SHUSH!

A while back I posted on the limited shelflife of most blogs, this one included.  There was a brief upsurge in posts around the same time, although not connected to mine.  However, nothing much has gone on here for a while now so is this blog dead?  Is the possible decline of Shush! also symptomatic of the decline in popularity of blogs more generally?  It might also reflect a decline in language use.  A blog has the space for whole paragraphs and this has given way, in my opinion, to status posts on Facebook and Bebo, etc where this has a limited field to post to, and this has started to give way to Twitter tweets where the room given to expression is even smaller.  The next iteration of technology will only have enough space to put a couple of words on so we can all return to the language of the dawn of man and “Ug Ug hu” each other.

A possible problem with Web 2.0 things or Web3.0 (or Web 42.3, etc) is that they are very interesting and vibrant for a short period of time before they slump into the list of forgotten or failed ideas; so investing time and people power into them might not be best use of resources.  Incidentally why has the phraseology jumped straight from 2.0 to 3.0 hasn’t there been any minor changes along the way?  What happened to Web 2.1 or Web 2.2?

I understand fully the irony of saying something negative about Web2.0 via a Blog but even so I would once again ask is the Blog dead or dying or merely sleeping?

It has been a while since I have felt moved to contribute to Shush! but I am so excited about this tool that I simply have to share it. The tool is called Prezi and it is a really slick piece of software for producing presentations.

Instead of the very linear approach of MS Powerpoint, Prezi adopts a ‘mind map’ style of presentation - meaning that you can move from a big theme to a little one, and jump to a related area with a squeak of your mouse - great if you wish to be flexible when interacting with your audience. (Traditionalists can still define a straightforward ‘path’ through their presentation and navigate using arrow keys if they prefer.)

Limited use of Prezi is free; you can see sample presentations at http://prezi.com/; and the presentation that got me all fired up? - that was Theo Andrew’s and it’s available here.
Go on - take a look!

Rather than post an excited rant about Google Wave, the upcoming communication system to end all communication systems, and what it could mean for us, I’m just going to link to the excellent rundown on Mashable:

http://mashable.com/2009/05/28/google-wave-guide/

Read and anticipate. If you find that even halfway interesting, be sure to check out their other Wave posts as linked to at the end.

With Information Services’ Facebook page now boasting almost 200 fans a short while after its release, I thought it’d be interesting to investigate our presence in other social media - even if we’re not active in a particular area at this time, our users certainly will be.

To that end I’ve set up a shared folder on my Google Reader account that watches for mentions of the University in general (restricting it to Information Services would have been a little optimistic at this stage) on Google News, Google Blog Search and Twitter. Sadly I don’t think it’s possible to bring Facebook into the equation due to their privacy model, though anyone would certainly be able to share our new list on their Facebook account.

I tweaked the blog search to exclude those blogs we publish ourselves, as the idea here is to see who else is talking about us. There are probably a few off-site ‘official’ blogs that will need adding to the list - let me know in the comments area if you’re aware of any. Similarly, please chip in if you think there’s another resource that should be added to the three already in place on the list, or with any other ideas you might have.

Anyway, you can view the results as a common-or-garden web page: UoN References - and, as you’d expect, you can subscribe to that page as a meta-RSS feed to bring these search results into your own feed reader / browser / mobile and receive updates when new results appear - which is probably more often than you think.

It’s early days and basically a rush job, but if the University is mentioned in the news or on the web there’s a good chance this tool will pick it up. Useful? Promising? Incomprehensible? All feedback is welcome.

SET MINDS TO BLOWN: Here’s a brainmelting and substantial archive of International Times, the UK’s foremost underground periodical, offering beautiful per-page scans (and text versions, making the archive searchable) spanning three decades of psychedelic counterculture madness. And here’s an issue guide on the official IT site to help you dig up articles of interest, of which there are thousands.

See also my old post about The Realist archive if this somehow leaves you hungry for more.

The exam is based on a case study that involves franchising. Your task is to research how franchises operate and how opportunities are marketed to potential franchisees. The case study also includes ice cream parlours, so having some understanding of the relevant industry could be beneficial.

Here are some suggestions on where to begin your research:
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When it comes to the fashion industry, there is a lot to consider. Apart from the general fashion trends and colours represented on the catwalk, there are environmental and ethical issues, distribution channels, labelling, importing and exporting, retail locations, employment, consumer purchasing behaviour, branding, sustainability, innovation, web opportunities, baby boomers, male shoppers, plus sizes, and let’s not forget the economy. You will find all of this and more (including the fashion trends and colours for 2009) in the WGSN UK Fashion Report 2009.

The report is available to all students and staff at the University. If you are interested in receiving a Pdf of the report, please contact your Academic Librarian. The hard copy will also be available to borrow from the library shortly.

I’m not sure if this is new or whether I’m flogging a dead horse that I’ve somehow failed to notice for several months, lying in the corner of the room with its awful grin and rotten hooves and swelling like a ghastly chestnut piñata stuffed with the putrid fruit of Thanatos… I’ve lost my thread.

