Week 9, Thing 23 Summary

Well, this is it, the 23rd thing! I have learned so much by completing "23 Things". I did not consider myself a very "techie" person, but this course has definitly expanded my knowledge of 2.0 technologies. I liked the fact that it was self-paced. This was important to me due to the fact that the summer is a busy time at the library and many staff take vacations. I did become slightly frustrated with having to come up with so many passwords for the different accounts that I set up, but I learned to live with it. I really enjoyed and had fun creating and posting to my blog, using FD Toys in Flickr fun, creating my avatar, and exploring Youtube. I really found LibraryThing to be user friendly and easy to use. One of the greatest discoveries for me was the online productivity tool, Zoho. I have shared this discovery with my family in case they find themselves in a situation where they need to create and save a document, but have forgotten their thumbdrive or do not have the correct software on the computer they are using. I also liked the fact that I was not in this alone! I could rely on the assistance of a co-worker when needed. I think that "23 Things" definitly brought home for me, the message of the importance for the future of libraries to adapt to the trends that our customers are using. It provided library staff with many ideas and examples of how to promote and provide library services through the web. I would definitly participate in another discovery program such as this. There is ALWAYS something to learn!

Week 9, Thing 22 Downloadable audiobooks

I took the Overdrive Media guide tour and found it very user friendly and helpful. I did find many titles in Overdrive that I am interested in. I found the many features on Overdrive very easy to use. I liked the way the different topics were listed under the Browse Fiction, Non-fiction, and Video. Perhaps if I am fortunate enough to win an MP3 player, I will try an ebook!

Week 9, Thing 21 Podcasts

I explored the MERLIN podcasting link. I thought it was interesting to be able to hear stories from the Westerviller Library, see public programming information and staff training from the OPAL link, and hear library related news from LibVibe. I decided to add the RSS feed to LibVibe to my bloglines account. I think that podcasts are a wonderful, easy way for libraries to promote programs and present storytimes, booktalks, and trainings.

Week 9, Thing 20 You Tube

I always have fun exploring You Tube. For this activity I watched a video called "Libraries in 2010". It certainly ties in with "23 Things'. It states that librarians are the leaders of the info community and need to be on top of emerging technology trends.

The video I decided to share below is of Dan Dunn, an amazing artist. Take a look!

Week 8, Thing 19 Web 2.0 awards

I explored the short list. I found that I was familiar with some of the award winners as they are sites I have visited along my journey through "23 Things", (i.e. Technorati won first place for blog guides and bloglines won second place). I explored Upcoming, first place winner for events. I found it very useful. I liked how you could browse by category ( music, social, education, family, sports, other). I also liked the option of selecting a particular weekend, week, or month for your search. The next time my family is looking for something interesting to do, I will visit Upcoming.

Week 8, Thing 18

I set up Zoho account. I created a test document, then tried to publish it to my blog. I couldn't find the document on my blog at first. I finally realized that it was listed as a draft among all of my posts, so I had to actually go in and click on "publish post". It appeared below this post.Anyhow, I enjoyed exploring Zoho. I think that it is wonderful that you have access to free software which enables you to create a spreadsheet (Zoho Sheet), powerpoint (Zoho Show), or word document (Zoho Writer), without having to download the software. I also like the fact that you don't have to worry about different software versions or file types. I have Microsoft Office Word 2007 and every time I create a document at home, I have to remember to save it as a Word 97-2003 document so that I can edit it at work and open it as an email attachment at work. I didn't get a chance to explore Google Docs, but would like to come back to that when time allows!

ZOHO TEST DOCUMENT

Test Document

July 31, 2007

This is my test document for Zoho Writer.

• Just like working in Word
  

1. I can use bullets
2. I can do bold print
3. I can do itallic print
4. I can underline where I need to
5. I can find and replace a word
6. I can use spell check

• I think this is great. No more spending money to purchase the newest version of Microsoft Office!
• You don't even need a thumb drive to save the document to. It is just saved right in your account!
• I like the many templates that are available.
  

Week 7, Thing 17 Sand Box Wiki

I created an account in the Maryland Libraries sandbox. I added my wiki with an attachment to my blog to the list of Maryland Libraries Blogs. I had a little bit of difficulty posting the link to my blog, but with a little patience, I figured it out on my own.

Week 7, Thing 16 WIkis

I like using Wikis. One of the Teams that I served on used a Wiki. I found it very easy to post to. It is a great way for a team to communicate what they are doing with the entire staff and allow other staff to post their thoughts and suggestions as well. I did learn in this activity that you need to protect your wiki from spam. I think using a wiki for book reviews would be a fun way of sharing thoughts.

