I am posting this to answer Alicia's questions:
"What did [I] like or dislike about [YouTube] and why did [I] choose the video that [I] did? I like most everything about YouTube. I could complain about the silliness of some of the videos, or the content of others, and I wish that all of the videos were meaningful (to me). On the other hand, it is a great equalizer in that anybody can express themselves, and I admire that feature more than I bemoan the lack of content. I also prefer video over print format on my computer screen because, for some reason, my eyes don't hurt as much when I watch a video.
I chose the two videos that I posted because I thought the Women in Art video was visually really neat, it has some educational value in that it shows "real" art, and it is intellectually stimulating because I can't figure out how eggman913 morphed the images. I might even be intrigued enough to find out. I posted the global warming video because the issue is important to me, it is educational, and it is intellectually stimulating.
"Can [I] see any features or components of the site that might be interesting if they were applied to library websites?" Absolutely. Not only can libraries post training videos on their library and library materials, but they can use interesting videos to educate people. The library, after all, is a place for learning. Anything that we can do to educate people, to guide them towards material that is intellectually stimulating, will be an asset to the community and will help make the world a better place.
Thursday, May 31, 2007
#20.5 More YouTube
I am adding this video with an embedded URL. It is on global warming.
I also looked at videos that took the "opposite" viewpoint on global warming.
(http://youtube.com/watch?v=fD6VBLlWmCI&watch_response), for example.
The conclusion that I reached was that there is no argument against the fact that global warming is indeed taking place. The argument is now whether global warming is man-made. Given that both sides now agree that global warming is taking place gives us a starting place to strategize. We can all agree that the ice caps are melting. We can all agree that storms, droughts, and floods have been taking place. We can all agree that insurance rates in coastal states, including and especially our own Florida, have risen dramatically. We can all agree that trees provide oxygen and that the shade that they provide is cooler than direct sunlight.
There are many other things that we can agree on, but let's focus on these few right now. What can we do about the things that we agree on? Plant trees, build better storm drainage systems, design better evacuation plans, plan for droughts, establish strict building rules and guidelines for construction in coastal areas (particularly on the beaches themselves), etc.
As a librarian, I believe that there are additional things that we can do to mitigate the harmful effects of global warming. Educate, educate, educate. Provide materials on global warming. Put up displays. Plant trees around your library. Create disaster plans. Be sure that adequate drainage systems are protecting your library. Make sure that the library's windows are energy efficient. If at all possible, choose to build your library in areas that are not disaster prone.
I also looked at videos that took the "opposite" viewpoint on global warming.
(http://youtube.com/watch?v=fD6VBLlWmCI&watch_response), for example.
The conclusion that I reached was that there is no argument against the fact that global warming is indeed taking place. The argument is now whether global warming is man-made. Given that both sides now agree that global warming is taking place gives us a starting place to strategize. We can all agree that the ice caps are melting. We can all agree that storms, droughts, and floods have been taking place. We can all agree that insurance rates in coastal states, including and especially our own Florida, have risen dramatically. We can all agree that trees provide oxygen and that the shade that they provide is cooler than direct sunlight.
There are many other things that we can agree on, but let's focus on these few right now. What can we do about the things that we agree on? Plant trees, build better storm drainage systems, design better evacuation plans, plan for droughts, establish strict building rules and guidelines for construction in coastal areas (particularly on the beaches themselves), etc.
