T.S. Garp Tackles Library 2.0

The 24th Thing

2009-01-16T05:45:00.000-08:00

Earlier this week I received my Mp3 player. It is pink and very cute and I like it a lot. I had no trouble downloading the two audiobooks that I got off of overdrive. (I have been listening to one of the audiobooks on my computer). Then I downloaded the music that I saved to Realplayer on my computer. I could not though figure out how to get my music from I-tunes to the Mp3 player, but I know that I will be able to figure that out another day. I did not have trouble charging the player.
Here is where I have a confession to make, I have not looked at the directions at all yet and that is why I probably had the next problem I am about to confess.
I took it to my gym where the music is loud. I got on the elliptical machine and plugged in my headphones to the Mp3 player. I could not get it to work for me at the gym. Sometimes I could hear part of a song, but as soon as I moved the buttons to do what I thought was turning up the sound, I lost it. Also I am not sure if the player liked how much it was being moved around. In any case, I think that I probably need to read the directions. I charged it up again last night so I think I am ready to experiment with it again.
Thank you Chester County Library for the Mp3 player! I have been curious about them for a while and it is nice to have one to experiment with and enjoy.

#23 Is this really the end? Or just the beginning …

2009-01-07T11:00:00.000-08:00

I would like to begin this blog post by writing about some of my favorite discoveries with this 23 Things project. I looked through my past blog entries to review my favorites. First of all, I enjoyed the ease and entertainment of downloading a book with Overdrive. I listened to it for about an hour last night at home and really enjoyed it.

Secondly I liked exploring Zoho’s web based applications including the project management application. For some reason it was just really interesting for me to see what Project Management software looks like. Save for one job, I have never worked for a for-profit cooperation and so I find it really interesting to look inside that world.

I also will put to use the local restaurant recommendations that I got from PB Wiki. Wiki’s are collaborative and somewhat informal and I like that.

One application I know I will use in the future is Technorati. You see applications like Bloglines make me nervous because content is always being added to your in-box. With this set-up I don’t ever feel like I am done reading things. It makes me anxious. But with Technorati I can just search a topic and read posts by all sorts of blog written by different people and when I am done I can just close that window and nothing accumulates for me to read later. It eliminates the anxiety for me.

My final favorite 23 Things application is Flickr. I used Flickr before the 23 Things but it was only after I did the Flickr exercises that I really started to appreciate it. I like the mashups; they can be really fun and useful. I also liked how you can blog through Flickr. Also I got a digital camera from Christmas so now I will have some new photos to upload in Flickr. I can send pictures out to friends and family. I don’t know how I will be able to use it in my current position but it is something I can think on.

Here are some final wrap- up thoughts. I think I would say that this program has made me more excited about technology. I was already somewhat excited about technology but this program has made me more excited about technology in libraries, particularly creating promotional materials using mashups and other creative software.

While working on these 23 Things I was lucky enough to have a desk and computer to work at. I cannot help but think though this program would have been more difficult to participate in if I did not have a personal computer to use. So for that I feel lucky.

I am glad I participated in this program, but am relieved it is almost over because of the time commitment. Thanks for your efforts in implementing and running this program!Thank you for participating in this project. We hope that you have learned something lasting and that we as a system can all benefit from our new knowledge.

#22 E-Audiobooks (or “The end is in sight “)

2009-01-06T17:58:00.001-08:00

Okay this task actually took more time than I thought. I intially tried to do this on my work computer, but for some reason it would not allow me to download the book to that computer. I could download the overdrive software though. So I did it tonight on my own computer. Maybe I read the directions a little more slowly or maybe it was a security issue, I do not know.

In any case I chose an audiobook that I think I will really enjoy. It is called Love Is a Mixed Tape: Life and Loss, One Song at a Time by Rob Sheffield. I am listening to it as I write this entry. It is my kind of book.

Had it not been for this exercise I might never have thought to do this. I might not have found this audiobook.

