Del.icio.us

I've heard about this site before but never did set up an account, and even now I'm not sure I'd really use it. I find all the tags and comments to be confusing and overwhelming, and not all that helpful. Possibly I would use it for my own bookmarks, but I've got Foxmarks installed so things automatically get synchronized between my PC and laptop. I do see how the Reference staff could use this to share favorite sites between all staff, especially for those who work at several different desks and computers in our library.

I did find some new and interesting sites: the Penguin books podcast and Juice, an open-source podcast receiver.

I think the Penguin book idea is great - libraries could create similar podcasts with staff discussing new titles (but there is that pesky staff time issue to deal with!) I think I'll subscribe to this - I do have an online book club subscription that arrives daily in my email, but that requires actually reading the chapter! It would be much more convenient to listen to a podcast. This isn't exactly the same: it's not just a chapter, there seems to be discussion too, and it's not daily (these do take time to produce!) but there is a lot of potential here.

I'm wishing I'd found the Juice site earlier, before I installed iTunes on my home computer, just because I like open-source as a matter of principle. I've gotten other software from SourceForge (they have a great PDF creator!).

Video on the Blog

This should get the Yarn Harlot video in here:

Thank you Michael for explaining the details (I didn't realize the "embed" function was in YouTube; I was looking in the blog posting). Learn something new all the time (which I guess is the whole point of this exercise!).

You-Tube

I'm always amazed at the number of patrons viewing things in You-Tube as I walk by - it seems to be incredibly popular (although there certainly is a broad spectrum of content and quality!). The Library Dominoes was a great idea. Naturally I had to search my favorite knitter, The Yarn Harlot, and was amazed to watch her knitting without looking - I'm not sure I'll ever be able to do that.
(I haven't figured out how to get a video here - I can't find the Embeddable Player part on the Edit HTML tab, and inserting video wants me to browse to a file). I have seen (and used!) knitting videos demonstrating various stitches and techniques - I think that is a great use of this technology.

I've been trying to come up with practical uses for this on a library website. Certainly short videos of library programs could be posted. I'm not sure about instructional uses (How to turn off your cell phone as you enter the library? How to approach the reference desk with a question? How to use the self-check machine?). I think this is still in the entertainment stage...

A Brand New Month

Wow - February really did go by fast! But since I was away for 2 weeks, and then had a great Offline weekend, no wonder!

I mentioned in an earlier post that I've become a podcast fan - my favorites involve knitting (because it's so easy to knit while I listen - multi-tasking at its best) but I have also discovered some tech-related ones: the Mike Tech Show and the New York Times Tech Talk (since I'm already subscribed I'm not subscribing here).

I could see using something like this for patrons, describing the latest new books or upcoming programs at the library. It would take a little time to get good at creating these - I can tell the difference between the NYTimes (very professional) and one of the (unprofessional) knitting podcasts. And it would require dedicated staff to keep it current.

There is always the danger of using technology just because it's there, not because you really have a good use for it.

Library Thing

I realized I had an account at Library Thing already (I'd heard about it at a previous Offine) so this was an easy assignment. The hard part is remembering to add books - I need to continue to do that. I'd like to use this more to help me remember what I've read, and what books we have hiding in our home library.We get to a book sale and can't remember if we've got specific titles or not - at least this would be a handy to way to check!

Conflicting Groundhogs

Each year I anxiously await the prediction of Punxsutawney Phil (he has his own website!). On less busy years I even celebrate with a viewing of Bill Murray in Groundhog Day. So I was shocked to find out Phil is not the only groundhog people listen to - here is an incredible list. Who knew the Canadians use groundhogs to predict spring too? And, amazingly, the various groundhogs don't seem to agree. Although I grew up close to Pennsylvania, and actually met a girl from Punxsutawney in high school, I'm going to go with the Canadians on this one and hope for an early spring.

Besides, it appears that Phil is pulled out of his burrow very early - before the sun comes up! So how can he really tell...

Even more interesting (to me, anyway - it doesn't take much to humor me!) Germany has a similar tradition, involving a specific day in June and rain: if it rains that day, it will rain all summer. When I lived there, it did rain on the required day, and we had a miserable rainy summer. Gray skies for an entire year (winters are cloudy almost all the time). By the following spring we all were a little crazy.

Playtime!

I've been looking at some of the other blogs - there are some really creative people out there!

I will be away for the next 2 weeks, so my image generator practice involved an airline ticket. This is as close to a first class ticket as I'll ever get.

I will be ready to catch up on the remaining fun when I get back, and look forward to seeing lots of folks at Offline later this month.