As a librarian, I believe that there are additional things that we can do to mitigate the harmful effects of global warming. Educate, educate, educate. Provide materials on global warming. Put up displays. Plant trees around your library. Create disaster plans. Be sure that adequate drainage systems are protecting your library. Make sure that the library's windows are energy efficient. If at all possible, choose to build your library in areas that are not disaster prone.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
#19 Web 2.0 Award winners
Since I like looking at statistics, I looked at the 2nd place award-winning site, Statsaholic. On this site, you can enter up to 3 different websites, and it will compare the traffic to the sites. So….I entered my blog site, Catalogersblog.blogspot.com and another one of the blogs participating in NNT. Well I got this impertinent message saying that these two blogs were not in the top 100,000. Honestly! What is the world coming to these days? So I then proceeded to compare two of my favorite blogs, crooksandliars.com and huffingtonpost.com and got 3 actual statistical charts: reach, rank, and page view. I wasn’t sure what exactly was being measured—like what is the difference between reach and page view. So I had to hunt around Statsaholic until I found a link to: http://www.alexa.com/site/help/traffic_learn_more, which gave me the definitions of the comparisons. Statsaholic was fun to play around with, though I don’t see that it would be much use to me. For those blogs who are interested in getting companies to advertize on their site, Statsaholic might come in as a good selling tool--If you are listed in the top 100,000 sites.
#19 Zoho Writer
I exported the passage below from Zoho writer. It's a story idea that I am playing around with. As for Zoho Writer, I think it's a great idea, especially if you don't have a word processor already on your computer. It might benefit laptop users the most.
Vladimiir Whitehead, introduction
James looked out of the 25th floor window in Vladimiir Whitehead's executive suite at the orange and pink sunset. Looking down he saw the engorged Hillsborough River, which in spite of raised banks had overflowed into nearby communities. The mosque at the University of Tampa stood in several feet of water, now another abandoned center of learning. He looked past the university to I-275 undulating through the city, dipping down past West Shore Boulevard and disappearing into Tampa Bay. 5 or so miles away I-275 rose again, the once high span of the Howard Frankland bridge rising above the waves in a slow arc and dipping back into the bay. Beyond slightly to the south rose Pinellas Island, and further south rose the span of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge, like a twin to the Howard Frankland Bridge, rising from the sea and again descending to the depths.
If a spirit had been watching the two men standing and gazing out at the scene below them, he would have seen two very stark contrasts. The expression on James Taylor's face, would have been one of sorrow, regret, and bafflement. Vladimiir Whitehead's expression was one of pleasure and awe, like an astronaut's expression at his first sight of the earth below him. Vladimiir Whitehead was not an ordinary man. An ordinary man would see destruction and loss. Vladimiir looked out of his luxury executive suite and saw money.
"Beautiful....just beautiful," exclaimed Vladimiir Whitehead turning toward James with his eyes still sparkling with the orange and red reflection of the sunset.
James raised his head and steeled himself, looking into Whitehead's shining red eyes, "Mr. Whitehead, do you think that global warming and the rising seas could have anything to do with the rising of the undead? Anything at all?"
Vladimiir Whitehead, introduction
James looked out of the 25th floor window in Vladimiir Whitehead's executive suite at the orange and pink sunset. Looking down he saw the engorged Hillsborough River, which in spite of raised banks had overflowed into nearby communities. The mosque at the University of Tampa stood in several feet of water, now another abandoned center of learning. He looked past the university to I-275 undulating through the city, dipping down past West Shore Boulevard and disappearing into Tampa Bay. 5 or so miles away I-275 rose again, the once high span of the Howard Frankland bridge rising above the waves in a slow arc and dipping back into the bay. Beyond slightly to the south rose Pinellas Island, and further south rose the span of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge, like a twin to the Howard Frankland Bridge, rising from the sea and again descending to the depths.
If a spirit had been watching the two men standing and gazing out at the scene below them, he would have seen two very stark contrasts. The expression on James Taylor's face, would have been one of sorrow, regret, and bafflement. Vladimiir Whitehead's expression was one of pleasure and awe, like an astronaut's expression at his first sight of the earth below him. Vladimiir Whitehead was not an ordinary man. An ordinary man would see destruction and loss. Vladimiir looked out of his luxery executive suite and saw money.
"Beautiful....just beautiful," exclaimed Vladimiir Whitehead turning toward James with his eyes still sparkling with the orange and red reflection of the sunset.
James raised his head and steeled himself, looking into Whitehead's shining red eyes, "Mr. Whitehead, do you think that global warming and the rising seas could have anything to do with the rising of the undead? Anything at all?"
