Thing 23: The End?

My favorite items from the experience are Jing and Flickr Toys.  I think Jing will be very handy when doing online reference and Flickr Toys are just fun.  I really enjoyed this experience and wish that I could've done more with the different Things.  That is a problem for all of us...wanting to explore and learn new things but not having the time to.  I did visit other participants' blogs.  I noticed that everyone is at different points in this process showing that we all have the huge obstacle of time.  Giving me the goal of the peer conference did help to keep me focused....although you will notice that there are big gaps in time between my things and then I will have completed several at a time. 

Thanks Tara for providing this forum for us.  Please include me in future projects :)

Thing 18: Audiobooks

Ok...I know this one is out of order but I cannot download the Overdrive books while I am on campus...and neither can students.  This is one negative.  I was able to download this at home but it took many steps.  I think we might lose some students during all these steps.  You have to download the software, then upgrade my windows media, and then download each part of the book.  All time consuming.  I like the idea of Overdrive and like that you can download them to mobile devices but they could limit the steps it takes.  I have not tried any other audiobook vendor but would be willing to. 

Thing 22: Podcasts

I am new to podcasts.  I would like to explore ITunesU a little more, especially now that I have an Ipod Touch.  An excellent birthday present!  I do have a faculty member here that uses them for her classes.  She really likes the NPR podcasts so I decided to look through NPR for a podcast.  It is pretty easy to navigate and find podcasts on their shows or on a topic. I found a new show called Culturetopia and they are only on their 10th episode.  The episode I listened to is called Pop Culture Happy Hour  and it is about people reminiscing about their first pop culture experiences....what posters they had on their walls, their first celebrity crushes, and even what was the first adult book they read.  Ah...the memories :)

 

Thing 21: Mashups

I played around with some of the different mashup suggestions.  I don't have a twitter account so there a few that I wouldn't use.  I did like the Spell with Flickr.  It reminds me of these pictures that you can have made where they take pictures of different architecture that looks like letters to spell your name.  It comes in black and white or sepia tones. Here is my name from Spell with Flickr:


                                                   
           

Thing 20: Tagging and Social Bookmarking

I have seen the potential use for this tool.  One of our librarians created a delicious list for our databases.  We had a problem with our local system and could not connect to our databases through our consortium.  She was able to set up a delicious list and students were able to connect to the databases this way.  It was a nice backup.  It came in very handy :)

http://www.delicious.com/NOVALibrary

Thing 19: Multimedia

I have been looking at Youtube videos for a long time.  I use it to see new videos since they are no longer on MTV.  I have also used it to find new music.  Links to Youtube videos are often sent in emails and one of my favorites was the Dancing Machine.  Hilarious!  I decided to look for a library related video.  I remembered a funny video that was sent to me a couple of years ago during National Library Week but couldn't remember the name.  I was actually able to find it.  Here it is:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEOg8-EzQpQ

I think it might help with promoting the library.  We could create videos/slideshows of events in the library.  I am interested another site that was mentioned, Animoto.  Now if only I had time to play with it...... 

Thing 17: Social Cataloging

I have had a Goodreads account for a while now but have not done much with it.  I think this past year has been so busy, I haven't had time to read.  I think it can be a great resource.  It's like an asynchronous book club.  Instead of trying to meet at specific times, you can still chat with others about a book but do it mainly on your own time.  Hopefully, this will be something I can get back into in the next few months.  I only have 2 books on my list (like I said, I started but didn't do much with it).  Here is the link...please add me if you are a member of goodreads.  Suggestions are always welcomed :)

http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/1912806

Thing 16: Ebooks

I really like the idea of e-books.  I think it would be a very good alternative for students.  They could get their textbooks quicker and cheaper.  We have a lot of students who need to use our reserve copies because they are waiting for their books to come in.  They can print only the pages that they need.  I have had classes in the past when I haven't used most of the book.

I do have some concerns.  Since we don't always own the book and just have access to it, this could affect accessibility.  My concern with Google Books is that when we have one source, then they can control the costs and the access. 

When searching the APA PsycBooks database, I found it difficult to find the book.  When you use other vendors, you search by topic, title, or author and retrieve the whole book.  You can then search within that book.  When searching PsycBooks, I retrieved chapters and had to read through the citation to see which book that chapter was in.  There was one result that gave you the book and a list of the table of contents.  You can go through the table of contents and pick a chapter.  It would link you to the records page for that chapter and then you could click on the full text pdf.  It was a lot of steps.  When I use Safari, I retrieve the whole book and can go right to each chapter with one or two clicks, not 4 or 5.

