The Perfect Library Tutorial

Posted by Leo – October 12, 2011

The question is, what is the optimal, the best, the most perfect library tutorial we can make? For example, if we want to produce a video tutorial on how to use a database, should it be a comprehensive one that shows all the features of the database? Or should it be a something really concise and short? Or something in between? To answer that question, a sensory analysis story comes to mind.

Sensory analysis is the science of evoking, measuring, analyzing, and interpreting responses to products (which includes physical products, services, and information) using the five senses (sight, smell, sound, touch,  and taste). It originated from food science and large corporations nowadays rely on sensory scientists to help them research and develop their products, anything from food, to shampoo, to the leather used in car seats. But what does sensory analysis have to do with making the perfect library tutorial?

Below is that really interesting sensory analysis story, told by Malcolm Gladwell (what a fantastic storyteller!) at a TED Talk (which was adapted from an article he wrote for The New Yorker). It may contain the answer to making the perfect tutorial.

Just as there is no such thing as the optimal Diet Pepsi, but optimal Diet Pepsis, perhaps there is no such thing as an optimal tutorial video, but optimal tutorial videos. If we segment our students by discipline and class for so many our services, why not make different tutorials for different market segments. Perhaps we could go even further than just segmentng them by discipline or class, but also by their study habit, personality, or ambition, e.g.  ”A” students who want to study everything, last minute crammers (this would probably be the biggest segment), visual learners… etc. What this means is, we need to know our users. This is nothing new. We have been trying to do that for a while now. But are we knowing the right things about them?

To take a cue from sensory analysis, I would love to see us make multiple versions of a tutorial and see how our students feel about them. (If anything, it would give us a chance to really practice our video-making skills). We could even be outrageously inventive when we make these tutorials. As Howard Moskowitz has found out, people don’t know what they like if what they like doesn’t yet exist.

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Screenwriting for Librarians: Part 4 – Library Video Tutorials (and what we can learn from cooking shows)

Posted by Leo – September 10, 2011

The idea of this Screenwriting for Librarians series of blog posts is to share some screenwriting, storytelling and filmmaking techniques that I think might help fellow librarians who are interested in utilizing this medium to attract more users.

Librarians who are interested in making video tutorials should really check out cooking shows, which are possibly the most widely watched video tutorials today. Cooking shows are mainstream instructional videos designed to teach viewers how to do something. But they must also be entertaining and visually appealing, so that even those who don’t cook would watch them. We should try to impart these qualities to library video tutorials.

Research has shown that web viewers have extremely short attention spans. Most don’t watch web videos in their entirety. I know I tend to skip or fast forward most video tutorials, simply because most are too long, too slow or simply not engaging enough. With that in mind, note the pacing and the rhythm of the Gordon Ramsay video below.

In under 40 seconds, he teaches us how to make a very delicious looking Pasta with Crab, Chili, and Lime. It utilizes montage (a series of short shots edited into a sequence to condense space, time, and information) to move the video at a frantic pace, with each cut lasting only about 1/2 second. So, in a 40 secs video, there are probably close to 80 cuts. You can’t afford to look away. You have to pay attention. There are roughly 18 steps to make the dish. The voice-over directions are concise and simple. We don’t need complete sentences. That just slows things down. The key information here is, the tutorial doesn’t have to happen in real time. No cooking show would make the viewer wait in real time for the food to be done. The same should apply to good video tutorials – trim all the unnecessary footage. I would much rather have a video that goes fast and the student has to rewind to re-watch portions of it, than a video that’s too slow and students miss information because they skip or not pay attention.

Nigella Lawson’s video below takes a very different approach to teach us how to make a similar pasta dish.

The video is longer and has a more leisurely pace, yet it engages, perhaps even more so than the faster paced video. Note how she assures us at the beginning that “this is so easy”. As she gives out the directions, she explains the reason for every step. It is truly a cooking lesson. She gives her personal opinions and she uses emotional language which humanizes the whole process. The images are gorgeous to look at. And even though the cuts are longer than the Gordon Ramsay video’s, there are still at least 3-4 cuts for each step of the cooking, which keeps the viewers from getting bored visually.

