First, I tried the How Do I? Instructional Video Search. We've had several new babies in our life lately, so I did a search on how to make a stuffed animal. I've been hoping to get crafty and make little toys for all the babies.
I ended up on eHow and watched a 20-part video on making a stuffed dog.
http://www.ehow.com/videos-on_5215_make-stuffed-animal.html
It was pretty good. I'm very partial to video instruction over traditional print instructional books. It really helps me to see someone actually doing the task to help me feel that I'm proceeding correctly.
Next I went to MonkeySee. I am so glad to have found this site! I will be using this in the future. I looked under the food and drink section and thought it would be fun to find out how to make a festive drink. When I looked under Alcoholic Drinks, I saw a video titled "How to Open a Beer Bottle with Your Teeth." I couldn't resist.
http://www.monkeysee.com/play/7916-open-a-beer-bottle-with-your-teeth
And while I don't think I will ever use this information, it was instructional nonetheless.
I hopped over to Instructables. I didn't like this site as much. There was lots of good information, but I didn't want to create an account and I found the amount of ads on the page distracting. A few of the features I tried to use were only available fro Pro Members. I did, however, get a great idea on how to make a pet bed from a vintage suitcase! (Although I will include a stabilizing mechanism to keep the lid from closing on my pup!)
http://www.instructables.com/id/Pet-Bed-From-a-Vintage-Suitcase-in-5-minutes/#step1
After viewing several videos and keeping in mind the types of online help I've used in the past, I would say that these videos are somewhat a competition for library collections. Over the past few years there have been several times when I've used these online videos instead of going to the library to check out a book. However, I don't always find what I want online, especially if I'm looking for more in-depth information on a How To project. In my opinion, in general, the online How To information is great for a quick tip or overview, but for more in-depth research or expertise, I would still use traditional print resources.
You said "I would say that these videos are somewhat a competition for library collections" which made me think, how about posting (archiving?) some of these videos on the library's Web site?
ReplyDeleteI agree that at some level it is competition for libraries, but only if libraries and librarians fail to be proactive! I can see promoting these sites on the library's web site or blog, as in--we have lots of great how-to books, but we can also direct you to great online videos that supplement our collection. Something like this would make for a great workshop topic!
ReplyDelete