Chapter 8--"wiki, wiki"

Hawaiian's have the right idea: "wiki, wiki" means, quick and fast. (If only it were that easy to actually get to Hawaii.) That is certainly what the wiki technology is all about--quick and fast access to information. Most people automatically think of wikipedia when considering wiki's. However, there are wikis for almost anything. The advantages of wikis are obvious: quick access to information that anyone can contribute to. Anyone can add content and contribute their ideas to a particular wiki of interest. The disadvantages are almost the same. Because anyone can contribute, it is easy to be misled by information.

If used correctly, libraries could use wikis in a number of ways. The library community can contribute to topics of all genres. For example, in a high school library, the wiki could be a useful tool for research. The librarians could update articles of interest based on subject matter and include books that pertain to the subject being researched. As a 9th grade English teacher, freshmen tend to be quite overwhelmed when they receive their first research opportunity. This tool would be ideal for them. On the same note, the librarian could recommend books for independent reading for the teenager. The students could also update the wiki adding information that was useful for the. Because a wiki is interactive, the librarian would have the ultimate say in what is posted. They have the ability to track what's been changed. A high school library wiki allows the student to become a part of the library community in a way they weren't able to before. I found a useful wiki here. Enjoy!

Chapter 7--Part Deux

It looks like "teamwork really does make the dreamwork." This access project really got me in a bit of a twist! But thanks to Mara (for sending me directions for '03, and helping me realize I needed directions for '03), I was able to finish. (Also a quick shout-out to my teammate Terri for offering to spend the afternoon working on this together. That meant a lot.) Anyway, I think I've got this access concept down. I also hope I never run into Larissa Tuttle, Driver #30 in Hansen, Florida. I blame her.

Chapter 7--HELP PLEASE!!! Access

So I'm really hoping someone reads this and can offer a solution to my problem. I can't seem to add a new record button to my form (access part 1). I don't have a design ribbon. I've searched and searched. AND I think I messed up on creating the form. It looks real funny. NOTHING like the picture. I'm so frustrated. Not to mention the fact that my home Access is not compatible to Rutgers Access, so all my work in class went down the drain. I'm sure there is a way to convert the file, but please don't tell me if that's the case. I don't want to know. I really don't like Access. Not my friend. Not my friend at all.

Chapter 6--13, 14 & 15

13. Here's the potential that Delicious might have for libraries. I start with the concept that you've got several communities of learners in the library. Each one of those communities shares an interest and is likely to spend time surfing the Internet looking for resources on their common interest. Without Delicious, once they found a useful website, they'd be likely to email the link to the group. Delicious makes it possible to assign a tag to each little community. When the members find a useful website they post it on Delicious with their groups tag. Instant circulation of information. Plus, Delicious lets you tap into what other people who have this interest found. There are some really smart guys out there dreaming this kind of stuff up.

14. We all see a lot of stuff on YouTube but it's not the only one out there. My father uses Vimeo. He says one of the differences is that YouTube strips out any music you put on the video while Vimeo doesn't. If a librarian is going to use shared videos to enhance a group exercise, music can help preserve interest.

15. Podcasts are terrific. Itunes and other podcast directories tend to be a little unwieldy. This is an area where Delicious can make a real contribution by sharing the benefits of having a large group of podcast hunters present results tailored to a subject--in other words, weeding out dead-ends. By the way, here's a link to a podcast I like a lot. It's the Times weekly interview show with current authors and critics. This one happens to feature Maureen Dowd commenting on Dan Brown's new book.

Chapter 5-Part Two, A Library Thing

Another fantastic find! It reminds me a lot of "we read" and "good reads" from facebook. Seeing as I temporarily deactivated my facebook account, Library Thing is right up my alley. There is nothing I love more than reading and talking about books. This site gives me the opportunity to reach out to others with similar reading tastes and offer reviews of books, while reading reviews from others. One feature of this site that is particularly exciting is the fact that it connects the user with local bookstores, libraries and book festivals. It also offers information and invitations to upcoming author signings and events!

Chapter 5- Part I, Image Generators

This particular exercise was especially entertaining for me. I'm no stranger to image generators. I could spend hours tooling around on sites such as faceinhole.com and yearbookyourself.com. I decided to include a countdown clock on my blog. This particular clock is counting down to my powerpoint presentation. Perhaps a bit of humor will erase a bit of my anxiety. I also included a map from bighugelabs.com. As an avid traveler, it's fun to see where I've been and where I'd like to go. This exercise opened my eyes to a whole new world of image generators.

Chapter 4- Part Two, Finding Feeds

In exploring this topic, I checked out how two libraries have adapted the RSS device to their operations. The first library I visited was the New York Public Library. It didn't have as extensive a list of RSS feeds as I thought that it would but here is one that seems particularly useful to me: http://www.nypl.org/rss/bestoftheweb.xml. I am not sure how New York decides what to use RSS for. It could be that given the breadth of its community of users it must necessarily confine itself to only the most general of topics.

The Library of Congress has a much more extensive list of RSS feeds. They are found at http://www.loc.gov/rss/. In addition to having a number of feeds that relate directly to its role in the federal government, it also has a great variety of feeds that seem to address the interests of everyone in the country. I suppose that the difference between these two libraries could be explained by the virtually unlimited funding that is available to the Library of Congress