tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32857653278408819242024-03-05T03:31:26.481-08:00Postings from LibraryLandJohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.comBlogger32125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-31491173737131008182008-12-22T13:22:00.000-08:002008-12-30T11:32:45.642-08:00Mapping the mind, and I'm lost...For our final installment of Learning 2.1, your intrepid reporter has investigated online mindmapping and flowchart tools. And you know what? I need a map.<br />It turns out that I'm not much of a flowchart or mindmap kinda gal - even in longhand notes, I don't often spend much time "drawing" my ideas, so these particular tools were not my cup of tea. However, I did experiment with all four of the suggested tools, and here are my quick notes:<br />For folks that need to make flowcharts (and hey, I think they're fun and useful to look at, I just don't really want to have to make the darn things) we have Gliffy and flowchart.com. I liked that flowchart.com has templates - this makes things much easier for folks like me, who would rather just edit and modify an existing document, rather than create something brand new. Flowchart.com does offer a bit of a muddled initial page, though - Gliffy was a bit cleaner in layout, but I had some trouble managing my arrows with Gliffy - just couldn't make those connector lines do what I wanted them to!<br />When it comes to mindmaps - I guess I'm more of a brainstormer, and trying to map the storms just ended in chaos for me. But I tried out both bubbl.us and Mindmeister: and Mindmeister wins out - largely because it gives you a template to play with! Working with the template was easy - and while the layout is a little... cartoony, the ridiculously simple interface made me happy and I really appreciated the key shortcuts that were included in the demo map. Bubbl.us isn't quite so goofy at the outset, but the sheer starkness of the empty screen was a bit intimidating, although I appreciated the free demo (which didn't require any registration).Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-65382101837030116912008-11-18T12:19:00.000-08:002008-11-18T13:28:33.026-08:00No really, it IS a Kafka reference!Yesterday I experimented with Zamzar, a free, online file conversion service. I uploaded one Publisher document (twice) and had Zamzar convert it into both PDF (.pdf) and Word (.doc) formats and then I waited. And waited. And waited a little longer. After an hour, I got an email alert that the first document had been converted (into PDF format). I was hopeful that the Word version would arrive soon... but it took another hour!<br />While I am happy with the conversions (it is especially nice to have that Publisher document available in Word - since not all of the computer stations here at work have Publisher installed), and I can see the great utility of this service, I'm not sure that it will be the saving grace for our patrons that it COULD be. Let's face it, when (for whatever reason) our computers can't open the file that the patron wants to open, they're often already in "crisis mode" - they need the document and they want it NOW... the good news/bad news aspect of Zamzar might not go over so well -<br />"The Good News is that Zamzar will take your strange file format, and turn it into a nice Word document that our computers just LOVE!... The Bad News is that it might take a couple of hours..." Our patrons get a maximum of two hours of computer time per day - that math just doesn't work out too well for them. <br />Maybe my experience wasn't typical - maybe Zamzar was slow last night, or maybe Publisher documents are tougher for Zamzar to deal with. I'll definitely share this tool around with my co-workers, but I think I'll reserve final judgment for a little longer.Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-88726649936174627592008-11-17T11:12:00.000-08:002008-11-17T12:02:19.415-08:00Video may have killed the radio star, but Pandora brought 'em back...So, I already knew that my favorite local(ish) radio station (<a href="http://www.dc101.com/main.html">DC101</a>, if you care) had a live stream - I've listened to it before. I tried to bring it up just for this Thing, but there's apparently some glitch in the stream - matter of fact, the morning show guy mentioned something about this morning, so there was no joy there. <br /><br />After reading the descriptions, I decided to open up Pandora's box - and yowza, what a treasure I found inside! I immediately set up a channel called "Bowling for Soup Radio" (my favorite band) and while Pandora didn't come up with many bands I hadn't heard of before, it did let me listen to some music that I really enjoyed. I got a kick out of the thumbs up/thumbs down feature - (I love how basic that is!), and though it took me a little while to find, I made pretty good use of the skip forward button. Apparently, I made a little bit too much use of the skip forward and thumbs down features... Pandora issued a polite pop up that said that there is a limit to the number of songs you are allowed to skip per hour! My immediate response was frustration, but Pandora also lets you know that you can just create another station that will let you skip more songs. Whew! I was a little bit more careful about skipping after that, though.<br /><br />So I set up a new station, this time based on The Dropkick Murphys song, "I'm Shipping Up to Boston" - Pandora wasn't too picky when I typed in "shipping" and suggested some titles and artists, which is nice - how often do you know part of a title? Happens to me pretty frequently, so I appreciate that function. After Pandora tried to get me hooked on Flogging Molly (bleh) twice, we hit the jackpot! Pandora queued up <a href="http://www.korpiklaani.com/index2.html">Korpiklaani</a> - who knew I'd totally dig Scandinavian folk-metal? Awesome. <br /><br />Well, personally, I'm VERY pleased with Pandora - easy to use, offers you a 'getaround' when it gives you a roadblock and I really like that it lets you click around and away from the site without losing the stream! From a work standpoint? It's a bit like Reader's Advisory for music, isn't it? Of course, I don't get an awful lot of folks asking me "what should I listen to next?" but hey, if they do, I'm ready for them!Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-58971875723791992442008-11-06T09:32:00.000-08:002008-11-06T09:59:11.840-08:00SlideShare and Go SeekJust a quick example of some of what SlideShare can do:<br /><br /><div style="width:425px;text-align:left" id="__ss_604068"><a style="font:14px Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif;display:block;margin:12px 0 3px 0;text-decoration:underline;" href="http://www.slideshare.net/safc/ntra-marketing-horse-racing-to-a-new-generation-of-fans-presentation?type=powerpoint" title="NTRA Marketing Horse Racing To A New Generation Of Fans">NTRA Marketing Horse Racing To A New Generation Of Fans</a><object style="margin:0px" width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://static.slideshare.net/swf/ssplayer2.swf?doc=ntra-marketing-horse-racing-to-a-new-generation-of-fans-1221703311505129-8&stripped_title=ntra-marketing-horse-racing-to-a-new-generation-of-fans-presentation" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"/><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"/><embed src="http://static.slideshare.net/swf/ssplayer2.swf?doc=ntra-marketing-horse-racing-to-a-new-generation-of-fans-1221703311505129-8&stripped_title=ntra-marketing-horse-racing-to-a-new-generation-of-fans-presentation" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><div style="font-size:11px;font-family:tahoma,arial;height:26px;padding-top:2px;">View SlideShare <a style="text-decoration:underline;" href="http://www.slideshare.net/safc/ntra-marketing-horse-racing-to-a-new-generation-of-fans-presentation?type=powerpoint" title="View NTRA Marketing Horse Racing To A New Generation Of Fans on SlideShare">presentation</a> or <a style="text-decoration:underline;" href="http://www.slideshare.net/upload?type=powerpoint">Upload</a> your own. (tags: <a style="text-decoration:underline;" href="http://slideshare.net/tag/safc">safc</a> <a style="text-decoration:underline;" href="http://slideshare.net/tag/thoroughbred-horse-racing">thoroughbred horse racing</a>)</div></div><br /><br />(And of course, I know it's not library-related - but the marketing ideas are pretty interesting, as TB racing really does need a pretty major image adjustment... a little like libraries.)