29 November 2008

Zoho is cool

I like Zoho. However, I am having some difficulty figuring out how to create a link to the document on my blog. I like the advantages Zoho has to offer:



  • portability without having to use a portable device, outside your computer anyway
  • knowing how to use a slick new technology
  • easily create links from your blog to your document

24 November 2008

Week 9: Thing # 23 Is this really the end? Or just the beginning ...

My favorite discoveries on this learning journey are creating the blog itself and learning a bit more of web2.0 technology.

Though I'm always interested in what's hot in technology, other things usually take precendent. But this program has boosted my interest and motivation to learn more. It's fun too. Facebook is a riot, what a wonderful way to connect with friends, even long-ago friends. Two people with whom I attended art school 20 years ago found me all the way from Hawiai! What fun it is to be in touch with them again. I love the Delicious bookmarks too. A take-anywhere list. I don't have to rely on memory.

The biggest thing that surprised me was all the things you can do with a blog. Downloading images and videos for example, and connecting to favorite YouTube clips or Library2.0 sites. I love that I can just "google" my name and find my blog or Facebook page. Another of my favorite parts of this project is seeing my colleagues' blogs. It's inspiring and cool to be working on a project together and connecting with each other even if we cannot physically be side-by-side.

I cannot think of a thing that I would do to improve upon this program, except maybe present a bag of chocolate chip cookies along with the prize for completion. The concept was great, the format superb -- for as complex a technology as this program is, it was impeccably organized and easy to follow.

I could come up with something but offhand, I cannot think of any other Web 2.0 tools that you didn’t cover.

Week 9: Thing #22 Downloadable Library Media


America in Gridlock. An example of the many genres available in Omaha Public Library's eBook collection. Easy to download, convenient to read or listen to. Even the OD.wma software, needed to download and use the eBook, is easy to install. The instructions are clear and concise, too.
It would work well and help staff become more proficient if Omaha Public Library would change it's policy -- and allow staff to do hands-on practice on staff computers. Not every library employee has Internet access at home. Learning how to use the media would instill confidence and better enable staff to promote the service and help customers. Perhaps there is a good reason for a policy that restricts staff from using the eBook and MyLibraryDV products to learn on staff computers on work time. Barring that, I think it would behoove the library to lift such a policy in order have its staff well versed in how to use all of the library's electronic media.

Week 9: Thing #21 Podcast

I ferreted around and found a really cool postcast site, LearnOutLoud.com. Clink on the link above to hear up to 15 stories from a postcast of Aesops Fables. This would be a very cool feature to add to the children's page on OPL's website. Also, with kids who are naturally techno saavy, the library could invite them to submit their YouTube videos for posting on the children's page and/or teen page.

Week 9, Thing 20 YouTube

Click the link above for a YouTube video of Julie Andrews touting the value of libraries. How about putting this, or a little YouTube vid of one of OPL's librarians, Friends, Director, or Foundation members on OPL's website. Better yet, let's get a short vid of the Mayor promoting OPL's Books for Kids campaign.

As was suggested, I found a lot of videos that were not worth watching. Even some of the well-intentioned YouTube vids about and by librarians were entirely too long. However, I did find the Julie Andrews video worth adding as an entry. I chose this particular video because it was well-done, concise, and relevant. It was just as interesting rooting around the video hosting sites such as Yahoo and others.

Since videos, like music downloads, are bandwidth hogs I wouldn't embed a video any longer than 60 seconds. I think 30 to 45 seconds is a good guideline unless the video is particularly captivating or entertaining. Too many videos are entirely too long.

08 November 2008

Week 8, Thing 18 Web-based Apps: not just for desktops


Annette Lamb's NLA blog presentation offers solid advice for using various technologies in a practical way to connect with customers and the community at large. For example, families that are interested in Omaha Public Libraries wonderful storybook character programs can sign up for updates on when Clifford the Big Red Dog or other characters are visiting the library. They can choose to receive simple notices as text messages on their mobile phones, or they can get library blog updates on their laptops or work computers. Now, I will figure out how to post the slide presentation I just created on Zoho.
I love how easy Zoho Writer is. I'm not posting a slide presentation as I mentioned above but a simple document instead. It's a demonstration of what can be accomplished with Zoho Writer. There are also other web-based applications worth exploring.

30 October 2008

Week 7: #17 Playing around with PBWiki

Wikis are cool. They're collaborative. Versatile. Democratic. And fun! WikiNorthia has a wiki I really like. Click the link above to visit the site.

