The Finish Line

It's hard to believe it's been 9 weeks already. I have enjoyed the learning experience from the Web 2.0 Project. I have to say creating the blog in itself and adding to it was my favorite part of Web 2.0. I also had fun with Picnik an image editor, the image and text generators I tried, Flickr and ZOHO writer. I also liked the use of Wikis for a collaborative staff FYI site to share ideas and concerns. If the Library offered another discovery program like this in the future I would chose to participate. I like learning new technologies whether they be Internet, software or hardware. The discovery program made me take the time to learn some of the new Internet services out on the web that I may not have found time to learn about. I liked the weekly structure of assignments and the way they were organized. The only downside to the discovery project was trying to find time in your work day to do the weekly exercises. I had to do most of the project after work to stay up to speed and complete the project. To sum up the Web 2.0 experience I would have to say it was great fun.

Downloading in Overdrive

After touring the Digital Media collection on the library's website I installed the Overdrive software onto my computer at home so that I could download digital audiobooks. I browsed a few titles in different genres and listened to some excepts. Some narrators are more interesting than others. I found a couple of interesting titles that were already checked out and put my digital hold on the titles. I did find a title to download to my computer which was easy and straight forward. I decided to burn the title to CD since iPod's are not compatible at this time. To burn the entire book at once would take 6 CD's so I burned one part which took one CD. I intend to listen to this first installment of the book I selected in my truck. I have never listened to an audiobook. I have always thought of books for reading not listening. I look forward to the experience.

Podcasting....

I found podcasting to be a learning experience more than anything. It seems to be a medium for people to share their thoughts, discussions and commentary on a variety of subjects such as movies, news, books, music and life in general. I did not find anything in podcasts that would compel me to investigate further.

Exploring YouTube

This was the first time I explored YouTube and found some cool music videos and movie trailers. I also found some funny animal videos, but the Billy Ray Cyrus video Real Gone was my favorite.


The only drawback to YouTube was all the stuff you have to wade through before finding something entertaining. We all do not have the same idea of what's tasteful either.

Posting videos on the PBCLS website to explain the different services the library provides could be useful and easier for some people to understand depending on their reading skills.

Picnik

I selected Picnik from the Web 2.o awards list to investigate. Picnik is a web based photo editor. I downloaded a picture to Picnik and tried some of the editing tools provided. I tried a number of effects on my photo until I settled with the pencil sketch effect and then added a border. I found Picnik to be an easy program to use and comparable to photo editing software I have purchased for basic editing. Being a free program would make it available to everyone in an organization when editing and sharing photos and would save money in purchasing basic photo editing programs.

Writing in ZOHO

ZOHO Writer

I think the idea of an online word processing program with all the features that ZOHO Writer has is great. No more emailing the document to yourself or someone else or saving it on a usb drive to access it later on a different computer. You don't have to worry if the other person viewing the document is running the same program or same version that the document was created. You could work on the same document with someone else and always have the current edits.

I was able to insert this image, but not able to manipulate it and have the text wrap it. You can change the font, font color & size, and add a background color. I like the too. You can easily add ©®¼≈. ZOHO Writer seams to have all the bells & whistles most people would use.

I easily published my ZOHO document to my blog using the Publish link in ZOHO writer. The screen was easy to understand. I give ZOHO writer a thumbs up.

PB Wikis

Adding content and making changes to the PBCLS Wiki was fairly simple. You can insert entries anywhere in the Wiki and format the text and add images easily. I added entries to favorite books, movies and tv shows. Adding my blog to the favorite blogs was easy too. I had fun adding my favorites to the wiki.

Wonderful Wikis

I like the use of Wikis to provide information about upcoming library and community events, highlighting new materials in different categories, the different types of resources available and library policies. The use of Wikis as a subject guide to a library's collection and corresponding links to community events was a nice feature of one library. When I clicked on the subject "crafts" there was a box to the right that listed upcoming craft shows with links to said show. I also liked the use of Wikis for a collaborative staff FYI site to share ideas and concerns.

