I participated in a webinar about after school programming. It had a lot of good ideas that I will hopefully implement in my programming in the future. I finally had a reason to listen to a podcast from NPR on summer reads for kids now that summer is over. I was excited that it showcased some of my favorite recent reads and some that I have added to my already too long list. I listen to a lot of podcasts from NPR because I so rarely have the time to listen live.
As a side note, I did these things a few weeks ago but an now just writing about them. I had to finish Mockingjay before I could think about doing anything else!
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Monday, August 30, 2010
I Have Forgotten To Post!
I have been keeping up with the weekly activities, I just have forgotten to post about them! So let's see if I can catch up with a few posts.
I have a Facebook account and use it periodically. I am not as faithful as many of my friends. I don't like to reveal that much information about myself unless I am actually talking to someone. I do like and follow several library Facebook pages. I use the chat function on Facebook more often than I thought that I would. I find that the people that I want to talk to are on Facebook and that an IM service is not needed for me. I used to IM on AOL all the time when I first bought a home computer. But that was before texting and other ways to keep in touch in real time. I gave Twitter a try and don't think that it is for me. Most of the kids that I come in contact with everyday do not use twitter.
Now on to something that I think that I will use often now that I have spent time using it - Goodreads. I like the way it functions and looks better than Library Thing. I have been a frequent visitor to the Mock Newbery 2011 and Mock Printz 2011 groups to see what titles are being mentioned. Also, the library school that I graduated from uses Goodreads to help facilitate discussions of YA books for those who can't make it to the discussion in person.
Just a few thoughts on a few things from past weeks. See I was keeping notes as I was going through the Things!
I have a Facebook account and use it periodically. I am not as faithful as many of my friends. I don't like to reveal that much information about myself unless I am actually talking to someone. I do like and follow several library Facebook pages. I use the chat function on Facebook more often than I thought that I would. I find that the people that I want to talk to are on Facebook and that an IM service is not needed for me. I used to IM on AOL all the time when I first bought a home computer. But that was before texting and other ways to keep in touch in real time. I gave Twitter a try and don't think that it is for me. Most of the kids that I come in contact with everyday do not use twitter.
Now on to something that I think that I will use often now that I have spent time using it - Goodreads. I like the way it functions and looks better than Library Thing. I have been a frequent visitor to the Mock Newbery 2011 and Mock Printz 2011 groups to see what titles are being mentioned. Also, the library school that I graduated from uses Goodreads to help facilitate discussions of YA books for those who can't make it to the discussion in person.
Just a few thoughts on a few things from past weeks. See I was keeping notes as I was going through the Things!
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
A Little Behind
Okay, I am officially a little behind! With summer reading coming to an end, programming and everything else that Youth Services librarians do, I have had a hard time keeping up lately.
I have recently started to use Firefox and have discovered that I like it. Viewing the videos from the 21 Things blog showed me that it can do so much more than I was using it for. We have 2 staff members that use it exclusively and one day I was frustrated with the speed of IE and they told me to use Firefox instead. Ever since that day, I have been using it more and more. I will explore more of it's capabilities once summer reading is over and before class visits start! However, I still have not downloaded onto my home computer since I do not spend that much time on it. I figure I am on the computer so much at work that I really don't want to spend extra time on one at home. That is why friends get mad when I don't update Facebook or check email!
As for creating a wiki, I am slowly doing that. Right now it is private because I keep changing my mind on what I want it to be about. I can't see a reason to have a personal wiki of my own, but definitely see uses for professional purposes. I must add that I am still partial to blogs over wikis for my information.
Hopefully I will be caught up with this weeks topics before next week!
I have recently started to use Firefox and have discovered that I like it. Viewing the videos from the 21 Things blog showed me that it can do so much more than I was using it for. We have 2 staff members that use it exclusively and one day I was frustrated with the speed of IE and they told me to use Firefox instead. Ever since that day, I have been using it more and more. I will explore more of it's capabilities once summer reading is over and before class visits start! However, I still have not downloaded onto my home computer since I do not spend that much time on it. I figure I am on the computer so much at work that I really don't want to spend extra time on one at home. That is why friends get mad when I don't update Facebook or check email!
