Thing 23 - Final thoughs

I learned why so many people spend a lot of time in the Internet!

I really like RSS feeds. I like GoogleReader and Bloglines. I have more feeds in Google, but I prefer how Bloglines will show the whole post. I liked working with Flickr - I keep flirting with the idea of buying a digital camera because Flickr is so easy to use. I now have a quick method of communicating with family members that I normally wouldn't see more than twice a year, if that.

I am grateful that a second run of 23 Things On a Stick was offered because my work life was too busy during the first run for me to get any time to work on it. I have co-workers who still aren't getting time to work on it and would probably benefit from a third round.

I am still thinking about how to use a wiki for the library's web links, but there might be an easier method that we are already using that I don't know about...

I would be interested in continuing with 23 More Things On a Stick.

One word, with a hyphen - Eye-opening.

Thanks!

Thing 22 - What did I learn today?

Will I keep up my blog? Erm. Perhaps, but realistically, probably not. I know that I will continue to go back to the Things I have learned as other people I work with continue going through the 23 things because this is such a collaborative learning experience. For example, I just had a thing related Google chat and this opportunity allows me to refresh my memory of how the gadget works.

I have been adding things to my GoogleReader and Bloglines accounts to keep me updated. I think that that will be one of my more heavily used Things.

I will continue to read the feeds and add new ones as life shows me. Library journals will also keep me informed of what is going on, and I will allow the articles to instruct me to seek out more information.

Thing 21 - Beyond MySpace: Other Social Networks

I was on a fan list serve once. The level of dedication some people gave to the list serve was truly impressive. Some of the members commented so frequently and personally that I am sure it became a community for them.

I think it is good to know what is available, but I really don't think I have seen anything that I need to get involved with. Although, again, I find I can spend a lot of time looking around and not accomplishing anything but allowing the sun to move further in its inevitable path.

I was just looking at Fuzzster. Yeash. There is quite a bit of junk blog posts sitting around. 4 people joined yesterday, and 2 people joined so far today. It doesn't look like it is incredibly popular.

Thing 20 - Libraries and Social Networks

Phew! I was on the Santa Clara City Library My Space page and boy is it loud and busy and sick making. Tulare's is nice and sedate. Arapahoe's is OK. Just looked at Hennepin's and now I am noticing that many of the friend's comments are the same across all of the library MySpace accounts. The same authors with the same posts, the same libraries saying "hey, thanks for the add!" I do like the search the catalog widget on the Hennepin space.

So, I signed up for a Facebook account and I joined "Don't mess with me, I worked in a public library." It is good to see that people are the same all over... I, of course, joined the 23 things on a stick group. I let Facebook check my personal e-mail account and locate people for me and in quick succession I was "friended" by 8 people. Phew. Then one of them started sending me flair and a countdown clock to the MN State Fair. More things on a stick!

I thought it was easy to find people I know. However, I am not certain how helpful this truly is for libraries. On MySpace there were few recent posts on the blogs and the only people commenting were lesser known (if that) authors and other MySpace libraries excited about joining the network. Are we just out there talking to ourselves and not reaching who we intend to reach?

So, there seems to be a difference between personal Facebook profiles and professional or institutional ones. Fans are for the institutions and friends are for the personal. I can't get to the information explaining the difference, so maybe I am wrong, but hey, whatever. I am bogging my computer down by having too many things open.

Thing 19 - Podcasts

I listened to St. Cloud State University Memoirs for School Library Media Episode 10 - interview with Wanda Erickson a School Media Specialist and a Public Librarian. I have listened to podcasts before, most recently when I was all excited about a grant opportunity to have teen gaming in our library. (We didn't get the grant. Bummer.)

Podcast.com is easy to use. I ended up on a listing of Eco podcasts. In the amount of time I felt I should be spending on this, I did not see a podcast that I really had to listen to. Podcast.net wouldn't load. I couldn't get Podcastalley.com to load, either. And I didn't find anything in Yahoo! that I wanted to listen to. I did find a lot of music, rather than podcasts. Ooh, I just searched podcast Abbott and Costello - too bad I am not sitting at a computer with sound! (OK - now I am at a computer with sound. On one site it took a long time to load, but with a different interface it loaded quicker. A "Radio America" podcast loads better from mefeedia.) Education Podcast Network is very organized.

I don't plan to sign-up for any podcasts at this time - as I am typing this I have the Abbott and Costello show playing and they are doing a cigarette ad. Ah, the "good" old days. I am not interested in creating podcasts, but again, this could be something that a teen advisory board could do for promoting books. This should be easier, equipment wise, then doing videos.