I do not have an e reader but am interested in getting one.  I am deciding if I want to buy a Kindle or just wait for the kinks to be worked out of  the Ipad and for the price to come down.  The Ipad is bigger and can allow me to do more.

Thing 15: Creative Commons

I do think it is a good idea to show the different licenses in Creative Commons.  Finding images and videos that you can use without violating copyright is very difficult.  Students and faculty think that they can search google images, copy and paste, and they are fine.  This gives them a place to go to find what they need and teaches them how to do it legally and respectfully.  I would consider sharing content in this manner.  I would probably assign my works with the Attribution Non-Commercial license.  I searched through flickr to find photos that contained maple leaves.  I am using maple leaves as part of the decor for my upcoming wedding.  Perfect for fall :)  I like that you can search using the different attributions.  If is frustrating to find the perfect photo and then find out you cannot use it or you have to wait to hear back from the owner.  Here is one of the photos that I found.  It is owned by James Lee, screen name jronaldLee.


http://www.flickr.com/photos/jronaldlee/3987330047/#

Thing 8: Screencasting

I chose to use Jing for screencasting.  This seems like it will very useful for online reference, especially since we have so much trouble with co-browsing.  I created a short video on how to narrow your search to include only books that critique an author or his/her work.





When I embed the video in its original size, you cannot see the whole screen.  So I changed the height and width in the code and this is what you see above.  However, you really can't see the small print so here is a link to the video as well. 

Author  Criticism

Thing 14: Online Surveys

I see a lot of potential for online surveys.  I have taken several of surveys from Survey Monkey.  It works well when you are trying to schedule a meeting around a lot of people.  It helps you find the time that most people can make it.  I can see it being used for overall library surveys or for specific issues/situations in the library....instruction, circulation experiences, online reference.

Here is my survey on how you relax:

Thing 13: Document Sharing

I see a lot of use for Google Docs.  I have been working on a website for information literacy with faculty members on different campuses.  Google Docs allows us to work on this project without relying on email.  We can edit and work together on information before we post it to the website.  It is always good to have a second pair of eyes checking grammar and spelling :)  It would also be a good source when we are working together on issues for the VCCS.  Members are at different colleges throughout the state and this would allow us to work together since we don't share a common network or drive. 

I am going to cheat a little and share the presentation I created for the slideshare thing.

http://bit.ly/cZ6NYe

Thing 11: Shortening a url

After the wonderful experience of almost getting a virus on my work computer from Twitter, the librarian in me decided to search one of our databases for articles on Twitter and viruses. I did find several so I thought I would create my shortened url with one of these articles. Here it is:

http://bit.ly/b0GtE9

Thing 10: Twitter

So I attempted to play around with Twitter.  I am not really interested in using another social networking site and do not want to create my own account.  I do have some friends that do have twitter accounts so I thought I would just search for them and see what comes up.  One of my friends just bought a new car and had a picture of it linked in one of her tweets.  However, when I clicked on the picture, I had a box pop up from Symnatec about a virus it picked up.  Just my luck....I possibly get a virus on my work computer while surfing Twitter.  Like they will believe me when I tell them that I was on a social networking site for work.  Of course, I closed the window and headed to IT.  Apparently, IT knew all about the possibility of getting viruses from surfing Twitter.  They say it is very common.  If you are using Twitter through a mobile device, it won't affect you, but on desktops, viruses are common.  Who knew?!? 

Thing 9.5: Image Generators

I love the image generators....so much fun!  I used the fd Flickr toys generator list.  There are lots of fun options including turning your photo into a jigsaw puzzle, putting it into a canvas setting, changing the colors, making it look like an Andy Warhol picture.  I could be on that site for hours!  I decided to run the color palette using a picture I found while looking for a wedding color scheme.  It will take the colors out of your picture and give you the color number for css.  You can't save the picture of the color swatch but I used Snag-It to capture it.  Here what I came  up with:

Thing 9: photos and images

I am new to Flickr.  I have heard about it but haven't used it at all.  I took a few photos of our library, including the one below of this wonderful whiteboard table tucked in a corner upstairs.  The students love it.  The whiteboard is in the center of the table and spins on a lazy susan so students can work easily together.  I like the idea of Flickr and it is nice to be able to share your photos with the people you decide to share them with and still be able to keep them somewhat private. 