<br /><br />What did I think about SlideShare? It's pretty cool, and could really be useful for folks who present "away from home" - It could save you from needing to keep track of your thumb drive or CD, and hoping that the laptop you've borrowed has PowerPoint already installed. Of course, you do need to be in a place that has internet access... but we won't go there. In touring SlideShare, I actually found quite a few Library related presentations - including an interesting one on libraries in Second Life (OK, so it's 2 years old, but still interesting, especially as it lists a number of caveats for those who are considering jumping into SL). <br />I also like the idea of using SlideShare as a way to connect people with a presentation - even if they couldn't be there physically. I've been to plenty of workshops and conferences where the presenters had some really good slides, but didn't provide printouts - with SlideShare, I can get right into that presentation from home, and find that one perfect slide, or just share the whole darn thing with my co-workers!<br />SlideShare is well organized (though I'd like it if they put a "Help" link somewhere near the top of the screen, rather than hiding it in the small print at the bottom) and the interface's extreme similarity to YouTube meant that I didn't have to spend much time learning how to navigate the site.<br /><br />Short version - SlideShare gets a thumbs up from me, even though, as a general rule, I HATE PowerPoint presentations. I'm going to share it with co-workers who are currently taking part in LATI, so that they can use it (as a backup, maybe?) when they have to present their projects at the LATI Showcase.Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-20653842856428849482008-10-23T11:49:00.000-07:002008-10-23T15:11:40.116-07:00I'm all aTwitter!Check it out - I'm finally caught up on Learning 2.1, and we're already more than halfway through! Now that I'm keeping up a little better, I'm having more and more fun playing with the new "toys" - and Twitter is a perfect example.<br /><br />I'd heard about Twitter quite a while ago on a blog that I follow -<br />...<br />Sorry - Since that was in my head, I had to run over to my Bloglines account so I could locate that particular Twitterer and follow them! (Leigh Anne Vrabel of Library Alchemy tweets as "libraryalchemy" from the reference desk at the Carnegie Library in Pittsburgh if you're interested.)<br />(back to our regularly scheduled blogging)<br />So, yes, I'd heard about Twitter on Library Alchemy, but hadn't really had time to follow through and investigate it on my own. Now that I've been able to play with it a little, I'm amused by it. Personally, I don't foresee that I'll be Tweeting away constantly, but I definitely agree with the "microblogging" label - it's a great way to update, without having to commit to a lengthy blog post. Of course, unless someone is following you, it feels a bit more like a diary than a blog, and hey, wouldn't that be a good way to keep track of things? Imagine, if you will, that you're keeping a food log - Twitter could be a great way to do that (assuming that you have internet access or are willing to text your Tweetings). What about at conferences? You could Tweet your gut reactions about sessions you'd just finished attending! Clearly, this isn't the place for detailed posting, but Twitter could be an ideal way to jog your memory! Kind of like Jott, actually, but with typing.<br />Leigh Anne at CPL is doing a neat thing at their reference desk - when she's on the desk, she tweets about what's happening there. Sometimes it's very mundane "lent the stapler, got it back" kind of stuff, but it really does capture what it can be like at the reference desk. Heck, we could use Twitter to capture reference stats!<br />Hmmm. <br />Gotta go - going to Tweet about that.Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-79643334299919371012008-10-22T13:09:00.000-07:002008-10-22T13:48:39.900-07:00Lit picking...LitLovers is pretty interesting, and I'm sure that some of our patrons would find it useful, but my experience with it was a "lit"tle frustrating.<br /><br />It's nicely organized and has an easy to navigate site, but... for 5 of the 6 titles that I checked, they didn't actually have discussion guides. Just an "I'm sorry, the publisher didn't create any discussion questions for this book" note. Sure, the site is free, but (for our patrons, at least) so is Novelist, and when they say they have a book discussion guide for a title, they actually do have questions for that title. Access to reviews, summaries and author bios is nice, but (once again) Novelist does it just as well, and has more titles (and ways to search for those titles). OK, so Novelist doesn't have non-fiction (yet), but LitLovers doesn't actually let you search specifically for those non-fiction titles - you've got title and author and that's that. <br />Some of the "bonus" features are nice - the LitFoods and Icebreaker games sound like great ways to liven up a book group, and the LitCourses could be a good way to make sure that everyone in your group knows what you mean when you talk about irony. In fact, the short readings might even make for good impromptu discussions - what if you used one of those every once in a while (say around the holidays) to take the pressure off your book club members - "Hey guys, don't worry about reading the book ahead of time, we're going to read it that night!"<br />Oh, and what about the section on Adaptations - LitLovers lists Fight Club as one of their top ones, but they don't have a listing for the book in their discussion guides! Seriously, is that helpful? <br />OK, and here's the kicker - I found the site a little strange - especially the bits about the publisher not providing discussion guides, and the "buy the book" links with every title... So I looked around a little and found the "Site Authentication" page, which includes this statement: "The information for the Guides comes primarily through Barnes and Noble. LitLovers is a B&N affiliate, which gives me the rights to use information from their site about books and authors, as well as critical reviews." At this point, I'm a little irritated - because, as a librarian, I want people to know that I don't advocate that they use any particular website when they want to buy something. This site just conveniently tucks their relationship with B&N way deep into the site. If the site is a commercial site, then, please just put it out there, so I know that. The burying of that information makes it feel, well, deceptive.