Week 10: # 23 The Finale

WOW!!!! I have finally reached the END! I was really far behind and had to play MAJOR catch up! I kept telling Marsha that I was not going to finish but she said she knew I would....and low and behold, I have arrived!

Some of my favorite things in iHCPL was to create the avatar, and Library Thing.

This program has at some times been a challenge but yet it has also opened up a lot of new ideas and technology that I was not fully aware of. I knew how to do some things, but have never really applied what I knew.

I think that this is a good program because if we don't keep up with technology then we are going to be left behind whether we like it or not.

I think this program is good but I also think that it takes a lot of time. I had a hard time keeping up each week.

I like learning about the latest technology out there, so these types of programs are very beneficial to staff. It is also a good idea for customers to know about the technology that is available. We as staff members need to know about the latest trends so that we are knowledgeable as to what is out there as well.

Overall, I enjoyed this program. I wish I would have paced myself a little bit better and not waited until the last day to finish. I would have liked to spend some more time on some of the exercises but time just didn't allow.

Thank you for letting us have this opportunity! Keep up the great work!

Week 9: # 22 - Downloadable Media

I have never looked at HCPL's downloadable media content before. I have heard about it in Branch Meetings, but I guess never really understood it. Wow! I think this is awesome. I would like to read a lot more, but feel as if I don't have the time. I could really listen to many books each week....I should have discovered this sooner. Now, I really need the ipod for Christmas!

The free sites are different for the library website because you have to register. I guess the library requires you to register but you can hear an excerpt prior to downloading to see if you are indeed interested.

The other thing I noticed about the free site is that the item may or may not be available, but nevertheless this is an awesome piece of technology!

Week 9: # 21 Podcasts

Podcasts are pretty cool....I found a lot of information. Since I had done a youtube video on Moms I found a Mom's radio. The subject caught my interest because it was on getting your boys to talk.

It is so overwhelming to me to know that there is so much infomation out there. The only problem that I found with this particular podcast was that it is an hour long. It seems as if I don't have time to do things and really listening to a radio show for an hour everyday doesn't fit in. But I guess it's like anything else...when something really catches your attention you can afford the time. I wish I had an ipod...maybe I'll get one for Christmas!

I was able to add this podcast to my bloglines account. It will be interesting to see what other topics show up! I have also included the link to the podcast.

http://www.podcast.net/play/81544/50

Week 9: # 20 YouTube

YouTube has many many videos to watch, in fact it is almost overwhelming all that one can find on youtube.

I found a very funny video on what all a mom says in a day. I know it's not really work related, but it is very much my life.

My practice -iHCPL

My practice in Zoho writer...

 

This is a cool way to share documents instead of emailing them back and forth.  You have all the same options as one has in Word.  You can create columns, insert pictures, change colors and add icons!

 

 

I think this is a great way to edit various documents, especially when you are have not finalized the document you can pick it up any place and continue working.  What a GREAT idea!!!

 

 

  People can even add comments!! 

 

♥  ®    ©

One can even insert special symbols and characters....

Week 8: # 19 Web-based Apps

WOW!!! What a cool thing. I think this is a great time saver. Instead of emailing documents back and forth you can save them here and share them for people to edit!

I love this! This will be a timesaver for me as I am involved in extra-cirricular activites with my sons in which I am a board memeber. For one organization I am the secretary...this will be a very good tool to use.

Also, this will be great for Rhoda and I to edit documents. I know she is excited about this as well!

Week 8: # 18 - Social Networking

I have to sadly admit that I do have a myspace account. When I first created it, I was addicted to it, but as time has passed, I now only look at it periodically. I thought it was a neat way to find friends from HS and College. Now, I use it to see what my Tweenaged son is up to. I can find out a lot of info that way, since he is not really a big talker! The drawback to myspace is that it can be very dangerous, especially if you put too much information about yourself and leave your profile for the public to view.

I also like LinkedIn. I have a few work contacts and would like to add more. I think it is a great way to network professionally. It is very interesting to see how we are all connected by six degrees...it proves that the world really is small.

Week 7 # 17 cont...

I don't know if I have to blog this or not...but I did make a comment on Marsha's and Diane's blog about their performance in "As the Wiki Turns".

I thought they did a great job!!! Kudos!

