Week #23

I can't believe I finally finished. I really loved what I learned and wish I had taken my time to learn at a more leisurely pace; it would have given me much more time to explore. I really like online learning, and am signed up to do an InfoPeople Searching class in early November. I also recently completed an InfoPeople online social networking class with Meredith Farkas, so I'm getting the information in lots of different ways. I also started a Readers Advisory blog for my high school, and am in the process of bribing students into creating reviews and commenting on mine.
My favorite discoveries were:

• that I have downloadable audiobooks available to me through my local Contra Costa Library.
• how cool blogs could be as a tool for communication and marketing.
• my google RSS reader--how did I ever live without this!!!!!

The only thing I could think of that you could do differently is somehow inspire people to continue and finish all the weeks. I noticed many people got off to a good start, me included, but faded out during summer. Maybe a weekly group email with lots of positive ideas would help us keep it more on the front burner...

Week 22 Teaching

I taught my husband how to use Delicious online bookmarking. He's an IT administrator at a Cancer Center and always reading online to keep up-to-date. I thought he would really like the idea of bookmarking pages to come back to later when he had more time. What he found out was that he didn't really make the time to go back to Delicious and look at the sites he had bookmarked. For him, if he didn't read it when he discovered something, it wasn't likely to get read. I showed him that it was also a cool way to see what people with similar interests were looking at, and he rolled his eyes at me. Although this was surprising to me, I reminded myself that we all learn in different ways.

Week #19 Google Maps

I like this tool a lot, although it was difficult to use with my older computer at work. It kept getting jiggly when I was trying to focus; I didn't feel completely in control of what I was doing. I was finally able to make a map of my library, and added a photo from our website.

View Larger Map

Week #20 Podcasting

I like these and could become addicted if I could use an MP3 player in my car audio system. I have trouble sitting in front of the computer listening to radio shows I missed. I went to the suggested podcast searcher at Yahoo, but evidently they're closing down on October 31. So then I visited:

http://www.podcast.net/

This was way cooler than Yahoo. They have a search window, but like the typical OPAC, you can search by a number of different attributes, including location and keyword. You can also browse by Tags--how Web 2.0 does it get! They also have a hierarchy of subject areas, like the virtual libraries. One thing that bothered me is that the podcasts are not really up-to-date. I searched for KQED FM's California Report, and the latest one they had was from 2006.

http://www.podcastalley.com/

Super nice interface! Easy to search, lots of browsability, small search window though. Makes complex searches hard. I really like the fact that they offer podcast software and a forum. Makes it easier for newbies to get on board.

www.podcast.com

The interface on this one isn't as attractive as podcast alley, but they sure offer a lot more features. What I especially liked:

• the link to their blog on the home page
• the "freshest" podcasts on the homepage
• the featured subdomains, including BBC, NPR and CNN. I suspect I might even be able to find a KQED FM subdomain if I looked around a little.
  

Week #20 YouTube

I am already a fan of YouTube and play there erratically. I used it to to learn about web 2.0 and found some great Second Life tutorials there. Here is a very interesting music video I found, the first I've seen about libraries. A little stereotypical, but fun anyway.

Week #18 Online Productivity

I played with the Zoho Writer - Online Word Processor and was totally impressed. I looked at the Google app. last week and loved it, too. I can really see this being useful for students to use at school, especially for group projects. I told my daughter (who's at college) about it, and she will probably use to for her screen writing class for quicker access to feedback from the other students. I especially liked the fact that you can export the document in different formats, including PDF & HTML for easy access on a webpage.

Weeks 16 & 17 - Wikis

I really liked looking at the different wikis. I especially appreciated that wikis can use different formats, like the one for November's CSLA conference. For me, the conference ones are especially invaluable, since it's hard for me to get out to many of these. If a lot of folks contribute and the presenters attach their handouts and links, it can be almost as good as being there. Well, not really, but it'll have to do. I absolutely loved the BookLoversWiki and was considering doing something like this for readers advisory at my high school. But then I decided that a blog was a better way to go.

Here is my addition to the 23 Things Wiki:

I love using YouTube for fun. I was looking at some Vienna Teng videos, which led to the Wellesley Widow videos, which let to the fact that the Widows (an acapella group) played at Clinton's inaugural parade. WTG Wellesley women!

I think this could be useful for libraries, but only if we as professionals hone our video skills.