Week 7, Thing 17 Playing around with PBWiki

In the words of one rave reviewer, "PBwiki lets us outsource the hassle and worry of data protection. They protect our data just as well as we can." That's a pretty good endorsement of PBwiki for "enterprise collaboration" --- CafePress is a perfect example of how a multitude of businesses can use a single wiki to promote their product and service. Of course, there are many other reasons to use a wiki like PBwiki. Organizations, like libraries and schools can use them for conferences and classrooms. Individuals can use a wiki as another source of communicating with others, thereby significantly reducing the volume of their email. Saves time, saves money. At least that's the claim according to the PBwiki manual.

25 October 2008

Get in the Loop: Lifelong Learning

Lifelong learning is an exciting journey in which learners are always seeking knowledge. Omaha Public Library is an exceptional learning resource for staff as well as customers from all walks of life. Learning in an unstructured environment can be a challenge. The best lifelong learners impose upon themselves a systematic approach to learning. Our 23-Things exercise offers an example of a perfect opportunity for using a structured self-paced course to expand knowledge about blogs, rss feeds, wikis, podcasts, and so much more. Those who don't at least familiarize themselves with the various technologies for communicating information will be left in the dark on so many fronts. Click my title link above to see Scott Young's list of excellent tips for developing good lifelong learning habits.

Week 1: Learning 2.0 & Lifelong Learning

  • As recommended by Rayburn's 23 Things Challenge
  • 7 1/2 Habits of Highly Successful Lifelong Learners
    1. Begin with the end in mind. 2. Accept responsibility for your own learning. 3. View problems as challenges. 4. Have confidence in yourself as a competent, effective learner. 5. Create your own learning toolbox. 6. Use technology to your advantage. 7. Teach/mentor others. 7 1/2. Play. PLAY is my favorite, probably the easiest for me since I'm a hands-on learner. BEGIN WITH THE END IN MIND is probably the most challenging for me since I tend to get distracted by so many interesting things along the way. I have to make a concerted effort to focus on the end instead of wandering off course down some other tantalizing path.

Week 4: Thing #8 Blog Feeds

With the Blogger Reading List, I can read the latest posts from my selected blog right on my Blogger Dashboard. My Blogger Reading List is located under my list of blogs on my dashboard. I can subscribe to any blog with a feed, which updates instantly every time a new post is published.

16 October 2008

Learning 2.0

Now here's a site to link into.

Week 6: Thing #13 Technorati and Such ...

Into week 6: Learning about Tagging, Folksonomies, Technorati, Delicious (a social bookmaking site) (thing #13), Web 2.0, Library 2.0 and the future of libraries.

Anyone who's hip on the above mentioned topics will be ahead of the curve. Libraries are information centers, and web technology, blogs, RSS feeds, and things like Web 2.0 and Library 2.0 are the future. The amount of tools and information out there is mindboggling but a focused program like the Library 2.0 23 Things Challenge is a godsend.

The number of accounts I've created on various eServices (my term, I think) had become almost unmanagable for me ... until I discovered the bookmarking service Delicious. How cool! I can bookmark my eBlog, Facebook, Zoho, FastCompany Linked-In, Shutterfly and all the other accounts I've created and access them through my very mobile Delicious bookmarks account from any Internet-access computer! Not just on one computer but from any computer in the world! How cool is that! It never ends ....

06 October 2008

Week 3: #5 Flickr and Posting Images






Here are two images I snapped with my phone cam. One of the interior at the Cloisters in Washington Heights, NYC, and the other of a sculpture of Jesus on the cross inside the St. Benedict Retreat Center in Schuyler, NE.


I've also created an account on Flickr and downloaded a few photos. The enclosure link should take you to my slideshow. One problem I've encounted is deleting photos. There are two photos I pulled from a library folder to use as a test. Though I've not yet figured out how to delete those photos, I will.

30 September 2008

Week 2: Getting Acquainted -- Meet Some of My Coworkers




These are just a few of my wonderful coworkers at Omaha Public Library's Milton R. Abrahams branch. I snapped this pic with my little phone camera (not bad, eh?) late one evening just after we closed. Everyone groaned when I rallied and rushed them into formation, but by gosh, they did it with beaming faces! That's me, big grin, on the right waving at you.

26 September 2008

Week 2: Test Post

Here's the second time I've posted on my blog. First I need to learn to navigate around it. Then I need to learn how to hook up with other bloggers, particularly my colleagues. I'll figure it out.

09 September 2008

Week 1: My First Blog

Well, okay ... it's not really my first blog. But it's the first one I've done in a few years. Omaha Public Library is encouraging its staff to get on board and get techno-savvy. So, here I go again.