<br />I'm just not down with that.Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-83121745634541308592008-10-22T11:45:00.000-07:002008-10-22T12:16:27.101-07:00That's what I want...The best things in life are free<br />But you can keep them for the birds and bees<br />Give me money<br />That's what I want, that's what I waaaaaaaaant,<br />That's what I want...<br /><br />So I decided to check out some of the online money management tools this week (in addition to playing around with Jott).<br />My usual disclaimer: I don't like the idea of putting my financials out on the web - I don't do online billpay, and I have one low-limit credit card that I'm willing to use to buy anything online. If presented with the opportunity to "buy it now" online using that credit card, or wait till the people are available to take my call at the brick-and-mortar site on Monday morning... I'm waiting till the weekend is over, thanks.<br /><br />That said, I checked out a few of the sites listed on WallStreetFighter's list (awesome site name, that). Some of them are pretty obviously things that I'm not interested in - foonance and wasabe. I liked the idea of DimeTracker - but it requires that you use text messaging. (I think we've covered my feelings about cell phone usage in an earlier post - compound that with the fact that texts cost EXTRA money, and you know I'm just not going there, right?) Bummer. <br /><br />Most of the money management and investing tools just aren't my speed right now. But then I came across Xpen$er - nice. They have a good basic site that actually lets you check out their FAQs, you can call in expenses over the phone (yay!) and it even has a mileage converter - even better. I may even sign up with Xpenser.<br /><br />The concept of shared bills/IOU tracking sites is a little alien to me, but I could see the utility of a site like Billshare for roommates or housemates. Unfortunately, you can't "tour" the Billshare site without signing up, so I didn't get past the "that's a pretty good idea" phase. This is one feature that all of these sites should be aware of - If I can't check it out anonymously (without logging in) first, I'm sure as heck not going to give you any of my personal information (not even a junk email address).<br /><br />I can't even get around the concept of Ripple - but then again, I'm not a big fan of borrowing or lending money to friends - I certainly don't want to be part of a network of people that I don't know that revolves around money!<br /><br />Finally I visted RentOMeter - nice idea, but it doesn't seem to have much coverage here on the Shore. This is probably much more useful in more urban areas.<br /><br />Enough about money - I'm off to visit LitLovers!Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-10895936743128807532008-10-20T12:31:00.000-07:002008-10-20T13:09:57.151-07:00Jott milk?Dude! Jott is sweet!<br />I have to admit that at first read, I wasn't quite buying it... Why would I want to use my precious cell minutes on a glorified notepad? I'm a dedicated list-maker and I knit! (OK, so that probably doesn't make a ton of sense to most folks, does it? Let me 'splain it to you: I knit, therefore I carry some sort of knitting project around with me constantly - it's USUALLY small and contained in a bag of some sort. The bag holds not just my project, but a variety of stuff that I <span style="font-style:italic;">might</span> need to work on the project: scissors, extra point protectors, a second set of needles and ball of yarn in case I get bored with the current project and want to start a fresh one, tapestry needles, a Balance bar in case all that knitting and indecision makes me hungry, and (to bring this back to a relevant place) a small notepad (maybe I should call it a <span style="font-style:italic;">knotepad</span>) and pen in case I need to make a knitting-related note. Said knotepad isn't restricted to knitting only notes - it's a multi-tasker, and might hold my grocery list, directions to somewhere I've gotta go, or the packing list for the trip that requires those directions. Got it?)<br />So, said I, (in sotto voce, lest my co-workers think I'm going a little bit crazier) "I don't need this."<br />And then I watched the video ... and thought, "hmmm, OK..." and then it seemed interesting, and just as I started thinking, "They use people to confirm the ASR?", they tossed out that line about the clean room and the doctors and lawyers, and I felt better (because I've worked for lawyers, and seen my doctor dictate into his phone). And then I signed up. And it was easy. So I called (squandering those precious celly minutes, but it was for work, right? I can try... just this one time - I'll never do it again, so it'll be the first and last time, right?) And it was dead easy, and it worked on the first try - within seconds (because as soon as I hung up, I had to check my email, of course) I had two messages posted on my Jott dashboard - one was the first message, the other was a "we're working on your transcription" message, which quickly transformed into my second message. And it was easy to sign up for direct email of my JottNotes, too.<br />So, yeah, I'm pretty impressed with Jott - Even for an unabashed list-maker like myself, this is convenient and easy enough that I'm seriously considering using this again (though only for really important notes, and only during off-peak/free hours). <br />As for the library? Well, I'm not sure we can do much with it formally, but I'll definitely tell co-workers about it, and maybe mention it to patrons who don't sign up for email notifications...Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-6459085632476836662008-10-17T07:54:00.001-07:002008-10-20T12:13:16.016-07:00YourMinis or mine?Well, I have to say that I wasn't especially impressed with YourMinis. I'm a bit too enamored of my Bloglines account, and YourMinis just felt like a less useful version of Bloglines, especially when I added a few of my favorite feeds and found that they only showed headlines, but no pictures! (ihasahotdog just isn't as funny when you can't see the pictures...)<br />I could foresee widgets as becoming somewhat of a distraction if added to my desktop - every update would tempt me to "just check it out" - that's probably not a great thing for sites that are updated frequently. As it stands now, I check in on my Bloglines account once a day <br />I could see some utility for the library though - just imagine if the local emergency management authority had a widget - the library could provide up to the moment updates right on our homepage (and we wouldn't have to do anything but add that widget to the page!) Does Weather Underground have a severe weather warning widget? That could be worth investigating!Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-31411800644293437202008-10-08T13:08:00.000-07:002008-10-08T13:39:10.767-07:00Plaxo, not Plaxico...If you're a Steelers or Giants fan, you might get my title... if not - the short version is that he's a pro football player, who, because he didn't show up for a scheduled team meeting, got suspended and lost some pay - seemed just relevant enough to use for a silly post-title...<br />But I digress...<br /><br />Today (and very belatedly), I played around with Plaxo. Maybe if I'd been using Plaxo several weeks ago (when I should have started on it), I'd be more caught up on Learning 2.1...<br />Yeah, right.