Words

I think the history of language and use of words is fascinating. How we can communicate through symbols and etches (well keyboards and computers now)- it is an amazing feat. To be able to transfer complex ideas and concepts from individual to another through words - what a wonderful thing. My personal interests would include Japanese kanji, Arabic calligraphy, Mayan glyphs and Tibetan script. I can admire them for their purpose and practicality but also appreciate the simple beauty present.

Sudoku

I simply love doing the sudoku puzzles and find they can be both relaxing as well as offering stimulation for the brain. My goal has been to work on a few of the puzzles each day. I try to do one or two at lunch - just helps to get my brain moving some days.

The library has gotten a few good books on sudoku and there are lots of free webpages to explore too. I am quite proud of myself that I can do the "medium" level puzzles without too much trouble but still crumble with the "hard" levels. I will get there in time. They are fun to work on -- check out some nice webpages - just print off your puzzle and get your brain working.


WEB SUDOKU
SUDOKU PUZZLES
FREE SUDOKU

Online library learning

I found a very nice resource for online learning for librarians and library staff. The site is called LibraryU. LibraryU webpage

It is created with the efforts of the Illinois Library Systems and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. I incorporated an online learning initiative as a part of my FY08 PERS and have found this resource to be very beneficial. A series of instructional lessons are offered on a variety of library-based topics and most lessons take 45 minutes or so to complete. As you go through - you answer a small number of review questions and upon successful completion of the course then you can print a certificate to verify completion.

The program is free and even tracks the courses you have registered for as well as completed. I hope to explore additional online learning options soon too. It is hard to beat the convenience of this option and some are quite good.

Continuation

I completed the "23 Things" project and enjoyed the learning path it involved. My goal was to do one or two things each week but to not rush the process - to explore while learning. The one insight that has truly stayed with me is that it is possible to find time to learn new skills each week - even each day if we are lucky. To be excited about work and find creative sparks through networks such as blogs.

In talking with Maurice the other week - I realized that I felt the project was finished but I came to understand this was incorrect and very limiting for me to think this way. So, I will work at continuing to post thoughts and observations with a focus towards my work and ongoing personal learning in libraries.

The MP3 player is very nice and I hope to use it soon with daily walks. A nice incentive to finish but I would have enjoyed the program without it - but - I am grateful for receiving such a nice gift. Maybe the posts will be read - maybe not - but I want to take time to learn, explore, share and have a dialogue. I am happy to begin once again.

Thoughts on 23 Things

Looks as though this journey has ended but I do plan to continue to explore many of the resources presented in this program. So - in many ways I am thinking of this project as a beginning. I am interested and do deeply wish to pursue lifelong learning in all things. All the better if these things can benefit me professionally. I think this project has motivated me to do something new or work at learning something new each week. If we break things down into small pieces then they become manageable.

No comments to improve the program because I found the presentation to be great. I liked that the focus was on a few items each week and there were many resources to support the discovery exercises. I would be very interested in participating in any future programs of this type. Overall - I enjoyed all of the "things" and would not have a particular favorite. Each one was something of an exploration for me and gave me the support to pursue them in more detail in the future. The strongest benefit of the project for me was the measured presentation of the tasks and the support to make them achievable for all staff - regardless of our level of tech experience.

Thanks - I had a great time and enjoyed the experience.

Week 9: Podcasts, Video & Downloadable Audio

I have become very familiar with YouTube over the last 6 months or so and just love it. I have learned small things as I used this site and one (for me at least) is to ignore the comments posted below the video content. A majority, not all but many, of them are incoherent rambles and I really use this resource for video content. Wonderful for music performances and to find things thought lost. Can be a lot of fun and even informational. I choose to post a video that was made to honor one of my favorite artists - William Ackerman - really liked the collection of images and the nice cover version of his song. One final comment about YouTube is that it has opened up a venue for people to express creativity which can be a wonderful thing.



