Reflection...
What were your favorite discoveries or exercises on this learning journey? My favorite topics were Youtube, RSS, and Method 5, Photos and Images.
How has this program assisted or affected your lifelong learning goals? It has given me more confidence to try the new technologies in new and different ways in my new position. I was pretty aware of Web 2.0 technologies so I was pretty comfortable with all the concepts just not as comfortable actually using them. I tend to focus on about 3 things at one time.
The adventures in podcasting are the next thing to tackle for me. I have created "sound files" but not on a regular basis. Now I have a project in mind that will hopefully, engage my faculty in the latest library information from me on their areas of expertise.
If another discovery program were offered, I would be happy to participate. It is a convenient way to learn and apply new technology concepts. Many examples were provided along the way that helped to trigger new thoughts and applications for me.
Too bad the dance is over but I will look forward to the next one!
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Method 11
Podcasting is another fun media but I often do not have time to listen to all that I find interesting. I do not have enough hours in the day to do this. The CommonCraft video explaining Podcasting is, of course, very good. I am amazed and pleased that Lee and Sachi have created a cottage industry with this virtual concept. They do a great job of making technical concepts understandable.
NPR music , All Music Considered, is one of my fav podcasts. I do have an account at iTunes and have even purchased a couple of apps (bird songs of North America) and mainstream songs but I find iTunes hard to use – maybe I just do not have enough practice at it.
I listened to a podcast of one of the community college sites listed in the list of libraries with regular podcasts for some ideas. Hearing one of those podcasts hatched an idea for me to do my own podcast to post on my academic learning web page where I work. My content would be new materials purchased in my collection development areas of Education and Life Sciences and encouraging my faculty to investigate these new resources. It seems like listening to content is a good short cut to reading about it...something to “field test”. I have all the ingredients except the mic – my experience has been with the DSP-500 PC Headset by Plantronics, so that is probably what my cat will give me for Christmas. It is at her price point. My experience with it in my past work was excellent especially with noise cancellation. It was great with talking power points.
But, first I will have to get the Collection Development purchases done. I can play with my concept during the Winter Break. WB is one of the things I love about being an Academic Librarian.
NPR music , All Music Considered, is one of my fav podcasts. I do have an account at iTunes and have even purchased a couple of apps (bird songs of North America) and mainstream songs but I find iTunes hard to use – maybe I just do not have enough practice at it.
I listened to a podcast of one of the community college sites listed in the list of libraries with regular podcasts for some ideas. Hearing one of those podcasts hatched an idea for me to do my own podcast to post on my academic learning web page where I work. My content would be new materials purchased in my collection development areas of Education and Life Sciences and encouraging my faculty to investigate these new resources. It seems like listening to content is a good short cut to reading about it...something to “field test”. I have all the ingredients except the mic – my experience has been with the DSP-500 PC Headset by Plantronics, so that is probably what my cat will give me for Christmas. It is at her price point. My experience with it in my past work was excellent especially with noise cancellation. It was great with talking power points.
But, first I will have to get the Collection Development purchases done. I can play with my concept during the Winter Break. WB is one of the things I love about being an Academic Librarian.
Friday, November 20, 2009
Method 10 - Wiki
Method 10 – Wiki World
It is true, the Plain English Tutorial series are just plain good. The length is just about right for a topic. My attention span, along with the rest of the world, has shrunk to about 3 minutes.
I really enjoyed the ALA wikis – I like Chicago – maybe next year!
The wiki posts in the Library Development wiki were interesting to view and pointed up some new sites to me. Good browsing on a rainy day.
One use I think might be valuable would be using a wiki with my faculty for Collection Development. Subject Guides might be helpful too. There are so many resources that it is helpful to have a spot where others might be able to make a contribution.
So out of this exercise I have an account with PBwiki; found some good blog sources and can see two ways a wiki could benefit me and my library patrons.
It is true, the Plain English Tutorial series are just plain good. The length is just about right for a topic. My attention span, along with the rest of the world, has shrunk to about 3 minutes.
I really enjoyed the ALA wikis – I like Chicago – maybe next year!
The wiki posts in the Library Development wiki were interesting to view and pointed up some new sites to me. Good browsing on a rainy day.
One use I think might be valuable would be using a wiki with my faculty for Collection Development. Subject Guides might be helpful too. There are so many resources that it is helpful to have a spot where others might be able to make a contribution.
