At the start of this journey I was very aprehensive and doubted if I would be able to complete the exercises. I've always said that I found computers and what they had to offer a challenge. I'm thrilled to be at exercise 23 and suprised to have found most of it so enjoyable.
My favourites exercises/sites were Image Chef, Facebook, Podcasts, You tube & I'm pleased to be able to upload photos now.
Rollo was probably my least favourite and as mentioned in the blog at the time I got frustrated with not being able to do the RSS link on the podcasts (I plan to go back and try that again with the instructions that are now at the end of the exercises).
I'm looking forward to trying Zoho more as it has so much to offer and I couldn't justify spending any more time exploring it while working through the exercises.
I won't use all my new found skills again, some of them still daunt me, but... I know they are there and I know what is available. However some of the things I have learnt I will continue to use daily, simple things like G-mail, blogging - things I've been introduced to through this programme.
The bouquet of flowers are for Kathy, Karen and Hantie for supervising this programme, and to Sarah, Paul and Lorinda who were happy to share their experiences with me. I'm off to make some comments on other peoples sites, I know how exciting it is to get a new comment! Thanks again - it's been great!
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Monday, September 15, 2008
Ebooks
Initially when I went into some of the sites I was overwhelmed by the choice and the results when I typed in book titles. I decided to scale down my search and concentrate on children's titles. My first attempt in LibriVox looking for The Secret Garden brought up one hit. Alot less daunting! Next I searched for tiles under the authors name of Margaret Mahy but without any success. Likewise for Noel Streatfield, perhaps these authors are too recent (after 1940). I tried Anne of Green Gables and had success with 5 results.
I liked the Kindle site, it was easy to use but it wasn't as successful for searching for Children's titles.
I liked the Kindle site, it was easy to use but it wasn't as successful for searching for Children's titles.
My Space
It was interesting to see how other libraries have used My Space. We are keen to utilise this tool for our Teenage borrowers. I think it seems non-threatening to borrowers who may feel self-concious or intimidated about coming into a library.
My main concern if we do offer My Space to our borrowers is that we need sufficent staff to keep the site up to date. We currently struggle to keep up to date with recent book reviews on our kids pages so it isn't a service that we would be able to offer confidently. Hopefully with the appointment of a web team in the near future this could be an option.
My main concern if we do offer My Space to our borrowers is that we need sufficent staff to keep the site up to date. We currently struggle to keep up to date with recent book reviews on our kids pages so it isn't a service that we would be able to offer confidently. Hopefully with the appointment of a web team in the near future this could be an option.
Facebook etc.
Facebook is so addictive! I love that you can look up other peoples photos. I first started using it last Christmas when my children went to London and I could keep track of what they were doing by looking at the photos on their facebook pages.
Having looked at my nephews site I keep telling my children that prospective employers are using it more and more to check on job applicants leisure activities to see if they are suitable employees. My nephew(by marriage) was shown in various stages of drunken undress and revealed more than I was keen to see! I notice that his page has since been removed, perhaps it was censored by the powers that be (or his parents)
I enjoyed looking at Bebo and Myspace but Facebook is the winner with me.
Having looked at my nephews site I keep telling my children that prospective employers are using it more and more to check on job applicants leisure activities to see if they are suitable employees. My nephew(by marriage) was shown in various stages of drunken undress and revealed more than I was keen to see! I notice that his page has since been removed, perhaps it was censored by the powers that be (or his parents)
I enjoyed looking at Bebo and Myspace but Facebook is the winner with me.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Podcasts
I enjoyed finding podcasts and listening to a podcast about Paula Ryan and Library Conference from last year but I just can't manage to find the RSS feed to any of them. I've joined Podcast Alley but again no luck.
Once again it's meant that I've accessed another tool which is new to me and I'll now be able to talk about Podcasts with the best of them but I do feel frustrated that I haven't fulfilled what I set out to do. I've decided that I can't spend any more time trying to "pull the RSS feed . " I was hoping to be able to relax like the crocheted animal in the photo but I feel too frustrated to do so at the moment!
