Thursday, November 1, 2007

My Thoughts About 23 Things

"23 Things" has been an incredible journey. Sometimes the road was smooth and other times not so. I consider myself lucky to have had the opportunity to learn the new tools and technology available to us. After all, if there exists tools to make our lives easier, why not learn about them and use them. We will have more time for other things in life, plus we can offer others that gift as well by sharing different tools that work.

I have always, in the past, learned well by self-tutorials and, for the most part, that is still true.
However, there were certainly times during this process where I would have loved to work with a partner - one that was very experienced in some of this technology.

Here are a few of my favorite things:

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens
Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens
Brown paper packages tied up with strings
These are a few of my favorite things

Cream colored ponies and crisp apple streudels
Doorbells and sleigh bells and schnitzel with noodles
Wild geese that fly with the moon on their wings
These are a few of my favorite things

Girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes
Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes
Silver white winters that melt into springs
These are a few of my favorite things

OK, besides those. My "23 Things" favorites are:

RSS Feeds
Wikis
Google Docs
Web 2.0 Awards List sites

It feels great to complete the "23 Things", yet I understand that I have so much more to learn. I wish that I could say I was extremely proficient with all the things, yet that would be foolish. What I can say is that I now have an understanding of what these tools are and a desire to continue learning about what they can do for us.



Google Docs

Now this is an incredible tool!

I can envision Google Docs being very helpful in so many ways. In fact, I did a trial run - sending my family in Chicago a list of things I hoped to do while visiting at Thanksgiving. I asked them to add ideas and the list of "fun things to do" grew. It was a wonderful way to get everyone's input. Plus, the edits are color coded and timed so you can see who added what and when.

I also loved that you can edit the document wherever. I often get an idea when I am not at my work computer. If I don't write it down immediately, I sometimes forget it. This is no longer a problem as I can now edit the Google document from home or from another computer.

Again, I am glad to know that this tool exists. It will make things much easier.

Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Downloadable Audiobooks

Thank you for the MP3 player. Now I can use it to listen to audiobooks while walking after work (my "Active For Life" goal). I tried Overdrive to find audiobooks through the library's website, yet was disappointed that they have a checkout system. I was hoping that I could immediately download a title and not have to wait until someone else was finished with it. No such luck!

However, I think this is a very convenient way for people to request books - never having to leave the comfort of their own home.

"23 Things" Wiki

It was fun to play around with the "23 Things" Wiki. Though we were not to edit what someone else had written, it was fun to see that we could - if given the authorization.

I read a few of the wikis that other staff had created and posted for fun and even created one of my own. I am glad that I now know how to create a wiki. I imagine that a Wiki would be a very useful tool when a particular project could be accomplished easier because of having one in place.


Podcasts

I found two directories to locate podcasts : Yahoo! Podcasts and Podcast.net. Yahoo! Podcasts was easy to use and had some cool features: "What We Like This Week - New and Noteworthy" - podcasts that the Yahoo! staff members found interesting, "What Other People Like" and "Tags".

Podcast.net was even easier to use. I was able to listen to different podcasts using the Podcast.net Player in Mozilla Firefox.


Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Wikis

Why Wiki?

  • Easy to use
    • Web-based
    • Simple syntax (don't need to know HTML)
  • Anyone can make changes -- no more waiting for the Webmaster to get around to your requested changes.
  • Many free and open source options
  • Flexible and extensible

Why Not?

  • Too open -- "I don't want someone changing my writing!"
  • Disorganized
  • Vandalism and spam

I love the idea of being able to help develop a web page no matter how experienced a computer user I may or may not be.

However, I do not like the idea that someone could destroy all your hard work by vandalizing the page. (Yet, I suppose that is where log ins, passwords, etc... would be helpful).

Technorati

I do not have a lot of interest in Technorati & the world of blogs. When I searched for "Learning 2.0," there were so many posts. After looking at those on the first page, I was overwhelmed. Plus, I questioned the relevance of what was written in some cases.

Though I imagine some people may find Technorati helpful, I am not one of them. Since there are so many other more useful tools available, I do not believe I would have much use for this one.

