Redflash goes green

Final thoughts

2008-11-24T09:50:00.001-08:00

Well, I actually finished, even with about a 6 week hiatus in October and November! Some of my initial thoughts are:
1. It was a great opportunity to learn some new tools.
2. It was unrealistic to say that each exercise could be done in 15 minutes. To really explore something was taking me much longer, maybe because I want to be thorough. When colleagues convinced me that I could briefly investigate a tool and then blog, without learning everything there was to know about something first, I felt free to attempt to finish. Please make this clearer in the intro to the program.
3. I like RSS feeds, podcasts, flickr, and other imaging sites discovered.
4. I will not really get into social networking until there can be one account that you can log into to access your blogs, podcasts, wikis, twiiter, flickr, etc. or at least one place they can all be on one homepage and you can see immediately if any have been updated. RSS helps but isn't enough.
5. I feel that I know at least enough to not look totally lost if I need to help a customer with these, although I know we aren't expected to teach them how to use non-library related technologies.

MOLDI

2008-11-24T09:44:00.000-08:00

I am finally happy with MOLDI! I have been wanting to use it for a long time but have all Mac at home. I see that you can now download to iPods and to a Mac computer as of November 10. I plan on using it to listen to titles I can't get at the library because of reserve lists or because we have removed it from the collection in audio format. I think the advanced search option is OK but could use a bit of enhancement...

Podcasts for Storytelling

2008-11-24T09:15:00.001-08:00

I can actually see a use for this, at home if not at work. I do storytelling outside of work and found several storytelling podcasts using podfeed.net. I first tried Google Podcast Directory but when I searched storytelling I just got a list taking me to podcast directories and some related story links at the bottom that weren't podcasts. Podfeed.net actually took me to a list of story podcasts, everything from telling better stories to actual storytellers sharing stories. This might be a good idea for children's staff in the library to use in planning programs.

Wiki sandbox

2008-11-24T08:46:00.000-08:00

This was the most confusing for me so far. It was not intuitive how to add information - maybe because it turns out to just be editing a page like a document in word and I was making it too hard. I added a comment on my favorite restaurant (Wildflower Cafe in Clintonville) and added my blog to the list. This would take a lot more exploring to be comfortable with it.

Library Tool Bar added for #19

2008-11-24T08:40:00.000-08:00

I decided to finally try to add the library tool bar from the power tools. I did it at work and am pleased that it actually worked! : ) Now I plan on trying it from home - but I use Safari so I guess I might have to switch to Firefox. I like that you can fix it to get alerts like email to pop up.

YouTube and the Grassahol bluegrass band

2008-11-24T07:32:00.000-08:00

I have used youtube and like its easy search features. I decided to share a video of my husband's bluegrass band Grassahol. Here it is singing the original When Our House Burns Down at Byrne's Pub:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P21YJwzggHY

Craigslist

2008-11-24T06:35:00.000-08:00

I was surprised to see Craigslist on the list of best web 2.0 sites. For some reason I thought it was only for selling stuff like ebay. I looked into it and discovered it has job postings, help finding housing, services, discussion forums, and community information on the specific city sites, like bands looking for drummers! Since recycling is a priority to me, I set up an account and am going to use the Columbus site to see if I can find good homes for some of my mom's things that are useful but not sentimental to me.

Also, I got a few tips regarding collectors plates in the discussion forums - I had no idea that craigslist had these forums.

The only use I can see for the library is maybe posting some of our events in the Community section, like Summer Reading Program or Celebration of Learning, or to have another place to recycle discards that do not sell or replaced furniture, etc. I noticed that Columbus Recreation & Parks Department has posted their Empty Bowls Luncheons - all of the locations with dates for places raising money for the Mid-Ohio food bank.

Google docs

2008-11-22T14:37:00.000-08:00

I think we could use Google docs when designing new Basic Source training classes, especially when more than one trainer is involved. All trainers could input and proof documents, powerpoints, etc. and save a lot of emailing back and forth of drafts. I saved the doc as a pdf in one of my folders in the HFA directory but can't figure out how to attach it to my blog.

WIKI this WIKI that

2008-11-22T14:00:00.000-08:00

Watching the CommonCraft video on Wiki's made it clear that it would be good for quick, informal, but needed collaboration between friends for planning purposes, etc. This made sense to me as in their planning for a camping trip. When I looked at some of the library wikis listed, I realized that someone had to put a lot of time into the design. They were all formatted in sections and some had color, pictures, etc. to snaz them up. This would take much longer. I could see us using for pathfinders if everyone in the system used the same wiki and it was divided into subject sections. However, I do have a problem with just anyone editing - especially if they do not have the background in the subject. We would have to have control like wikipedia does with the ability to lock some of the more elaborate pathfinders...

Librarian 2.0 and Web 2.0

2008-11-22T12:24:00.000-08:00

I read all 5 of the papers listed in this lessons instructions. My initial thought is overload - I have been a librarian for 30 years and always was proud of staying current with new technologies. However, they are coming so quickly now that it is becoming more difficult. I agree with Michael Stephens in that we must control "technolust" or the desire to invest in new technologies just because they are the newest "thing". Twitter is too limiting for reference work because of the short messages but I can see it used for announcements of upcoming events in the library. As we saw when choosing Horizon for the new ILS, it was bought up and changed before we could implement - too long in decision making. I am glad we have Helene Bowers on board to help the system through the neverending labyrinth of change.

Reading Chip Nilges article, from OCLC, makes me wonder about quality control when allowing anyone to tag, enter data, etc into Open WorldCat. Just as email began as a very useful tool for scientists and others to communicate, as soon as the population at large got into the act, spam flourished and it is much less useful. So people jump to creating MySpace and FaceBook pages - they will undoubtedly be obsolete when something else comes along.

