This document discusses using blogs and microblogs like Twitter for academic purposes. It provides reasons for blogging, such as encouraging academic writing among library staff and sharing information. Tips are given for how much time blogging takes, how to set up a blog, and how to use features like comments. Twitter is described as a microblog for sending short public messages. Directions are provided for setting up a Twitter account and getting started by following others and using hashtags. The author's experiences using Twitter to promote events and publications are shared.

1. Blogs and
microblogs
(Twitter)
Helen Fallon, Deputy
Librarian, Maynooth
University,
helen.b.fallon@nuim.ie

4. Why and How I Blog
To encourage/promote academic writing among
library staff
Calls for papers etc.
Links to my articles/PowerPoint presentations
on academic writing
Tips from published authors and journal editors
Film clips/photographs/websites
Guest posts
Measuring Impact - Statistics

5. How others are using blogs
• Turning public presentations into blog posts
• Contributing to debates
• Sharing information, knowledge and expertise with a
very wide audience
• Finding out about what is going on in a particular
discipline
• Reflecting on practice
• Embedding blogs in undergraduate assessment
• LSE Impact Blog
http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/impactofsocialsciences/

6. How much time does it take to blog?
• Key factors – focus and credibility
– How much time can you spend on this?
– Who will be allowed post to blog?
• Setting up a blog
– http://bit.ly/1rhGKcG
• Comments – mediated/unmediated
• Short (500 word max.) focused posts written in a relaxed
style
• Blog statistics

7. Twitter
• Microblog
• Can send and receive short public
messages (140 characters max.) known as
Tweets
• Can include links (blogs, web pages,
images and other online material)
• Can use computer, smart phone or tablet

8. Getting Started
• Go to www.twitter.com/signup
• Name, e-mail address, password and username
• Select a username that is easily identifiable
• Click on “Create my account”
• Once you have set up your account give some
details of your research interests, include a
photo
• Use keywords to find people to follow

9. Getting Started
• On your profile page read “similar to you”
• Start following people whose conversations
interest you – your “twitter feed”
• You can “unfollow” at any stage
• Short tweets – use bitly.com or tinyurl.com
to shorten web addresses
• Schedule your tweets throughout the day

10. How I use Twitter
• @helenfallon
• I follow links and retweet posts of interest
• I use the “search twitter” box to search by
subject
• I create my own tweets
– Events
– Publications (my own and others)
– Powerpoint Slides (slideshare.net)

11. How I use Twitter
• I set up a hashtag for the event #LAICPD14
• I tweet at events
• I’ve linked twitter to my overall social media
strategy – I tweet each blog post I create
• I keep up to date with areas in my field
• I join conversations
• I use it to get information out to a wide
audience
• I don’t go back more than a few hours