So out of this exercise I have an account with PBwiki; found some good blog sources and can see two ways a wiki could benefit me and my library patrons.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Method 9
Chat and Instant Messaging
I chatted with Naomi (our Continuing Education Two-Step mentor) using Meebo and it worked well. I have also used chat lines for an insurance company and an appliance parts department trying to troubleshoot my oven when it cratered. Both experiences went well and I found the immediate gratification…well, gratifying. Phone trees never seem to address the question that I have, so the chat experience was much more personal and immediate. I felt in control of my communication need at the time. The telephone approach does not provide me with that sense of personal control in meeting my needs. The minute a machine or person answers the phone, I know that I go into a queue that is not on my time.
My academic library is using Meebo for Ask a Librarian service. I staff the chat line once a week, just for fun. The service is used, but not heavily, during my two-hour watch. Last week, a question was asked but the writer did not hang around for the answer even though I tried to respond as fast as possible. Maybe “instant” is not fast enough for certain generations of users.
The library staff has made it easy to use even though there are many campuses. It seems that libraries will need to use as many ways to connect with patrons as possible. It does mean that we have to stay current with the various technologies almost as soon as they appear on the horizon.
Facebook chat is fun to use and sometimes I find a relative or friend online and a spontaneous chat occurs – a little like bumping into someone in the hallway. We are probably just beginning to learn the many applications of this technology.
I chatted with Naomi (our Continuing Education Two-Step mentor) using Meebo and it worked well. I have also used chat lines for an insurance company and an appliance parts department trying to troubleshoot my oven when it cratered. Both experiences went well and I found the immediate gratification…well, gratifying. Phone trees never seem to address the question that I have, so the chat experience was much more personal and immediate. I felt in control of my communication need at the time. The telephone approach does not provide me with that sense of personal control in meeting my needs. The minute a machine or person answers the phone, I know that I go into a queue that is not on my time.
My academic library is using Meebo for Ask a Librarian service. I staff the chat line once a week, just for fun. The service is used, but not heavily, during my two-hour watch. Last week, a question was asked but the writer did not hang around for the answer even though I tried to respond as fast as possible. Maybe “instant” is not fast enough for certain generations of users.
The library staff has made it easy to use even though there are many campuses. It seems that libraries will need to use as many ways to connect with patrons as possible. It does mean that we have to stay current with the various technologies almost as soon as they appear on the horizon.
Facebook chat is fun to use and sometimes I find a relative or friend online and a spontaneous chat occurs – a little like bumping into someone in the hallway. We are probably just beginning to learn the many applications of this technology.
Friday, November 6, 2009
Method 3.a
How about California - always cutting edge - recently saw a news story about CA moving to Cloud computing - cost cutting measure. http://www.coated.com/google-and-cloud-computing-scores-win-in-los-angeles/
Method 8
I do enjoy the Social Networking aspect of Facebook. I have had a FB account for a year or more at the invitation of my son and daughter-in-law and many of my young relatives who are off to college or building their families and careers in a scattering of cities across the country. It is a great way to keep up daily with those who are far away. When colleagues left the job and moved away FB became a favored way to keep up with several people at once. Many people "friended" on FB play a lot of games; Mafia Wars and Farmville seem popular. It is not for me because it seems too time-consuming but it seems like a fun way to stay connected with others.
I also explored the Group sites provided – North Texas Partners since that is my alma mater; I joined the Librarians and Facebook Group, as well as, explored the Librarians 2.0 Interest Group. The Library of Congress FB provided a good idea of how to keep a notice short and generate interest in an event. Texas Tech does a good job of spotlighting services, hours, and technologies provided by the library system while personalizing with quips about the football team or whatever is seasonal. These are great ways to get new ideas and explore how others use the technology.
Privacy does concern me however, I am not sure what to do about it, since I enjoy the participation experience more than being concerned! I do prefer to keep my personal life separate from professional life.
My community college has several FB groups set up – Alumni – Sports – various campuses. This could be an opportunity for my campus which has 6 libraries at various sites. It does seem like another venue for keeping connected with students and faculty on campus. Although, it seems like stopping someone at random on the campus saying “…did you know…”
I also explored the Group sites provided – North Texas Partners since that is my alma mater; I joined the Librarians and Facebook Group, as well as, explored the Librarians 2.0 Interest Group. The Library of Congress FB provided a good idea of how to keep a notice short and generate interest in an event. Texas Tech does a good job of spotlighting services, hours, and technologies provided by the library system while personalizing with quips about the football team or whatever is seasonal. These are great ways to get new ideas and explore how others use the technology.
Privacy does concern me however, I am not sure what to do about it, since I enjoy the participation experience more than being concerned! I do prefer to keep my personal life separate from professional life.
