Thing 29 and 30 My Last Entry and I'm Thrilled

Well Web 2.0 was definitely a learning experience for me. Unfortunatley, many times I found the experience to be very frustrating. Since I am definitely computer challenged I must give a big thank you to two of my coworkers, Elizabeth & Crystal, for getting me through to the end. I have come to the realization that social networking, YouTube, Wikis, RSS Feeds, etc... are not for me. However, if it wasn't for this training I would have never visited any of the various sites. I can relate to the blog by "Problems with Dogs," when they said they would have never done any of this if it weren't for this training and that they have expanded their horizons. I did learn alot but truly wonder how much of it I will every use at work and especially at home.

After reading several of my coworkers blogs, I must agree with alot of the comments on "A Learning Experience." I also thought that this training required too much reading and much more time than I had initally anticipated. There were several problems with links and not having sound cards on our public computers was a big hinderance. I also didn't like having to create so many accounts that I will never use again.

I did enjoy all of the beautiful pictures of Miss Princess Reagan. Also, the grooming experience on another blog was a hoot. Being a huge pet lover I can relate 100%

I'm done and I feel a great weight lifted from my shoulders.

Thing 28 Rollyo

This weeks Web 2.0 assignments have been fairly easy for me which is a nice change of pace. I took a look at Rollyo and a few other search scrolls. Unfortunately, several of the recently added scrolls were rather obscene. However, I did find search scrolls interesting since you can customize your search results to websites that you feel are trustworthy. You don't have to wade through irrelevant websites.
Rollyo and other search scrolls would be beneficial to students who are writing papers or doing research on a particular topic. It's a fast and easy way to find information on topics from trusted websites.

Thing 27 LibraryThing

Library Thing is the world's largest bookclub with over 22 million cataloged books. It is definitely a great site for lovers of books. It allows you to connect with and share books with individuals who read similar titles or genres. You can create a library quality catalog of your books and write reviews also.

Here is a link to my LibraryThings catalog

Thing 26 Image Generators

I explored various image generators such as The Generator Blog and FD Toys. I found several fun things that could be done by using them. You can create such things as photo calendars, jigsaw puzzles, and photo walls with FD Toys site. I looked at Hairmixer Generator and Badjokes Generator. A coworker told me about Heritage Celebrity that you can use for face recognition and genealogy. Below is the link to that site where you can discover the "celebrity in you."

http://www.myheritage.com/FP/Company/tryFaceRecognition.php

Thing 25 Podcasts and the Public Library

I looked at several podcasts from various academic and public libraries. Denver Public has podcasts with Harry Potter interviews. They also have a podcasts for storytime favorites. Unfortunatley, Websense blocked that actual podcasts but I was able to see what the various libraries offer on podcasts. Boulder Public Library had an entire section of podcasts published by their teen group.

I now see how a public library could use podcasts to market their libraries and services. Several sites had podcast book reviews.

Here's a few links to some funny podcasts on YouTube

Thing 24 Podcasting

I tried to discover the world of podcasting but I didn't get very far. At my building we do not have speakers or headphones for the public computers, so I couldn't view the assigned podcasts. I tried the staff computers and Websense blocked Podcast.net and Podcastalley.com. Yahoo Podcasts link sent me to the Yahoo Search Page and I tried searching the subjects podcasts, but they entries required downloading.

I checked out CNN's podcasts and pasted it's link here.

Thing 23 YouTube and video sharing

I checked out YouTube and found a couple of funny videocasts such as Ninja Librarian and Angry Housewife. I clicked on the section under Pets and Animals and saw several inapppropriate and depressing videocasts. There are also sections such as Most Viewed and Top Favorites. Overall, I guess I'm just not into the YouTube generation. I'm not sure how the library could apply YouTube to our website, but maybe I will learn about that later.

Thing 22 Flickr Mashups

I found the following explanation to easiest to understand defining what Mashups are:
It is similar to producing a new song by mixing two or more old songs together.

I looked at several mashups and found a few that looked interesting such as Framer, CD Covers, and Magazine Covers. I didn't see much about Mappr that would be useful for me.

Thing 21 Tags and Flickr

Tags are used to organize your photos under common keywords. By tagging your photos folks who have common interests can view your photos. Flickr creates a photographic community by enabling people with similar interests to stay in contact. Flickr lets you to do many different things with your photos such as make business cards, photo calendars, cards, and photo books. You can add comments, descriptions, and tags to your photos.

I also read an article giving examples of how libraries can use Flickr to their advantage. They can highlight new materials, create virtual tours, promote teens, and share the librarie's history.

Chance my "tried to be" Siamese Cat

Thing 20 Flickr

I checked out Flickr's site and found it to be interesting. After looking at this site I realize, now that I actually have a digital camera, I need to get busy uploading some photos. Flickr will allow me to keep up to date with friends and family I haven't seen in awhile. Being challenged in the technology department I have alot to learn and discover when it comes to photo sharing.

I found a photo in Flickr of a couple walking hand in hand along a beach with a beautiful sunset. This is definitley a favorite thing for me to do with my husband when we are on vacation.

Here's a link to my Siamese kitty Chance

Thing 19 Web 2.0 Awards

I visited the site www.realtravel.com and found alot of useful information that would be helpful when planning a trip. This site is similar to tripadvisor but much more. I liked reading blogs that people wrote about their trips. I found the personal photos a nice addition. This site has many useful features such as Editor's Picks, Forums, Destinations, Travel Chat and Travel Gear.

