It's been awhile

Suzan J. reminded me how fun blogging can be. Let's see if I can remember how to do this. It's been a busy couple of years. Berwin and Caleb moved down to Alabama. Malachi is getting ready to graduate. I am now working at the Sorensen Branch of the Omaha Public Library. I turned *shudder* 40 and last month my mother passed away.

Thing 23: The end?

Wow, I can't believe how quickly that went once I started with it! I had heard a lot about some of these sites and tools and I am glad I took the opportunity and time to look a little deeper. Thanks Library 2.0 and O What a Geek crew for the challenge.
I think what I liked best was Thing 19, Discovering Web 2.0 tools. I plan on going through the list that Annette Lamb created in Recipes for Success. I want to find out some more tools or sites that could make my life and work easier or at least more interesting.

Thing 22: Media and book downloads

I have used or at least looked at all of the down loadable services offered through OPL. I haven't looked at MyLibraryDV lately so I took a look at it again. I like that patrons have the option to download movies or shows without having to leave home and that there is no problem about access (always available). I would like to see more popular or new movies but classics are already good. I think that the library could use some of the excercise videos in the helath section for a program. How about a weekly Yoga class during the lunch hour or in the evening? Using the projectors that all of the locations have the video could be shown on a wall or screen.

Thing 21: Podcasts

I looked at all 4 podcast directories and have good things and bad things to say about each. I found that I can't download the iTunes because my computer is too old but there was a great variety of music, audio and video available and the searching is easy. Using the PodcastDirectory.com was easy but not very pretty. I liked that I could click and easily add the new podcasts by an artist or subject to my Bloglines but the results were not as varied as the other directories. Podcast Alley had the greatest variety available but it was not as Blogline friendly as PodcastDirectory. My Yahoo audio had the greatest number of results for popular searches. The only problem is that there is a cost to download anything. I searched for "Adventures in Odyssey," a popular show for children that offers moral messages. The greatest number of episodes was avaialable from Yahoo but at a cost of $1.99 each. I added podcasts of "The adventures in Odyssey" to my Bloglines account through PodcastDirectory.com. While this does not offer the episodes that Yahoo does, it is free and the producers of the show regularly discuss what they are working on.
I could see using a podcast for weekly storytelling, book teases, young adult forums or the "Main Event" at the Washington Branch.

Thing 20: YouTube

I love YouTube. It gives me the opportunity to view programs that I missed. I anticipate Obama's inauguration to be available within minutes of the event. Under Communities and Contests and I think there is an opportunity for OPL. Maybe a contest for teens or kids to promote the library or a favorite book. I searched for OPL and found a fabulous video I just had to share. Hope the participants don't mind... :)

Thing 19: Discovering Web 2.0 tools

Oh my goodness! I never realized how many 2.0 tools there were! I looked at Annette Lamb's Recipes for Success. I have used some (Facebook, LibraryThing, Second Life, Skype, Lookybook, and my favorite citation took, Noodle Tools). I looked at KidderLit and was a little disappointed. I thought it would be great to see some discussion about books but all it really is, is a link to Amazon.com. The tagline on the page is "Twittering the first lines of kids' books so you don't have to!" The problem is that is all you see at first glance along with the targeted age. You don't get to see the title of the book unless you click on the date of the entry. How odd is that? I think it would be a good site to tell teachers and parents about for Readers' Advisory but I wouldn't recommend it until the titles were clearer.

Thing 18: web based apps

I love Google Docs! With so many versions of Word available sometimes I can't open up a document on my 5 year old computer.
My son, Caleb, is a budding author. He loves to write stories and has been invited to a Writing Expo in Albuquerque, NM. I don't have all of the details but I think he is given writing prompts and has to create a story in a limited amount of time. To prepare him my husband has been giving him prompts. I love to read Caleb's stories but sometimes it takes some work to convert what he has written to something my computer can open. If Caleb can write his story in Google Docs I would have no problems viewing them.
In terms of the library..I wonder how difficult it would be for job hunters to sent the link to employers so their resume could be viewed???? May save on some frustration when discs or memory sticks fail.