Week 9 Thing 23!!!!!

I DID IT!!! Yay! I am so happy that I was actually able to finish the whole program. This was a great program, and if I have time I plan on going on and learning about more of the 43 things. Lets see for a summary. My favorite discoveries were playing with the Avitars and the different generators, playing with flickr, learning about RSS feed and learning about the down loadable books. This program has definitely helped with my life long learning goals, because I learned about 22 new things. That is great! I really enjoyed playing with the ebooks and I think that is something I will take away and use more. Playing with my blog here has also inspired me to keep my "MySpace" up to date a little more (I still need to add more pics though). The program was run very well. Some of the sites were a little hard to navigate through and not very user friendly. I think if possible a few more tutorials even if they are like the one for the RSS feeds would be a big help. Unfortunately being moved to a small branch in the middle I lost the ability to readily ask others who were working on the program for help, and just did not have the time to even email for help. I would most definitely choose to participate in other discovery programs like this on in the future. How would I describe my learning experience? I enjoyed the program, I wish I had actually had the time I needed to really explore all of the sites. I learned about a lot of new things, some I will use some I will not. I see the validity of all of these programs and can see where libraries can use and promote these tools. I am glad to have had the chance to participate in this program and expand my knowledge of Web 2.0

Week 9 Thing 22

WOOT! ALMOST THERE! So I played around with down loadable audio books. This is really cool! I have never really had the opportunity to play with them, but I may actually start using them some. I can download books to my pocket pc and listen to them on my lunch break or in the car. That is really cool. I think this is the tool that I have enjoyed playing with the most.

Week 9 Thing 21

Podcasting is cool. I like being able to listen to different radio stations etc. However most of the podcasts I checked out for this part of the program were just way to long, I just don't have the attention span to sit and listen to something that is an hour long. I can see libraries using podcasts to provide verbal instructions on how to use different tools and services that we offer, maybe to help give quick tutorials etc. I could not find anything that really interested me to add to my account that wasn't really old or really really long. I will keep looking, but I want to move on to the next of the 23 things so that I can be finished before the 3rd.

Week 9 Thing 20

Ok coming down to the wire here, Im gonna get this finished. I played around with YouTube. I was some what familiar with the site I go there often to look up new commercials that Adventures in Library No0bness puts up :) Anyway it took me a while to find a video that is worth putting on my blog but I really enjoyed this one. I think YouTube is a great tool for the library to be using. I enjoyed the video that was put on at the beginning of the summer promoting summer reading club. I think it is a great way for the library to advertise events and programs

Week 8 Thing 19

I explored a few of the Web 2.0 Awards winners sites. You know me I immediately go for the game sites. They were cool, several cute new games that don't need to be downloaded and are free to play online. I also looked at some of the online desktop sites they were really cool. Goowy www.goowy.com/index.aspx and Desktoptwo https://desktoptwo.com/ were both really interesting. I like the idea of being able to access those things from one place. They both give you an email account, a calender, you can integrate certain instant messaging accounts and chat right from there etc. I liked and disliked they both for different reasons. Neither one links to enough instant messaging sites, goowy links to Yahoo or MSN and desktoptwo only links to MSN. Goowy allows you to play cool games and desktoptwo gives you word processing tools. Here again I could see us directing customers to these sites to do word processing and saving documents if they are unable to get a disk or are afraid of the disk being erased. There are a lot of cool Web 2.0 sites out there that is for sure

Week 8 Thing 18

Well I played around with both Google Docs and Zoho Writer. They definatly have there place. They are great for people working on group projects or people who don't have office on there computers. I can see us directing customers to these sites if they do not have the mean to buy a disk, or know they have a different program at home that is not compatable with the software that we have at the library. It would also help lower the risk of disks going bad and getting erased. I can also see it being used as a good source for group projects. Groups could use a wiki to colaborate all of there research etc, and then use Zoho or Google Docs to put together the final paper or presentation and edit it together without having to be in the same place.

week 7 - thing 17 - Sandboox

Ok Learning 2.0 SandBox wiki is a bunch of fun. I added my blog to the favorite bolgs page, and I added to the Favorite Dogs page. It was fun being able to change the text and color etc. I can really see where wikis have a place in the future of libraries. Especially in project building and management.

Week 7 Thing 16!!!

I'm getting there and am determined to finish this before October 1st. Anyway! I think wikis are really cool. They are a great way for groups to share information work on projects etc. I think that libraries could really use these for branch or system projects, groups can work on the things together and see what progress has been made without having to email or call everyone on the team to find out what has been done and what still needs to be done. I have used wikis for school projects, we were able to put together a website and keep track of the project. It was easy to see who had done there portion of the project and who was trying to ride on the rest of us for the grade. I could see a library especially like Lansdowne using a wiki for the community and working with community businesses and services to update the page with what is going on in the community, where people can go to sign up for special classes, library programs etc. I really think that wikis definitely have a place in our service.

