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Cheryl LaGuardia

They Lost Me with the Avatar
September 18, 2007

So I'm looking through e-mails from friends recommending sites / blogs / posts, and I come across this blog posting: "Basic Competencies of a 2.0 Librarian, take 2," by David Lee King, Digital Branch & Services Manager at the Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library. And he's listed a bunch of reasonable skills for a 2.0 librarian to have, including "write and post to a blog," "social network knowledge - basic understanding of Facebook, Myspace, Twitter, etc. and the ability to explain them to others," etc. etc. etc., and then I get to this in the list: "edit an avatar's appearance," and I decide -- that's just wack. The under-30's whose opinions I've asked for about avatar-peopled, virtual world web implementations have characterized them unilaterally as "lame." My own brief forays into Second Life were disappointingly boring and time-consuming (in contrast to the hilarious YouTube parody of Second Life). But to have to "edit an avatar's appearance" to do my job well? Somebody's lost some perspective here -- and it ain't me.

More as it happens, really, in this life,
Cheryl

Posted by Cheryl LaGuardia on September 18, 2007 | Comments (4)

September 19, 2007
In response to: They Lost Me with the Avatar
Sarah commented:

Oh this is so true! Thanks for actually spelling it out.

September 19, 2007
In response to: They Lost Me with the Avatar
Cheryl commented:

The hype on 2.0 is getting to the point of making me gag. I wish we could just acknowledge the technologies and move on with our work. Thanks for your comment! C.LaG.

September 20, 2007
In response to: They Lost Me with the Avatar
David Lee King commented:

I think it depends on the library. At my library, for example, we use Second Life as a partnering tool with area high schools. We integrate a Second Life project into a classroom project. So yes - our children's librarians teach classes on how to edit an avatar's appearance... Who's perspective is lost? :-)

September 21, 2007
In response to: They Lost Me with the Avatar
Cheryl commented:

I agree with you: it does very much depend on the library, and the example you give is a good one -- it makes sense for librarians working with kids to know how to work with avatar's if they're using them as you describe. But my perspective is based on the title of the list: "Basic Competencies...." Avatar adjustment as a basic skill required for all 2.0 librarians? I still don't think so... but thanks for giving more background. Your work sounds interesting and engaging! C. LaG.