Thursday, April 29, 2010

Thing #19

OK, training isn't supposed to be this much fun, but sometimes you get lucky. I just checked out the Web 2.0 Awards site and (naturally) went to the food category. Checked out a couple of sites, but by far "Im Cooked" was the most entertaining, as well as being useful in a library setting. As its logo states, "Cook it. Film it. Share it.", Im Cooked is a video recipe sharing site. For someone looking for a specific recipe, or a how-to video, this site may be better (and faster) than slogging through the 641.5 cookbook aisle, especially for the under-30 crowd, who may have been raised on take-out and microwave meals. Although I still love (and use) epicurious.com, this site puts the sizzle into recipe searching. Enjoy the video!

tlk

Friday, April 23, 2010

Thing #18 - Zoho Writer blog post

I'm creating this post in Zoho Writer and exporting it to my blog.  This software would be useful when creating shared library documents, such as updating the Summer Reading Lists.  Committee members could each make their own edits/additions/corrections more easily in real time.  It's also nice that you can do a "quick create" document without having to register or log in.  Unfortunately, to export it to my blog I had to register, as the "share" tab doesn't appear in the "quick create" mode.

 

 

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Thing #17

Oops! Another application that isn't working -- so much for trying the Sandbox Wiki. I've tried several times, but after talking with colleagues, they were unable to access it as well. On to #18 . . .

tlk

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Thing #16

It's wiki time! Yes, I do find them useful on occasion (e.g., Wikipedia). After looking at some library wikis, I think they work best for book lists and subject listings. One of the benefits is that they can be expanded as new information becomes available; if you're looking for books similar to the latest bestseller, the wikis can be updated as new titles appear.

tlk

Monday, April 19, 2010

Thing #15

OK, I've read about Libraries 2.0, and the future as written looks pretty wide open -- but my question is, who is going to fund all of this change (training, staff, equipment) when across the country local governments are laying off staff and closing libraries? (Not to mention essential public safety services like police and fire.) Also, one of the essayists mentioned a substantial decrease in circulation over the past few years; obviously that librarian doesn't work in a chaotic, demanding, bursting-at-the-seams public library with a growing/shifting population demographic. Bottom line? SHOW ME THE MONEY!

tlk

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Thing #14

Well, I've looked at the Technorati website, and there is a difference between searching the blog directory for "learning 2.0" (zero), the blog posts (25), and tags (zero). Unfortunately, the "Popular" section of Technorati's website was unavailable, so part 2 of the assignment can't be done.

Overall, I did find some interesting blogs in various subject areas that I probably wouldn't have found otherwise. Although serendipity is a wonderful thing, it's a precious commodity in these fiscally depressed times, so I probably won't make use of it very often. (But it's nice to know it exists, just in case.)

tlk

Thursday, April 8, 2010

Thing #13

This assignment focused on del.icio.us, the social bookmarking site. Unfortunately, the 12-min. instructional video no longer exists on their website (another case of broken/dead links, something that is occurring fairly regularly in 23 Things). However, I did explore the site, and found an interesting bookmark titled "10 Simple Google Search Tricks" from NYT.com. I learned that you can use Google as a calculator (all these years of opening the calculator on my computer -- what a waste of time!), and that you can get the correct time anywhere in the world by just typing "time whatever city". So, even though I probably won't set up my own account, I did find the site interesting and helpful.

tlk

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Thing #12

This time I've created my own search roll in Rollyo; of course it's related to food. However, I really don't see myself using this tool in my work or personal life. I guess it's good to know that it exists and how to set up my own search roll, but I'd rather just use Google.

http://rollyo.com/gburggirl/tlkglobalfoodie/

tlk

Thursday, April 1, 2010

Thing #11

After reviewing Library Thing for this assignment, I realized I had set up an account a couple of years ago; if you have a lot of time, you can really get into posting your personal library collection on it. But, like a lot things, you have to maintain it (at least occasionally), and that's probably why I never went back to it -- too many other demands on my time. I did set up a new account, however, and in keeping with the theme of this blog, it's food-related. Check it out through the link below:

http://www.librarything.com/catalog/tlk