Gaming

So...I was surprised at the gaming exercise in our 20 for 2.0. In my household gaming has been labeled something like the plague. It went on for waaayyyy to long and we regret the time our kids could have been outside riding bikes, getting dirty, catching snakes and bugs and generally running wild and unchecked. (Like we use to do when we were kids)

This is where we learn alot of life skills and not (in my opinion) in a simulation.

However, I pressed on and tried Deal-No Deal. Holy Crap!!!! I was sucked into a vortex outside space and time. So as of now, I am going to forget I ever heard of online Deal-No Deal. I'm going outside and sink my hands into the dirt and get some perspective again.

Maps and Geotagging

Wow!!! It's easy and fun to hang out at google earth. I of course found my house, my mother's house, all my brothers, some friends and then zoomed in on our Island. Looks really neat to see the color change with the water depth change and the land rise up from the point of view.

Went around the world and looked at the Great Pyramid, Red Square, Hawaii and Kilamanjaro.

Gotta get back to work now :0[

Avatars & Second Life

So you need a whole other 2nd life to be in Second Life. While it's interesting and I'm sure even fun for some (who don't have a job, or a 1st life) I'm gonna have to pass on doing anything more concrete than browsing. I got my meez on and I'm good with that.

Sooooooo....If I can continue to receive pay to learn to build a Second Life, please let me know and cc my manager. I'll drop the 1st and move right into the next.

Online Applications & Tools

Google Docs have been pretty respectable so far. In a minimalistic sort of way, it gets the job done. Obviously if you need the more complex tools offered by Office, well cough up the dough because your gonna need it.

This week I have been contemplating the new version of Office and it's gonna be $480.00 big ones. That's not even the pro version. I don't think so!!!

In light of that, Google Docs is looking pretty good. So is Zoho Writer. They have the same basic components and if nothing else, they will keep each other in check.

I'll be playing with them more in the near future and see how they continue to evolve. You never know, Office might be on it's way out.

Search Engines

So, I have been a googler for as long as it's been alive. More so now than ever. I remember a few of the engines we use to use in the mid-nineties. Magellan, WebCrawler, Excite, and Infoseek are a few that come to mind. Mid-nineties...Wow! That was not that long ago, was it?

Anyways, I tried Mamma and Dogpile for the first time. I used the same search terms on all my inquiries (including Google).

Mamma was not so impressive. I got some links that I just said, what the ??? Irrelevant to what I was asking for, but some hits that were perfectly acceptable as well.

Now Dogpile was more respectable. Because I was doing a search that required more educational resources, I was quite surprised by the good hits I got. Even some outside the US that in some cases were preferable.

Google is definitely my mainstay, but I will consider other sources in future. Maybe. ;0)

Podcasting

I went to Arizona State http://feeds.feedburner.com/TheLibraryChannel and
Washington State Libraries http://www.wsulibs.wsu.edu/rssapp/rssfeed.aspx?feedid=11
to check out the podcasting features. The lectures available are pretty slick...

Which reminds me, MIT has made their curriculum available online now for free. That's 1800 course available to the average Joe. Audio and video available through the link below. Of course the audio is mp3
http://ocw.mit.edu/OcwWeb/web/courses/av/index.htm#Physics

I can see the benefits that are available through college and even to a degree in high school. I believe that Sno-Isle is already working on interviews with WWII veterans as well as recorded some book recommendations in the past. There are currently children's stories on the website available for playback as well.

Our eAudio site is working beautifully toward this end. It has a crossover effect meaning, the folks that want to or only have the ability to listen on the computer can, the folks that want to be able to burn to CD can, and the folks that want to transfer everything to an mp3 player (me) can.


So I have added the MIT RSS to my Google reader and have a radio online subscription that I have had for years that I have been very happy with. I can either download the next day manually (which is my choice) or I can use a podcatcher which I do not use anymore. I can get very selective if I do it manually.

Online Image Generators

WOW...That was a blast. I went to fake magazine cover and plastered some friends on a magazine. This could be another one those addicting places to pay online. The possibilities are unlimited!!!

Overdrive

I have been a digital junkie at sno-isle since it first launched. I remember having to go into the library to get assigned a logon to even be able to get access. That was a while ago!!

It is very good news that iPod compatible audio books are coming soon. I have heard complaints about that for so long from our patrons. They will be just thrilled. And Pop Music Label for Downloads is a very welcome addition. I think you will see some good traffic there.