We naturally like to look at food, but we may not be that interested in looking at screencasts of databases. How do we make our tutorials visually interesting? It requires some creativity. For example, in a demo of a database search, you could pick a subject matter that is visually interesting, such as sports (or food!). There are plenty of royalty free images/videos/sound effects/music that you can find to edit into the video. Intercutting a keyword search on, let’s say Michael Jordon, with an image or a video clip of Jordon in action, combined with appropriate sounds, could make for a more engaging viewing. The same technique could be used in practically any subject, as along as you are willing to search for some interesting supplemental images/video clips/sounds (or produce your own) to incorporate into your video tutorial.

Yes, it takes time and efforts to make a good video tutorial. But think about how many hours an effective one will save you if you won’t have to spend 10, 15, 20 mins demonstrating the same thing in class in real time over and over again.

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NMRT LIAISONS still welcome!

Posted by Leo – August 11, 2011

I’m currently the Assistant Chair of ALA New Members Round Table (NMRT)’s Liaison Coordination & Support Committee, and we looking to fill a number of liaison positions for the 2011-2012 year. Below is the message sent out to various listservs:

NOTE: We’re done with active recruiting for now, but if you learn of someone interested in volunteering as a liaison, let them contact Charlene (charlene.hsu.gross@gmail.com) directly.

Are you looking for a way to be more involved in the library profession? Being an NMRT Liaison is a fantastic opportunity if you are an NMRT member and a member of another library organization. NMRT liaisons play a key role in increasing awareness of information and ideas of mutual interest to NMRT and liaison unit members with a minimal time commitment. Liaison responsibilities are listed below. We have many spots left to fill, so if you see your organization on the list below, please consider volunteering! If you are interested in getting involved, please fill out the volunteer form: http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/rts/nmrt/popularresources/getinvolved/liaison.cfm, or contact Charlene Hsu Gross (NMRT Liaison Coordination & Support Committee, Chair, 2011-2012) at charlene.hsu.gross@gmail.com directly.

You can volunteer for more than one and will be assigned to no more than three units. Your assignment will be for one year, beginning at the close of ALA’s Annual conference through Annual Conference 2012.  Conference attendance is not required.

Major Liaison Responsibilities
NMRT-L and unit communication tools (listservs, blogs, wikis, ALA Connect,etc.) as well as conference attendance are appropriate ways to carry out these responsibilities.

The responsibilities of the liaisons are to:
1. Join appropriate listservs, including NMRT-L. Monitor publications of the liaison unit.
2. Submit committee meeting dates and program information for their liaison unit. Request inclusion in the distribution of agenda and minutes for the unit. Publicize information concerning the unit including relevant program invitations, announcements and other information.
3. Keep their units informed of NMRT activities that would be of interest, such as the programs sponsored by the Student and Student Chapter Outreach Committee, the Student Reception, Mentoring, etc.
4. Invite unit representatives to attend functions including Orientation and the Student Reception.
5. Report on discussions, policies, and action of their units that are relevant to NMRT. Obtain minutes, if possible, and summarize relevant sections.
6. Report on discussions, policies, and actions of NMRT that are relevant to their unit.
7. Identify and alert NMRT of unit programs which NMRT may wish to co-sponsor, either from unit breakout sessions, listservs or other means.

Units in need of liaisons (as of August 25, 2011):

ACRL (Womens’ Studies Section) WSS

ACRL Western European Studies Section (WESS)

American Library Association (ALA) CPE

American Library Association (ALA) Membership Meetings

American Library Association-Allied Professional Association (ALA-APA)

Arizona Library Association

ARLIS/NA

Association for Library and Information Science Education (ALISE)

Association for Library Collections and Technical Services (ALCTS) (2-3 1 more members)

Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC)

Association of Jewish Libraries

Association of Library Trustees, Advocates, Friends and Foundations (ALTAFF)

Black Caucus of the American Library Association (BCALA)

Canadian Library Association

Ethnic & Multicultural Information Exchange (EMIE) RT

Federal and Armed Forces RT

GLBT-RT

GODORT

Indiana Library Federation

Iowa Library Association

Joint Conference of Librarians of Color (JCLC)