Week #15

I love this meme map from Tim O'Reilly's website. It really helps make Web 2.0 clearer for a visual learner like me.

October 4

I've done a lot of reading, thinking and talking about Library 2.0. Here's what I think: Some of the technologies are going to "stick," while others will eventually end up in the Silicon Valley graveyard of interesting-but-not-particularly-useful ideas. In my opinion, blogging, photosharing, rss feeds and social bookmarking are all useful and will probably outlive the "cool" factor time all new concepts get. Wikis...my personal jury is still out on them. While I like the concept of collaborative thinking, learning and writing, I'm not particularly entranced with any of the software I've seen for this yet. And interface is important. Twitter? I don't think so. Who cares what you're doing this exact moment in time????? The social networking sites are so popular with young people, that I don't think they're going to fade too soon. For folks over 30, though, we just don't get it. And YouTube, even I watch it sometimes and have been known to email funny links to friends.

Overall, I think these new types of software offer a lot of promise for libraries. I already have a Readers Advisory blog I'm linking to the library homepage, and I hope it becomes "cool" for kids to post there. What stumps me a little is that I may be the only librarian in my school district interested in these concepts. I know we're all busy, but the idea of taking our services to kids where they are is just too exciting to pass up.

Week # 14

For me, Technorati is confusing. I tried doing some searches, but got blocked a lot by the district filters, and became annoyed and frustrated. I could do searches via a backdoor method, but then I wasn't always sure what I was getting. (and I'm not so sure how much I care about what other people are blogging...stikes me as one of those too much time on your hands occupations.)

I looked at the Popular Blogs and checked out Boing Boing, the most popular one in the world, according to Technorati. Actually was pretty interesting, but I don't see looking at it all the time or adding it to my feed...more like a curiousity, just as its description claims.

Week #13

I already had a del.icio.us acct. from some previous web 2.0 play. However, I took more time to explore all its facets, and added the bookmarklet buttons to my browser here. Now I need to remember to do it at my other computers, too. I think this would be great for a course, we used it in one I audited taught by another librarian I know. It was very cool to share and collaborate with other folks exploring the same things. I don't know if this would work with high school kids, but think it would be great for college ones and professional collaborations.

Here is a link to my account:
Alex's delicious account

Week #12

I explored Rollyo and was pretty impressed with the idea. Searching a group of sites you've preselected all at once sounds very cool. I could see making different information searches for my high school students using this tool. However, when I tried the samples on the website, I was disappointed with the results. I did some photo searches and the results were unimpressive. I could have gotten the same thing using just Flikr, and been logged into my own account.

I fared better with the boutique search, trying "silk scarf" as my search term and found a lovely scarf if only I could find another full-time job. I didn't know people actually paid $1600 for a scarf!

So I have mixed feelings about this tool. I totally see its value in my library, but just don't know if the searches will produce valuable results.

I created a search for Frugal Grocery Shopping.

Week # 11

I played with Library Thing and liked it much more than I did when I tried it last time. The discovery exercises forced me to look around and try different things. I think this would be a good way to add books to pathfinders for my students. Using their recommendations with my knowledge, it would be easy to create the kind that say:

If you liked A Child Called It, try...

Here are some random books from my library.

Week # 10

I made this using Image Chef. It was incredibly easy, but I found the images somewhat limited.



I made this one as my personal icon. I should attach it as part of my email addy.

Week #9

Here is a link to my Twitter account: http://twitter.com/alexand278

I really don't get this tool; I can't imagine anyone being interested in what their friends are doing all the time, or having the time to post here often.

Armijo Library Proposal

Web 2.0 Proposal


The name of the technology you would like to implement.
I would like to add a blog to our library’s website content.

A brief description of this technology.
Blogs, short for Weblogs, have been around since the ‘90’s. Blogs are websites that contain the blogger’s entries in reverse chronological order. Usually readers are able to comment on the entries, making the blogs more interactive, like a conversation. Originally they consisted of personalized journals, political commentary, and news sites. Now, however, blogs are used for a variety of things, and libraries are becoming players, using blogs for a variety of reasons, including readers’ advisory, marketing, and library news.

An explanation of the service you would like to create with the technology.
I would like to design and implement a Readers’ Advisory Blog for Armijo High School using Blogger from Google.

