Libraries, Wikis and Sports History

Wikis can be a good introductory source for sports history research. Wikipedia is the obvious starting point. In fact, Wikipedia pages are often the first results one finds via a Google search. If you'd like a potted history on a sporting club (e.g. the mighty Celtic FC) or a brief biographical sketch of a sporting figure (e.g. legendary Australian rugby league administrator, Harry Sunderland), then why not begin with Wikipedia? Just be wary that information may be 'borrowed' directly from other sources (e.g. the Australian Dictionary of Biography). Best of all, if you aren't happy with an entry, you can make the necessary changes yourself!

Some 'closed' wikis can be more useful than Wikipedia for more specific subjects. I love the subject guides at the Montana Historical Society's wiki. For example, the Montana Pronunciation Guide is a wonderful innovation, and I would love to see similar guides relating to regional Australian names. I like the fact that while users cannot edit the Montana Historical Society's guides, they can contribute their own stories.

Energy and Teamwork

Following on from last week's post about Flickr, I have been exploring Flickr in search of photos that illustrate our library's values. Here's my favourite so far: a striking image taken by Vegan Butterfly that typifies the value Energy and Teamwork: our pulling together in pursuit of a common goal. We may be of different shapes and sizes (i.e. we have different talents and temperaments) but that doesn't get in the way of coming together and all doing our bit for the State Library, its collections and its clients.

This sculpture sits outside the Drayton Valley Municipal Library in Alberta, Canada. 'Pulling Together' is not only the name of the sculpture, but it's the motto of the town of Drayton Valley as well!