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Below is an article I'm currently writing for our state library association's journal (South Carolina Association of School Librarians). Please review the content below and give me feedback:

Cathy Nelson cathyjonelson@gmail.com Conway Middle School Horry County Schools South Carolina
 * What is this SCASL Ning?**

Through a disjointed discussion on the SCASL listserv, the SCASL Ning was born (http://myscasl.ning.com/). That is the trouble with many of the valuable conversations that take place on the SCASL Listserv—they become broken and difficult to track back to the original post. Often times the conversation becomes convoluted, and at times even manifests itself into a totally different topic. Let’s not even talk about searching for archived posts! In a Ning environment, these problems are easily addressed.

Let’s compare the SCASL Listserv to the SCASL Ning in the following chart. Your message dated Sat, 03 Jan 2009 01:40:43 +0000 with subject “Policy statements, what we share” has been successfully distributed to the SCASL-LS list (730 recipients). Who are the 730 recipients? Unless one uses the list command to find out the membership, the information will remain unknown. At this time there is no requirement to be a SCASL member to join. ||< Membership is easily identified by clicking on the “Members” tab from the main page. Each member who joins the Ning can provide as little or as much information about themselves to the group, providing other members the opportunity to get to know them if they wish. One can choose the name by which they are known (avatar name, first name only, pseudo-name, or real name). Members can include a picture or graphic to be associated with themselves that can become a highly recognizable image. Membership is easily counted. Current membership as of the writing of this article is 225, with each one searchable. Some members have fully fleshed out profiles, adding text boxes and a color photo to establish a name/face association as well as details about who they are and why they are in the SCASL Ning. Others remain anonymous, maintaining the shadow-man avatar that represents no image to be associated with their profile. This could be a personal preference, lack of understanding of using a social networking platform, or a reflection of not enough time to invest in building the personal membership space. But the key here is that membership is easily known. At this time there is no requirement to be a SCASL member to join. || Eventually some groups may be changed over to controlled (meaning one must request membership) but at this time they are all open for membership. ||
 * < **SCASL List Membership** ||< **SCASL Ning Membership** ||
 * < Membership is not easily identified. There is a list command to allow one to “see” who is considered a member of the list, but many members do not remember the command. Actually in the first one or two messages listserv members get, the commands are nicely outlined. Most members archive this email, never to look at it again. Membership numbers are unknown essentially unless one pays attention to the email response that tells them a post was successfully distributed. At last count, there were 730 email accounts receiving posts from the SCASL list. That is because when one posts, an email like this is sent to the originator of the email: (note this is copied from one of the author’s own posts):
 * **SCASL Listserv Conversations** || **SCASL NIng Discussions** ||
 * Postings on the SCASL listserv appear in the order they are made. The responses may or may not be immediate. Immediate responses are easy to thread together, as long as the response is to the same post. But more often than not, there are several posts about different topics or variations of the topic, and responses become blurred. Add into that mix that the posts/responses are emailed and are mixed in with other messages in an “in-box” and then there is difficulty trying to thread together conversations. But the bonus is that a post is immediate. Also, most email systems make the reply go to the whole membership. Email in-boxes can become quickly filled with responses of varying topics. Threading the responses to the initial email can be time consuming. But popular posts generally stay threaded in a small way, simply because most immediately respond to topics that are hot. || The SCASL Ning (as do most Nings) have a page for the “Forum” where “discussions” take place. Each member can use the forum the same way list members post to the list. There s a line for the subject (topic) and then a box for the discussion. One can ask a question or express an opinion in the box. The post appears at the top of the page as the most recent item in the forum, but slides down as newer discussions are added. If another member responds, it slides back up to the top of the page because it has more current information than what is beneath it. The key to note here is that responses “stay” with the initial post, instead of getting separated by newer material or responses to different discussions. This way an entire conversation can be followed without a lot of effort or searching. Bonus here is that the entire forum can be searched as well, so if a topic becomes old enough to no longer reside on the first page of the forum, a keyword search makes it easy to find. ||
 * **SCASL List Conversation Extras** || **SCASL Ning Conversation Extras** ||
 * In a listserv post, one can add hyperlinks in text form but little else outside of text. Some email systems will allow graphics to be embedded, even background designs in the body of the message, but depending on what kind of email system is being used in the subscription, some of those features may be stripped away or appended as attachments instead. Most emails systems allow for attachments. Some hyperlinks make it intact as a link in a message, and some simply appear as text that must be copied and pasted. Because the list relies on email, the display and results of a post will vary in different email systems used. || In the forum feature of a ning, one can add graphics, links, use bold print, italics, underlined text, and even strikethrough text in a post. Attachments can also be uploaded. The ability to use the wysiwig (what you see is what you get) features of web content can enhance any post, and whatever the originator adds (be it links, images, etc.) most everyone will see just as they can see other webpages. The toolbox for those tools is consistent no matter what browser software one is using. The ning setting is web-based and graphical just as any website is. Even those who respond can add those elements into their response. ||
 * **Managing Your Listserv Account** || **Managing Your SCASL Ning Account** ||
 * Individual management of reading the list is dependent upon time. If a list member has time to read each and every post, then management is no issue. Often times though, SCASL members subscribe to the SCASL list using their work email, and on hectic days, end up with many messages that must be ignored or read much later. If email volume is high, some listserv posts may get lost as they move off the main page viewed on the screen in the email window, especially if the member is more focused on school issues or their students and teachers than what is happening on the SCASL Listserv. Some days allow for more attention to the list than others, which is just the nature of the SC LMS job. Eventually those unread messages may get read. Some utilize a feature where their messages are sent in one bulk email digest a day. This also helps manage the volume of email messages, but every now and then hot topics that have seemingly gone viral on the listserv are missed. Many find the management of listserv mail is easier in digest format. || Individual management of the reading the SCASL Ning can be handled in several ways. Some may choose to visit the site each day and poke around to see what is new. Some may set themselves up to get an email each time the page changes in some way (though that is not much different from mass emails from the listserv, one might think.) But a ning environment offers a new way to manage its contents as well, by offering something called RSS, or a feed to which one can be subscribed. If a user has an account with an RSS reader (like Bloglines, Google Reader, or Netvibes, just to name a few) then new material from the ning will show up in the reader used. Not every RSS-ed notification will call for the user to visit the ning, like a member joining or friend-ing another member, or even a new post in the forum that does not interest them (like maybe “AR Rewards”), but at times, what appears in the RSS will pull a user over to the ning to check it out and quite possibly respond. Using an RSS reader is just one way to manage keeping up with changes in the ning. ||
 * **SCASL Listserv Groups** || **SCASL Ning Groups** ||
 * The SCASL list can accommodate groups through the use of subject line language. If a message is for high schools, then using the term “TARGET: High School” before the actual subject will tell members that it may only be of interest to high school LMS’s. || The SCASL Ning has a place for any member to create groups of like-minded people. Each group has its own discussion forum, and any member can join any (even all) groups. At the time of publication the SCASL Ning has the following groups:
 * High School Media
 * Middle School Media
 * YA Literature
 * Reading Challenges
 * SCASL Technology Committee
 * School Technology Contacts

