challenge

Hmm, just when I think I am done, we are challenged to do one more 'thing.' 10 ramdon facts that no one knows about me. This should be easy since most people don't know who I really am but it is not.

1. I hate extended family get-togethers. By extended I mean brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles. I just don't like them all and anyone who really does know me knows why.
2. I used to go play Bingo every week.
3. I have no luck. Which is why I quit going to Bingo.
4. I could live without chocolate but not potato chips.
5. I can't fall asleep without the TV on. Thank goodness for sleep timers.
6. I hate to clean. I bribe myself to get the housework done.
7. I hate to shop. It makes Christmas harder but I get through it.
8. I love Pogo.com.
9. I don't like mushrooms.
10. I've never learnt how to change a tire.

the end

This has been a very fun and educational activity. I'm proud that my employers are willing to allow work time for entertaining activities. Of course if we, as a library system, do not embrace these technological changes that are coming our way we will wither. I did learn about and experience some tools that I will use more in the future and some I will never use again unless a customers is asking for help. I also got to help other co-workers at my branch work through the program. Teaching some one else gives the teacher a new insight and I may have learnt as much from teaching as from my own playing. ;o)

Things to take away from this program;

1. I am going to keep on blogging. I think this has been the funnest part.
2. I will ask for help when I just don't get it. Someone else I work with probably does.
3. At least look it over before deciding you can live with out know how to do it.

Things that could be done differently;

1. Start out slower. Giving us two weeks at the end made life easier.
2. Include some gadgets like digital cameras. Every branch has one.

As far as doing this again? Oh yeah. I had fun and would do it again.

MOLDI

When I first heard that the library was going to offer this service I was excited. I love to listen to BOC. Then I learnt that you could only listen from your computer. Well, my excitement died. Why would I want to listen from my computer? That was a couple of years ago and now I know the answer. I love listening from my computer. Once I tried it I was hooked. And now you can download to personal devises that can be carried around. I couldn't wait to try it. The problem for me is that I can not get this program to work. I spoken with staff members who use it for everything from music to movies.
In Sept. Mid-Ohio Digital Library offered on-line training and I was lucky enough to get to take two of them. I was just sure that my problems would be solved. I went through both classes waiting for the piece of information I was missing to be filled in. No such luck but, I was not ready to give up. As a library employee I was allowed to e-mail questions to Mid-Ohio direct. We were given an e-mail address that the public was not. I sent in my question, trying to be as specific as possible and waited for a reply. Once it came I printed it and went home to try it out. Nothing. I still need to try their next suggestion but I am not longer excited and forget by the time I get home.
I still think that it is a great program. I am glad that CML is offering it to our customers. I have had no problem finding item that I would love to download, if I could. Maybe since it is on my mind again I will give it another try.
In case anyone out their is really good with this kind of thing, my problem occurs at the BOC download. I receive a message telling me that Media Players need a security update and it gives me instructions on how to do this, really easy - click one button. When I try I get another error telling me to connect to the Internet. I have cable Internet and am allows connected. I have tried disabling both the firewall and the antivirus. Help if you can. Thanks.

podcasts

This weeks thing was both instructive and disappointing. I love watching the common craft video's. I've really learnt a lot. They explain in a way that anyone can understand. When it comes to podcasts, I didn't understand how one was made or why. After working through this weeks assignment, I understand both. Which made it instructive. However, I did not find any podcasts that I would want to subscribe too. I tried to listen to several in different categories, but didn't find any that interested me. I don't even have time to listen to my favorite music. That was the disappointing part. That may change at some point. I may stumble across one that I love and can not bear to miss, anything can happen.

on-line videos

Hi, this week our task was to look at YouTube and other online videos. I have seen YouTube before and mostly I think they are stupid. Now I only go to these site if I am looking for something someone has told me about. This past weekend my husband and I went to Cedar Point. While we were there someone told me about a video on YouTube about a boy almost falling out of a ride because him seat belt broke. I searched and found it on YouTube. It is both sad and scary.


I found it on youTube first. After reading our assignment for this week I was looking on other video site and found the same clip on Google. However; Google gives credit to YouTube. I noticed some clips are posted on other sites but YouTube seems to have the Monopoly.

tool box

Hi, giving us time to catch-up was great, Thank you.

