Thing 22

Wow! I can't believe that I've completed these "things". I can say that at moments this has been fun, sometimes challenging, but very necessary I believe. For Librarians and Information Professionals,there's no doubt that Web 2.0 and Library 2.0 skills are not only beneficial but necessary to compete, assist, and provide leadership in this informational age. So, I'm grateful for the opportunity to participate in this project. However, I also know that this is just an introduction for me. I need so much more exposure, practice, and knowledge in this ever changing environment. But, more importantly, this project has taken some of the fear out of and maybe has even removed my reluctance to seek the skills necessary in feeling comfortable teaching and helping others gain or maintain these skills.

So, as I continue, I'll like to thank my friends and co-workers for their assistance and for their future assistance to questons that might appear obvious to those more knowledgeable. Thanks Guys!

Thing 21

After exploring Assignment Calculator and Research Project Calculator, I must admit that I'm not at all sure that this resource will work for or appeal to college and high school students.

But as a Librarian or an Information Professional, the job is to put the information out there and let the public decide what is useful or what will satisfy their informational needs.

As an IP, involved in community outreach, this would be a resource that I could definitely introduce to potential college students. They could decide if this was somethng that would benefit them.

Thing 20

This thing takes time, but it's well worth the effort.

To begin with, I read the article Literary Debate:Online RU Really Reading .

Among other issues, this article discusses how the internet affects reading skills. For example, Nicholas Carr,a teen who was interviewed for this article states that "what the net seems to be doing is chipping away my capacity for concentration and contemplation" and "he finds it difficult to read long books". However,the article also points out that there are those who believe that some students benefit from their internet use. For example,Elizabeth Birr-Moje, a professor at the University of Michigan who lead a study on teens and internet use, says that "on the internet students are developing new reading skills that are neither taught or evaluated in school", and she goes on to say that "giving home internet access to low-income students appeared to improve standardized reading test scores and school grades". The article states that "these are the kids who would typically not be reading in their free time."

I think I agree with professor Donna E. Alvermann, a professor of language and literary education at the University of Georgia who says that "books aren't out of the picture, but they're only one way of experiencing information in the world".

I also watched the video promoting Kindle 2/wireless rading device. According to this video, this device holds 1,500 titles.I think this is great and personally love the device. However, the average book for purchase will cost around $350. And, I could never afford such a luxury.

In addition, I also explored the resources listed below books on your phone, reader's advisory, online book community, book group, audio books, book rental, and book swaps.

There was so much to explore and most of it was so new to me. I'm glad I now have these resources for future use.

Thing 19

It was great exploring alternative social networks. Of the three networks suggested (WebJunction,Ning, and Gather), I found Ning the most interesting. This site offers an opportunity to join a number of network communities. For example, there's : Fitness star network, Digital making pace:professional and continuing education group, and Jobs in social media, just to name a few.

I also read the articles: MySpace for Books and WebJunction Article: Building a social networking envirionment at the library.

MySpace for Books:

The author(Rachel Deahl..Publisher's Weekly, 12/12/2005)of this article states that Gather.com "has the potential to do for books what mySpace did for music". As many already now, MySpace is a place/space where record labels can "prerelease buzz for new albums". This article suggests that Gather has the potential to "promote writers in the same way". This site gives users and opportunity to "publish their own content and then rate that of other members".

WebJunction article:

I find this article not only interesting but very informative. First, it points out the importance of creating a social networking environment at the library. The author(Steve Campion)states that "social networking has the potential of connecting programs,catalogs, and websites and taking patron interaction to a new demension".
The author goes on to say that "the challenge lies in convincing the doubters".

The author also lists several steps in becoming an "interactive" library.

First:Education/Social Web Literacy
Second: Education+Imagination/create: library blog,record and edit podcasts,launch a library flickr page, create a MySpace account, start a wiki.
Third:Convince key people in the organization to consider integrating social networking into existing library activities.

Thing 18

I joined the Facebook community over six months ago. I really like it. It's such a great way of keeping in touch with family members and friends. Over the months I've become a member of Equality is Gainesville Business, Wild Iris Books, American Library Association, and the Florida Library Association.

