Well, how cool is this?!

Saw this recent article. Not all librarians were bun-wearers. See:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-ap-il-wildwestlibrarian,0,4428005.story

Tagging

Here are my questions and thoughts on Delicious.
1) What’s up with the dots in this name. I understand the .us and that it may be a US site, but I note that people use this from around the world.
2) Why are some tags LARGE and others small? I don’t understand how they’re organized.
3) Library Journal article states, “Though often decried (gee, I wonder why!?), tags that are designed for a specific purpose or audience – can be especially useful.” Tag bundles, grouping tags under a topic heading, sound like a good idea. But, I couldn’t see how better organized the links were.
4) Library Journal also has said, “But why is social bookmarking tools better than traditional pathfinders and subject guides? It lowers barriers for participation, both for library patrons and staff”. But, it doesn’t lower the barrier if someone (like me!) doesn’t understand how they work. I’m sure younger people do because they are “into” this stuff, but what about middle agers – we still have many years left to discover resources in our libraries.
5) Should we offer a class on “how to do” these things in our libraries? I think I need someone to walk me through it.
6) I’d be concerned about sites “going away” and then links are dead. We do have to keep up with this if we do lists of normal websites, etc. Who controls this out on the web?
7) Ah, yes, losing control. Is this good or bad? Will the PROFESSION of Library Science soon be a big bundled mess?
8) To me, “tagging” seems like one of those faddish things – what will be next, will it stay?
9) Seems like a good project for a survey – see how many libraries use tagging.
10) I'm asking more questions than answering. But, inquiring minds want to know?
11) I’m not convinced about “tagging” – talk me down, if you want!

LibraryThing

Okay, I read the info, created my account, and I put in the five books that I was supposed to for this assignment.
What I like:
Liked the idea that I could rate my books.
It was fun to see what other people had in their libraries and to see how many people had my listed book. If it's an unusual book, could be interesting.
I do like seeing the reviews from other people of books that are in my collection.
Gallery is fun - I like the pictures of the authors.
What I didn't like:
Your Library shows your personal library, not your area library. Took me a few minutes to figure that out! :) I couldn't find any libraries other than personal, was I supposed to? I clicked on all the tabs.
There's a click that will take you to Amazon - why do things always have to go to Amazon?!
People who share favorite authors, might be interesting but how does that help me?
There are too many blogs discussing merits or not of books - it's overwhelming!
What more do I need to do?
Think it would be fun to put more books into my library. Between my husband and me, we have about 800 books on our shelves. Hmm, maybe the lifetime amount would be good. Something to do on a wintry day.

Google Docs

I never knew that Google had such a thing. I really like it. I can see all sorts of applications - share presentations more easily with library co-workers. Have them collaborate on documents. We can also show our customers so they can use with their co-workers, people they work with on committees, their book groups! Possibilities are endless. I prepared a nifty (if I say so myself) "powerpoint" for customers who want to start a book group. Email me if you want to see it - seppalaetral@bouldercolorado.gov. I will send you view only (don't want you tinkering with my stuff, man!) Only problem with these docs is that I want to keep tinkering with them so they're "perfect". I will admit that sometimes what showed on the screen did not appear the same when I printed out a draft for review. A bit frustrating.

OverDrive

Yes, I know, it appears that I skipped a lesson. I did all the reading for the Google Docs lesson, but I need to be at work to do the actual document (I'm going to use some material I've already created and see if it will work in Google Docs). So, I will do a blog about that in a couple of days, once I return to work (I'm off now).
I can't believe I waited so long to use OverDrive! WOW! I'm a big fan, now. I thought it would take me too long to download the console onto my home computer. It was really very easy. What took me longest was trying to find something to download, there were so many good choices. I wanted to download some music and then burn it to a CD for an upcoming road trip. However, (I didn't check ALL music, just some of it), it appears that you cannot burn the music to a CD. I did download a lovely Palestrina Mass (Renaissance music is so soothing and has the best harmonies) and listened to it while I tried to find a downloadable book. I was even singing along, although I've never learned this particular music. I will try to remember to play it a few more times before it goes off my computer. (I don't have any other downloadable devices). Finding a book took a bit of time. The fiction books I wanted were not there - the fiction books appear to be lots of popular, lately-published stuff. I must have different tastes. I like literary mysteries and espionage novels. So, I turned to nonfiction, hoping to find something short that we could use on the road trip. Many of the books I wanted couldn't be burned to a CD, but there was still a good selection. I finally found "Plato in 90 Minutes", which should please my husband, and, hopefully, teach me something about Plato. Maybe I'll learn what all the fuss is about. (smile). And, let's not forget what a boon this is for our customers. Lots more stuff from which to select. I'll certainly encourage them to look at OverDrive, particularly if they can't find an audiobook on the shelf.

WebVideo

Ah, movies on the web. I love movies! However, there can be so much dross among the really good finds. It's hard to find the good stuff. And, other people's ratings are very subjective - what they like, I might not. I looked mostly at YouTube. I did briefly look at Yahoo and Google, but didn't seem to like them as much. Maybe, I'm just used to YouTube. There are also the same problems with computer speed, and these "movies" take up so much memory. I can usually see them on my work computer a bit better than my home computer, which is older. On my home computer they will sometimes stop and start, or cause everything else to stop. I chose the video that I did because I do "Readers' Advisory" in my library, as part of my job. Advantages of using webvideos would include making our library's website more up-to-the-minute, and putting a personal face on "chats" that we would present to patrons. (Excuse, me, I really hate that word "patrons", I'm going to use customers from now on.) You would need a good camera and someone who could post these on the websites. But, you could do them and change frequently. Or have an archive that customers can refer back to.
I'm going to try to embed this video into this blog.


I think it worked! Tell me what you think. Now, another post would be why I am not sure I like this webvideo. I'll add that later.

Taking a Break

Okay, what's with "Anna Karenina"? I was supposed to read this for my book group. I could only get to page 80. One of my other group said she could only get to page 200. I definitely agree with the "rule" that if the book doesn't grab you by page 50, put it aside. Just like other people have said they don't like Hemingway or Updike (?), I don't get Tolstoy. I will admit that I read "War and Peace" when I was younger. I seemed to enjoy it then. Why can't I enjoy him now? Has my brain atropied? Is that why these new technologies are so "foreign" to me? Although I did go to Library School in my middle ages. Just give me the movie (which my book group will watch - Greta Garbo - sigh...)