Thursday, May 24, 2007
#16 Wikis
This is the second time that I have started working on this post. So while I am thinking of it, I encourage you all to write your posts in Word edit it and then copy it into the Blog post. I have lost several posts that were finished or nearly finished when I was typing them directly into the blog post. I can’t even tell you exactly how I lost them, but it is during the editing process. I hit the back space key, or the delete key, or something and then voila the post is gone. And the second time around is never as good as the first.
As for Wikis, I like the idea of creating a Technical Services tip-sheet as a wiki. Department staff could post tips on such things as how to use and what to program into PF keys, how to get to a subscription record in Aleph, etc.
I considered the idea of putting the department manual in a Wiki, but have decided that a webpage or a blog would be better. This is because all the staff in the department review the procedures before they are finalized and added to the manual. If we did the manual as a wiki, then we would run the risk of having procedures added before they were reviewed.
I also thought that the librarians in cooperation with the teaching faculty could create a wiki that lists suggested summer reading for our students. Faculty could choose popular titles in their field that would not necessarily be covered in a course, but that might invigorate a student to read more in the subject. The library could post the wiki with covers of the books. Everyone would be encouraged to submit reviews, including the students. It would also be good if the library would post the call number and allow students to check the book out during the summer. We currently do not allow this, but perhaps something could be arranged for students who have pre-enrolled for the fall. Otherwise, we might have to point them to the public library.
As for Wikis, I like the idea of creating a Technical Services tip-sheet as a wiki. Department staff could post tips on such things as how to use and what to program into PF keys, how to get to a subscription record in Aleph, etc.
I considered the idea of putting the department manual in a Wiki, but have decided that a webpage or a blog would be better. This is because all the staff in the department review the procedures before they are finalized and added to the manual. If we did the manual as a wiki, then we would run the risk of having procedures added before they were reviewed.
I also thought that the librarians in cooperation with the teaching faculty could create a wiki that lists suggested summer reading for our students. Faculty could choose popular titles in their field that would not necessarily be covered in a course, but that might invigorate a student to read more in the subject. The library could post the wiki with covers of the books. Everyone would be encouraged to submit reviews, including the students. It would also be good if the library would post the call number and allow students to check the book out during the summer. We currently do not allow this, but perhaps something could be arranged for students who have pre-enrolled for the fall. Otherwise, we might have to point them to the public library.
#16 Wikis
I like the idea of making a wiki for technical services tips in our department. Staff could share their ideas such as how and what to code on PF keys, how to get to a subscription record in Aleph, etc. I considered putting the procedure manual on a wiki, but all staff in the department review procedures before they are finalized. If we put it in a wiki we run the chance of missing the review process. So I am thinking that a webpage, or a blog might be better for the procedures manual.
I also thought that perhaps librarians could work in cooperation with the faculty (particularly the English faculty) to set up a wiki with suggested summer reading for our students. The library could post the faculty choices (with a picture of the cover) and anyone, including the students, could post reviews. Of course, to make this more applicable to the library, it would be good if we could list the call numbers and allow students to check the books out during the summer, even if they were not enrolled for the summer semester. Currently, we do not allow this. Perhaps we could do something with students that had registered for the fall early. This would provide a safety net for getting the books back.
I definitely like the idea of posting Librarians' choices and allowing anyone, especially including the librarians, to post a review.
I also thought that perhaps librarians could work in cooperation with the faculty (particularly the English faculty) to set up a wiki with suggested summer reading for our students. The library could post the faculty choices (with a picture of the cover) and anyone, including the students, could post reviews. Of course, to make this more applicable to the library, it would be good if we could list the call numbers and allow students to check the books out during the summer, even if they were not enrolled for the summer semester. Currently, we do not allow this. Perhaps we could do something with students that had registered for the fall early. This would provide a safety net for getting the books back.
I definitely like the idea of posting Librarians' choices and allowing anyone, especially including the librarians, to post a review.