Now that I have it set up on my home computer I know that I will take out more Overdrive books. I sometimes go to the gym so I think that I will download books to listen to at the gym. And now I can help customers who want to learn how to do it.

Podcasts

2008-12-19T13:14:00.000-08:00

Today I checked out Odeo. First, I used Podcastalley.com. I really could not get it to work for me so then I tried out Odeo. I think Podcasts are something I can really get behind. I like listening to NPR and radio shows where you learn things or hear people being interviewed so it seems like podcasts are the perfect match for me because they can be entertaining and informative.
Today I listened to the Library Geeks pod cast. I added it to my Google Reader account. I liked it and will probably listen to it again. I have sent myself the web address for CCLS 23 Things so I can look over this when I get home tonight. There are a lot of entertainment related podcasts I would be interested in listening to and unfortunately I can’t just pretend they are work related. When I go home tonight you can bet I will check them out. Also when I buy or get an MP3 player I know that I will be downloading podcasts to listen to when I work out both work related and ones with my outside interests.

You Too Can Youtube

2008-12-17T12:21:00.000-08:00

I love Youtube and I am glad that the Chester County Library has a Youtube page. In my non-work life I use Youtube for many things. I have watched my favorite parts of TV shows on Youtube. Sometimes I watch music videos or live performances of songs I like on Youtube. Sometimes I just watch funny videos on Youtube.

Here is a video created and produced by some members of my library marketing class during the spring of 2006. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ItCIHAksjf4

I remember this being the first time I had heard of Youtube. Our professor told us it was the next big thing and that this was the technology kids are using today. He sure was right.

I remember when they made it and now it has had over 62,187 views. They made the video to promote national library week in 2006. It just shows you what kind of exposure you get on Youtube. Just think in a few years the CCLS contest views might have that many views.

I think Youtube can be a great place for libraries to get exposure. It is fun and entertaining. Plus it is easy to use and video do not take very much time to load. People use Youtube to learn new skills. One time I used Youtube to help me find videos on how to make a roux for a recipe. Youtube might be a great place to post a video on how to use the online catalog.

Myspace et al

2008-12-16T12:38:00.000-08:00

Today I took some time to explore microblogging and library Myspace pages. I also set myself up a Twitter account. I have a Myspace page, and I know libraries have been doing Myspace for a while now. Some libraries have Facebook too. They are pretty cool. You can post your library hours, advertise events, post pictures, post announcements for your friends. Good stuff.

I think libraries should have a presence on Facebook and MySpace. The only drawback is that you have to make sure you stay on top of it. The library staff members who monitor it will have to set up preferences so they can review any comments before they are posted. Also if you are posting pictures a photo release must be signed before the pictures can be posted.

I also tried microblogging. I set up a twitter account. I am not that impressed with it yet. I am not setting it up so I can update my status through my cell phone. I already sort of microblog when I use Facebook and Myspace and I update my status. I enjoy reading my friends’ status updates on Facebook. I also took a look at some of the microblogs for libraries. You can find out about small things that are going on at the library. It makes you feel involved.

Web 2.0 awards list

2008-12-16T12:08:00.001-08:00

I decided to take a look at the Web 2.0 Awards. I must say I liked their choices for awardees. I personally love Craigslist the 1st place winner in the Classifieds and Directories category. I have been using Craigslist for a few years now. This is what I love about it. It is just like the newspaper classifieds with discussion boards added in and it takes place in real time! So the content is always fresh. People are always posting. I purchased some of the furniture for my apartment by searching the Craigslist ads. I also love that it is not owned by Google, Yahoo, or Microsoft. It is paid for with ad revenue. Craig, the founder, is not out to make money! I also like the fact that users do not need to create a username and password to use Craigslist.

Anyway, my love of Craigslist also caused me to take a look at ParkingSearch.com. I did not really search this one because you had to create a usernames and password to use it. Then I checked out Oodle which uses the tag line “More listings. Smarter classified.” Truthfully, I probably still like Craigslist more, but it is nice to know that alternatives are out there.