An explanation of how this service will fill a need in your setting, including benefits.
Our students are always searching for good books to read. Some are inveterate readers just looking for their next title, and others don’t really like reading but need a free reading book for their English course. I would like to start a What should I read next??? blog linked off our library webpage. I am always suggesting books to students, but why not have them in a central location for any interested kid to see? And why not encourage students to post their own reviews? How about faculty and staff? Because the blog would be linked to our webpages, it would also be accessible from any computer with internet access. My guess is that most of our students spend a lot more time online than reading. This would give our students lots of access points to new books and would cost us nothing but a little time. I’m hoping that it would encourage more students to read also, helping fulfill our library mission, as well as increase our standardized test scores.

Evidence that this technology would be useful in your setting. This evidence can take the form of libraries that are successfully using the technology (if you feel like doing research, it could also include statistics or evidence from the library literature).
Many libraries are already using Readers’ Advisory blogs for their patrons. While the list below is not comprehensive, it gives a good sampling of what libraries are already doing.
• Emma Waters Summar Library

• Blogging for a Good Book Williamsburg Regional Library

• Teen Corner book reviews Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County

• Teen Blog at the Solano County Library

• Blogger Book Club at the Roselle Public Library

A plan for the ongoing maintenance of the technology and any policy issues you think are important to address. Please note that your technology may not have any policy issues.
The librarian will be in charge of updating and maintaining the blog. I will post at least once each week, on Monday mornings. Teachers and students will email me with reviews, and I will get them up on the blog ASAP, by the following Monday at the latest. Since blogs are not blocked in our district, this won’t be a problem. I will set up an RSS feed to email as new comments come it, so I can check for appropriateness and security issues.

Flikr

I already have a Flikr account from my work on the 23 Things projects. here is a link to my profile: http://flickr.com/people/8456570@N06/.

Sheeeee's Back!

Just like Jack Nicholson and Johnny Carson, I'm back; blogging again, that is. It's been a crazy summer, but I'm getting back into my Web 2.0 business in a big way. I'll be using this blog to continue the InfoPeople 43 Things online training and the new weekly online course called Web 2.0: Connecting with the Community Using Social Software.

I will design a way to keep the two purposes apart, although they may just end up comingling since there is so much crossover between the topics we're exploring.

Back from vacation

We're back from three hot weeks in Iran, so I'm going to get started again with my Web 2.0 work. It sure is nice to be back in the Bay Area with our moderate temperatures and our own house.

Weeks 7 & 8

I created my RSS reader using GoogleReader. It was very easy and I immediately started adding feeds. I choose some news feeds, emerging tech feeds and library/librarian feeds.

I have to be careful, however, because each feed has the potential to lead to other feeds equally as compelling. I could spend all day keeping up on the feeds, and not get anything done IRL if I'm not careful. For me, this is an excellent way to keep up on web 2.0 technologies.

I'm finding that I usually don't read the entire articles, just enough to get the idea of the thingys.I really like the librarian's blogs. I'm finding that they make me think about what I'm doing in my library and how I could improve it for our students. I go out of my way to read all of them, even if I don't think they apply to what I am doing right now. I like being up-to-date on what other libraries are doing.

Thing #6

All I can say is WOW! These libraries are doing some awesome things with web 2.0 technology. Some blogging, lots of RSS feeds and tons of podcasting. What impressed me most were the podcasts at the Seattle PL. They had author readings that lasted nearly an hour, teen poetry slam readings, and even professional librarian podcasts from an IFLA conference. This is one website I will go back to and listen to the casts. It opened up my mind about podcasts somewhat, because these were truly useful ones. I could imagine going to work listening to these author readings instead of my usual audiobooks.

Other things that impressed me were:

• Denver PL's podcasts of picture books. I wondered how they worked out the copyright issues, though.
• Denver PL's website's ability to download ebooks, audiobooks and movies from the patrons' home computers.
• PLCMC's over 40 RSS feeds for their various programs. I tried the teen one for a few days and was very impressed.
• Paying fines online at the PLCMC's website was also amazing. I know it's not strictly Web 2.0, but what a great service. Actually, I loved this library system's whole website. Everything that was popular was on the homepage and easy to find and use. Way to serve your patrons!

What did not impress me was the Ann Arbor District Library website based entirely on a blog. While I really liked the director's blog talking about programs and other library news, I'm not sure that it should have been the focus of the homepage.

Thing #5

I played with a bunch of Flickr mashups last Friday.