My community college has several FB groups set up – Alumni – Sports – various campuses. This could be an opportunity for my campus which has 6 libraries at various sites. It does seem like another venue for keeping connected with students and faculty on campus. Although, it seems like stopping someone at random on the campus saying “…did you know…”
Monday, November 2, 2009
Method 7
Method 7 – Social Bookmarking
1. Commoncraft YouTube instruction – You gotta love these simple, quick instructional videos!
2. Tags Help Make Libraries Del.icio.us - article – use of LibraryThing as a catalog substitute for small collections. (How about using this to catalog my son’s extensive baseball card collection or son in law’s personal book collection, many hundreds of books, both Information Technology and science fiction).
3. View the Otter Group 8 minute Delicious tutorial to get a good overview of its features. Did not load for me so I went to the YouTube tutorial
4. I set up a Delicious account with an existing Yahoo account.
5. http://www.allbusiness.com/management/change-management/3875646-1.html - found the web site for Several Habits of Wildly Successful Delicious Users – must have changed.
The bookmark mobility factor is the shinning star for me. I work on several machines and this keeps everything together.
1. Commoncraft YouTube instruction – You gotta love these simple, quick instructional videos!
2. Tags Help Make Libraries Del.icio.us - article – use of LibraryThing as a catalog substitute for small collections. (How about using this to catalog my son’s extensive baseball card collection or son in law’s personal book collection, many hundreds of books, both Information Technology and science fiction).
3. View the Otter Group 8 minute Delicious tutorial to get a good overview of its features. Did not load for me so I went to the YouTube tutorial
4. I set up a Delicious account with an existing Yahoo account.
5. http://www.allbusiness.com/management/change-management/3875646-1.html - found the web site for Several Habits of Wildly Successful Delicious Users – must have changed.
The bookmark mobility factor is the shinning star for me. I work on several machines and this keeps everything together.
Friday, October 23, 2009
Method 6
YouTube is truly transformative. There is not a day that goes by that a friend or relative doesn’t send me a YouTube video of something fun to see. Have you seen this one? Great Chinese State Circus - Swan Lake http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sMc-p19FIk
In the Spring, my nephew sent out a very creative YouTube video inviting his many adoring relatives to help send him to London for a special class in his field of specialization. It worked – with cash and ticket in hand he went for his creative marketing class.
Round Rock Public Library’s "Sail Away with Books Reading Program" was so much fun to watch and so creative it made me wish for a job in a public library with wacky and fun staff. I am in a one-librarian shop so I will have to settle for enthusiastic, virtual staff members to populate my video. Both of the other two videos were equally charming and gave me some ideas.
I thought I might bypass the skins but decided to explore instead and came away with 3 that I plan to “try on”. My favs were “Diamonds”, for a glam look; “Tropicana” for a refreshing look; and “Paparazzi” to give something the red carpet treatment – maybe a new book or database to announce! Why the heck not!
The channels showcased ,The Library of Congress , The American Library Association, and The New York Public Library were new to me and I will be exploring those on Saturday.
Teachertube did not load for me so I decided to explore the Education channel at YouTube to see what is available. Bummer…my own educational institution does not have a Channel of its own…yet. A fun, informative channel was the CIA – Culinary Institute of America –Boot Camp Holiday Tips – http://www.youtube.com/user/CIANetwork#p/a/C0FAC741C4B287D1/0/2HGNEUhlbgQ
The one for Halloween Punch was clever. http://www.youtube.com/user/CIANetwork#p/a/C0FAC741C4B287D1/1/SB8xk8LHcnE
The concept of the “Participatory community” discussed by Dr. Michael Wesch, Assistant Professor of Cultural Anthropology at Kansas State University in his lecture, An Anthropological Introduction to YouTube is very exciting. It is so much fun to see how concepts can take off and assume a life of their own.
Note to Santa: I want a new camera that can post video to YouTube.
In the Spring, my nephew sent out a very creative YouTube video inviting his many adoring relatives to help send him to London for a special class in his field of specialization. It worked – with cash and ticket in hand he went for his creative marketing class.
Round Rock Public Library’s "Sail Away with Books Reading Program" was so much fun to watch and so creative it made me wish for a job in a public library with wacky and fun staff. I am in a one-librarian shop so I will have to settle for enthusiastic, virtual staff members to populate my video. Both of the other two videos were equally charming and gave me some ideas.
I thought I might bypass the skins but decided to explore instead and came away with 3 that I plan to “try on”. My favs were “Diamonds”, for a glam look; “Tropicana” for a refreshing look; and “Paparazzi” to give something the red carpet treatment – maybe a new book or database to announce! Why the heck not!
The channels showcased ,The Library of Congress , The American Library Association, and The New York Public Library were new to me and I will be exploring those on Saturday.