This is the part in the post where I try to explain how libraries can use Craigslist, Oodle, or other Web 2.0 Social Sites. Libraries could use Craigslist or Oodle to post job postings. I know many of my friends have searched Craigslist before for jobs. In the professional networking category LinkedIn is a first place winner. Library staff can use LinkedIn to be connected virtually to classmates, business acquaintances, friends, and co-workers in order to exchange ideas or connections. It is sort of a visual representation of the six degrees of separation that connect us all.

Web Based Applications

2008-12-08T12:54:00.000-08:00

Web based Applications

Today I chose to explore Zoho Writer. One feature that I really appreciated was the fact that users could log in using either their Yahoo account or their Google account. However, I think that I would like it better if I could explore it without logging in. Zoho really seems like a combination between Microsoft Office and social networking sites. Really, I wonder if Zoho is paying Microsoft royalties because their products really are pretty much Microsoft Office products that allow users to save and share online. It seems like Zoho is an open source application because you can alter some features if you would like. I read on their site that they are also willing to build applications if that is what a company needs.

I played around in Zoho Writer and Zoho DB and Reports. I liked the database pre-made reports populated with sample data. Exploring those reports gave me a little idea of what project management is all about. I never knew that supervisors assigned their employees work then compared the estimated days of completion against the actual days of completion.

So all-and-all it was pretty interesting. I think that maybe I would use it someday to do collaborative work. I still think that I would save my work to another source just to be sure that it is secure. I did not like the way that every time you opened up another application another window was opened. Also it was not as fast as Microsoft Office when you tried to open other applications or try out other features. But it was a good product for being free.

Playing Around with PB wiki

2008-12-03T13:01:00.000-08:00

Playing Around With PBWiki

Today I played around with PBWiki. I added my blog to the Favorite blogs and included some of my favorite restaurants on the favorite restaurants list. I really like the favorite restaurants wiki. I will probably check it as more people add their favorite restaurants. I am always up for suggestions! It was pretty easy to edit and save and post. I liked the convenience! It would be super easy for librarians to edit and update.

What's in a Wiki?

2008-12-03T11:49:00.001-08:00

What’s in a wiki? I took some time today to take a look of some the example wikis. I have been a big fan of Wikipedia for a couple of years now. So I am most enthusiastic about what wiki’s can do.
I mostly spent my time today looking at the YALSA wiki for the ALA conference. It is pretty cool. The major thought that came to me as I looked at this was “I wish I had seen this before I went to ALA.” I am not a member of YALSA but a lot of the information on the wiki would have been useful for any 2008 ALA Conference Attendee.

Wiki’s can be used in many ways in the library. The staff manual could be designed as a wiki and put on the intranet. I also think a wiki would be a useful way to organize department procedures. Wiki’s could be a useful way to disseminate information about a particular library event or even upcoming events. The possibilities are endless.

Library 2.ooooh

2008-12-02T09:54:00.000-08:00

(This is a picture of my hand that I put in this post to make it more light hearted)

The first time I remember hearing about Library 2.0 was in a library management class in January 2006. My classmates and I passionately wrote about and discussed the changes that Library 2.0 would bring about in libraries. We spoke of how the library catalog could become more user-friendly. We discussed the idea of automated material check-out. We spoke of the idea of roving librarians who would just walk around the library and be freely available to customers. We debated whether we should refer to patrons as customers or vice versa. We read blogs of Jenny Levine, Michael Stephens, Walt Crawford, and Stephen Abrams. We spoke of how the identity of the library was shifting. The libraries of the future seemed to be part traditional library, part information commons, and even part community center.

After I finished library school and got a job at the Chester County Library I had an opportunity to see Thomas Frey Senior Futurist at the DaVinci Institute speak about the future of libraries. His talk about how libraries needed to change with our culture or risk becoming irrelevant excited me.