Thing 18 - YouTube & other Online video

I think doing online book talks would be a great activity for a teen advisory board. (If we had one...) I didn't have trouble with the sites. But, I did spend a bit more time poking around than I probably should have. It is time for dinner!! Put Down the Ducky! Uploaded by RolloSmokes February 20, 2007.

Thing 17 - ELM Productivity Tools

I got the search alert set up. My topic is kind of esoteric, so I won't expect frequent feedback.

At first I thought that creating a website through EBSCO would be silly, but when I e-mailed it to myself and saw how easy it then was to access the articles I thought it was pretty neat. It makes we wonder why EBSCO would allow this kind of sharing of documents (for anyone, anywhere could receive the e-mail and look at the articles), but it is not for me to always wonder why.

I like that in Proquest, you don't need to set up an account to create the webpage. But, this method allows me to lose my file, while the EBSCO log in will keep the information for me off site.

I created a NetLibrary account many years ago and it was a challenge to remember what my account name and password are. I think I used NetLibrary in college and grad school, and because of my own usage, I have recommended this particular database to patrons.

Unfortunately, the e-content was not available because my library did not own the book recommended. I found a different book and clicked around in it for a bit.

The RSS feeds can help patrons receive new information on their topic without them having to search again. This is useful for students and for everyday people who have an interest in new information on a topic of their choice. Results from the RSS feeds are informational treats that show up when unexpected. Staff can use the website feature of EBSCO and ProQuest to seek assistance from other staff members in answering a question. They could put "this is what I have found... this is how I searched... what can you think of that I missed?... oh, and btw, this is why they were asking..."

Thing 16 - Student 2.0 tools

At first I didn't see any real draw in the University of Minnesota Assignment Calculator, until I saw that they did indeed suggest indexes to use to seek information on the topic. That is truly helpful! If you have access to that index or database, that is.

I like to think that university students already know how to research and write an assignment. But it is good that they have a time line with quick references to refresh their memories on best practices.

The Research Project Calculator is great! Many times we will have students in the library asking for books when they haven't thought out their papers. Other times we get students in who have completely thought out a science experiment and then wanted a book that proves them right. Erm...

I do like the teacher instructions. It gives teachers the option to read through the research process in detail, or to get a quick overview. I like that they get to see exactly what the student sees and then see what their guiding roll should be.

The Research Project Calculator has been added to our library's website because our webmaster did the first round of 23 Things On a Stick. I don' t know how much use it has had.

Thing 15 - Online Games and Libraries

Puzzle Pirates Adventures! isn't working. :-(

I try to create a new account and I get "Logon failed: Either there is a temporary network outage or the server is down for maintenance. Please wait a moment before reconnecting."

I have not played online games. I have purchased games and downloaded them over the internet - anyone try Snood? Fantastic. I played frequently when I was in grad school. It got to the point that I would see their little faces every time I blinked. I am not meant to play games because I get obsessed for varying amounts of time. When I first started Sudoku, I got to the point I would continue to try to solve a stuck puzzle when I was trying to fall asleep. No paper in front of me. Just my memory of how the puzzle was laid out. Truly a waist of brain power. And not a power I have been able to use in other aspects of my life.

Ah, you know what? I have played online games. It's that darn Sudoku, again!

I watched the tour of Info Island. I think that was enough Second Life for me. I could stare old brick wall screen saver for hours. I don't want to be wandering around hour after hour. I would feel the need to get a new computer and high-speed internet. Then my real life, as I know it, would be over. Aside from that, there is no way Second Life will load correctly on our work computers, or on my dial up connected computer at home. Sorry.

We have teens and preteens come into the library and play virtual games. RuneScape is one of the favorites at the moment. This just reminded me that we need to set up a new copy of the physical game "Guess Who?"

I have read that women in their middle years are the largest population of gamers. These would be the women who unwind at the end of the day by playing bridge or Sudoku or something else online. Some of these women come into the library, too. It isn't just teens and preteens.

Thing 14 - LibraryThing

I don't know if I would use this for the teen blog. I think I wouldn't because I am already putting covers and thoughts about the book in the postings. We use Bookletters with our website and that links directly to our catalog, so I don't see where we would use this. It is interesting, however.

