Activity 5: Article Response #2

That's Infotainment!
Kroski, Ellyssa
School Library Journal, Feb. 2009, Vol. 55, Issue 2

I have been surfing through numerous articles for this assignment, and have been trouble finding ones that are directly related to cataloguing, or the organizing of resources. I finally chose this one, because one of the issues I am going to have with my library (if I ever become the librarian) is that I have to find a way to instruct students on how to access our catalogue and our resources. I also mentioned in my previous post, that the best way to do this is likely to use technology. This is where the article "That's Infotainment!" comes in. The article deals with the topic of "screencasting" in which computer screen images are recorded on video, and can be used to create tutorials on computer use. The article then goes on to describe the process of making your own screencast, and even recommends various types of software to help with the process. This could be a brilliant way to connect students with our school library. I know that there are already various screencasts on our school district website (and I always wondered how they did them). A screencast could be a perfect way to help students find our library catalogue, help them find articles or reserve books, and even teach them how to use online databases such as EBSCO Host, or WorldBook.

I don't know if I am brave enough to attempt my own screencast for my final project of LIBE 465, (making even a small website will be enough work), but it is certainly a good solution for helping students connect with the catalogue. The screencast could also be used to help staff or parents find the resources as well. I am certainly intrigued. I know that the screencasts on our district website are very helpful. The new Mac computers also have screencast tutorials for almost every program that Mac offers, and they are very very informative. This article also gives some very good advice regarding the software available, so I am certainly going to use it before choosing what screencasting software I am going to purchase or download.