Userland and Livejournal. Despite its straightforwardness, a hosted blogging service may

not be suitable in many cases, as it "can become overloaded, go offline unexpectedly, or,

in the worst case, simply cease to exist" (Fitcher and Cervone, 2005:67). In contrast,

self-managed blog software is geared towards more tech-sawy blog users who have some

understanding of H T M L and sufficient technological know-how to set up and install

blogging software locally. This type of blog software allows for the customisation of

blogs, usually offers greater functionality and permits manual H T M L coding to create

uniquely designed blogs. Examples of this type of blog software include Manila,

Blosxom, WordPress and Movable Type. While this gives the blogger independence

from a hosting service, it does require some time commitment for on-going software

maintenance (Fitcher and Cervone, 2005).

There has also been ongoing growth in the area of open source blogging

options, which are self-managed, but allow for even greater customisation. This type of

(17)

significandy more technological capability on the part of the blogger. Examples of this

type of blogging software include Greymatter, Zope, Slashcode and Drupal.

Fitcher and Cervone (2005) identify two other blog publishing possibilities,

which are a compromise between the fully-hosted and self-managed options outlined

above. Bloggers can install a blog software package, such as CityDesk, Tinderbox and

iBlog, onto a desktop computer, and then create and edit blog posts before uploading

them to a web server via FTP. Alternatively, bloggers can choose to publish their blog

entries using an advanced feature offered by some hosted blogging services, whereby

blog posts are created and maintained via the hosted blog service, and then transferred to

a local server by FTP, allowing blog pages to be kept within a particular domain name.

4.3 The Global Blogosphere

The blogosphere is a term most commonly used to describe the "sum total of

all blogs" (Stone, 2004:230; Sifry, 2006a). From small beginnings, the blogosphere has

developed into an enormous global online community.

Although the term weblog first appeared in 1997, Blood (2002) argues that

many early web sites, for example, Mosiac's What's New page2;, Links from the

Underground30, News, Pointers <& Commentary'^and The Obvious Filter32 were in fact

prototypical blogs, providing a reverse chronological list of hyperlinks accompanied by

short annotations. Nonetheless, there were relatively few blogs in early 1999 when

Garrett created the first "page of only weblogs", which listed 23 weblogs (see Blood,

2 9 Mosaic's What's New page ran from June 1993 to June 1996, and was updated daily with links to a variety

of new and interesting web pages. (Blood, 2002:3)

3 0 Web page created by Justin Hall in 1994 (Bausch, Haughey and Hourihan. 2002:9).

3 1 Web page created by Steve Bogart in February 1997, later renamed Now This (Blood, 2002:3). 3 2 Web page created by Michael Sippey in May 1996, later renamed Filteredfor Purity (Blood, 2002:3).

(18)

2000). This list expanded to approximately 300 blogs by October 2000, at which point

the list ceased to be maintained (Garrett, 2000). Although the majority o f these blogs

listed were published in English and originated from the United States o f America, blogs

from other countries, including Canada, France and the Netherlands, and blogs

published in other languages, such as French and Dutch, were also included.

Since then, the blogosphere has grown exponentially. As o f April 25, 2006,

Technorati3 3, a well known blog search engine, was tracking 36,500,000 blogs worldwide

(see Sifry, 2006a; 2006b). Less than two months later, on 31 July, 2006, Technorati had

tracked its 50,000,000th blog (see Sifry 2006c). According to Sifry (2006a; 2006b; 2006c),

the blogosphere, as tracked by Technorati, consistently doubles approximately every six

months and grows at a rate o f approximately 75,000 new blogs each day. While Sifry

(2006c) acknowledges that some o f these new blogs are probably splogs, the blogosphere

is still growing at a phenomenal rate. Kline and Burstein (2005) predict that the

blogosphere will continue to expand, especially given the growing number o f knowledge

workers and the increasing corporatisation and globalisation o f blogs.

In April 2005, Technorati began to track the primary language used to post

entries for each blog, using automated language analysis software, in an attempt to glean

information about the growing globalisation of the blogosphere. While Sifry (2006b)

acknowledges some limitations in the data, such as poor indexing o f the major blogging

services in some countries which may significantly under-represent posts in languages

such as French and Korean, the data clearly indicates that the blogosphere is indeed

multilingual. Since November 2005, English and Japanese have alternated as the majority

language of the blog posts (Sifry, 2006b; Sifry, 2006c), with Chinese consistendy placed

(19)

third. Technorati has incorporated this language data into its blog search engine facilities

and allows web users to search for blogs in a variety of languages, including Arabic,

Chinese, Farsi, Italian, Japanese, German, Greek, Hebrew, Norwegian, Polish,

Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish and Vietnamese.