I put in 20 books and someone had 15 of those books in her library. Her library consists of 100 books, so she had the jump on me. I added 6 more books, and now when I look at the "member with your books list" I have more people to choose from, but when I click on some of them, they have none of the books on their bookshelf that I do. How weird is that? Very.

You know, I might want to add this to the teen blog, if only for its recommendations. But, I would rather the teens comment on our blog then get sucked into LibraryThing and leave us in the lurch. Hmmm. But the rotating sample of the bookshelf could be interesting. But, then again, how much time should I be spending on this? On the one hand... on the other hand... but then again...

Thing 13 - Online Productivity Tools

I set up a start page with iGoogle. I tried to enter a countdown clock for when my expected death might be, but the clock only goes through next year and I plan on living much longer then that. So, I used the Google interface to search for more widgets (gadgets) and found one that allowed me to both add it to iGoogle and have the countdown go for many years. Ahh. Much better. Yet still slightly morbid. www.deathclock.com and http://www.widgetbox.com/widget/countdown-clock for your information.

I signed up for a Google Calendar. I tried to link it to the iGoogle page but that didn't fly. Hmm, I just went back and putzed with the settings and added weather, but I don't see it anywhere... Ah, that is because I am not that intelligent. I didn't tell it where I was. That feature adds a calendar to the account. Kind of cool. - But not here today. It is warm. But it is supposed to rain.

I think that I will pass on all of these. I live a very simple life and don't need to have an intricate calendar system set up. My to do lists are usually short enough to keep in my head if it is something that I am actually going to do in the near future. Or, I just write a note on a piece of paper and stick it somewhere I will see it. At home, those notes go on the patio door. At work, they live on the desk, or on the computer monitor. Extremely short term to do lists go on my left wrist. (I have been doing that for 19 years.)

I don't want to rely on a computer to tell me what I need to do because I can't rely on the computers to do what they need to do. We don' t have enough of them at work for everyone to have one to use, and really, too many websites and passwords. (Yes, I could del.icio.us the address, but argh!)

I looked at Backpack, but I didn't sign up for the 30 day free trial.

Thing 12 - Do you Digg?

Victory!! I have a Digg account. Alas, I created the account 2 weeks ago and can no longer remember my login/password. I do recall that receiving the original verification e-mail took 20 minutes...

I find this to be a time suck. Really, there a lot of interesting products available on the Internet to help us find information and share information, but I think it is too much to expect one person to use all of them. It is good to know that these things are out there, but I don't want to use them for work or for play.

My brother was telling me about StumbleUpon a few years ago (was it that long, already?). I just played on the site for a few minutes. It seems like play, and not so informative. I should be walking the dog, rather than Stumbling around on the net. (Or reading a book. Or cleaning the house... Mowing the lawn?)

I did see some cool things with StumbleUpon. But I don't find it necessary for my life or my work.

Still waiting for the password/login help e-mail...

Thing 11 - Tagging and del.icio.us

I think that this would be useful for research assistance as long as the person didn't go overboard in tagging everything. It is too easy to tag websites. It think that people will tag things that are marginally interesting and will clutter up their accounts making a particular website more difficult to look for than using a search engine. However, if a person uses care in the tags and the amount of websites that are tagged, this could be a very useful tool.

I like how San Mateo Public Library uses Dewey to organize its tags. But I really like how Mensha Public Library just uses major subject categories to bundle the tags. I think that this method is more useful for the public. It organizes the tags which otherwise would be very confusing.

I don't like the looks of tag clouds. I find them confusing. This is how my brain is wired, and I don't expect others to be like me. It is just too much for me to look at so I just gaze over it, seeing nothing. I would need bundling for this to make any useful visual sense to me.

Thing 10 - Wikis

I edited the front page of the 23 things on a stick wiki. I am the one who commented on how messy this particular wiki is. I like the idea of a group of people being able to work on a "project" at the same time. It looked to me that some of the projects had been abandoned, however.

I think internet subject guides would work well for a wiki. It would be worrisome to allow public input on the wiki - but if the "collective" can really enforce its will on the wiki, it might be safe. But, even with allowing only library staff to vet the sites and maintain the links, the programs are easy to use and multiple people can be working on the project and the information can be updated immediately. This is better than having one person in charge of the website, because that person usually has too much to do already.

I would think that teachers/faculty would allow Wikipedia to be used as a source but not by itself. If they require multiple sources, all of which agree, there should be no problem in using a Wikipedia article. The articles are quick overviews of subjects - for further reading or information, a person must continue researching.