Here is what I think about Library 2.0: I like social networking and am glad that libraries are starting to adapt its technologies. I like the focus of customer service that seems to be at the core of Library 2.0. I love the idea of making the webpac more user-friendly. I think all of these things and they seem to be part of how business in general is changing. My thought is that if Lands End can provide chat customer service, it great that we are doing chat reference.
So mostly I have positive feelings about Library 2.0. I mostly like what it means. However, I also get a feeling in the pit of my stomach every time somebody brings up Library 2.0. It makes me groan a little because it is such a buzz word. It almost feels like a cliché to me. I don’t know if it is all the discussion it has generated or the fact that some of the discussion feels like discussion for the sake of discussion, but some of the power of the term has been drained from its meaning for me.

In any case, I vow to put Library 2.0 practices in place in my everyday work life. I will continue to contribute content and administer the Young Adult blog for the Chester County Library. I will continue to practice good customer service and I will continue to answer questions on AskHere PA. I do not feel that the library could ever become irrelevant especially if the economy continues to behave the way it has been behaving lately.

Technorati

2008-12-01T12:52:00.000-08:00

I spent some time this afternoon investigating Technorati. This is the first contact that I have really had with this website. I spend probably an hour claiming my blog and then just checking it out. I looked at the Technorati State of the Blogosphere and the Popular Searches and Tags. I added the Technorati button to my blog, see the banner at the top of the blog. Add my blog as one of your faves!

The State of the Blogosphere interesting but I really enjoyed looking at the Popular Searches and Tags. I found that authority refers to the number of people who have commented on a blog. It is interesting that the top blog based on fans is Boing Boing, a blog about pop culture and technology; whereas the top blog based on authority is Breaking News and Opinion on the Huffington Post.
I searched Library 2.0 too and it does seem to be a good way to aggregate all the blogs you would like to read about a subject. I think Technorati seems to provide what I need in a blog aggregator/ search thing. I like it better than bloglines because it seems to be more about searching for blog posts that you are interested in reading now, where as Bloglines seems to be about collecting and keep your blog posts all in place. This seems to fit my needs better.

#12 Tagging & social bookmarking in Delicious

2008-11-20T12:03:00.000-08:00

I took a look at the 23 Things Blog today and saw it was about Delicious. I first opened an account on Delicious in May of 2006 at the behest of one of my professors and as part of a library technology class. As I was looking through my old bookmarks I found a rare gem of a bookmark that I had forgotten about.

It is a short movie made by my friends in a Library Marketing class we had taken in the Spring of 2006. It seems like something that could have been entered in this system's Library Youtube Contest. I am happy that it has had over 60,000 views on Youtube. It is funny and musical. Check this out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ItCIHAksjf4

Okay, back to Delicious. Well, as I said before I have some experience with it in graduate school. I think our assignment back then was create 50 bookmarks and tag them. We needed to bookmark sites about certain technology related topics. During the course of the class we learned about some of the topics like folksonomies and blogging but I never really did learn what some of the topics we where supposed to bookmark where. These include Ajax, Ning, and Digg. (These are topics I would like to explore further I think.)

I want to say that I think Delicious has become more useful in the last 2 years. It has more features than it did the last time I used it. Today I learned how to send another user a bookmark. I also learned how a little bit about how firefox and Delicious work together. I also learned that Delicious lost its periods (which I think is an improvement).

Here is my Delicious site: http://delicious.com/Kgaffron
I am Kgaffron if you would care to network with me.

The strength for me in Delicious is that it is an online place to keep your bookmarks. The social aspect of it is nice. I have a lot of bookmarks and tags about web design and library reference because the summer I created my account I was taking a class in library reference and library technology. When I was in school it was useful because I could look at my classmates' boookmarks and I am sure in this 23 Things learning process I could learn from other people interested in library 2.0 and the 23 Things.