Blogs have facilitated cost-effective and community-controlled publishing in

minority languages, such as Welsh, and have also enabled many people, for whom free

speech is not always a given, the opportunity to express themselves (see Alavi, 2005). I n

the 1990s, many developing countries found that mobile phone technology could

develop without a robust landline infrastructure, and many of these same countries are

now discovering that a diverse blogosphere can exist without a traditional and free media

environment (see Kline and Burstein, 2005). Just as list-servs, newsgroups, bulletin

boards and email facilitated discussion between geographically disparate individuals in the

early days of the World Wide Web, blogs enable connections between people from the

same language community, regardless of geography. To illustrate this, a how-to guide for

creating a blog in Persian, published online in 2001 by an Iranian man living in Canada,

resulted in more than 100,000 Persian language blogs being created worldwide by the end

of 2003 (Gillmor, 2005).

Kline and Burstein (2005:xx) argue that blogs have played a key role in the

evolution of the web towards the "multimedia, always-on, highly interactive, highly

personalized, next-generation Web" that was promised in the early 1990s. T i m

Berners-Lee, credited with creating the first website in 1991, acknowledges that blogs are closer to

the "reader-writer" web that he envisaged when the web first emerged, whereby anyone

with access to the internet could participate in the web by using it as a creative medium,

(20)

to write using computer codes (see Lawson, 2005). Chad and Miller (2005:10) reiterate

this concept of blogs and bloggers contributing to the "read/write web", stating that "a

reader of a blog or a wild is provided with tools to add a comment or even, in the case of

the wild, to edit the content."

Jacobsen Harris (2005:34) reflects that, especially for teenagers coming of age

online, new developments in information and communication technologies (ICTs), such

as blogs, wilds and instant messaging, are creating social information spaces are which

"are designed as much for the reciprocal sharing of information as they are for seeking

and disseminating information." I n 2005, a survey conducted by the Pew Internet and

American Life Project, reported that 57% of online teens had created content for the

internet, that is, participating in at least one of the following activities, "create a blog;

create a personal webpage; create a webpage for school, a friend, or an organization;

share original content they created themselves online; or remix content found online into

a new creation" (Lenhart and Madden, 2005:1). Surveys conducted by the Pew Internet

& American Life Project3 4 indicate that American bloggers are evenly split along gender

lines, with more than half under the age of 30, and are more racially diverse than overall

internet users (Lenhart and Fox, 2006).

Although, as outlined by Sifry (2006b, 2006c), the demographics of the global

blogosphere are in a constant state of flux, given the increasing incorporation of social

software, such as instant messaging and blogs, into the lives of upcoming generations, it

appears that the global blogosphere will continue to expand and morph in new

directions.

(21)

5.0 Literature review

5.1 General Literature

Most o f the early articles and essays about weblogs appeared online, usually

written by bloggers and/or posted on a blog (see Barrett, 1999; Blood, 2000). Although a

collection o f these early online essays has since been published (see Rodzilla, 2002), it

wasn't until 2002 that printed material about blogs and blogging began to appear. Most

of these early publications consisted o f 'how-to' books which explained blogging

software, provided step-by-step instructions for setting up a blog and described how to

customise blogs to gain maximum online exposure. Again, this material was often written

by bloggers (see Bausch et a/., 2002; Blood, 2002; Doctorow et a/., 2002; Stauffer, 2002;

Stone, 2002).

While 'how-to' publications continue to appear, they are now more likely to

have a narrower focus, for example, outlining a specific type o f blogging software (see

Castro, 2005; Murray and Torres, 2006), how to use blogs effectively as a marketing tool

(see Wright, 2005; Well, 2006; Wibbels, 2006), or how to maximise blog use in a

particular business environment, such as real estate (see Nacht and Chaney, 2006).

There has been a shift in the general literature in recent years away from the

technical aspects of blogging to discussion about blogs and bloggers, with articles

appearing in many American mainstream media publications, including Fortune (see

Kirkpatrick and Roth, 2004), New York Times Magazine (see Nussbaum, 2004) and Time

(see Grossman and Hamilton, 2004; Sullivan, 2004). Other topics have also since

emerged in the general literature, including discussions about the effect of blogs in the

(22)

of blogs in education (see Warlick, 2005; Richardson, 2006) and analysis of the use o f

blogs in political campaigns (see Ackland, 2005; Gibson and McAllister, 2005; Trammell,

2005; Williams et al., 2005). A number o f other publications examine the impacts o f blogs

on journalism, publishing and society (see Bruns, 2005; Gillmor, 2005; Hewitt, 2005;

Kline and Burstein, 2005). Articles about the relevance of blogs for business have also

appeared in several key New Zealand business publications (see Baker, 2005; Brown,

2005; Gray, 2005), and there has been an analysis of impact o f blogs on New Zealand's

political arena in relation to the 2005 New Zealand general election (see Hopkins and

Matheson, 2005).