These are the only aspects of the SCASL listserv and the SCASL Ning that can be adequately compared. If users lack understanding of using an RSS reader, then little value will be seen in the management of the SCASL Ning through a reader.

The SCASL Ning offers more perks not available through the listserv. Consider the website a parking lot for all types of content. For example, at this time the SCASL Ning offers members their own personal space to design. Members can choose to share pictures, videos, blogs, and even a chat page. The chat page feature has seen little activity at this point, but the hope is that it will be a great parking lot for sharing what is happening at the conference in March as members attend different sessions. Then those members who were unable to attend (and whose schools do not block chat) will be able to follow along in this chat room virtually. If chat is blocked at a member’s school, he/she will be able to view the information shared from home. For those LMS’s who have not as yet explored the social networks so popular with students, this will be the perfect opportunity to see what the intrigue and enjoyment is all about. A ning very much mimics a social networking site.

The SCASL Informational Technology Committee is planning a webinar on using the SCASL Ning effectively in January some time. Hopefully many will attend, but if not, the goal here is to help South Carolina school librarians get acclimated to our new SCASL Ning. If using the Ning is not something you are comfortable with, don’t worry. There are no plans at this time to end the SCASL Listserv. Some predict the list will become a place for announcements rather than discussions, but that remains to be seen. It is up the users of both to determine what lies ahead for each space/tool. Using the SCASL Ning may move members beyond just a mailing list. It has the potential to allow members to get to know each other, build groups around specific interests, and provide a platform to connect and collaborate.

As with any social network, the value will grow exponentially as more people join, so if you haven’t yet explored our new ning, take the plunge! Please encourage your colleagues to join; the more, the merrier!