I looked at: Flickrslidr.com -- makes a slideshow of selected pictures, sets or groups.

PictoBrowser -- allows display of flickr pics on a site or blog.

Mosaica -- creates a screensaver with your flickr pictures that morphs into a changing mosaic.

PrintrKillr -- is supposed to create instant calendars or playing cards, but couldn't locate my flickr acct.

FlickrPostcard Browser -- This app finds pictures by tags, and puts them up one-at-a-time on a black background. Reminds me of an old time photo album. Maybe my favorite of all those I played with.

I also played around with Trading Card Maker. I used one of the picture of Sarah and her friends and made it into a playing card. It was very cool. I was trying to make one of myself using my Yahoo avatar, but couldn't quite get everything to work correctly.

I also joined some groups, but don't think I'll use this feature much. I rarely even look at my own photos, much less someone else's.

I joined:

Libraries and Librarians

Wellesley College

San Francisco Architecture

Thing #4

I played around on Flickr yesterday and uploaded some pictures of Sarah at college into my account. I made it private because it's only for our family and friends, and I can add them as they create accounts. It was suprisingly easy to use, and I was amazed how simple it was to upload pictures. I'm going to send the photos from our different summer trips up here, then they will be easy to share with friends.

Things #2 & #3

Done. I even got a nice note from someone at InfoPeople welcoming me to the project. I just went to the InfoPeople 23 Things Challenge main page and saw my blog added to the Blog roll. How official am I???

I just got my summer work schedule from the community college where I am an adjunct librarian. I want to be sure to mention this project when I email the director to let him know I'm pursuing my own professional development over the summer; especially since it's in an area the college is very interested in moving towards: emerging technologies and their impact on the library.

I've gotten way behind on posting, but hope to catch up this weekend.

Webcast: Web 2.0: What library managers need to know

I've decided to use this blog as a learning blog to help me reminder all the tools I'll be looking at in the next few weeks. I viewed Helene Blowers' webcast last night and was seriously impressed. I actually started taking notes so I wouldn't forget items I wanted to investigate later. I'm going to type my notes in here, so I can have access to them, one of the ideas suggested in the program.

Web 2.0

• collaborating and sharing information online.
• "harnessing the collective intelligence." Tim O'Reilly, who coined the term.

Wiki's

• Look at: http://www.blogwithoutalibrary.net/links/, the Blogging Libraries Wiki
• Use a Wiki for a subject guide
• Try a book lover wiki for book reviews linked from the library website
• Wiki's can "roll back" revisions made
• You can set up to get an email each time the wiki, or a part of it you designate, has been edited
• A wiki about how libraries are using wiki's - http://www.libsuccess.org/

RSS

• Really Simple Syndication
• Good tool to help stay on top of news and issues
• Need a newsreader to make this happen. Yahoo is the most popular one.
• Tecnorati.com can search the "blogosphere" to see if your library has been mentioned in anyone's blog

Podcasting

• Effective for marketing to teens
• Check the podcast page at http://www.libsuccess.org/

Social Networking

• MySpace, FaceBook, etc.
• Another good way to connect with teens
• Can create a teen MySpace page for your library. Has been successful for some libraries.
• You can create your own social network using Ning: http://library20.ning.com/

Blowers suggests becoming a Knowledge Player, who plays with emerging technologies without having to become an expert on them.

Five Tips

1. Play for 15 minutes each day
2. subscribe to a few blogs to stay current
3. Tag "Play" sites in your Delicious account
4. Create a learning blog. (HERE)
5. Play!!!

Suggested Blogs:

http://librarianinblack.typepad.com/librarianinblack/ Librarian
in black: new tools and insights

http://www.wired.com/ : Wired.com news
feed: tech. news

http://www.web2learning.net/ What I
learned today: new tools

http://www.librarybytes.com/ Library
Bytes: Helene Blowers' blog

http://www.techcrunch.com/ Tech
Crunch: news on newest web 2.0 tools

Helene's delicious account for this presentation:

http://del.icio.us/Web4Managers?page=1

Starting off

It seems that every library organization around has set up a Web 2.0 exploration program based on the PLCMC's Learning 2.0 program. Like the overachiever that I strive to be, I am doing both the CSLA and InfoPeople's versions. I suspect that they are all fairly similar, and I am excited about learning more about the new web technologies and how they can enhance libraries and their interactions with their patrons.