<br />Here's the deal - I'm a paper dinosaur - I've got a big old desk calendar in the middle of my desk at work (though it's often buried under mounds of stuff) and I carry a full-sized month-by-month guy around with me ALL the time. Internet access - well, that's a work only thing, and if I'm at work, I've got access to my desk calendar and the carry-around one. I don't even use the calendar part of Zimbra, so personally, the super-duper synching aspects of Plaxo are pretty much lost on me. Nor do I (and forgive me for using nouns as verbs) currently FaceBook or MySpace. I keep up with a blog or two, but honestly, I prefer my communications to be of the instantaneous and phone-based variety. <insert cliched dinosaur roars><br /><br />That said, sure, I can definitely see where Plaxo could be useful here at the library. Our official scheduler might actually benefit if the staff could all use a common calendar - so she'd know in advance that Scotti and I are <span style="font-style:italic;">both</span> going to that Reference Group (forgive me, Adult Services Interest Group) meeting and that it is, in fact tomorrow, and not next week. And imagine the possibilities if we used it as a calendaring software for library programming and stuff - people wouldn't have to call and bug our admin assistant to find out if the meeting room is booked for this, that or the other day... hmmmm.<br />And when it comes to ease of use - Plaxo does seem to be ridiculously simple - it was ridiculously easy to add events to my calendar - so much so that I got a little distracted and just. kept. adding. Couldn't stop myself, just kept filling in those cute little squares - bad idea, though - now I realize just how busy I'm going to be for the rest of the month! Oy.<br />I did have some trouble trying to find out how to differentiate different events as "work" vs. "home", though - so all of my entries are crowded onto one calendar page - just like the paper version. I'd like to figure out how to categorize the events so that I could toggle between them (when I'm feeling a little overwhelmed) or see them all at once (when I need to see how all those events overlap). <br />The countdown feature is cute, and intellectually, the task list appeals to me. In practice, however, I don't really need either - especially since I like to carry those "to do lists" along with me, often to places that lack internet access...<br /> <br />Onward to Thing 3!Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-88323738547067341832008-09-23T07:31:00.000-07:002008-09-23T07:58:38.732-07:00LetterPop Tart...Normally, I dig documents that have been pre-formatted. I'm creative enough, but trying to actually <span style="font-style:italic;">design</span> posters and brochures is always a bit of a trial for me. Send me something that's already been laid out, though, and I'll happy fill in the blanks...<br /><br />So LetterPop sounded like a great idea to me - pick a template, fill in some text and drop in a nifty picture or two - niiiice, right?<br /><br />Well, sure - in theory... but in practice - I found it a little clunky (why, oh why must it "forget" my font selection everytime I hit "Enter"?!) and (in the free incarnation at least) a little... cluttered, design-wise. The templates are certainly nifty, but do they all have to be soooo color intensive? I don't want to think about all the color toner this is going to burn through...<br /><br />All that said, LetterPop could be a nifty little tool. I can definitely envision some of our staff going crazy with it! I think it would best serve us if we were to offer it to staff with a "style sheet" attached - and if we were to upload our logo to Flickr, so that it could be used on all the documents (this is something that we aren't currently doing, but should be). <br /><br />At the moment, I'm not totally sold on LetterPop, but I suspect that if I wanted to put together a casual newsletter for a family or social group, this would be a great tool. It may be a little <span style="font-style:italic;">too</span> casual for a more formal business setting, though. Definitely something to share with the staff here and see what they can do with it.Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-57243689847644041062008-09-22T13:25:00.000-07:002008-09-22T13:54:23.141-07:00I'm baaa-aack!When last we parted, dear reader(s) (I may very well be the only one who ever actually read my own blog), I'd just finished up 23 Things - in not-quite-record time, but perilously close to it.<br /><br />So... 9 months later, what am I doing resurrecting this poor tired corpse? Well, my wonderful LibraryLand friends, Jennifer and Maurice have crafted a follow-up, a sequel, if you will, to our beloved 23 things. They're calling it "Learning 2.1", but I prefer to think of it (as they did, once upon a time) as "Just 10 More Things". Our colleagues from more southerly climes have actually taken the 23 Things concept and run wild with it - their version of Learning 2.1 is actually at Thing 64 and still going. I'm intrigued, but content to focus on "just 10 more" for the time being, because my time is both short and valuable.<br /><br />Just to revisit 23 Things a little, I'm happy to report that a whole slew of my co-workers completed the original 23 Things! <br />Personally, I'm still using some of those Things - most especially Bloglines - words can't describe just how much I love having all of those sporadic (or all too frequent) postings gathered in one single place - I visit my Blogline account every. single. day. that I have internet access. How else would I know that both Just Bento and Cake Wrecks have been updated? <br />I'm also still using del.icio.us - but not as frequently as I used to. Of course, many of the sites that I would have put into del.icio.us have been added to my Bloglines feed... but I still love (and spread the gospel of) accessing bookmarks from anywhere.<br />I have to confess, however, that I've neglected my LibraryThing account. After singing (well, rhyming) its praises so stridently, I (rather suddenly) stopped posting new titles to it. I'm not totally certain why - perhaps I lacked internet access at the same time that I finished up several books, or mayhaps I got nervous as I neared the limits of my free account... I don't know, but I'm not fighting it. When the time is right, I'm sure I'll be back, and until then, I'll just keep recommending it to others.<br /><br />Well, enough about the past - onward to Learning 2.1!Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-86355019515913275682007-10-19T11:50:00.000-07:002007-10-19T12:10:49.566-07:00Thing 23 - This is the end, my only friend, the end...8 days from start to finish - I don't think that's a 23 Things record, but considering that I squeezed it into a fairly busy week, I'm proud of myself for getting it done so quickly, and still managing to not just skim the surface - I actually did try most of the tech out - I had to skip on creating a podcast (I don't have a convenient microphone) - but I think I set up accounts and played with everything else!<br /><br />I'm actually surprised with how much fun I had doing this program/project - I thought it would be more of a slog, but it ended up being alot of fun - another factor in my ability to get through in such a short time frame.<br /><br />I am glad that I've finished it up, though - mostly because now I KNOW what my co-workers are getting themselves into, and I'll be much better equipped to help them out if they need some help - and I can reassure them that it can't possibly be <span style="font-style:italic;">that</span> hard, if I could get it done in a week (give or take).