LibGuides: Widgets and Facebook

Distribute your library content across the web and connect with users, wherever they are.

LibGuides Widgets

LibGuides widgets enable you to embed library content into any blog, website, social network, or a courseware system. The widgets are flash components that can be placed inside any web page. Patrons can also search your library catalog directly from any LibGuides widget.

Distribute Library Content Across the Web

Using LibGuides widgets librarians can distribute library content and services beyond the library website, and connect with patrons wherever they are. Widgets enable libraries to extend their online presence and contribute content to courseware sites, social networks and other websites. You can customize widgets depending on your audience:

For a widget you create for your blog, you may want to display all of your Guides related to a particular subject specialty.
For a widget to be embedded into a Blackboard (or any courseware) page, you can customize relevant content for the students in that particular class.
If you are creating a LibGuides widget to embed into your (or your library's) profile on a social network, you may want to put Guides which showcase your library content and services.

These are just a few options for embedding your widgets. The possibilities are endless! Here is an example of a LibGuides widget:

LibGuides Facebook® Application

LibGuides is the first library application available within Facebook. Facebook users simply need to select LibGuides from the list of applications in Facebook applications directory. LibGuides will recognize the user's school affiliation and present them with their "home" LibGuides system.

Distributing library content across the web, and "meeting" the customers wherever they are (a lot of them are on Facebook these days) is one of the hallmarks of library 2.0. Now your customers can access LibGuides content, chat online with reference librarians, and even search your library catalog from Facebook.

widget example

This is an example of a widget created in LibGuides. Widgets come in three sizes - small, large, and wide. The widget below is the small widget.

Facebook® has 65 million users, and 200,000 new users register every day. With LibGuides, you can connect with your facebook users, provide useful library content, and promote your library services on Facebook.

We have three LibGuides facebook applications: LibGuides Library - for facebook pages for organizations/libraries; LibGuides Librarian - for individual profile pages, and LibGuides Facebook - which displays the content from your LibGuides application inside Facebook.

LibGuides is listed under the "Education" category in the official Facebook application directory.