Teachertube did not load for me so I decided to explore the Education channel at YouTube to see what is available. Bummer…my own educational institution does not have a Channel of its own…yet. A fun, informative channel was the CIA – Culinary Institute of America –Boot Camp Holiday Tips – http://www.youtube.com/user/CIANetwork#p/a/C0FAC741C4B287D1/0/2HGNEUhlbgQ
The one for Halloween Punch was clever. http://www.youtube.com/user/CIANetwork#p/a/C0FAC741C4B287D1/1/SB8xk8LHcnE
The concept of the “Participatory community” discussed by Dr. Michael Wesch, Assistant Professor of Cultural Anthropology at Kansas State University in his lecture, An Anthropological Introduction to YouTube is very exciting. It is so much fun to see how concepts can take off and assume a life of their own.
Note to Santa: I want a new camera that can post video to YouTube.
Friday, October 2, 2009
Method 5
I viewed all the assignments about Flickr and really appreciate its features. Using it in the private mode with family would be more my speed. In another institution, our library web team tried to use Flickr to provide direction to visitors looking for our 2nd floor space, but had to remove it due what were considered network security issues.
I do use Snapfish for storage, photosharing and photo related products. My favorite photosite is Picasa - it features a useful photo editor and organizer. Even though I have been using Picasa since its inception, I still find it a bit hard to manage my albums.
In web browsing, I notice that UT Austin includes Flickr as a widget.
This is one cloud computing concept that I really appreciate and use. One big value that I see is that use of these photo sharing tools can help create a sense of "community" and foster the idea of the library as "place".
I do use Snapfish for storage, photosharing and photo related products. My favorite photosite is Picasa - it features a useful photo editor and organizer. Even though I have been using Picasa since its inception, I still find it a bit hard to manage my albums.
In web browsing, I notice that UT Austin includes Flickr as a widget.
This is one cloud computing concept that I really appreciate and use. One big value that I see is that use of these photo sharing tools can help create a sense of "community" and foster the idea of the library as "place".
Method 4 - RSS Feed
The RSS feed is a marvelous invention! The ability to round up stuff and send it down the chute to my own corral is a great time saver. Combined with Google Reader these are handy features with lots of applications.
The 3 feeds that I subscribed to are:
1. NPR - All Songs Considered http://www.npr.org/rss/rss.php?id=37 Just nice to listen to something different sometimes.
2. The Krafty Librarian – a nod to my past life as a medical librarian. There is plenty of great tips and gems that help me keep up with the medical literature. These tips can also be applied more broadly to the general librarian population. http://feeds.feedburner.com/kraftylibrarian/OLay
http://www.gcast.com/user/davekees/podcast/main
3. Dave Kee’s Podcast for Students – this is a nod to my current librarian life on a campus that has a large segment of students learning English.
With an RSS feed, it is like having all my mail delivered to my home so that I do not have to go out and collect it. If my RSS feeds have stacked up and I do not get around to reading or listening to all that I have send to my Google Reader, I can just delete all the entries and start over.
Some good applications for an RSS feed include:
See works by an author.
Get new research on a topic.
Receive current journal tables of contents.
Find new articles that cite an important article.
The 3 feeds that I subscribed to are:
1. NPR - All Songs Considered http://www.npr.org/rss/rss.php?id=37 Just nice to listen to something different sometimes.
2. The Krafty Librarian – a nod to my past life as a medical librarian. There is plenty of great tips and gems that help me keep up with the medical literature. These tips can also be applied more broadly to the general librarian population. http://feeds.feedburner.com/kraftylibrarian/OLay
http://www.gcast.com/user/davekees/podcast/main
3. Dave Kee’s Podcast for Students – this is a nod to my current librarian life on a campus that has a large segment of students learning English.
With an RSS feed, it is like having all my mail delivered to my home so that I do not have to go out and collect it. If my RSS feeds have stacked up and I do not get around to reading or listening to all that I have send to my Google Reader, I can just delete all the entries and start over.
Some good applications for an RSS feed include:
See works by an author.
Get new research on a topic.
Receive current journal tables of contents.
Find new articles that cite an important article.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Method 3
My first reaction to cloud computing is concern about the “diffusion of resources”… documents and services scattered in various places without compatible or interchangeable standards for the infrastructure, security and accessibility. My personal feeling is a loss of control when there is a lack of centralization. Who is responsible for the infrastructure? Who is responsible for security? Will the organization who pledges that my privacy is of great importance to them have a loophole for selling me out? Do I have enough skill to outwit the legions that are looking at me as a dollar sign? Last week, I googled the color “sea foam” to check out some bedding, paint colors, ideas, etc. As if by magic, my web mail reader is now showing me all manner of products in “sea foam”. The custom ads about “sea foam” have followed me all week from Amazon to Zappos long after my interest!
