Winter Webinars Coming To Your Computer

According to wikipedia.org, "...webinar is a seminar which is conducted over the World Wide Web. It is a type of web conferencing. In contrast to a Webcast, which is transmission of information in one direction only, a webinar is designed to be interactive between the presenter and audience. A webinar is 'live' in the sense that information is conveyed according to an agenda, with a starting and ending time. In most cases, the presenter may speak over a standard telephone line, pointing out information being presented on screen, and the audience can respond over their own telephones, preferably a speakerphone."

The obvious advantages of this form of distance education are there is no travel involved, and students can participate from anywhere.

All the student needs is a computer and telephone. The student will receive, before the scheduled date of the webinar, an ID number, a password, a URL and a toll free telephone number. At the scheduled time, the student uses this information to log onto a secure website, and place a toll-free call (a speakerphone is suggested, but not required.) When the session begins, the student can see the class materials on the computer screen, hear the instructor over the telephone, and ask questions or make comments in the same manner. For the North Country, with its somewhat inhospitable winter weather, and its populations and institutions spread over significant distances, webinars present an opportunity to overcome these obstacles to education and training.

This form of distance learning will be employed in the NNYLN area this winter in the form of its new Winter Webinars series:

• Social Networking/Web 2.0 - what it is and what it means to libraries. Includes MySpace, Library Thing, Flickr, del.icio.us, etc.
• Wikis - What wikis are, how they can be used in libraries, and what it takes to set one up.
• Podcasting - what it is, how libraries are using it, and how to get one started.

  The sessions are approximately 90 minutes long, and are tentatively scheduled for the second Thursday of each of the months of January, February and March, 2007.

More information on the content of each session, dates, times and presenters will be available in the next issue of the NNYLN Continuing Education schedule. Questions? Call 315-265-1119 or email Bridget Doyle.