Memory Lab Blog Series, Submission Guidelines

We invite you to participate as a guest author in our section’s blog series on the memory lab experience from the perspective of those operating a “lab” and maintaining a DIY digitization program for the public.

We want to hear your memory lab experiences for the benefit of public libraries considering starting their own digitization program or looking to enhance their current program.

Guidelines

1.     Who: blog post can be written by an individual or team facilitating a public library digitization program

2.     What: please answer all the prompts under Nuts & Bolts and choose one or more questions from each of the other categories (Take-aways, Sustainability, and Outcomes)

3.     When: submit your post as an email attachment (Word doc or Google doc) to publibarchives@gmail.com with the following

 a.     Name of library

 b.     Name of digitization program/lab and web link

 c.     Blog author name(s) 

 d.  Attach a photo of your lab space and/or staff

THE PUBLIC LIBRARY MEMORY LAB - Demystifying D-I-Y digitization 

Nuts and bolts

·       Share a brief overview of the DIY digitization program that is offered by your library (including number of workstations, formats, physical space, staff participation, user requirements, lab hours, urban/rural and size of population served) 

·       Describe your typical lab user

Take-aways

·       What do you wish you had known before launching a memory lab at your library?

·       What do you want to tell other libraries that are thinking about starting a digitization lab or station at their library?

·       What are the most effective tools, platforms, or strategies that you have used to communicate this program to the public – library and non-library users? How were they effective?

·       Name three factors that have contributed to the success of your DIY digitization program.

Sustainability

·       What has been the greatest benefit of providing DIY digitization education and equipment to your community?

·       What challenges have you faced in offering a DIY digitization program at your library and how are you addressing them?

·       How do staff manage the troubleshooting required by this retro-tech-heavy program?

·       Do you have plans to expand your memory lab offerings? If so, please describe your next steps and how you are funding the expansion.

Outcomes

·       Who are the biggest champions of your memory lab - within the library and in the community? 

·       What were some unexpected outcomes in the launch of your library’s memory lab or in the day-to-day running of the program?

·       Share an experience of a memory lab user that encapsulates the value of the program.

For questions, please contact Joanna Kolosov at publibarchives@gmail.com