A Thing about Library Thing

2008-11-18T09:20:00.000-08:00

I created a LibraryThing account today. Here is my link:
http://www.librarything.com/catalog/Kgaffron

Here are the positives that I see: I liked the way that a user could find book related events or join in on a discussion about books and authors. I like the way it has a visually pleasing interface. But I always seem to be using some sort of similar technology that is not the one we are assigned in all of these 23 Things assignments.

Currently, I used Goodreads outside of work. Here is my Goodreads link: http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1394717
It is kind of the same thing as LibraryThing. It is a social networking site for book lovers that allows users a place to keep track of their books and create reviews and plot summaries.

I joined Goodreads in August 2008. I have 10 friends on Goodreads. So far I haven’t really done all that much with it yet. But I know that I need to change my account settings because anytime any one of my friends adds a book or writes a review, I get an e-mail. This is growing annoying. I Truthfully I don’t really use it for book recommendations or to keep track of what books I have read. I can mostly keep track of the books I have read in my head and I usually have a pretty good idea about what I want to read. But it is kind of entertaining, we will see if I keep using it.
But I know people who work in this library who use it to keep track of the books they have read. One of my co-workers even uses it as a reader's advisory tool. For her, it helps her to jog her memory about certain titles. I think that you can even integrate your Goodreads profile into your facebook profile.

#10 Playing around with Image Generators

2008-11-14T12:50:00.001-08:00

States I Have Been To

http://bighugelabs.com/flickr/map.php

Blue= States I have visited
Green= States I have never Visted

This is a mao I made using a mashup toy made by Big Huge Labs. They have some cool toys. Library staff could use this toy to make a youth program about travel or geography.

#9 Finding Feeds

2008-11-14T12:38:00.000-08:00

Now that I have started using my Googlereader account again I decided to search for some feeds to add to my account.

I tried Topix.net first. I like it. I like all the topics you could read about. But it seems more like a collection of feeds to scan then a place to find feeds to subscribe to. I am interested in finding out information about last night’s episode of Survivor. I found lots of fun info to read but so far nothing to subscribe to. (BTW: I am happy that Charlie went home last night.)

Then I used bloglines search tool. Again I like it because you can reach many entries about the same topic. I think that is what I like most about these tools so far; they allow you to read many blogs about the same idea (in this case last night’s episode of Survivor).
Then I tried out Technorati. The same thing. I liked it for searching all the feeds on a particular topic.

I am still not completely convinced that I will continue reading my google reader account. I am still very pro I-Google. What I like about is that you can interigrate feeds with other things you are looking in. It is a homepage. I like my feeds to be ephemeral. I want them to go away on their own after a few days if I don’t read them. I don’t want to have them pile up if I decide I don’t want to pay attention to them for a while. I want them to be like the headlines on a newspaper, here today gone tomorrow.

Bloglines and Google Reader My Thoughts

2008-11-07T10:00:00.000-08:00

Here is some disclosure: I did not create a bloglines account and I am going to submit this as my post on RSS feeds. In my defense I currently have a Google Reader account so I have opted not to create a bloglines account. I don't think I could keep up with two different accounts.
Here is my opinion: RSS feeds are kind of cool. As an idea RSS readers seem like a good idea. But my thoughts run deeper than that.
Here is my story: I first set up this account 2 years ago when I was taking a Library Technology class in library school. As part of the class we were supposed to add a certain number of blogs of different types to our account. After the class was over I did not continue checking my account. About once every six months I think to myself, I really should check on those and then I get overwelmed when I open my account.
I am trying not to be a neigh-sayer about blogfeeds because I know many people enjoy reading their blog feeds. For this exercise I added a few of the 23 Things participants blogs, the 23 things blog, as well as Jeff Probst's survivor blog (if you are a Survivor fan this is a an awesomely funny blog).
The problem is that there is just too much information available in the world. Truthfully, sometimes I do not read the e-mail in my personal e-mail account. I read e-mails from friends and individuals but mostly I just slightly browse e-mails from companies even Meet-Ups (http://www.meetup.com/). I guess what I am saying is that I can't imaging myself reading 10 feeds especially 10 feeds that I mostly don't get to pick on my own. I honestly think that the exercise should have allowed for more freedom of choice especially since we are trying to have fun while learning.
Do you know what I like more than blogreaders? I like iGoogle. Give it a try. You can customize a front page so when you open up Google you can see everything you need. You can even include blog feeds. I have the CCLS 23 Things blog feeds added to my iGoogle page.

