What is Slack?
Slack is an online workspace application where groups can communicate.
The MLA Slack workspace is hosted at https://musiclibraryassoc.slack.com.
For help using the Slack application, check out this video tour or take a look at Slack’s help documentation.
What happens on MLA Slack?
MLA Slack is used largely for real-time chat and direct messaging. During the conference, it will allow members to hold discussions during and after sessions or meetings. It may also be a welcome alternative for committee, interest group, etc. chatter between meetings, as an alternative to email.
How can I join MLA Slack?
You can join MLA Slack using this link:
While this invite link will expire shortly after the conference, you can email webeditor@musiclibraryassoc.org at any time for an invite to the workspace.
Anything else I should know before joining MLA Slack?
MLA Slack uses the free version of Slack, which has several limitations. First and foremost, only messages from the last 90 days are displayed. Do not use Slack expecting that all messages will be retained.
How is MLA Slack organized?
Slack is organized into channels, which are listed in the left-hand menu.
The main channel is called #general and is where most discussion will occur.
Other channels, for specific topics or groups, can be created. For example, there could be a #cataloging channel or a #digital_humanities channel. Right now, any MLA Slack user may make a channel.
If you want to make a channel for your group, please follow these naming conventions:
- Do NOT put MLA in the title of your group. The account is already under an MLA banner.
- Committee: abbreviate your group name, if possible (e.g., asc-comm for Archives and Special Collections Committee) and add -comm as the suffix.
- Subcommittee: abbreviate your group name, if possible (e.g., ei-subcomm for Equity and Inclusion Subcommittee) and add -subcomm as the suffix.
- Interest Group: abbreviate your group name, if possible (e.g., dh-ig for Digital Humanities Interest Group) and add -ig as the suffix.
- Task Force: abbreviate your group name, if possible (e.g., 2021con-tf for MLA 2021 Conference Task Force) and add -tf as the suffix.
- Topic: When adding a topic, please double check to make sure that topic does not already exist in the channel list under a different name. Make the channel title brief and to the point.