Danny Michel, Play Me Out

Yah! With this youtube post I've reached the end of Learning 2.0.
It's been fun and as Danny sings "nobody knows this is perfect"

THING 17!

Social networking (SN), love it!
I voyeuristically check out mate’s photos online and was absorbed by Facebook before it took over the world (now I’m no longer absorbed and am at times slightly irritated by it). SN is a great thing but like everything online it has it’s hassles; what is with people who want to befriend you simply because you have a mate in common? Sorry Joel in Canada, I don’t know you and don’t want to be your friend!

I actually have a Bebo page but I never use it. In my head Bebo is forever associated with teenagers and I am no longer a teenager. Maybe it’s age but I prefer Facebook, it's cleaner, easier to use and the layout is user friendly. That said Manix will have a Bebo presence next year, the teens have demanded it! And it’s because the teens want it that we are offering it. If they want it they’ll use it! If library staff wanted it the teens probably wouldn’t use it (I think Auckland’s Bebo page is illustrative of this). Obviously when it comes to library social networking pages, I'm in two minds

1. I think we'll eventually end up there as that's where the population is at, and I'm all for taking the library to the people not forcing the people into the library BUT
2. we have to be careful how we do this. Sometimes libraries try too hard to be cool, we try too hard to be everything to everybody. So let's use social networking sites as a way to communicate and connect with people but let's do it a manner and way that truly represents ourselves without trying to be something that's too cool for school (or the library) and is because we think there is true value in doing it. I hate it when we do things to keep up with the Jones (or with the Christchurchs). Let’s do things because our patrons want it or we think our patrons will use it!

And on a final thing 17 note, yah for Youtube and MySpace for reconnecting me with the best Canadian music has to offer, Danny Michel and The Weakerthans. Rock and roll mixed with a bit of folk, some storytelling and and the odd bit of pop.

Pump Up the Volume

Podcasts aren't the most inspiring things to blog about. But I'm sure there'll be a whole lot of NZ politicians BUSY sharing their party views and successes and bitching and sniping about the opposition via podcasts fairly soon. Fortunately for anyone reading this I haven't braved the unknown frontier of political party web pages (I'm to scared too!) so I can't share with you the podcast joy of John Key's vision for New Zealand or Aunty Helen's attacks on the blue party with terrible billboards!

Logic dictates that I don't use RSS to sign up to podcasts. I haven't checked my RSS feeds in over two months, so any podcasts I sign up to won't be listened to. So to save the planet by using less power I'm about to delete my bloglines account.

Hopefully one day we'll be able to podcast our wonderful library storytellers via our webpage. Perfect for the Mum and Dad who can't get their child to story times but still want them to enjoy the magic of the written word read aloud. It'd be a neat marketing ploy too!

Final Post, NOT!!

I like doing things the difficult way, so while this is the 23rd thing, it won't be my last post! I gotta few more opinions and ideas to share with the world yet. And I skipped a few exercises, best I go back and fix that!

That said I feel I've really got to grips with Web 2.0 via this course. I feel more knowledgable and confident. I've definitely gained some ideas on how to incorporate 2.0 into the services and programmes we offer teens and children at Manukau. I'm even using a wiki to gather information as opposed to email, and I've embraced Zoho. It's so much easier than worrying about if I've saved the document I need to my USB.
Now all I've got to say is Web 3.0? Bring it on!

Book Yourself!

Having already used Project Gutenberg to track down the first paragraph of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, e-books definitely have their place so I'm not a hater.

But I'm an old fashioned girl.
I like my books in the original form.

• I like the tactile feeling of a book
• I like folding page corner and not using a bookmark (I'm a bad librarian)
• I enjoy the smell of a new book. Therein lies unlimited possibilities
• I like the feeling of progress turning a page gives. There's a feeling of achievement when you can visually see that your two thirds of the way through a title your struggling with. Sometimes there's a feeing of despair as you reach the last pages of a book you've loved and you really don't want the story or reading pleasure to end
• I love library books. I like the odd stain and smudge and scribble in the margins. It shows the book's been used, enjoyed, become a part fo the ritual of everyday life.
• Bookcases packed to the brim displaying their wares are wonderful things. If someone has a bookcase in their living room you can be sure to find me seated next to it, scanning the spines, asking what they thought of this title and that title.
  

