'Piping Hot Content' from Your Library via CALI ClassCaster IntraBlogs
Michael Samson, Wayne State University Law School

With the help of CALI Classcaster, Wayne State now has IntraBlogs for faculty, government documents, information technology, computer labs (for student news), and library staff (reference).

The tools used over the life of the project include Bloglines, Blogger, and CALI Classcaster. Initially, the IntraBlogs were created with Blogger. The pros of using blogger include the ability to integrate e-mail, support for adding team members to a multi-user blog, the availability of add-ons for such things as VoIP, statistics, pictures, spam-blocking, and mobile devices. With Blogger, remote access to the IntraBlogs was achieved through either Remote Desktop connections or a virtual private network.

There were, however, several cons associated with the use of Blogger. For one, separate blogs had to be created for each and every blog, meaning there was no ability to administer them all together. There was no file server for hosting files directly with Blogger. There was also no calendar support. Finally, Blogger offered no ability to password-protect blogs to hide them from general consumption.

Why did WSU switch to Classcaster? It offered a wide range of tools, including blogs, podcasting, VoIP, and video. Users could assign categories to their posts which could be integrated with RSS feeds. Classcaster also offered the file server and calendar WSU desired. Notably, CALI offers 24/7 support for its Classcaster blogs.

There are several reasons for faculty at all law schools to use Classcaster. First the technical support mentioned above can help non-techie professors tremendously. The tools can maintain use statistics that can show faculty how widely a blog is being used. Unlike some tools, Classcaster offers the ability to suppress comments to protect against unwanted comments or spam. There is also a plugin center to administer the various add-ins that are available.

So far, three of the IntraBlogs at WSU are using Classcaster: the library, Professor Peter Henning's Professional Responsibility podcast, and the Michigan Association of Law Libraries. Professor Henning's podcast was a part of CALI's Legal Education Podcasting Project which took place during the Winter 2006 semester and involved over 50 law faculty across the country. The professors were asked to record and post recordings of class lectures or summaries. All were provided with recording hardware and web support via instructions, digital tools, and screencasts.

Prof. Henning says podcasting is very easy to do but requires discipline. In his class it was definitely an attention getter for the students. The recordings provided depth and clarified class issues. They also provided flexibility and enhanced students' comfort level with the material.

Students indicated that they liked the idea of class podcasting. They said it improved comprehensive and retention and allowed them to learn a new technology in the process. The time commitment was minimal, requiring only an additional 20-30 minutes per week.

What's the future of podcasting at WSU? Prof. Henning says he'll be doing it again, and the Dean plans to begin podcasting shortly.

Samson finished by providing a demonstration of a Classcaster blog, including the live creation of a blog post on his library's system. He also showed off the ability to add video files to the posts from tools like Jumpcut, Stickam, and YouTube. Members of the audience asked several questions during the demo, one of which even caused Samson to discover a feature of Classcaster of which he had been previously unaware.