I can understand limiting by format only if the idea of the project is to use a particular format in lieu of others. Such as, in this paper, you are only to use print journal articles. The next paper, books. The next paper, online journal articles.

Thing 9 - Online Collaboration Tools

I haven't yet been invited to alter the 23 things on a stick postings...

However, a colleague of mine who is also doing the 23 things sent me an invite to her Zoho article. I clicked on the 23 things on a stick Google doc and was invited to join Google docs and was given access to Sarah's Google doc that she shared with me without my knowing. Get it? Terrible run on sentence... Zoho sent me an e-mail about the document - Google said nada.

I think that both are easy to use. Google has an as you go spell checker - which I find helpful because my spelling is terrible and my typing isn't as accurate as I would like. Zoho can do an after the fact spell check and it makes the text red and underlines it (that way if your text is in red, you can still see that it found a spelling error). It accepts gonna as a word. Weird. So does this. When did gonna become an acceptable word?

I think that the founding fathers would have had an easier time working on the document if they could all see it at the same time and make alterations. Although, there could have been one wily one that would have just messed around because he could.

Anyhow, now I have add my embellishments to the document. My opinion hasn't changed. (My typing has gotten no better...)

Thing 8 - Share your creations

Photo Mosaic,
originally uploaded by nierl13.

Slide shows are a great way to show the progress of library projects. We are finishing up a recarpeting project and a slideshow was put on our website so that our patrons could see how things were going along.

I find the tools on Big Huge Labs to be very easy to use. I clicked around for a few seconds trying to figure out how to login. If I had actually read what they were asking me to do, I would have saved 30 seconds. Not a big deal. (I don't have many pictures in my Flickr account, this is why the Prince keeps showing up. - I don't want to use someone else's images, for some reason.)

Thing 7: Web 2.0 Communication Tools

Our library uses email to communicate internally. We also use it to contact patrons about overdues and reserves. We have a "Contact a librarian" link for reference questions. Email has improved productivity, especially with reserve notification. We usually don't have to worry about someone not getting a message as we would with a phone call. Email is helpful in communicating with staff when people work part time, evenings or are on vacation. The information is passed on and can be read when the person is next available, and they will not have been forgotten in the communication. Email reference can be challenging because clarification questions may need to be asked, and the lag time in getting those answers delays the reference process.

I am not an active of user of text messaging or IM. However, when I was in grad school we did communicate in chat rooms (IM). Because my schooling was on-line, we would participate in lectures in the chat environment. The teacher would post blocks of text and ask if we had questions or what we thought.

I watched most of the R U Ready? Setting up and running Instant messaging reference from MINITEX. V. interesting. I have seen quite a few webinars by now. Our ILS company has webinars prior to upgrades and we have also had them for product demos and as an introduction to downloadable audiobooks for the Arrowhead Library System. If the connection and computer both work correctly webinars can save a lot of travel time and convey timely information.

Thing 6 - Online Image Generators

Frog Prince Trading Card,
originally uploaded by nierl13.

Well. The frog is showing up everywhere now. I created a Wanted poster and a license plate in addition to this trading card. I could see adding some of these features to the Teens @ Duluth blog.

Thing 5 - More Flickr fun

Frog Prince Badge,
originally uploaded by nierl13.

This was fun. We could make our own puzzles for our play area. We could create badges for all of the toys. We could really waste a lot of time trying to figure out things to do just because we could.

More Thing 4

P1010002,
originally uploaded by nierl13.

Here is my 23 Things blog loaded on the computer at my desk. Check out the stuffed animal on top. His name is Mr. Bug and he belongs to my cousin. My aunt donated many of her toys to the library and I found Mr. Bug in one of the bags and rescued him. Unfortunately, he has not made it home with me yet. (He has been living up there for a year already.)

Babymouse is sitting behind the keyboard. Just so you know.

Thing 4 - Photosharing with Flickr

P1010005,
originally uploaded by nierl13.

Well, here is the Frog Prince puppet that I have used at Storytime. He is wearing my glasses. They look good on him, but when I got my new license on Monday, the glasses looked really crooked on my face. I don't like to think that my ears are that uneven.

I have to say that I really enjoy watching the "Common Craft" videos. They simply explain why and how to do something, and they are funny. It is a great way to teach.

I'm thinking of using the Frog Prince in my glasses as my Avatar for my Teen Blog, but it may look to young for the teens.