I checked out Jacksonville Public Library and Pasco Library MySpace Pages, there was an abundance of information about programs, up coming events, info for teens,videos, and general info about their libraries and collections. Great way to promote and advocate the importance of libraries.

Thing 17

For this excercise, I first listened to an interview and reading by Toni Morrison from her new book A Mercy that I easly found on Podcast.com.

I also explored Yahoo Podcasts and the Educational Podcast Directory. From Yahoo Podcasts, I downloaded excerpts from The Giver by Lois Lowry, Before We Were Free, by Julia Alverez, and The Miracle Boys, by Jacqueline Woodson.

In addition, I downloaded and listened to a performance entitled The Roaring 20's that I found on The Education Podcast Network. This podcast was created by a group of 10th grade English students living on the outskirts of Atlanta,GA

Thing 16

It was fun exploring YouTube! It's always fun exploring YouTube! I decided to post a music video by Tracy Chapman. This is one on my favorite Tracy Chapman songs.

Thing 15

I'm not too sure about this "thing". This is a new thing for me. I read the information given about Rollyo, and I've talked to a few of my co-workers.So, I have a solid understanding of the concept and purpose of this thing.However, putting that concept into practice proved a bit uneasy. So, this thing continues--- I'm in the process of putting together websites about a subject that interest me the most.

Thing 14

I now have an iGoogle start page or home page, a calendar, and a Ta da list. I haven't added anything to my Calendar or Ta da list yet. I must admit I'm still rather attached to my wall calendar. I just hope that I don't forget my user name and pass word to this account.

Thing 13

This "thing" has us touring LibraryThing. I liked it. I now have an account and I added a few of my favorite books.

Thing 12

I like wikis and the idea of sharing information. However, wikis might not be the best place to look when searching for an authoritative source. (wikipedia comes to mind). But, they can be good for those beginning research on a topic they have no knowledge of.

For this "thing", I decided to add content to a storyhour wiki created by one of my co-workers. With some assistance from another co-worker, it didn't take too long and it was fun.

This wiki was created by Meredith Ann Pierce. It's called acldstorytime. And can be found at: http://acldstorytime.pbwiki.com

Thing 11

This "thing" introduces us to or explores the growing popularity of social media sites. Some of the most popular media sites are Digg, Reddit, Nesvine, and Mix.

After exploring these sites, I think I understand why they are popular. And why users gravitate towards these opportunities to share and participate in the information process.

Eventhough I haven't yet created an account in any of the sites explored, it's great to know about their existance for future personal use and inquiring patrons.

Thing 10

Tagging was mainly simple. For me, this exercise is not new. Working in a public library, I'm not sure that your everyday average public library user will find this tool appealing. However, I can see how the bookmarking site might benefit and help those engaged in research.It could definitely be useful for researchers to have all their most useful Web sites located in one place. In addition, this could be a great tool for librarians. Librarians could use delicious to collect the most sought after sites by patrons or sites that offered information to the most frequently asked questions. For example, http://www.irs.gov/(being that it's that time of year again).

Thing 9

This "thing" seemed to take forever, I tried a number of ideas (creating a slide show,a collage, among some other stuff). Finally, I came up with this. I just want to thank my co-workers for their help. I hope I didn't drive you crazy with my endless questions.

Thing 8

Eventhough I'm well aware of text messaging and web conferencing and respect these ways of communicating, personally, I've only experienced and enjoy IM(instant messaging).I like chatting with friends and family(especially those who live out of the country). It's a lot cheaper than a phone call and doesn't have the delay of a letter by mail. Also, I've taken several on-line classes and students and professors communicate this way. For those who haven't experienced on-line chatting, the experience can be rewarding and surprisingly addictive. For me, text messaging doesn't offer the same type of experience. Or maybe, I just need to give text messaging a real chance. Who knows!

Thing 7

http://bighugelabs.com/flickr/

This was fun! I just played around with a couple of photos and images until I got the right one.

