Summary

I enjoyed this exercise thoroughly. But perhaps this is because Kevin Urian added so much weight and sensible application to the program as he patiently deciphered technical jargon to me as we navigated through the terms. New ventures in life are not usually as complicated as one suspects; it's the starting that's the hardest part. Helpful people make the journey so much nicer.
I'm looking forward to a great YouTube exploration with teens at Perryville.

Overdrive

Downloadable books from the library can't be played on Ipods because of the "end" date and copyright laws. Apple agreed to this.,

podcasts

Podcasts are just like radio talk shows; can be music, talking, whatever. It's a recorded broadcast over the internet. Producing a podcast is, of course, harder than listening to a podcast. But with a microphone plugged into your computer, a podcast can be created.

YouTube

Fantastic! Seemingly so easy. I'm anxious to try this with my digital camera. And I'm also anxious to have a YouTube program with teens at PER. Just a fooling-around session; making a short video and letting the kids see themselves on the big screen! What a blast!

Online Productivity Tools

I learned about the pros and cons of using web-based "office" programs. One advantage for personal use is no expense! Without purchasing a Microsoft program, one can create a flier, save it to a disc and/or print! Disadvantages might be if your internet connection was dial-up and really slow, the net might be down, or a connection may not be available at some locations. But it sounds useful to me as Christmas is around the corner and I will postpone, at least, buying myself some software. Good news!

Library 2.0

The swiftness with which new technology is booming is astounding and exciting. Shared knowledge among coworkers will only benefit patrons, students and communities. This is not the end of the road for libraries; just a fork to take. When one takes the time to concentrate and learn what can be done, new worlds enfold.

Technorati

This tagging for blogs, carries a useful "authority" rating. One of the top ten blogs, I discovered, favored by users was "engadget."

Tagging and del.icio.us

Tagging is like setting up a filing cabinet; thinking of a subject heading that is precise yet not too obscure. You'll be able to "bookmark" your favorite sites here as well as view others' sites who entered info under the same subject heading. You'll be able to carry these "favorites" with you no matter whose computer you're using.
de.icio.us is a search engine of subject headings.
Some searches produced very few results (1 - 8); but broader searches were worthwhile.
The idea of a portable filing cabinet is nifty.

restaurants/directories/food Oh My!

Explored WEB 2.0. Discussed the limitations of labeling websites. Sometimes WEB 1.0 is good enough! But for a real interactive and technologically advanced site, I would explore a 2.0 site. Today, I explored restaurants in Baltimore; found the specific ratings very helpful - and liked seeing the rater's picture! Will explore again; hungry now!

Drool with Roolyo

Had fun exploring Rollyo! Just the amount of sites I like working with - for specific instructions/info. I looked up recipes and drooled with roooolyo.
For indexing, I'll just stick with favorites. This is great fun!

LibraryThing

Explored and discussed LibraryThing. Maybe when I retire, I'll catalog my personal books!

pretty rose

I found beautiful raindrops on a rose I'd like to copy to my blog! Neat! You just copy a website link and voila!

Flower

August 22, 2007

A Sandbox is a tool to learn how to edit wikis; a wiki with training wheels.

August 22, 2007

Kevin and I explored Wikis today; public and internally-hosted. When I asked him why wouldn't I just google a town's chamber of commerce to find out museum hours, for instance, he replied that a restaurant owner via a wiki might announce that weekend's special dinner theater event. When I countered that a fired dishwasher could have edited the site announcing the restaurant had closed, Kevin explained that professionals usually have a good check system in place, but agrees the dishwasher example could happen. Therefore, Kevin feels that wikis that are looked at often, are a pretty safe bet. To look up the obscure fact, other avenues may be smarter. Web-related and hip facts are usually a safe arena also; techies check up on each other ardently.
But the great thing about wikis is that they are super for group learning; ending the email chain. - or SOCIAL GROUP PLANNING. Wikis promise growth.

August 22, 2007

I explored the Merlin site with Kevin today AND IT IS A GOOD SITE! We looked at podcasting, vodcasting and social networking which I'll delve more into as I start focusing primarily on teen services.
I learned about streaming and how to listen to my favorite Baltimore radio stations through my computer at home. This is great! because I receive but one station through my radio living down in the valley as I do.
Kevin and I discussed the perceived differences between MySpace and Facebook and looked up some history of MySpace on Wikipedia . . . . which leads to the next post.

Thing #7:

I really like the concept of being directed to brand new bullets of information at a favorite source using RSS Feeds. Computers can be amazing!

Really Simple Syndication

I like this RSS stuff. Makes me think. Pretty cool management.

Avatar

Kevin is helping me explore blogger. He takes all the anxiety away! Pretty neat stuff; very easy with Kevin sitting next to me!

Flickr

Found this neat picture taken in 1895 in Long Lake, NY on Flickr.

friedahelpingme8/2

I have learned to write everything down i.e. "username!"

Groundhog

All the broccoli was eaten down to the stalk by a giant groundhog in my garden. My co-worker says she sees it hiding on my corner as she passes by early in the morning. I have seen him or her eating away delightedly and ferociously, looking like a little bear. He or she has also eaten all my cauliflower and cabbage! I don't really like cauliflower, anyway. But I do love cabbage. What should I do? The groundhog has babies under the bridge nearby, my cousin reports.