Podcasts - Worked with Thing 21 and found the links posted on the Discovery Exercises to be helpful. I did subscribe to several podcasts to my Bloglines account and have enjoyed that feature. Some of the podcasts were radio-based and some TV-based but I would miss them or forget the times they ran. So this is nice to have them sent to me to listen to at anytime or to search the archives. I really am interested to see how these applications can utilized professionally by libraries especially from a training perspective. We could train with librarians throughout the country at our own desk and also share so many resources to better our profession.

Familiar with the resources of NetLibrary and Project Gutenburg because we use them frequently assisting patrons at work. A solid resource and nice to have access to these remotely for our patrons.

Week 8: Online Application & Tools

I created my Zoho account today and have begun to explore all of the services offered on the site. It looks really cool and I love that it is all free and offers the chance to break Microsoft's stranglehold on applications. I think the online planning tools will be something I will find useful. Anyone who knows me then knows that I simply love to make lists. So the idea of having an online resource that I can post ideas & lists that I can access anywhere is wonderful news to me.

The thing I really like too is that the documents are stored online so you do not have to carry portable storage devices or notes. Seems like a neat approach to working out ideas and having them being made accessible.

To work on Thing #19 - I selected the music site called "Pandora". It is interesting in that you can essentially create your own radio station to play music selections or genres of music that you like. Seems to be another example of how things are being increasingly more personalized and it is good too that the selections can be shared with others. To consider within a library environment - I guess we could refer patrons to the resource to look for music of their preference. So it would be beneficial from a recreational aspect. I have not explored the site deeply but if it offers very diverse selections then this could be helpful for students in a music course or with supporting library programming.

Michael Hedges

I had listed Michael Hedges as one of my favorite artists so here is a sampling of his work. He sadly passed away in late 1997 in a car accident - really a loss of a great artist and a great man. There is a fund set up for his children through his webpage Nomad Land
He was such a treasure and shared so much - I posted this too because of the wonders of YouTube which allows performances to be shared - very hard to locate them otherwise.

Week 7: Wikis

I completed Thing #16 by reviewing the various Wiki links provided and found some interesting and some a little boring. The layout seems to be more basic and less flashy - so I guess I compare them to web pages even though they are different in how they gain content. I like the idea of patrons/people being able to add content but would have some concerns about deletions or malicious usage. But - to be focus on the positive - it can be a wonderful way to allow patrons (thinking of library land here) to create content and comment on things of interest.

I really liked the Charlotte and Mecklenburg Counties Library Wiki on "core Competencies". They do so much there that is just cool. The page was clearly created and organized. The content was helpful and of interest. The WIKI on Library Success was also of interest to me personally. I really enjoy the idea of this running dialogue between staff and their library - where they can comment and have an arena to share ideas as well as successes. Princeton's Public Library was also nice with the Book Lovers Wiki - I thought of HCPL's Blog-A-Book where we have this concept in place now.

I found the ALA Wiki with New Orleans to be loaded with content but it was too much for me to scan. Almost information overload and I did not like the presentation of the Wiki. The information was helpful and would be of use to conference attendees but it just did not click for me.

As for library applications - I think libraries could use Wiki's in many diverse and interesting ways. Providing updates on programs, comments from patrons on library programs we offer or they would like to see, computer DIY courses for patrons, tips on doing library research, book comments and reviews, guides for teachers to databases and information for students. It seems like there could be many avenues to explore.

To complete Thing #17 - I went and played in the Sandbox Wiki and posted my blog to the list. Here is a link to the small posting I did to just get a feel for the process - not very exciting but it will be fun to go back and improve upon it. I thought it was really easy to create the content and post it - very friendly to use.
Novel Ideas Wiki

Week 6: Technorati & 2.0 thoughts

Worked with Technorati and things went well.
Technorati Profile
In looking at the top searches I recognized some - (eg) YouTube - but there were some I have never seen before. So it could be interesting to see what people are looking at. Often though, I find my interests do not match the most popular searches - which is preferable to me because I honestly do not care about Fergie or Paris Hilton. I thought the list of top blogs was curious. The tags made sense in browsing.