<br /><br />The "at your own pace" style of this was great - as I've pretty well demonstrated, I think. I would probably give another program like this a try - but it had better have as much potential for fun as this one ended up having!<br /><br />As usual, I'm surprised with the Things that I ended up enjoying the most - of course, I love LibraryThing (what's not to love about it!), but I knew how much I liked it before - what I'm very surprised by is how I'm actually enjoying having a Bloglines account. If you were to check back to my comments for Thing 8, I said that I didn't know how much I'd be using that Bloglines account - (that <span style="font-style:italic;">was</span> less than a week ago) - I've actually checked it several times this week, and really liked that I could do a quick scan of the headlines on the updated feeds. That may well be one of most valuable Things that I'm going to take away from this experience (well, that and the My Little Pony Generator)...<br /><br />Signing out (for now...)<br />JoJohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-79726588718786435172007-10-19T11:27:00.001-07:002007-10-19T11:47:03.238-07:00Thing 22 - Down with the downloadables...Took advantage of the fact that we don't currently have a downloadable product (we're currently in the quiet zone between the end of our NetLibrary contract and the beginning of a new OverDrive one) to try out Project Gutenberg's archive of downloadable audio. <br /><br />I have to say that I'm pretty impressed with it! I have some experience with NetLibrary, and I'll soon know more than I ever wanted to know about OverDrive, I'm sure) but I found Project Gutenberg to be much easier (and quicker) to download and play than NetLibrary ever was. I might have a different opinion if I needed to transfer a file to an mp3 player, but for a quick and dirty "download and listen" here on the PC, Project Gutenberg (which I'm going to refer to as PG from here on out) was a breeze! It was so easy that I actually downloaded 2 titles - one read by a human (Call of the Wild by Jack London) and one read by a computer (Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe) - just to hear the difference! (Computer-read is a bit odd, but I imagine that I could get used to it, if that was my only option - the title I listened to sounded like Stephen Hawking's "voice".)<br /><br />The only trouble I had with PG's downloadable audio was that there were multiple formats of The Call of the Wild - Ogg Vorbis Audio, Apple iTunes, mp3 and Speex - You do have to know which format you can use (for me it was mp3). <br /><br />I was also pretty impressed by the PG's huge catalog - and you can limit search results (or your browse list) to computer-read audio or human-read audio. This is a fabulous resource for older material.<br /><br />And the best part of all? It's free - how great is that?Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-50347461402958116112007-10-19T08:09:00.000-07:002007-10-19T08:47:43.762-07:00Thing 21 - Aghast at all the Podcasts...Quick note to those who follow me on the Journey of 23 Steps (and them as what laid the trail for us) - The Yahoo Podcast site will be taken down as of 31 October 2007. This is a major bummer, because after searching <a href="http://podcast.net">podcast.net</a>, <a href="http://podcastalley.com">podcastalley.com</a> and <a href="http://podcasts.yahoo.com">YahooPodcasts</a>, the Yahoo site was by far the best. It was the easiest to search and actually gave useful information on each podcast on the initial list of search results.<br />Podcastalley only gives you a list of results - for any sort of information about the podcast, you have to click on the podcast title - it takes 2 clicks(!) to find out when the latest episode posted - YahooPodcasts offers that information on the results screen, along with a quick summary, lists of tags AND an "explicit" label (not a necessity if you're listening for your own interests, but a nice feature if you're talking to a library patron about a particular podcast). Podcast.net gives a very brief summary of the podcast on the main search page, but saves the date of the latest update for the next screen.<br /><br />I went ahead and added two of the podcasts that I found to my Bloglines account. Once again, this was really easy to do, but I think that's more a function of the Bloglines' really easy-to-deal-with interface than that of the podcast search tools...<br /><br />One thing that I did notice about a fair number of the podcasts that I found were that they were not updated very frequently. One had apparently shut down entirely - and that was pretty disappointing. That's a big factor in my desire to see the publish date of the latest podcast. <br /><br />On this one exercise, I'm not going to try to do the extra challenge - I'm sure that creating a podcast is very easy, but it requires a little more equipment (and probably a slightly quieter space) than I have easy access to.Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-50876394597050370452007-10-19T06:58:00.000-07:002007-10-19T07:12:32.845-07:00Thing 20 - YouTube, ITube, TheyTube, we all TubeHow much fun is YouTube? Way more fun than I can describe. <br />How much of a timesink is YouTube? About the biggest one out there - seriously. <br /><br />Are there any potential library applications for YouTube? Absolutely - we could do 'commercials' for upcoming programs and services, library tours, "Storytime on YourTime" programming (wherein our children's librarian could read a story that parents could download for their kids to watch at home (or where-ever), how-to vids on accessing your library account or databases from home, ... Heck, if we wanted to, we could upload whole programs onto YouTube for on-demand versions... where does it end? I don't know, but it looks like it'll be an interesting trip.<br /><br />Want to see my favorite (at the moment) library-related YouTube videos?<br />"Librarian" - it's a music video and well... you just need to watch it.<br /><object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ne_WXP7lUWM"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ne_WXP7lUWM" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><br />Here's another one that I found today (I'd seen "Librarian" before, but this is a new discovery) - this was created for the St. Joseph County Library system's Staff Day - even if you haven't seen the Madonna video this is based on, I think you'll still enjoy it - and make sure you watch the credits roll - there are some very funny outtakes...<br /><object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/vrtYdFV_Eak"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/vrtYdFV_Eak" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object>Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-6818703640588665652007-10-18T13:51:00.000-07:002007-10-18T14:13:33.623-07:00Thing 19 - And the winner is......Had an interesting time exploring the Web 2.0 award winners. I wasn't able to really check out a few I was interested in because I don't have the newest, latest and greatest version of Flash installed on this particular terminal. I wanted to try out <a href="http://www.frappr.com/">Frappr</a> and <a href="http://grant.robinson.name/projects/guess-the-google/">Guess the Google</a>, but without Flash 9, I seem to be out of luck. These are the problems one encounters when using random terminals for 23 Things.