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
#15 Library 2.0
Well I confess that I have not read (or thought much) about Library 2.0 before now –or Web 2.0 for that matter. After reading all of the OCLC newsletter and several linked articles listed in the Wikipedia entry for Library 2.0, I now feel that I have a better grasp of understanding what it is all about. Catalogers have been working in a collaborative (though not quite Web 2.0) environment for a few decades now. First with The NUC, then with OCLC, we have shared information, let others copy it, and we have “tagged” it with our holdings symbols. However, our collaboration was a closed, albeit large, environment. Only catalogers could download and upload information. Only catalogers could “tag” records.
What is different in Library 2.0, is that we are going to allow our bib records to be used in a manner that was not possible two decades ago. We are going to allow our patrons to “tag” these records. This “tag” will not critique our records, but will critique the items that our records describe. Additionally, while retaining traditional indexing, we are going to allow some indexing that is largely controlled by our patrons. Will this be better? Will it be worse? Or will it just be new and different?
We have seen how blogs (indeed, the web itself) have opened up discourse, have allowed us unprecedented access to viable news and information that we could not get before Web 2.0. We have seen how it will be harder for our politicians to lie to us, to hide information from us. At the same time, it will be easier to target and sway the thinking of masses of people in a matter of hours—worldwide—and as Al Gore has entitled his new book, this could be an “assault on reason.” Better? Worse? Or just new and different?
In a world where an otters holding hand video, or an article about Paris Hilton going to jail are more popular than information on global warming, the attack on our constitutional liberties, or the Iraq War, (or, for that matter, zombies), I have to pause and wonder if we are going in the right direction. ……But, has it always been thus? Have we humans always been distracted by the cute, the sensational, and the flamboyant to the detriment of reason and fact? I have to ask again, will it be better? Worse? Or merely just new and different? I don’t know the answer…but I DO know that it will be interesting, so hold onto your hats, we’re in for a ride.
What is different in Library 2.0, is that we are going to allow our bib records to be used in a manner that was not possible two decades ago. We are going to allow our patrons to “tag” these records. This “tag” will not critique our records, but will critique the items that our records describe. Additionally, while retaining traditional indexing, we are going to allow some indexing that is largely controlled by our patrons. Will this be better? Will it be worse? Or will it just be new and different?
We have seen how blogs (indeed, the web itself) have opened up discourse, have allowed us unprecedented access to viable news and information that we could not get before Web 2.0. We have seen how it will be harder for our politicians to lie to us, to hide information from us. At the same time, it will be easier to target and sway the thinking of masses of people in a matter of hours—worldwide—and as Al Gore has entitled his new book, this could be an “assault on reason.” Better? Worse? Or just new and different?
In a world where an otters holding hand video, or an article about Paris Hilton going to jail are more popular than information on global warming, the attack on our constitutional liberties, or the Iraq War, (or, for that matter, zombies), I have to pause and wonder if we are going in the right direction. ……But, has it always been thus? Have we humans always been distracted by the cute, the sensational, and the flamboyant to the detriment of reason and fact? I have to ask again, will it be better? Worse? Or merely just new and different? I don’t know the answer…but I DO know that it will be interesting, so hold onto your hats, we’re in for a ride.
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Library Promotional Poster
I think I skipped this in an earlier exercise. It uses two flickr toys, a magazine and an inspirational message.
#14 Technorati
It was well worth exploring Technorati. I found a lot of information that I didn't find through a Google search. I am surprised, and rather appalled, that "Otters holding hands" is currently ranked as the most popular video (though it is sort of cute.) Searching is very easy in Technorati, but you'll find different results depending on whether you search the blog posts, the tags, or the blog directory. Searching the blog posts turned up the most hits.
Just so nowwithmoremolecules doesn't start telling me to post more about Joakim Noah, I did a Technorati search on Joakim Noah and turned up a bunch of hits. Nowwithmoremolecules might want to try doing the search herself. After all, I do have him picked out to be your future husband, so you might as well get to know him a little better.