Once again it's meant that I've accessed another tool which is new to me and I'll now be able to talk about Podcasts with the best of them but I do feel frustrated that I haven't fulfilled what I set out to do. I've decided that I can't spend any more time trying to "pull the RSS feed . " I was hoping to be able to relax like the crocheted animal in the photo but I feel too frustrated to do so at the moment!
Sunday, September 7, 2008
You tube again...and yet again...
I enjoyed the Library videos, it's hard to know if non-librarians would enjoy them or find them a bit twee? Being a keen watcher of the Amazing Race the Amazing 101 Library Challenge tickled my fancy, but viewers may find it a bit infuriating - a fine line.
I also looked up video's on crochet as a comparison but they were probably some of the most boring videos I've ever seen,they made the library ones seem wonderful.
I think there would be scope for us to have videos of Rhymetime on You Tube. It would let the borrowers see what is on offer for pre-schoolers at our libraries. We have some non english speaking adults that attend Rhymetime without children as an aid to learn english. I always think how bizarre that they probably can't speak enough english to ask for groceries but would be able to sing an entire line up of nursery rhymes and songs. A video of Rhymetime would cater for them as well.
I also looked up video's on crochet as a comparison but they were probably some of the most boring videos I've ever seen,they made the library ones seem wonderful.
I think there would be scope for us to have videos of Rhymetime on You Tube. It would let the borrowers see what is on offer for pre-schoolers at our libraries. We have some non english speaking adults that attend Rhymetime without children as an aid to learn english. I always think how bizarre that they probably can't speak enough english to ask for groceries but would be able to sing an entire line up of nursery rhymes and songs. A video of Rhymetime would cater for them as well.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
You tube again...
I liked the Color Blenber site that showed you different colours that worked together. It would be handy for matching colors for crocheting! However without a doubt my favourite site would have to be You Tube. I typed in Capping Show as one of my sons has been in it and I was pleased when the footage below showed up. My son is the pirate Captain, well worth a look!
I didn't know how to save videos before so this has been a learning curve.
I didn't know how to save videos before so this has been a learning curve.
Zoho
Just the name Zoho makes you smile! I loved some of the quirky bits about this site, especially the speech bubble for captions & the smiley faces with mixed emotions. I could spend ages on this - and plan to at a later date. I still have a few things to sort out but feel it will be very useful, and to think I didn't even know it existed. I will be singing it's virtues.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
My handiwork!
Here is the blanket that I knitted and crocheted squares for along with my mother and daughter. My first attempt at crocheting!
Rollyoooooooooo....
This is probably my least favourite site so-far. I don't think I've said that before? It amazes me that people with so much expertise should create such a boring looking site. Although it was good as far as the scope of sites it looked up originally I found alot of the hits were duplicated. Again I concentrated on crochet and the good thing about it was I saw sites that I'd never found before. I made my search roll about crochet under the title Zipperty crochet and was pleased that it limited the number of hits so I didn't feel swamped by the choice. One good thing about choosing the sites that you want to look at is that it also eliminates the sites you don't want to look at!
Perhaps I was a bit harsh at the beginning, there are some good things about Rollyo afterall!
Perhaps I was a bit harsh at the beginning, there are some good things about Rollyo afterall!
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Wild thing...oops Library Thing!
I like the idea of Library Thing so I searched for some NZ children's authors but wasn't very successful. There were a few entries for Margaret Mahy but anyone else that I tried didn't produce any results. Being short of time I decided to look for well known childrens books and that was alot more successful. As usual I got carried away and ended up saving more books than required.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Tasty
Wow, I love this site, Image Chef is such fun. I know we were only supposed to get one image but I couldn't resist these three. The Generator Blog was the one that appealed to me the most, it had so many different interesting sites. I found Letter James ok but FD Toys didn't appeal at all. I've discovered that I love personalising things and could have kept going for ever - coffee cups, number plates and suprisingly nothing crocheted was available!
