Week 10, Final Post

Hooray, we have reached the finish line!!! The finale video is most appropriate. It has been a great ride, both enjoyable and informative. At times it was tough finding enough time to get the exercises done, especially since we have been shorthanded recently, but the effort was worthwhile. I saw many possibilities during the program that previously were unfamiliar to me.

The information on internet safety was timely. The safety concern is my primary objection to the proliferation of social networking sites. I think the Flickr site and photo editing tools might be fun to play with more. Also the avatars were fun. Zoho is a great word processing program that is available free. If I didn't already have Microsoft Office, I would be very interested in using it for word processing. It would be way too easy to waste a couple of hours on YouTube. There are some funny things on that site. I like Bloglines because it lets me access a lot of sites of personal interest from one location, but I probably won't use the podcast audio feature much. I would have more opportunity to read the posts than to listen to them. I had already been looking at some of the library blogs occasionally, but having them all right there at my fingertips is nice. I will use this site frequently. Library Thing has definite possibilities. I don't like the way Library Elf displays in Webmail. If I switched it to go to my home email, I would probably like it better.

I read one post suggesting a Wiki for Harriet, and think that is a good idea. Wikis could also be used for patrons to post book reviews and suggestions for other patrons to read. Of course, we are already posting pictures on our website using Flickr, so hopefully, that will continue and become more widely used. Web 2.0 and Library 2.0 are the wave of the future, and we must adapt and respond to the needs and interests of our patrons if we want to remain viable. I don't think libraries are in danger of extinction, but if we remain mired in the past and refuse to adapt to our changing world, our influence is sure to be limited.

Week 9, #22 Downloadable Media

I was impressed with the variety of material available on Overdrive. I think the selection is better for audio books than for videos. The selection will only improve as funds become available to purchase more titles. I love to read, but have never acquired the audio book habit, so haven't investigated the service before now. If I spent more time in my car, I would definitely be interested.

I was not impressed with LibriVox or Wowio. LibriVox might be fine if you need to find an old classic, but since all of their books are in the public domain, there are no currently popular authors included. I noticed that the books are read by volunteer readers and sometimes each book has multiple readers, with different chapters assigned to different readers. This could be a bit annoying if some are poor readers or have less pleasant speaking voices. I don't know what the company does to monitor the quality of the recordings. Wowio did not appear to have many interesting titles available. One of my coworkers noted that the publishers and authors seem to be mostly unknown. I also found the search feature to be very imprecise. All searches seem to be keyword searches for any of the words you list. A search for John Grisham brought up any book with either "John" or "Grisham" anywhere in the summary. There were 36 pages of results, but no books by the popular author. When I searched for "John Grisham" with the quotation marks, it found no titles, so this is a more accurate search. One nice feature was that when you move the cursor over the picture of the book a dialog balloon pops up with a blurb about the book. This makes it possible to get basic information about that title quickly. I didn't see much on the site that I was interested in pursuing.

Of the three options, our HCPL Overdrive service is clearly the best. Way to go, Harris County!

Week 9, #21 Podcasts

I took a look at Podcastalley.com and was able to add two podcasts to my Bloglines account. I chose to add SirsiDynix Institute and Uncontrolled Vocabulary. I also added LibVibe on the recommendation of one of my colleagues. I don't know yet how much I will use them because usually if I have time for things like this, it is between customers while I am at the circulation desk. For obvious reasons, it is easier to read a blog under those circumstances than to listen to an audio feed. Anyway, it is nice to know that this is an option. I am sure there is some interesting information which is available in this format.

Week 9, Post 20 You Tube

Well, this is supposed to be about You Tube, but I just discovered how to change fonts and print colors on this blog, so I have to mention that. It is amazing what you can figure out if you open your eyes.

I looked around on You Tube and saw lots of entertaining things, but not a whole lot of substantive content. I especially looked at some of the library related things. The "get a library card" commercial where the boy uses his library card as a noisemaker in the bicycle spokes is cute. He really gets "the look" from that librarian. I also like the Super Librarian. If I could shelve as fast as she does, we would get things done a lot more quickly! Cookie Monster was bemoaning the absence of cookies in the library. He obviously missed storytime at Crosby today. The Thanksgiving party for the children featured lots of cookies plus popcorn, fruit, and lemonade.

It is frustrating to navigate the site since our site restriction query keeps popping up. "Press continue if this is work related." Too bad this annoying question couldn't have been suspended for the duration of the exercise. Also, after watching some of my coworkers pull their hair out for the last two days trying to open accounts and download videos to their blogs, I decided to avoid the optional exercise altogether.

As far as application of this technology to the library website is concerned, maybe we could have a contest to create a commercial to promote the library system. The creations could be downloaded onto our website and then judged for originality, humor, or other factors and the winners could be given special recognition on the website. Perhaps we could even get some of the TV stations to air the winners as public service announcements.

Week 8, Post 19

This is the first time I have used Zoho Writer. 

It looks like it has some pretty cool features. 

I like the idea that a program like this is available without purchasing software. 

For students and those on limited incomes, this is a great equalizer.

I am having fun playing with all the colors and fonts.

These features would be useful in making signs, party invitations, etc. 

I would probably not type a business letter in orange, but it would be great for a fall party.

It is also easy to change font sizes if you need a caption or headline.

 I have used Microsoft Word many times, but I like Zoho, too.

It is intuitive and easy to use.

I like Zoho very much and would consider using it it in the future.

 

Week 8, #18 Social Networking

I was somewhat familiar with Myspace before this exercise, but I am not really interested in this type of communication. My idea of social networking is lunch with a couple of friends or a potluck supper with the church ladies. I think it is a generational thing to a great extent. I look at my daughter-in-law's Myspace page occasionally. I might be interested at some point in a group that addresses a particular health concern or personal interest, such as those available on Ning, but right now I just don't have time for that sort of thing. Also, I think I am a very private person and the idea of putting personal information out there for everyone to see just goes against my nature. In looking at Myspace, I found some 18 year old girls who were using the site as a way to meet guys, which just blows my mind. They obviously don't realize how much danger they are in. I am glad my children are adults and are responsible enough to be cautious. I know that if I ever decide to participate in a site of this kind, the information posted will be very general in nature.