Thing #23 - Reflections

All right - I'm approaching the finish line! This has been quite a journey, filled with exciting new things (or should I say THINGS??) to learn, many challenges, and some seemingly insurmountable obstacles. I am just amazed at all the things that are available out there on the Internet that I was completely unaware of. As I noted back at the beginning of this adventure, I didn't even really know what blogs were, let alone Flickr, Wikis, Rollyo, RSS feeds, etc. Exploring these online applications and discovering personal uses for them has been most rewarding.
I feel that the program was very well-structured. The discovery resources for each Thing were beneficial, and the discovery exercises were clearly stated. My main drawback to the program was that, as a reference substitute, I did not have any "work" time to complete the activities. I have put in many hours here at home - just me and the Things, sometimes getting along with each other and sometimes not so much!
My blog is entitled, very uncreatively, Lifelong Learning and my participation in this program has certainly been an exercise in acquiring much new knowledge along with many new skills. This activity is now complete, but the learning and exploration will continue as all of the Things to which we have been exposed are constantly changing, developing, and expanding. Knowledge and learning are not static but rather an ongoing - lifelong - process.

Thing #22 - Audiobooks

I was able to browse the selections on the Overdrive site without establishing an account or downloading the OverDrive Media Console. There was no reason for me to download this tool to my computer as I know that I will not be listening to books on the computer and I do not have a portable device (at least, not yet!) I viewed the discovery resources tours on both Overdrive and NetLibrary and feel that I have a good understanding of how the download process works when and if I should ever choose to establish an account and make use of the features. I can see that this is a wonderful service to have available for people who have long commutes or who just enjoy listening to audio books. As I mentioned in my previous post, I have hearing problems. That, combined with the fact that I have always been a visual learner, makes me an unlikely candidate for much use of HCPL's downloadable audiobook services.

Thing #21 - Podcasts

As I explored the three podcast directories suggested as discovery resources, I noticed that Podcast.net doesn't appear to have been updated since December of 2006 and Yahoo.Podcasts has a message that the site will be closing down after October 31 of this year. I hope that other directory sites are developed to take their place. Yahoo, especially, was very easy to search. When I did a search for book reviews, I got a listing of 158 series of podcasts on this topic.
I had a bit of difficulty getting some of the podcasts that I was interested in hearing to play. I think it might have something to do with the pop-up guard on my computer. I disabled the guard for that particular site but still didn't have success in some cases. The pop-up would display, but nothing would happen when I clicked the "play" arrow. At the other extreme, I couldn't get one of the podcasts to stop playing, and it was a 30 minute cast that I didn't really want to listen to after hearing the first few minutes. I finally had to turn the sound off on the computer!
I think that podcasts are great resources for many people. I, personally, will probably not use them much as I have hearing difficulties and much prefer to receive information visually.

Thing #20 - YouTube

I have visited You Tube and I don't imagine that I will return to this site very often. I don't see the attraction, but evidently many people do enjoy watching these videos. Some of them have been viewed as many as 300,000 times. The first video I clicked on was on the featured page. It was entitled "Erbert and Gerbert's Human Flipbook". While I was viewing it I couldn't imagine that anyone would spend that much time and effort on this project, no matter how clever it was. Then I realized that it was made as an advertisement for a Sub Shop. It really is kind of cute. I am going to try to embed this video in my blog just because I want to see if I can do that successfully.


Well, it seems that all went well with that endeavor. Yippee!
I explored YouTube's categories and its search engine in an attempt to find the video of the security guards sleeping at the Peach Bottom Atomic Power Plant. This is of interest to me because the plant is located 2 miles from my town. I thought this video would certainly be available on YouTube since it's received a lot of attention in the news recently. However, none of my search terms (Peach Bottom, atomic plant, guards, sleeping, etc.) turned up any matches. I find that surprising.

Thing 19 - Discover Any Site from Web 2.0 Awards List

The Web 2.0 awards site is a great resource for finding top-rated tools/sites in many different categories. Its well-organized listings and brief descriptions make it easy to click on sites that one thinks might be of interest or value. I explored several of the sites. Realtravel.com is one of my favorites. It is a travel guide and trip planner where one can read about others' experiences, find travel deals, and map out a vacation. I was also interested in Instantbull.com, an investing site with all kinds of information on the stock market, stock message boards, etc.

