Thing # 11

Library Thing is a cool device for keeping up with one's own personal library. It certainly is easy to catalog! Cataloging in library school should have been this easy. The message boards are fun and intersting to read. It is intersting to see who is reading what I am.

Thing # 10

This is the most fun I have had in this 23 process. I absolutely love these image generators. Most of the time I had to save the images to my hard drive and then add the images as a page element. The smiley face image was a little tricky at first to save because I had to activate the smiley face program on my computer. One picture I wanted to use from my hard drive would never cooperate with me. I tried numerous times but never got it to go. I finally decided the size of the picture must have been the problem. I finally decided on another picture that worked just fine. Yes, I could have worked on cropping it, but cropping would have taken away from the picture. I needed the the entire shot.The license plate image was the easiest because the Image Chef generator has a button to select to send the image directly to your blog.

I can see using these generators to make personalized signs, book marks, and buttons for our libraries. I think I will try some of these images on my library site and the school site which I also maintain. The problem I see is tearing myself away from playing with the generators and getting back to work! I stayed up until almost 2 am playing last night!

Thing # 9

Wow, RSS and all of the feeds available are fantastic, but frankly very overwhelming.
It's very hard to decide which feeds to choose, which are best for one's needs and interests. We obviously can't possilby read them all. I'm sure the list of feeds chosen will change as our needs change.
I found the Google Blog Search the easiest to use. I guess this is because I am very famliar with Google. I added the MISD News links to my news feed. Feedster was not working any of the times I tried to access it. I really enjoyed Topix the best. I set it to Mesquite and now I can have up to the minute news on Mesquite. I added the Top Stories feed to my news list. I found Syndic8.com very overwhelming and confusing as a new blogger. I liked the way Technorati was set up with topic tabs at the top of the page. I think the most unusual bit of info I picked up on my journey through the feeds was under the "life" tab of Technorati. Chocolate laptop makes computing tasty!

As far as ussefulness for us as librarians,I found the School Library Blogs on Suprglu a good tool. We can keep up with what is going on all over the country in our field.

To sum up my experience with this execise,I would say blogging and understanding RSS and feeds is a definite work in progress. It will change constantly and require us as librarians to stay up on the latest news the best we can. As I said earlier, I am feeling rather overwhelmed at the moment, but hopefully as I play with this new technolgy my comfort zone is going to improve.

Thing # 8

RSS and newsreaders now allow my Favorite websites to come to me instead of me going to them. I don't have to waste time gong there if there is nothing new for the day.
I will definiltey use RSS in my personal life as well as in my school life to help me make the most of my online time.
Libraries can use this technology to set up feeds to teachers and students. Teachers have very little extra time, so setting up educational feeds for teachers on a school site could be very helpful. What a great way to keep students involved in the library program by providing them with appropriate feeds on subjects they are intersted in and linking them to sites they may actually not know about. This could be particularly helpful in keeping students and teachers aware of the latest current events they might be interested in.

Thing # 7

Google definitley has it all. Lots of fun playing on Google with all of its options and gadgets. I just wish my email address could get verified by Google. I click and click on the option to get my email verified, but it just doesn't work. At least I can sign in although there have been times it would not let me do that. Would be nice if there was a live person to talk to but as my husband says, it would be impossible to get through to the person. Guess I could try changing my sign in email but I'm afraid things would really get messed up and I would never get into my blog again.

I have used Google alerts at home for a long time. My family and I have also been using Google Earth for some time. That truely is a cool feature. The indiviualized Google homepage is neat as well as the Notebooks. What did we ever do without Google?

Thing # 6

I love playing with the Mashups and mosaics. It took me awhile to figure it out. I had to ask my computer expert hubby for help since he uploads our family photos to Smug Mug. I have to admit without him I would still be sitting here trying to get the mosaic and mashups on my blog site.
I see so many posibilities for these applications in our libraries.I think Bluebonnet trading cards might be a great way to encourage students to read the Bluebonnet books. The lower grade students would love Mockingbird trading cards too.
Creating mosaics of various library activities and putting them on our own library websites for everyone to see would be so innovative and different from the "usual" pictures we put on our sites.. I think I will create a new section on my library website for mosaics and just keep adding throughout the year. I am really looking forward to getting some great pictures during children's Book Week, Book Fair and when Santa comes to visit!

Christian the Bookworm

chris15 mo 064
Originally uploaded by Library Magic

My favorite bookworm Christian reading one of his favorite books

Thing #5

I had heard of Flickr but had never experimented with it before tonight. I think there are endless possibilities for the use of Flickr in libraries. I typed libraries in the Group section and found all kinds of interesting and fun pictures of activities in libraries around the country as well as personal photos of librarians. MISD librarians could establish a Group and share pictures of activities in their libraries. Children's Book Week would be a great week to share pictures from all of our libraries.

Thing # 4

Blogging in the library should be a natural. What a great way to get feedback from students and teachers about books and the library program in general.Since time seems to be a real factor in gettng my book club going again, I was thinking it might be accomplished with blogging. Instead of trying to find a time conveninet for members to meet, we could all share a book and our thoughts by posting online. Students and teachers could also post their wish list of books for the library which could aid in collection development.

Thing # 3

Playing with the Avatar is a blast. I created one avatar yesterday and then completely changed it today. I may have an avatar of the day!
Posting is fun but I did have trouble getting back into my account last night at home.I could gain access with my mac laptop but not my home PC.Go figure. For some reason my email account can't seem to be verified. I spent a lot of time on the phone with Mary today trying to figure out what was wrong. As of this time,my email is still unverified but at least I can get in and post!

Thing #2

The hardest habit for me to address in the lifelong learning process is viewing problems as challenges. As with many people, it is easy to quit or have someone else solve the problem for me when I have technology difficulties. Going a different path rather than addressing the problem is the easiest and causes the fewest headaches. It is also hard sometimes to get the
"teacher" to allow me to experiment and solve the problem on my own so that I may in fact accomplish my goal. Finding a patient teacher who is willing to let me make mistakes and correct them on my own with guidance is essential to achieving my technology goals.

The easiest habit for me and the one that enhances my own learning is to teach and mentor others. It is a fact that teaching a skill requires one to learn the skill. In teaching others, I find questions and answers that I had not even considered. I see myself in others as I witness their frustrations with new technology. In teaching I also learn from my students as they discover something new I had yet to find.

Thing #1 Never Be Bored!

Learning has never been so exciting! Anyone with access to the internet should never be bored. The internet allows us to connect with people and resources all over the world. Search engines and data bases allow us to explore any topic we can imagine. Instant messaging keeps us in immediate touch with our friends and loved ones.Message boards and chat rooms introduces us to new friends. Blogs keep us in tune with the ideas of many and allow us to contribute our own thoughts to whoever will read and listen. Anyone not in touch with the online world is not truly in touch with the 21st century. All individuals, whether old or young, owe it to themselves to be connected to all the world .

While exploring Learning 2.0 I want to learn more about blogging, wikis,podcasts,picture and video sharing.
I want to know what my own children and many of my students already know. I want to be able to use these tools effectively and help other students and teachers to learn about and use these tools effectively. I don't ever want to stop exploring and learning.