23 Things in Summary

I'm actually surprised to say that I did actually learn several things on this assignment. I learned about RSS and podcasts. I'm somewhat disappointed that we didn't cover some things that I expected the survey to cover. However, I think that we are all capable and now presumably encouraged to explore some of these things on our own and I myself have perused the 43 things website to see what our program was based off of. I would have like to have seen more things that would have enabled me to perform better in our daily work; we did have an exploration of overdrive and webfeat but as far as PBCLS goes that was about it. I mean most of us use YouTube and Flickr and such now or before but we don't use them at work and aren't supposed to. I would also like to see feedback on what happened with this project. I think a little more hands on could have helped many people who fell behind due to confusion. I know this is a self guided exercise but I know that many people needed a little extra guidance for directions in black in white are good but a lot of the time it doesn't compare to the aid of a coworker. Also.... the bloglines tutorial sucks. :) I think so many people got confused by it that I started telling people not to read it. At any rate I had fun and would be willing to do something similar again, I just don't know how many of my coworkers would be willing to do so.

Overdrive

I really like that you can listen to an excerpt, sometimes the reader's voice can irritate me so it's nice to get an idea of the voice before I spend the time to download it and sit down to listen to it. It's kind of disappointing that there are only a few copies of some of the titles. You would think that a digital book would have an unlimited number of copies. I also wonder why you can't return them early and check out a new title... ah well more mysteries to add to the collection.

Podcasts

I think that being able to subscribe to the podcasts via RSS feeds is really nice. Here I thought it was all just websites and they go and throw me more information to adapt to. Ah well the joys of learning. I really haven't paid much attention to podcasts much like RSS feeds, they're both things I heard about but dismissed. It's good to learn about these things though, it keeps me on my toes. I think much like other things, that podcasts are subject to the interests of those who like those sort of things. While I might want to share my passion for Harry Potter with others I don't know if everyone else really wants to partake.

I subscribed to http://feeds.feedburner.com/mugglecast on about the former topic and this one http://feeds.feedburner.com/LibrarySurvivalGuide on library type stuff. I'll continue perusing until I find more that I'm interested in.

YouTube

This brings back memories... Sesame street and libraries. I never saw this particular skit or at least I don't remember. YouTube is great for things like catching old clips, episodes and such. YouTube is a resource we've used throughout the project and I think that it could be very useful for the library system. Using it to guide patron's visually through checking their account online, setting up an ecard account or even giving them a tour of library features.

I also really like this one that I saw in a class for library school:

Library Humor Anyone?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/13/AR2008041302172.html

Check out this link to an interesting article from the Washington Post!

Web 2.0 Awards List: Yahoo! Pipes

I was exploring Yahoo! Pipes which is some kind of web development site used to filter and get RSS feeds similar to Bloglines. It seems to be more specific however, allowing you to control exactly what is fed through the "pipes" and what is not. I think its kind of neat but it seems very complicated. I will have to play with it some more before I truly understand it. I don't see this used in libraries really. I think also because it is meant for web development it isn't very user friendly yet. I would have a hard time trying to explain it in this blog let alone to another person.

zoho blog

So, this is online word processing. And theoretically I could allow my friends to edit my document, which reminds me a lot of the wikis. So I imagine wikis and online documents have some similar basis. I think that not having to struggle to match up document file types on different computers is a wonderful thing. Especially as a student! I've often had trouble because I use word perfect and teachers most often are using Microsoft Word because the school gets a package deal. Some of uss use what we get for free instead. At any rate I think this is a great benefit and wish I had known about it years ago. But perhaps I shall still make use of it now. So anyway I'm going to try to post this in my blogger account because it says I can do that... so let's keep our fingers crossed shall we?

PBCLS Wiki

*Point*

*Click*

*TYPE*

*EdIt* hehehe... the words change as I will... I am all powerful... I sit upon the rock with my fantasia hat upon my head and command inanimate things to do my bidding to classical music.

How cool is it to change a webpage that you're looking at? I wish they had made it more in depth than just favorites but that's the adventure seeker in me. I think the wiki is really neat. I love seeing what other people think and write, enjoy seeing people meet the challenge of linking and adding pictures.

Wiki what?

I love wikis. For years I've used Wikipedia and wikiHow. Although the information may not always be accurate, do to the number of people who might be writing, I've always found them to be fun. it's a way for a community to interact. Taking a look at some library wikis let me roll around in my mind the thought of using one for our library. I think it would be a really great way for people to be able to express their interests and give feedback about the library and the programs we offer. I think its also really neat to be able to update incorrect information.