But that's enough about real books onto e-books and what I learnt at Project Gutenberg!

• Not only can you download the text of a book for free using Project Gutenberg but you can also download it in audio form. This is brilliant. A story teller for free!
• Great for uni literature students. Imagine this; all copies of Canterbury Tales have been borrowed from the library, you spent the last of your money on a jug at the Hilly so you can't buy the book, help is at hand. Use the free Internet at uni and read the damn thing online. Better yet, read it online while drinking a beer in the comfort of your own home, pilgrim style!
• My favourite feminist text ever 'The Awakening' by Kate Chopin is online. Everyone should read this short novel. It's an amazing piece of work that ruined Chopin's career and reputation.

A totally useless piece on information: The New York Public Library is amazing and gorgeous. It is all things fabulous in the world full of marble staircases, imposing lion guards, and so much information you could die happy. But the really special thing about it is they have a Gutenberg Bible there! My beating heart swooned, I stuck my nose against the glass cabinet that housed it. I REALLY wanted to take a photo of me and the world's very first printed book but the damn security guard wouldn't take his eyes off me! And I'd spent the last few nights sleeping in a back of a van on the streets of Manhatten so he definitely wasn't looking at me becasue I was HOT!

Web 2.0 Awards

I like the options that shopping online gives. I like being able to get stuff in NZ all the way from somewhere else and know I'm likely to be the only pup in Aotearoa who has that t-shirt or handbag. I love that I could buy my favourite autobiographically diary off Amazon when it had been out of print for 20 plus years (it meant I didn't have to steal it from North Shore libraries).

So when browsing through the web award winners I was pretty much all about the retail and the food (love the videos on how to make anything!). And I'm excited that recipe key is overhauling itself. I love the fact they have a shopping cart you can throw stuff in that doesn't require money; it's a great idea that just needs to be tweaked.

And as for http://www.cocktailbuilder.com/, they've got the smarts! And a certain youth librarian (who shall remain nameless) could surely put their recipes to good use!

And it's nice to know I'm not a complete techno idiot as I had heard of or used a few sites listed, anyone want to twitter?

More Zoho Loves

You can publish to your blog from Zoho in a matter of seconds....yes that's right people! SECONDS! If I can do it, anyone can. I think I've got Zoho lust.

Yo! Zoho!

Zoho - Thoughts of a First Time User

• Why is the new button so far away from the toolbar?
• Do people have to have a Zoho account to gain access to my documents? I'm guessing they do!
• Why does the login page look remarkable like a google page? Is Zoho acknowledging that google sets the standards the world loves?
• Where would the world be without Windows? It's made all those tool bar icons instantly familiar! Obviously I've never owned a Mac so I don't know better
• Why can't we have these great emotive faces available on Outlook? It would cheer up the dullest email....I'm way off the point here and am obviously very unprofessional sometimes, cue another

Zoho - Loves of a First Time User

• You can work off-line! Simply genius!
  
• I like the tag option, I just have to work out where I go to search the tags!
  
• It reminds me of a Wiki (that whole sharing and collaborating with one document)
  
• It's easier to use than a Wiki because of the familiarity to Windows
  
• the cool face
  
• It automatically gives you a word count when you save. I would have appreciated this when I was a uni student!
  

Zoho - Hates of a First Time User

• Why do I have to hit the spell check button to get my mistakes highlighted? I must see if I can turn it on all the time!
  
• Using the left click to bring up the spell check options
  
• Sometimes Zoho is painfully slow. I've been using it at work today because Word has decided it really doesn't like me and Helpdesk is perplexed by the error messages I'm receiving! And daddy-o, it is slow!
  