Number 19, the tool box. I have been using it since it was installed on our work PCs but I never took the time to install it at home. This exercise gave me an incentive to do that.
I love Google e-mail and everything else Google offers, maps, picture, blogs etc..
but, I am not interested in trying Lively. I looked at it but I don't chat so I didn't see the point in trying it out. The Highlighting is awesome. I can really see myself using that one. When I find a title being able to highlight then search our catalogue will be easy. Wish I had known about it months ago.

Hope everyone is getting caught up and having fun

discover

This week I looked at award winning web 2.0 sites. Many of them did not interest me but, a few did. I even sign-up with NetVibes. I have customized Googles home page but I really like that way that NetVibes uses layers. Not everything is on the front page. I can choose to click on another layer to see TV and Music news. They offer to show you the weather and your e-mail on the front page. I haven't decided if I will make the switch at home to making this my homepage. I may try it out for awhile and decide if I can get use to it.
I have to admit that I looked at the short list and then only at the first place winners. If I have time I plan to go back and look again. Oh by the way Onmidrive redirected me to a loan application site. I was interested in the idea of an on-line backup. This is one category where I will have to look at the second or third place winner. My son once downloaded a virus onto my home computer and I lost everything. If a free site is on the level I would be interested.

Hi, this blog post is being written on Google Docs.  I have been using Google Docs since I bought my new computer three years ago.  I didn't buy Office because it was sooo expensive.  I thought my daughter had a copy and why pay for it when I could borrow hers, don't tell MicroSoft.  Unfortunatly; she did not have a copy, she had borrowed hers from someone else.  I was budgeting for the expence when a co-worker told me about this free software.  Wow was I happy.  I mean, who has an extra $250 laying around? 

I've never used the share feature but I can see how usefull it could be.  I also love that it is so simaler to Word.  I didn't have to work very hard to get that hang of it. 

I hope every one likes it as much as I did and have fun using it.

sandbox

I received my authorization yesterday and entered CML Learn & Play Sandbox. Huh, I guess I just don't get it. I don't see what the big deal is. I added a few of my favorites and add my blog link, although my didn't indent. Hopefully someone will fix that. I couldn't get it to put that bullet in front of my link. :o(
Using a wiki for a collaboration between a group at different locations is a great idea. If I want to see what someone favorite book is I have many other sites to choose from. I personally like to share this information personally, face to face.
One a different subject. I am glad we are being given more time to complete these activities. I have managed to keep up but I know several people who have not. thanks for the extension.

wiki's

I have looked at Wikipedia before but never spent the time to go through the tutorial, which was very interesting. I like the fact that if you change or add something you also need to cite your sources. That makes me feel better about the information I am reading on their site.
I don't remember all the brackets and colons used to change the fonts. I would have to print out the instructions and play around for a while.
I have heard groups here at
CML talking about using wiki's to edit or create documents and if the group is small it could work but, with a large group I can see a lot of problems. When a large group is trying to decide on a format for a damaged item letter, for example, not everyone agrees. The changing text and crossing out could be endless.
I am looking forward to playing in the Learn & Play sandbox, hopefully next week I'll have time.

library 2.0

I had heard of web 2.0 and am embarrassed to say that I did not know what it meant. I let it go until I was told at work that I needed to learn web 2.0. OK, I broke down and ask a co-worker what was web 2.0. Boy, was I relieved to find out that it was things like flickr and blogging, things I was already doing. I don't know everything of course but it was just the name I didn't understand.
Library 2.0 is just as important as web 2.0. If libraries want to keep up and keep customers we need to know what our customer are doing and what they want to do. Last year, I proposed cross training our staff so that every staff member would at least have seen some of these sites. I assigned sites to different staff members to train the rest of us. We also wrote short cheat sheets. On when a customer come to us having a problem on MySpace, any of us can help them. If libraries don't keep out our customer will not continue to use and support us. If we really want to shine we should keep ahead of what the customers are doing and offer services they didn't know they needed yet. I was very pleased to hear that we now have a station to download music or audio books from our virtual branch to Mobile devices at our main branch. This is a great start and the direction that we need to keep moving in.

week 6 thing

I looked at and joined Delicious. I entered some bookmarks and looked at library bookmarks.
I can see how open bookmarks can be useful. I enjoyed reading the readers advisory website that were entered and many I had never seen before. I will revisit these when I have more time.
I am not sure I will use my own bookmarks. I know the sites I use alot and don't need this on-line fravorites sites. It didn't save it on my work computer anyway. It is set up though so if I ever need it it will be there.

