Saturday, November 24, 2007

Thing # 23

My favorite "thing" I think would have to be You Tube. Found lots of videos that were fun to watch. But I'm not really sure the 23 things affected my life long learning goals. Many of these things I already knew about and used. I am surprised that I'm more comfortable with blogging though. I really didn't like blogging when I started this. Can't say it's my favorite thing but it is easier then when I started.

On "fault" I found with the program is that it assumes a certain level of computer knowledge. I didn't have problems but I know there were others that had problems. Not everyone knows the basics of uploading. That can be very discouraging for people. As for participating in a future program, I think it would depend. I really felt like I just didn't have the time, even with setting time aside to do as good of a job as I would have liked.

Thing #22 Learn about Audiobooks

This one was so easy. I use Overdrive all the time to download audio books to my MP3 player. So much easier when we travel then taking a bunch of cd's and a CD player. I can get 4-5 books on my player at a time. Also, if I run out of books, if we have an Internet connection I can down load another through the laptop. I highly recommend Overdrive to people who are traveling and want audio books.

Thing 21 Podcast

I used Yahoo to look for pod casts. Many I found on greyhounds (what else) were out of date but one I like is K9 cast with Tara and Walter
Something like a pod cast that I listen to from tome to time is an Internet radio show called Greyhounds Make great pets.

Again, something that I think is a fun thing for your spear time but not something I think would be very useful for research.

Thing #20 Discover YouTube

I've used You Tube in the past and have friends who post videos on it often. I like that you can share videos with family and friends that might not be close. It can also be used for short training videos or how to's. One adoption group has videos about different aspects for adopting a greyhound.

Thing #20 Discover YouTube Video 1

He may fall but he still crosses the finish line first

Thing #20 Discover YouTube Video 2

A friends dogs playing in the yard

Thing #19 Discover any site from the Web 2.0 awards list

I chose http://www.freecasualgames.com.
Everyone needs some downtime and this site has a game for everyones taste. My big problem with the site is it loads VERY slow. But it is free and there's a big selection of games for every mood.

Thing # 18 online productivity tools

I looked at Google docs (since I already have a Google account). Nice features and easy to use. Also nice if you are using a computer other then your own and don't have a disc or flash drive with you. You can still save your work and come back to it later.

Thing #17 Add an entry into the Sandbox Wiki

I added my blog to the favorites. Not sure I like the "steal" feature when someone else is editing. Felt like I needed to rush to get done before someone else "stole" it back.

Thing #16 Learn about wikis

Wiki's are interesting. I looked at SJCPL Subject Guides. Useful for finding information and is easy to update with changes. For example under cooking they have a holiday cooking "display". One problem I have with Wiki's are that anyone can change (some) of them. Without someone checking the information, you can never be sure it's correct. Many of the library ones I looked at could only be changed by staff, so I like those. Or even having the general public add reviews is fine as long as the main information is presented by an authoritative source.

Thing #15 Web 2.0, Library 2.0 & the future of libraries

The article I liked about Library 2.0 was "Away from Icebergs". It emphasises getting away from the old mindset of libraries and looking to the future. Making the library an inviting place and helping people find the information they need, not by teaching them how "we" do things but by making our services more user friendly.

Thing #14 Discover Technorati and learn how tags work with blogs

Technorati seems like it would be a fun thing to use to look around for intersting blogs. Not something I would be using every day or really see a use for it at work. Mor of a fun thing to do in my spear time to find blogs about things that interest me.

Thing # 13 Tagging and Discover Del.icio.us

I can't say I really like Del.icio.us. I can see where it would be useful if a group of poeple were working on a project together but not for everyday use. As for having you bookmarks avaiable everywhere you go, it's nice. But I don't want the world seeing what I have bookmarked. Most people travel with their laptops so have their bookmarks. Yes it can be intersting to see what others have bookmarked, but just because lots of people bookmark something doesn't mean the information is current or correct, just popular.

Thursday, September 27, 2007

Thing # 12 Rollyo

Easy to use but to build a really useful search tool it would take a lot of time to add trusted sites. Also limits you to information you've already seen. But would be great for a group working together. Here a link to my Rollyo

Thing # 11 Library thing

Very east to use and a great tool to add to blogs. Easy way to check out what others are reading or are interested in.

Thursday, September 20, 2007

Thing # 10 Image Generators

I've played around with some of these in the past. Here's My Meez image


I also created this poster.

Thing # 9 MERLIN and news feeds

I usually find blogs and feeds through Google and yahoo but I did find Topix.net and Technorati useful and easy to use. But I hated Feedster. I was never able to get the results I was looking for to desplay. I still find it easier to locate blogs through Google. As for true news feeds, I'd rather go to news sites I trust and subscribe to their RSS feeds.

Thing #8 RSS feeds

RSS feeds make it a lot easier to keep up with others peoples blogs and other sites that have feeds available. Instead of going to each site to see if something new has been added, it comes to you. I set up several feeds for this exercise. Some are ones of people I know and others just sounded interesting. Check out my feeds

Monday, September 17, 2007

Thing #7 Digital cameras and PhotoBucket

I love my digital camera. As you might have guessed, most of the pictures I take are of our greyhounds. But I do occasionally take other pictures, just not very ofter. The easiest way I've found to share photos is photobucket. The site gives you any code you need to post the pictures on any site or by email. You can also post videos. And since this wouldn't be complete without posting one of my pictures, here you go. Surprise, it's a greyhound.

Thing #6 Mash-ups




My favorite one was the color pickr. I found some very nice pictures that I might not have looked at otherwise. Here's one I thought was nice.


I also enjoyed the trading card maker. Here's one I made of our first greyhound, Zeus

Thursday, September 13, 2007

Thing 5 Flickr


This is a picture a friend has posted on Flickr. This handsome greyhound is Hunky. Wondering what got his attention? This was taken in the clubhouse at the Jacksonville Kennel Club. Hunky was watching the greyhound races out the window. The race was just starting and the artificial lure had started around the rail. Must have brought back memories for him. He watched every race with just as much attention.

Week 2 Thing 3

Blogging is not something I like. I hate writing about myself. Give me a subject in history and I can give you PAGES. Had lots of practice as a history major. But if it deals with me or something I'm doing, it is guaranteed to be short and sweet. So this will be the toughest part for me to do.

Week 1 Thing 2

The hardest of the 7 & 1/2 things for me is to look at the end result. The easiest is teaching others. That's something I enjoy and (most of the time) comes easy to me.