Wow, I love this site, 
Monday, August 25, 2008
wetpaint coat?
I enjoyed finding out more about wetpaint. I love the easy edit button it makes adding things so simple. If only everyting was that straightforward! Again, another excellent video explaining the basics of wiki and wetpaint. I thought this picture looked a bit like a coat of wet paint - think how much wool it must have taken to make it, and imagine how heavy it must be. I've finished knitting and crocheting a Queen sized blanket for my daughter's bed in purples, now I'm working on a blanket for my second daughter in citrus colours. I'm not at all tempted to make a coat like this one.
crochet faces
Recapping about using del.icio.us, I've found it great as there's so much to look at. It has taken me to lots of crochet sites that I haven't previously found. I don't think I'll be crocheting faces but these ones certainly cheer you up. I found it interesting to see how many people had tagged different sites, I presume they are tagged because they are popular but I wonder if people are good at removing tags if they come across something better? I read somewhere that tags are similar to where we use keywords in our catalogue system and that does seem to be true. I do like the video's that we are encouraged to watch to demonstrate, they make everything seem so simple.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Wiki
I think it's interesting that the name Wiki comes from the Hawaiian word wiki wiki which means something fast. That sums up what this has on offer - sites that can be added to and updated very quickly.
Some of the technical sites seem very wordy and quite daunting but I loved the Book Lovers Wiki developed by Princetown Public Library. It has great reviews and I read some of books that I know and they were all appropriate. I also found some titles to reserve on our system. I would like to think that we could use this sort of review on our website, perhaps with the reviewers identifying themselves with an alias so that if you've read and enjoyed books by one reviewer you know that you will probably enjoy other books that they've reviewed favourably.
I also think that we could use a wiki to prompt discussion of forthcoming author events that are to be held at North Shore Libraries. So often we struggle to get publicity prior to events but with this we could build up interest and enthusiasm for a visiting author. And it wouldn't cost anything!
Some of the technical sites seem very wordy and quite daunting but I loved the Book Lovers Wiki developed by Princetown Public Library. It has great reviews and I read some of books that I know and they were all appropriate. I also found some titles to reserve on our system. I would like to think that we could use this sort of review on our website, perhaps with the reviewers identifying themselves with an alias so that if you've read and enjoyed books by one reviewer you know that you will probably enjoy other books that they've reviewed favourably.
I also think that we could use a wiki to prompt discussion of forthcoming author events that are to be held at North Shore Libraries. So often we struggle to get publicity prior to events but with this we could build up interest and enthusiasm for a visiting author. And it wouldn't cost anything!
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Library 2.0
I think this photo of retro crocheted clothing shows that no matter how wonderful we think things are, time moves on and so do tastes, skills and needs. What may seem brilliant today may well be out of date tomorrow.
There were two comments that stood out in the perspectives that I read. The first was that Libraries 4.0 will not replace Libraries 1.0, it will absorb them. They listed archives and treasures as being important. We only have to look at the use of our stack books to see how that is true, no matter how wonderful the on-line resources are in our libraries there is still the demand for our good, out-of-date old fashioned books.
The second comment that I liked was that libraries are human and this is where we have the advantage over the home computer. There is still a human who the borrower can talk to and get guidance and advice from. While many people enjoy the anonymous situation of a computer there are many who prefer human contact.
Looking at North Shore Libraries' vision I realise that despite all the developments and changes we are going through our aims remain timeless. We still prioritise reading,information,learning for life and the library being a safe place. Somethings don't ever change!
There were two comments that stood out in the perspectives that I read. The first was that Libraries 4.0 will not replace Libraries 1.0, it will absorb them. They listed archives and treasures as being important. We only have to look at the use of our stack books to see how that is true, no matter how wonderful the on-line resources are in our libraries there is still the demand for our good, out-of-date old fashioned books.
The second comment that I liked was that libraries are human and this is where we have the advantage over the home computer. There is still a human who the borrower can talk to and get guidance and advice from. While many people enjoy the anonymous situation of a computer there are many who prefer human contact.