twitter

Twitter can be pretty cool. I joined last month and am going to try to post more often that I do to my blog ;o)

image generators

Boy, this weeks thing was pretty simple, once I had help from a co-worker. I checked out the site sudgested and did some searching. I am still hoping to find that site that lets you change a pic of yourself. wish me luck.

flicker stuff

I like flickr, even though I don't use it much. I did not like the other sites we were directed to try. I didn't see the point of think they were much fun. Who knows, I may change my mind but not for now.

Thing 10

Oh boy! A lot to do this week and me on vacation. Well to get a jump on things I am doing a few early. I figure I'll have enough to catch up on when I get back.
I joined Tweeter and I already had an account with LibraryThing. LibraryThing is alot like Shelfari, which I am also a member. The problem is remembering to add books that I have or am reading. I normally am reading 2 books and listening to 2 more. I have one print book at home and one at work. I also listen to book-on-CD in my car and on my computer at home. I know that sounds crazy but, the one I listen to at home is normally one I already have read or heard before and the print book at work is normally work related. In this context I am only reading and listening to one new book and CD at a time. Doesn't that sound better :o) I drive my husband crazy.
I'll have to work on the image generator when I get back. I have added LibraryThing and Twitter to this blog.

RSS search tools

I tried all three of the search tools given with this weeks 'thing' and I have to say that I did not like any of them. http://www.technorati.com/ gave me a headache. Every time I went to that site an advertisement was flashing fast and I would get a headache quickly. I did search each site but was confused about how to get the blogs I found to my reader. I'm sure if I copied the IRL and then pasted it to blogger that would work, however; I did not find a blog that interested me enough to do so. Reader has its own search function. Using keywords you can search for topics that interest you and then when you subscribe they are automatically added to Google Reader. Reader also offers bundles, I original subscribed to a bundle but slowly unsubscribe to each blog or news feed within it. I prefer to choose which news feed I want.
I do subscribe to multiple library related blogs. Some are more serious while others are more comic. I also try blogs that have been recommended by friends. Some I subscribe to and some I don't.

RSS Reader

I know the thing this week was to open a blog lines account but I already have an account through Google. I added Learn & Play and The Columbus Dispatch to my feeds. I have been using reader for over a year now and enjoy reading news updates and new blogs created by my favorite blogger's. I also enjoy reading what my Friends have shared as favorites. I also did the optional activity of posting my shared items to my blog, see the side bar.
More when I get to the next 'thing.' ;o)

technology

I have been thinking about the IPhones. I would like to have one. Beside the price tag, things holding me back are: I only use about 10 minutes a month on my cell phone, I use my IPod a couple hours a week, I have never texted anyone and don't really know how, I don't know how to take or send a picture with a cell phone. I see people using blackberries and Iphones and think, how cool. I want to be able to do those things, but would I do them? For the price I bet I would learn but I am afraid that I would let it slip and I would have spent that money for nothing. I love my Ipod and was so happy when I got it but now I find that I don't use it all that much. I carry it around with me but I just don't have that much time for listening.
I'll just put it on my wish list and wait for the price to come down or I fall so far behind in technology that I have to have something similar just to keep up.

flickr

I am laughing right now. I used the badge maker to make a badge out of a picture of my grandson. I then clicked "blog this" thinking that it would put the picture in this blog so I could write about it. Instead it linked this blog to my flickr account. LOL I guess somethings are just harder to get use to. In any case I am going to add the badge to this blog.

23 Things @ CML

This is week 2 and the third "thing." I am glad my library system is doing this. We need to keep up with all the useful tools on the web that can make our life easier and make our library system more visible. I already have a blog but decided to start a new one just for this program.

I listened to 7 1/2 habits of highly successful lifelong learners. I have a hard time setting goals and creating steps to reach those goals. I try to do to many things at once and want immediate results. I know that this is not the way to do things but.... I am working on this. I find it easy to play. I use the reward system for myself at home. If I get a certain chore done, one I've been putting off, then I get to play on the computer for an hour or some other fun thing I want to do.

I look forward to reading some of my co-workers blogs and having fun while working through this program. Go CML