Thing 23 - Reflect

Here are the questions from 23 Things for the final exercise:

-What were your favorite discoveries or exercises on this learning journey?

The photos.

-How has this program assisted or affected your lifelong learning goals?


-Were there any take-aways or unexpected outcomes from this program that surprised you?


-What could we do differently to improve upon this program’s format or concept?And last but not least…

-If we offered another discovery program like this in the future, would you again chose to participate?

-How would you describe your learning experience in a few words or a few sentences, so we can share our successes and promote this program?

Podcasting

Thing 21 - Podcasts

Listened to a few. In general I have little interest in digging through the podcasts of the masses. I like the technology, and it is very useful in the right environment. Merlin, for example, uses them well! Maybe this exercise could look to introducing 23thing'ers to the merlin podcasts? This would seem a more focused and useful view of the technology for people who are unfamiliar with podcasts. I can see how learning to subscribe to a podcast and get it into your bloglines account is a good thing, but I really think the better introduction is to lead to a podcast the has valuable info and just get the trainee used to playing them.

Greyhound falls but wins the race

Also known as the "greyhound who cheats."

Thing 20 - The Tube

YouTube is way too addictive for me. I've just spent the past hour looking at greyhound movies! How silly!

Thing 19

Thing 19

Well, I had to do it. I had to look at the 43 Things website for my "Thing 19" discovery exercise. I think the site is fantastic, and I was enjoying tooling around the place. However, I wanted to come up for air before I got stuck. It seems like the site might be a great big time user! Especially for the always-curious information professional set!

How would this be used in a library setting? Good question. Clearly, you could stop by the 43 Things site to see how others do things - find a fellow artist or writer or bicycle enthusiast who can share tips, ideas, and information. So patrons might actually benefit from it. After only a moderate exploration, it seems to be a nice, organic knowledge base that is constantly fluctuating. There may be great things to find and explore in this site. I also like the currency of the site. You know that trends and popular culture will be prevalent in such a space. I may find my way back, both for personal and professional reasons, in the near future.

Addendum to Thing 18

Addendum to Thing 18

Okay - I'm going to try the blog posting thing one more time. Drumroll . . .

The 18th Thing - the Thing that Almost Got Away.

Well, I have tried my very best - including the technique of typing on the keys with a little more force and pressure, but I can't get Google Docs to recognize this blog. It keeps defaulting back to my other blogger blog - and my nice little Thing 18 post is being added / deleted / added / deleted to that blog instead of this one. That's a bit frustrating. But - I'm going to stop tying and just cut and paste the text from my google doc:
--

And can I get rid of comments? -Bookgal145 8/15/07 8:18 PM This Will Be My Title. Oh Yes It Will.

Here I am experimenting with web apps. I'm wondering if I can format this document like I would non-web-based word processing software. And I'm frightened of what it may be keeping track of up there in that revisions tab. Because, you see, I type speedily and make many embarrassing mistakes. And do I get spell-checking software. Because I'm certain I just misspelled "embarrassed." And you will all know that because:

1. I do not have spell check

and

2. The revisions tab is playing big-brother on me!

Well, let's check it out, shall we?

--Sandy
Hmm. Wonder what a comment looks like? -Bookgal145 8/15/07 8:18 PM
Good news! There is a spell-check. I see it at the bottom of the screen. Also, I do like that I'm not being auto-formatted.

After having read the zoho document that was posted in our lesson - I have to agree that the portability of web apps is a great feature. I do not have Microsoft Word at home, so I cannot access documents (such as emergency contact lists if we have a building closing) from my home. I have to rely on printed versions - and those become outdated quickly. I may have to make a Google docs version! I could read it from anywhere!

Okay, I'm going to attempt to post this to my blog and see what happens. Right after I run that spell check.

Thing 17

Well - I added my blog to the Maryland Libraries Sandbox. As the site is a little unorganized and large - I'm not too certain what I was looking at or where I really was supposed to post a favorite. My concern is that this wiki might be a little confusing for those new to the experience.