Thinking About A Revolution

Obviously Web 2.0 offers the world of libraries a challenge; it's time for us to step up to the ballplate and really examine what we are doing, how we are doing it and maybe most importantly, why we are doing it.

I enjoyed reading the 5 recommemded articles, with the exception of 'More Powerful Ways to Cooperate' they gave me something to ponder over. My challenges to the articles were more based on practical experience and limitations due to the realitites of operating environments rather than issues with the writers ideas.

I think everything talked about in 'Better Bibliographic Services' could be done right here and right now! Let's give our patrons (note I don't use the word client, it's a term I hate) multiple choices of navigational methods, offer options to review and rank books and let's broaden our relevance rankings so patrons aren't solely reliant on browsing the shelves waiting for their next book to jump out at them!

Let's have us a revolution baby!

Technorati is not Paradise City

While I'd really like to go to Paradise City (but preferably not with Axyl Rose) I can quite happily say I don't really want to go back to Technorati.

I spent sometime perusing it, checking out things, searching 'Breaking Dawn', being glad I'm not as obsessed with Bella and Edward as most teenagers seem to be...Truth be known this 4th book has caused me some grief. While it's very readable I'm just not sure how much I'm actually enjoying it. I was tired of Bella and her constant I'm not good enough for Edward dribble, I am tired of Edward being perfect all the time and I miss the cast of side characters even if Jacob is given his own 'book', everything is just a tad to convenient and easy... But back to Technorati....

If I'm ever after someone’s personal opinion on anything I'll use Technorati. People on blogs like to ramble, share their thoughts and opinions (this post is a perfect example of that) but that's the only thing that would get me back to Technorati.

Tag, You're IT!

Back in the day as a wee small thing, we'd play tag for hours. Tag was a great way to play catch and punch with those you really liked. Now days I'm a bit more adult like and can actually tell someone when I really like them instead of waiting for them to work out that my constant harassment of them is actually a ploy to let them know I like them.

Now I get to play tag on the internet, which doesn't involve any form of physical violence (cause that's not ok!) but does involve me sharing my thought patterns with the world! Lucky world.

I can see the attraction of del.icio.us; I'm forever bookmarking websites, shoving links in folders or saving things under really long names to help me keep track of them. And sometimes I still can't find what I'm looking for! But as for some of del.icio.us most popular tags, they make me shudder; software, programming, tutorial, javascript, linux, business, flash, css....boo-oo-ring! Luckily the list redeemed itself with the tags travel and food. Now that's what I call delicious!

And I found a great website from the food tag, http://www.lovefoodhatewaste.com/. It incorporates my two most favourite things 1. food and 2. plastic containers. I HATE throwing food out, I keep all leftovers and much to my boyfriend's amusement I am a freezer queen (betcha didn't want to know that about me).

High on my website discover I decided to create a del.icio.us account but I couldn't add the 'delicious' button onto my toolbar. I tried in vain and I kept getting kicked off the Internet. So although there's a manual way to deal with delicious I ain't willing to do it. I want the button!

Quick Fried Wiki

I was a Wiki virgin but I am no more.
I like Wiki, like it a lot. Not quite as much as I like the humble deep fried potato or kumara though.


As a person who sends out way too many emails asking for input, thoughts and discussion Wiki makes a lot of sense. But how am I going to get already time strapped people to embrace it's functionality along with me? I'm not sure but I'm up for the challenge and I’m remarkably clever at cajoling (aka bullying) people into stuff.

One more thing, why Hawaiian for quick? Why not Mongolian or Chilean?

Heavyweight Battle

Google has launched their answer to Wikipedia, and its name is 'Knol'.
And I like it!