Thing #18 - Online Productivity Tools

Zoho vs. Word

Well, hi there. Bill Gates doesn't allow me to start off with a kiss! I am creating a test document in the Zoho Writer program ( oops, web-based application). So far it seems fairly similar to Word. I can't find a tutorial on the site except for the FAQ section, so I hope I don't have too many questions. Let me see if I can get this over to my blog. Bye now.

Now I'm back in Blogger. It was quite easy to get my Zoho document over to my blog. Zoho Writer is a neat site. I was interested in looking over the templates on the site as I need to create a poster about an upcoming concert, but I didn't find anything that would help in that endeavor.
I'm off to explore Google Doc. Bye - sorry no wink this time!

Thing #17 - Maryland Libraries Sandbox Wiki

I thought playing in the sandbox would be more fun!! From the directions at the top of the site, I thought I had to create a new page and then add it to the Favorite Blogs page. Of course, that was wrong, and it took me quite a while to get my page deleted. At one point I was afraid that I was about to delete the entire Sandbox! Eventually I got my blog listed correctly with the other Harford County blogs. At least I hope it's still there and that the link still works! After that I went on to add short edits to two other pages - Favorites and Favorite Childhood Books. That went smoothly, so I was able to leave the sandbox on a positive note.

Thing #16 - Wikis

I have been waiting to find out about wikis ever since they were mentioned at the Technology Fair. At that time I knew about Wikipedia because it comes up so frequently in search results, but I didn't see how that fit in with what was being said about wikis. After exploring the various discovery resources I now understand that a wiki is a "quick-to-build, easy-to-edit website on which all information can be edited, changed, or rewritten by users or members of the site" (quoting from Wiki, wiki, wiki). I'm not so sure about the "easy" to build part, but I won't worry about that because I doubt that I ever start a wiki. Also, it seems to me that the original idea of anyone adding or changing content has been modified in many cases. Almost all of the wikis I looked at required a password to do any editing. I'm sure that that came about because some people were doing inappropriate things!
I can see many ways in which libraries could use wikis. Librarians and patrons alike could work together to develop subject guides to websites, add annotations to the library catalog, and turn the library website into a community wiki. Librarians themselves could use wikis to collaborate on group projects, share conference information , and exchange ideas about library policies and practices. The possibilities are endless.

Thing #15 - Web 2.0, Library 2.0

Library 2.0 certainly is many things to many people. As I read through the various perspectives that were suggested, I noticed that the theme of change kept appearing over and over again. The authors didn't all share the same vision of what Library 2.0 encompasses or even should encompass, but all noted that it reflects a transition in the ways in which library services are delivered to the users.
In reflecting on what Library 2.0 means to me, I had to reminisce on my own ideas about libraries and their functions in various stages of my life. When I was a youngster, libraries were places to get books for pleasure reading, and I could hardly wait for the Bookmobile every 2 or 3 weeks. In high school and college, libraries became places of drudgery where one had to go to search for books to aid in writing term papers. After marriage and having a family, libraries once again became pleasant places where we could check out books, go to story times, etc. However, in my mind and experience, libraries were always about BOOKS. I remember being very surprised when the new Whiteford branch opened and had materials including video tapes, cassette tapes, etc., in addition to books. That, of course, was nothing compared to the shift in perspective that came about with computers, Internet access, online catalogs and data bases. The world has changed; libraries have changed; and my ideas about libraries' functions have changed as well.
I do agree with one article I read in which the author pointed out that libraries have never been the sole source of information for individuals. However, libraries are leaders in disseminating information in whatever way, shape or form that constant changes and advances may take them. HCPL has certainly embraced many of these changes, always in a well-thought-out and researched manner. I am sure that our services will continue to be constantly updated and evaluated as we strive to meet the needs of our users.

Thing #14 - Technorati

Technorati is another amazing site and resource that I had never heard of before Learning 2.0. The number of blogs out there is unbelievable, and this site is certainly a valuable tool for those who like (and have the time) to read blogs to find the postings and topics they are interested in. I followed the Discovery exercises and did various kinds of searches. Learning 2.0 remains a popular topic. My key word search for this topic returned 4,065 blog posts, the tag search returned 4,068 posts and 18 videos, and the blog directory search revealed 298 blogs about Learning 2.0. I explored the lists of favored blogs, top searches and top blogs. The name "Boing Boing" had come up as I was working on other things, so I was interested to see what it, "the most popular blog in the world" was all about.
I don't know how often I will return to Technorati, mainly because once you start reading blogs a lot of time goes by very quickly! I do think it is a very worthwhile undertaking and am glad to know of its existence.

