Reflections

Yay!! I am all done with the 23 Things. I must say it's a relief, and I am still keeping my fingers crossed for that nook. (We got a very cute new cover this week at B&N that I want for it!)

I did learn quite a bit from exploring the different Things, and I can definely see how social networking can be used in libraries; however, I will probably never be a big fan or really be able to get into it - I guess I'm just too old fashioned, and most social networking seems so impersonal to me.

There are a few of the Things that I will definitely use, such as Pandora and Hulu. I don't watch much tv, but it's nice to just be able to watch an episode of something whenever you want to. I do like to listen to music while I'm at home, so Pandora will be fun to play around with.

Podcasting

Yay! I will be all caught up on 22 Things now! This is very exciting, and I am so hoping to win that Nook (since I work at BN, it would be nice if I had a clue how they work!) I never win anything, so I'm not holding my breath, but maybe... :)



Ok - podcasting. I went to the Sunnyvale Public Library's site just because it sounds like such a happy place. They had podcasts of different programs, and I listened to a couple of the Adult Programs. One was on Patent Application, and it had very poor sound quality. It was hard to hear, and the speaker had a very pronounced accent, which made the whole program hard to understand. The other one I listened to was "Taming the Credit Monster," which was much better quality.

I can see the benefits of podcasting for libraries and their patrons. If there is a program that someone is interested in but cannot attend, they can get the information from a podcast. On the other hand, maybe it would lower the number of people who would actually come to the library for programs when they can just stay home and listen to the information over the computer. Just another way to avoid face-to-face interaction. Hmm, that's sad.

Hulu

I did have fun on Hulu - it almost made me late for work this morning because I got involved in an episode of Glee! It is pretty cool that you can just log on and watch TV shows that you missed or even some movies. The commercials are a bit annoying, but not too bad, really. I watched some of the extras with cast interviews, etc. for a few minutes, and the clips are a good idea to give you a little taste of what a show is like. I think I will go back and watch some things on Hulu once my homework is all done and I'm feeling a little indulgent. :)

I don't really know how sites like Hulu will affect libraries' visual collections in the future. I still think people want DVDs to watch on their big TVs - watching on the computer is just not the same, and not everyone has a home computer, so I think people will still look to the library to provide them with entertaining DVDs - without the commercials.

YouTube

I must admit that I'm not a big fan of YouTube - probably because my kids are really into it and find the most ridiculous things to show me. There are some helpful how-to videos on there (how to tie a sari, for example), which are much easier to follow than just reading step-by-step instructions would be, but most of the stuff people post just seems stupid to me. Sometimes funny, yes, but still stupid.



I did watch a few of the librarian videos. Super Librarian was kinda cute - I liked how it pointed out all the different things that librarians can do for patrons in a fun way. I think that libraries could use YouTube if they had a fun idea to promote programs, especially for older kids and teens. I know I've seen on the posters for the Youth Storyteller auditions that they can submit a YouTube video, so that's also a good way to use it.

User Choice

I found this cute site called Draw.to (http://draw.to/new) where you can draw anything you like and share it instantly via e-mail, instant messaging, Twitter, Facebook, etc. There is a box where you can draw with three different sizes of pencils, different colors, and an eraser. It's fun, but I'm not very good at it and would be embarrassed to post my picture anywhere. There is a gallery you can visit, and some of the drawings are amazing!! I think kids would love to do this and send pictures to their friends or the grandparents, who could print it off and put it on the refrigerator. My masterpiece can be seen at http://draw.to/DUakC !!

Music Streaming & Sharing

Ok - I must admit that this was exciting!! This in one Thing that I will defintely be using in my everyday life. I went on Pandora and made several play lists this morning, and I have to say that the Michael Buble list made me very happy - I loved every song it picked! - Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Nora Jones, Harry Connick Jr.... It was pretty amazing that it came up with so many songs that I liked - I was singing and smiling all morning! I think I could easily become obsessed with making playlists because I don't have that many CDs now - I might get carried away making "theme" lists - Housecleaning music, Homework music, Romantic dinner music, Indian music, Italian music, Showtunes, etc. The possibilities are endless!

The next list I made I did with a song title, but it didn't start with that song, and when I tried skipping until I found it, it gave me as message saying that only a certain number of skips are allowed per hour, which was a bit annoying. I'm not sure that sites like this will necessarily discourage patrons from checking out CDs from libraries, but they might be less likely to buy them- I know I will be.

Wikis

I'm out of order here, I know, but I can't do the Things requiring sound on desk, so I'm skipping around... I must admit that I do sometimes use Wikipedia - it's easy and fast information. I wouldn't rely on it for serious research, but when you just need a quick fact, it's quite handy. I've never clicked on the discussion or history tabs before, and those were interesting. I was looking at an author's profile on there, and in the discussion section someone corrected a fact and said that he was the author's nephew and that's how he knew it was incorrect. Nice of him to take the time to do that.

I went to the restaurant wiki we created and added a comment there. It was fun to read what people had written. I like the idea of wikis - you have to be careful about the accuracy of the information, but they're useful.