So, the above sentence says that I may actually use Flickr at the library by adding a picture to my blog. Maybe we could post pictures from our programs on the website, but then we have the trouble of getting permission of the people in the pictures... I don't know.

I like that pictures can be marked private. And I like that groups can be made to share the photos that may otherwise be kept as private. There are many ways to use the program.

Thing 3 - RSS feeds

I like this! I picked Google Reader and I added: BBC, CNN, Readers Club: Graphic Novels for Teens, Readers Club: Suspense/Thrillers (F), a few comic sites (For Better or Worse, Foxtrot, and there was something else, too. More on that later), and the Duluth News Tribune.

I don't like how some of the postings only show the title of the post and/or the date of the post. I like the ones that have the title and at least the first few lines of the post so that I can get an idea of what the whole things is about. I really like the ones that have the entire post. Nice.

I removed the feeds from the comics site because they just gave me links to the comic posted that day, they did not show the actual comic in the reader. This is not the case for Unshelved, which I added right after removing the others, so that I could see if it could work for a different site. I love Unshelved, too. (I think I will still get it in my mail box, however.)

I was reading a library journal the other day and wanted to checkout some of the blogs that they mentioned. I typed them into my Google Reader and had them added within seconds. (The Shifted Librarian, Alternative Teen Services, 2 cents worth, and Tame the Web.)

I just set up a Bloglines account because Google Reader wouldn't let me set up a feed with Pop Goes the Library. Hmm. Different features... This one lets me have the whole post displayed, if I want. I do want.

Unfortunately, the feature where Bloglines offers suggested feeds (quick pick suggestions) isn't working correctly. I am trying to add For Better or For Worse in this form and I keep getting an error message - try back later... [I just got one to add. Still won't add FBOFW, though. Whatever.]

I did just find that in the options I can have the oldest posts display on top. I like that feature and I don't see that I have that option on Google.

Ok. I am spending too much time on this... I think that RSS feeds and newsreaders are very helpful. I don't normally spend a lot of time surfing the Internet. But, because this is so easy to use, I find I am looking at many more things than I normally would. If I keep my selections to the minimum and on topic, I would find this to be helpful in my job or in my regular life.

I think both sites make adding a feed easy. You know, if everything is working properly that day...

Really. I am now obsessed with checking both of RSS feed accounts. Great.


Please note that I have been writing this post for 3 days.

Thing 2 - What is Library 2.0

[I really liked the "Wall of Books!"]

Time certainly is an issue!! My last post was mid-February. I thought I would work on this during my vacation, but my dial-up connection seems slower than ever. I am trying to squeeze this in here, and there. I will just have to not worry about the deadline.

I am participating in 23 Things on a Stick to learn things to help me in my job. I don't think that I am likely to use many of the 2.0 communication devices in my regular life, but I may be so impressed with the technology that I will.

The Internet allows near immediate gratification of many information needs. If I want to know who the actor was in a certain movie, I can access that information quickly. Then I can see what other movies the actor made. I can find biographical information, I can even find out how tall someone is and compare their height to another actor that they have worked with. Much of my personal use of the Internet is in pursuit of idle information. I don't really need to know the answer, but I can crawl around finding out lots of bits about very little.

For work, the Internet can be an informational life saver. If I have no idea what someone is asking me about, I can use the internet to get a quick overview of a topic so that I can better mine our physical library collection or on-line databases. But, sometimes, the information on the web is superior. I love the CIA World Factbook, the information is continually being updated.

I have low domain knowledge of the use of Web 2.0 tools. Our library does have 5 blogs, and we take reference questions by e-mail,... but that is probably Web 1.0.

Patrons can say if they like a book in the blog, but they can't create their own tagging through our catalog. We don't have "chat with a librarian" capability.

Actually, we do have a "write a review" of library materials on our Teen page, but very few teens actually do. And, I suppose that if 2.0 is about communication, this is an attempt at asking for patrons to communicate with us.

Thing 1 part 2

I think that all blogs should have counters. I have become obsessed with seeing how many hits our Teen blog gets on Wordpress and how the people are ending up on the site. I can see what search terms they used to land on my blog, but I can't tell what search engine they used. The more I play around, the more I like blog features, but I still am reluctant to post much because I don't want to create a blog with a lot of useless posts. I want the content to have meaning.

Thing 1

I have created a blog for our library, but with Wordpress, so it will be interesting to see the difference in functionality between the two blogs. My main problem with setting up this blog must have been a hardware issue with our aging computers.

I had never created an avatar before. That was interesting.