I really liked the Library Success website with their list of librarians with IM features for those who want to network or neeed help.

I also explored the Stevens County Wiki Project and the way they encourage their patrons to get involved, to add to the wiki and to learn.

Views on Library 2.0

I really agree that the library must change as the web itself changes. As new forms of technology develop and are incorporated into the lives of library patrons, they must too be incorporated into the library. Many library staff are resistant to learning these new technologies and trying to adapt to them. I think this is a poor outlook when you think about the fact that a library is a place where learning should be taking place. Some libraries and some librarians are incorporating web 2.0 into their daily work but others still refuse. As these older librarians retire however, I see the library evolving. Those younger librarians who do not fear the internet and all it has to offer can only bring more web 2.0 features into play. I think in order to stay current the libraries must adapt to these things. Otherwise the library may become out dated. We are currently moving away from in-house collections to those on the web. A change like this means the whole concept of the library itself will change. Imagine a library with only fiction books on the shelves. Or even *gasp* a place that only has computers and book reader devices. Where you download the title you want instead of borrowing the hard copy. This is many years down the line I grant you but it may be the future of the library itself.

Del.icio.us

I think delicous is a really cool way to save myself time and energy. I hate how long the links lists get and how i create folder after folder to try and keep the list from going off my screen. Considering it just attaches to your toolbar it makes it oh so simple to do, not requiring any major set up or anything of the sort. I suppose the ability to find links through tagging is also a way to make research easier than it was before, basically sorting through research links someone else has already found.

Technorati and The Spiders

Once upon a time a little library employee thought of claiming a magical book called a blog through a treacherous land called Technorati. There were two ways to do this. The little library employee was brave and chose the harder of two methods... she posted a blog allowing the mysterious "spiders" of the Technorati to crawl over her page and verify she was not claiming that which was not hers. For if she claimed that which was not hers the spiders might give her the kiss of death, delete accounts, and all and all make the poor library employee's head pound in frustration. So she did as the Technorati bade her to do and created a post whereby to verify her existence and ownership of the blog.

Technorati Profile

Generators: Image

Oh if only my keyboard had a smite button.

Chuck Norris Random Fact Generator

"Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is in fact based on a true story. Chuck Norris once ate a live turtle, and when he crapped it out, it was six feet tall and knew karate. "

"Facebook was created for counting how many people left to be roundhouse kicked. "

"Chuck Norris' wristwatch has no numbers on it. It just says, Time to kick ass. "

"Once a cobra bit Chuck Norris' leg. After five days of excruciating pain, the cobra died. "

"Chuck Norris sleeps with a night light. Not because Chuck Norris is afraid of the dark, but the dark is afraid of Chuck Norris "

"Chuck Norris does not know where you live, but he knows where you will die. "

"Touching Chuck Norris' beard will increase your life expectancy by 6 years. Unfortunately, the following roundhouse kick will reduce your life expectancy by 300. You do the math. "

http://www.chucknorrisfactoids.com/

Fun with Generators

Technology At Its Best

Palm Beach County Library allCIRC, originally uploaded by latcorp.

When and if it works... this is the bane of my life. No not really. it's just the allCIRC... one more thing that we spend time coaxing to work and praying will not break.

"[It] provides complete protections for your CDs and DVDs" as long as it doesn't eat them. :)

Web"Fear"

WebFeat.... a new and improved way of dealing with the natural fear of the internet and the complexities they face in learning the new technology. It is very nice to be able to search several databases all at once and not have to search each one individually simplifications such as this will make it easier for technophobes to conquer thear fears, discover the amazing reach of the internet and all it has to offer them. I found it relatively easy to use and thus more user friendly than a lot of the things I've been exposed to of late. As for what I found when I did a search of my home town... for the most part I found articles relating to the economic and building crises that everyone is no doubt sick of as they live it day by day. Like most news always seems to be, most of it was negative and most of it was about things that only newspapers can profit from.