Looking at North Shore Libraries' vision I realise that despite all the developments and changes we are going through our aims remain timeless. We still prioritise reading,information,learning for life and the library being a safe place. Somethings don't ever change!
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Technorati
I found this all a bit technical. The actual site sort of tempts you with snippets of information but it seems to take a lot of chasing to get any more information. The screeds of information when you type in a search are overwhelming and it's almost overkill. This has been the least useful exercise and I wouldn't use Technorati again by choice. Having said that I'm glad to know what it is, and sadly not much I can link to crochet!
Crocheted cupcakes
As good as these look, they just don't seem as exciting as the edible cupcakes below. What is even worse though is a crocheted cupcake with a face on it - eek.
Del.icio.us Cupcakes
While searching for crocheted cupcakes on Del.icio.us I found this photo of edible cupcakes. I'm sorry but even I have to admit that they look alot more appealing than crocheted ones! Aren't they superb.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Things you shouldn't crochet....
It was a bit daunting looking at all the suggested RSS - they all seem so busy. I have subscribed to a few including the shopping one but when I found that it included Cher's house which is for sale for $45m I unsubscribed as I felt it was alittle bit beyond my means. I enjoyed using my own search for crochet and have subscribed to a feed for 'Things you should never crochet' - this includes a photo of a crocheted dead fox fur!
Monday, August 4, 2008
Technology Skills?
I remember when I started texting and thought I'd never be proficient with it, what a long way I've come - if I accidently leave my mobile phone at home I feel as if my right arm is missing! The same with e-mailing, working through it step-by-step initially I felt as if I'd never master it and now it's secong nature.
I love using a digital camera but am still coming to grips with loading photos onto my computer, I'd rather use photos off Flickr.
I'm hoping with all the skills we're aquiring that blogging and all the associated exercises will soon become second nature too.
Another thing that I have improved on is learning to include a title for each posting - or I hope I've improved on it, previously I've been too keen to publish it and have omitted a title. This time I've remembered - it looks a bit naked without a title!
I love using a digital camera but am still coming to grips with loading photos onto my computer, I'd rather use photos off Flickr.
I'm hoping with all the skills we're aquiring that blogging and all the associated exercises will soon become second nature too.
Another thing that I have improved on is learning to include a title for each posting - or I hope I've improved on it, previously I've been too keen to publish it and have omitted a title. This time I've remembered - it looks a bit naked without a title!
Sunday, August 3, 2008
The best part of this exercise was browsing through the flickr photos and finding all sorts of inspiring pictures. The hard part was limiting it to eight for the mosaic I wanted to create. I originally wanted to display ten photos but two of them weren't available for public use. I'm grateful that the other eight photographers are generous with the use of their photos. Being a novice crocheter I can't believe what some people achieve with wool and a hook - quite different to the peggy squares that I feel so proud of producing. My crocheting highlight has been crocheting a plain square in cream that has ten bobbles crocheted onto it in varying shades of purple. The blanket that I'm making is predominantly purples but a few reds have crept in, I thought it was going to be a knee rug but my daughter has requested a queen size blanket. I need 100 squares and have now done 80 but the majority of them are knitted with only a few crocheted. I'll count and see how many are crocheted.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Amigurumi Sushi by Christen Haden (Usa)
Being a sushi fan and trying to blog about my two new skills -crochet and blogging, I couldn't resist including this picture of crocheted sushi! The only problem is that it makes me feel hungry and it doesn't include my favourite sushi of pinneapple/avocado/cream cheese. I found it a bit daunting getting to this stage but hope that now I've created a flickr account next time will seem easier. I don't plan to crochet sushi, there doesn't seem much point in making it if you can't eat it!
Monday, July 28, 2008
New Beginnings
Well I've mastered two new things in the last couple of weeks - how to blog and how to crochet! I can't do both at the same time but it'll be interesting to see which I become more proficent at.
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