In my own opinion, we have a good selection but I wish we could get more of the new books on our audio site. I don't know if it's an availability issue, but that continues to be my wish.

I have found it interesting that alot of our patrons don't even know about the digital site. We try to push it whenever possible. (without being too intrusive)

del.icio.us

Doing a search between google and del.icio.us brought back mixed results. I am a dedicated googler. Always have been and always will be. Call me old fashioned...but I did get some worthy hits on del.icio.us. Not enough to convert me, but I did bookmark a few.

If a person needed a list that was always available online, this would be a good idea. Someone who did not have their own computer or maybe they are traveling.

That's what I got out it. I wish I could have found more uses, but then again I admit I am jaded. My favorites is not out of control and I plan to keep it that way.

Wiki's

I did some looking at wiki's, specifically the St. Joseph County Public Library's wiki. I seems that they are doubling their work efforts. Alot of the community info is right out of the blue pages. Other links took you to books, subscriptions and databases. (In our case, already on the homepage) I don't know, that page is not so impressive.

However, I like the idea of a collaborative site for special programs where many people need to come together for a specific purpose. Like a trade show, or maybe a special gathering.

YouTube, Hulu and Fancast

Well I'm still looking for the Millcreek Library Sasquatch. Any more sightings anyone?

Watched a few videos on YouTube. Check em out at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V67QuW0NeXI- Kinda Funny
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nzbu6VP8Vrw - Libraries of the Future
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fu7XciJi6xY&feature=related - Kid Friendly
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bu-TijjVs_g - Super Librarian!!

Dont really watch TV so Hula and Fancast are not for me. However I did check them out and found both sites to be extremely slow and cumbersome. Sorry, but not my style.

Facebook

So I created a profile for myself (basically anonymous) and went searching for an old friend. I can see how some people would like this service. Me, not so much. I will never hang my name out there for public display. You could provide a little too much and possibly expose yourself to fraud.

Thanks but no thanks.

Flickr

Posted some pics on Flickr from opening CAM. I have alot, but it shows too many faces. Don't wanna go there.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/25960269@N05/

RSS

So RSS is now feeding me:

1. Dilbert
2. New Urban Legends
3. Astrology: Daily Extended
4. NYT Book Review
5. Techdirt
6. The Shifted Librarian

We'll see how long this lasts.

Pandora

So I checked out Pandora yesterday. Pretty slick, slick!! It's like Meez. You can just hang there for hours...trying this sample, then another and another and yet another.

OK...I'll post about 20 for 2.0

But I'm screamin about it!!! The outdoors are beggin to be blogged.

So 20 for 2.0. It has been an informative assignment. Very easy to read and follow. Great pace by the way.

Made a Blog
Tracked myself

Meebo'd my google & yahoo

IM'd with my co-workers

And now on to RSS. Wonder if I can find some garden feeds...Hmmmm. Oh, I mean library related information feeds.

All I have to say is, Daphne!

Yes that's right. Daphne, Daphne, Daphne...You can never have enough Daphne. I took my son down to Phinney Hill in Seattle last week, and we came across the community garden area. It was really beautiful and tended carefully.

It appears that someone or thing ran amuck and flattened one of their beautiful Daphne's. In full bloom no less. Broken blooming branches everywhere. So I gathered up a few of the sad little twigs and brought them home. I am now propagating new plants from what would have been relegated to the city compost pile.

The fragrance of these unassuming shrubs will stop you in your tracks from 20 paces. You could be sniffing the air like our four-legged friends trying to find it's source if you did not know better. Their perfumed petals are always fresh and never cloying. I recommend planting at least one hundred on each side of your front door. (OK, maybe just one per side)

They will reward you year after year of behaved growth and herald in the spring everytime you open your door.

Spring has Sprung

At last...Spring has sprung all around. The bulbs are popping up everywhere and the smell of the earliest bloomers is in the air.

The flowering currants are wafting on the slightest breeze and the Mahonia is winding down. The Mahonia has the hint of Liliy of the Valley fragrance to it. Ahhh, a little bit of heaven right here in our own yards.

As the daffodils start to open, cut a bunch and bring em in. If this does not cure the last of the winter blues, I don't know what will. Remember, change the water at least every other day in the vase and dissolve just a pinch of sugar in that water. They will last much longer.

There is alot of work to be done to make the garden spectaular, so I'm off. More about fragrant spring flowering to come.