How are libraries preparing for patrons with mobile devices who want to connect to all their data everywhere?  Reuters discusses cloud computing in the article,

Portable devices give "cloud" new clout.

Recently the Libraries launched a new digital collection on Howard Hughes that features a way for users to add their own annotations to individual items.  Ok, that's cool, but what's the point?

There is an interesting article on the subject in a recent edition of D-Lib magazine that talks about how the web differs from traditional print content in that it encourages a new form of user interaction:

"Usually, we would no sooner invite user alteration of digital collection items than we would distribute crayons with illustrated children's books, but this is the way of the Web. It is rare to find an online article, blog or product review that does not now have a space for user ratings, comments or both. In this way, conversations spring up and ideas are exchanged, resulting in an added dimension of engagement with both the text and fellow readers."

In addition, the article gets into the meat of how to best design social annotation into a digital collection or web site, and notes several major factors that contribute to "decision-points" or the drive for users to actually motivate and make that comment in the first place.

• Display
• Ease of annotation
• Anonymity
• Control of content
• Harvesting annotation content
• Ease of retrieval
• Traffic and network effects
• Notification and sharing

For instance, the authors state, if one of our user's goals in annotating is to save time in finding the resource later, than we really need to make it easy for them by adding a way to retrieve all of their annotated items.

And while completely open commenting may make some libraries nervous, by adding a "flag this comment" button to the website, users can actually self-moderate the comments.  

The benefits to the content owner are great; tracking which items are most in demand, and helping to capture information on search terms that users are employing to find and mark content. Certainly high traffic sites are the best for this type of activity, and commenting may not be for every web site. But, as we continue to observe how digital content is changing the ways that users research and connect online, annotation is one interesting area to keep in mind.

Some interesting quick reads that touch on users, successful implementation of technologies, and on becoming a transparent organization.

The Transparent Library: Six Signposts on the Way

Sustainable Technology in a 2.0 World

ReadWriteWeb is running a series of lists of the top products of 2008.  Check it out to find some useful tools.

Currently available are:

Top 10 RSS and Syndication Products of 2008

Top 10 Semantic Web Products of 2008

Top 10 International Products of 2008

Top 10 Consumer Web Apps of 2008

Groundswell surveyed people to see what types of information, both from print and online sources, they found trustworthy.  They report that company blogs fall at the bottom of the list.  E-mail from people you know was considered most trustworthy.

Facebook Connect launches today.  It allows users to bring their Facebook identities to third party sites and then track any activities on those sites in their Facebook profile.  You can try it out a CNN, one of the beta partners.