As for creating a wiki, I am slowly doing that. Right now it is private because I keep changing my mind on what I want it to be about. I can't see a reason to have a personal wiki of my own, but definitely see uses for professional purposes. I must add that I am still partial to blogs over wikis for my information.
Hopefully I will be caught up with this weeks topics before next week!
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Delicious and Google Reader
Last week I added things my delicious account and subscribed to new blogs in my Google Reader. I now remember why I limited the number of blogs on my Google Reader! It can be overwhelming when you don't have time to check them on a daily basis. I used to subscribe to a major news organization and quickly eliminated it because I was getting about 50 new entries a day and I did not have time to look through all of them. I love having the library related blogs in one place. It is easier to look through my reader then each individual blog to see whats new.
As for my delicious account, I went in and added tags which I have been planning on doing. I keep changing them because I don't like them, they or too general or too specific. I added a few new sites to my account once I learned that I could see what other people who had bookmarked the site also had bookmarked. I still choose to keep my account private because it is not ready for public viewing. I am working on creating an account for my department since we use different computers and need the same information handy. This is so much easier than bookmarking the sites on all of the computers!
As for Social Mention and Addictomatic, I had very little luck for my library. I went in and added a larger library system in the area and was able to see the two as they were designed to operate.
As for my delicious account, I went in and added tags which I have been planning on doing. I keep changing them because I don't like them, they or too general or too specific. I added a few new sites to my account once I learned that I could see what other people who had bookmarked the site also had bookmarked. I still choose to keep my account private because it is not ready for public viewing. I am working on creating an account for my department since we use different computers and need the same information handy. This is so much easier than bookmarking the sites on all of the computers!
As for Social Mention and Addictomatic, I had very little luck for my library. I went in and added a larger library system in the area and was able to see the two as they were designed to operate.
Friday, July 16, 2010
Slow to Take on New Technologies
I am not one to jump in with both feet when it comes to technology. I instead take it slowly and wait until it pertains to my job before I explore the possibilities. I canter into technology, not gallop or run. I am trying to change that and hoping that this class will help me to do that. I am encouraged by the fact that some of the things that we are going to be doing I am familiar with. It makes this journey a little easier!
Having said that, I purchased an e-reader a few months ago with great trepidation. This was not easy for me because I love to have an actual book in my hands. I love to go back and re-read my favorites and love that they are not in perfect condition. My decision was not made because I have to have the latest in technology but because I am running out of room for books. I researched the available devices and choose the NOOK from Barnes and Noble. It helped that I could experiment with the device before I purchased it.
I was nervous when they handed me my purchase and I asked if the instruction manual was in the box and they said that it did not have one. I was told that is was so easy that it walks you through the steps that are necessary and the manual was available online if I really needed it. It was so shockingly simple to set up that I had to laugh at my first reaction. There were four books that were included free, classics but some of my favorites to get me started.
Once I started reading and experimenting with the different features, I was hooked on my NOOK within a day. It is easy to use, to read and portable. When I went on vacation, I took over 50 books with me and I did not need extra luggage to carry them! It is even compatible with OverDrive.
I see advantages to e-reader technology and the possibilities that they will provide in the future for libraries. Now we just need others to see those possibilities.
Having said that, I purchased an e-reader a few months ago with great trepidation. This was not easy for me because I love to have an actual book in my hands. I love to go back and re-read my favorites and love that they are not in perfect condition. My decision was not made because I have to have the latest in technology but because I am running out of room for books. I researched the available devices and choose the NOOK from Barnes and Noble. It helped that I could experiment with the device before I purchased it.
I was nervous when they handed me my purchase and I asked if the instruction manual was in the box and they said that it did not have one. I was told that is was so easy that it walks you through the steps that are necessary and the manual was available online if I really needed it. It was so shockingly simple to set up that I had to laugh at my first reaction. There were four books that were included free, classics but some of my favorites to get me started.
Once I started reading and experimenting with the different features, I was hooked on my NOOK within a day. It is easy to use, to read and portable. When I went on vacation, I took over 50 books with me and I did not need extra luggage to carry them! It is even compatible with OverDrive.
I see advantages to e-reader technology and the possibilities that they will provide in the future for libraries. Now we just need others to see those possibilities.
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