Thing 16 - Wiki

My thoughts on a wiki in a library setting can be found here : http://newtechaacpl.pbwiki.com/ .

In my opinion, the absolute best aspect of using a wiki in a large system is the ability to share the responsibility for keeping the information up to date. A wiki tracks work that has been added and changed and is one centralized depository, so multiple people can manage and work on one information source. It allows work and upkeep to be spread throughout our branches - regardless of the size of our system or the actual size of our county! I say seize the wiki power!

Thing 15

I thought the movie was great – though I don’t think we need to rethink “family” and “love” because of Web 2.0! J A bit of hyperbole, I suppose.

The idea of Library 2.0 is such a good one. I like to use the phrase “power to the patron.” People are empowered throughout society today to do more things on their own, and libraries can and should use this potential of the masses. We check out our own groceries at the store, do research remotely, telecommute, etc.

I’d like to comment on the OCLC article about Chip Nilges. Actually, I like the way the article describes the purpose of Open World Cat – which is to move library into the consumer realm and to reach out further in order to ‘touch the entire web.’ This is a great soundbite, actually. Also – the concept of “users add value” is such an important one for libraries to keep in mind. In addition, users expect to add value in the web 2.0 world.

Technorati Tagging

Okay - here is my attempt to tag a post. Followed by my rambling thoughts as I worked through Thing 14.

I have to say, I started last night on this “thing.” I searched the "mdlearn2" tag that was suggested, and I had a great time reading through the results. It works! I received a lot of relevant results, all from Marylanders blogging about their 23 Things experience. The returns were fun to read. I’m sure I would not have gotten these results with a straight google-type search, but I must admit I haven’t tried it . . .

Today I sat down to begin the “Thing” in earnest. When it came time, I typed in all of the information i needed to “claim” my blog. I then pressed “claim.” The page was hung up for a while, and eventually I received this message: “Doh! The Technorati Monster escaped again. We're scouring the blogosphere attempting to find it. Back in a flash!” I wonder if this is what I’m supposed to see. I'll tell you what. I’ll wait a flash and see what happens.

Well, after a few flashes I went back to Technorati and refreshed the page with the text about the monster. Apparently it is still “borked.” I’m still trying to figure out what a bork is and what the page is trying to tell me . . . Also, I’m unable to get the video to play for me. I wonder if this is a result of the borking.

Okay. Now that a few more flashes have gone by, all is well. Everything worked out and I am officially claimed. (I ended up backing up the pages and starting anew). Now to tagging . . .

I think perhaps the process of tagging in html needs to be spelled out a little. I was initially a bit uncertain as to what I was being asked to do – I wonder if others might be so, as well. (I did add the code to the html page - but I didn't realize I should delete the brackets around tagname). Maybe a little further clarification in the “Thing 14” would be useful?

I’m a little on-the-fence about this module. I can see that Technorati can be useful, but I think it may be a bit of a tough concept for a quick online lesson. I also apologize to anyone reading for this very long ramble!

Btw – I went back to my delicious account and I have about 12 new sites in my subscriptions tab. How exciting!

mdlearn2

For Technorati

Technorati Profile

Thing Lucky 13

I can definitely see where I would have benefited greatly from a del.icio.us account when I was in grad school. I had an extensive list of bookmarks - and to see where the "social" aspect of a delicious bookmark would have taken me would not only be interesting - but very useful. I could have seen where in the world sites that were relevant to my work were also permeating. Was only the library world interested in the things I was, or was the art world more interested? Did it spill over into pop culture? Presumably this tool would have given me a bit more insight into my specialization at the time. Plus - and this is a great thing - it is portable, so to speak.

It would be terribly useful today, too, if I were involved in research. ESPECIALLY because it is portable. I don't have anything useful to bookmark at the moment. But one day I may, so I've re-discovered my old delicious account, which had a total of one entire bookmark. One. Now it has three!

I find the various library delicious accounts intriguing. Mostly that they are so different, and you can tell they are used for different purposes. When I have more time, I'd like to explore these more extensively.

See my very exciting 3 bookmark account at http://del.icio.us/bookgal145