I hope that the library community can find a way to embrace the new, move quickly, and provide the expertise to others who are trying to navigate through the ever growing inundation of information. I like Wendy Schultz's discussion of 3.0 and even 4.0, ending with:
"Library 4.0 revives the old image of a country house library, and renovates it: from a retreat, a sanctuary, a pampered experience with information—subtle thoughts, fine words, exquisite brandy, smooth coffee, aromatic cigar, smell of leather, rustle of pages—to the dream economy’s library, the LIBRARY: a WiFREE space, a retreat from technohustle, with comfortable chairs, quiet, good light, coffee and single malt. You know, the library."

Delicious becomes easier

2008-11-22T11:44:00.000-08:00

HFA has had a delicious account for quite awhile but I rarely use it because there is so much there and not intuitive to find. However, after watching the CommonCraft video about del.icio.us, it is clearer to me how to tag a site and the kind of notes that will actually be more useful. Maybe I will start adding to the sites already there in the HFA del.icio.us account!

Twittering is not for me

2008-11-22T11:27:00.000-08:00

About a month ago I signed on to twitter. Figuring out how to follow something was not really intuitive but I got some help and see that someone other than Learn&Play is following me. They won't get much - I'd rather talk in person or on the phone!!

LibraryThing catalog for storytelling

2008-11-22T11:17:00.000-08:00

I do storytelling at church and choose all of the stories that are shared during the children's time. I pick titles of interest to adults and children. I've been looking for an easy way to keep a list of what is used so others can easily see it and not duplicate. Library Thing is perfect for this! It is so nice that it uses Amazon and other sites so that an image of the cover is automatically included. I will use this often for my own catalogs as well.

Warholizing

2008-11-22T11:00:00.000-08:00

I just got back to doing the 23 Things after a long hiatus. My mom passed away on Oct. 25th and I am trying to get life back to normal.

Anyway, here is my attempt at playing with images for #10. I warholized a picture of me and look forward to doing more later. Since I didn't want to authorize my flicker account to be accessed by Warholizer, I just saved the picture in my HFA folder and Warholized it from there. Quite easy after deciding what I wanted to do.

Searching for Blogs and RSS feeds

2008-09-25T09:47:00.000-07:00

I tried searching Technorati but it didn't seem like there were many users of the blogs that came up searching books or reader's advisory. So I just searched in bloglines (I think) and added the Dispatch Book blog by Bill Eichenberger. I liked the ease of finding RSS feeds on news sites much better than trying to find blogs on a subject that actually had any real "meat" to them.

I also liked the way you could use the Easy Subscribe Bookmarklet to put a Sub with Bloglines link in my favorites to make subscribing easier.

Using bloglines

2008-09-19T13:46:00.000-07:00

I set up an account on Bloglines.com and then linked to several blogs. Having trouble seeing where the feed links are going. This stuff does not take only 15 minutes and it is next to impossible to finish these tasks when working part time!!

Creating presentation on Open Office

2008-09-13T14:35:00.000-07:00

This may seem mundane to those of you who have worked with digital pictures alot, but it was new and challenging for me. I wanted to make a presentation on my Dell laptop to use for some storytelling. First I had to scan pictures into a file - they went in as jpg. Then I used Adobe Photoshop Elements to clean them up, take pieces of some and merge or "stitch" these pieces together to make a new picture. I then used the program Grab to turn them into a tiff file. Next came the program Graphic Converter that turned them back into a jpg. (I think I have this all right!) I was then able to import them into Open Office (similar to Power Point). The presentation looked great! I then used the laptop with a projector to present my story.

Watermarking your photos

2008-09-02T17:22:00.001-07:00

image_1
Originally uploaded by dss_redflash

I investigated picmarkr.com, one of the flickr tools, which creates watermarks on your photos. It is a very simple process. You simply go to picmarkr.com, grab a photo from Flickr or elsewhere, create a text, image, or tile watermark, then upload the photo back to Flickr. You do have to give permission for picmarkr to access your flickr account, but this permission can be rescinded at any time.

Grand Tetons - Snake River Overlook - Second Treatment

2008-08-28T08:54:00.001-07:00

Grand Tetons - Snake River Overlook - Second Treatment
Originally uploaded by tfdavis

This photo brings back great memories of when I was in graduate school at the University of Denver. Several of my friends toured the Rockies every chance we could get on weekends. I truly miss Colorado!

Why go green?

2008-08-21T07:03:00.001-07:00

I am trying to find lots of easy but effective ways to leave less of a carbon footprint on the planet. Some of the things I have done are:
1. use washable hankies instead of kleenex
2. give up water bottles
3. back to using butter that comes in sticks rather than plastic tubs - all of the packaging can be recycled
4. back to using bar soap - no more plastic hand pump bottles at home
5. use all flourescent light bulbs at home
6. always carry reusable bags to buy groceries.

I'd love to hear what other people are doing, both at home and here at work. Unfortuneately, I can't do the big one - ride a bike to work...

Welcome to Redflash Goes Green

2008-08-21T06:56:00.000-07:00

Up and running. When looking at the 7 1/2 Habits of Highly Successful Lifelong Learners, I would say the easiest one for me is #7, Teach/mentor others. I love being a trainer for Basic Source and CPI classes, and to show customers how to find information.

I would say the hardest one for me is #7 1/2 - to Play. I am way too serious! I do love it when I get to act in community theater or tell stories in an all-ages setting and look forward to playing more at "work".