Week 6 Thing 13: Isn't It del.icio.us?

I’ve been using del.icio.us for some time, following links from friends’ blogs and from email. It is a great resource for story recommendations if you belong to loose associations of amateur writers, as I do. Never had I bothered to make my own account, however, and with this exercise I have finally remedied this oversight.

Now that I have an account and have begun using it, I am wondering how I ever took so long to get around to it. It is so much easier to tool around del.icio.us than it is to use bookmarks, and the tag-based sorting system is simpler to use than the more cumbersome file/folder system. Also, multiply tagging each link simultaneously is simply fantastic. Unlike the file/folder system, it can be filed in many categories at once, making it far easier to find links. Plus, the shared links mean that dead entries will probably be discovered more quickly, and the whole account will remain more up to date.

It becomes obvious that this sort of bookmarking can be useful to any researcher, and I assume that telephone reference librarians are already using it. What pleases me about the site in regards to the circulation desk is that I can link and tag all of the sites I regularly use to answer basic questions and use it from any computer. Yahoo maps for directions, Santa Cruz City information sites, the most popular local businesses, etc. will be at my fingertips when I’m asked for help by patrons or travellers. It should be very helpful. And if other library workers (maybe here!) do the same, I can easily use their links as well.
I’ve already found great learning resources through the PLCMCL del.icio.us account, such as David Lee King’s Library Videoblogs, and the online reference “Library Succes: A Best Practices Wiki.” I have also started an account, attached a widget to my blog (it’s on the right of the screen), and begun linking knitting and crochet resource, online books, and of course, the Wikipedia.