1. It's got colourful pictures. Call me shallow but I believe everything should be judged by its cover, especially books (what's that I hear, librarians around the world drawing in a collective gasp of shock!)
2. The writer does not remain anonymous. You want to be published you've got to show off your credentials baby! It also allows for some personality to be interjected into the article.
3. People to get to post comments on the article & author. The negative here is all the world's spellers are more than willing to show off their superior alphabet knowledge. I HATE those guys, in my world spelling is highly overrated!.
4. There’s a post on making 'buttermilk pancakes'. Genius!

So get to 'Knol' (http://knol.google.com/k) and the units of knowledge in your brain shall grow!

Flickr I Take It All Back

Well that's a lie; I don't actually take it all back. But I do love Flickr Colour Pickr. It's so pretty!! And it can be functional. It let me create the slide show of Great Zimbabwe, a place that I've walked all over, taken similar photos of, admired and miss much.

Great Zimbabwe is where Zimbabwe got it's name for, literally translated it means 'House of Stones'. The amazing thing about it is that Great Zimbabwe was built without the use of any kind of mortar, it's just one big pile of rocks careful placed upon another big pile of rocks. It was built in the 14th Century; it's crazy and astounding.

Rollyo

Jeez, the internet is smart. It allows you to steal other people's hard work left, right and centre.
However others shouldn't really take the credit, since I've pulled all their hardwork together into one big useful search tool. Me, so clever!

If you're ever on the hunt for for information on Aotearoa literature for kids and teens, you should really use my Rollyo seach engine located on the side bar. Just be sure to select the Aotearoa Youth Lit option.

One of These Things is Not Like the Other

Can you spot the odd one out?

Thanks to http://www.bighugelabs.com/ and their giggle inducing mosiac maker.

I Heart Library Thing

I'm the first to admit I have a long history of being a library geek. Yes, I was a student librarian at school (that didn't do my social life any favours). Prior to that I'd busy myself as a kid sticking tape all over my Dad's westerns, mending them in my own unique manner. So of course I loved library thing, no surprises there. However figuring out where to place the html on the blogger layout options I didn't love so much! And blogger help just confused me with all it's html & code talk, speak English please. However experimentation paid off and my superhero reading list is now available for all to see.

It’s official, Wonder Woman is a genius! And she owns an invisible plane. It just don’t get better than that.

Freaking Flickr!

No, I don't want to view a stranger's holiday snaps!
Nor do I care about random people's cute kids in silly poses.
And if I don't know you, I really don't want to know your pet!

While I understand the usefulness of Flickr and sharing photos I'm amazed at the sheer number of photos out there, the prolific comments posted and the time spent (wasted) on viewing thousand upon millions of images. I got books to read people & trash TV to watch.

So will I be inflicting my photos on you? NO! And it’s not just because I don’t own a digital camera. It’s because I actually enjoy the mystery and process of dropping a film off to get developed. Who knows what pictures will be returned to you, what shameful deeds or hideous grimaces have been forever caught on film. And the delightful surprise of actual finding a nice picture of yourself amongst the twenty bad ones. That sh*t is priceless…

RSS Joy

If you want to read an amusing, chick centred blog (think Sex in the City online with less sex and naked men) read 'This Fish Needs a Bicycle'; she'll make you smile. Simply click on the bloglist below to find about more. I'm telling you this because it's wa-a-a-y more interesting than the frustrations of making my blog list public. I thought I'd mastered it but, alas, no I was deluded! So this is my second try at posting it online; thankfully, it freakin' worked this time around!

http://www.bloglines.com/public/wonder-woman

If This Blog was a Mango

It would be green, small and hard. Not ready for consumption.
A solitary mango, hidden amongst deceptive friendly green leaves. The abundance and colour of the leaves tricking you, making it appear that the tree is growing, thick with bounty, but it's not! Damn the tree, and damn your neighbours tree too, which is heavy with ripe yellow orange mango ready to be picked and eaten like an apple. Damn you too, for being too polite to steal from the neighbours!

Blogging is like waiting for that one damn mango on your tree to ripen so you can indulge. You want to do it but the damn words just won’t come!