Subject: [CODE4LIB] seeking examples of web-based voice or video calling (VoIP) in libraries

From: Char Booth <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 14 Dec 2009 16:50:53 -0800

Greetings, and apologies for cross-posting. In the coming months I will 
be compiling a Library Technology Report 
(http://www.alatechsource.org/ltr/index) that investigates one of the 
more under-the-radar/utilitarian library technologies of recent years, 
web-based voice and video calling and conferencing via platforms such as 
Skype, GTalk, and DimDim. In this report I hope to tackle both the 
benefits and drawbacks of VoIP as a public service, instruction, 
collaboration, and communication medium, and as such am seeking 
real-world library use cases, direct experiences, frustrations, 
workarounds and success stories that illustrate practical challenges and 
benefits of web voice and video to achieve various ends.

I hope to learn about/from individuals and libraries who use web video 
and calling either to provide education or public services such as 
distance instruction or video reference or as their main telephone 
infrastructure, and for individuals  with virtual participation 
experience at conferences and the like. This is meant to be a 
troubleshooting guide as well as a technology primer, so *any* 
experience using VoIP in library services (for better or worse, 
technical or nontechnical) is sought. Anyone who has worked with this 
technology and would like to offer an opinion or experience to be 
profiled in the report (or not, if you prefer), your input is 
invaluable. This would consist of answering a few quick questions via 
phone or email, or simply pointing me to a URL, etc. Also, leads to 
known VoIP-based library programs at other institutions are much 
appreciated.

Please feel free to contact me on or off-list, and many thanks. I'll 
provide a summary of pertinent responses if there is interest expressed. 
FYI, I'm the E-Learning Librarian at UC Berkeley, and I blog at 
www.infomational.com.

Best.

Char

-- 
Char Booth
E-Learning Librarian
UC Berkeley
302 Moffitt Library MC 6000
Berkeley, CA 94720-6000
Google Talk: charbooth | skype: charbooth
o 510.643.7486 | c 512.970.3573

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From: Peter Murray <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 15 Dec 2009 13:25:55 -0500

One of the things that comes to mind is the need to distinguish between various kinds of VoIP.  By way of example, I'm currently using two "VoIP" systems in my office.  One is my desk phone -- a cisco-supplied "IP Phone" that is in effect indistinguishable from my previous "hard line" phone.  The other is a "software phone" -- Skype on my laptop.  Both have a "phone number" reachable by any phone, and the person calling probably does not know they they are getting to be by VoIP.  One is fairly fixed in location (it is only usable on my desk) while the other is portable (where ever my laptop has a network connection).  One has chat and file sharing while the other does not.

Based on the description of what you are interested in, it sounds like you are tending towards the latter.  That may be intentional and/or it may become a source of confusion for those that pick up your LTR.

Peter
-- 
Peter Murray                            http://www.pandc.org/peter/work/
Assistant Director, New Service Development    *NEW* tel:+1-614-485-6725
OhioLINK: the Ohio Library and Information Network        Columbus, Ohio
The Disruptive Library Technology Jester                http://dltj.org/
Attrib-Noncomm-Share   http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5/