5.2 Library Literature

Articles relating to blogging in the library sector began to appear in professional

interest and scholarly publications in 2001, advocating the usefulness o f blogs for

librarians and/or libraries, and highlighting potentially useful librarian-created blogs (see

Crawford, 2001; Curling, 2001; Hane, 2001). The majority of articles published over the

next few years continued to promote the use o f blogs by libraries (see Balas, 2003;

Berger, 2003; Carver, 2003; Fitcher, 2003; Huwe, 2003; Oatman, 2003; Stone, 2003;

Weaver, 2003). However, new topics also emerged, such as the discussion o f the many

different ways in which blogs could be used in a library context (see Thomsen, 2002;

Harder and Reichardt, 2003; Stone, 2003; Turning, 2003) and detailed reports o f setting

up and utilising blogs in a library environment (see Goans and Vogel, 2003; Sennema,

2003).

As one of the earliest advocates o f blogs in the library sector, Hane (2001)

believed that "blogs are natural for librarians", and this sentiment is echoed in recent

(23)

Stephens, 2005:38). The library literature continues many of its earlier themes: why blogs

are useful for libraries and/or librarians (see Kenney and Stephens, 2005; Schwartz,

2005a), ways in which blogs can be used in a library environment to enhance services for

users (see Cohen, 2004; Bhatt, 2005; Etches-Johnson, 2005; Fitcher and Cervone, 2005;

Huwe, 2006; Kuyzk, 2006), experiences o f setting up a library blog (see Munoz, 2004;

Goans and Vogel, 2005; Blair and Cranston, 2006) and useful blogs for librarians (see

Maxymuk, 2005). Nevertheless, as the blogosphere matures, new topics are again

emerging in the library literature, such as the impact o f blogs on collection management

(see Moller and Rupp 2005), how to be an ethical librarian blogger (see Schneider, 2005)

and advice on the use and management o f blogs as internal communication tools (see

Fitcher, 2005; Guenther, 2005; Singer Gordon and Stephens, 2006).

There are, as stated by Goans and Vogel (2005:10-11), important distinctions

between librarian blogs and library blogs, that is, "librarian blogs are owned and managed

by librarians, but may have litde or no connection to any library organization", whereas a

library blog is "managed by one or more librarians within the organization" and is used

to "deliver news and information relevant to patrons at the library instead of a larger

community of librarians and information professionals."

As Clyde (2004a) notes, while blogging gained the early attention o f the library

and information science community and blogging by librarians subsequently grew in

popularity, library blogs did not appear to achieve the same level o f growth or interest.

Kline and Burstein (2005:102) report that "business-oriented blogging is still in its

infancy, with the vast majority o f business still grappling with how and to what end to

adopt the new medium". This appears to also be true in the library and information

(24)

communicate with their user communities and with their professional communities,

despite blog technology being packaged in "easily implemented tools" (Etches-Johnson,

2005:42). I n developing blogs for Georgia State University (GSU), Goans and Vogel

(2003:21-22) found that, "despite the mainstream media coverage [of blogs and

Hogging] in places like Newsweek, The Washington Post, The New York Times, and articles in

the library literature that advocate and promote the use of blogging in libraries, few

libraries are actually doing so."

Weblogs and Libraries (Clyde, 2004a) was published in 2004, and provided an

overview of blogging history and blog software, as well as providing strategies for

searching for blogs, especially in the field of library and information science. This

publication also contains an in-depth discussion of management issues involved with the

use of blogs in a library environment, mcluding planning, budgeting, audience

identification, implementation, maintenance, promotion and evaluation of the library

blog. Clyde's 2003 research into library blogs is also presented in this publication.

In late 2003, Clyde investigated the use of blogs by libraries (see Clyde, 2004a;

2004b; 2004c). A total of fifty-seven library blogs were located, through a variety of web

search tools, with the majority of blogs associated with public or academic libraries in the

United States of America. Clyde (2004b: 188) determined that the most library blogs were

updated infrequently and irregularly, which goes against one of the main strengths of

blogs, that is, the "ability to draw attention to current information". Most of the library

blogs were designed for "one-way communication between library staff and users", with

only a quarter of library blogs providing interactive features, such as allowing user

comments, and even fewer had an RSS feed, which would have enabled users to receive

(25)

distinct lack of integration o f the library blog with other library services, with few library

blogs providing links to the library web site, catalogue and/or reference services (Clyde,

2004b). Overall, Clyde (2004c) concluded that the library community appeared to be

unenthusiastic about library blogs, and that the majority o f the libraries using blogs did

not appear to be using this medium of communication particularly well.

While there has been no further research into the use of blogs by libraries since

Clyde (2004a), articles in the professional library literature continue to suggest ways in

which libraries can use blogs, for example, library e-services such as reader advisory (see

Kuzyk, 2006), promotion o f new and existing library resources (see Bhatt, 2005) and

announcing upcoming events (see Bhatt, 2005).

In the meantime however, there has been a shift in the research focus about

blogs and blogging in the library sector, moving to investigate the state of the librarian

blogosphere in an attempt to determine how and why librarians are using and/or creating

blogs (see Bar-Ilan, 2005; Crawford, 2005; Farkas, 2005; Laning et al, 2005; Weibrands,

2006). Much of the research pertaining to librarian bloggers is conducted through

informal online surveys, which are often posted on a librarian blog (see Farkas, 2005;

Weibrands, 2006). I t appears that many o f the librarian bloggers who complete these

online surveys do so as a result of reading other blog posts which then link to the survey

blog post; therefore the population sample may not accurately represent the overall

librarian blogosphere.

