The last week has really been a roller-coaster ride for the my library-skill-related confidence.
First, and positive experience: The librarian I work with mentioned my tech-savvy skills to another professor. The professor has a links-only web page hosted by the library for students to use. The professor wanted to allow students to add links to pages and resources they find on their own, to share with other classmates. The librarian said to the professor, it would be a bit of a hassle to have every student email the systems lib to add a link every time they see something interesting, but my intern was talking to me about a new kind of web site called a wiki that maybe you could use. The librarian told me about it, and asked me to email the professor, explain this thing called wiki, and give him some advice and maybe work with him to create one for the class. Its kinda nice to hear someone was bragging on your skillz.
But, of course, the let-down: After sending the most insightful, helpful, easy-to-understand, kind, generously-volunteering-to-assist, optimistic email about what a wiki is and how easy it would be to use, and how to set one up, and where to do it.....I get no response. I guess, when it comes down to it, I lost this professor when I said "You" go to this site..., instead of "yeah, sure, Ill set up this wiki that I don't even know if you will pay any attention to, can I also wash your car in 15 degree temperatures? Wouldn't want that rock salt to harm your paint job."
The next day, feeling good: My wife's professor (she is a student at the university I intern at) said in class that I would be a great person to talk to in the library for help with the coming project. Again, a faculty member bragging on my abilities, this time to her students (and even with my wife in the room, extra points for me if my wife thinks I'm smart!).
That evening, quit now, you cant handle the library: So my wife takes her professor's advice and asks for my help at home. She has a research/intervention proposal for her internship due in the morning and needs more for her literature review. I spend the next two hours trying to understand what it is that the professor wants, telling my wife that this professor has no idea how a research proposal works, saying that the assignment she gave uses terms in the wrong way and therefore my wife should not do it. Eventually, after 2 hours, and no new articles for the literature review, we go to bed. She is irritated that the assignment is too rigid in its requirements and doesn't fit the project she will work on at the internship. I realize I just failed completely at what should have been the easiest reference encounter even, in my own home, with someone I know.
I guess I can always be a researcher, reduce contact with real people to a minimum.
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{sorry about the delete} Anyway, dealing with patrons' understanding of technology can be very frustrating. I often get patrons at the reference desk, who after searching for hours by themselves to no avail, come to me for help. About thirty seconds after I begin, they get impatient and start dictating to me what keywords I should be using in the search. I used to be somewhat intimidated and would accommodate them (only to make myself look bad), now I tell them straight up how it is done. Getting people to understand the correct uses of technology can be impossible and poses one of the biggest obstacles to information service, not necessarily the technology itself.
Don't forget that one of the basic values of our profession is service. The sad part is that our service and our expertise isn't always appreciated. In spite of that we still need to keep offering it.
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