Groverthelibrarian's Weblog

And for the 24th and final entry….

groverthelibrarian — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 01:27:37 +0000

Thank you so much for the MP3 Player. By the way, blue is my favorite color. As for downloading from the OverDrive Media Console, the transfer process was quite simple. Now I can take my MP3 audio book version any place I so desire.

Again…this was a fantastic journey!

Grover

Ending Summary for CCLS 23 Things

groverthelibrarian — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 17:15:56 +0000

Time flies when you are having fun. This certainly was a rewarding experience. While there are still many things to learn, I feel that 23 Things provided a great overview of the main social networking tools, especially as they apply to public libraries.

My favorite discoveries included:

Setting up my first blog
Learning about RSS Feeds and setting up a bloglines account
Social bookmarking & Delicious
MySpace and Facebook
Free applications such as Zoho Writer & all of the great things on found on the Web 2.0 Award list
Exploring podcastalley and getting my favorites in bloglines

In the realm of lifelong learning, it is evident that all participants, including me, aquired many new skills. A positive attitude and taking responsibility was necessary to reach the ultimate goal of completion. The MP3 Player is a nice bonus. Playing around with the technology allowed me to work through some minor glitches. To make this a lasting and permanent experience, further exploration and application will be necessary in the future.

By providing additional courses, CCL can foster ongoing reinforcement of the content material. Let’s play again!

Thank you for this great educational opportunity.

Grover

e-audiobooks

groverthelibrarian — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 17:16:49 +0000

This is a wonderful feature to offer our patrons. Certainly, there is quite a selection of titles.

Personally, I found the system easy to use. One can say that it is user friendly and intuitive for most experienced computer users. Once again, this format is quite appealing to the audio learner or the visually impaired. In addition, you get instant access right in your own home.

Grover

groverthelibrarian — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 21:00:31 +0000

PODCASTS! PODCASTS!

Who wouldn’t like Podcastally, as it has something on every subject. Adding the RSS feeds to the bloglines account was super easy. In keeping with the assignment, I added two book related podcasts, namely: LibVibe and Compulsive Reader Talks. I also added several others that were non-library related. All of these are especially appealing to the audio learner.

While I haven’t actually tried it, I do appreciated the guides to creating your own podcasts. This venture would truly make me a “prosumer” of information.

This was a great learning experience!

Grover

More on YouTube

groverthelibrarian — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 21:44:44 +0000

I have always liked YouTube, especially since you can find a video rendition on almost any subject. As for the CCL YouTube page, it’s obvious that we have some very creative teens living in our county.

This has great potential for all libraries, as video collections promoting our programs and services captivate the interest of our online viewers. As they say, “A picture says a thousand words.”

Grover

YouTube – Digital Conversion TV

groverthelibrarian — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 21:23:04 +0000

We had a presenter at our library on the digital conversion needed for February of 2009. Those of you with elderly parents or relatives might find the above YouTube video quite delightful.

Thanks for watching.

Grover

Social Networking

groverthelibrarian — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 20:56:04 +0000

I was pleased to see so many different Myspace pages for libraries. So much of the content, backgrounds, videos, music and more are truly geared toward teens. Those that had online contests or games certainly invite participation.

The new young adult books slide show on WCPL’s site was a great way to display popular titles. It’s ashame that libraries can not get rid of the sidebar advertisements. After all, Find an Asian Wife doesn’t quite fit with the wholesome library image. WCPL’s Facebook had great photos of their events. It was nice to see links to all of their entries, including the catalog, blog, Myspace and Library thing profile.

Twitter seems to be the most common microblogging tool used by libraries. It’s a great way to communicate short messages.

All of these social networking tools are ideal for libraries. It’s online marketing at its best. Keeping teens involved with libraries has always been a challenge. Hopefully, all of these will attract their attention.

Grover

Web 2.0 Awards

groverthelibrarian — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 20:39:18 +0000

I thought I would try Imcooked, as I love to try new recipes. What was nice about this was that the user was provided with an online video presentation taking the recipe from start to finish. Now I will be able to make those blueberry cheescake bars or that almond crusted tiapia with ease.

Of course, I went to Cocktail builder because I know nothing about mixed drinks.

After satisfying my culinary needs, I explored some other tools that interested me. For example, MyHeritage, Geni, Amiglia allow you to share your personal genealogy with other family members. The Health ones, such as iMedix, provided information and also gave you access to online communities specific to a particular ailment or disease.

I am really anxious to try Wufoo for form building or Backpack to help with organization. Both of these provided online tours.

Of course, I found some of those sites that we explored earlier, such as Delicious and PBWiki.

From bookmarking to Widgets, the award list has something for everyone.

Happy online travels.

Grover

	Almond Crusted Tilapia

Grovers Zoho Document

groverthelibrarian — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 20:23:58 +0000

Zoho Writer Exercise

Well, as you can see, I was able to do the standard bold, font size and color change. No doubt, the toolbar resembles Microsoft Word. Adding cool smileys is a plus.

Inserting pictures, like this one made by one of our young library patrons, was a breese. It was nice to know that all of the features, such as tables, were still there.

Sharing Documents with mutiple recipients is a time saver and certainly is advantageous. Granting Read and Write permissions promotes a collaborative environment.

I am certainly looking forward to trying other Zoho applications

The Wonderful World of Wikis

groverthelibrarian — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 20:58:13 +0000

The initial information, including the podcasts, was a nice overview of the topic. The Discovery element allowed us to explore some of the ways that libraries are using Wikis. For example, the subject guides provided a great way to share content about popular topics, including local events, popular titles, and handouts. I especially like the Library Success category, as it provided a wealth of information divided by subject categories such as marketing and fundraising, programming, management, reference, etc. After reading some of the ideas and tips, I am now ready for a cookie swap. ALA used a Wiki to provide information on the Conference. As with the Bull Run Library, we know that libraries can use them to list current in-house events and to provide additional avenues of linking to other features.

It was a great adventure.

Grover