[Web4lib] Any feedback on "Text a Librarian" ?

[McKiernan, Gerard [LIB]]

Tom/
 
I recently profiled Text A Librarian (TAL) on my _Mobile Libraries_ blog at 
 
 [ http://tinyurl.com/l28ce8 <http://tinyurl.com/l28ce8>  ]
 
I also profiled an article that describes an early implementaion 
 
[ http://tinyurl.com/kotaly <http://tinyurl.com/kotaly>   ]
 
On Monday I had a virtual demo from a sales rep, Gabriel Macias <gabe at textalibrarian.com <mailto:gabe at textalibrarian.com> >.
 
IMHO TAL has several very user/librarian friendly features and functionalities.
 
May I suggest that you contact Gabriel for a free demo?
 
BTW: Gabriel will be presenting at the Handheld Librarian 2009 online/virtual conference on 
July 30 [I am one of the two keynote speakers [:-)]
 
[ http://tinyurl.com/nz78ms ]
 
Regards,
 
/Gerry 
 
Gerry McKiernan
Associate Professor
Science and Technology Librarian
Iowa State University Library
Ames IA 50011
gerrymck at iastate.edu 

There Are No Answers, Only Solutions / Olde Irish Saying

The Future Is Already Here, It's Just Not Evenly Distributed / Attributed To William Gibson, SciFi Author / Coined 'Cyberspace'

c: Web4Lib 

________________________________

From: web4lib-bounces at webjunction.org on behalf of KLINGLER, THOMAS
Sent: Thu 7/23/2009 4:46 PM
To: web4lib at webjunction.org
Subject: [Web4lib] Any feedback on "Text a Librarian" ?



Folks,

Anyone use this service with success?    --or, not?

http://www.textalibrarian.com/ <http://www.textalibrarian.com/> 

It's a gateway between text messaging and instant messaging with a web page in between for the librarian.  It allows the end-user to send a text message to the library; the librarian can deal with it on a web page, and their response goes back to the handheld from whence the text originated.

(Don't ask the question that, if it's a synchronous activity that involves a phone,  why doesn't the person just CALL the library?!  If you ask that question, you are too logical and obviously don't have teenagers or 20-something kids, and you must be ready for retirement!  ;-)

Reference folks here want to give it a try.  The company looks to have just a small number of customers so far.  (I hear that they had thick carpet and a big booth at ALA.)

My main concern is whether folks will bother to use it, since the end-user apparently will need to know TWO pieces of data: the address and the special keyword that they have to send in their text.   (To use the talking part of the phone, they only need to know ONE piece of data, that old-fashioned phone-number thing.)

At $ 1,200 per year, it seems worth a one-year try...

I'd appreciate any feedback.   Alternate suggestions and/or competitors, too.

(I should mention that we're using Meebome on our site with good success and fairly heavy traffic.  http://www.library.kent.edu/page/13983 <http://www.library.kent.edu/page/13983>   )



Thanks,

Tom Klingler
Assistant Dean
University Libraries
Library Room 383
Kent State University
Kent, Ohio 44242-0001
330-672-1646

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