I am going to pass on the optional challenge posted for this lesson. I'd don't especially want posts on this particular blog publicized. This, in my opinion, is a practice blog--a learning experience--an experiment. It's already public enough.
Just so nowwithmoremolecules doesn't start telling me to post more about Joakim Noah, I did a Technorati search on Joakim Noah and turned up a bunch of hits. Nowwithmoremolecules might want to try doing the search herself. After all, I do have him picked out to be your future husband, so you might as well get to know him a little better.
I am going to pass on the optional challenge posted for this lesson. I'd don't especially want posts on this particular blog publicized. This, in my opinion, is a practice blog--a learning experience--an experiment. It's already public enough.
#13 Del.icio.us
Del.icio.us is a tool that I believe has a real benefit. No matter what computer you are using, you can sign onto del.icio.us and have access to all the bookmarks that you usually use. I went ahead and set up my own account and added the del.icio.us toolbar to my computer at work. I will also add it to my computer at home. It could also be used by reference librarians to create links by subject.
Monday, May 21, 2007
#12 Rollyo
Rollyo searchboxes and searchrolls would be great to use on a library's web page to guide patrons to useful websites on particular subjects.
Hmmmm. This is not showing up on the "preview" post screen.
#11 LibraryThing
Here is a short list of books that I recommend: http://www.librarything.com/catalog/Cat-Aloger. I expect this list to grow much longer as I am fond of telling people what books they should be reading. :-)
Hmmm....LibraryThing might have some possibilities. There are many interest groups, including the largest, Librarians who LibraryThing, with a current membership of 2348.
Hmmm....LibraryThing might have some possibilities. There are many interest groups, including the largest, Librarians who LibraryThing, with a current membership of 2348.
#10 Generators
I think that I already did this exercise back on question #6....but....it is fun to do. Too bad I don't have a digital camera so that I could add some of my own photo's. Hint! Hint! Guess you know what I want to win!
"Books" was created using Flickr Toys, Motivator generator at http://bighugelabs.com/flickr/motivator.php.
"Books" was created using Flickr Toys, Motivator generator at http://bighugelabs.com/flickr/motivator.php.
Friday, May 18, 2007
#9 Newsfeeds
I think that the search tool on Bloglines is the best way to add blogs that you already know about. You simply type in the url or the name of the blog. Sometimes it will find several and I am not sure why there would be more than one—guess I still don’t quite understand what RSS feeds are.
Feedster was a good tool for finding blogs that you don’t already know about—like if you want to find some politically liberal blogs. LisZen was good for finding library blogs. I found several cataloging blogs that I might add to my Blogspot account. Topix.net knew what city I was from as soon as I clicked onto the site.
All of these blog searchers help you to find blogs that you are interested in, but I still find that word-of-mouth is better and more accurate.
Feedster was a good tool for finding blogs that you don’t already know about—like if you want to find some politically liberal blogs. LisZen was good for finding library blogs. I found several cataloging blogs that I might add to my Blogspot account. Topix.net knew what city I was from as soon as I clicked onto the site.
All of these blog searchers help you to find blogs that you are interested in, but I still find that word-of-mouth is better and more accurate.
#8 RSS Feeds
It took about 24 hours to hear back from Bloglines. You might want to go ahead and submit your registration to Bloglines now, even if you are not yet on exercise 8.
I think the concept of RSS feeds is a good one, though I don't know how well it will work. I read a lot of blogs everyday, mostly political blogs like crooksandliars and huffingtonpost. It would be nice just to go to one site to see the new posts.
I don't know how libraries can use this in the public sector, but in the cataloging world, I'd like to be kept up-to-date on new developments in the field. I am going to look for some cataloging blogs and then add them to my Bloglines subscriptions. Since I also select books, I am going to look for some book review sites.