The Blue Squirrel Blog mentions some interesting tools that are new to me. I like the idea of Google gears to check email offline. I am ready to pop open Mozy and SmugMug just to satisfy my curiosity and add to my “tool belt”.
Tame the Web Blog also had some great tips…I agree that banning the cell phone in the library is probably a lost cause…it may be better to focus on cell phone etiquette. The cell phone is an information source, just not traditional and in most cases the librarian is not part of it. The author refers to his “tiny tone” when his iphone notifies him of an email. My experience as a campus librarian in a small library space is that tones run the gamut of heavy metal, hip hop, classical, strange voices and once, an Elvis song. It can be quite a racket in a small space!
I appreciated Jenny Levine’s (The Shifted Librarian) We are Not All Ready for the Cloud Yet post about teaching users the implications of the technologies they use, privacy issues, multiple options, and especially how to recover and/or backup their documents and files. Many a student has placed way too much trust in typing in a template (i.e. course management system) for an important assignment or resume only to discover for one reason or another, the action failed and they did not create or save the document in an alternate place.
While I like the idea of Cloud Computing (specifically, something free) I am always reminded of the adage, “…you get what you pay for... “
The Blue Squirrel Blog mentions some interesting tools that are new to me. I like the idea of Google gears to check email offline. I am ready to pop open Mozy and SmugMug just to satisfy my curiosity and add to my “tool belt”.
Tame the Web Blog also had some great tips…I agree that banning the cell phone in the library is probably a lost cause…it may be better to focus on cell phone etiquette. The cell phone is an information source, just not traditional and in most cases the librarian is not part of it. The author refers to his “tiny tone” when his iphone notifies him of an email. My experience as a campus librarian in a small library space is that tones run the gamut of heavy metal, hip hop, classical, strange voices and once, an Elvis song. It can be quite a racket in a small space!
I appreciated Jenny Levine’s (The Shifted Librarian) We are Not All Ready for the Cloud Yet post about teaching users the implications of the technologies they use, privacy issues, multiple options, and especially how to recover and/or backup their documents and files. Many a student has placed way too much trust in typing in a template (i.e. course management system) for an important assignment or resume only to discover for one reason or another, the action failed and they did not create or save the document in an alternate place.
While I like the idea of Cloud Computing (specifically, something free) I am always reminded of the adage, “…you get what you pay for... “
Methods 1 and 2
Steven Abrams made some excellent points about time management in learning new skills.
I find the equipment for learning sometimes a challenge. Ipods, Blackberry, Palms, tablets, etc. Purchase of these digital doodads and their support may not be provided in our libraries, especially smaller or state libraries. We may find our own personal equipment out of date to support the latest versions of the software. In some cases, certain web technologies may be blocked from our campuses due to security issues. For example, Meebo and Flick’r were banned from a previous campus where I worked.
But what I have found is that if I explore about 3 technologies at a time, it is more manageable for me. Using them for a personal application helps with motivation to gain skill and to contemplate additional applications perhaps with my colleagues, campus or students. For example using an Ipod Touch with iTunes allows me to explore the use of uploading and managing my photos (want to see photos of my son’s wedding?); downloading music for my choir rehearsal; checking my email while out at lunch in a place that offers free WIFI.
In some cases, the web based technology was too time-consuming or difficult to follow. I found the Sakai Wiki too hard to master. There are so many types of wikis, I just looked for another that met my needs and skill level.
I find the equipment for learning sometimes a challenge. Ipods, Blackberry, Palms, tablets, etc. Purchase of these digital doodads and their support may not be provided in our libraries, especially smaller or state libraries. We may find our own personal equipment out of date to support the latest versions of the software. In some cases, certain web technologies may be blocked from our campuses due to security issues. For example, Meebo and Flick’r were banned from a previous campus where I worked.
But what I have found is that if I explore about 3 technologies at a time, it is more manageable for me. Using them for a personal application helps with motivation to gain skill and to contemplate additional applications perhaps with my colleagues, campus or students. For example using an Ipod Touch with iTunes allows me to explore the use of uploading and managing my photos (want to see photos of my son’s wedding?); downloading music for my choir rehearsal; checking my email while out at lunch in a place that offers free WIFI.
In some cases, the web based technology was too time-consuming or difficult to follow. I found the Sakai Wiki too hard to master. There are so many types of wikis, I just looked for another that met my needs and skill level.
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