Library 2.0

"The heart of Library 2.0 is user-centered change. It is a model for library service that encourages constant and purposeful change, inviting user participation in the creation of both the physical and the virtual services they want, supported by consistently evaluating services. It also attempts to reach new users and better serve current ones through improved customer-driven offerings"

If our goal here at HCL is customer loyalty, then Library 2.0 will help us meet that goal. Making the process of meeting customer's needs easier and done in a way that allows them to be actively involved can only help. Plus, change is inevitable. The only way to survive it is to be constantly looking at what the customers will want and striving to provide those services before they even realize they want it!!

Facebook - the Web 2.0 award winning social networking site

I had heard lots about "My Space", since having a teenage daughter, yet not much about Facebook. However, when I went to see what all the buzz was about, I discovered that many of my friends and family members were signed on to Facebook. It was so easy to set up an account. Instantly, I was communicating with people I had lost touch with, and found that they were in contact with other friends that I wanted to communicate with as well.

It was lots of fun, yet a friend of mine warns "Be careful - it can be addicting".

Friday, October 12, 2007

Life-Long learner - Late Entry

Here I am - finally getting back to Thing #2. When asked to blog my thoughts at that time, I had no idea what "blog" meant. Now that I am "using technology to my advantage", I can complete the original request. I love technology, yet only wish I knew more. Being involved in the 23 Things program has given me an opportunity to, at least, begin to scratch the surface of what is available to us.

Tagging

I found that when I tried to organize lots of information with tags only, I was not always successful in finding what I needed two separate times in a row. When I clicked on the same tag name or a slight variation, I would get different responses.

I am sure that there are benefits to tagging, yet it seems like there is so much information tagged in so many different ways. I find that I miss consistency and clarity - everybody calling an apple an apple (vs. brand name of apple, etc...).

Rollyo

I created a Rollyo using many of my favorite book locating sites. The hope was that when a person asks for a book recommendation, I could be more successful at providing different suggestions. Though my Rollyo was slightly helpful, it did not produce the results I had hoped. Perhaps as I use the tool more often, I will learn ways to improve the Rollyo I created.

Wednesday, September 26, 2007

Spring Board Accident

My daughter is a gymnast and one day she came home anxious for me to see this You Tube video.
I have to admit, it is something you may never see again. (Which is definitely a good thing.) Do I have you interested???



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJR73Tv4Vws

Library Thing

It was interesting to explore "Library Thing". I found the site to be extremely easy to maneuver in. Plus, getting a count on how many individuals cataloged the same favorite books as I had was enlightening.

Below is a link that will show you just a few of my favorite books.

http://www.librarything.com/catalog.php?view=allielevido&shelf=list

Flickr Trial


I was able to make a Flickr home page (see below URL address link). I had hoped to post a picture direct to this blog, yet was not successful :-(

There must be a way. I just haven't figured it out yet. Slow, but sure...


http://www.flickr.com/photos/allielevido

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Library Weblogs

While trying to locate a few library-related blogs, I was excited to find Library Weblogs.
The link below actually provides a tremendous link to many useful library-related blogs. Each link has a tag that describes what is included in each blog site making it, of course, that much more helpful. Plus, it was interesting to look at the stats of country-based blog sites. There were tons available in the United States versus the few available in the many other countries included in the weblog.

http://www.libdex.com/weblogs.html

My Meez Character




This was a bit tricky for me to post on my blog. However, I am truly happy that I can say I did it. Surprisingly, I even did it without any outside assistance. ( That alone is a major accomplishment.)

Friday, September 21, 2007

RSS Feeds

Please do not tell yourself that you can not set up a RSS Feed. I can't believe how truly excited I am to discover this process. It will absolutely make your life easier!! Plus, it does not take so very long to set up. Go Technology!!

Entertainment on the rise

I was happy to learn that NBC will now be offering certain TV programming for download on personal computers. ABC has been doing this service for a year or so and it has been a big hit. To remain competitive, NBC is acknowledging that now, more than ever, viewers want to be in control of how, when and where they consumer their favorite entertainment.

The library already knows this - look at the stats for entertainment DVDs - huge increase in circs.

Thursday, September 20, 2007

Beginning of Understanding

I can't believe that I am actually doing this. I have heard my daughter and her friends talk of such places as My Space, etc... yet I never really understood how those things all worked. I am surprised to find that I am able to blog and that it is not too difficult. Though - keep in mind - that I have not had to find this site a 2nd time yet. Hopefully, the process will remain relatively simple. Carol