Handheld/Mobile
From ml2sig
Websites describing their mobile projects
- UVa mobile project: Describes mobile interfaces currently available and forthcoming along with development notes and updates.
- Google's Mobile Team blog
Mobile-friendly features via regular websites
- User's Lib post Library OPACs & mobile-friendly features: most common is ability to text a call-number to your phone. The new VuFind powered Mirlyn also includes this feature.
Mobile Library Web Interfaces
There are a variety of techniques for creating mobile web content. Some institutions just offer a text-only view of their regular site, some create a secondary interface designed specifically for mobile devices, often with separate style sheets for different devices. The most successful mobile interfaces don't try to offer full functionality but provide access to the essential bits that users are more likely to need via a mobile device
Note: some mobile interfaces are viewable from a regular browser, some "device detection" and are only viewable from a mobile device, and "apps" involve downloading an application to the device.
- NYPL: very nice all-in-one mobile access to catalog, website, and digital collections.
- Yale Medical Library: Part website, part portal. Links to standard info about hours & contact and also provides access to databases/resources (highlighting those that have mobile interfaces) and and searches catalog, pubmed, e-journals, and databases and presents results in an easily read mobile interface.
- Orange County Library System: Catalog, locations, calendar, & videos.
- UVa mobile website: hours, news & events, staff listing, & text a librarian service.
- OCLC Worldcat (only viewable from mobile device)
- Google book search
- Mobile RefWorks
- DCPL's iPhone app: will let you search for items, show location, place a hold, and find library hours etc.
- Duke Mobile: iPhone app and web interface (uses device detection) for the entire Duke system (not just the library). The iPhone app includes access to some of the library's digital image collections.
- University of Alberta Library's PDA Zone: provides access to resources and library services that are available for users of handheld devices
Mobile Reference Services
Mobile Marketing/Event Broadcasting
ebooks
ebook devices & apps
Phones
The iPhone/iPod Touch is often touted as having potential for being the most popular ebook reading device due to the fact that it's a multi-functional device.
- Stanza app: iPhone app that provides access to over 100,000 free books to download and read on your phone.
- Amazon's iPhone Kindle app:
- eReader: Available for multiple devices (iphone, palm, blackberry, etc. Access to premium Fictionwise content.
Kindle
Sony Reader
Other interesting mobile-related technology
- Radar for iphone Uses GPS to locate you and list news & events available nearby.
- QR codes: type of barcode that can be read by camera phone to load information (website, contact info, etc) wikipedia
- QR codes in the Mattress Factory Gallery: great video showing possible use of QR codes in a gallery environment.
- Description of QR codes used in library OPAC
- Twitter: Though not a solely mobile based tool, many users post and read via a mobile device. 100 ways to use twitter in your library.
- Augmented Reality: combine virtual data into the physical real world by utilizing the iPhone 3GS or an Android phone’s compass, camera, and GPS system
- Google's Sky Map: discover and browse the night sky by pointing your phone to space.
- Mashable's Top 6 Augmented Reality Mobile Apps
- Camera searches: allows you to take a photo of an object (like a book), and do a consumer search for prices/availability/library.
Articles & Mobile Research
- 2009 Horizon Report: lists mobile technology as one of the technologies that will become much more integrated into learning environments within the next year.
- Always on: Libraries in a world of permanent connectivity by Lorcan Dempsey
- 20 Reasons why 2009 will be the year of the ebook
- Pew Internet Report: The Future of the Internet 2008
- 50 Useful iphone tips for librarians and researchers
More sources for learning about mobile technology
- The Handheld Librarian blog
- MobileRead wiki Tons of resources related to reading and mobile devices.
- WebJunction's Mobile Devices site
- Other mobile/mobile featured Library OPAC's from suzchap's delicious.