<br /><br />I did manage to check out the <a href="http://www.cocktailbuilder.com/">Cocktail Builder</a> - and wasn't terribly impressed with it - it's a nifty concept, but doesn't work as well as I had hoped a Web 2.0 Award Winner would. <br /><br />Disappointed with the Cocktail Builder, I ventured over to <a href="http://answers.yahoo.com/">Yahoo Answers</a> - wow. That's a site that lets everyone feel like an expert. Users can ask questions - about nearly anything, and other users can answer, based on whatever knowledge they have. One question can have many answers - and visitors to the site can give a "thumbs up/thumbs down" review to any answer they wish to. It's an interesting concept, and in terms of 'raw functionality', yes, it does work. The biggest question here is: are these respondents any good? I think the term "hit or miss" accurately describes the responses that one might recieve on Yahoo Answers. Nevertheless, it is certainly <span style="font-style:italic;">interesting</span> to read the responses (and questions).<br /><br />Is there any use for YahooAnswers in the library? I don't really think so. In fact, it kind of goes against all my instincts as a reference librarian, since very few of the respondents can offer any sort of citation, and most seem to be answering out of personal experience (which isn't necessarily a <span style="font-style:italic;">bad</span> thing, but as we all know YMMV (your mileage may vary). But there is a certain rubbernecking kind of entertainment factor...Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-34862672083680607372007-10-18T07:50:00.000-07:002007-10-18T11:50:08.068-07:00Thing 18 (What's up, Docs?)Thing 18 already, and we're only now finding out about web-based document storage?! This is seriously useful to me! While I do have "my" PC here at work, I do spend a pretty significant amount of time at another desk, so the ability to access my documents via the web is great! One major disappointment is that GoogleDocs/Writely doesn't support Publisher files, so I'll have to keep carrying that thumbdrive or CD around with me if I want to work on my database flyer... Even with that, this particular tool could have alot of utility around here. I'm most interested in being able to access my documents from other terminals, as I don't do alot of collaborative work, but I could see how people who do that kind of work could find this especially useful. <br /><br />As you can see below, I did experiment with publishing a document to my blog, and it worked (and was very easy to do). The GoogleDocs interface was really pretty simple to use (though I didn't do much with it) - and looks like a cross between my usual Word toolbar and the Blogger Post Create/Edit screen. Definitely non-threatening and pretty user friendly. I don't do alot with Excel, so I can't give a good review of that kind of work, but the basic "word processing" functions are good. <br /><br />I don't know that it's going to complete usurp the use of these kind of applications on one's desktop - if you rely on web-based apps, you'd better have a darn reliable internet connection - but these applications can clearly enhance your ability to access your files and work with others on shared documents.<br /><br />--------<br /><br /> <P CLASS="western" ALIGN=CENTER STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><FONT FACE="Garamond, serif"><B>MILEAGE LOG</B></FONT></P> <P CLASS="western" ALIGN=CENTER STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><FONT FACE="Garamond, serif"><B>Talbot County Free Library</B></FONT></P> <P CLASS="western" ALIGN=CENTER STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><FONT FACE="Garamond, serif"><B>Employee Name:__________________________________</B></FONT></P> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><FONT FACE="Garamond, serif"><B>For Period from: _________________________ through: ________________________</B></FONT></P> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <TABLE WIDTH=616 BORDER=1 BORDERCOLOR="#000000" CELLPADDING=8 CELLSPACING=0> <COL WIDTH=66> <COL WIDTH=97> <COL WIDTH=97> <COL WIDTH=84> <COL WIDTH=191> <TR VALIGN=TOP> <TD WIDTH=66> <P CLASS="western"><FONT FACE="Garamond, serif"><B>Date</B></FONT></P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><FONT FACE="Garamond, serif"><B>From</B></FONT></P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><FONT FACE="Garamond, serif"><B>To</B></FONT></P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=84> <P CLASS="western"><FONT FACE="Garamond, serif"><B>Miles Traveled</B></FONT></P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=191> <P CLASS="western"><FONT FACE="Garamond, serif"><B>Reason for Travel</B></FONT></P> </TD> </TR> <TR VALIGN=TOP> <TD WIDTH=66> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=84> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=191> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> </TR> <TR VALIGN=TOP> <TD WIDTH=66> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=84> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=191> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> </TR> <TR VALIGN=TOP> <TD WIDTH=66> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=84> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=191> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> </TR> <TR VALIGN=TOP> <TD WIDTH=66> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=84> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=191> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> </TR> <TR VALIGN=TOP> <TD WIDTH=66> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=84> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=191> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> </TR> <TR VALIGN=TOP> <TD WIDTH=66> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=84> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=191> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> </TR> <TR VALIGN=TOP> <TD WIDTH=66> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=84> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=191> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> </TR> <TR VALIGN=TOP> <TD WIDTH=66> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=84> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=191> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> </TR> <TR VALIGN=TOP> <TD WIDTH=66> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=84> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=191> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> </TR> <TR VALIGN=TOP> <TD WIDTH=66> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=84> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=191> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> </TR> <TR VALIGN=TOP> <TD WIDTH=66> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=84> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=191> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> </TR> <TR VALIGN=TOP> <TD WIDTH=66> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=84> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=191> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> </TR> <TR VALIGN=TOP> <TD WIDTH=66> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=84> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=191> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> </TR> <TR VALIGN=TOP> <TD