Given that the global blogosphere has expanded and evolved dramatically over

past few years (see Sifry, 2006a; 2006b; 2006c), it is highly likely that both the librarian

(26)

use o f blogs by libraries. This research study investigates the state o f the library

blogosphere in 2006, to identify current library blog demographics and determine how

library blogs are being used in 2006, and how this has potentially changed since Clyde's

(27)

6.0 Methodology

In many ways, the research study replicated the methodology used in Clyde's

2003 study of library weblogs (see Clyde, 2004a), that is, library blogs were located using

a variety of existing online resources as well as through different online search

techniques. The located library blogs were subsequendy examined using content analysis

to determine the demographic features, and the purpose(s) and use(s) of library blogs.

There were however, some changes with regards to the sample population. A n

initial investigation of online listings of blogs indicated that there was a significant

amount of growth in the area of library blogs, mcluding collective blogs maintained by

librarians from different institutions, blogs created by professional associations and blogs

used as internal communication tools within libraries. To create a manageable small-scale

research project, the researcher elected to narrow the focus of this research project to

include only library blogs created by a single organisation or instimtion and which were

used for external communication with library users, therefore excluding any blogs used

for internal library communication, as well as cross-institutional library blogs and blogs

used by library associations in the capacity of professional communication with library

and information specialists. The researcher also limited the investigation to library blogs

published in English, which in turn means that the results may not be generalisable

across the multi-lingual global library blogosphere.

ReHability of data coding is typically one of the strengths of content analysis,

and in the instance of using human coders, is usually achieved through synchronous

ttaining of multiple coders to ensure consistency and reliability of coding between

(28)

conducted the coding for the content analysis, and this is acknowledged as a potential

weakness of the research

6.1 Delimitations and Limitations of the research study

6.1.1 Delimitations

1. Library blogs must be externally available, that is publicly accessible via the World Wide Web.

2. Library blogs must be published in English.

3. Library blogs must be associated with a single organisation or institution.

4. Library blogs must be identifiable through online search techniques.

5. Only active library blogs will be included for content analysis.

6. Active library blogs will be determined to:

a. Have at least 1 post since May 1, 2006; and

i. Have at least 6 posts in 2006, i f they were created before 31 December, 2005; or

ii. Have at least 2 posts in 2006, i f they were created after 1 January, 2006.

7. Only the front page of active library blogs will be coded for analysis.

6.1.2 Limitations

1. Library blogs must be published in English.

2. The population of library blogs published in English may not be generalisable across the population of library blogs in other languages.

(29)

3. I n limiting analysis to externally available blogs, the research may not reflect overall use of blogs in a library setting.

4. Some libraries may have multiple blogs, which may over-inflate the total number of library blogs.

5. A printed page of the blog does not reflect some interactive features, such as 'drop-down' or 'hover-over' menus, which therefore may not reflect some library blog features.

6. A printed page may potentially exclude information which can be found via a link on the library blog front page.

7. One person has undertaken the data coding.

6.2 Sample Population

6.2.1 Location of blogs3 5

Several online listings of library and librarian blogs, including Ubdex, BlogBib and

dmo^ Open Project Directory, were regularly referred to the library literature (see Crawford,

2001; Maxymuk, 2005), as was the blogroll of blogwithoutalibrary.net (see Oatman, 2003),

where Etches-Johnson maintained a growing list of links to library blogs, which

eventually resulted in the launch of The Blogging libraries Wiki'm April 2006.

Ubdex and BlogBib included listings for both library and librarian blogs, whereas dmo^ Open Project Directory maintained a separate list for organisational library blogs. The

most comprehensive listing of library blogs was The Blogging libraries Wiki, where blogs

were separated by library type (academic, public, school and special), along with sections

for internal library communication and library association blogs.

(30)

In June 2006, The Blogging Libraries Wiki was chosen as a starting point to

investigate library blogs as it had the most extensive list o f blogging libraries and listed

over three times as many libraries as the next longest online list, Ubdex. Beginning with

the four relevant library type sections from The Blogging Ubraries Wiki, all listed blog

URLs were checked using a Firefox (version 1.5.0.6) web browser. Upon determining

that the listed URL provided access to a library blog published in English, the URL was

bookmarked and organised into a folder relating to its location, for example, The

Blogging Libraries Wiki — Academic Libraries.

Once The Blogging Ubraries Wiki had been thoroughly examined, blogs from the

three other online listings, Ubdex, BlogBib and dmo% Open Project Directory, were

subsequendy investigated. I n the majority o f cases, these online listings provided access

to the same library blogs from The Blogging Ubraries Wiki.