I would agree that the Library 2.0 concept would involve a mindset change in how we approach library services for our patrons. Libraries and their staff, in my opinion, are a diverse group of people to begin with so this is very beneficial in that their varied experiences as well as approaches to challenges would be very broad. This is wonderful for us because we become fluid and adaptive to change. By adding the technology element then we have another means of increasing the quality and level of service we provide. I loved the video clip for "The Machine is Us/ing Us" - a lot to think about and such a great presentation technique. How we are shaping and being shaped in turn.

Dr. Schultz's To a temporary place in time...was interesting to see how she projects things may move with libraries. The idea of collecting librarians and their thoughts as opposed to books themselves. Who knows how we will evolve? Mr. Stephens post is also interesting to me - the user-centered library practice. A little more down-to-earth touch with tech and its applications. I find it all very exciting to think about the future of libraries.

Week 6: Tagging

I began this week with task #13 and used Del.icio.us. The tutorials were helpful and gave a nice introduction - this is all new to me with this week's work. Most of the terms I have heard in passing but never explored or used their services. It is always good to learn some new things.

I worked around in Del.icio.us with the topic of customer service - which has always been of great interest to me. I think this is because so often I find that customer service is marginal at best and it makes an impression on me when it is exceptional. I found some interesting blogs and web pages - I did create an account - very easy to do. It was interesting to see how many people had saved this as reference points. I can appreciate how Del.icio.us can be beneficial as a way to retrieve "favorites" from anywhere but I can see applications in research that are useful too. Good ideas and resources for direct usage applications and also for presentations.

Week 5: (parts two & three)

I enjoyed working with Rollyo. I created a list of sites relating to traditional Japanese martial arts. The site was friendly to use - I just do not like the ads they pop into the list when you finish but otherwise it was good.

Japanese Martial Arts Links

I also looked at the Library Thing web page and thought that this is indeed a wonderful thing. Although with the number of books I have - I could easily open a library branch myself. The idea of comparing lists and being able to "talk" with others with similar tastes is appealing. My list is composed of a few books with a martial arts theme to compliment my Rollyo creation.

Book Thing - Martial Arts Reader

Book Quotation

I thought this was an interesting quote to observe.

Week 5: Play Week (part one)

Love the Week 5 title of "Play Week". Actually I have been having fun all along so this should be nice too.

I worked on my avatar first and went to Yahoo Avatars. It was easy to do and fun. Once I get started it was hard to really stop -- just so many options and nice little things you can work with. Very easy to get carried away with.



I like to hike and the outdoors so this image felt comfortable. If you click on the image then you go to the Yahoo site to create your own avatar. The info on exporting the image was on the intro page - so all was well once I found that.

The second part involved the use of image generators. I found them a little more challenging to just begin with but once I worked on the sites then it was fine. The pages just seemed really busy with ads and other things. The Generator Blog seemed to have the most options and made sense to me in usage to begin with. It was a good overview and then I just went to the web with searches on "image generators".

Played around with a few and here are the results.



The online image generator was from COOLTEXT - lots of things to play with on the site.

Cool Text website

Week 4: MERLIN

I enjoyed and appreciated all of the information present on the MERLIN site. The only thing I did not like was not there is a delay to get your password. Lots of great resources and information for Maryland libraries - I do want to check out the online learning sections. Subscribed to their feed too. Plan to explore this resource a great deal more.

The search tools that were listed for blogs were helpful but sometimes when I got to them - it just took a few moments to get orientated. I am used to the general search engines and their being a little cleaner to use. The blog searches were sometimes a little crowded - I just wanted a search box and results. It is cool they offer suggestions and other options though. Bloglines and Feedster were my two favorite search tools for blogs. The Topix site was good too but took me a little time to get comfortable with. Previously if I wanted to run searches for blogs then I would Google them just under "blog directories" and follow links. The sites/tools provided did work better and were more focused.

