Week 5 - Instant Messaging

IM...who would have ever thought that the library would have IM? Back when we got our first computers, all the buzz was how to keep certain individuals (public) from spending all day on the computer messenging back and forth...tieing up the computers ...but here we are, a few years down the road and we're answering questions via IM...Life sure is funny isn't it??

RSS & Newsreaders week #4

Back in the day...when newsmen read the news, timed, and you had to listen for something that was of interest to you, it was such a long time ago!...lol...but now with RSS feeds, the news is channelled to you...just like you were one of those important business magnates...with a ticker tape...built in to your very own computer. Now you can keep up with the exact details on any subject line...it's a pretty amazing thing when you think of it!

There are those who could care less about this level of technology, but with the way that this is going,....the uninformed will be left to the side of the electronic road. Life will not stop for them, to be sure, but they wiill not be anywhere near the crowd when interesting developments occur. But then again, perhaps they didn't ever want to be there in the first place? Not everyone is curious enough to pursue some things. Not a bad thing in itself...

Here be bloggers #3

The only difficult thing was trying to keep up with the time to put something down....blogging is second nature to me, as I tended to journal...by the old fashioned pen and ink method, and still do...but in terms of ease, nothing beats blogging!!

The End of the Line? #30.....

Were there any take-aways or unexpected outcomes from this program that surprised you?
What could we do differently to improve upon this program’s format or concept?And last but not least…
If we offered another discovery program like this in the future, would you again chose to participate?

This has been overall an interesting and informative way to be introduced into the new ways and means of communication within the library...an enjoyable exerise. I would love to keep learning this way...self directed learning is a great way to keep up with things of this nature. I constantly do it with many small applets on my webpage. Whenever an new article comes in on the RSS feed, it's almost like chirstmas everytime I head over to thier wbsite and see what new applet, what new gizmo has come out. Not everything is useful or can be used within our framework...but just having knowledge of forthcoming trends is a satisfying thing...at lreast to me.

podcasting!. your very own talk show!

The idea of podcasting seemed at first to be a rather limiting function for us in the library related fields, but I have found the exact opposite to be true! I have been able to assist a number of patrons with free podcasting software that can be found on the net, and then even participated in a number of monthly podcasts with a group of study groups. It's like having a serialized book on tape, made just for the group of friends in the exact subject you're interested in.

I think this is going to be a very useful tool in the future...as long as we remember...podcasting doesn't make you an expert...or assure that the content is correct. So do your homework and check your facts before you rely on a blog or a podcast for credit on a grade!

Looking back...by looking forward...

This has been an interesting experience for me, I was familiar with a good number of the tools mention in the training, but it was nice to be able to share...as a group...our experiences and little hidden steps to making things work a little easier.

I am also finding that these exercises have been helpful to me in working with our patrosnn.mI no longer have to look at someone with a somewhat blank face when they ask if I'd wiki's this, or blogged that! While not on the cutting edge of the wave of technology, I feel that we are on the curl of an awesome ride to come.

Back To The Future!!

All of this "new" technology is so much fun, but boy is it time consuming!...But I have found an interesting difference in learning styles. I have seen, worked on and participated with many of the items that have been set forth in this learning 2.0 process...and while I can appreciate the orderliness of it all, the things that I have already been working with for well over a year or two in the past, such as Library Thing, blog spot, wiki, podcasting, etc...I find it rather difficult to go over the exercises and "re-talk" about these items? I stumbled across many of these items due to the forums that I lurk about on and when something "new" is discovered...I try it out, and see if it is something that can fit into my time frame of a useful application, and wonder "how will this make my life and work easier?".

SO, for all you folks out there discussing how "none of this will help me" to "I don't have the time"...consider that I have been stumbling across many of these items in my own way for a number of years, and it would have been nice to have had it all set down before me in a nice, neatly ordered structured environment. True, we are not going to need all of these items in our everyday lives, but as information professionals, I think that our job is not just 'readers-advisory'...it is also as a 'web-advisor'...Because our patrons have little or no experience in dealing with these applications and might not know that they are even out there, in much the same way that we introduce them to a new author or a new series, it is our responsibility to introduce our patrons to new applications that will make their experience at the library and even better one...