Once the blogs from these four online listings had been thoroughly examined,

searches were undertaken using the advanced search option on Google Blog Search,

Google.com and country-specific Google search pages, including Australia, Canada,

England, Ireland, New Zealand and South Africa. The first 100 results o f each search

were examined to determine whether any new library blogs had been located. The

advanced search option allowed the researcher to limit the language posts to those

published in English, as well as including and/or excluding certain terms from the search.

The following combinations of search terms were used:

- (library A N D blog)

- (library A N D blog) N O T librarian

(31)

- (research A N D library A N D blog) N O T librarian

- (school A N D library A N D blog) N O T librarian

- (academic A N D library A N D blog) N O T librarian

- (public A N D library A N D blog) N O T librarian

The researcher then located other blog directories and blog search engines using

Yahoo!3 6 and Google3 7 directory listings for library weblogs, including

AustraUanBlogs.com.au, Blogflux, BlogSearchEngine, Blogwise, EatonWeb Portal,

Feedster, GetBlogs, Gigablast, Globe of Blogs and Technorati.

A Microsoft Excel spreadsheet was used to record details of the online strategy

used to locate the library blog, the relevant URL, the date of location, the date of the last

post and the country of origin.

Determining the country of origin was not always straightforward. Although

many library blogs did indicate at least one of the following features, a physical address,

the name of the town or city, the state or region they were located in, few library blogs

indicated the actual country. Although the country was often able to be determined

through linked web pages, such as the library website, in some instances, further

searching using a Google search engine was undertaken to determine the true

geographical location of the library.

3 6 Yahoo! Search Directory > Computer and Internet > Internet > World Wide Web > Weblogs >

Directories. Available at

http://dir.yahoo.com/Computers and Internet/Internet/World Wide Wcb/Weblogs/Dircctories/' [accessed lOApnl, 2006].

3 7 Google Director}' > Reference > Libraries > Library and Information Science > Weblogs >

Organizational Weblogs. Available at

http://directory.google.com/Top/Reference/Libraries/Libran' and Information Science/Weblogs/Orga nizational Weblogs/ [accessed 10 April, 2006].

(32)

There are limitatioris associated with locating library blogs through online search

techniques such as directory listings and blog search engines. For example, new library

blogs may not yet be listed in online directories, nor currently indexed by blog search

engines. A new library blog may also be maintained by someone who is a relative

newcomer to the world of blogging, and as such, the metadata and/or tags associated

with the library blog may not yet be sufficiendy accurate to be appropriately indexed.

Some library blogs may not yet generate enough traffic to be returned in the first 100

relevancy-ranked results of an online search.

Therefore this research represents an analysis of those library blogs published in

English which have sufficient online presence to be listed in online resources and/or

located through online search techniques.

6.2.2 Removal of duplicate listings and non-library blogs

Once all online search sources had been thoroughly investigated, the list of

library blogs was cross-checked to remove any blogs which had inadvertently been

duplicated. Despite attempts to avoid listing duplicate blogs, one library blog had been

listed twice and was subsequendy removed with this cross-checking.

Several other non-library blogs were also inadvertendy included in the final list

of located blogs. Upon closer investigation of the 'about this blog' sections, the list of

contributors and/or the content of the blog posts, seventeen blogs were removed from

the final list. The reasons for the removal of these blogs included: use as an internal

communication tools, blog originating from a library association, cross-organisational

(33)

6.2.3 Clarification of library type

The segregation of blogs by library type reflects the separate listings employed

by The Blogging Libraries Wiki. Therefore, library types are demarcated as follows:

— an academic library refers to a tertiary educational institution library;

— a public library relates to a library which is accessible to the public and is

funded by public monies;

— a school library refers to a primary or secondary educational institution

library; and

— a special library refers to any non-academic, non-public or non-school

library.

The national libraries of two countries, Scodand and Singapore, were found to

be using blogs. These library blogs were classified as special Ubraries to reflect their

unique position as an overarching national Ubrary faciUty.

Regional and/or state Ubraries, such as the Idaho State Library, were classified

as pubUc Ubraries to reflect their more common and locaUsed utiUsation as a pubUc

Ubrary facility.

6.2.4 Re-categorisation of library blogs

Three academic Ubrary blogs were found to be incorrecdy categorised, two were

Usted as special Ubraries and one as a pubUc Ubrary. These details were subsequendy

(34)

6.2.5 Removal of inactive and discontinued blogs

As the list o f all located library blogs was compiled, it became apparent that a

significant number o f blogs were no longer actively being maintained. While some were

several years out o f date, the abandonment o f others was more recent, having had Utde

or no activity since late 2005 or early 2006.

Rather than include these inactive blogs in the detailed content analysis o f

Ubrary blogs, which could potentiaUy skew the results, a decision was made to limit the

analysis to active blogs, which were determined as foUows:

— A t least 1 post since 1 May 2006, and

— A t least 6 posts in 2006, i f created before 31 December, 2005; or

— A t least 2 posts in 2006, i f created after 1 January, 2006.