Thing 6

I"m now on thing six. In fact, I've been on thing six for a while now. However, a co-worker saved me! it was really simble once I asked someone. To my fellow bloggers, if you're stuck on something that's not familiar, jsut ask someone. Don't waste a lot of time trying to figure out something that's not very difficult once you've been pointed in the right direction!

YS celebrate (obama election, black history) DSCN3155

YS celebrate (obama election, black history) DSCN3155, originally uploaded by lindacue48.

Display for Black history month in the Youth Service Department(ACLD).

Thing 5: Flickr

For this excercise, I chose option B. I created an account with flickr and uploaded several photos. This process wasn't difficult at all. The directions were clear and easy to follow.

Now, I'm going to see if I can download one of those photos to this blog!

Thing 4: RSS and Newsletters

For this post, I'll like to start with some definitions because I like definitions. And because, I'm thinking about those who might just read my blog and have never heard of the term.

From our readings for this "thing", it's stated that "RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication. It is a file format for delivering regularly updated information over the web."

Also, "in the information world RSS has changed the way news, media, and content creators share information, and it is changing the way everyday users are consuming information".

In addition, RSS's "allows you to subscribe to online news and updates that are important to you, and once you subscribe to a source, you no longer need to visit that individual website to check the website for updates/ if they offer an RSS feed, all you need to do is subscribe."
The blog: open 24 hours, Wagner, Mark.

So, the next question would be what can users subscribe to?
Answer: News sources, blogs, social bookmarking, podcasts, wiki's, photo sharing(flickr), websearchers (such as Google News, MSN search, or Technorati).

Then we were asked to set up an account.
I chose Google reader and set up an account. This was not very diffucult. Believe me when I say that if I can do this anyone can.

I've already added some of my favorite sites. Like CNN and Google News, and the blogs of some of my co-workers.

Thing 3: Blog Search Tools

After reading the information for this blog entry, I know that it's possible to search for blogs using blog Engines, and each blog engine offers a variety of tools to assist users. For example, "you can search for keywords in blog posts, search for entire blog posts that have been tagged with a certain keyword, or search for blogs that have been registered and tagged as whole blogs about a certain subject" (like photography, Libraries).

We were also asked to select two blog engines and search for blogs using keywords, the subject, and other search terms. There were a list of search engines to choose from. For example, Technorati, Blog Search Engines, Blog Search Engines: the complete overview, and Directory of Blog Search Engines to find Blogs.

For this excercise, I chose along with Technorati, Blog Search Engines and compared the two.

Using the Technorati search engine, I typed in the subject "libraries". This subject produced 26,477 results. There were so much to choose from. There were blogs about library cuts, programs, library research papers, and some blogs about "the everyday life of a librarian".

Using this same subject term, I explored the Blog Search Engine.

This search yeilded 13, 000 results. Some of the blogs located in this search were Google Vs Libraries, college libraries, how to read books on-line, among several others.

What I discovered while exploring these two blog engines is that it's much more productive to search by using a subject term than by using keywords in a post.

Thing 2

First of all, I wanted to participate in 23 things because I think I understand how important knowing how to navigate in this environment(web 2.0) has become. In the last decade, the needs of library users has expanded. Of course, I believe, that the library will always attract those patrons looking for a good book, magazine, the newspaper, a program, or just wanting to use the computers to check e-mail or fill out an on-line application. However, with the advances in technology, libraries and librarians must extend their arms to embrace a different type of user. These are our users who communicate and connect to others via social networks. As a librarian , I want to be able to support and assist these users with ease and confidence.

Also, in the article Library Technology Reports, the author states that "we need to understand the tools, use them, and recognize their significance to library services. A well-trained staff is the key to utilizing social technologies". As a librarian, I hope that 23 things will contribute to what I already know about web and library 2.0 and also lend a hand in the realization that this type of knowledge is on going, necessary, and contributes to the ways that people connect and communicate with each other.

Thing 1

I now have a blog! Me with a blog! I never thought I would really venture out in this direction, but life keeps getting sweeter all the time. Creating this blog wasn't that difficult. In fact, it wasn't difficult at all once I got over my initial fear about doing this.

Anyway, I'm starting to get a little bit excited about this thing!
So, on to thing two!