Library 2.0 in Our Future?

I think the idea of Library 2.0 is a wonderful thing, but then again I love new technology. The idea of an open WorldCat extends our quest for information without boundaries. I like the idea of participation between library staff and patrons contributing towards an electronic portal of information that could be accessed from anywhere. The idea of being able to put reviews, notes or tags with a book, movie, music, etc. would be great. One of the reasons I use Amazon is the customer reviews. You can see what people are reading or buying before you make a commitment. If Amazon doesn't have it, they often point to other sources. I also use Google when researching products or travel info. It points you to an infinite list of sources. To think that you could open up the library's home page and have the same capabilities as Amazon or Google to search out books or information on any given topic would be amazing.

Technorati ???

Took a look around Technorati. I liked the "What's Popular" feature under the Blogger Central tab. You can find popular books, videos, movies, games, news, etc... Did a search about "beading" and found all kinds of things I didn't need to know. Don't know if it's something I would use again, but it was an interesting learning experience.

What a Del.icio.us use of Tags

After using the PBCLS Del.icio.us account I set up my own account. I typed in "Wii" in the search box and it listed over 60,000 tags. The list of common tags was useful in the fact that it gives you other suggestions of search terms to narrow down the field. After looking at some of the bookmarks listed I tagged a couple. I liked the notes attached to the bookmarks. The notes are a lot like reviews in Amazon. You can also click on the person posting the bookmark and see what else they have bookmarked. The use of tags would be useful in research because it could save time in repetitive searches by a group. You could see what avenues have already been pursued. I like the fact that your bookmarks can be viewed from any computer.

Maryland Crab Cakes

Blue Crab
Originally uploaded by shrike1964

Born in Maryland, but raised in a variety of places. When visiting family on the eastern shore of Maryland I always remember having crab cakes. Blue crabs and crab cakes are the first things many people think when they think of Maryland . Crab cakes sandwiched between crackers and served with ketchup, corn on the cob, slaw and cold beer. That's a summer feast Maryland-style. I've had crab cakes from many different places, but Maryland crab cakes are the best. After using WebFeat I eventually ended up using "Access World News" from Electronic Resources. WebFeat threw out to much info and not what I necessarily was looking for when putting in my topic

Book Lover

LibraryThing is a helpful tool in creating your own catalog of books that you own. Very simple to use. I like that it links to Amazon. I also like that you can get recommendations from other LibraryThing users that share the same interests as you. I have started my list of books on LibraryThing at http://www.librarything.com/catalog/woodd23things.

Image & Text Generators

It was fun making my own custom lava lamp and then bringing it into my blog. I found the lava lamp at http://www.jellymuffin.com/generators/lava_lamp/. After using the image generator I tried a text generator to change the title of my blog. The site I used was http://cooltext.com/. I found that the image generator was easier to use than the text generator.

Using Bloglines

Using the website Bloglines.com to manage RSS feeds, blogs & podcasts was fairly simple once you figured how to get the URL into Bloglines. To be able to go to one website instead of going to many websites to get your news and various blogs is great. Bloglines does all the work.

Mobile Phone Technology

It's amazing the things that you can do with your cell phone these days. You can take pictures, video, text, instant messages, send photos from one phone to another or email them, read your email, Google something on the Internet, shop, get maps, keep a calendar, address book and the list goes on. What's next?

On Roses

Raindrops On Roses
Originally uploaded by Grandma BJ

Is there anything more perfect than a rose?

Sharing Ideas

Blogging could be used to share ideas and get input from all employees about current library issues. Some people are more vocal than others. Those people who feel more comfortable sharing their ideas in writing have a chance to input. It gives more people the chance to express themselves.

Make Learning a Part of Everyday

Make learning a part of everyday no matter if it's learning how to play a new game or learning to use your new digital camera with all its bells and whistles, tile a countertop or take a craft class. If you don't get it the first time try again. Making time to learn a new hobby or skill is sometimes hard in our busy lives.