The selection of 1 May, 2006 as a cut-off point for the most recent post was

determined after consideration o f several factors. As there is Utde research into the

blogging habits of corporate or institutional bloggers, information about the frequency o f

posting by personal bloggers was used as a guide to determine what may potentiaUy be an

accepted level o f posting frequency. Lenhart and Fox (2006:20-21) concluded that almost

fifty percent of personal bloggers post at least "every few weeks", although this is also

intertwined with a certain level o f creative stimulation, as seventy percent of personal

bloggers post only "when inspiration strikes". Therefore, it appears that one blog post

every four weeks may be an acceptable mid-range for determining recent blog posting

activity. I t is worth noting however that, in terms of an institutional blog, the frequency

of posting could potentiaUy depend heavily on the key purpose(s) and/or use(s) of the

(35)

Another key consideration was the time of year that this research study was

carried out. Although this research was conducted from New Zealand, the sample

population included Ubrary blogs from many other countries, including a large number of

northern hemisphere educational institutions. I n many instances, primary and secondary

schools and tertiary institutions may not be open over the summer hoUday break, which

may range from late June to early September, or these institutions may choose not to

create blog content in the final weeks of the school year, due to other commitments such

as examinations and graduation ceremonies.

Therefore, extending the period of when the most recent blog entry was posted

to 1 May, 2006 permitted a potentiaUy larger sample population of active blogs to be

included and also aUowed for unknown external factors, such as closure over the summer

vacation period, to be taken into account.

Determining the number of blog posts in 2006 and whether the Ubrary blog had

been estabUshed prior to 31 December, 2005 was reasonably straightforward. Blogs

typicaUy display at least their most recent post when the front page is loaded into the web

browser. While there is no definitive rule on how many blog posts are displayed, it is

common for at least the current month's postings to be displayed, and postings from

previous months are also often included, especiaUy i f the current month's postings are

few in number. I t was relatively easy to determine whether a Ubrary blog created prior to

31 December, 2005 had at least six posts, as there were typicaUy at least six posts shown

on the front page on most Ubrary blogs estabUshed prior to 31 December, 2005.

Blog archives are also commonly Usted in a sidebar, and are typicaUy Usted by

(36)

existence prior to 31 December, 2005. In the event that it was unclear that a library blog

met the minimum requirements to be declared active, the researcher checked the online

blog archives for the previous months to ensure that minimum requirements were met.

This was necessary in a ntinimum of cases and resulted in most of these library blogs

being declared inactive.

A distinction was also made between library blogs which had been abandoned,

that is, judged to be inactive due to a lack of posting, and library blogs which had been

consciously discontinued, that is, the final blog post clearly indicated that the blog would

not longer be actively maintained and usually included a reason for its discontinuation.

Few library blogs were actively discontinued; most had simply ceased to have further

content added.

6.2.6 Researcher anonymity

The library blogging community was not alerted to the fact that the researcher

was investigating library blogs. The researcher did not widely publicise the research topic,

make direct contact with library blog creators, or leave any overt indications that the blog

had been visited and subsequendy investigated as part of a research study. This

'invisibility' on the part of the researcher should be viewed as a strength of the research.

6.3 Method of Data Anlysis

6.3.1 Content Analysis

In keeping with the original study upon which the research was based (see

Clyde, 2004a), content analysis was selected as the method of data analysis. Clyde had

used this method of data analysis in previous research investigating library web pages (see

(37)

when examining web page content (see Bates and Lu, 1997; Cano and Prentice, 1998;

Haines, 1999).

McMillan (2000) conducted a meta-analysis of a number of different studies,

including Clyde (1996), which used content analysis to investigate different aspects of the

World Wide Web and concluded that content analysis was an appropriate technique for

studying the online environment. McMillan (2000:81) cites Krippendorff (1980), who

defines content analysis as "a research technique for making replicable and valid

inferences from data to their context", and outlines four primary advantages of content

analysis: "it is unobtrusive, it accepts unstructured material, it is context sensitive [...] and

it can cope with large volumes of data". McMillan (2000:81) argues that these advantages

apply equally well to the "dynamic environment" of the World Wide Web as they do to

traditional media such as newspapers.

The use of content analysis involves two key areas of measurement - units o f

coding for context and content. The "context unit is the body of material surrounding

the [content] coding unit" and the content coding units are the "smallest segment of

content counted and scored in the content analysis" (McMillan, 2000:82).

In this research project, the context unit was determined to be a print-out of the

front page of the library blog. The content units were determined to be any individual

feature present on the front page of the library blog, which was tallied for quantifiable

counts used to determine Ubrary blog demographics, and any words and/or phrases

(38)

The front page of the library blog was selected as the context unit. Limiting the

context unit to the front page of the blog provided a more equal basis for comparison

between library blogs, rather than comparing overall size of library blogs, or analysing all

features on all pages of the library blog. As some Ubrary blogs may have been estabUshed

for a number of years and the inclusion and subsequent analysis of aU Ubrary blog pages

may have biased the results in favour of long-estabUshed Ubrary blogs.