Google Docs

Well, the document I created was a very nice "To Do" list for my finals week. I made it in rainbow colors! There weren't really many fonts to choose from, and I thought changing colors was more difficult than it should've been for some reason (maybe the rainbow effect was too much!) I am just so used to Word, and it's a little different. I did like the way you can make a presentation, spreadsheet and form from the same place. That is very handy! I think the form is really fun, and I hope I can come up with a need for it in my life. Overall, Google Docs is a helpful site where you can create many different things and send them to people easily. I think I would actually use it.

Google Maps

I have used Google Maps for driving directions quite a bit, but I've never really played around with it. I did some alternate routes, walking and biking directions, traffic, etc., but my favorite thing that I've never even noticed before is the photos. It is so strange that someone has gone around and taken pictures from all of those highways and intersections! It's pretty weird that you can see a picture of my house on there when you put in the address - I had no idea! so I had to look up all the addresses I know to see if you can see their houses, too. Some you can, and some not, but it was fun to try.

I looked up directions to the Southlake Public Library, where I hope to take a field trip one day to check out their Deweyless shelving system. (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=8201+memorial+ln+plano+tx&daddr=southlake+public+library&hl=en&geocode=&mra=ls&sll=37.0625,_95.677068&sspn=40.59616.92.724609&ie=UTF8&2=11)

Tiny URL and You Send It

Tiny URL is pretty cool! I looked up a URL from our catalog, which was crazy long (http://192.168.10.21/uhtbin/cgisirsi.exe/0/0/x/57/5/x?user_id=WEBSERVER&password=&srchfield1=GENERAL%5ESUBJECT%5EGENERAL%5E%5Ewords+or+phrase&searchdata1=newbery%awards&item_2cat=ANY) 184 characters, to be exact. Tiny URL turned it into http://tinyurl.com/y9ry2u5, which is only 26 characters - amazing!

You Send It is also a good site to know. I sent myself a video, and it was a relatively quick process (after creating my account, checking my email to activate, etc!). The downloading was fast and the video made it safe and sound, so it worked, which is always a bit surprising to me. : )

Delicious

I'm sorry, but I didn't really get this one. Please see David's blog on Delicious(http://plutysworld.blogspot.com/) -- I concur.

Honestly, I just don't get this one... I did bookmark a few sites, but I can get to them easily on my own. Maybe if I were on the computer more and always finding sites that I wanted to be sure not to forget about, I would use this, but I just can't see that it would be all that helpful to me.

Facebook

Well, I have had a Facebook account for a while, but I'm not really a fan. It is great for connecting with long-lost friends and all, but I just don't have the time to spend on it. It was fun at first, but now I get so annoyed by people's hour-by-hour update on their lives that I seldom even log on. I just check my Yahoo account for messages and go from there. I did become a fan of the Frisco Public Library, however. :)

LinkedIn

Well, I created an account and requested to join a couple of groups (I hope they accept me!). I did look around at the job searches but didn't find much there. I think this could be a good professional tool for networking, but I am just not likely to use it. I am an antisocial networker, I guess. I am just not going to spend time on the computer with strangers - ever. I know these things are good ideas, and that I should get on board, but it all seems so impersonal and makes me sad.

LibraryThing

This is a site that was really fun! If I had any free time and was the sort of person who spent her free time on the computer, I might actually do something with this. I did add some titles to my library and put a couple on my wish list. I enjoyed reading reviews of recommended books, but I had to make myself stop because I am just reminded of the fact that I have no time to read for pleasure these days. However, this would be a great place for me to list all the books I come across that I must read someday when I'm finished with school and only have one job and a real life again!!

Tagging

I like the idea of tagging. I think it's interesting to see what different people come up with to describe things, and I think it's very useful in the library setting. It is an excellent supplement to the library's catalog because it gives more variety to the descriptions and links things together. I probably will never be one to actually tag anything, but I do like to see what other people put out there.

Instant Messages

Ok, I have to admit that I have never been a fan. IMming usually annoys me, and I often ignore people who pop in on me while I'm busy doing something else, but this makes me feel bad, guilty, etc., so then I'll start conversing and not know how to end it without seeming rude, so I find myself engaged in this conversation that I never wanted to be in because I have no boundaries!!
Sorry for that little rant.

Actually, here at the library, I've used the Communicator system a few times with great success, and when I look down and see that my little button is yellow, it's quite exciting. Lauren shared her screen with me yesterday, which was very neat. So if she's working on a poster or something and wants my opinion, she can just pop up and show it to me rather than having to attach it to an email. I have to say that my favorite thing is all the smiley icons that are available, and I now cannot send a message without one! Amy and I had a whole conversation using them, which was challenging, yet fun and enlightening.

I can see the benefit to using IM here at the library to communicate between staffers, but I would be hesitatant to use it with patrons. The problem is that people always pop up at the most inconvenient times, and you either have to ignore them or get interrupted constantly, so I'm not sure how that would work.