Week 6 Thing 15

Web 2.0 and Libraries 2.0 definately go hand in hand. In todays world where people need information instantly web 2.0 is definately a great resource for librarians and patrons. The blogs, and wikis are great ways for librarians to share ideas and gain information on customer service and growing trends in customers demands and needs. I agree with several of the articls who say that libraries need to embrace Web 2.0 and use it and the resources to deliver services to customers. Creating sites customers can add information and reviews to, allowing customers to share information with one another, and with library staff. There is definately a new avenue for us to provide customer service, and libraries that ignore this are going to have a hard time in the not so distant future.

Week 6 Thing 14

Technorati is rather interesting. Interesting to see how many hits you get when you type in different topics. I guess it can be useful for learning different perspectives on topics. I could see libraries using it for internal training, or gaining opinions on new technologies or best practices. Although I didn't find it was the most user friendly of sites, one of those sites that could easily become overwhelming with the amount of information that bounces back at you.

Week 6 Thing 13

Ok so I played around with del.icio.us a bit. I crated an account and added a few tags. I guess this and rollyo kind of go hand in hand. I can go to this site and do a search for something and if I find the information I am looking for I can see what other people have tagged that may also help me. I can see this as a potential research tool if I am trying to do a paper on a subject, or even trying to find a user friendly site for homework help.

Week 5 Thing 12

Ok Rollyo is interesting. I created a search roll that includes all of the EQ2 game sites that I regularly use for finding new spells and quest help. That will definitely come in handy at home. I also played around with some of the other rolls and that was nice being able to search specific sites at 1 time. This could be a great tool for librarians to allow them to search google, amazon and other sites for books and reference help.

Week 5 Thing 11!

Played around with Library Thing. Kind of cool. Nice to be able to check out list that others with similar reading interests have created. Got some ideas of what to read next.

Week 5 Thing 10!

Ok now this one was fun. I Figured out how to add my Avitar to my blog and I also played around on M&M World and created my own M&M toon. This is a lot of fun. I really enjoyed playing around with these different sites. I guess being an online gamer and getting to create different characters and making them all look different depending on my mood makes thing 10 fun for me.

Week 4 Thing 9!

OK so I played around with Meriln. It was interesting, but I found it just a bit cumbersome to search through. I did enjoy looking at the different sites to search for different RSS feeds and what not, however I found the one on Bloglines the easiest one to use because I didn't have to know exactly what I wanted to find. Second Life is cool too. I even started playing around with creating an Avitar. Now onto week 5 so I can learn how to add it to my blog! Cheers!

Week 4 Thing 8 RSS Feed

OK so RSS feeder is interesting. It is kinda nice to be able to see what is new on friends blogs and news pages without having to check each individual page. It is a great way to keep up with what is going on with friends and for work it is nice to keep up with different work blogs etc. I made one of the folders on my bloglines account public. My favorite comic strip lo

Week 3 Thing 7!

Wow on a roll today, 2 things in a day. About time I started getting some of this stuff actually completed :D. Anyway, something Technology that interests me. Well I have to say starting at a new branch this week where I have to know how to trouble shoot Cybrarian and monitor it has been a good learning experience for me. Being Circ and coming from a big branch where the Librarians always took care of everything with the computers I had not had the opportunity to learn much about it. Even though I am comfortable with computers and use to work as a PTA (before Cybrarian) I never had the time to dedicate to exploring it. I think it is interesting all of the different software that we have to monitor and trouble shoot the computers and how we can do it all from our little information desk is great!

Week 3 Thing 6

Just a quick blog entry for this one. I have been having fun trying to decide what Flickr 3rd party sites and mashups I like best. I think so far the one I have enjoyed exploring the most is the flickr postcard browser it is cool that you could print out custom post cards before you go on a trip, or make your own with pictures you take http://www.airtightinteractive.com/projects/flickr_postcard_browser/ although just this morning I discovered a site that you can make puzzles out of pictures and that is really cool, could very easily become addicted to it :) http://www.flashpuzzlezone.com/flickr/

Week 3 Thing 5! FINALLY!!!!

OK so I went on vacation at the beginning of July and since I have returned I have not had much time to play. I think I have visited the Flickr site several times, and finally got around to creating an account and stuff. I will post the link to that in a later blog. The only pictures I happen to have on me at the moment are pictures of me dressed up as Sneaks for an outreach even. Some of you may find them interesting. Anyway, here is a picture I found on Flickr. This is an awesome picture! I love Vegas, and the Bellagio Fountains are one of my favorite things, I try to catch them at least once while I am there, and they have a whole new perspective at night. I have never gotten to do one of the Helicopter rides and see them at this vantage point though. This is an amazing view of them, I may just have to look into checking it out in person next time my husband and I get out that way.