WIDTH=66> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=84> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=191> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> </TR> <TR VALIGN=TOP> <TD WIDTH=66> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=97> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=84> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> <TD WIDTH=191> <P CLASS="western"><BR> </P> </TD> </TR> </TABLE> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><FONT FACE="Garamond, serif"><B> Total</B></FONT></P> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><FONT FACE="Garamond, serif"><B> Miles: ____________ X .485 = $______________</B></FONT></P> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><FONT FACE="Garamond, serif"><B>______________________________ ______________________________</B></FONT></P> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><FONT FACE="Garamond, serif"><B>Employee Signature Approval Signature</B></FONT></P> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><BR> </P> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><FONT FACE="Garamond, serif"><B> ______________________________</B></FONT></P> <P CLASS="western" STYLE="margin-bottom: 0in"><FONT FACE="Garamond, serif"><B> Approval Date</B></FONT></P>Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-14937269605766993362007-10-17T13:58:00.000-07:002007-10-17T14:05:01.190-07:00Thing 17 - Still stuck in that sticky wiki... but it's gotten sandy in here...What can I say about the MD Libraries sandbox? <br />Eh.<br /><br />Really, that's how I feel about it - it's not particularly well organized, and everybody seems to have taken that "Blogs Here" link a little too literally - aren't you supposed to follow the link and add your blog to <span style="font-style:italic;">that</span> page? Not the home page, right? Maybe I'm being too formal about it - but come on, folks, this isn't supposed to be rocket science! <br /><br />And don't even get me started on trying to find a page to "edit" - that was a massive pain in the behind - here I was thinking that other folks might have added their own insight/opinions to some pages, but no, it looks like everyone and their cousin just created their own new page. <br /><br />I think this particular wiki needs a little more of a guiding hand...Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-81436141037123969572007-10-17T13:07:00.001-07:002007-10-17T13:39:41.444-07:00Thing 16 (or, Librarians in a sticky wiki...)Welcome to the latest installment of 23 Things, in which our heroine finds herself awash in wikis...<br /><br />Just to put it out there, I actually <span style="font-style:italic;">like</span> Wikipedia! And horror of horrors, I've actually <span style="font-style:italic;">even recommended that patrons use it</span>! (Gasps and much shaking of fingers from the audience ensue)<br />It's a good source, really - maybe not 100% trustworthy, but come on, what source really is? EVERYthing has a bias - some of them are just more obvious than others. And really, I think there are more controls behind the scenes in Wikipedia than that "you know it, you edit it" reputation that's developed. Don't believe me? Then visit <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:What_Wikipedia_is_not#Wikipedia_is_not_censored">this</a> page for what Wikipedia is NOT, and you'll see just how much "law and order" is in the background there.<br />Now, I do warn people (when I suggest that they might want to check Wikipedia out) just what Wikipedia is - and I always tell them that it isn't generally acceptable as a citable source. What is it good for? Getting a quick handle on a topic you don't know much about and a few (usually) good links to help you get started on a research project. <br /><br />I think the most interesting (from my desk here at the library) potential application of wikis is the possibility of reader generated book reviews - I think it would be <span style="font-style:italic;">really</span> cool if we could add those user generated reviews (or at least access to them) into our catalogs. Princeton PL's site is a great example of how good those reviews can be. <br /><br />One thing I did notice about the wikis is the very 'consistent' look that a number of them have - it's like everyone saw Wikipedia and said, "Yep, I like it!" Is that a good thing? Well, it does create an atmosphere of familiarity, but some of them don't feel very well branded... I want my wiki to look like <span style="font-weight:bold;">my</span> wiki, not everybody elses'. Maybe that consistent look is important, though - but I doubt it. <br /><br />I think that the Bull Run Library wiki is a little deceptive - OK, technically, I guess it is a wiki, but if only one person is allowed to edit it, is it really what we think of as a wiki? If there's no collaboration and it's just set up that way because it's an easy way to web-author, I'm not sure I'm willing to call it a wiki. Sure, wiki is supposed to be "fast-fast", but I think that that definition has really evolved to imply some sort of collaboration, even if it's limited to a specific (or small) group (and one person does not a group make). I'm also a bit concerned with this line: "This wiki is not sponsored by nor associated with the library system, it is maintained by one library patron." -- Hmmm... just how comfortable with that statement are you? I can tell you that it makes me a little nervous.Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-18033257861469393792007-10-16T12:08:00.000-07:002007-10-17T08:21:52.340-07:00Thing 15 (or, 2.0 or 2.No?)From the frivolous to the frightening in only 5 Things!<br />We're talkin' Library 2.0, y'all - and if you believe these folks, the times, they are a changin'.<br /><br />But are they changing for the better? I don't know - there are pieces of the Library 2.0 puzzle that really appeal to me - the idea that patrons could interact with our catalogs and offer their own tags and comments (think Library Thing, but in our OPAC)? I love it! But the idea that the library as a place is outmoded or less important than our web presence? <br />I don't think so. <br />Sure, we need to offer information to our patrons where they want to find it, but guess what? Some of them actually WANT to find it here in the library! Lots of them come in (and no, they're not all just schoolkids with assignments) who ask us for "a book on ___" - did they ask for "information on _____"? Sure, some do, but you know what? <br />There's safety in them there books, y'all. <br />Why? I know, I know, just because it's printed and bound doesn't make it true, but once it's made it into print and paper, it's pretty well locked in - take it or leave it, doubt it or believe it, do what you want with it. Is there that finality with anything on the Web? I don't know - call me a dinosaur, but if government websites can get hacked, who's doing the security on my blog or any other "informational" website? And when everybody can 'publish' anything they want to on the Web, who's fact checking? Sure, we know that editors and publishers don't fact check EVERYthing (think about that James Frey mess a couple of years ago), but at least you know that it had to get through at least a couple of other sets of eyes before it got to yours and proclaimed itself to be true.