Zen Mind

Week 4: RSS & Newsreaders

The tutorials for the RSS feeds were really helpful to me. By the time I actually set up my Blogline account and added a few feeds - I felt like an old hand. I like the concept of having the news sent to me as opposed to seeking it out. Makes more sense and I can be more selective with news that is selected to be read.

Very friendly to use and it will be interesting to try the feeds on a daily basis. I have heard so much about RSS but was not clear on how it operated and how to set-up an account. So this was a very helpful learning portion of the program for me.

Week 3: Tech interest

Technology has provided new ways of working, learning and how we just live. I think one thing that is impressive is the influence of technology with learning - for everyone - not just students.

The ability to receive an advanced degree without ever setting foot on your campus is incredible to me. Much more convenient and flexible for working professionals to pursue advanced coursework. I think that technology, such as the Internet and databases, contribute to the ability to more fluidly pursue lifelong learning. The presence of downloads for lectures, books and other content makes access seamless. The ability of the consumer to drive and influence tech trends is interesting.

Week 3: Flickr.com

Explored the Flickr site and tried the Flickr mashups. I really enjoyed searching on topics of interest for myself and finding images that I have never seen on the general web. The site was friendly to use and search. I did not realize how broad it is with content - photos from so many countries and people.

My first search was looking for the Dalai Lama. I found some wonderful photos of him from his talks. Many of the images I would never have seen otherwise. I feel a little limited though because I do not own a digital camera at the moment so I can not post myself. What if the Dalai Lama wants to search for me?

Did learn a new word in exploring -- "interestingness" -- I like that. The geotagging feature was neat - the linking of images with their place of origin - cool concept - very visual and opens a new perspective to consider. The video tutorials were helpful and well done. I can see how this technique could be used in so many ways in libraries for patrons as well as staff. Too many other features to present at once - still exploring - site is much deeper than I thought.

I was a little lost initially with the Flickr mashups. So - I googled it and found a nice site that explained it well and linked into ten cool ones. Getting a better grasp on it now.

http://www.webmonkey.com/06/08/index4a.html

Favorite one was the first one Retrievr -- you draw with colors an image and a search is generated for images best matching it. Nice!!! Just so interesting to see how people have run with ideas and shared them. Clor Pickr was different - liked how visual and diverse it could be so quickly.

Week 2: Blogging

Creating a blog was much easier than I thought it would be. Still getting some of the basics down and playing with some of the features. The largest hurdle for me has been "jumping-in" and getting started. Now that it is up and running - it has been fun to add additional features and other things. Still struggling with adding a YouTube video or two but I will work on it.

Week 1 : Program

I have just begun the Maryland Libraries Learning 2.0 program. So far - so good. I like the organization of the program and how it builds upon itself as we move along. The 7.5 habits were interesting to apply to where I am currently and where I would like to be with my practice of lifelong learning. I am looking forward to progressing within the program and exploring.

7.5 Lifelong Learning Habits

Yeah!!! I have begun my first blog. One of the first things we have been asked to do is to comment on one of the easiest and one of the hardest habits from the 7.5 Lifelong Learning Habits.



The easiest one for me would be "accepting responsibility for my own learning". I think this is something I have always worked at doing professionally and in my personal life. On a smaller scale - I think we often do this in the course of an average day. With patrons or staff, we come across questions and/or things we have never done. So we are always learning and adapting as we go. On a larger scale -I think we work at seeing what trends or demands may be coming and work to prepare through reading, discussions and training. A big appeal to me in being a librarian is the need to constantly be learning and accepting change.

The hardest habit then would be "viewing problems as challenges". I love the concept of this but it is just so hard to put into daily practice. I think this is one that can be hard for everyone. The opportunity to take any problem and begin with a positive point of approaching it is wonderful. Thinking that there is a solution - I just need to figure it out. That every "problem" is actually a challenge and a chance to be creative. Great way to approach life too. Turn obstacles into learning opportunities for personal growth. Something to work on.