Oh, here it is: Google in Quotes is another great product of Google Labs. It lets you place two public figures side-by-side and compare what they’ve said about anything you like. It’s preloaded with notable dignitary collections from several countries (happily, Boris Johnson makes the list in the UK) and a selection of suggested topics, but you can also mix up your own pundit pairings and throw any keyword you like at them. The speakers, quotes and suggested topics are all datamined mechanically from the Google News datacolliery.

There’s also a pleasing ’spin’ button that generates a new set of quotes in the style of a fruit machine, which I think all sensible adults would agree is the way forward for web interfaces. Actually it might be inspired by the similar way in which the iPhone handles web form elements - I confidently predict that gambling interfaces will dominate 2009; I propose Poker News, in which breaking stories gently scraped from the BBC are delivered in hands of five and pay out BIG MONEY* in the event of thematic correlation, e.g. two Boris Johnsons and three Post Office robberies for a full house, or a royal flush of racist goofs from Prince Philip or his grandson. Blogger’s Blackjack, RSS Roulette and so on and so forth, feel free to hold forth in the comments area with your own suggestions and together we can build a terrible future.

Meanwhile, there’s http://labs.google.com/inquotes/

*Tokens redeemable in information. Terms apply.

-are two of the more attention-grabbing concepts from this Guardian piece by Richard Smith on the ‘beefing up’ of copyright law and its cultural consequences. Hold on, I can’t in good conscience have an ugly phrase like ‘beefing up’ segue into half-hearted alliteration like that.

Cultural agoraphobia and the library as mausoleum are two of the more attention-grabbing concepts from this Guardian piece by Richard Smith on the commercial consolidation of copyright and its calamitous consequences for our cultural commons.

Recently I’ve seen a few highly desirable books that reproduce book covers - for example this great collection of Japanese cover designs on Amazon - but they tend to be pricey (that particular one is out of print and going for £150+ minimum at the moment, so it might be cheaper to simply buy all the books it features).

But as usual the internet has a solution for the penny-conscious - many, many solutions, but I particularly want to draw attention to the Book Cover Archive, a glorious melting pot of over 1,000 contemporary designs with publisher, designer and typeface information all nicely hyperlinked up and indexed, so you can track how many time Verdana has made it onto the cover of a book (which is zero, so don’t bother, and the same is tragically true of Comic Sans).

I’ve also enjoyed the beat generation archives provided by the seemingly anonymous benefactors at books.rack111.com - check out their fascinating collections of Burroughs, Kerouac and Cassady covers, which I found via the blog of designer John Coulthart, who regularly posts such treasures (along with the occasional slice of gay erotica, so take care if browsing alongside your homophobic aunt).

You can also make us of Librarything’s extensive collection of covers - though only, I think, for a specific title. Here’s their gallery of 1984 covers and a round-up of Lao Tzu covers. Just search for a book and use the ‘Covers’ link to find more.

And of course Flickr is a natural home to such projects - here’s a wonderful collection of Penguin and Pelican covers that user Joe Kral has created. You can always rely on sociology texts to have a cover you shouldn’t stare at prior to shaving.

Wow! Please post the magnificent details of any other cover galleries you’ve found and dug in the comments.

If you find a record for an SLP on the library catalogue that says it is ‘in recataloguing’, click on ‘show details’ in the blue box.

If you see the letters ER in the notes field, this means that it is available electronically.

The best way to access an electronic journal article is by using the ‘Find my reference’ tool, under ‘search’ on the library home page. If you have never used this tool before, pick up a leaflet from the enquiry desk, or speak to your academic librarian.

If ‘ER’ does not appear in the notes field, ask a member of staff to help you locate the SLP you are looking for.

Your task is to explore the UK theatre market, including the London West End. There are a number of sources available via MetaLib that will give you information on theatres in the UK, including the following:
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Your Information Services Academic Support team at Avenue campus supporting the School of the Arts and the School of Applied Sciences is now as follows:

Kate Chapman, Academic Support Manager (Schools of the Arts and Applied Sciences): Kathryn.chapman@northampton.ac.uk, 01604 893167 (Monday - Wednesday AM)

George Payne, Academic Support Manager (Schools of the Arts and Applied Sciences): George.payne@northampton.ac.uk, 01604 893176 (Wednesday - Friday AM)

Fiona MacLellan, Academic Librarian (Schools of the Arts and Applied Sciences): Fiona.maclellan@northampton.ac.uk, 01604 893012

Helena West, Academic Librarian (Schools of the Arts and Applied Sciences): Helena.west@northampton.ac.uk, 01604 893177

Della Smith, Information Services Assistant (Schools of the Arts and Applied Sciences) – please contact Della with your book, CD and DVD requests: Della.smith@northampton.ac.uk, 01604 893101

As of the 10th February the old Mailman system for accessing student emails will be shut down. 

To prevent loss of email access all students currently using Mailman need to:

•  Setup your free Windows Live account
• Forward any emails you want to keep from Mailman to your new Windows Live account
• Start enjoying the vast array of tools available via Windows Live

This new account is your official University email address, and all electronic communications from the university will come via this email account (including those from NILE).

Your task is to prepare a report for the Senior Director of a NHS Trust which evaluates and justifies the need for services marketing. You will need to explore the different information resources available to you. This will enable you to provide a suitable response to the 3 areas relating services marketing planning and internal marketing of the healthcare provider. A guide to the information resources that will be of use to you follows:
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