Facebook and Myspace also keeping your professional life professional

2008-11-07T09:26:00.000-08:00

Today I would like to blog about MySpace and Facebook. I am going to be honest right now: I am not completely thrilled that recently so many of my coworkers have begun to embrace these technologies. I have been on them both since 2005. To me it is my online community of friends. This is not to say my coworkers are not my friends but they are a different kind of friend. I don’t think I am wrong in feeling that I would like to keep my professional life professional and personal life personal.
On my Facebook friends can post pictures or make jokes. Some of the fun I have with my friends outside of work is not what I would like to share with people who are my supervisors or my colleagues. I think that is okay. This being said I think that I would really have to consider it if and when my coworkers “friend” me. I am sure they feel the same way as well. Okay I have said my piece for now.

My creation

2008-10-31T12:41:00.001-07:00

My creation
Originally uploaded by KatieGaffron

Hey all,
Today I explored some of the awesome aps and mashups that one could use with Flickr. Check out my new creation. This is a magazine cover with a picture of the Dragon Wagon on it. I made this using Big Huge Lab's (Home of flickr toys) Magazine Cover application!

I took this picture in March of 2007 and it was a lot of fun to play with it in different applications.

Me in Chapel

2008-10-30T10:44:00.001-07:00

Me in Chapel
Originally uploaded by KatieGaffron

Hi All,
This is a picture of me T.S. Garp taken two summers ago in California! This little chapel was near a vineyard near Napa. I am trying to look mysterious!

I wanted to let you know that this is a real photo of me taken by Dale Whittaker, and I have permission for this to be posted. I uploaded it to flickr and set it up so now I can blog through flickr. I did not know about this step before. I did not know one could blog through flickr!

Flickr

2008-10-30T10:40:00.001-07:00

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

Yo!

2008-10-28T12:51:00.000-07:00

I looked at Flicker today but I did not complete my assignment. Once I went to a library training where they suggested using blogs within a department to relay messages. It seemed like a good idea.
Are we doing a United Way campaign at our library this year? I liked it in previous years but I have not heard anything about it yet.

7 ½ Habits of Highly Successful Lifelong Learners

2008-10-22T11:51:00.000-07:00

Habit 7 ½: Play
I think that Habit 7 ½ will be easiest for me because I like to play. I like to try things out and have fun with the things that I am learning. For example, I am writing this blog as a book character.

Habit 1: Begin with the end in mind
This habit will probaby be the hardest for me. I know that I will finish but sometimes I forget what it is that I am working for. Goal planning is not one of my strong skills. I cannot always see the light at the end of the tunnel. I am not worrying about not finishing this though. I am just speaking in general.

Welcome to my world

2008-10-22T11:30:00.000-07:00

Hello and Welcome to my world. This is where I will record the thoughts and activities relating to the 23 things. In 2006 I took a class on Information technologies in the library where we created webpages, created and posted to blogs, did some de.lici.ous (?) things among other things. It was kind of fun.

I have never podcasted or created a wiki, but I do use wikipedia all the time. So I am looking foward to learning how to do some new things. In the youth services department we have been working to create a seperate young adult blog and a children's department blog. So far I have mostly been working on the young adult blog. Come and check it out. Here is the link for the young adult blog: http://cclyaspot.blogspot.com/

If you would ever like to contribute content for the young adult blog on young adult books or book related items please send me a comment. Good times.

Have a good day