Week 7: #17 Technology

Actually this blogging thing is pretty cool. I like to write, so it's easy to just type away. I also really like creating avatars...I don't know why that is fun to me, perhaps because I liked playing with dolls as a child. I have been creating different avatars to kind of match my mood. The latest one is very festive! I am ready for Christmas...now that I have got my shopping done.

I discovered shutterfly and have made my Mom the best Christmas present ever...I made a photo book...lots of fun. You upload your photos to an album in Shutterfly then design and arrange your pages...I can't wait for her to open it!

Merry Christmas!!!

Week 7: # 16 Wikis

I am wondering if I was absent on the day you got the others in my department to perform in the "As the Wiki Turns". Outstanding performances!!! Veronica and I were missing though! :-(

I like the idea of Wikis and it's not just because the name is fun to say! I found this exercise to be very informative. I liked looking at the HCPL sandbox and reading about everyone's favorite restaurants, books, and vacation spots.

Wikis could be very useful in libraries to help customers learn what things are and lead them to broaden their horizons during searches, etc. It seems that it would be very helpful for children as well, when trying to do various projects. I think that Wikis open your mind to a world of information and it is good that they are always changing, because as we all know...nothing remains the same.

Week 6: # 15 Library 2.0

It is funny how technology makes us change even though people don't really like it. I am one who likes to change things. I don't believe in "reinventing the wheel" but I do like to change things up a bit.

Today's society makes us change and most of the time it is for the better. Those who do not want to, may get left behind. As technology progresses, libraries must progress as well. We want to stay in touch with the things that make people come to libraries otherwise they will become a thing of the past. We have to remember that offering the latest technologies to our customers may pull us out of our comfort zone and we may resist, but we also want customers to continue to come in therefore, staff needs to be knowledgeable on what these technologies are.

The iHCPL program helps staff get the background information on where libraries are headed and perhaps what the future holds. We all must prepare ourselves or we may get left behind...I don't want to be left, do you?

Week 6: #14

Technorati has a lot of blogs and one could get caught up reading all day long. Whenever I typed in the keywords, "Library 2.0" I got a wealth of information.

I found some interesting things in the top 100 popular blogs. I don't know if I fully understand the benefit of it, but I suppose it is useful.

The one I found the most interesting was Blogging to make extra money. It seems that if you enjoy doing something, you can make money doing what you love. Very cool concept!

Week 6: #13

I thought the video on Del.icio.us was very hard to pay attention to due to the poor quality.

Del.icio.us itself is a pretty neat. I found a way to make your own M&M. It was quite interesting. I looked at the comments from users who have made comments and it was interesting to see that it is worldwide. There were a lot of comments in other languages. The tagging was interesting too, because once you click on some of the tags, you are off into a whole other realm. Websites like this one can be addictive, but also very helpful.

The most fun I had was with the M&M site...I even created one. Take a look..

Week 5 # 12: The "Library" Elf

That is a cool website. It seems like so much is going on in our busy lives that we can forget when our libray materials are due.

I usually just use the Horizon notifications...but this will work great for me to help remember when my boys items are due as well. What a great invention....

Thanks for turning me on to this tip!

Week 5 # 11: A Thing About Library Thing cont.

Cool...I didn't realize that you could paste your library on your blog. As I began reading more, I discovered this...

Week 5 : # 11 A Thing About Library Thing

Library Thing is a neat way to get recommendations for books to read. I like the way it tags the title and then you can click on the tag and get suggestions for other books to read that are similar. I also like the fact that you can write a review for other people to read. I am not normally into Vampire books but read a review for Stephenie Meyer's Twlight and fell in love with the story. So, it is interesting how what one person feels about a book intriques another to read it.

I have added a five books to my library and will add more as time allows.

Here is the link to my library....you can take a look if you are interested...

http://www.librarything.com/profile/kerilynne

Week # 5 - Play Week

I like the Yahoo Avators. I have created one in the past and like to change the way it looks and add in different backgrounds. I think it kind of reflects your personality....and looks similar to me.

Week # 4 - #8 - RSS Feeds

It seems like RSS feeds are a way to save you some time. It allows you to put all of your news in one place and then you are not having to search on various internet sites for new news. However, it could also be time consuming too if you subscribe to too many, then one may seem to get bogged down with reading emails, or RSS feeds. Although overall I think it is a good idea.