As for the library, I am not sure how much I would use Flickr.  We don't have very many events and it would be hard to keep followers.  My campus has just broken ground on a new building that the library will be moving into.  I am thinking of keeping a photostream of this 2+ year process.  I could post new pics daily or at least weekly.  It is going to be a major change to the look of our campus.

Thing 7: Sharing Slide Presentations

I decided to go ahead and create my own slide presentation.  Creating an account is easy but searching can be a little time consuming.  I cannot search under education with specific search terms.  This would be a nice addition.  I created a quick ppt on how to find a book that analyzes/critiques an author or work.  I used the tags literary criticism and search tips.   Here is my presentation:

http://www.slideshare.net/droggen/lit-criticism-books

I can see how useful this might be once you are able to find a presentation that would help you.  I just think it could be just as time consuming to find one as it would be to create your own.

UPDATE August 6th:  Ok, so I went back to Slideshare today to see if I could find my actual presentation.  I was not able to search and pull up my presentation on the first day but was successful today.  I guess it does take some time to update and become searchable.  I am just glad it was not user error in uploading it :)

Week 6 - Chat

I do participate in LRC Live Chat at work.  It is a really nice resource for the students to get instant help.  Well....when it works.  There are a lot of variables such as the type of browser the student is using and their connectivity.  I really wish I could get the co-browse function to work.  It would make it much easier to explain the steps I am taking.  I guess we always have the option of emailing the student tutorial created with jing.  I have not yet done this and am hoping this 23 things experiment will teach me how to create these tutorials.  I have used the chat function on  Facebook.  Simple, quick and easy. 

Week 5 - Wikis

I really like the wiki for Library Success.  It gives a good description about what the wiki is about and how to participate.  The rest is broken down into categories.  The Antioch wiki has categories, but too many.   They should have broad categories that you can select and then see all the subtopics.  It looks too cluttered. The ads on the UL Cataloger's wiki were distracting. 

I like the idea of the Book Lover's wiki.  I wonder if we could get students to participate.  Maybe I could work with some of the English faculty to see if they would make that an assignment. I also like their navigator widget on the right hand side.  It might be a nice way to show students other ways to use a wiki and that you can allow only certain people to edit the wiki.  The first page needs to be appealing with an obvious tool to navigate the rest of the site.  I probably should be using more pictures, graphics to make this blog a little more appealing :)

My college is currently using wikis for some faculty learning communities.  It is a nice way for all members to participate and show contributions.

Week 3 -- Social Networks

I have been on social networking sites for about 3 years now.  I tried MySpace but didn't like it and rarely ever use it anymore.  I have found Facebook to be a better site.  I have moved a lot over the past 10 years and it has allowed me to keep in touch with old friends.  I do not have personal information posted and keep the privacy settings pretty tight.  I don't post a lot but will send friends private messages instead.  I really don't understand the need to tell everyone what I am doing at every minute.  Doesn't that take away from enjoying the moment?

I don't think that I will create a social networking site for the library.  I am a fan of my graduate college library facebook page but never seem to look at it, now or then.  I think that these sites are meant to social, that's why they are called social networking.  I don't think students want us in those spaces. I could be wrong so I am monitoring some other college facebook pages to see how they progress.  If I see that it is working and merits staff time, then I could decide to create a page.

I did create a profile on Linked In but have not followed up with that either.  Maybe it's just because I am actually happy at my current job (imagine that) and do not have plans of moving on. What do you think?  Do you have a Linked In profile?  Has it helped you advance in your career?

Week 2 -- RSS

So I am finally working on Week 2.  I am setting up rss feeds for my Google reader.  I am trying to get back into photography so I decided to sign up for different photography feeds.  From the Your Stuff section, you can browse or search for feeds.  I was able to find lots of feeds for photography, tips and techniques, and cameras.  I subscribed to 3 photography feeds, 1 from the U.S. Copyright Office, and attempted to subscribe to the journal Camera Obscura through Academic Search Complete.  I will let you know if the Ebsco feed works.

The beginning

Hello! This is the beginning of my journey of 23 new things. I tried to start a blog before and hope to be more successful with this one. Having tasks to follow with definitely help and hopefully start a habit that will continue. Thanks for offering this program Tara :)