The researcher undertook emergent data coding, that is, coding categories were

"estabUshed foUowing some preliminary examination of the data", as opposed to a priori

coding, where categories are estabUshed prior to the analysis, based on a particular theory

(Stemler, 2001).

However, as this was a smaU-scale individual research project undertaken by a

post-graduate student in the field of Ubrary and information studies, it was not feasible to

have multiple coders. As Kassarjian (1977:13) states, a "researcher's subjectivity must be

minimized to obtain a systematic, objective description of the communication content"

and the issue of reUabiUty is therefore "paramount". Material for this research project

was coded by an individual, as opposed to multiple researchers; therefore it is unable to

be statisticaUy tested for inter-coder reUabiUty. Nonetheless, significant effort was

undertaken to ensure that any potential subjectivity in the coded results was minimised.

The researcher acknowledges that the use of a single coder is a limitation of this project.

In an attempt to provide some level of consistency and objectivity in data

coding, the researcher undertook analysis of six Ubrary blogs prior to data coding of aU

Ubrary blogs. Two examples of weU-estabUshed Ubrary blogs, as indicated in the Ubrary

(39)

selected from the list of active blogs, that is, Ubrary News from Ann Arbor District

Library (AADL) and Ubrary News from Georgia State University (GSU), as well as four

other active library blogs randomly selected from each different type of library, First

Reading from the Hawaii Legislative Reference Bureau Library, Ubrary News from

Whippany Park High School, What's New! from the University of Richmond and Katonah

Village Ubrary Blog8. These six library blogs were analysed in terms of features and

purpose(s), with results recorded in a spreadsheet. The features and blog purpose(s) were

compared to ensure that they were being coded in similar ways. While the resulting list of

features from this material, along with the selective features Usted by Clyde (2004:95),

was not used as a basis in the actual data coding, it did provide the researcher with an

initial understanding of potential features to be identified.

Although Denscombe (2003:222) beUeves that content analysis is not a valuable

tool when dealing with "subde communication messages", this research project dealt

primarily with quantifiable data, noting the absence/presence of particular features, and

the researcher therefore beUeves that the resulting data is stiU of sufficient value to be

able to draw vaUd inferences.

6.3.2 Print-out of blog front page

The context coding unit for analysis was the front page of the Ubrary blog. I n

July 2006, the front pages of aU active Ubrary blogs were printed out. However, several

issues arose and the resulting printing process was not as straightforward as it would

have first appeared.

(40)

Each library blog front page was previewed using the print preview option in

the Firefox web browser. I n some instances, the preview was blank, indicating that the

library blog was unable to be printed out. Alternatively, the print-out option occasionally

displayed a significandy different layout of a particular blog, especially in relation to

features such as side bars, which were often printed out at the end of the blog content,

rather than displayed alongside the content.

Therefore, when the print preview indicated that the print-out would differ

from the onscreen display, the researcher checked to ensure all details contained within

sidebars, headers and footers would be included in the altered print-out version. I f it was

found that the print-out would not include these details, or the print preview indicated a

blank print-out, screenshots were taken of the library blog displayed in the Firefox web

browser and were subsequendy previewed and printed using the programme Paint.

Sufficient screenshots were included to ensure that all side bar information, as well as at

least two posts and sufficient footer information, that is, information from the bottom

section of the blog, were included.

While the problem of print-outs differing from the on-screen display is not

especially problematic for most creators of library blogs, as blogs are intended to be read

online rather than printed out, this part of the research process did prove

time-consuming for the researcher, to sufficiently cross-check information and ensure that the

print-outs accurately represented the information contained within the library blog.

Another challenge for the researcher was the length of the print-out. I n many

cases, the print preview indicated that the total number of printed pages would be in

(41)

four pages. Hence a decision was made to limit the print-out length. Where the print

preview indicated a print-out in excess of ten pages, the print-out was limited to the first

five printed pages or two posts (whichever was greatest), as well as the final two printed

pages of the blog, to again ensure that any footer information was included for analysis.

The print-out also needed to include all side bar information. In a small number of

instances more than the first five pages were required to be printed to ensure that all side

bar information was sufficiendy captured.

In two instances, despite rigorous comparison between the print preview and

the on-screen Ubrary blog, the print-out differed significandy from both of these

versions. These two blogs were then re-captured using screenshots and printed using the

Paint programme.

A total of 51 blogs, that is, aU of the Ubrary blogs created by special and school

Ubraries, were printed over 5t h, 6t h and 7t h July, 2006. Due to a substantial technical

malfunction with the printing technology, the remaining 406 Ubrary blogs were printed

thirteen days later, over 20t h and 2 1s t July, 2006. This time delay may be viewed as a

potential Umitation to the interpretation of results.