Kansas Library Association

Learning RT (LRT)

Library Support Staff Interest RT

LITA

Map and Geography RT

Maryland Library Association

Mountain Plains Library Association

Nassau County Library Association

New York Library Association

North Carolina Library Association

OCLC

Office for Information Technology Policy Advisory Committee (OITP)

Social Responsibilities Round Table (SRRT)

South Carolina Library Association

South Dakota Library Association

Southeastern Library Association (SELA)

Special Libraries Association (SLA)

Staff Organizations RT

Video Round Table

Wyoming Library Association

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A Day in the Life of a R&D Librarian (Round 7) – Friday

Posted by Leo – July 29, 2011

This post is written for Round 7 of the Library Day in the Life, a project started by Bobbi Newman, where librarians across the world share details of their daily activities. The is the 3rd time I am participating. Here are my Round 5, and Round 6 blog posts. 

I am the Research and Development Librarian at Kansas State University Libraries, and I work in the Office of Library Planning and Assessment.

KU/K-State Professional Development Workshop

An all-day (8:30am – 4:00pm) professional workshop today. About once or twice a year, Kansas State University Libraries and University of Kansas Libraries organize a professional development workshop together and invite other academic librarians in Kansas to join us. This year’s workshop is held at K-State’s Hale Library. Anne Zald and Jennifer Fabbi, librarians at UNLV, present a workshop featuring their work at UNLV with the UNLV Faculty Institute on Research-Based Learning for High Impact Classes. Undergraduate research is the hot topic in higher ed right now. In fact, I am in the process of compiling a report of what programs and services academic libraries are providing to support undergraduate research.

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A Day in the Life of a R&D Librarian (Round 7) – Thursday

Posted by Leo – July 28, 2011

This post is written for Round 7 of the Library Day in the Life, a project started by Bobbi Newman, where librarians across the world share details of their daily activities. The is the 3rd time I am participating. Here are my Round 5, and Round 6 blog posts. 

I am the Research and Development Librarian at Kansas State University Libraries, and I work in the Office of Library Planning and Assessment.

Morning - Check and reply emails. Literature review for a QR codes paper/presentation that I am working on with a colleague for the 2011 Brick and Click Library Sympoisum. Our session is called “Putting QR Codes to the Test”.

Afternoon - Two webinars back to back. The first one is on marketing Primo, the new discovery tool that my library will be using. And the 2nd one is an ALA TechSource Workshop called, Delivering Innovative Mobile Services through Your Library, presented by Meredith Farkas, Head of Instructional Services at Portland State University.  We cheer when she uses our library’s “Ask a Librarian” page as one of her examples.

My library's "Ask a Librarian" page was used as an example in the webinar

Right after the ALA TechSource Workshop, we have a farewell party for our most wonderful colleague, Rachel Crocker, who will be leaving us to attend University of Denver’s graduate program in Peace Studies. :(

My colleague Rachel's farewell party

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A Day in the Life of a R&D Librarian (Round 7) – Wednesday

Posted by Leo – July 27, 2011

This post is written for Round 7 of the Library Day in the Life, a project started by Bobbi Newman, where librarians across the world share details of their daily activities. The is the 3rd time I am participating. Here are my Round 5, and Round 6 blog posts. 

I am the Research and Development Librarian at Kansas State University Libraries, and I work in the Office of Library Planning and Assessment.

My messy office welcomes me back  after a week of vacation in Toronto, Canada.  My annoying habit of checking and replying work emails while on holiday deprives me of the excitement/disgruntlement of seeing an inbox with hundreds of unread messages. This morning, I have only 8. One of them is K-State’s daily newsletter, which is a very nice communication tool to find out about what university events are going on and faculty accomplishments. Today’s issue profiles the recent scholarly activities of our library faculty, which includes a blurb on my appointment to the LL&M’s (LLAMA’s journal) Editorial Board. Nice!

