Thing #8 is probably the most challenging out of the 23 Things. The blogroll exercise is a little tricky. It's amazing to think that you can use RSS technology and a newsreader to create and customize your very own "newspaper" that's delivered directly to your door. It's very time-consuming to just go out to the web and search for information. This technology saves some time after the initial investment of setting up the RSS feeds in the newsreader. There's also a lot of great search capabilities from within the service so that you don't always need to leave to find particular RSS feeds on your favorite sites. The subject aggregators are also very useful - they're already compiled subject-specific groups of feeds for you to subscribe to.
You can run the risk of information overload here. The amount of information out there can be overwhelming and I'm not a big fan of the blogline interface. I think it could be better organized and more streamlined - it's an incredibly busy interface.
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Week 3, Thing #7
Well, it's been a few months since I last blogged as part of the 23 Things pilot group, but I thought I'd start-up again as part of the summer group participants and finally finish the program.
Blog about anything Technology-related... well, there's a big buzz right now with the upcoming release of the iPhone. The iPhone will have it all - a phone, a digital media player, internet access, etc. I'm not a big cell phone user or a Mac user myself, but it's hard not to hear the hype that's been going on in the media with the debut of the iPhone only a few days away.
I had a Treo for a few years, which had internet access, my Outlook email, phone, camera, etc., but no digital media player. I found it very difficult to "unplug" when I had my Treo and doubt if I will buy another Treo, Blackberry or iPhone any time soon. I don't know how healthy it is to always be connected. It's now hard to imagine the days before the instant communication via voicemail, answering machines, beepers, and such. In a way, it kind of takes the fun and anticipation out of simple pleasures like receiving a real letter...
Blog about anything Technology-related... well, there's a big buzz right now with the upcoming release of the iPhone. The iPhone will have it all - a phone, a digital media player, internet access, etc. I'm not a big cell phone user or a Mac user myself, but it's hard not to hear the hype that's been going on in the media with the debut of the iPhone only a few days away.
I had a Treo for a few years, which had internet access, my Outlook email, phone, camera, etc., but no digital media player. I found it very difficult to "unplug" when I had my Treo and doubt if I will buy another Treo, Blackberry or iPhone any time soon. I don't know how healthy it is to always be connected. It's now hard to imagine the days before the instant communication via voicemail, answering machines, beepers, and such. In a way, it kind of takes the fun and anticipation out of simple pleasures like receiving a real letter...
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Week 3, Thing #6
Librarian Trading Cards! Who knew? I keep seeing more and more types of mash-ups in the media and some of them are very creative, while some are just a little too busy for my taste. It seems as those that feature maps are some of the most popular -and useful - mash-ups. I recently took part in an online learning class where the class utilized a mash-up by looking at a map of the U.S. and inserting a pin where they were located. The end-result was a powerful image and testimonial to the technology.
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Yes, it's a real baby lion!
This week we're looking at Web 2.0 in relation to photos and images and I've had a lot of fun exploring flickr in step #5. After I created my flickr account, it was pretty easy to set-up a link between my flickr account and my 23 Things blog. I uploaded a photo from my own computer from a trip to South Africa several years ago.
We were supposed to look around the flickr site and I must admit that I was completely overwhelmed by the number of photos on the site. It's extremely cool and timely how you can "catalog" your own photos by adding your own tags or keywords to your photos. No LCSH or Dewey Decimal system here!
We were supposed to look around the flickr site and I must admit that I was completely overwhelmed by the number of photos on the site. It's extremely cool and timely how you can "catalog" your own photos by adding your own tags or keywords to your photos. No LCSH or Dewey Decimal system here!
Week 3, 23 Things: Photos & Images
After extensively exploring flickr (I had to drag myself away!), I posted the photo above and I joined the Libraries and Librarians group. I got a chuckle out of the group's tagline - Please tag the images you add! And of course there were specific tagging guidelines on their group homepage - not quite AACRII, but I'd guess that few other flickr groups have such comprehensive tagging instructions!
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Week 1, Thing 1: About This Program
Blogs, wikis, podcasts, RSS, etc. - it seems as if we're daily being bombarded by all of these Web 2.0 technologies. I'm really excited about the WMPL region library employees taking part in this program. It will give us all a good overview of Web 2.0 technologies and we'll then all have a common foundation to start building on for future library services. I think that this program is really do-able and I think that those who participate will add greatly to their lifelong learning toolbox!
I highly recommend viewing the archived SirsiDynix webinar on this program: http://www.sirsidynixinstitute.com/archive.php
I highly recommend viewing the archived SirsiDynix webinar on this program: http://www.sirsidynixinstitute.com/archive.php
Week 1, Thing 2: Pointers from Lifelong Learners
7 & 1/2 Habits of Lifelong Learners:
1. Begin with the end in mind
2. Accept responsibility for your own learning
3. View problems as challenges
4. Have confidence in yourself as a competent, effective learner
5. Create your own learning toolbox
6. Use technology to your advantage
7. Teach/mentor others
7 1/2. Play!
In this activity I'm supposed to list the habits that are hardest and easiest for me. Without a doubt, habit 7 1/2 is the most difficult for me, while habit number five is probably the easiest (with number 6 running a close second). In today's fast-paced 24/7 world taking time to play and explore can seem like a luxury or a waste of precious time. I do understand, however, that taking the time to play is quite necessary to keep one's mind fresh and supple. I'm much better at collecting resources for my learning toolbox and leveraging technology in my quest of lifelong learning. As information professionals we become quite adept at searching for and locating information resources for both our patrons and ourselves. The use of technology is a huge part of my job, as well, and so I automatically strive to stay on top of the latest trends and gadgets.
1. Begin with the end in mind
2. Accept responsibility for your own learning
3. View problems as challenges
4. Have confidence in yourself as a competent, effective learner
5. Create your own learning toolbox
6. Use technology to your advantage
7. Teach/mentor others
7 1/2. Play!
In this activity I'm supposed to list the habits that are hardest and easiest for me. Without a doubt, habit 7 1/2 is the most difficult for me, while habit number five is probably the easiest (with number 6 running a close second). In today's fast-paced 24/7 world taking time to play and explore can seem like a luxury or a waste of precious time. I do understand, however, that taking the time to play is quite necessary to keep one's mind fresh and supple. I'm much better at collecting resources for my learning toolbox and leveraging technology in my quest of lifelong learning. As information professionals we become quite adept at searching for and locating information resources for both our patrons and ourselves. The use of technology is a huge part of my job, as well, and so I automatically strive to stay on top of the latest trends and gadgets.
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