Thing #13 - Tagging, Del.icio.us

Earlier today I could not imagine that I would be writing these words, but I have found that I actually like Del.icio.us! I explored all the suggested resources that were available (the "highly recommended" video tutorial is still disabled) and then looked around the site, checking out various bookmarks , the tag cloud, etc. I decided that I would like to set up a personal Del.icio.us account and this is where the trouble and frustration began. I was determined to add the Del.icio.us button to my browser toolbar. I followed the directions on the site (several times) and, each time, it would say that the button had been successfully installed. Wrong! It did not appear on my toolbar. I finally gave up and went shopping! Later, much later, this evening I approached the site again and realized that the directions I had been following were for Internet Explorer while my current browser is MSN. I do have Explorer on the computer and when I opened it, there was the Del.icio.us button right where it was supposed to be. JOY!! I then spent some time trying to get it moved or copied to my MSN browser and eventually found some FAQs on the site that noted that it is not currently possible to add the Del.icio.us button to the MSN browser. So much for that.
I had fun adding some bookmarks (including HCPL passport) and tags to my Del.icio.us favorites. I imagine that I will return to the site if I want to see what other users have bookmarked for a certain tag. It seems to me that this would be a wonderful site to use if I were still doing research, writing papers, etc. It would be a much easier way to organize materials and sub-topics than the old (really old) index card system.

Thing #12 - Rollyo

Rollyo was a new concept to me. I explored the site, examined the suggested search rolls, and browsed through many others that seemed of interest. I created my own search roll of online shopping sites that I have used with positive results. I can't really see that I will use this tool too often as I usually know which site has the item or items that I am interested in. However, I do see the value in using some of the already-created search rolls such as reference, news, etc. to find lists of reliable online resources.
Here is the link to my Online Shopping search roll.
http://rollyo.com/bobbjohn/online_shopping/

Thing #11 - Library Thing

I really like Library Thing. This is a great site. I quickly added about 14 titles including a mixture of books from my home library and recent reads from HCPL. It is interesting to click on the titles, see how many other Library Thing users have the book, and then see what other titles the Recommendations Machine comes up with. The Unsuggestor was funny: Plato, Camus, Dostoyevsky, and Karl Marx are not likely to be found in a personal library of those who enjoy Janet Evanovich!
Here, I hope, is the link to my Library Thing catalog.
http://www.librarything.com/catalog.php?view=bobbjon&shelf=shelf

Thing #10 - Online Image Generators

I see that image generators are fun and that time (a lot of it!) passes very quickly when one is exploring them. I have come up with an avatar of myself (hah!) at the beach at sunset, my favorite time to be there. I have on my cheetah swimsuit as I have a group of friends who call ourselves the Cheetahs. The only thing missing is a book in my hand. Evidently the Meez characters don't read!

Thing #9 - MERLIN

I became acquainted with MERLIN, visiting and exploring the site and subscribing to its feed. I also clicked on each of the suggested search tools for finding feeds of interest (Feedster, Topix, Syndic8, and Technorati). I was pleasantly surprised to find that the Topix site allowed me to easily create feeds based on news from my hometown, Delta, PA and my vacation hometown, Ocean City, NJ. I had tried to find an RSS feed for Ocean City while working on Thing #8 but was unable to find a civic website that offered a feed. Delta is such a small town that I was amazed at the news that was delivered through the Topix feed. I played around with Blogline's search tool. I especially liked the "Matching Feeds" lists that appeared on the right side of the page for some of my searches.

Thing #8 - RSS

RSS has now been added to my vocabulary, and, through an afternoon of exploration, I feel that I have some familiarity with feeds and newsreaders. I worked through the suggested Discovery resources and then set up my Bloglines account and began adding newsfeeds. I chose a variety of topics of personal interest, suggested library-related feeds, and blogs of friends. One pesky feed has popped up that doesn't make much sense. So far I have attempted to unsuscribe to it twice, but it stubbornly remains on my list.