I could find myself using this site often to check out what folks had to say about their travel experiences. Also, many of our customers are very interested in our travel books so this would be a nice site to offer them for additional information.

Thing 18 Technorati

Technorati is the leading search tool for blogs and with 70 million blogs out there it is a much needed tool. I found it to be easy to use and interesting to look at. You can search entire blogs by keywords and subjects. Technorati indexes blogs, photos, and videos and has popular categories such as News, Sports, Business, and Life. It lists the most favorite/popular blogs and top blog searches.

I could find myself actually using this search tool and found it to be fun to look at.

Thing 17 Tagging, Folksonomy, and Del.icio.us

After reading several of the articles I've come to the realization that researching tools have changed drastically since I was in college. I definitely feel left behind in the technological era.

Social and collaborative tagging can be very useful in managing content and categorizing material. It is currently the hottest Internet trend. Social bookmarking is an inexpensive way to share information that has few restrictions. It appears to be simple to use. However, I don't see myself using much of anything that I've read about in this section of Web 2.0

Del.icio.us looks to be a helpful learning tool also. It allows you to build reading lists and research lists and in turn share everything you have found on a certain topic. It is a peer driven learning tool that expands the world of research to millions of people.

Thing 16 Create a My Space account

I created my own My Space account and found the site not easy to use. I didn't like all the advertisments and found it difficult to access various portions of it. I found it to be more like a place to just put up advertisments and receive alot of unwanted respones.

My opinion didn't really change after reading some of the discovery resources. I think it just the fad right now and will be replaced by something else in the future like Facebook. I guess it's so popular because it allows people mainly teenagers to express themselves without others knowing who they are. It is a cyber place to meet and discuss their lives and find others who feel like themselves.

I have no desire to try My Space. I guess I'm just too old to appreciate the experience.

Thing 15 Get the 411 on Social Networking

I learned some interesting things about My Space from the articles that I read. Online social networks have replaced the traditional places for people to hangout and meet like restaurants and malls. They are cyberspace hangouts. There are over 95 million registered users and if social networks were a country it would be the 12th largest country in the world. My Space recently surpassed Google in terms of number of hits and pages viewed.

Social networks have the same pitfalls as traditional meeting spaces. Since teenagers tend to post too much personal and accurate information, online predators are a given. Also, teachers are dealing with mean messages, degrading photos being posted, and cyberbullying. Social networks can be fun with the right amount of parental involvement.

I think that VBPL shouldn't be offering My Space and other social networks just to offer them. There should be a meaninful reason that we do so not just because it's out there. We should be engaging our patrons and improving our services when offering online social networks. I also feel that My Space is just a fad like other online social networks that have lost their popularity. Evidentally, Facebook is becoming the new social network of choice for many teenagers.

THING 14 Reader's Advisory Wiki

I found it easy to use the VBPL Reader's Advisory Wiki. I was able to add my "staff pick" quite easily. I also found editing the page to be simple too!

The wiki has several helpful parts to it. The display idea section was interesting to read. I never new that red is the most unfavorable color to use for a book's cover since people avoid the color red. I also found some helpful hints/tips for displaying books such as using mirrors or shiny fabrics. I looked through the section on books for teens and found several interesting titles.

THING 13 Wikis

A wiki is a website that is quick to build and easy to edit. Information can be changed, edited, or rewritten by the members of the site. It is a collaborative site that allows the pooling of knowledge and exchanging of ideas.

The are many pros and cons about wikis. It is a free and open source that is flexible. Anyone has the ability to take part in its creation. Since anyone can edit a wiki it can be disorganized and have a lack of control. It is open to vandalism, spam, and malicous people.

I don't think wikis are for me. Since I am such an over organzied person it would drive me crazy that anyone can edit the wiki. The lack of control one has over a wiki would drive me to my wits end.

Wikis could be useful in the library world since they can provide community information and other things such as programs, reader's advisory, reference services. They can provide a connection between our patrons and the library.

Thing 12 Discover how VBPL is using IM and Reference IM

VBPL is now offering IM Reference Services. Currently it is not being utilized much, but hopefully it will catch on with our customers. There have been some glitches, such as Meebo showing the library offline when in fact we are online. Hopefully, Meebo will bring back some of those customers especially teenagers who seem to be utilizing online resources instead of coming to their local library.

I tried the link for submitting a question to Ask VBPL from the list of "30 Things" and the page is unable to be found. I did go to our home page and investigate how to submit an IM question through Meebo, but I didn't want to create unnecessary or busy work for those folks manning the IM reference. Also, I didn't want to create unnecessary traffic that might impede a customer from reaching our IM service.

I do think that IM reference at the local library is a good service and that messaging and reference at the library are a good mix. It extends our capability of answering questions and reaching a whole new audience.

Thing 11 How libraries are using IM

IM (instant messaging) differs from traditional communication channels since IM allows instantaneous communication between a number of parties simultaneously. It is considered less intrusive than phone conversation since people aren't forced to reply immediately. In contrast to email IM lets parties know whether their peer is available, busy, or away from the computer.
It is more genuine than email since allows easy colloboration.

IM's availabilty and ease of use has made it extremely popular. Libraries are now using IM to communicate and answer questions in real time.

IM has become increasingly popular with teenagers since it allows easy communication with friends. 87 percent of teenagers between 12-17 are online. 4 out of 10 online Americans are using IM, thats 53 million Americans. In order for libraries to stay up to date with all of their customers they must start offering IM services.