When navigating my way through the Los Gatos Public Library (LGPL) site the “teen zone” was placed as an index on the left hand corner.  As the mouse pointer lays on “teen zone” the user can view the other indexes within that page.  For instance, “teen zone” provides the “teen blog” page, which is placed fourth down from the top.  While, I feel that the splash and front page of the Los Gatos Public Library Website is a bit busy, it was very easy to find the teen blog site.  And if I were a teenager it probably would’ve taken me less time to navigate to that blogging site.  

Regarding the teen review blogging and commentary site:  Hmmmm….I wonder if this is for the librarians to have fun and play with or is this really for the teenagers in the Los Gatos community?  When a user looks a website, like LAPL (Los Angeles Public Library), and then the user comes to this LGPLTR (Los Gatos Public Library Teen Review) site, I wonder who the LGPLTR site is for?

Paul, the History/Teen Librarian at the Los Gatos Public Library maintains the web site and provides imagery so the user is eased and has more of a face-to-face interaction, rather than user to machine.  This is cited and indexed to the right, of the reviewed book blogs to the left.  It seems that he recommends books and sometimes through other users.  For instance, “Jenn’s picks” seen on this page in the blogging site.  But, who is Jenn?  Is it a teen, a parent, a library professional at the LGPL?  

Besides which, I see no comments from any teens or others on the site.  Can’t we do something to change this?  If we need to get youth and teenagers involved in the library and the community, could we do a post a book that is of a current curriculum and see the reactions?  Who has read “this” book?  Did the user enjoy it?  If no, why?  I think it would be great just to provide some fun exercises for younger users, who are able to claim a freedom of thought when reading.

What Paul is doing on the teen review blogging site is great.  But, I think it’s a bit out of place with the rest of the library web pages.  If there are still free or cheap alternatives to offering young adult services, then why not claim them to empower others?  I think the library could do some sort of montage or a hybrid of what the library offers on the LGPLTR blog site and the LGPL my space page.  

The “what I am reading now” and the “yaARCS” pages that are archived on the left may provide comfort. But, the yaARCS is no longer available, which is unfortunate, and the “what am I reading now” regards what the youth librarian is reading.  Why isn’t there a blog for youth to explain what they are reading?  

I feel like that’s what’s missing–how are youth, teens and other young community members incorporated into the LGPL library web 2.0 and library 2.0 sites?  The Los Gatos Public Library has the my space page, and the general library blog page, but the space for the youth and teen pages and blogging sites aren’t designed for them.  I think with some time and effort this can change this, and I also realize it’s relative to budget and funding, but I think the youth community in Los Gatos would enjoy a site that is for them.