by Darlene Fichter and Jeff Wisniewski From library catalogs to mind maps to visual search engines join us as we tour some of the best, most interesting, most useful, or just plain coolest visualization tools out there. One of the most important trends to emerge from the Web 2.0 phenomenon is the advent of visualization tools that can illuminate, reveal, and shine a bright light on otherwise complex, dense, or dare we say boring data and text. Explore how these tools offer unique ways to visualize information patterns, facilitate information discovery and navigation, and reveal hidden concepts. Find the sweet spots for these new visualization tools for libraries, including how library users responded when the library catalog went "visual" with AquaBrowser.

2. The web is grand. Too bad there’s so much of it.

3. The web is grant. Too bad there’s so much of it. A search for dog returns 44 million results.

4. Libraries are also grand…too bad they have so much stuff

5. Forecast: cloudy

7. How about pulling out concepts?

8. How about pulling out “visualizing” concepts?

9. How about visual feedback as you limit?

11. BYO Image

12. Select site to search and enter keywords into oSkope

13. oSkope results in list view mode.

14. oSkope results in grid view mode.

15. oSkope results in pile view mode.

17. Lists are great but graphs can be better.

18. oSkope results in graph mode. Pagerank Price

19. Spectra visual newsreader

20. What about the other visual search engines?

21. Quintura offers concept map and lists in a dual view.

22. Quintura has an image search.

23. Would kids like this?

24. Or this?

25. Look familiar?

26. Now I know where I’ve seen you!

27. Using visual search to find visuals.

28. When words are hard to come by: TinEye & Piximilar http://ideeinc.com/products/tineye/demo-screencast

29. What are these called?

30. You’re so vain, you probably think this search engine is about you. My quick tests to find similar images turned up “null” until I tried their own logo.

34. Visual on the go: oMoby