What do you do when you see a QR code?

QR Code for the SABC Media Library's blog on mobile

You scan it! That's what you do!

Why? Because you want to know what it is all about!

How? By using your smartphone and a QR Code Reader.


Steps on how to scan a QR code:


1. Download a QR Code Reader for your phone.
    Try QR Code Scanner Pro for Blackberry (free). I have it on my phone.
    It looks like this:

QR Code Scanner Pro

 Or Kaywa Reader:
 It looks like this:

Kaywa Reader

Or Neo Reader:

There are countless QR Code Readers that are available for free.
You are welcome to let us know what you are using?

2. Open the Code Reader application on your phone when you spot a QR Code.

3. Align the code with your scanning screen on your phone.
I see that I have to keep my phone very stable and ensure enough light.

QR Code Scanner Pro screen shot

But other applications such as the Neo Reader immediately recognises the code and tells you which link has been recognised:

Neo Reader being used by Obakeng Phiri, our intern

4. If it does not automatically opens up in the link on the Internet, you are asked to click on the link to go to the required information.

5. Well done! See the required information/link/info on your mobile phone! (No need to look it up elsewhere!)

SABC Media Libraries blog (mobile)

Related post:
QR code for the SABC Media Library's blog


Post by Karen du Toit, Afrikaans Archivist in the SABC Radio Archives.

QR code for the SABC Media Library's blog

SABC Media Libraries - mobile blog

QR codes is such a fun, easy and practical way to link us to more information.
It is popping up everywhere, and even in South Africa people are beginning to look for that extra bit of information that can be scanned to immediately point us in the right direction.

The possibilities for libraries and archives are endless...

QR codes works with smart phones, and you need a QR code reader installed.
When doing a search on your phone or on the Internet it gives a variety of QR code readers.

I used Kaywa as a Code generator, and I see that it has a Code Reader as well.

I made use of Gwyneth Jones at The Daring Librarian's instructions on How to create a QR code in 3 easy steps. It is under a Creative Commons Licence, and therefore I can share it here as well.

The QR code at the top is a link to the mobile version of this blog.

Scan the code with your Code Reader on your smart phone, and it will take you here:

http://sabcmedialib.blogspot.com/?m=1

Please check it out and let us know what you think!


Blog post by Karen du Toit, Afrikaans Archivist in the SABC Radio Archives.

Opening up Web 2.0 for the SABC Media Libraries

The SABC Media Libraries have started a series of workshops to open up the Web 2.0. Social media is having an impact on every aspect of life, as well as in business, and we need to be aware and start incorporating it in our daily business at the public broadcaster. Richard Waghorn (SABC Chief Technology Officer) made the following statement in a newsletter the previous week:

…the growth in social media is impacting on the way we work and what we do as broadcasters and is challenging us to remain competitive. We need to think differently about how we engage with our different audience groups given the changing ways in which they engage with all different types of media.

Social media is such a vast and very quick expanding field, but for most of us it is overwhelming and we don’t know where to start. We also worry about privacy issues. To get a buy-in from all the different stake-holders and employees we need to take it into account when starting out with such a project.

In the first workshop we try to explain the difference in some of the social media tools, such as a blog, Twitter and Facebook. At the moment we focus on Facebook as a social media tool, and ask people to start using their respective business pages as a way of engaging with our outside audience. The respective business pages are SABC Radio Archives, SABC Music Library, SABC Information Library, SABC Audio Restoration and SABC Record Library. The workshop participants learn to set up their privacy settings in order to make them feel more comfortable in taking up a social media tool.

The workshops will continue in future to ensure the SABC Media Libraries build on their online presence and engage with our audience in a new way.

Karen du Toit

Afrikaans Archivist

SABC Radio Archives

The SABC Media Libraries and Web 2.1

The SABC Media Libraries and it's presence on Web 2.1:

As an information hub for broadcasting, our collections are broadcast specific. Accessibility to them is determined more by complex copyright matters coupled with the limitations of the various formats on which our audio and print material is preserved, rather than by our preference. To migrate our collections to platforms that will be accessible via the Internet will be expensive, but we hope to achieve this with at least some of our collections in due course.

In the meantime, we will continue with the information sharing platform in which you are able to participate, and so generate stimulating debate on the various issues impacting on the work we do. We encourage you to take part and enrich the work we do.

Ilse Assmann
Manager: SABC Media Libraries

The Library and Information career and Social Media

Through RSS feeds I get a regular update of what is happening in the Library and Information world. The Library and Information Specialist (LIS) is in a field of expertise where the fast pace of information and change effect their role and duties constantly. LIS professionals are lucky that they are in constant barrage of new information, and actually thrive on the new technologies and new information. But it is also a fact that LIS career options are diminishing worldwide because of budget constraints, and dare I say: that same “new technologies”.

It is up to the LIS profession to constantly look at ways of reinventing themselves and their professional careers. One of the new ways of doing that is through social media technologies and building up a social media presence. It is difficult for old school LIS professionals who are by nature introverted (a generalization, I know) to “convert” to the idea of selling themselves and their expertise and their “business” through an active online presence. We need to change our thinking and our way of working to incorporate social media into our daily work/networking activities.

A subgroup of the American Library Association on LinkedIn has been formed, called LIS Career Options which discuss topics such as:

• How do you market LIS skills?
• What is various skills worth?

The discussions demonstrate the need to build up a social media presence, albeit personally, but the presence of the person linked to a service/company is always inclusive. We work within a certain framework of business.

As archivists, information specialists and record librarians we are still in infancy in our company with regards to social media presence. We are beginning to notice the importance of being actively engaged online. Our recent endeavours on social media have opened up our eyes to the possibilities. We are getting more feedback, more requests and more awareness of our services.

Check us out:
SABC Media Libraries Blog
SABC Media Libraries site
Twitter:
SABC Media Libraries
SABC Radio Archives
SABC Music Library
SABC Record Lib
SABC Information Library
SABC Audio Restoration

We also started with Facebook presences, but that's for another post.

Karen du Toit
Senior Afrikaans Archivist
SABC Radio Archives