My first idea was that we could use Facebook as an online reference service facility. It seems to combine the ability to message with the ability to display some info about who you are (so the person you're messaging knows you better). And it's presenting another 'face' of the library to the world. Then I discovered that institutions shouldn't use Facebook - it's for individual use. So no, that won't work. But are there features of Facebook that we could copy in our existing online reference service?
Work aside, what does interest me about Facebook is that it's a just another way to get to know people and make friends. In the non virtual world we get to know people by meeting them, talking to them and doing things with them and while we are doing that we are getting to know them better. We form impressions of them based on what they look like, what they sound like, what they say, and what they do.
We do the same in the virtual world, eg on Facebook, but we do it all differently.
At first Facebook was a bit scary, but as I started to make friends and gain confidence I decided it's not that different to the non-virtual world. Yes, there are lots of people out there on Facebook who probably don't want to know me, and lots of people who I would probably not choose to spend much time with, but I can still find a niche and a set of friends that feel right for me.
But do I want to be there?
Update 3/12/08: Yesterday I did 2008's Things 16 and 17 (Facebook). It's quite different from last year, but I'm gradually finding my way around. Do we need a library presence in Facebook? I think yes, it's another way of communicating with our users.
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