<br /><br />And don't even get me started on the folks who don't have internet access at home (yours truly included) - what about us? I'm lucky, I have a PC sitting right here on my desk at work, but when I go home - no internet for me... we can't get hi-speed at my house yet, and dial-up just isn't worth the trouble. What about all those folks who don't even have the luxury of a work computer? And all of those who tell me "I can't do those computer-things like you do" - hey, if they don't want to learn, that's their perogative, right? We can't force them along, but it doesn't seem fair to just leave them on the side of the road, with no assistance either, because we've all gone speeding down the information superhighway with nary a glance in the rearview mirror, either. <br /><br />That's it for now - I'm tired of all this deep thought. Where's my Pony Generator?!Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-51922076087029917682007-10-16T10:51:00.000-07:002007-10-16T11:46:08.690-07:00Thing 14 - Technorati glitterati...Checking out <a href="http://www.technorati.com">Technorati</a> today - <br />Yep, I did get different results when I searched for "Learning 2.0" in blog posts - lots of hits there (basically anytime anybody used that term in a post), and in tags (also found 176 tagged as "learning2.0", which is the way del.icio.us would suggest you tag it) and 300-odd blogs about "Learning 2.0" - many of which were libraries. <br /><br />I also investigated the "popular" bits of Technorati - and hey look! "Learning 2.0" is now one of the top searches now! It wasn't that way when I first visited the site (before I started searching), so I have to believe that it's got something to do with me... as of right now, "learning 2.0" is above iphone, youtube, facebook and ron paul! Ummm - what's that mean about how many people are searching Technorati... (assuming of course, that this "learning 2.0" bump is a direct result of my searches, and not a sudden worldwide interest in learning 2.0...)<br />I'm not surprised that a large percentage of the most favorited blogs and top blogs are tech/gadget-centered - I think that if you're really interested in what's new and gadget-y, then Technorati is probably right up your alley. For me - eh, not so much. I feel like I'm seeing a lot of flash, but not alot of cash, so to speak - sure, it updates every couple of seconds with somebody's latest new blog post, but do I really care about everything that ANYbody wants to post - no. For the time being, I think I'll stick to some of the search tools we explored back in Thing 9.<br /><br />**** WARNING **** <br />A brief rant follows, so unless you want to know what really torques me off about Technorati, don't bother reading any further...<br />**** End WARNING ****<br /><br />A huge pet peeve of mine is that header they use - "Everything in the known universe about..." Seriously? You're kidding, right? 'Cause "everything in the known universe" covers an awful lot, and I'm having a tough time believing that a bunch of folks' self-reporting = "everything in the known universe". Suffice it to say, I suspect that there's a good deal of information still locked away in peoples' brains and bookshelves that can't be found by way of Technorati...Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-24032589228453292932007-10-15T16:43:00.001-07:002007-10-15T16:53:32.907-07:00Thing 13 - Mmmm mmm goodLast one for the night - and a pretty entertaining one at that - del.icio.us - and yep, it is pretty tasty!<br /><br />I went ahead and set up my very own del.icio.us account - I'm digging it - and just like rollyo, it IS that easy, children. I don't actually use many bookmarks on my work PC, but there are often sites that I want to remember, so I scrawl little notes to myself and find them scattered, in no particular order all around my desk, and in my pockets. This should help solve that "problem". Of course, it's going to create a whole new one - because I can see myself ending up with one of those giant scary bookmark lists that some people I know have...(don't y'all know about folders, at least!) but hopefully the tagging feature will help me keep this a little better organized than that. And hey, once I've experimented with it for a while, I can tell them to get organized and clean up those horrifying lists!<br /><br />Library functionality for del.icio.us? Heck yeah - we could use it on the reference desk to help the staffer who can't remember that the website to look up phone numbers is www.switchboard.com. Are we going to use it that way anytime soon? Don't know, but I do know that I'll be playing with it myself for the next few weeks!Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-40816046755791490472007-10-15T15:12:00.000-07:002007-10-15T16:02:31.516-07:00Thing 12 - Keep rollin' rollin' rollin' rollin'....Bonus points if you recognize the song that I've snagged the lyrics to in the title...<br /><br />Today was Rollyo day - my big question here is how exactly does one pronounce "Rollyo" - Helene Blowers says it as "roly-o", but when I see it, in my head it sounds like "Roll, yo"...<br /><br />Yet again, using this tool was pretty darn simple - mostly just a bit of cutting and pasting. I think I had more trouble deciding on a topic and finding the sites I wanted to put into my searchroll than in actually building the beast. I can definitely see some uses for this tool around the library - we could create searchrolls on a variety of topics - so that patrons would get information from websites that we've vetted. Tax forms and info, genealogy, local info... too bad we can't use it on our databases...<br /><br />Here's my very own searchroll: <a href="http://rollyo.com/jp23things/cthulhu_fhtagn/">Cthulhu ftagn!</a>Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3285765327840881924.post-28322845822122685912007-10-15T11:45:00.000-07:002007-10-15T12:43:35.675-07:00Thing 11 (or, how do I love thee, LibraryThing)(With apologies to Elizabeth Barrett Browning)<br /><br />I love thee for the depth and breadth and height<br />Of thine catalog, (or at least Amazon's site)<br />For it makes finding my titles a breeze.<br />I love thee for the level of cataloging expertise<br />You require of me - which is none.<br />I love thee freely, as you charge me the same.<br />I love thee purely, as you don't ask me for my name,<br />Nor credit card, nor personal information I don't wish to give.<br /><br />Seriously, I freaking LOVE LibraryThing - I've actually been using it for most of a year now - just to keep track of books that I've read so far. I set up a new account today (just for this exercise) to keep track of books that I'm planning on reading. You should get to see that little catalog on this post.<br />I have to admit that I haven't been using LT to the "depth and breadth and height" of its potential, though - I haven't been tagging or reviewing any of my titles, and I've only checked the LT blog when the site has gone down (which happened for a week or so earlier this year). I did get one comment about a book I'd posted from another LTer - and I'm not actually sure if I was successful in replying to her.<br />All that said, I still love the concept and the ease of use of LibraryThing - I tell everybody about it and how wonderful it is - so today's task was a breeze!<br />Here's my "to be read" catalog at the moment:<br /><script language="javascript" type="text/javascript" src="http://www.librarything.com/jswidget.php?reporton=jp23things&show=random&header=1&num=12&covers=small-fixed-width&text=none&onlycovers=1&tag=alltags&css=1&style=5&version=1"><br /></script>Johttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00106992552612764912noreply@blogger.com0