K-State Today

The morning is spent on basically catching up on some of the many projects I am involved in, as my current position is very project based. Apart from about 4 hours of virtual reference each week, I spend pretty much all my time on various projects. One of the current one is an experimental team-approach to embedded librarianship project I initiated. The idea is to benefit the students with a broad range of research skills from a team of librarians, while reducing each librarian’s workload and time commitment through division of labor. We are trying it on an online intersession geography course, which begins next week. We have one final meeting today to finalize all the assignments and the assessment tests.

Fire alarm in the afternoon, and everyone has to evacuate the library to 100+ degree heat outside. Luckily, we get to go back in pretty quickly.

Service to the profession is a important part of our tenure process, and I try to be active in national organizations. At this year’s ALA Annual Conference in New Orleans, I convened the first ever LLAMA/NMRT New Leaders Discussion Group (NLDG), which I hope to be the first of many collaborations between the two organizations. (You can join the NLDG’s ALA Connect Community to get updates). I actively try to bring the leaders of LLAMA and NMRT together as I see many mutually beneficial opportunities. As a result, I now work closely with Gail Kennedy, past-president of LLAMA, on a LLAMA/NMRT Joint Committee on Collaboration (the name is not quite set, but you get the idea). Today, I work on the charge and the composition of the committee. The general purpose of the committee is to continue organizing the New Leaders Discussion Group at each ALA conference, and to come up with proposals and projects for the two organizations to collaborate. I am quite excited about the many possibilities.

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New Article on Writing Library Videos

Posted by Leo – July 21, 2011

I am pleased to see that my article, “Design Your Library Video Like a Hollywood Blockbuster: Using Screenplay Structure to Engage Viewers“, which was written quite a while back, is finally published in the newest special issue of Indiana Libraries for Instructional Design and Technology. My colleagues, Jason Coleman, Danielle Theiss and Melia Erin Fritch also have an article on social software in this issue.

I have since written a few blog posts on the topic, but the journal article goes a bit more in depth by using a few more commercial films as examples. It also has an analysis of of this SPARKY Award winning short video:

Clueless Discovery from Aaron Ludwig on Vimeo.

 

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Beer Braised Pot Roast

Posted by Leo – May 29, 2011

Beer Braised Pot Roast

Beer Braised Pot Roast

Even though it’s late May, the weather is still surprisingly cool here in Kansas. Something rich and hearty like a pot roast seems like a good idea before it gets steamingly hot.

I studied abroad in Dijion (which is in the Burgundy region of France) many summers ago, and tasted Bœuf Bourguignon there for the first time. Absolutely. Loved. It. So when I started learning cooking, it was one of the first dishes I tried to learn. It’s a time consuming dish to cook, but the result is well worth the effort. A pot roast, on the other hand, is basically a less fancy version of Bœuf Bourguignon. An American comfort food. Both, essentially, are beef braised in flavored liquid and slow cooked until very very tender.

This recipe is a cross between a Yankee Pot Roast (vegetables are added to the pot partway through the cooking process) and Bœuf Bourguignon. Instead of braising the meat in Burgundy red wine, I use dark beer. It gives a more robust flavor to the dish, rather than the subtle sophistication of wine. Tips: Just like cooking with wine, use only beers that you would drink.

Ingredients (Serve 6)

  • 2 1/2lbs Chuck Roast
  • 2 Tablespoon Canola Oil
  • 2 medium sized Onions, peeled and quartered
  • 2 lb Carrots, peeled and cut into 2 inch pieces
  • 4 cloves Garlic
  • 1/2 cup All Purpose Flour
  • 1 bottle Dark Beer (Stout)
  • 2 cup Beef Broth
  • Bouquet Garni: a few sprigs of Thyme, Parsley, and 2 Bay Leaves
  • Salt & Black Pepper

Garnish

  • 8 oz Mushrooms
  • 5 slices thick-cut Bacon, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
  • 1/2 cup Water

Directions

Preheat oven to 300° F.

Season Beef with salt and black pepper. Dredge in flour.

Heat oil in Dutch Oven at medium-high heat. Brown beef on all sides, about 4 mins per side. Transfer to plate.

Lower heat to medium. Add onions,  half of the carrots (save the rest for later) to cook, stirring often, until golden, about 5 mins. Add garlic, cook for another 1 min.