8 Things about me!

These are the rules: Each player lists 8 facts/habits about themselves. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning before those facts/habits are listed. At the end of the post, the player then tags 8 people and posts their names, and then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged, and asking them to read your blog. Ok thinking of 8 things that are actually interesting may be the challenge here but I'll give it a try. 1. I am one of the fortunate people who has had the joy of marrying their best friend. 2. I love to fish, crab, and almost any water sport you can think of. 3. Last year I took the hunter safety course, I was the only female in the class, and also the only one who got a 100% on the test (and I hit the target more accurately then most of the guys in the class :P) 4. I am an online gamer, EQ2 is my current game. 5. A perfect Saturday night includes, my husband, myself, our dancing boots and hats, and Cancun Cantina!!! - well I should say this is only when we cant go to the eastern shore. 6. I have worked for BCPL since I was 15. 7. I love dogs, my husband and I just adopted a wonderful little girl, she is a great addition to our family. 8. I use to raise birds, and more then one person in BCPL is the proud owner of some of these rotten, i mean wonderful, little birds. OK. The people I have tagged are Adventures in Library NoObness, Freaking Out, Bahama Mama, BetsyBoop, Cofessions of a Circulation Assistant, Confuzzled's, Queen of Wii, and my 8th person I am waiting for there blog to pop up, but they will be getting tagged as soon as I see it! WOOT! have a great day!

Week 1 - Thing 2 7 1/2 Habits

Ok so as promiese I finally went back and took a look at the 7 1/2 habits of life long learning. Very interesting tutorial I think, lots of very good points. Looking at different habits I am surpried at how many of these I pride myself in trying to do every day. I am always looking for opportunities to improve my knowledge and increase my skills in various areas. Ways that I practice these habits, well I would have to start with Habit 1 - Begin with the end in mind. Going back to school to finish up my Bachelors degree so that I can pursue a goal for a Masters in Library Science I believe is a good example of that. Habit 2 - accept responsibility for your own learning. Again I believe striving to take a minimum of 3 classes a year is a good start. Habit 3 - view problems as challenges. I do that every day at work, this is actually one of my favorite things about my job. Habit 4- have confidence in yourself as a competent, effective learner. Ok this is probably where I need the most help, I am not very confident in myself, but I am working on it. Habit 5- Create your own learning toolbox. Honey I have a more then one toolbox, and they keep getting bigger and bigger. Habit 6 - Use technology to your advantage. I love technology, that is why my major in school is Business Technology Administration. Habit 7 - Teach & Mentor others. I am a true believer that is what BCPL is about, helping other's grow in there quest for knowledge as well, and that it only makes the teacher stronger. Habit 7 1/2 - Play! Well any of you who know me know that this is not a problem for me either lol. So off to a good start I believe. So on we go! WOOT!

Week 2 - Things 3&4

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know I am out of order. I have never been one to do things in order anyway. I am regularly bass akwards but that's OK it is me. No honestly I have not had a chance to sit down at a computer that has headphones or a set of speakers yet so I have not had a true chance to sit down and do the 7 1/2 habits of life long learning yet. I was so excited about setting up my blog and get started so I decided to skip this part for right now and get these 2 steps out of the way. I promise that in the next day or 2 I will grab a set of headphones and take the tutorial. Anyway, to document my progress I have set up my blog (as if you hadn't figured that out yet), and I have registered it. So now you all can share in my journey of learning. Cheers!

Week 1 - Thing 1- Read this Blog

OK so I have gotten started. As you can see I have 1 Signed up for 23 Things. I have read the blog. Although since my blond brain continually kicks in I do refer back to it from time to time. I have an idea of what the program is about and I am looking forward to learning about all of these great programs. I know little bits about some of them but I believe that I can never know too much. Now off to thing 2..... P.S. If memory serves me correctly, when we launched RFID at White Marsh with the original RFID Express Checkouts we referred to our robot looking machines as Thing 1 and Thing 2. We even had pictures of these 2 beloved characters on the machines at one point. I fondly remember that every time I start talking about the 23 things! Have a great day!

Getting Started

Ok so Maryland 23 Things here I come! I keep a myspace page but I don't play with it much, so this will be a new venture for me. I don't blog on there, and I have never been good about keeping an personal diary, so here is hoping i become addicted (shhhh guess I shouldn't say that since this is a work thing) oh well! I am looking forward to learning new things about the wonderful world of technology. Who knows maybe this will be the motivation I need to start working on my certification that I will need to finish my degree, before it is the only thing keeping me from obtaining that piece of paper, lol! I guess I must quote as I get started here, one of my favorite lines from one of the best movies ever: "That's what I like to hear Shrek and Donkey off on another world win adventure! "