Here is the link to my public Blogline account:
http://www.bloglines.com/public/Cat-Aloger
I think the concept of RSS feeds is a good one, though I don't know how well it will work. I read a lot of blogs everyday, mostly political blogs like crooksandliars and huffingtonpost. It would be nice just to go to one site to see the new posts.
I don't know how libraries can use this in the public sector, but in the cataloging world, I'd like to be kept up-to-date on new developments in the field. I am going to look for some cataloging blogs and then add them to my Bloglines subscriptions. Since I also select books, I am going to look for some book review sites.
Here is the link to my public Blogline account:
http://www.bloglines.com/public/Cat-Aloger
Thursday, May 17, 2007
RSS FEEDS
I think that I have signed up for Bloglines, but I haven't gotten a confirmation. Does it take a while?
Sportsmanship
Thanks to the great suggestion from nowwithmoremolecules here is a picture of my favorite basketball team--winning the NCAA!
#7 Technology
Technology…..technology can simultaneously make you feel elated and deflated, awed and aghast, intelligent and stupid. It can put you in touch with people and, at the same time, keep you out of touch. It saves time and money yet it is expensive and time consuming. It is one of my greatest friends yet it is one of my worst enemies.
"Technological progress has merely provided us with more efficient means for going backwards."
-Aldous Huxley
"The perfect computer has been developed. You just feed in your problems and they never come out again."
-AL Goodman
"The real problem is not whether machines think but whether men do."
-B. F. Skinner Contingencies of Reinforcement, 1969
"It is only when they go wrong that machines remind you how powerful they are."-Clive James
"Hardware: the parts of a computer that can be kicked."
-Jeff Pesis
"Programming today is a race between software engineers striving to build bigger and better idiot-proof programs, and the Universe trying to produce bigger and better idiots. So far, the Universe is winning."
-Rich Cook
Find more quotes on technology at Combobulate http://www.combobulate.com/node/9
"Technological progress has merely provided us with more efficient means for going backwards."
-Aldous Huxley
"The perfect computer has been developed. You just feed in your problems and they never come out again."
-AL Goodman
"The real problem is not whether machines think but whether men do."
-B. F. Skinner Contingencies of Reinforcement, 1969
"It is only when they go wrong that machines remind you how powerful they are."-Clive James
"Hardware: the parts of a computer that can be kicked."
-Jeff Pesis
"Programming today is a race between software engineers striving to build bigger and better idiot-proof programs, and the Universe trying to produce bigger and better idiots. So far, the Universe is winning."
-Rich Cook
Find more quotes on technology at Combobulate http://www.combobulate.com/node/9
#6 Mashups
Many thanks to devils rancher for the use of this background photo
(http://www.flickr.com/photos/cvreeland/226045185/).
Mashups are fun!
(http://www.flickr.com/photos/cvreeland/226045185/).
Mashups are fun!
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
#5 Zombie Librarians
Here is a composite picture of me--before and after becoming a cataloger. I am much calmer now...though a bit brain dead.
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Exercise #4 Emailing Alicia
Hope you got my email, Alicia. I enjoyed looking at the other participant's blogs. Some are really cool!
7 & 1/2 Habits
Of the 7 1/2 habits listed, the hardest for me to achieve will be #4 "Have confidence in yourself as a competent effective learner." Confident? Effective? --C'est moi?
The easiest of the 7 1/2 habits will be #7 1/2 (aka: #8), "Play." Expect to see lots of snappy quotes, references to zombies, and political jokes.
The easiest of the 7 1/2 habits will be #7 1/2 (aka: #8), "Play." Expect to see lots of snappy quotes, references to zombies, and political jokes.
Thoughts on Lifelong Learning
"You've failed many times, although you don't remember. You fell down the first time you tried to walk. You almost drowned the first time you tried to swim...Don't worry about failure...Worry about the chances you miss when you don't even try."--Sherman Finesilver, US District Court Judge
WELCOME
This blog has been created as an assignment in PLAN's Navigating New Technologies workshop. I am going to try to work on this blog everyday. I also hope to post some quotes that I have found meaningful. Wish me luck!
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