Thing #7 - Creating a Blog Post

Hmmm, my thoughts about technology...Technology can be great and amazing, but it can also be a real pain! During my teaching career there were many, many technological changes and advances. Our first computer (one machine for the entire school) was basically a glorified workbook, showing a smiley face on the screen if a student answered a math problem correctly. At that early stage of development, we teachers were taking courses that taught us such things as writing programs that made our names scroll endlessly down the screen. The students, meanwhile, were learning the Logo program at the third-grade level. Neither of these activities proved to be very useful in the long run. As time went on, we received more computers - and a computer lab. We teachers then spent a great deal of time mastering word processing and desktop publishing programs. The students were busy using CD-Roms such as SIM City, Reader Rabbit, etc. to engage in interactive learning activities. When our building finally became wired for the Internet, the potential uses of computers expanded immensely.
I have always enjoyed keeping up with technological advances, but, as I said, at times trying to do things in new ways can be quite frustrating. I would be determined that I was going to do something (such as, oh say, make up a schedule for parent/teacher conferences using a word precessing program) and would end up spending much more time than if I had simply done the schedule with pencil and paper. Also, the language involved when dealing with computer-related matters such as installation, trouble-shooting, etc. is not easy to understand. Those Fatal Error messages are still scary!
I do realize that technology involves much more than computers. I am enjoying using my digital camera, and it is fun to explore the many avenues , such as Flickr, Kodak Easy Share, etc., for organizing and sharing these photos. Likewise, it's hard to remember a time before the instant communication provided by cell phones and answering machines.
I thought that I was semi-proficient in technology, but, as I look over the 23 Things, I see many terms that are totally unfamiliar to me. Hopefully, the fun will outweigh the frustrations as I explore them!

Thing #6 extended

Rusty and Duke
Originally uploaded by Bobbie Johnson

Here is the trading card mentioned previously. It seems I can't get both images in the same post.

Anyway, some of the other applications that I explored included Fastr (a game where you are shown a series of pictures and attempt to guess the tag), TagMan (played like the familiar game of Hangman), and Flickr Flash Puzzle Zone (make an online jigsaw puzzle from a photo). I made a puzzle of Rusty and Duke's picture on the trading card and thought I could include the html link to it, but that's not working.

These games were fun but I mainly see them as a way to waste time. I doubt that I will use them very often.

Thing #6 - Flickr Mash-ups

Magazine cover
Originally uploaded by Bobbie Johnson

I have had a good time exploring the Flickr mashups and third-party tools. The number and variety of applications is mind-boggling and a lot of the 3rd party tools use terms that I don't even understand in their descriptions. I have created a magazine cover and a trading card from photos I added to my Flickr account and will attempt to include them here.

Thing #5 - Flickr

Cal Ripken Jr 2000 Bowman Early Indicators
Originally uploaded by http://www.flickr.com/people/9444161@N04/

I have explored the Flickr website. I have chosen to add this photo of Cal Ripken, Jr. from Flickr to my blog because my husband and I are traveling to Cooperstown along with friends this weekend for Cal's induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Of course, with more than 60,000 expected attendees, it remains to be seen how much of the ceremony we will actually see!

Thing #4 - Register Blog and Track Progress

Yes, my blog appears to be registered. I have downloaded the 23 Things Tracking Log and will now get busy on exploring and completing the Things.

Weeks 1 and 2

I have read the information about the program and feel that I have a good overview of the 23 Things. Obviously, I have set up my own blog which was not difficult - except for figuring out all the various user names, passwords, identities, etc. that were asked for. It didn't help that I am using a computer at the Ocean City, New Jersey public library and have to keep my eyes on the clock in the right hand corner of the screen as it ticks off my 30 minute session. Luckily, I have been extended several times, but that can never be taken for granted.
I think I have my blog registered, but it has not showed up on the Blog Wall as of this posting. I know that that can take a few days so will keep checking for it. It has been quite interesting to look through some of the other HCPL blogs.

A main goal of educators is to instill in students the desire for knowledge and the motivation to keep exploring new ideas and challenges long after school days are through - in other words, to become lifelong learners. How appropriate that I, as a retired teacher with 28 years in the field of elementary education, am now involved in lifelong learning about such things as Blogs, Flikrs, Wikis, and various other terms that are as foreign to me as words on a printed page were to my first-graders each September. Hopefully, it will be an enjoyable experience. Maybe I'll be calling on some of those former students, now tech-savvy teens, for help!!