The researcher acknowledges limitations in the use of a printed representation

of a Ubrary blog, most significandy the 'invisibiUty' of interactive features, such as

drop-down and/or hover-over menu display options, which are not identifiable in a printed

version. The 'invisibiUty' of features which may have been Usted in drop-down or

(42)

6.4 Coding of data

In August 2006, the researcher analysed each print-out of the 457 library blogs

to create a list of features. The researcher did not begin with a list, rather the list was

created with the analysis of the first library blog and new features were added to this

existing list with subsequent analysis of Ubrary blogs, in accordance with emergent data

coding theory. I f new features were added to the Ust during the analysis of a Ubrary blog,

then upon completion of coding that particular Ubrary blog, aU previously coded Ubrary

blogs were re-checked for presence of the new feature(s).

Once aU Ubrary blogs had been coded, the Ust of features was cross-checked to

ensure that no feature had been Usted in more than one way. Data was again recorded

using an Excel Spreadsheet.

6.5 Determination of purpose(s) and/or use(s)

The purpose(s) and/or use(s) of each Ubrary blog was determined through

content analysis of the foUowing: the tide of the blog, the sub-heading of the blog,

content of the two most recent posts, titles of previous posts, and/or information Usted

in the 'about this blog' section, where this was printed in fuU on the front page of the

Ubrary blog.

The researcher acknowledges that not aU Ubrary blogs contained aU or some of

this information, which is therefore a limitation of the research. However, as the front

page of the Ubrary blog was defined as the context coding unit, only information

avaUable in this context was able to be used to determine the purpose(s) and use(s) of a

(43)

6.6 Collation of data

Information gathered from the content analysis was grouped with similar types

of information. For example, information relating to library demographics, such as

library type and geographical location details, was grouped together in the spreadsheet.

Blog features were also grouped with similar types of features, for example, external

information links, different online resources and blogroll information were grouped with

features which offered similar types o f information. This grouping of features by type

was an attempt to limit any recording o f the same feature in a different manner.

Data was collated using in an Excel spreadsheet, with separate worksheets for

information relating to each library type. Total numbers relating to the occurrence of

each feature were later collated in a single spreadsheet and information was then

extracted from this data about overall library demographics, blog features, and blog

purpose(s) and use(s).

Although the results o f the data coding were initially separated by library type,

the total sample population numbers for special and school Ubraries are significandy

lower than those for academic and pubUc Ubraries and it is therefore difficult to make

comparable inferences between the four Ubrary types. Hence, there is Utde discussion

about the differences o f blog features and blog purpose(s) and use(s) between each

(44)

7.0 Results and Discussion

7.1 Demographics

7.1.1 Total number of library blogs Table 1. Active vs Inactive blogs

Total Inactive % Active %

Blogs located 603 146 24.21 457 75.79 Institutions located 389 96 24.68 293 75.32

Almost a quarter o f all located library blogs (24.21%) were deemed inactive,

with insufficient activity in 2006. O f the 146 inactive blogs, 5 were labelled as

discontinued blogs, meaning that the final blog post clearly indicated that a particular

library blog would not longer be actively maintained, but would remain online as a web

resource. The reason for discontinuation of these Ubrary blogs was that the individual

blogger mamtaining the Ubrary blog was either changing roles or ceasing employment at a

particular institution.

It is possible that a proportion o f Ubrary blogs considered to be inactive for the

purposes of this research study may in fact be 'dormant', that is, not currentiy maintained

due to unforeseen circumstances, such as staff iUness or absence, or an intentional period

of inactivity, such as an elongated summer vacation for staff and/or students at an

educational institution. Nevertheless, a substantial number of Ubrary blogs with long

periods o f inactivity, for example, no new content since 2004, remain accessible online. I t

Figure

Updating...
https://1library.net/document/yrg5jg7q-blog-blog-library-blog.html
1library.net
crawl=CC-MAIN-2022-40
325539
application/http; msgtype=response
sha1:FLTDCG5X2KMZ26CN4BR2WVLMBJCCEG2F
<urn:uuid:013c9ccb-5958-4ac0-8007-8dfee0971132>
2022-10-01T08:47:28Z
164.90.139.124
text/html
sha1:IU2WGVB3HMEEXIIOVIP56BRLU5DODCLV
<urn:uuid:7e407703-bd0f-4ece-8a44-c0f3a481a35c>
https://1library.net/document/yrg5jg7q-blog-blog-library-blog.html
response
<urn:uuid:ed32c1a7-8305-458b-8b50-6c6ce189bdbd>
isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2022-40
publisher: Common Crawl
description: Wide crawl of the web for September/October 2022
operator: Common Crawl Admin (info@commoncrawl.org)
hostname: ip-10-67-67-234
software: Apache Nutch 1.19 (modified, https://github.com/commoncrawl/nutch/)
robots: checked via crawler-commons 1.4-SNAPSHOT (https://github.com/crawler-commons/crawler-commons)
format: WARC File Format 1.1
conformsTo: https://iipc.github.io/warc-specifications/specifications/warc-format/warc-1.1/