LibraryThing- Cataloging Fun

So I just created my LibraryThing account. This is kind of fun. It reminds me of iBook, and similar applications you can find on Facebook and myspace. An interesting way to keep track of what you've read, own, and get recommendations from people who read the same type of books, authors, etc. The only thing I don't like is that it only allows you to catalog 200 books for free... beyond that they want you to pay for them. Now I understand we're all here to make money but the similar services (which don't catalog but do offer very similar features and services) such as iBook don't seem to charge at all.

http://www.librarything.com/catalog/medlerj23things

Flickr

Volunteer Luncheon 2008, originally uploaded by pbclibrary.

I wish I had been at the volunteer luncheon to see these cool animals. It would be really neat if stuff like this would happen at the library every day not just for luncheons for volunteers. But hey go volunteers! Thanks for helping us out.

Generators- TEXT

Next time a supervisor gets stuck writing up an annual review... maybe they should go to www.endorser.org. Here's what my endorsement is:

"Jennifer was fantastic to work with. Working with Jennifer I found him as a person with great experience and deep knowledge of IT solutions. Jennifer is experienced strategist with excellent communication skills. Careful person, a person you can trust when you want to be sure that important tasks will be completed in a systematic and precisely way. Careful, customer-service oriented and independent expert, his knowledge is vast and thorough. His open-minded approach could not be overestimated. Has a lot of technical knowledge. "

RSS Feeds

So the RSS feeds make checking all the things I normally do abnormally fast. I really like being able to check sites updates all on one page. It really is a time saver. It's a pity that it isn't available on all websites yet. How this could be used in the library? I think it might be neat if it could be incorporated into the updates of the catalog. So that every time a new item was added it could be noted. I don't think it's possible that RSS feeds can be used that way but I don't know.

Technology @ Your Library

Technology is a wonderful thing... when it's used in a positive way.

Bringing self-check out machines into the library is wonderful. It aids patrons who are in a hurry to get their books and go. It enables staff to spend more time with patrons who may need more assistance.

Computerized catalogs make finding what you are looking for- be you a staff member or a patron- a snap. Where card catalogs could only turn up exactly what you looked for and lead you through a maze of drawers, computerized databases can bring all results to you in a matter of seconds.

Digitizing library collections means more space, more materials that can be accessed and happier patrons.

Library card sign up over the internet means more convenience for the patrons and continues to bring libraries forward.

When technology is used to cut jobs however, technology is not a wonderful thing.

Blogging @ Your Library

As far as blogs and libraries go its the best way for a library to stay connected with the under 30 set. Creating blogs on myspace, blogger and such sites will only provide yet another way for libraries to get information about to users who are often unaware of all of the services, benefits, and options that having a library card provides them. Blogging is a form of networking I suppose and this will enable the library to network. Also blogging can be a way for libraries to receive feedback from patrons in a less than orthodox way.

7 1/2 Habits of Highly Successful Lifelong Learners

discuss what you feel will be the most difficult part for you and why

Lifelong learning... it's never too late, and you can never learn enough. I can agree with that. In this case all library staff are being encouraged to learn about, use and play with new technologies and all aspects of what is being referred to as Web 2.0.

The difficulty I see for the duration of this project in regard to myself is that I am already familiar with most of the aspects of Web 2.0 to some extent. Therefore my challenge is not only to learn about those things that I am currently unfamiliar with, but also to aid my fellow coworkers should they need assistance as well.

As far as the 7 1/2 habits go... I find none of them complicated:

1. Begin with the end in mind: This isn't hard for me. I can already visualize being competent in the things I am unfamiliar with, and have an open mind about learning things about those I already am familiar with. Being a child of the computer age means I have the upper hand in this project.

2. Accept Responsibility For Your Own Learning: I'm self motivated in most things so this is not a challenge. :)

3. View Problems as Challenges: There are no problems in my life, only challenges to overcome. Self motto is hard to challenge.

4. Have Confidence in Yourself as a competent, effective learner: As the top of my class I
obviously have no trouble there.

5. Create Your Own Learning Toolbox: I believe in asking for help from my friends and if they can't answer me picking up a book or researching on the internet. Not much will stop me when I'm on a mission.

6. Use technology to your advantage: Yeah... I don't think this is a problem for me what with having grown up in the computer age and being obsessed with techie gadgets helps.

7. Teach or Mentor Others: Since I think I've single handedly taught people how to edit
myspace pages, helped them create accounts and have taught basic computer
troubleshooting to most of my coworkers... I think this is also already in practice.

7 1/2. Play!: Yeah... this is a no brainer... Play is what makes the days seem less painful. And what is Web 2.0 but a giant electronic playground.