Week 6, Thing 15 Web 2.0 and the future of Libraries

These activities really helped me tie Web 2.0 together with libraries. Just like Michael Wesch's video said, we need to make library space more user inviting. Every aspect of web 2.0 is something that future library users are familiar with and are using. Libraries need to change their way of thinking and do away with the "just in case" print collection and provide a digital collection of books, journals, blogs, etc. Libraries need to adapt to the customers they serve and bring their services to the customers through the web. After all, the web is a part of most of our customers' everyday routine and can be accessed from anywhere.

Week 6, Thing 14 Technorati

I explored technorati and found it a little overwhelming. It really isn't something that I feel that I would use. I did the keyword search for "Learning 2.o" in blog posts, tags, and blog directory and got different results for each. I came across a blog from "23 Things". I didn't spend a lot of time exploring top favorited blogs, top searches, or top blogs. Maybe I will go back to explore those more later.

Week 6, Thing 13 Del.icio.us

I tried to view the recommended tutorial a few different times, and was unsuccessful each time. So I went on to explore the PLCMCL2 account that was created at the Charlotte and Mecklenburg County Library. I can see where Del.icio.us would be a great tool for gathering information.

Week 5, Thing 12 Rollyo

I explored Rollyo, created an account, and created my own searchroll. Creating the searchroll was fairly easy. I am not sure that I would use it in my personal life. Then again, this is new to me, so maybe after I give it a chance, it will grow on me. I am having trouble getting the link to my searchroll to work. http://rollyo.com/321321321/your_childs_safety

Week 5, Thing 11 Library Thing

I found Library thing extremely easy to use. I really like the BookSuggestor that suggests books to read from titles you have already read. Here is the link to my library:http://www.librarything.com/catalog/shahn.

Week 5, Thing 10 Online image generator

I made this avatar in Yahoo avatars. It was fun playing around with all of the different options for the background, hair styles, clothes, and accessories. I also had fun looking at The Generator Blog. I may use the singing email generator to send birthday wishes or "pick me up" messages to friends in the future.

Week 4, Thing 9 MERLIN/news feeds

I looked at Merlin and subscribed. I linked to Gaming and Avatars. I had fun experimenting with Sitepal. I also like topix.net. It is a great place to get news feeds on local information. I could link to information about meetings on school redistricting when the new Ebb Valley Elementry School opens. This is important to me since my son is entering Kindergarten in August.

Week 4, Thing 8 RSS feeds and Bloglines

I set up my Bloglines account and subsribed to 13 feeds. I really like the fact that I only need to go to one place to find information that is interesting to me. This brings back memories of being on the Promotional Data Team!

Week 3, Thing 7 Post about anything Technology

I absolutely love my digital camera. It is great to be able to see the picture right after taking it so I can decide whether to save it or not. I used to hate paying to have pictures printed to find that I had taken a picture of the floor or something. I really like using Corel Snapfire Plus to edit and print my own photos at home. I enjoy being able to email my pictures to family in North Carolina and friends in Florida. I am not sure if I am ready to share picutres of my family and friends on Flickr yet.

Week 3, Thing 6 Flickr Fun

I explored Mappr and Flickr Color Pickr. I am not sure that I would personally use either of them. I did have a lot of fun with FD Toys'. That is where I made this magazine cover. I used a picture of a beautiful sunset that I took at the end of our family vacation in September, 2006. I was surprised at how easy it was to create.

Week 3, Thing 5 Explore Flickr

Wow, Flickr has so much to look at! Much more than time allows! I have a link below to a picture that is actually a painting I found on Flickr. I chose this picture because it is peaceful looking to me. I can just hear the relaxing sound of the water flowing under the bridge. I was a little frustrated over the fact that I couldn't get the actual image to appear on my blog after multiple tries. A blank box would appear with an x in the top corner which would link you to the image when you clicked on it. I didn't like the empty box on my blog, so I edited the post and added the following link to the image. http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardsonart/87364826/

Week 2, Thing 4 Register blog and track progress

I registered my blog. That was easy! On to the next thing!

Week 2, Thing 3 Set up your own blog

I set up my blog. I was surprised at how simple this was. The hardest part was finding a name that was not already in use. I have found that posting to my blog is very easy. So far, so good!

Week 1, Thing 2 Pointers from lifelong learners

I viewed the tutorial on the 7 & 1/2 Habits of Lifelong Learners. I posted in my test post which of the habits is easiest for me and which is the hardest.

Week 1, Thing 1 Find out about the program

I listened to the podcast and read the blog. I will definitely be learning about some things I have never even heard of. I am encouraged by the fact that many of my co-workers will be working on this as well so that we can lean on each other!

Test Post

The habit that is the easiest for me is habit 7 1/2, PLAY. Who doesn't like to play? I consider play as spending time with my husband and son, being outside, taking walks, going to the beach, baking, and curling up with a good book.

The habit that is the hardest for me is habit 6, using technology to my advantage. I am not a technical person. I am leary of using new technology. I am hoping that by completing "23 Things", some of my fears will disappear.