Add beer and broth. Scrape up the brown bits on the bottom of the pot (this is the good stuff). Add the bouquet garni.

Return beef to pot, cover, and transfer to the oven until the meat is very tender, about 2 – 2 1/2 hours. Turn meat over once half way through.

While the meat cooks, prepare the garnish:

Heat oil in a pan, brown the bacon. Transfer to plate with a slotted spoon.

Brown the mushrooms. Transfer to the plate with the bacon.

Deglaze the pan with water, reduce, and then pour over the garnish. Set aside.

When the meat is done, remove it from the pot to a cutting board.

Strain the stock, discarding the vegetables. Pour the liquid back into the pot. Add the remaining carrots. Reduce stock by a 1/4 (or thick enough to coat a spoon).

In the meantime, cut beef into slices.

Return beef to pan and add the garnish.

Cover, and simmer for about 10 mins to let the flavors blend.

Add salt and/or black pepper to taste.

 

 

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The Great Food Truck Race – The Seabirds

Posted by Leo – May 15, 2011

May 14, 2011. After standing in line for hours for the Lime Truck earlier today, I decide that my feet are just not tired enough and head out to try the Seabirds, an all female, all vegan food truck.

Line!

Long line at the Seabirds

We arrive at the lot behind Varney’s around 8pm. Long line as expected. Slow line too. Some jokingly refer to the Seabirds as “the Slowbirds”.

The Seabirds

The Seabirds

The Seabirds are from Orange County, CA.

racing back from Ray's with tortillas

The ladies racing back from Ray's with tortillas

Running out of food again, the ladies race back from the store with more tortillas to a long line of hungry and cold customers. Some, I must say, are not very understanding. Tough crowd, tough crowd. I’m chilled though. Literally.

Win a "hot date" with the Seabirds ladies

Win a "hot date" with the very cute Seabirds ladies

If they served more than just taquitos, I’d totally go for that! :) The Seabirds ladies are adorable. But 20 taquitos seems just a bit much, and I imagine the people behind would get really upset if the food ran out again because of me.

Finally...

Ordering

At around 10:45pm, over 2.5 hours in line, I finally get to order. All is good now.

Jack Fruit Taquitos

Jack Fruit Taquitos

Jack Fruit Taquitos

Jack Fruit Taquitos

The vegan Jack Fruit Taquitos are definitely worth the wait. I was skeptical of vegan food even while I was standing in line. But this is good stuff. The crunchy fried tortillas combines very well with the soft and almost meat-like texture of the jack fruit. Add the tangy and spicy jalapeno sauce, and I don’t miss meat at all. A very pleasant surprise!

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The Great Food Truck Race in Manhattan, KS

Posted by Leo – May 14, 2011

May 14, 2011. On Kansas State University‘s graduation day, The Food Network‘s The Great Food Truck Race rolls into Manhattan, KS. Hosted by Tyler Florence, it is “where seven real teams representing the country’s best food trucks hit the road to cook their way across America.”

The Great Food Truck Race

Long lines at The Great Food Truck Race

Three of the five trucks (Korilla BBQ, The Lime Truck, and Hodge Podge) are stationed in the City Park. Seabirds is at the lot behind Varney’s – a prime location in Aggieville. Roxy’s is at Doughboy’s Pizza. My original plan was to try all five trucks, but that goal is dashed once I see how long the lines are and how slow they are moving.

The Lime Truck Menu

The Lime Truck's Menu

After standing line for close to 4 hours, and the condition turns from sunny & breezy to cloudy & windy (glad to have good company in Lis, Jason, and Livia), we finally get to the Lime Truck.

Chef's Choice Burger

Chef's Choice Burger

Since everything on the menu is only $0.99, I may as well try everything.  I particularly like the caramelized onions in the Chef’s Choice Burger.

French Fries with Smokey Mayo

French Fries with Smokey Mayo

The “Smokey Mayo” is actually quite smokey and tasty.

Deep Fried Bacon + BBQ Cole Slaw

Deep Fried Bacon + BBQ Cole Slaw

Even though the chefs tell us that the BBQ Cole Slaw and the Fried Bacon were not designed as side dishes, I think they’re excellent as sides.

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